Pinboy

Ok--- So, lately there's been several negative threads about Celebrity ( Food, Menu selections, cut backs , upcharges, the size of the lobster tails, no friggin round tomatoes and cold onion soup ).

Wait-- forget about the cold onion soup----that one is a serious ( ?? ) complaint !!

I can't remember reading one post saying " I cancelled our upcoming cruise(s)" !

Lot's of " threats " , but not one actual cancellation.

And, to repeat --- we were on the Equinox and the Edge ( February and March ) -- never had a bad meal, poor service, or was invited to dine with an Officer--- it was all good !!

I could care less what Carnival offers in the dining " experience ". 

LOL---- Maybe if Celebrity " introduced " the bellyflop contest, the drink 14 beers through a funnel contest, the Congo line around the pool, the dancing Waiters with baked Alaska on their heads ,and the finale-- the singing of " We Are Zeee Worl " ( We are the world ) there wouldn't be such negativity ?

2 hours ago, SoloAlaska said:

I disliked the agents I’ve tried dealing with in the past but am thinking of moving to that agency.

I never had a poor Agent there and never have to wait for a callback.

You being from Ottawa, I see that there are a few locations to spend the Gift Card.

Question :

LOL---What would you prefer  ??

A gift card to spend as you wish, say for a 4pack of mustard ,a 20 lb bag of pistachio nuts (to get ready for the hockey season) , and a container with 90 hot chicken wings ( to get ready for the football season ), or get stuck with $27 OBC that you don't know what to do with, so, you're "bamboozled" and post a thread on CC  " I have $ 27 OBC left, what would you spend it on " ?

Reminds me of some of the dumbest threads --- lots of 'em lately.

( I know-- don't have to tell me --- been to that " dance " more than once )

38 minutes ago, cruisestitch said:

Booking a cruise while on a cruise, get you some extra on board credit and you pay a lower deposit.  There’s no reduction in price— the price would be the same. After you book on board, you can transfer to your travel agent to take over the booking from there. There’s really no downside to booking on board. 

Exactly what we have done for " years ", and , to add :

If you request, Celebrity will send the booking to your Agent as soon as you book.

The extra OBC is based upon the room category you select and the number of days of the cruise.

Why we do it :

By transferring the booking to our Agent ( can't mention their name on CC ) they send a Gift Card based on 8-9% of what we paid for the cruise which can be used in any of their stores.

( LOL- we were able to buy lots of their $1.50 hot dogs and still have 4000 garbage bags left ).

3 hours ago, zitsky said:

I think nobody likes bragging.

WHAT ??? LOL--- That's a " Good one " and that's damn insulting ----to me.

I won the putting tournament in 2013,( beating an old guy with a cane, a lady hanging on to her walker, and 2 girls that were putting with the wrong side of the putter ). 

What's wrong with bragging, oops, sharing ( ?? ) that with the other 2439 passengers on board.

Not to brag---so, I asked the Cruise Director ( never knew his name ) to mention it during his morning announcements, but, the bum forgot. 

Instead he told us where we were going and how lucky we were because of the " Great Deals " we could get. He never, or maybe forgot to tell us about the kick-backs, oops, commissions Celebrity receives for promoting , oops, sharing this information. 

So, when I went down to GR to complain etc, etc---- ( a free cruise ??? not even a plate of chocolate covered strawberries ) !!

Lastly-- and this ain't no bragging ---but

Our Waiter told me on the first night of our cruise  " Pinboy, if YOU want 3 shrimp cocktails ( then he looked around to see if anyone was listening ) , I'll bring 'em for YOU " !!

So, the next night at the table right next to ours , there's a man with 3 shrimp cocktails sitting right in front of him.

So, as soon as I finished my 2nd Crème Brule desert, I went straight to GR ----

I overheard the young GR Trainee say to the man beside her " Here he comes again--- can you please see what he wants ----this time " ?

16 minutes ago, poeticlicensed said:

Someone please explain the round tomato thing. This is the second time someone made a reference to it. I need a good laugh today. 

Found it---

No Whole Tomatoes 12

14 hours ago, deliver42 said:

I'm Elite. Big deal. Nobody cares

" Nobody cares " ???

WHAT ?? Can't be !!! --- I spent $$$$$$$$$ of $US with the terrible $Canadian to $US conversion rate and finally graduated to Elite to get all them perks ----and nobody cares ??

How d'ya think the old farts in the " reserved " section in the theater would feel if nobody cheered like crazy when the Captain ( don't know his/her name ) presented them with a gold(ish) medallion in honor of their 1000 Celebrity cruise ?

