RRFPresident

All of these prices listed are by the glass. Classic beverage package covers drinks up to $10 and Premium beverage package covers up to $17. If you order something over the package limit, you pay the difference plus 20% gratuity on that difference amount.

Menu from the World Class bar

Where would I find such a comparison onboard? We are not big wine drinkers but if I knew where to find such info, I’ll grab a pic of it.

Fairly low key sea day yesterday except for all the rocking. Apparently standing still and being able to walk in a straight line are overrated on this cruise. Chatted with I Kadek at breakfast. He was able to check in with his wife and it was sweet to see his face light up as he talked about how much she feels the baby moving around. Played in several trivia games. Went to the 2:30pm adult comedy show of the comedian who did a repeat act in the first show. Sure enough, it was a repeat for this show too. Maybe he was a last minute fill in or figured he had to do cruise themed jokes. Attended the Elite loyalty event of the Senior Officers Soirée. It was nice to say hello to the Captain and chat with some of the officers that had attended the similar gathering in the Retreat. Drinks and finger foods were handed out. We had to leave for our dinner reservation so we missed out on watching the Eden performers demonstration. One thing I found interesting is how many seats were blocked off at The Club during this Elite loyalty event reserved for Zenith members. I would have thought they had their own loyalty gathering. No one bothered to check cards upon entering and I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that people just took those seats regardless as the only ones empty. Decided to keep our pre cruise reservation of a third visit to Fine Cut even though we are all steak(ed) out. Tried mostly new dishes and dined in a barrel as they call the circular enclosed tables for two near the railing. The crew working in Fine Cut have been wonderful. They greeted us last night with “Welcome back again! Pick any table you want!” Lobster tail on top of lobster filled ravioli. My brain and taste buds said “Order another one” Thankfully my stomach talked them out of it so I had room for dessert! They couldn’t get the software to load to play the interactive app game last night so Gill (pronounced like Jill) ran a last minute Pub Quiz for the people willing to stick around. Popped into the Retreat Lounge on the way to the cabin for a cold water bottle and discovered they added a homemade gingerbread candy town to the display above the fridges.

The weather in Curaçao today was much better than it was during our last visit so I set out to explore on my own. This was the first port that I noticed had Christmas decorations around the town so I enjoyed the displays as I walked through the fort and across the pedestrian bridge. At the end of the bridge I spotted the heart shaped lock covered sculptures and took a breather while watching everyone pose for photos and try to pick the locks. Then I burned off all those cruise calories walking several blocks among the stores until the price of souvenir magnets dropped from $10 to $5 to $2.50. Walked back to the ship and discovered that P&O Brittania had snuck in behind us in my absence. After seeking sustenance from Mast Grill I dragged my sore body to a couple trivia games. Fun fact - Abraham Lincoln was a licensed bartender. Who said cruising can’t be educational? Soon after it was time for our last not yet tried specialty venue, Raw on 5. This is an a la carte restaurant and you can dine multiple ways. One is to simply buy whatever dishes you want and pay for them versus a cover charge. Another is to get a dining package and this restaurant will then give you $35 per person to use here. Or as is our case, book an upper suite and the unlimited specialty dining includes anything you want off the menu. Yes, even that $90 seafood tower. I tried two sushi rolls while Mr Meat and Potatoes had Chicken Ginger Gyoza and the teriyaki chicken. Skip the fried calamari but definitely try the chicken Ginger gyoza! I believe I heard Captain Kate’s voice all the way from her vacation telling me “Reach for the beyond!” So I heeded her wisdom and ordered the “Beyond” sushi roll with spicy tuna and spicy mayo. Not bad once the initial heat dies off. We ended the night with a viewing of the production show “Elements.” Was fun to be part of the first several rows and be included in some audience interaction. Watching all those dancers and contortionists and aerialists made me think two things - wow, that’s really cool that they can contort their bodies like that. And the second was - ouch and how dizzy I would be if I tried any of that. One of the cast is inside the ball and got lifted in the air by everyone else. She was physically attached to this rocking ball and would lean back and forth to move across the stage.

