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That's an Aqua sky suite so is a little more expensive than standard sky suite, but on the UK site the standard sky suite on the Edge on that 13th May cruise comes in as follows, which as I said is the same price (cheaper when you take into account the OBC and free drinks) as the Oceania one: Sky Suite First Guest Total£5,618.00 Second Guest Total£5,618.00 Discounts Special Offer-£4,505.00 RETREATBOGO75 ($800.00 to spend Onboard) The Retreat Premium Wi-Fi Premium drinks Tips Dining Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner included at select venues Exclusive Access to Luminae Taxes & Fees Taxes, Fees, and Port Expenses£138.00 Trip Total£6,869.00 GBP

I just had a quick look at those two cruises. The Oceania one in the PH1 suite currently comes to £6898 for two, the sky suite on the Edge currently comes out at £6869 so pretty much the same. A couple weeks later there's an Oceania 10 day cruise on Vista, £11,200 for two in a penthouse suite or a 9 day cruise on Beyond in a sky suite for £10,600. However in both cases the Celebrity cruises include premium drinks and $800 onboard credit while the Oceania ones include either drinks or $300/400 credit, so in reality the Celebrity ones are coming out cheaper. Maybe prices changed since you booked, or it's to do with booking in £ vs $ or maybe X saw your post and quickly just changed their prices hahah. Anyway, I've looked at a few others and seen X prices very similar if not cheaper than equivalent on Oceania so I guess its not necessarily the case that Oceania is always coming in cheaper at moment.

That was actually a bug bear of mine the other month. I hate wastage and made an effort to hang all my towels up so the room attendant wouldn't replace them, as the sign in the bathroom said. Yet every day I'd have a new set of towels. One doesn't need a new towel after using it once, there's just no need. However, I kept forgetting to mention it to the room attendant and wouldn't remember again until stepping out of the shower and thinking darn, new towels again! Lol

I think the 'right' amount of time is just enough so you feel better, but not long enough such that you're overly relaxed and end up remortgaging your house to buy all the junk they try and sell you at the end of it!

I'd prefer they put their efforts into making cards which don't come apart after a few days!

I think a lot of people forget or don't realise that CC members who post frequently or even infrequently are definitely not representative of the cruising population at large. There are probably 25-30,000 people sailing on Celebrity ships at any one time with maybe 2-3,000 in AQ. I don't think 1 question a week on here about ordering from the MDR menu in Blu indicates that 'many others' share your opinion. Plus most of those questions are whether they can pick the odd menu item from the MDR, not their whole meal every day. If the food in Blu was truly so awful then nobody would be paying extra for AQ. But they are paying, and it's often one of the first classes to sell out. At a guess, less than 1% of people order all their meals off the MDR menu. Tbh most people probably don't even realise they can do that. I have a feeling if you handed out the Blu menu in the MDR and gave people the choice, you'd have a lot more than a couple of people ordering from Blu instead. Like you said though, it's not to your taste, but food is very subjective and I'm pretty sure you're in the minority with this one. I just watched a Masterchef episode where 2 judges absolutely loved one of the contestants desserts but the 3rd judge said it was awful and far too sweet. Can't please everyone!

On paper that might make sense, but in reality I suppose it depends on what you consider to be important when dining in a restaurant. Obviously the food is key, and for me the food in Blu is excellent, no complaints on that front. Restaurant itself, general ambience etc is also a factor. I prefer the smaller more intimate design of Blu but each to their own. What we really loved about Blu last month was the service and staff in there. After a few nights the Maitre D remembered us, as soon as he saw us come in he would have our normal two tables pushed together and set up and welcome us in. Waiter and his assistant would beam at us and ask us, by name, how our day had been etc. Sommelier knew what drinks we wanted and would bring them over for us without asking. Maitre D would always come and have a chat about our day, what we were planning for next day, give us tips about the next port etc. After night 6 or 7 our waiter somehow knew our tastes and would know before we told him which dish we wanted to get for the middle of the table to share amongst us. If you were to get a specialty dining package and eat in a different specialty restaurant every night you would lose this familiarity. You'd be starting afresh with a new waiter, sommelier and Maitre D every night. Some people might not mind that, but to us we certainly appreciated walking into Blu and feeling at home. When we did dine in Murano one night we all walked out and said the same thing, food was great and staff were nice, but it wasn't Blu.

Exactly this. But then I'm early 40s so maybe it's a generational thing. Everyone has different tastes. Michael's club and cellar masters on the Reflection both remind me of 1800s London gentleman's clubs, you're right. Maybe that ambience is a little cosier on a cold weather cruise (or a cold foggy winters day in London) but its the last place I want to sit and relax after a day spent in the Mediterranean sun! I can't be alone in thinking this because like I said in a previous post, cellar masters was nearly empty for most of our cruise last month. I've not been on an Edge class ship yet but when we find the right itinerary/timing/price we definitely will. Also definitely not put off by the infinite balconies - I roll my eyes everytime I see the same people on here moaning non stop about them! From what I can see, it boils down to not having a couple inch gap at the top and bottom of the dividers between each room on the balconies. That's it. Only disadvantage I believe is not being able to open dividers to join balcony with friends in cabin next door, but that's certainly not a deal breaker!

