Quick Review - Celebrity Beyond Christmas Cruise 12/18 to 12/26

[ken4556]

Just returned from a fantastic eight-day Christmas cruise on the Celebrity Beyond.  Here is a quick review of our experience.

Background

This was my 38^th cruise and our 12^th Christmas cruise in the last 15 years.   Most of our Christmas Cruises have been on HAL, but the last four out of five have been on Celebrity. 

Embarkation

We did all our paperwork on-line and through the App and it could not have been easier.  No lines, enter the terminal and meet a person with a tablet.  Showed our passports and walked on.  Sea pass card were in our room.

The Ports

We really enjoyed the itinerary of an evening stop in San Juan, St. Thomas, St. Marteen, Tortola, and a Christmas afternoon stop in Nassau.   We were early into both San Juan and Nassau.  Unlike HAL, Celebrity is not afraid to run the ships at a faster speed for passenger friendly port times.

The Ship

The Beyond is beautiful and well designed.  We only had one day where the Oceanview Café seemed crowded, but still had no issue finding a seat.  The theater with the huge screens allows was a great venue for the shows, The Club was a great place for the interaction game shows, and we loved the Grand Plaza and all the seating on the multiple levels.  We did not make any of the shows in Eden.  The Sunset Bar is a great place to visit and there always seemed to be deck chair available. 

Wifi

I purchased the upgraded internet package and it was fantastic.  I was able to stream Yellowstone and YouTube while I was working with very little buffering. Other family members used the standard included internet and indicated it was fine for checking e-mails and Facebook.  

Our Room

We had an IV on Deck 7 right by the rear elevators.  We love the room, plenty of room and storage.  I have mixed feelings on the IV.  I missed having a true veranda, but I loved the extra space and the picture window when we did not want to be outside.  I would book again and see no need to avoid the IV.

Food and Service

We ate in the dining rooms all evening except one night we ate upstairs.  The first night we did not have the best service, but the service the rest of the nights was perfect.  Food was very good.  I do wish they had a little more variety of the “theme” specials for each of the four restaurants as they seemed to stay the same through-out the cruise.  We ate around 5:30 pm each night, but never saw much of a wait for the dining rooms.  Service and selection in the Oceanview were excellent.  The design allows easy access to all the stations even when it is crowded.

Entertainment

This is a major reason we love Celebrity over HAL is having three real production shows with singers and live 7-piece orchestra.  The guest comedian and three guest entertainers were also very good.  The ship has two bands that played in the Grand Plaza, Eden, and on the Pool Deck.  They also music at the Sunset Bar.  Fun events like the Silent Disco and deck parties were great to attend. The cruise director and staff were excellent.

Captain Kate

Captain Kate joined in the middle of the cruise and was in the terminal to say goodbye to all the passengers as we left the boat.  She indicated she is on-board for the next three months.

Summary

We had a fantastic cruise and the Beyond is a beautiful and wonderfully designed ship.  It rarely felt crowded and really enjoyed the design and well-thought venues.

[Lastdance]

Thank you, ken4556, for your review; I have 3 cruises on her for next year, so the information you shared was helpful.  Happy New Year!

[Texed]

Ken,

We were on Beyond in September/October.  We agree with you, Beyond is a beautiful ship.  😊

[jelayne]

We feel the Beyond is the best ship in the fleet.  Love all of them but Beyond is our favorite.

[hcat]

Nice review,,

We liked  EDGE but  BEYOND is our new fav X ship..

Def looking forward to ASCENT....

 

Still think Equinox and Silho are good too, but E Class is amazing.

[jelayne]

1 hour ago, hcat said:

Nice review,,

We liked  EDGE but  BEYOND is our new fav X ship..

Def looking forward to ASCENT....

 

Still think Equinox and Silho are good too, but E Class is amazing.

Too bad we are going a week before you!

