markeb

They had 101 in Craft Social on Equinox last week. Edited: Not sure if it required an upcharge or not. Whisk(e)y just isn't a big thing on Celebrity, IMHO.

I'm sure people are giving feedback when they feel reduced service. I put it on my post cruise survey. But honestly, for us, not necessarily for anyone else, we got the service we expected. Our breakfast was NOT cold. He did chill the (admittedly horrible) sparkling wine when we asked. We didn't have issues that needed resolved. For us, and again, not necessarily the same for others, the service differences we saw were things that were offered in the past (afternoon cheese plate and dropping off additional bottled water and diet coke) and HOW the service was provided. We felt we got what we paid for. Maybe we're just not picky enough...

I won't say it's all gone, but it's definitely different. Oddly enough, we probably saw our Retreat Host more last week than when we had a true "butler" but it was because he was out and about cleaning rooms. That wasn't a butler role before. But he did always say hello, ask about our day, and ask if we needed anything. But in a different setting. But yeah, we had room service breakfast twice and it was a different room service person both times. Not the butler like before.

Thanks. I seem to remember much worse fares. Or people complaining about budget carriers, which may be stuck in my memory. Glad to be wrong on that. I have had carryon concerns in the past on flights within Europe with sometimes tighter restrictions than in the US. A lot of connections from the US were on regional carriers from Munich to Prague or Naples. The checked bags transferred fine but carryons were a pain. It got complicated at times. London City does seem like a great option. Have to remember that if we fly from London to the continent in the future.

Given what can be fairly expensive checked baggage fees for air travel within Europe, this seems on the surface to be a very good option. It might take longer than flying, but the Eurostar was so nice the one time I was able to take it. Your thoughts?

Such as? What are you looking for from the butler? I'm seriously curious. We've found it much simpler to schedule specialty dining with the Luminae maître d' and most other services with the Retreat concierge when we stopped by for a drink. The only thing I really noticed as a change was the butler/retreat host no longer delivers room service breakfast. Again, the minifridge has never been included in any of my SS cruises. In one, the butler made a point of replenishing the water and soda even though it wasn't officially included. The other two it was clear they were not included, going back to 2018. On our most recent SS cruise, a week ago, we had large bottles of Evian constantly replenished in the cabin. But on all three SS cruises the official policy was that the minibar was NOT included. This isn't a change.

I get all that. What's the butler worth to you? In dollars? Beyond the emotion? When the butler was fully in place, I'd guess we valued them at no more than $10 a day, for the cabin, not per person. We've had mixed results in our three SS cruises, with only one where the butler/retreat host really exceeded expectations. Again, if you were really planning to use them a lot (what does that mean to you?), then I kind of get it. But our Equinox cruise last week was not radically different than our previous Equinox cruises in a SS. I can't assign the service differences to the butler differences (other than room service breakfast, which was different, but the end result was the same). I viewed the butler change as less than ideal, but not a reason on its own that I wouldn't book the Retreat. The crazy stupid prices going forward are a different issue, but the value of the butler wouldn't even cross my threshold for that. We're all different. Hope you enjoy your cruise.

But it’s what they’ve repeatedly stated. So it appears to be the primary driver to them. It’s the difference between the alternatives. It seems very important.

I suspect in either case most of them end up in the trash, so does it really matter? One of the last occupants of our cabin on the Equinox actually stuffed their bag in the inch and a half space on top of the closet... We didn't get chocolates last week, though. Those were nice on our last cruise.

Exactly I probably enjoyed Michael's more than the current Retreat lounge on Equinox. Admittedly, a lot of that has to do with the passenger population and their interest in the lounge, which is beyond Celebrity's control. On our first suite class cruise on Equinox in 2018 Michael's was busy every night and you met people simply by finding a seat. The Retreat lounge on our last two Equinox cruises has largely felt empty and sterile. I don't dislike the decor like some, but the feel of an old school club in Michael's seemed to produce a better experience.

Was the butler the primary driver in your decision to go with the SS? If not, why should it be the primary driver in a decision to move to a different category? I'm reasonably confident you've done the math. What's the actual delta from a sky suite to Aqua once you calculate in the lost OBC, tips, and the cost of upgrading drinks and Wi-Fi (assuming you want to compare apples to oranges here)? Does the SS provide value to YOU (value, not cost, that's a judgement call) that exceeds that delta? We did this calculation for AQ vs SS for an Alaska cruise next year, before the changes in tips and OBC, and while the difference was certainly not zero, we've enjoyed the Retreat enough that it provided value to us. Maybe not anyone else, but to us.

