Mrs_Tiki

I just booked this itinerary for March 2016. I'm guessing since you said this is your favorite new ship that you had a good time? Did you you enjoy the entertainment, and how would you characterize it? How was the solarium? Thanks for any answers. :-)

We had a great time, sorry if that did not come through in my comments! :)

We are usually not big on entertainment, but partook in more this trip than usual. We enjoyed the "special guest entertainers," although I can't remember their names. Both were musical ~ one was a man who could play all genres of music with impressive impressions of various artists, the other was a female vocalist. Our favorite was Rebecca Amaral, who played mellow guitar music (like Van Morrison, James Taylor), usually at the bar on Deck 10 Aft (Sunset/Oceanview?) and Café al Bacio.

We were never in the right place at the right time to hear Gran Volta (string trio, I think) perform. Pool music was provided by The Shenanigans, a female duo who played R&B/Rock. I loved their music, but the volume was too loud for us. In the late evenings a DJ provided a club vibe at the Martini Bar/Crush. Not to everyone's taste, but even though we are older (50-ish), we thought it was fun.

We don't enjoy the production shows, so didn't attend those.

We also enjoyed some of the "Celebrity Life" activities: Capt. Tasos gave a lecture on the construction of the Solstice (he was Chief Safety Officer for that ship at the time), the Executive Chef hosted a "Top Chef" cooking challenge, and Capt. Tasos, Cruise Director Alejandro and Activities Manager Sarah were very entertaining in the Liars Club Game.

Solarium was great, love the Thallassotherapy pools on M-class ships. For the most part, it was a very quiet, spa-like retreat from the crowded pool deck. (However, it was packed on the sea day that it rained all day.) That day, a large group commandeered the Aqua Spa Café tables and began playing some sort of dice game. With each roll, they whooped and hollered, until a staff member asked them respect the quiet atmosphere of the Solarium. I was very impressed that they obliged by substituting hand motions for verbal reactions. Not so impressed to see a family completely disregard the same staff member's request for them to remove their small child from the T-pool.

Hope this helps. Sorry that you have to wait a whole year until your cruise!

Did you have full loungers or footstools on the balcony?

 

How was the area of view when sitting out there? We have that cabin booked on the Summit and was wondering if you can see more than the wake when sitting as we will be cruising on the St Lawrence in the Fall

 

thanks.

 

happy crusing

Sorry for the delay in replying to your question, have been covered up with laundry and emails!

We had two of the reclining chairs, one footstool, two small low side tables and one larger table at dining height. No full loungers. We asked our cabin steward if she could bring another footstool and were told that it was "not possible."

As much as we enjoyed having the large balcony that gave us the choice of sun/view or shade/privacy, it did have a bit of a "tunnel vision" feel, unless you were standing at the rail. Better options for viewing scenery would be 1138 or 1141, IMHO, since their rails are at a slant.

Happy Sailing to you too!

Wallysdtr,

I do not remember seeing a waiter named JP, but he certainly might still be there. We usually had John Michael or Miller.

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Just off the Connie this morning, and rode the elevator with the Executive Chef. DH asked when they would be changing the menus. His reply was that their current strategy is to change out a couple of items at a time, because it takes 18 months to implement a new item due to sourcing and kitchen procedures.

That seemed like a long time to me, but we heard it from the big guy himself!

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We are just off Connie 5-day this morning. I am not sure of the price, but they offered lunch in Ocean Liners on the second sea day.

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Just off the Connie this morning. I don't have bar menus, but each night we were able to pay the difference in Cellarmasters to enjoy wines not fully covered by the Premium package. Didn't have occasion to try it anywhere else.

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I will try to write a more detailed review later, but here are some brief impressions:

This was the first time that we had sailed on one of the Solsticized M-class ships, and I think we have a new favorite class. Seemed like the best of both worlds, with the new amenities combined with the more intimate smaller ships.

Captain Tasos is as personable as others have reported, and his attitude seems to create an atmosphere that leads to a happy, friendly crew.

Our AQ Deck 11 aft balcony cabin (1140 with the gigantic balcony) was comfortable and quiet.