LOL-- How d'ya think I felt when I ordered a scoop of gelato and the young lady ( very pretty ) put 2 scoops into a cup and when I told her we were Elite, she took 1 out-- " You only get one "she said. ( Absolutely true story ).

So, when I went to GR to remove the gratuities or " settle " for a complimentary cruise, I overheard a man complaining about no round tomatoes, a lady complaining that her French onion soup was served cold and another old fart was upset because a young child was in the Solarium.

That's more serious than the " only one scoop " of gelato, so I left.

5 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

Since Retreat passengers have a different  expectations than the rest of the passengers 

Should this forum be divide , Retreat and Aqua and the rest 

 

"  different  expectations " ??

Where d'ya dream that one up ? 

Perhaps you meant different " entitlements " because they paid more ?

We don't stay in a suite and have the same expectations ( an enjoyable cruise ) as anyone else.

Come to think of it--- we also are " entitled "-------to get what we paid for.

Here's the answer --- Pretty soon !!

Here's the question--- How long is it going to take for this thread to become kinda, sorta nasty ?

Is it just me or are some of the complaints about the food in particular totally nuts.

Someone posted that their French onion soup was served cold--- Ok, now what ?

And, that dandy about no round tomatoes ??

Boy oh boy, the line ups at GR  is going to get longer and longer with people removing their gratuities.

7 hours ago, CruiseCrew123 said:

My infinity cruise in 2 weeks is still only showing desserts 😆. I will be living on Crème Brulé 

Crème Brulé on the Celebrity ships is as good as it is here.

A second order tastes as good as the first !

A third order---- only if you are by yourself. Otherwise the " don't ya know it's got tooooo much  etc etc ".  The " But I'm on vacation " doesn't work in these parts !!

As an aside--- we never look at the menus prior to the cruise-- no point in case there is a change and I wouldn't embarrass myself complaining about it.

"Hey, get a load of that guy at table 134 -- he's upset that we don't have no round tomatoes and is gonna post it on Cruise Critics ".

3 minutes ago, SoloAlaska said:

The tomatoes was a facepalm moment for sure

LOL--- Whomever posted it as a tread was serious.

" Hey, xyz -- remember the time I asked for them round tomatoes and the Waiter looked at me like I was crazy ? I gotta let people know about it "

Off topic --- I heard there's a famous restaurant in Ottawa that has the best eggrolls.

What's the name in case we come there sometime ?

36 minutes ago, SoloAlaska said:

Actually being referred to as cattle is very derogatory.

to be with a bunch of typically older more boring couples. 

" older more boring " 

LOL--- Love it !! You win !!

The average poster on CC is probably old but not necessarily boring.

Who d'ya think has time to spend " hours " posting stuff on CC ??

LOL---Just read some of the complaints and/or questions---same ones over and over again.

" No round tomatoes-- what would you choose/do -- why is Celebrity charging for room service at 2 am just because the delivery people were never given a $2 tip -- I seen a child in the Solarium , and everybody's favorite --- No, it's tooooo obvious ( Who's the etc etc ).

Gotta go--- no more time and besides I don't got no complaints ----and I'm not 92.

13 minutes ago, Claret and Blue said:

1---You're easily triggered!!

2---Cockney parlance

1--- Only when necessary--- ( LOL )

2--- We ( I ) don't talk that "lingo" here --- unless it's minus 40 in the winter and/or our hockey team loses -----again-- ( LOL ).

C'est la vie ( That's life ).

47 minutes ago, Claret and Blue said:

We're back in cattle class this cruise so no chance then

Shame, I asked as we could not get any on our last cruise

" cattle class" ???

Disgrace to use that term !!

Just because some of us choose to cruise in lower than the Retreat, we don't deserve to be referred to as " cattle " !!!

"Shame, I asked as we could not get any on our last cruise " .

Isn't that too bad--- You asked and someone said " No ".

FYI--- " Strength in Business is the ability to say " NO "---

Good on Celebrity .

53 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

While negativity has been running rampant

Very true-- It's too bad there there are so many trolls on CC ---

LOL--- THE best thread in a long time is the one about the round tomatoes, mashed potatoes,  the size of the lobster tails, and " did anyone else see a child in the Solarium " ? 

Ya wanna complain 'bout somthin , make sure it's serious-- like " My Waiter forgot to bring my 3 shrimp cocktails at the same time --what would you do " !!

2 hours ago, Winemaker_1 said:

What have I gotten myself into?  I just put down the deposit on my first Celebrity cruise..  And I've heard nothing but bad news about Celebrity since.  

I see you are new to Cruise Critics---

Please don't give it one minute of thought--- nothing wrong with Celebrity-- good food, good service. clean ships, so so entertainment, a few dumb games or activities( you don't have to participate in them ).