After a few cruises on the Reflection, I found the sky lounge to be one of the most underused venues on the ship so I think you might be in a minority. Last cruise, after absolutely packed events like a silent disco or ABBA party in the grand foyer, it's announced "and we're going to carry on the party up in the sky lounge", we head up there to find it dead, with maybe 10-20 other people there. Other times of the day when I'd walk past it would also be nearly always empty. Cellar masters probably takes the prize for emptiest bar area, hardly ever saw anyone in it. I think the ensemble lounge is a bit of a hidden gem. Unless you're in AQ and head that way to Blu every night or have a booking in a specialty restaurant, I bet a large proportion of guests don't even realise it's there. We found it a great place to grab a drink before dinner in Blu every night.

Yes, every single time. Although, just as taste is subjective, so is the ideal temperature of food. I know a couple of people who prefer food to be served on the plate at a temperature which to the majority of people would be far too hot to even contemplate trying for several mins. They also seem to be able to drink freshly boiled tea or coffee almost immediately, whereas I have to wait a good 5 mins or so!

They do currently still provide chocs on the pillows in aqua. I wonder how many people (in all classes) actually eat them though. I ate 1 out of 11. By the time I made it to the actual bed most nights I'd already washed, dressed and cleaned teeth, def don't want a chocolate then so they ended up in a pile. Room steward didn't take the hint and kept putting new ones on pillow every night!

This is one of the beauties of a cruise, try something and if you don't like it just order something else instead! I tried a Beyond burger in Blu last month, fully expecting to not like it and probably just order something else but I was surprised at how tasty it was. I'm not a vegetarian by any means but do like trying new foods. In a normal restaurant you're always a bit reluctant to try something new incase it's bloody awful or even just not as enjoyable as other things on the menu you know you'd love. On a cruise, that doesn't matter - just order again!

I've been wondering the same. Currently booked on the same itinerary as you but in November and as things currently stand I don't see it going ahead, or at least not the Hong Kong portion. Problem is if it were to start and end in Singapore a lot of the other ports will have to be cancelled/changed. I'm not sure there would be enough time to get to Ha Long and back to Singapore unless several intermediate ports were skipped and several more sea days added.

I wouldn't worry about the food. It was excellent on Reflection a few weeks ago. Also, it's not a tragedy they can't buy fresh seafood in every port...its simply impractical. Firstly, remember this particular live from is on a TA, not too many stops to pick up fresh fish (or anything) in the middle of the Atlantic. Secondly, it's not logistically possible to pick up fresh fish/food in every port, especially in the quantities needed for a cruise ship.

That's true, and probably wouldn't have cost too much to add some more potted plants and more comfortable furniture up there BUT would that make it a 'Retreat deck'? You'd end up with several versions of Retreat Decks, from those on the Edge class to what they've done on the handful of revolutionised ships and then down to simply a gate with slightly different furniture. Would that be much of a selling point? Would people in suite class expecting a separate bar, hot tub etc be sorely disappointed to find it was basically just the same as it was before but with a gate? That part of the S class ships is currently very underutilised though, very few people using it on Reflection last month. The busiest I ever saw it was late one night while docked in Istanbul when it was roped off and the crew had a party up there!

I guess all the veg I saw them chopping up in the behind the scenes tour a few weeks ago was a plant (excuse the pun) and just for show while we were walking through the galley. Ahem. Do I care if some produce is frozen when brought on ship so it tastes as good after 10 nights as it did on day 1, absolutely not. Was the food in Blu tasteless and still frozen when it was served, absolutely not. It was delicious, hence we ordered extra starters and mains every night! Do I care if all cruise lines make a few cost cutting measures that 99.99% of people won't notice or care about <checks RCI current debt level> nope, I don't. Antway, I had the short rib dish in Blu a few weeks ago. The beans weren't mushy, off colour and they certainly didn't taste nasty. The only nasty dish we had was because we didn't read the menu properly and ended with something smothered in a goats cheese sauce. Bleugh. Lol

We had two silent discos on Reflection a few weeks ago, one night on the pool deck and then later in the cruise one in the grand foyer. Plenty of headphones to go around even though the grand foyer one in particular was very well attended. A lot of fun, definitely not an activity to miss!

When I was on the ship 3 weeks ago I would have said the only things I spotted which looked like they needed work/replacement were the wooden decking around the pools and hot tubs (plus the hull looked like it needed a good paint job). Carpets, chairs, soft furnishings ship wide all seemed in great condition already.

Ahhh Giuseppe the cruise director - he had just joined Reflection last month on our cruise and he was absolutely brilliant. Ciao!

Just off Reflection a couple of weeks ago and if I remember correctly most Martinis were priced at $13 so were included in the premium drinks package. However, I think there was one which was priced at $16 so if you wanted that particular one you just paid the $1.20 difference.