Blu was a lovely dining experience. Although we did notice a slight decline in food quality and presentation, the great service more than made up for it. We did not notice suite guests being seated ahead of AQ guests. We did have to wait about 30 minutes one evening, but had arrived at peak time.

Chair hogs were out early and in force, but we were always able to find a place to sit away from the main pool area.

Agree with others that bar service seems to have been affected by the free drink package promotion. We only saw a few bar waiters serving the pool areas, and you had to be patient to wait your turn at the bar. We especially enjoyed visiting Boris at Cellarmasters. Even though we upgraded to the premium package, very few of those wines were fully covered, which may have kept crowds away.

Since we visited Cozumel first, we had to go through Immigration inspection in Key West. It was a very long, but fast-moving line, took us 25 minutes from start to finish.

It seemed like half of the ship chose to do Walk-Off Embarkation, causing a big bottle-neck at Customs. We were in the first group after Walk-Off, and it took 30 minutes from the time we crossed the gangway until getting in a cab.

Formal night was day 2 on our cruise.

If anyone has specific questions, I will try to answer. (I do not have dailies or menus, sorry.)

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hcat, thanks for coming back and addressing the Blu concerns. Glad to hear that you had a good experience there and enjoyed your cruise overall. Monday can't get here fast enough for me!

We have not yet sailed Reflection, but have sailed most of the rest of the ships in the current X fleet. Our recent cruises have pretty much split between X and RCL, and we like both.

But I agree with other posters about X offering better food and a more sophisticated and adult atmosphere. My 21-year-old DD has sailed with us on both and likes both, but her preference would be RCL due to more activities and livelier nightlife. So, if it's DH and me, we sail X, but if it's the three of us, we would tend to pick RCL.

One pet peeve I have about RCL is having to queue up and present my SeaPass card to "check out" towels at the pool and when going ashore. I much prefer the honor system on X, with towels readily and conveniently available.

hcat, thanks for taking time out of your vacation to post your impressions about the Connie. I am relieved to hear that you are enjoying Blu. Have you experienced any of the problems in Blu (seating of suite pax ahead of AQ pax) that were reported on previous cruises?

Based on the warnings, we decided to stop in before BLU opens the first night to make sure policy correction was made.

 

we usually go early to dinner so it should not involve being handed a beeper.We like to stick to same time schedule as at home

 

we are big fans of BLU and are still looking forward to a good experience,..

We are sailing on the Connie in the next few weeks and are quite concerned to read this review. Not at all what we have experienced in Blu on previous cruises.

hcat, please check back and let us know what your experience is. Have a great cruise, and thanks in advance!

Hi Anne! Mark and I are on the Connie in a few weeks, and it was great to read your review. I hope it will work out that we can cruise with you all again someday!

We seem to alternate between X and RC depending on whether our daughter is with us. Our latest X cruises have been on Solstice, Silhouette and Eclipse and latest RC have been on Serenade of the Seas and Jewel of the Seas. We have enjoyed both experiences, although we do notice some differences.

IMHO, the S-class ships definitely have a more modern, sophisticated and adult ambiance. We think that X cuisine is a level above RC, and really, really appreciate the scarcity of announcements throughout the day. When we travel as a couple, we are all about rest and relaxation, so appreciate the more calm atmosphere on X.

That said, we have also loved our cruises on RC's Radiance-class ships, particularly the spectacular sea views afforded by all the glass (especially the glass elevators overlooking the sea!) I have not sailed on Enchantment, but the Radiance-class ships are much more new and modern. We perceive there to be a greater amount of activities on RC and a more lively nightlife. Although we don't like it as much as X, we enjoy the food on RC, especially the specialty restaurants. One annoyance on RC is having to check out pool towels vs. having them available as needed on X.

We have experienced great service on both lines, would call that a tie. Cabin size seems like a draw also, although the furnishings on X are more modern. If I had to draw a comparison to hotel chains, I find the S-class ships to remind me of W Hotels and the Radiance-class on RC to be more like a Marriott.

So yes, I think that you will survive just fine! I would not hesitate to sail on the Serenade with the right itinerary and company!

