spiff2

I predict that Carnival has lost a couple of cruisers. I went on Carnival once just to see why it was much more affordable. I didn't take long to find out why. But of course, that being said, if I were 25 years old I would love it. As far as dress code on Celebrity, I can't remember the last time I even took a sport coat. Never been tuned away from any venue with slacks and a collared shirt. 

18 hours ago, Salt Lifer said:

I fully get it.  I just like the soup and figure it'll be a year or more u til I can get it again so I might as well enjoy it.  Plus, the serving is rather small so it doesn't keep me from eating other appetizers, too.

 

My husband gets the French onion soup every night, too.  We are creatures of habit. 😉

Escargot is my weakness. I may not get it every night but I do for the first 4 or 5 nights.

16 minutes ago, Salt Lifer said:

I have to share something very disturbing that happened to us yesterday.  We returned to our stateroom during the day to discover someone had snuck in and left us some nasty hate mail! 

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🙂 🙂 🙂

You ain't got to go home but you can't stay here. And number 13 to boot, that;s just mean. 

I will be on Ascent in November and if I haven't gotten anything else out of this report, I have got to try some of that soup.

On 2/16/2024 at 6:21 PM, chisoxfan said:

We thought Luminae was solid not spectacular on Ascent and Apex. For us the service on Apex was superior. The hostess was so accommodating on Apex less so on Ascent. The tables (2x) just seemed tighter on Ascent and on both ships the two tops were tiny and required a balancing act at times. We tried Blu on Ascent and thought the decor was amazing but service a bit slow (maybe because we weren't regulars).

Our take away is that we liked Luminae but frankly do not feel it was fully in keeping with the 'luxury' Retreat prices. We just booked a 7N Princess Sun cruise in their new suite area (basically the Retreat style- lounge, restaurant, pool) and will go afterwards on HAL balcony with their Club Orange dedicated dining. We are looking forward to trying these venues. Price for 14 days (both cruises) was the same as APEX 7 days with a non refundable fare. We would gladly cruise again on E class if pricing was more reasonable but it isn't that amazing of a product that I am going to sit around looking for 'deals' which ultimately are at the same suite price as other mainstream lines. JMHO

We did Blu one time on Equinox. It seemed cliquey and like being back in high school to me. No more.

47 minutes ago, mac_tlc said:

I did see a Buffalo Trace bottle on the shelf of the Pool Bar. It is very good. I’ll ask when on Beyond next month.

 

Thanks!

 

mac_tlc

I was on Celebrity Silhouette about a year ago, I was talking to retreat lounge bartender while having a Woodford in fact. I told him I like Buffalo Trace best but it was hard to come by. He said "got it". Went behind the bar and in a cabinet got the bottle and poured a big one. I then convinced him to send one to the Sunset bar for my nightly cigar. Smooth sailing after that.

On 1/22/2024 at 8:06 AM, mac_tlc said:

Still quite windy this morning. Seas were rocking a bit yesterday, we have never been bothered by it but you could definitely feel it. 
 

I met up with some friends we met on Beyond last year in the Retreat Lounge  before sailaway. So nice to chat with folks we have met before! 
 

As I mentioned in an earlier post we like to eat early so at 5:30 we headed to the Retreat Lounge for a snack and a drink. It was fairly crowded as is to be expected on day 1 at that time. After a few minutes, I went to the bar to grab a drink . Woodford rye on the rocks. Good. 
 

Our usual snack has been the “homemade” chips and glazed nuts (usually vary every night). Here is the first minor noticeable cutback—-

 

 

Those are Lays chips and Planters peanuts. We will see if the selection changes. The other items available were as it has been in the past. 

Next up - Dinner at Luminae 

 

Mac_tlc

Mac if you are a Woodford man as I am at home. Ask at the retreat lounge if they have Buffalo Trace. You usually have to ask because it is not sitting on the shelf. I can't even get it in Greenville SC. You may be pleasantly surprised.

12 minutes ago, DCPIV said:

 

You might want to keep an eye on that.  They are using a different, more relaxed dress code on Silver Nova, and it appears to be very well received.  No ties required . . . ever, and jackets required only on "formal optional" nights (only 2 of those on our 11-nighter).  I wouldn't be surprised to see it spread throughout the fleet. 

 

Even on the other ships, you never need to wear a tie.  It's required only on the formal nights and then only in the MDR.  On those nights, we would just eat in another restaurant.  It appears they are working on a bit of a culture change.  My cruise suit and tie days are over, too.

That is excellent news about Silversea. Thank you for the update. I will put them back in the lineup. 

29 minutes ago, JDPCruisers said:

Have been looking around at other lines, Oceania, Silversea, Regent, etc., but just booked Beyond SS for next April. So, no other line, yet.

I have been researching these as well. So far Silversea seems to be out as a choice. It seems to be the most restrictive on dress codes. My cruise suit and tie days are over.

3 minutes ago, jmfdr said:

Elite-plus, booking elsewhere.

Elite. Looking at Oceania but open to suggestions.

2 minutes ago, the penguins said:

Just like Ian or phonetically ean

Shouldn't it be fonetically.

Hello to all

I'm would like your opinion on the luxury lines and dress codes. I have absolutely no problem with slacks and a collared shirt for dinner but my suit and tie days are over for cruises. I think when they loosened restrictions on formal nights was definite step in the right direction.