That's what I was wondering and suspected. Had a geometry/trig professor years ago who loved what he called the "looks like theorem". Two lines, look the same length, angles look the same, etc. and must therefore be the same. Obviously not true. I find that disturbingly true with electricity on a ship. I "looks like" my outlet at home, it must be the same...

Thanks for the correction. I've gotten so in tune to this that I can get off track. Looks like I did. Is there any need for or harm in a traditional circuit breaker on ship's power? I'd get the details wrong, but as you say that should be a totally different mechanism than surge protection.

So are any of them complete Submariner knock offs? Which is what this one is. Complete to the cyclops and a fake oyster bracelet. With a Malaysian made Seiko licensed clone movement. I'm OK with Invicta when it's something that's their own and they charge what it's worth (less than $50, probably closer to $14.99). But not creating a watch to exactly replicate a Submariner. Even worse if someone gets robbed for their fake sub...

No. Do not get that. At all. Those are all buzzwords for Surge Protection. Which you don’t need and is a fire hazard. And 3 of the four USB ports are horribly underpowered USB A ports. For the rest of our sakes, that should be confiscated immediately.

The 12th deck only has Sky Suites and now Aqua Sky Suites (and something called "prime concierge class". Looking at the deck plan, they were probably Aqua Sky Suites. That didn't exist that I can remember the last time we were on Equinox. I'd have to look at the different perks, but maybe it's a perk of the Aqua Sky Suite? Which is kind of funny because I liked our location much better than those cabins...

Same as MLB and probably every other sports venue in the US. For MLB, it's all AB/INBEV so the "standard" beers (which are also badly overpriced) are Bud/Bud Light/Michelob/Michelob Ultra. Blue Moon is a premium beer. In some bizarre parallel universe. Don't get me started... Celebrity is no better or worse.

The better question is "Is it worth it to buy Invicta?" The answer is almost always "no"! It's just not a good watch brand, and there are much better watches out there. Seiko, Orient, Tissot, to name a few.

OK. They've always offered to get anything. I guess it's almost anything.

The Retreat can get anything onboard, at least up to the premium package. Biggest challenge is finding what’s onboard. I do think the specialty bars are better set up for many if not most cocktails. But neat whisky is perfect for the Retreat!

Pretty sure Macallan was on the premium package on Equinox. It was the Quest travel edition. Kind of forgettable... As a whisk(e)y drinker, the near constant price increases may also be pushing some of those into "premium". And not all "premium" spirits are $17; for cash purchase quite a few were well under the max price of the premium band Which makes sense. You've got Makers (about $35/bottle in Virginia), Glenlivet ($60), and at least last week Macallan ($85 locally, but not Quest). The ship is using a lot of travel editions and is a duty-free importer but that's a pretty broad price range for spirits in the same category. Jameson is about the same price as Maker's here, so they would be in the same band but probably priced closer to $11 than $17 (I don't remember and can't find a list in the app).

I think there's a lot of individual variation on the Sky Suite butler/Retreat Hosts. Ours last week was pretty visible, but mostly as a room attendant. He never really offered anything, and we really didn't ask. Last cruise, our butler really asked what we needed and made suggestions. Not knowing what you don't know is an issue. Down the hall from us, we noticed one of the butlers with trays of what looked like room service most afternoons. I suspect those were the canapes they used to deliver. We might or might not have eaten them, but we probably would have accepted if offered; they weren't offered and (our bad) we didn't ask.

It's possible, but we randomly spoke to Retreat guests last week on Equinox during what should have been a helipad sail away. I don't know if they were in higher suites, but the only comment I heard was how much they thought Celebrity had nailed the Retreat experience. If they're representative of the customer base and you're not, Celebrity is right and bookings won't decline. Time will tell. I suspect I'd be bored to tears on Regent.

I haven't cruised NCL, so can't compare, but the foyer is pretty horrible. There is space to dance, which is nice, but it's impossible to see the band from many if not most locations.

We really enjoyed Sushi on 5. I'm the sushi/sashimi eater. DW doesn't do raw fish. My biggest issue is they have the same portion control problems as the rest of the ship. I'd love a sampler. I think that's why sushi became popular for groups of friends who could share. They did have at least one nice Sake by the glass. I suspect the better offerings were the bottle selections, but my experience with Sake is pretty limited.