wpgcycler

4 hours ago, DYKWIA said:

I'm sure I read somewhere you could get a Negroni on the Classic package. That is the evil twin brother of the Aperol Spritz

Distant cousin, maybe.

2 hours ago, zitsky said:

They need a drink indicator with green (more wine) and red (no more).

My wife likes to tell the story of my instructions to the waiter at the aft buffet bar on Eclipse on a lazy, sea day: "Chandon Mimosa - please bring them until I ask you not to".

1 hour ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

 

 In 2016 on Summit, the ship had quite a bit of 90's alternative

 It's a shame they can't play quite a bit of current alternative.

Yep. Load up on a plate of pizza. Stop off at al Bacio for a glass of Port. Retire to the civility of your cabin. Perfect end to a perfect day.

LOVE the Mast Grill burgers!

10 hours ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

 

Are you saying that techno music in the Grand Foyer is a lie, or that their disapproval of it is nonsense?

 

 

 

Neither. I'm saying that it's likely nowhere near as "horrible" or "ear-splitting" as claimed. As a lover of a wide variety of music genres I'm more than familiar with folks that have zero tolerance for anything even vaguely different from or slightly louder than what they're used to. Intolerance and exaggeration are their specialties. 

(for the record, I'm 61 - my preference is "alternative/Indie" music but I do enjoy EDM as well)

6 hours ago, ORV said:

I feel like I'm in a time warp. This thread could have been from 4-8 years ago. 

Yep. Read a lot of similar nonsense prior to my first cruise in 2014 and soon found it to be - as expected - utter nonsense.

Only cruised twice (Reflection, Eclipse) - both times in AQ. LOVED Blu for dinner. Always a table for 2 - never felt intruded upon. Never once eaten breakfast there - not because it didn't appeal, we're just "lazy" on vacation. The recent comments on here though about what sounds like rabbit food and food sans grease have me confused. Is this a fake menu off the Celebrity site?

The "Cracked" Egg

Two Farm Fresh Eggs, Prepared to your Liking

Omelet Your Way – Whole or Egg White

Selection of: Virginia Ham, Tomato, Spinach, Smoked Salmon, Sweet Bell Pepper, Red Onion, Scallions, Mushrooms, Cheddar Cheese, Provolone, Asparagus, Sun Dried Tomato, Parsley

Smoked Salmon and Asparagus Frittata

Breakfast Sides

Bacon, Sliced Ham, English Back Bacon, Baked Beans, Breakfast Sausage, Roasted Tomato, Sautéed Mushrooms, Steamed Tofu

On 7/2/2019 at 4:51 PM, Pentlands said:

 We prefer a table actually for two

Sounds like a win all around.

6 minutes ago, bEwAbG said:

The objection would be to those who read something and then jump to the end of the thread to dispute it rather than to keep reading to see whether or not it has been addressed.  Bonus points if they start with "I didn't read the whole thread but..."

Bonus points may be redeemed at Cafe al Bacio for 1 free scoop of gelato, Sushi on 6 for the 2 end bits of a California Roll or at guest relations for 9 free minutes of (off peak) WiFi . Bonus points may no longer be used to upgrade to the guaranteed gristle free New York steak.

In this very recent thread, a menu is posted which lists Brut Montaudon Champagne at $13/glass.

52 minutes ago, jean87510 said:

 I would rather have uncouth Americans in formal wear then see this at the pool.

 I'm almost positive you mean "than".

1 hour ago, bighousecop said:

whats next a clown with a bunch of balloons

Sorry, I'm booked up for the next year or so.

2 hours ago, Mynki said:

 And yes they have the odd comedian aboard. 
 

The odd one is the funniest.

3 hours ago, glf2710 said:

Many thanks for the comments - decided that Celebrity is not going to be what we are looking for - I appreciate the comments about food being subjective - it’s a big part of the overall experience for us so it’s an important factor.

Have you considered Aqua class?  Blu can be a pretty satisfying dining experience...

7 minutes ago, Lady Chew said:

Isn't there a charge for gelato?  Or is that not considered part of Bacio??

 

The cakes & other pastries there are usually better than any of the desserts & snacks in the MDR or buffet.  

Note that you can get an “Affogato” - espresso and chocolate syrup over a scoop of gelato - included with the beverage package. No idea whether a request to have one without the espresso and syrup would be honored.