Edited December 27, 2022 by jelayne

[hcat]

6 hours ago, jelayne said:

Too bad we are going a week before you!

I know... a bunch of folks  booked the earlier week.. but we stuck with 1/28...we preferred that itin and it's my b day week...We thought BEYOND would be our last cruise ( been there done that)  but ASCENT called to us!  Cruising still a good value vacation for us,,

ENJOY!

 

 

[horseymike]

On 12/26/2022 at 5:31 PM, ken4556 said:

Just returned from a fantastic eight-day Christmas cruise on the Celebrity Beyond.  Here is a quick review of our experience.

Background

This was my 38^th cruise and our 12^th Christmas cruise in the last 15 years.   Most of our Christmas Cruises have been on HAL, but the last four out of five have been on Celebrity. 

Embarkation

We did all our paperwork on-line and through the App and it could not have been easier.  No lines, enter the terminal and meet a person with a tablet.  Showed our passports and walked on.  Sea pass card were in our room.

The Ports

We really enjoyed the itinerary of an evening stop in San Juan, St. Thomas, St. Marteen, Tortola, and a Christmas afternoon stop in Nassau.   We were early into both San Juan and Nassau.  Unlike HAL, Celebrity is not afraid to run the ships at a faster speed for passenger friendly port times.

The Ship

The Beyond is beautiful and well designed.  We only had one day where the Oceanview Café seemed crowded, but still had no issue finding a seat.  The theater with the huge screens allows was a great venue for the shows, The Club was a great place for the interaction game shows, and we loved the Grand Plaza and all the seating on the multiple levels.  We did not make any of the shows in Eden.  The Sunset Bar is a great place to visit and there always seemed to be deck chair available. 

Wifi

I purchased the upgraded internet package and it was fantastic.  I was able to stream Yellowstone and YouTube while I was working with very little buffering. Other family members used the standard included internet and indicated it was fine for checking e-mails and Facebook.  

Our Room

We had an IV on Deck 7 right by the rear elevators.  We love the room, plenty of room and storage.  I have mixed feelings on the IV.  I missed having a true veranda, but I loved the extra space and the picture window when we did not want to be outside.  I would book again and see no need to avoid the IV.

Food and Service

We ate in the dining rooms all evening except one night we ate upstairs.  The first night we did not have the best service, but the service the rest of the nights was perfect.  Food was very good.  I do wish they had a little more variety of the “theme” specials for each of the four restaurants as they seemed to stay the same through-out the cruise.  We ate around 5:30 pm each night, but never saw much of a wait for the dining rooms.  Service and selection in the Oceanview were excellent.  The design allows easy access to all the stations even when it is crowded.

Entertainment

This is a major reason we love Celebrity over HAL is having three real production shows with singers and live 7-piece orchestra.  The guest comedian and three guest entertainers were also very good.  The ship has two bands that played in the Grand Plaza, Eden, and on the Pool Deck.  They also music at the Sunset Bar.  Fun events like the Silent Disco and deck parties were great to attend. The cruise director and staff were excellent.

Captain Kate

Captain Kate joined in the middle of the cruise and was in the terminal to say goodbye to all the passengers as we left the boat.  She indicated she is on-board for the next three months.

Summary

We had a fantastic cruise and the Beyond is a beautiful and wonderfully designed ship.  It rarely felt crowded and really enjoyed the design and well-thought venues.

 

[horseymike]

Glad you had a great time on your cruise Ken.
Thanks for your review.

[bluehorizonlover123]

We agree with most of your review. But the basic WiFi was not good for us, did not upload quickly, dropped and was off line a lot.  We loved the infinite balcony. We thought the dinner menus were limited compared to other cruise lines. This was our 57th cruise. We loved the ship though. The staff were all friendly and couldn’t do enough for the passengers. All the staff went out of their way to make sure we were having a great vacation.  Booked again next year, along with the Ascent. Your review was very well done Ken.  Thank you for taking the time to post everything.