Alainamarie,

Thanks so much for taking time to do a review. I will be on the Connie in Early February and am very interested in all you have to share.

Can you tell more about your friend Kelly's aft AquaClass cabin? We will be in of these, and I am wondering if they have loungers on the balcony as others have reported? Thanks in advance for any details you recall.

Looking forward to your next installment!

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Just booked yesterday for the 123 Go all-inclusive. My invoice shows the correct amount of OBC as well as a line item with the code "123A-ALL 123GO". Perhaps this is the newly-assigned code?

Or should I continue to look for beverage package and prepaid gratuities specifically?

And even though I made final payment yesterday morning, the reservation was still showing up as 24-hour hold on My Celebrity online last evening.

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When we were on Freedom in July, there was a live band who played Caribbean/Calypso music. They were great!

What struck us as unusual was what played on the big screen when the live band wasn't playing ~ a combo of Make-A-Wish stories, sporting events, and hip hop/rap videos. None of it was objectionable, just an odd mix.

Beds are moderately firm and have a foam topper as of May this year. May have changed since.

This was my experience in early August. DD and I agreed that we slept better in those beds than ours at home!

On our two most recent RCL cruises on Jewel and Freedom, those who were under 21 were issued different key cards to distinguish them from those who were of legal age. The ones for under 21's had what we called the "dancing children" superimposed on the generic background.

I always travel with a passport, but leave it in the safe when we go ashore. Had read here on CC that some folks take a photocopy of their passport ashore with them in case of unforeseen emergency. Do you think that would help establish identity, or no good since it's not the real thing?

It was mentioned about the "musterd drill" on the Freedom of the Seas. Yes, we were there the end of April of this year. I do remember going into the theatre in different sections of the theatre. They did have different staff members for each section, showing how to use the life jackets. This was the first time in all my crusing, that we didn't have to go outside in the hot sun and wear those life jackets. It was nice to do it this way.:)

Sadly for us, the Freedom had reverted to the outdoor muster drill when we sailed last week. No life jackets were required, but the heat/humidity was like a sauna!

Conspiracy theorists might say that the cruise line requires outdoor muster when beverage sales are down, knowing that the heat and stress drove many of us straight to the bar for a drink of the day afterward! ;)

This is a fun thread!

Another vote for the Radiance class ships. We've sailed on Radiance, Jewel and Serenade and loved them all. Ditto what alfaeric said about elegance and gorgeous sea views! Nothing better than having breakfast on the open deck area behind the Windjammer.

That said, we've also sailed Navigator and Freedom and enjoyed ourselves very much also, but find the size and number of passengers a bit overwhelming. Much prefer the smaller ships.

Except for the very petite Viking Serenade, our first RCL cruise. Can't recommend that one, but luckily it has been gone from the fleet for a long time!!

Not on the Freedom last week. No sign of cabanas or reserved seats for suite guests in the tiered area.

Thanks for taking the time do a quick review.

 

My question is about the ship reserving the chair space on 1 or both sides of the pool bar. This would be on the stairs between the pool deck and deck 12. I seem to remember a recent picture of a few tables and "clam shell" cabanas in this section. I don't know if this is for suite guests only or if RCI is looking for extra revenue for people to reserve this space (like the cabanas or clam shells on Coco Cay).

 

Please let me know if you can.

 

Thank you

otterman, I don't recall seeing any clam shell cabanas anywhere on the ship. And I think that this area used to be reserved for suite guests in the past, but I did not see any evidence that it was at all restricted on our cruise. In fact, it was one of the first areas to fill up on sea days.

On our W. Carib. cruise last week, formal nights were Monday (day 2, sea day) and Thursday (day 5, Grand Cayman). I can't recall which menus went with which night, just that Fisherman's Plate was on day 5.

Hope this helps a bit ~

Just returning to a mountain of work and emails, so I don't have time to write a full review of our cruise right now, but wanted to share the highlights for the benefit of those sailing soon.

Embarkation:

We arrived at the parking garage at 10:30-ish, no others in Priority Check-In line, waited a bit in seating area, then were in the first group on the ship. Seated in Windjammer by 11:30, rooms ready at 1:00.