If you order something and don't like it--- the Waiter will change it

If you order something and want another serving---the Waiter will bring it.

If you prefer a table for two in the dining room--never a problem.

Just go and enjoy the cruise like 99% of the passengers.

( FYI--- I am not a Travel Agent and do not work for Celebrity ).

Here's a hint--- If you see that there are no round tomatoes and you gotta have one--- just ask.

They will get you 4 --- then you won't have to start a thread on CC about it like someone did a few days ago ( LOL )

I've posted many times that in all of our cruises we never had " anything " to complain about.

Absolutely true. 

I joke about the time our Waiter forgot to bring my 3 shrimp cocktails at the same time.

A " super awesome Celebrity experience" :  The Edge in March 2023

Late on the first night we went up to the Rooftop Garden restaurant to " check it out " as we say.

The place was empty, the staff were cleaning up and we were approached by a Waiter.

Within a few minutes other staff members came over and joined the conversation ( just general chit chat about them ,their background etc and how cold it gets in winter where we are from ). 

The next day at lunch , a gentleman introduced himself and told us he is the Manager at the Rooftop Garden and invited us to be his guest the next night. 

" I was in the background and saw that you spent time chatting with my staff .

They said you showed interest in them, their work, their background etc, and they really appreciated it. We would like you to be our guest tomorrow night ".

After a few "It's not necessary ", we accepted and enjoyed an exceptional dinner with superb service.

All we did was showed some interest in themselves and that qualifies as a " super awesome Celebrity experience" !!

What's wrong with people today ?? Is it just me ?? There's so much negativity on CC and mostly about nitpicking nonsense ( another word would have more effect, but, not in my nature to swear---- unless necessary.

( Here comes " It might be nonsense to you Pinboy , etc etc so, stop reading and posting, blah, blah blah ).

What would make someone post about tomatoes, the size of their lobster tail, a cookie , the cut back on the size of a gelato scoop , that their Waiter forgot to bring his 3 shrimp cocktails at the same time or I'm bringing my Stateroom Attendant one of my " famous " Christmas cakes ? 

Oops, delete that one about the shrimp cocktails.

CC is fun to read although it appears that the same threads keep popping up.

It's been a long time since someone posted " Who's the Captain on our cruise in 2026 "?

Here's a new one--- " Our Room Steward forgot to fill the ice bucket--- what would you do " ?

5 hours ago, conquesodor said:

I noticed none of the problems people are always on here complaining about.

 if a few cost saving measures have to be made as they dig themselves out of debt, so be it.

Totally agree--- 

LOL--- By reading so many negative posts about the food and an extra few $$ for things that were included in the past , I thought we were the only ones that cruised twice during the winter and never had a problem ( especially with food ) or less than satisfactory service.

I feel better now that there are one or two that agree with me.

However-- I did post and stick by it--- If anyone ( suite passenger as example ) booked with XYZ included in the price, that is what they should receive, or, if there were cutbacks, the price should be adjusted accordingly. 

LOL--- I'll tell ya --- It took a lot of "courage" to post a thread about the friggin Round Tomatoes.

" Hey xyz, I can't come for dinner right now-- I gotta get that " stuff " about them round tomatoes on CC before I forget about it ---------there already are 4823 posts about the size of the lobster tails--- what night was it that the Waiter forgot to bring my 3 shrimp cocktails at the same time " ??

C'est la vie----- that's life

20 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

Now, will I get this kind of service from a butler team? I really doubt this. 

IMO--- Totally agree !!

As mentioned several times, we don't stay in a suite because we are non-drinkers and would not require the services offered by a Butler or team of.

Folks that stay in a suite ( and it appears that there are many on CC ) are absolutely correct in that they are, forget the term " entitled " , insert the term " required " to receive the services and benefits attached to their reservation ( booking ).

Celebrity's Management must have given some very serious thought ( cost vs satisfaction ) before instituting a Butler team rather than a dedicated Butler to service X number of suites.

Based on what I'm reading, Celebrity is taking much too big a risk in upsetting and/or losing many longtime loyal suite customers.

1 hour ago, Baggy178 said:

I want to directly tip for good service I receive not top up the wages of someone working in the engine room.

"directly tip for good service "--- Excellent-- we do that also as well as the Gratuities Included.

IMO---- I believe they introduced the Gratuities Included because too many people were not tipping. In fact, we all know,  and some people reading this probably do , remove the gratuities as soon as they board. They " claim " to do their own tipping or might ( probably) not tip at all. 

Other " big sports " wait until the last night and then remove the gratuities because of some bs excuse.