I was talking with cruiser favorite waiter I Kadek in Luminae at breakfast this morning. He told us that he uses his time in port with the main purpose of using the Starbucks wifi to check in with his wife who is expecting a baby due in February. We asked if he’d be able to get back home for the birth and he said he doesn’t think so because his current contract doesn’t end until March. He has put in a request to HR but it depends on factors like having anyone available to replace him. Please take the time to get to know your crew members and be kind as you never know what they have going on back home.

Decided on a whim to go early for afternoon general knowledge trivia and ended up winning music trivia because it was country music themed. Pop sockets for all! And free ice cream from the Ocean View cafe for the rest of the cruise! Rooftop Garden Grill - waiter was adamant that the Rooftop burger was the way to go when I asked which he’d choose between this and the ***** burger. Didn’t like the thick bacon and only made it through 1/3 of the burger. I think I’m just tired of red meat at this point after so many steak dishes. I did get a little too giddy wanting to play with the giant dowel stuck in my burger. We sat waiting for the second half of our meal so long, a lemon tree grew out of his head. Mason jar s’mores warm chocolate cookie with vanilla gelato - don’t know why this pic loaded upside down. Must be the fancy new gravity defying desserts. Got picked to participate in Make a Match and helped my team win tshirts. Then it’s back to the cabin to relax and watch my Ravens play in Sunday Night Football

Please do share! We considered trying for a move up bid to Penthouse but instead put all our efforts toward the iconic suite.

Nighttime views Big Christmas tree and garland by Martini bar Ship in the daytime This photogenic sign is just outside the port gates. Step out of the port area and turn left at the sidewalk We told the shoreside concierge that we were using this cruise as a belated birthday celebration. This cake and balloons were left in our cabin after the morning cleaning. Strong winds brought down some of the plant decor into our hot tub. Got some free lily pads for the cost of a cruise. IMG_4879.mov

I thought having an adult comedy show at 10pm was comical. Last night’s comedian said he’d be doing an adult show in the afternoon on a later day.

Had a medical evacuation for a passenger that required turning back at the edge of Colombia to offload them. Hopefully they are fairing well. As a result we were two hours late arriving into Aruba but Captain Leo has decided to stay two hours later in Aruba than planned. Our next stop is Curacao so it shouldn’t affect anything. Rough winds leaving Cartagena rearranged some balcony furniture and knocked some greenery into our hot tub. Bonus free lily pads for the price of one hot tub. Got off last night after dinner just to get pics of the ship all lit up. Will probably venture out today for daylight pics and to walk around. Been to Aruba twice before so no fixed excursion plans today. Christmas decorations - garland around the plaza center walls, a big tree by Martini Bar, and lots of little light wrapped trees throughout. Other than one showing of Christmas with the Kranks movie and Hanukkah menorah lighting ceremonies I haven’t seen any holiday themed activities. We did have a deck party last night for being a Caribbean sailing that we were asked to wear white or sparkly clothes. Tip for those who want to pack for all themed dress events. A really good memory is great for trivia but not so much when a comedian does an entirely old set you’ve heard before. We’ll give it another go at his next show. Had a free night with no dinner reservation so we ended up booking Eden again last night. Tonight will be our first time at Rooftop Garden Grill. Will post a couple pics later today.

Ahh that makes sense. We haven’t had our Rooftop Garden Grill night yet. Have tried lunch at the Retreat Grill a couple times with the Luminae burger and the chicken BLT wrap. Tried to order the chicken Caesar salad from the menu after seeing a nearby diner with this large bowl but what I got was a plate with a handful of romaine, dry chicken, and shaved parm. The cup of dressing on the side was too thick to put on the salad and tasted just like mayo. Our waitress and the manager took it back to check but then reported that it was the dressing made with heavy cream and brought me a new cup thinned out with extra lemon juice. So now I had a cup of mayo and a cup of cloudy lemon juice. Tried to eat a couple pieces dry before giving up and asking for a burger instead. Moral of the story - don’t try to be healthy and eat more burgers!

