phoenix_dream

I don’t like being all the way aft. More motion, and ABC cruises can be rocky especially the sea day to and from the ABCs. I don’t like the very long walk to the back. I love eating in Blu, definitely better than the MDR. I don’t use the spa but book AQ primarily for Blu when I can’t afford a suite.

Would I? I just did last month - b2b in Sky Suites. We spend little time in the Retreat deck anyway so didn’t really miss it. Also prefer the old Michaels Club to the revolutionized version (although E class has the best lounges in our opinion). Personally I think Retreat prices on ships without all the amenities should be lower to reflect that, but as long as they keep selling well that won’t happen. To us, the main perks of Retreat are the larger cabin and balcony, the better service (and sometimes food) in Luminae, the lounge, and the help of the Retreat team or concierge if we have issues or need help with something rather than waiting in long lines at Guest Relations.

On an upcoming cruise we have over a thousand from Celebrity. Got $300 pp with the suite, and booked online which gave us more, and there was some kind of promotion going on at the time as well. With the OBC dropped from suites now people in suites will have quite a bit less going forward unfortunately.

I don’t know where you were in Long Beach but our experience was way different than yours. We stayed at Hilton Long Beach, and for dinner or shopping we walked or took the hotel shuttle to the area by the very nice aquarium. We never felt unsafe and never encountered homeless people bothering anyone, and honestly I don’t remember even seeing any. I’m guessing like any fairly large town there are good and bad areas. I just felt I needed to clarify for people that not all of Long Beach is like that.

I've done many B2B, but the max time I've been onboard is 21 days. Honestly, that was enough for me. I do like the shows, so I get frustrated when they stay the same sailing to sailing. I also get bored with the same (usually) music in the bars week after week. As to menus - can mix that up a bit so that isn't an issue for me.

I was one of those who would feel like an entitled snob by walking on the red carpet. I never used it no matter what. I confess I use the priority boarding for tender boats, and even then I feel pretty awkward doing it. At least that's a published perk which is my rationalization.

I have sailed out of FLL dozens of times on Celebrity and never saw an option to stay on the ship past the standard all disembarkation time of around 9 am.

Can't speak to all the issues but on our last trip on Apex we had quite a bit of creaking as well. It was coming from the walls. Didn't have that on our first sailing, but this time we did. It wasn't really loud necessarily but it was pretty annoying. Both times were in a Sky Suite as I must have a balcony.

We love Tuscan Grille. Eat there at least once a trip no matter what restaurant is our main. In fact, there are often days where nothing in Luminae appeals to me. Just FYI, on M class ships (and S class ships) you can also order off the main dining room menu when eating in Luminae as the restaurants are together. Sometimes what is on the MDR menu appeals to me more than the Luminae menu which often is a bit too 'fancy' for me. We think Tuscan has very good pastas, a great filet mignon, better salad and appetizer selections than Luminae and their pistachio creme Brule is great!

It is warm, has metal bench type things you can relax on in the water, and it has jets kind of like a jacuzzi only softer.

Exactly, that is the key point. I always answer that you can catch early flights in FLL if all goes well, but if you book early you definitely need a backup plan. These things can and do happen - albeit not really often. But these days flights are often booked 100% full. So if you miss an early flight your odds of getting on the next one are not necessarily all that great either, and if you are lucky enough to land a spot it's probably in the back of the plane in a middle seat. You could also end up needing to stay overnight in the port city (or longer, depending). People are saying you can't necessarily plan for such a rare occurrence. There is some truth to that. At the same time, over the years my disembarkation has been delayed several times. Not ever this late, but a couple of times disembarkation didn't start until 9:30. Try catching a 9:30 flight then! I don't take pleasure in berating people who booked early flights. Their risk; their choice. I do get aggravated, however, at those who tell people for sure they can catch that 9:00 or 9:30 flight. The truth is, not always. But that's just one of the many things I find people giving bad information about on these boards. Not intentionally I presume, but many times people report an experience they had and announce it as gospel. A number of things differ by ship, by sailing, by class of ship, etc.. I wish people would consider that when answering questions. Ok, I'm done ranting. Have a nice day all!