Dining:

I am not a fan of buffet dining, usually avoid the Windjammer at all costs, but it suited DD's dietary needs the best. Although it was chaotic, I was completely impressed by the variety and quality of the food offered. At peak times (before cabins were ready on first day and waiting to arrive in port), many people camped out at tables long after they had finished eating. The staff had to make announcements asking them to move on so that others could be seated to eat.

We had MTD and had made reservations for the same time every night. The maitre'd accommodated our request for the same servers/section each night, which almost made it feel like traditional dining. Even with reservations, we waited 5-10 minutes most nights to be seated, no biggie. Service and food was very good. Food quality seemed better than our other recent RCL cruises.

Cabin/Ship Condition:

I had feared that things might be a little "tired," since FOS will be in dry dock this winter. But my fears were unfounded ~ our cabin and the ship in general seemed in great condition.

This is the first time that I have slept well on a ship. Our beds had memory foam mattress toppers, which were heavenly.

Crew/Staff:

Very impressed with everyone that we interacted with, from the Captain to the maintenance workers. All were friendly and seemed genuinely eager to provide a great vacation. I don't usually notice the Cruise Director much, but Rich Edwards was exceptional in terms of MCing entertainment events and providing helpful information in his morning TV show. Activites Director Isabelle O'Brien was great, too.

C&A Diamond Benefits:

There were daily cocktails in the Diamond Lounge from 4:30 - 8:00 AND 3 vouchers loaded on our cards for the same time period. It was nice to have the option to visit other venues, but we really enjoyed the views from the Lounge. We did not ever visit in the morning for breakfast, so can't comment there.

Our favorite Diamond benefit this time was the option of sitting in Chops to eat our breakfast and lunch. (Food from Windjammer, just drinks and coffee provided in Chops during these times.) It was nice to escape the clamor of the Windjammer. (From what I understand, the inclusion of Diamonds in this benefit - vs. just Diamond Plus and Pinnacle - may vary from sailing to sailing or ship to ship.)

The only glitch with preloaded C&A coupons we had was redeeming the free 60 minutes of Internet. The computers gave a message that coupons were not available at this time and that we should go ahead and purchase the $29.95 package, then go to Guest Services to have the charges reversed. When I tried this with the package for my card, the staffer in Guest Services had no idea what I was talking about, and it took a long time for her to figure it out. I mentioned this to the Diamond Concierge, and he said that he was aware of the disconnect and would talk to Guest Services. By the time that I redeemed the other one, Guest Services was able to quickly reverse the charge.

Ports:

Labadee: for us, a beach day, no excursions.

Falmouth, Jamaica: Dreamer Catamaran, purchased through the ship. Very nice cat, crew and good snorkeling spot off Montego Bay. This trip is considered an eco-tour and included a sail through the mangroves with crew bringing various sea life aboard for us to see/touch.

Grand Cayman: Catamaran Sail & Snorkel, purchased through the ship. (We purchased this specifically to avoid Stingray City stop.) Even nicer cat and crew, snorkeling on wreck of Kittiwake and at marine park.

Cozumel: beach day at Nachi Cocum all-inclusive arranged independently. Lovely day in our own reserved palapa, with included cocktails and delicious lunch. Watersports (Jet Skis, stand-up paddle boards, paddle boats, banana boat rides, parasailing and snorkeling gear) available at an additional charge.

Disembarkation:

We were assigned Group 20 and waited in designated C&A departure lounge until our number was called at the promised time of 8:30. We claimed luggage, cleared Customs, and were in the car on the road by 9:00. This was one of the most organized disembarkations that we have experienced.

Express Walk-Off was available, meeting time was 6:45.

Miscellaneous:

Chair hogs were out in force, but we could secure chairs on the level overlooking pool if we got out there by 10:00. I did not see any instances of pool staff removing belongings left over 30 minutes.

Dress code was not enforced in MTD. Saw numerous t-shirt and shorts combos on formal night. Not expressing any opinion pro or con, just reporting what I observed. ;)

So, this seems to have become a bit longer than a mini-review. Hopefully that shows how much we enjoyed our cruise on the Freedom!

Will be happy to answer any specific questions if I can.