nngardener

I will eagerly await the rest of your review. It's great reading with some fantastic pictures.

We have been in 1569 (A1) on the Eclipse which is under the pool deck and 1639 (A2). The noise level in 1569 was noticeably louder. There was lots of noise from deck chairs being moved on deck 12. It wasn't horrible but not as enjoyable so the next time we were on the Eclipse we deliberately chose the A2 category. It was much quieter and enjoyable.

The one on the right is Cazarita and was my favorite at the Molecular Bar; I don't know the name of the one on the left.

Hi all we will be doing our 5th cruise with Royal in August ,which will make us Emerald in the crown and anchor. I am curious to try another line but not interested in straying to far so I thought Celebrity would be a good choice. If any one has tried both Lines could you tell me the main differences? Since the are both owned by the same (?) Company I thought maybe they wouldn't be too different. Is celebrity any dressier?

Thanks for any help :-)

I too am Emerald on Royal Caribbean having sailed several times mostly on the Voyager class of ships and just love the Explorer of the Seas. However, we've now done 2 sailings on the Eclipse and can only echo what the others have said. The Solstice ships are beautiful and IMO the food is better. It's a definitely different vibe but I'd still sail Royal Caribbean so you can't lose with either one. It just depends on what you prefer.

Hello, I'm going on my first cruise with celebrity on board Equinox, I was wandering I have the free classic drinks package, does this include the gelateria or do we have to pay for this separate thanks

On the Eclipse the gelateria had a Happy Hour from 4 to 7 pm and you could buy one gelato (2 scoops) and get one free. It was quite the bargain for $3.45.

Fall 2015 Europe & TA, I'm ready to book! :D

 

RC already has several out, when will Celebrity? :eek:

According to the travel office on the Eclipse, Europe will be announced on March 17th. I can't remember the date for TA.

My husband and I had our own “cruise from hell” on NCL. It was our first cruise with friends who had sold us on the idea of a relaxing and fun time. Unfortunately, we sailed in March and unbeknownst to us, it was Spring Break. The ship held about 1500 passengers and 850 of them were college kids (drunk and obnoxious kids). I was later to learn these kids’ parents had purchased drink packages for them. I couldn’t imagine what those parents were thinking.

There were few if any places you could find on the ship to find some peace. There was no room in any hot tubs or swimming pools. In addition, it wasn’t unusual to find vomit in the elevators and other assorted places. The kids also thought it was especially fun to run through the halls at all hours of the night. We were on the promenade deck so they could also use that as their race track. To the best of my knowledge, NCL did nothing but make excuses for the behavior (and selling them the drink package).

Fortunately, the cruise was only 7 days because I couldn’t wait to get off that ship. Somehow we were persuaded this cruise was an anomaly and tried again at a different time of the year. I’m definitely putting the Christmas holidays on my personal “Do Not Cruise” list of dates.

I’m really sorry for your experience but am hoping you’ll try X again.

Check out the roll call for this date. It's active and will be able to get you up to speed.

Oh, I was so hoping for some wonderful news. My heart goes out to you. Anyone who has ever lost a dear canine friend totally relates. I lost my true and faithful companion of 10 years, Rufus, in October and I know what you mean. God bless you and your husband.

Betty

Many thanks for the information. I will definitely be there after we sail to try out all the interesting drinks mentioned. Can't wait.

All these drinks sound wonderful but I have to admit that I have no idea where the Molecular Bar is on the ship. Is it on the Eclipse and if yes, where? I'd like to find it because I've been missing out. Thanks.

Betty

Well, you can always take your business elsewhere and that's what I'm considering doing.

This past February 2 of 3 couples had AQ cabins but 1 didn't. We all had pre-paid our gratuities and chose Select dining so it gave us the option to eat in the MDR or not. I think a few of us had dinner in Blu a couple of times but we preferred dinner in the MDR. I almost always had breakfast in Blu because I just liked it better. When we're on the Eclipse in February 2014, we've made exactly the same arrangements. It worked out fantastic.

I'm sorry if my post confused you. I guess the problem mostly stems from my trying to understand if it was just me that was disappointed with the dinners in Blu. From all that have posted, I now know that there are those who love the food and those that don't. From the tips I've decided to be a little more assertive and ask for the waiter's recommendations and maybe that will help (as well as sending something back if I think is not worth eating).

We decided to go ahead and book AQ in 2014 because I liked the cabins location as well as I truly liked eating breakfast in Blu. For our cruise in 2015 we've changed to CC.

Hope this helps clear up any confusion.

Betty

We were in Aqua Class on the Eclipse in February 2013, and we have already booked our February 2014 cruise again in Aqua Class. We found that we liked several things about dining in Blu but the food choices weren’t appealing. The first night we ate there I had a fish dish that was really delicious, but my husband didn’t care for his meal. We tried eating there one more time and were really disappointed. Since we’re traveling in Aqua again in a few months and I’ve seen many comments about how good the food is in Blu, I’m wondering what has been your experience? Are you able to order off the menu, have them modify the choices or have you been satisfied with what you’ve received? I’m hoping to eat more often in Blu because I prefer the smaller dining space and the quieter atmosphere. However, I would also prefer good food. Thanks for letting me know about your experience and any advice you can give.