Your dilemma is a good lesson for others traveling together. If dining together and/or hanging out in Retreat areas is important to you, don’t bid on upgrades. There are no guarantees both will be accepted, even if equal $$. You’ve had some advice on how to manage this so I’m sure you’ll work things out. And keep checking, there may be a last minute cancel but they’d likely have to pay a higher rate than the move up one. Best of luck to you.

We will always choose a hump cabin versus any other. So what if the next balcony can see part of your balcony. It’s not like they’re going to be standing at the railing staring at you. Those cabins are ideal, and the most sought after. Consider yourself lucky to obtain one. Enjoy.

Exactly! I think it's very inconsiderate to be putting luggage out at midnight. If you can't get it out by the required time or there abouts, then do walk-off. Or keep just one suitcase inside and walk that one off - maybe even a tote bag.

It's extremely rare (albeit not impossible) that a suite passenger would be turned away in Blu, especially in higher level suites. And I've never needed to set up anything in advance. It's polite to do so, but not necessary.

As others have said, this is really not an option on Celebrity. If you are in a suite they will usually take a few extra steps for you - like hanging your shirts rather than stuffing them into a bag. The higher your suite level, the more likely they will try to accommodate you. In a high level suite maybe, just maybe, you could get a hang dry but the cold water - forget it. I've read the occasional post where people claims they write cold water on their laundry slip and that's what it's washed in, but having seen the laundry rooms onboard I think they are believing what they want to believe.

Did a recent B2B on Eclipse. We were in the Retreat. Overall, the only diminishing in service I felt was the lack of a dedicated butler. Don't want to move this thread in that direction as its been discussed ad nauseum so please don't take it there. Anyway, while service was still very good I did feel like the staff was feeling overwhelmed and overworked. Don't get me wrong - no one complained about it to me. But I am particularly good at reading body language and I always feel a strong connection to the staff, and I definitely felt they were very stressed out with the excess workload. Not sure how long they can hold out under these circumstances.

Customs in Long Beach goes super fast regardless even if you had to do it there. In normal circumstances, if you walk off you should be able to be off by 8:15. I confess I am not a fan of the walk-off situation. Too many people (IMHO) walk off because for some reason they think it's more convenient, and it blocks up all the elevators for people trying to go to breakfast, as well as makes it much harder for those who actually need it to catch early flights. When they first initiated it (years ago - I'm dating myself) you needed to prove an early flight to be allowed to do it. Now 3/4 of the ship seems to do it and disembarkation day is a madhouse. I've sailed on Celebrity 76 times, always put my luggage out the night before, and never had an issue getting it as quick as I needed it. Just venting here - not meaning to take out my frustration on you.

No, AQ and Concierge no longer have priority embarkation. That went away after the Covid shutdown.

I wish you luck in making that happen! Not sure what current timelines are but they were running 4 months plus, even when paying more for a rushed one. Hopefully that’s improved!

Your experience is very different than mine. On non-E class ships I have never had an issue asking for a MDR item and I've sailed in AQ and eaten in Blu many, many times. I try not to ask for extras very often because of the extra work for the waiter, but if I can't find anything on the Blu menu I like it has never been an issue. I don't want to just go to the MDR to eat. One reason (actually the main reason) I choose Aqua Class is for the dining experience - better, more individualized service, restaurant more intimate and so on.

Some will say no, but I will say yes, or at least maybe. We did a Move Up bid, and didn't get it (over minimum, but under midpoint) only to find out that there was one empty cabin of that category still available when we got the declination notice. Were they planning to move someone else up into that category who bid more? I guess that's possible. But the timing seemed suspicious to me.

Used to be, back in formal days. I distinctly remember my son being refused admission because after dinner he changed into gym shoes! Thank goodness things have loosened up ( although too much IMHO but that’s a discussion for another thread).

I know the pool was free last time we visited. Is the new lazy river free too? Do they provide the floats or do you need to bring your own?

I feel the same. Already paying a huge surcharge in suite pricing and now they want to sell some of the perks as stand-alone after already taking away the dedicated butler I PAID for when I booked? Frustrating and seems so low class to me. I feel like I’m sailing with a Kmart blue light special.