I have since asked the retreat manager. He confirmed our unspoken to him theory that it was a corporate decision to push everyone to book the paid tour.

We’ve checked out each of those bars but haven’t tried ordering from them yet. Will try it out.

Sorry I didn’t see this sooner. Ended up having the filet mignon for my entree. It was very similar to the filet Princess served at Bistro Sur La Mer.

Yes there is a bar in the Retreat lounge. Had many an evening chat with the bartender who is very funny. Her shift ends at midnight. Tonight was our little Meet the Officers soirée in the lounge so they had extra bartenders.

Been really rocking and rolling, especially noticeable at night. Made it into Grand Cayman with a rainy start but enjoyed the plunge pool on the balcony when the sun came out later. Tried Le Petit Chef for the first time last night. Cute but I can see why people say one and done. What dishes do you recommend at Le Voyage? Put in our first round of laundry yesterday morning as butler says it’s unlimited for us. Suite perks page on Celebrity’s site says it’s only for a couple bags per trip. He also says that thermal suite access is unlimited but we haven’t made it to the spa to check. Web site says only Aqua Class get spa included. Asked about bridge or engine control room tours and butler said that suite perk “stopped last week” but we were welcome to book the paid behind the scenes tour. Stacked pillows and hard wooden boards don’t make for a comfy head when you forget they are there trying to rest your head against the headboard. Sometimes you just have to laugh at moments like this - we were talking with the butler about whether the monogrammed pajamas he was offering came any bigger and he offered size 2x. We agreed to that when he had already moved on to asking about monogram choices. As a result, Al’s pajama set is now monogrammed with XAL. For future reference, here is what the sofa bed looks like made up at night.

I’m not sure if it was the new burger. I don’t remember it being any different than when I last had it several years back. The steak was nice and tender I was surprised. If you like filet you’ll like this.

It definitely is open on embark day from 11:30am to 1:30pm. Otherwise it is only open for lunch on sea days from 12pm to 1:30pm.

A charge of $0 for Fine Cut Steakhouse was just added to our onboard charge account.

Tomahawk steak from Fine Cut was perfect for two of us to share. Normally an extra charge item. Butler says it still is extra for upper suites. Waiter says it is included at least for us in the EV. Will update if it shows up on our account.

I booked ahead of time when the shoreside concierge emailed a few weeks ago.

I’ll be doing a full trip report on my blog after the cruise but if there’s any questions about the ship, about the Retreat experience, or about the Edge Villa cabins I’ll be happy to answer as we go along. We also will be trying every restaurant onboard starting with Fine Cut tonight. We don’t have any excursions planned but our ports are Grand Cayman, Cartagena, Aruba, Curaçao and Falmouth, Jamaica. Started off the cruise with the Luminae burger at lunch:

Check out my now finished trip report and photos from the Niagara Falls & Great Lakes cruise itinerary on Viking Octantis here.

Is there a difference between Sushi on 5 and Raw on 5 as far as whether or not it's all included? It was still Silk Harvest the last time we had an upper suite and a non Edge Class ship. We'll be on Beyond in a couple weeks in an Edge Villa and below is what the shoreside concierge answered when I asked a similar question as the original poster. I also wasn't sure whether to take "fully complimentary" to mean the extra cost items are included at the specialty restaurant. "In regards your Specialty complimentary dining, Eden, Le Voyage, Le Petit Chef, Fine Cut Steakhouse and Rooftop Garden are fully complimentary; along with Luminae, Blu, the four Main Dining rooms and all the other complimentary venues like Oceanview Cafe, etc. For Raw on 5, since it is a la carte, your get a $35 per person allowance; anything additional will be charged to guest account. Events such as Chef's Table and Magic Carpet and a la carte menus found in Craft Social, these are not included in your complimentary dining."