LOL--- One time I came " that close " to removing the gratuities--- our Waiter, the bum, forgot to bring my 3 shrimp cocktails at the same time !! 

I doubt they would have given us a voucher for a complimentary cruise because that is not a serious a complaint as some of the crap being posted now on CC ( no friggin round tomatoes, as an example, can turn into 1382 pages of absolute " I'm not cruzin wit Cebrilty no more ") nonsense.

35 minutes ago, Nemanoxer said:

discussion boards one day are refilled with positive food excitement only.

Good luck with that ---Never gonna happen---- When there are threads about round tomatoes and sliced vegetables ( unbelievable) , the size of a lobster tail ( as if the Executive Chef orders " only the small ones, please " ),or my hamburger was tooooo well done at Mast Grill, plus some other " dandies ".

It's quite frustrating to read this nonsense ---- 

( Yea, I know--- So why do you read it ) ??

Gotta go---Walmart --Today's Special--- " Large lobster tails recently refused by Celebrity Cruise Lines "

5 hours ago, swjumbo said:

all the vegetables are precut and there are no whole tomatoes to be found!

We even tried Lawn Club Grill last night and the salad bar is greatly diminished with no round tomatoes!

fellow guests are complaining about main dining.

With due respect--

" Pre cut vegetables----No round tomatoes " ? So what ??

Your photos look very good--- especially the salad bar.

"fellow guests are complaining about main dining". ?

There are always people complaining about food.

When the Servers come by to check on the dinner, they should ask " Is anything ok " ?  instead of " Is everything ok "?

Nice to hear about the well behaved children.

"The staff, as always, are exceptional and we still love Celebrity! X "

I couldn't have said it better !!!

We were on the Eclipse in February and the Edge in March.

Stateroom serviced twice a day--- chocolate on pillows every night.

Did not call for room service and didn't notice any cutbacks on the MDR menus

Food, service, ambiance, was the same ( IMO ) as it was prior to Covid.

Specialty restaurants -- Murano and Rooftop Garden excellent as was Tuscan Grill in the am for breakfast #2 . 

The selections on both ships in the MDR at lunch --- very good variety -- excellent , hard working service staff .

The only thing we didn't like on the Edge was the IV ( Infinite Verandah ). The verandah extends the room by about 3 ft and has a window that opens 1/2 way down-- it's not a balcony per say. 

( There are several threads on this topic ) 

43 minutes ago, Cruise Junky said:

When did they sail? It seems like this menu is only a couple of weeks old so if they sailed more than a month ago, their opinion could be irrelevant 

Both very recently.

One couple sailed 3 weeks ago on the Beyond the other on the Reflection 2 weeks ago.

On previous cruises that we were on

the daily menus were always available.
If there  was nothing “ appealing “, we asked if they could prepare xxx, and most often were accommodated .

( A few $$ to say “Thank You “  was well worth it ).

For what it's worth because I notice CCers getting " over-heated " :

1---To those who are complaining about the current state of food:

Two couples we know were recently on Celebrity-- One on the Beyond, the other on the Reflection-

BOTH said the food and service was excellent throughout the cruise.

2--- To those who give a $#%^ about Gratuities split--- For one, I could care less who gets what--- We have the gratuities added to our account and provide an additional tip to our cabin Steward, Specialty Restaurant Servers and the Servers in the Tuscan Grill where we have our 2nd breakfast since we "graduated" to Elite. ( Non-drinkers-- no Bar Servers ).

3--- To those who are waiting for an answer from the CEO, Chairman of the Board , or the Captain because they didn't like the mashed potatoes , the vegetables or their Server forgot about their 3rd shrimp cocktail ----- What answer do you expect other than :

Thank you for your recent email and I do apologize for the inconvenience you experienced.

Your comments regarding  etc, etc etc are taken very seriously and will be forwarded to the appropriate Department Heads.

As you know, we, at Celebrity do everything possible to satisfy our guests and sincerely hope to see you again in the near future.

Unfortunately, we are not able to offer you a Complimentary cruise in the Retreat as you requested.

Your truly,

XYZ

Customer Representative 

I'm very disappointed to read about the downfall in the menu selections and the quality of the food.

Most CCers are experienced , long time Celebrity Customers ,not friggin Guests .

( LOL) Ya ever invite someone to your home and provide them with a bill --- before the meal-- to see if they like it---- or, worse still--- change the menu from Chateaubriand to Chien chaud ( hot dogs )?

That's what appears to be happening.

So, how do we fix it:

Instead of 87, going for 870 posts, the only way is to let the Executive Team hear from us.  

Posting on CC will not have the same effect.

( Booing an Executive Chef ?? -- Awful !!)