No, my 'anecdote' is from 10 days ago. There's a very clear sign outside Blu which states no shorts. If someone thinks that doesn't apply to them then that says all I need to know about that person 🙂 And to the person going on about being able to wear shorts anywhere else especially in hot climates, firstly that's incorrect. Secondly, at what point have any of the restaurants on a cruise ship been kept at a balmy 80f+?! They do have air conditioning yano. Shorts aren't necessary to keep cool in an air conditioned restaurant!

Not the case. Night 3 or 4 in Blu, the elderly couple in front of us were turned away because he was wearing shorts. And quite rightly so. Who do you think you are to walk right past a sign which says no shorts, while wearing shorts, thinking the rule only applies to everyone else. It's very bloody simple, don't wear shorts to dinner. I don't care one jot about your personal rights to wear what you want. It's about having a little respect for the rules, your fellow passengers and above all the crew. Don't put the hard working crew in a difficult position where they are forced to have an awkward conversation just because you think the rules shouldn't apply to you. You're not special. If you can't possibly bring yourself to wear smart looking clothes when eating in a nice restaurant in the evening then maybe find another cruise line or go on holiday in Benidorm or somewhere like that. Although tbh most of the 18yo's who go out getting drunk in benidorm would dress better than this guy who tried getting in Blu.

Just off 11 nights on the Reflection and after reading so much doom and gloom on here prior to travelling we fully expected to catch covid at some point on the ship! However, back home for 4 days now and touch wood we're all clear still. I'd say probably less than 1% of passengers were wearing masks on the ship and most of the crew weren't either. After speaking with a few crew members who were wearing them, apparently if they had just boarded the ship they were required to mask up for 5 days. They were all looking forward to day 6 when they could ditch them. Throughout the cruise there was zero mention of covid from the captain, apart from when we docked at Athens and he told us that masks would be delivered to each cabin as we had to wear them walking through the cruise terminal at Pireaus. Which was utterly ridiculous as it was literally about a 30 second walk! I don't know whether the person in charge of covid restrictions in Greece has just been on vacation for the last 6 months or so but they really have the stupidest rules still. From the rule about having a supervised test before boarding just because the ship stops in Greece, to wearing a mask in a very quiet and well ventilated port terminal for 30 seconds, to the fact the crew were supposed to wear masks ON BOARD the ship while we were docked at Pireaus. Nonsensical lol. Anyway, it was a delight to see unmasked crew, as it was to see a totally packed grand foyer for the silent disco, ABBA night and other events held there. Nobody seemed to care about covid, the cruise could quite easily have been taking place 3yrs ago pre covid. We saw no mass increase in people coughing, spluttering and sneezing half way through the cruise. We did have a few days when we were sneezing and had runny noses but we took a couple of antihistamines/allergy pills and it cleared right up after an hour. Don't automatically assume anyone who sneezes has covid there's a good chance its just allergies!

While I'm sure there are many reasons for itinerary changes and I understand ports might change their 'opening hours' or docking slots, which might result in ships having to depart earlier than originally scheduled, I'm curious if Celebrity (and other lines) might change their scheduled hours in port to try and save on fuel? Booked on a cruise next year and just received an itinerary change which results in departing 3 ports an hour earlier than scheduled and arriving into 2 ports an hour later than originally scheduled. Interestingly even though departing 3 ports an hour earlier, we aren't arriving into port the next day an hour earlier so the net effect is 5 hours longer at sea. Presumably this means the ships can travel a little slower which would have the effect of saving fuel, which at the moment is obviously a huge cost to cruise lines. I read that a 10% reduction in speed can result in a 20% savings in fuel, which when you consider RCCL spent $275m on fuel in Q2 this year, can result in huge savings. The email from Celebrity states the changes are being made for "operational efficiencies" which makes me wonder if it is to save fuel (or port fees maybe), surely if it was because of individual port requirements they would have just said "operational reasons"? The changes aren't a deal breaker, but it's a shame one port has changed from 9am-6pm to 10am-5pm as 2 hours less on shore will make quite a difference there. A question for seasoned cruisers, have you noticed ships taking longer to travel from one port to another recently, with less time spent in each port, or are they roughly the same as they always have been? Have many people noticed itinerary changes resulting in less time spent in ports and more hours at sea or is ours more of a one off?

I have to completely disagree with you there, actually that's one of the silliest comments I've ever seen hahah To say you get better quality and tastier food at TGI Fridays than on any Celebrity ship is just bizarre. After 9 nights eating in Blu, 1 in Murano and 1 at the LCG over the last couple weeks, I can assure people that the food served is a million times better that what you'd get in a chain restaurant! No question about it. Every night in Blu our table would get an extra couple of starters and mains to share, not because the portions were too small, but because the food was that good. We ate lunches and breakfasts at the buffet several times, absolutely no complaints about the food served there either. Food aside, the whole cruise was wonderful. 10yr old ship, you couldn't tell. Many new members of staff, you couldn't tell (apart from the fact new crew had to wear masks for first 5 days). Service was impeccable and nothing was too much trouble. My last cruise was on the same ship when it was brand new, 10yrs ago. Has the sparkle been lost? No, everything was actually better than I remember.