15 hours ago, Knolmom said:

Celebrity offers tours for their customers who many times are  just too lazy, ignorant or afraid to plan and book on their own, or people who don’t want to pay out of pocket for their tours and want to use the onboard credit they received as a so called perk. 

lol

I research and plan nearly every detail of our vacations. It's extremely rare that we set foot in a restaurant or even a bar for that matter that I haven't at least partially vetted through my research. We walked past the hoards standing in line to see the Roman Colosseum because I learned before I left home that tickets were available at the Palatine Hill ticket office which has no lines. Whenever we took the kids to Disneyworld, they experienced every single major attraction with no to minimal waits and felt sorry for the other kids complaining on their way out about all that they missed. I paid extra for a premium tour of Ang Thong National Marine Park on a small, fast boat and felt sorry for the masses we saw crammed into slow, uncomfortable vessels which barely made it to a third of the sites (and sights) we experienced and got home later. I can give you many, many more examples.

We're neither lazy, ignorant nor afraid. Yet, we have and will continue to book Celebrity's overpriced, underwhelming excursions (whether we have OBC or not) for one simple reason - peace of mind. I'm not a seasoned cruiser and likely never will be. We've thoroughly enjoyed our two Celebrity cruises and very much look forward to our next - but, as we enjoy a variety of travel experiences, we'll likely always be "occasional" cruisers. So while many of you are comfortable taking the chance (no matter how minute) on missing the ship because you took a private excursion, we're not. While I'm quite happy to make my way around say, Old San Juan without Celebrity promising to wait for me, I'm just not comfortable with tours that require me to rely on someone else to get me back to the ship at the appointed time. We look forward to our vacations and the last thing we want to be doing is worrying whether we'll be unsuccessful pier runners.

You may laugh or scoff at my view on this but please don't suggest I'm ignorant, lazy or cheap.

On 6/7/2019 at 11:03 AM, Tourist1292 said:

That is not true. Many fruit juice can be used to marinate and tenderize meat.

On 6/7/2019 at 2:09 PM, SFLcowboy78 said:

Pineapple and Papaya just to name a few. You don't even need to use the juice, the enzyme that does the tenderizing can be bought in powder form (Papain). Add this to any marinade and I promise you it will tenderize the meat. And yes I used to be a Chef. 

 

Just one of many carefully performed tests which suggest otherwise.

https://www.cooksillustrated.com/how_tos/5562-marinating-myths

Having been burned before by bad advice on travel forums about “what people where there” I’d suggest you seek out photos of what people are actually wearing in your planned destinations. Here’s a link to some stock photos of people on the streets of a Rome. Although, if you don’t look at the buildings you’ll see these folks could be in almost any city in the USA. Don’t fall for the legends. (However, religious sites can and do sometimes impose unclear rules regarding dress).

https://www.alamy.com/rome-italy-july-2017-the-busy-shopping-street-of-via-del-corso-in-image152520850.html

I wonder if the OP, even in his/her wildest dreams expected (or needed) 25+ answers to this question? 😅

27 minutes ago, fluffybunny22 said:

That's where I got my Max.

Uh oh, sorry I brought it up. 😁

22 minutes ago, hcat said:

That would be nice...even if they had a show of local art one afternoon on board...probably against contract with Park West

 

We have acquired  some very nice inexpensive locally produced small prints, oils and sculptures, etc  in various ports..Sometimes  hard to find them..( alot of stuff in the ports are made in China!).. 

 

Our vacation home is where we display these items....reminds us of our travels!

Yes, it's important to either learn enough to know what to look for, buy from a reputable gallery or buy from one of the 2 distributors - only 1 step between you and the artist... e.g.  http://www.northernimages.ca/

I'd never given much thought to any of this as my instincts suggested this was probably not such a great deal. I had NO idea however, how sleazy this business is. The interwebs are littered with horror stories about cruise ship auctions - with Park West featuring prominently. Shocking - as well as disappointing.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2016-12-14/ever-bought-artwork-on-a-cruise-prepare-to-be-seasick

It's a bit of a contentious issue but I believe suite guests are granted access to Blu also...

10 minutes ago, yorky said:

 you can go to any decent gallery and purchase safely in your own area.

Exactly. But this is one reason I ask about offerings which are more local to the area. In my travels, I haven't seen a lot of galleries offering Northern, Arctic or West Coast Aboriginal art outside of Canada or the US Northwest. Would make for some very interesting lectures too.