3 hours ago, MACruisers said:

I have 4 cruises booked on Ascent in suites. When I board, I always know what future cruise I will be booking. I have spent the last several weeks looking at MSC YC, and several other premium lines (not silver seas). If Celebrity is looking for ways to push customers away they have certainly discovered the secret sauce.    I realize Celebrity and RCG is a business and like other hospitality businesses was saddled with debt during the pandemic. The solution is NOT to raise prices and reduce value.  The solution IS to keep your loyal customer, increase prices and show them your value.  CFO’s have no business running a company, they don’t understand customers, customer behavior and that it is MORE expensive to attract new customers than it is to retain your current customers.  I loved you Celebrity up until now but it appears to be time to move on after these cruises UNLESS you wake up and respect that customer want value for their money.  

Hello

I am Elite on Celebrity with a cruise booked on Ascent next year. But I have also started looking at the luxury lines with the price points now being similar to Retreat. One I have looked at is Silverseas. You mentioned not silver seas. I was wondering if there was a horror story.

This is what they are listing for the drink packages.

All-Inclusive Cruise Drink Packages | Celebrity Cruises

59 minutes ago, MR.Kwis29 said:

My first food and bev commentary.  For the bourbon/whisky drinkers out there....There really is not much on the ship as others reported.  Makers, Buffalo Trace, Jack, Beam.  That is about it (maybe a couple of others in craft social?). If those don't cut it for you, you should probably cancel your upcoming Equinox cruise.  I am not a Scotch drinker, but there appears to be satisfactory selection in world class bar and the retreat lounge.

If you got Buffalo Trace or Woodford Reserve, Hey you got a party.

We booked on Celebrity for November 2022 cruise. We booked thru Crucon and got insurance from them with Chubb. I always use the evacuation limit as a way to judge the travel insurance coverage. But hope to never use it. The coverage thru Celebrity is $50000 and the coverage with Chubb is $100000 for $450. This is for 10 day in Sky suite and we are 66 and 68 years old. I added that because it all matters.

Thank you for all the comments. From the things I have looked at so far is that if you are looking for just a basic veranda room Celebrity probably wins. But even if you step up to the lowest of the suites, the Sky suite, the luxury lines seem comparable. And I haven't even looked into airfare. We have always drove from South Carolina to Ft Lauderdale/Miami for cruises but that 14 hour drive has started to sting more the older I get especially the return trip.

Hello Everyone

We have been on several cruise lines and picked Celebrity as the one we like the best. I am looking at getting a Sky Suite Nov '22 to celebrate 40th anniversary. This will be the first time in a suite vs our usual veranda. They are quite a bit more expensive and that got me to comparing the more so called luxury lines, 

• Seabourn Cruise Line
• Crystal Cruises
• Regent Seven Seas Cruises
• Azamara Club Cruises
• Oceania Cruises
• Silversea Cruises

What are the thoughts of people who have already figured all this out. Price, service. entertainment and basically just stuff to do.

Thank you

1 hour ago, FirstTimeFreddy said:

If you're expecting Celebrity to match RCCL in terms of entertainment, you can think again. 🙁 We've also cruised on the Allure and in terms of entertainment there is simply no comparison. You can forget Aqua Theaters, Broadway Shows, Bumper Cars, Comedy Clubs, Jazz Clubs, Bowling Alley's and all the rest that comes with a ship of that size. In contrast, when we cruised with Celebrity for the first time on the Reflection, we were shocked how little there was to do onboard. The age range on board was a lot higher and everything was geared towards this age range. Everything was conservative and civilised and one bar felt very much like the next. Having cruised with four other lines I would say that Celebrity is the company you cruise with for some R&R and few children on board. The only reason we're returning to the Equinox in September is because the perks offered by Celebrity are unmatched right now, which makes them the best value for money. But oh how I wish they would diversify their onboard offerings 😩

You had me at "few children on board". August 31st is third time on Equinox.

August 31st will be my third trip on the Equinox. I have tried the Aqua cabins. Loved that the Persian Gardens where included but now I just pay the extra charge for it. The food at Blu was good but I thought it was extremely cliquish, Like being back in high school, if you were not part of the in crowd you were look down on. I have gone the Concierge cabin route but thought the few perks were not worth it. This time I am trying the hump that people rave about. But it will take a lot to knock just a plain old aft cabin out of first place.

Hi All,

 

I know that this question has been asked in different ways a lot over the years. However, I am wondering what are your favorite Norwegian Drinks - the ones that Norwegian does better than on any other cruise line - your must haves when sailing with Norwegian! I am compiling a list of faves (2018) for a blog article, from each of the major cruise lines and would love current bests. Thanks so much for contributing!

 

I love the frozen Banana Daiquiri poolside and the Rasberry Guava Mojito - and I just haven`t found anything close on other cruises so far! I will have to keep on trying ;-)

Hello

I don't have anything to contribute because I leave on Epic 3-24. But I would love to have a link to your blog when you get it compiled.

You should probably rethink that drone. I'm sure that would be a great video but I doubt you would even be able to sneak it on and I'm sure once you bring it out to fly they will be all over you.

PS: If you do get a video I would love to see it.

You could always hang a shower curtain or even a sheet over the door. Get a couple of good magnets from hardware store and they will stick to the wall.

I believe I read that the daily price for UBP went from $79 to $89 a day. I was hoping the it would cover drinks higher than $15 now. Has anyone one heard anything like that yet?

My first cruise, which was long ago, I tried to do everything and see everything. After vacation I needed a vacation. I said that was the end of cruises. Now about 20 cruises later you have to relax and go with flow. We have seen our share of islands and they all begin to look the same. We now mostly just stay on the ship. The most relaxing days are port days when most everyone else is on shore.