Kteacher

A few final “Reflections “- We really like this size ship. There are enough public spaces that it never felt crowded. We will sail on ships that have Michael’s Club vs. the Retreat Lounge because it just feels more welcoming. We will definitely do another B2B but only if we don’t need to change cabins. It was great waking up on turnaround day and not have to pack a thing plus have access to our cabin all day. The longer cruise/shorter cruise B2B was the perfect length of days for us. This cruise was one of our favorites in a lot of ways and most of that was due to the crew. I’ll be honest, I was a bit nervous about experiencing a decline in service on Celebrity before we boarded but felt it was just the opposite, that it had improved since the last time we sailed Celebrity (and we were in a higher category of suite on that cruise). My husband came home from the store with roses for me because he knew how much planning I put into this trip and he told me it was one of his favorite vacations ever ❤️. I guess that means I may need to squeeze another cruise in before our next one in 2025.

We spent a nice morning and early afternoon at the Bahia Mar Resort after we got off the ship yesterday. The check in process was very efficient- we had our 2 carryons stored, were given wristbands, a welcome bag (2 bottles of water and 2 chocolate chip cookies), and keys to get into the pool area. This is a great way to spend the day if you have a late afternoon flight. After about a 1 minute wait for an Uber we were on our way to FLL. Luggage Valet meant not having to deal with checking bags and there was no wait at TSA. The flight was packed, so by the time they got to the last boarding groups the agents were starting to gate check bags. We had already offered to gate check ours and they were very appreciative. I’m on laundry load number 3 or 4 and sorting things to bring to our next trip, 2 weeks on Cape Cod. We split our time between Provincetown and Dennisport, both beautiful. Unfortunately the water temperature is a bit colder than what we just enjoyed 😆. I’ll post final thoughts later today.

The day before Coco Cay the Luminae hostess received an email to check in with any Retreat guests who had booked the Beach Club. She had a list of guests and asked me what time we wanted to have lunch. There was also a voice message left on our cabin phone to remind us to book a lunch time by calling an extension # on the ship. We confirmed at the Beach Club check in desk that we were all set with our lunch reservation.

Yes, they still give out cards with the recipe. I could never get the bacon dust to come out right but now I know it’s because they have a special machine just for this. He has a cookbook coming out soon, just watch their website for updates on release date

Thank you! I would love for you to post in the 3 night experience. Please say hello to our now favorite crew members ever, Prasoon, Kartini, Vishal, and Martin, Brian , Liz, and Sini. We miss them already ❤️

It was a very quick process off the ship out of Michael’s Club, through facial recognition and into a cab. We’re spending some time at the Bahia Mar Resort in Ft. Lauderdale on a day pass. We have access to the pool, towels, shower, restrooms, luggage storage, and a welcome bag with bottles of water and cookies since we haven’t eaten for at least 2 hours 😂.

Unfortunately I didn’t save all the dailies but according to the app the spa was open regular hours, there were some games and craft activities onboard, and there was a cash only Texas Hold ‘em game scheduled at 4:00. I didn’t see anything earlier than that scheduled in the casino for that day.

Apologies- this post was supposed to go on my live thread (but this was actually a nice wine we won on the ship! Okay, back to the Coco Cay discussion)

All our bags are packed and we’re ready to go… We really appreciate luggage valet, especially if you have a later afternoon flight. Our bags were bagged and tagged before we went to dinner. Tomorrow is a day pass at Bahia Mar in Ft. Lauderdale, then our flight back to BDL. Saturday will be laundry and planning our dining around Cape Cod for our visit in a few weeks (did I mention how great retirement is 😄). Dinner in Luminae tonight was another A+++++, and we drank and shared the wine we won at the B2B meeting with new found friends from Michael’s Club-

All our bags are packed and we’re ready to go… Well we’re ready and not ready. We are using luggage valet and have put our two tagged bags out already. We will really miss the crew and the ship. We won the raffle for a bottle of wine for consecutive cruisers and are sharing it with the couple at the table near us.

It sounds like they will be playing around with what happens with Coco Cay and private islands in general, so my guess is what happens this week in Coco Cay with Celebrity might not be what happens next stop.

When we toured the Signature and Reflection Suites on turnaround day we asked the butler about included 2 bottles of spirits and specialty dining on shorter cruises and we were told yes, both included.

Last night in Michael’s until our 2025 TA on the Constellation. We really prefer the set up of Michael’s Club to the Retreat.

On the Reflection now, and stopped in Coco Cay this past Monday. Luminae was not open for lunch that day which is typical of port days. Luminae was open for lunch the previous sailing when the Reflection was only in port until 2:30 in Tortola and we were told by staff that Celebrity is trying out port day openings for lunch.

Departure information received in our cabin. Our butler actually asked for an appointment with us to go over departure procedures. We haven’t seen him very much this sailing compared with last sailing, but he apologized for that.

Thank you! I hope I was able to give some helpful information to anyone traveling soon or planning to travel.

I’m almost exclusively a non savory breakfast person but decided to mix it up this morning and tried the Iberico ham with grated tomato on toast along with the savory waffle with sunny side egg. All delicious but I definitely surprised our waiter 🙃. We’re about 3/4 packed and taking a beverage break at the Sunset Bar. We’ve really lucked out with the weather this trip having sunny skies and a nice breeze since we arrived in Fort Lauderdale on 4/10.

No need for apologies. We bounce between RCI ships and Celebrity. If we’re sailing Royal it is on one of the smaller/older ships that don’t have CK. If there’s a Coco Cay stop and the pricing is high for the Beach Club that might be a deciding factor as we could use the $$$ towards specialty restaurant package.

Just saw the pizza making class on today’s schedule. It’s listed at 72.00 pp same cost for adults and children) and is sold out.

Our last full day onboard 😭. I’m fairly new at this retirement thing so we are trying longer trips. The 8 night combined with the 5 night feels like it was the perfect length to start with. We will definitely miss the crew on this ship as they are some of the best we’ve ever encountered. Last night’s show was a magician and was entertaining. This week the shows have been scheduled for 7:30 and 9:30 compared to 7 and 9 the previous week. Dinner was in Luminae, service excellent, and dishes were again a combination from Luminae menu and Opus. We passed on dessert as we were too full and are also easing back into the reality of knowing there are a lot of salads and trips to the gym in our future.

Our last port day is Cozumel. We did an excursion through the ship- Small group Mexologist for the day Margaritas and traditional small bites. I think we paid about 90 pp, and thought it was well worth it. The excursion included 5 full size cocktails plus one shot, chips and guacamole plus a plate of snacks as well as a full size lunch entree. After lunch we had an hour to swim in the infinity pool that overlooked the dolphin pool. The drinks and food were delicious and it was well run with air conditioned taxi bus transport both ways

Today is Cozumel, and we’re booked for the Mexology excursion, again using OBC. Once off the ship I received a text from Verizon reminding me that Mexico is included in my domestic plan 👍. I took care of booking our day pass for Friday. I ended up booking Bahia Mar through Resort Pass. We’ve stayed there before and are familiar with their pool area and services .

Breakfast was in Blu this morning- no problem being accommodated

Forgot to add- yes the Signature suites do get the two bottles of spirits for the shorter cruises and unlimited specialty dining. We have one booked for 2026 and will be combining it with a longer land based vacation so will use whatever we don’t consume onboard then.

I don’t think food is provisioned off of the ship. The Beach Club lunch was very good, and they will bring you as much as you want off of the menu. For us it was worth it as we wanted a quieter and less crowded atmosphere and table service for lunch.