terrydtx

And from menus I have seen the fish is too much Tilapia, which is a low end low cost fish that is some cases comes from China.

Did you by chance get the Retreat from a move up bid? With a move up bid you only get the amenities from the original booking. Otherwise there must be a screwup by billing. As far as I know a suite booking has included gratuities with the premium AI since the Covid restart.

True, but there are only a handful of them on the ship and being that far forward is not always the best place to be on a ship. Still not the same open concept of a traditional balcony.

If that was the early booking promo you should also have received the Premium drinks and Wi-Fi upgrade too.

A filet and 2 grilled shrimp is hardly a traditional "Surf and Turf" An $18 add on upcharge is the only way to get a traditional surf and turf now on HAL. Not to be outdone Celebrity now calls 3 Broiled Scallops on a slab of baked Pork Belly their Surf and Turf and that is in the suites only Luminae Restaurant. In the Celebrity MDRs most fish dishes are now Tilapia.

Celebrity will never know or admit to how many more would have booked on these Beautifull new ships if they had traditional balconies? People who love them would have still booked while people who hate them go elsewhere.

When did Volendam receive the last total refurbishment of the interiors and cabins? We are booked on a cruise on her in August 2024.

But did it come with any lobster? If you order the surf (lobster) and turf (filet) together the charge is now $18.

That is exactly why we would never book an IV cabin again. With a traditional balcony once you close the glass door the air stays on in the cabin. This is a bigger issue on hot weather cruises like the Caribbean.

I would choose Tortola if on the itinerary. In 2018 we did a 10 day private catamaran cruise with 3 couples and loved the BVI. BVI is probably our favorite place to visit in the Caribbean. Last year we did a whole family vacation to St Thomas and stayed on the beach in beautiful condos. Love the USVI and BVI you can do luxury land trips there for 1/3 the cost of Hawaii.

I bet the last day of the cruise you will still see many at guest services demanding a refund for the gratuities that were included.

We booked this week an 11 day NE/Canada cruise for Aug 2024 and got the early booking HIA promo which included the Premium Wi-Fi, Elite Bev package, and gratuities, plus 2 excursions and 2 Specialty dinning. We also got the Mariner loyalty $200 OBC and the deposit is 100% refundable. If you can book early within 90days of a cruise being released this is a very good deal and it makes the HIA a bargain. I believe the promo is worth over $135pp a per day for a $50pp per day cost.

We did the 3 day extension in 2019 and HAL handled the luggage for the 3 days, we took train to Anchorage, then to Denali and then bus to Fairbanks. We only touched the bags when they delivered them to our hotel rooms. It was no big deal.

Fillet and lobster, surf and turf, is now an $18 upcharge.

We had a Jack In The Box on my college campus in the late 1960's. We could get 6 burgers and fries, give them a dollar and get change back.

Or was it just left behind by the Navy in WWII?

It took HAL almost 5 months from the time we got off the ship before we got the settlement from them, I think that was way too long. My TA was the one who kept following up with HAL over our claim and in December they offered us a $1000 FCC which we rejected, and they finally gave us the $3600 on January 31st, which was enough to cover the Nov. Koningsdam cruise we booked. We now book our cruises based first on itinerary and then we consider only on 3 other cruise lines, Celebrity, Oceania and HAL. After our Equinox cruise in June with our granddaughter in the Caribbean we are done with cruises in the Carribean. All of our cruises after June are 100% itinerary driven and are booked with all 3 of our cruise line choices.

Hank, you are not the only one who thinks the same, hundreds of CC members and myself agree with you. If was not sailing in Suites or aft facing verandahs, I would not be on an E Class ship. If IVs were such a great idea, we would see the concept copied on other cruise lines by now.

If a new ship is expected for 2025 delivery it would already be under construction, and a Google search cannot find any. Maybe since last September financial conditions with RCG have changed and the 5th is on hold. I have no problems with a 5th E Class ship as I see them as the future for Celebrity and would like to see another.

How about "End of Luxury" 😁

I have not been able to find any information on a 5th E Class ship on order, so I figured they were done for now. Even the latest CC article about new cruise ships shows nothing beyond the Ascent on order. New Cruise Ships on Order | Cruise Critic

Aren't they a heated rock slab?

Not traditional balconies, unless you are in a suite or aft facing cabin. The E Class ships have what they call Infinity Veranda balconies (IV) which is basically a big window that opens and closes more like a sunroom than an open deck at home. There are many thread on CC with the pros and cons of them.

I wouldn't put it past Celebrity to deliberately hold back cabins to make a cruise look online like it is close to selling out to spur more bookings. The Hurry up and book before they are gone messaging.