Eclipse TA 16 Apr 2011

[gcorgain]

Review: Eclipse TA, April 16-29th 2011

I apologize in advance for the lengthy review, and my delay in posting.

My Background: This was my third Celebrity cruise, all in the past year, and all on Solstice class ships. Needless to say I have very much enjoyed my Celebrity experiences. I have also cruised RCCL, HAL, and Princess in the past, but I had never done a Transatlantic crossing.

 

Ship: The ship remains beautiful and all the facilities are maintained flawlessly. As you can read elsewhere, the public areas are modern in style, and the art is abundant and adds elegance. Staterooms are nicely appointed, and the bathroom is particularly well designed, IMO. I will add to the requests for a light on the balcony. I would also note that the Ensemble lounge lighting has been adjusted since my previous voyages – a welcome change. It is still low lighting, but you can see the people sitting across from you. I was in cabin 8275, 1B, Bed by the bath, right by the elevators. A nice cabin (and yes I’ll update the spreadsheet thread) 

 

TA Activitities: Going in, I was particularly interested in what additional things they might add to on-board activities, given that we had eight sea days. The answer was little to nothing. Beyond the Podium speakers were there, but there were only two, and the topics seemed somewhat limited. The only “additions” from my previous two cruises seemed to be a cruise choir that you could join. Not my cup of tea unfortunately.

 

Entertainment: I was very disappointed to learn shortly before departure that the Piano player had been eliminated from Michaels Club. I love a piano bar environment after dinner in the evenings. They added a second guitar player, which played mostly during the day around the ship. Although I enjoyed him, I would’ve greatly preferred a piano player. Apparently they don’t know what they are going to do with Micheal’s club on the current Solstice ships. There is apparently a notice in the crew area asking for suggestions for what to do – anything BUT a piano bar. Again I am very disappointed and from talking to other guests and crew I am not alone.

One other thing that I would like to suggest, is something they actually did on my first Solstice voyage last August. Every evening in the predinner hours, the various musicians would rotate through the grand foyer. Usually two groups per night. This really picked up activity in the Martini Bar, Cellar Masters, and the Passport bar. It is a great way to socialize before dinner, and the energy is more fitting than the typical Martini Bar music during that timeframe. I do enjoy the clubish music after dinner. I will say that all of the rotating musicians were excellent, and I enjoyed them when I found them.

 

On a more positive note, I very much enjoyed the guest artists in the main showroom on this cruise. There were a number of musicians and comedians, and I saw most of them and was never bored.

 

Food: We ate in the MDR and all three specialty restaurants. We had incredible service in the MDR, and we all liked the food every evening with only one exception. We also loved Tuscan Grill and especially Murano’s they were excellent. We didn’t care for Qsine as much. We just ate too much food (our fault, surely), and our service wasn’t the best. Still fine, just not up to the other venues. We also participated in the Elegant High Tea in Muranos one afternoon. This was very special. I can’t say enough how well it was done. The food was excellent, and the ambience and music superb. Finally we discovered the tea in Baccio in the afternoon and quite enjoyed the variety and presentation. This became a late afternoon tradition that I think we will continue.

 

Bars: We had the Premium Alcohol package, and it was great. We spent significant time in many of the bars and had great service throughout. The flair bartenders in the Martini bar were especially memorable, as was our bar waiter in the MDR, that we seemed to run into everywhere.

 

Easter: They did have two priests (or a priest and a minister on-board) for the entire Easter week and they had regular services. Unfortunately they were always very early. Something after 8am on a Sea Day would have been nice. They also had a few other Easter activities aimed at the small group of kids.

 

Embarkation/Debarkation: Embarkation was a bit crowded in Miami, and it took longer than I have experienced in the past, but we were still on the ship within 15 minutes of arrival. Debarkation couldn’t have been better. Immigration from the UK came on the ship the last sea day and pre-cleared us, even stamping the passports. When we arrived in Southampton we got off with our number (30 min early) and our luggage was ready. We were taking a cab to the train station, and there was a 15-20 min wait for cabs at that point.

 

PORTS:

Ponte del Gado, Azores: We took a two hour driving tour that allowed us to see the scenery. It was nice to get off the ship for a few hours, and the scenery was lovely. That being said, I wouldn’t need to go back.

Lisbon: We had never been to Lisbon, and we fell in love with this city. We took the ship shuttle in to the city center and walked around for a bit. Then we started a Hop-on-Hop off tour, which was pretty good. When it reached the river we got off and just walked back to the ship (about a 45 min walk). This was a great port and we would like to go back.

Vigo: We took the ship’s tour to Santiago de Compestela. I must say this was the thing to do. We had a scenic drive, followed by a great tour of the Cathedral and even a little of the surrounding old town.

Cherbourg: We rented a car and drove to the various D-Day sites. We had bought a book through Amazon that provided route maps and descriptions of what you were seeing. Getting the car was a bit of a hassle, but we really enjoyed doing this at our own pace, and with the guidebook we felt well informed.

[JFontaine]

Thanks for the review. How was the weather on the crossing?

[gcorgain]

The weather was quite nice. It was very warm out of Florida. We had two cool days, but no rain to speak of. We also had smooth seas. Only one or two days where I felt any movement really, and even that wasn't bad. I spoke with another passenger that claimed the Captain said it was his smoothest crossing.

[JFontaine]

Thanks for your response. A smooth crossing - that's great!

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[Wine-O]

Thanks for your review.

 

We are bringing Eclipse back across the pond in October and renting a car in Cherbourg. Who did you rent thru and what problems did you encounter. I would like to avoid those issues. Thanks.

[gcorgain]

We rented from Hertz.

 

The delays were two-fold. We were scheduled to dock at 7am, and were alongside the port early. However, the port folks took over an hour to clear us, putting us behind a bit.

 

Hertz is within easy walking distance (National is a few doors closer). When we arrived there were 5 or so groups in front of us. Only one person to help us, and she wasn't the fastest. It took over an hour. Also we strongly wanted an automatic and reserved several car classes up to get one. Apparently they only had one automatic vehicle, but had given out two reservations. We got it (as it had been preassigned to us), but there was an unhappy other customer. Also $180 for a VW Golf was kinda expensive.

 

Different person on the return and we had no problems -- except leave a few minutes to find a parking spot, as there is not a dedicated lot. From the line at National it looked like they had similar issues.

[Wine-O]

We rented from Hertz.

 

The delays were two-fold. We were scheduled to dock at 7am, and were alongside the port early. However, the port folks took over an hour to clear us, putting us behind a bit.

 

Hertz is within easy walking distance (National is a few doors closer). When we arrived there were 5 or so groups in front of us. Only one person to help us, and she wasn't the fastest. It took over an hour. Also we strongly wanted an automatic and reserved several car classes up to get one. Apparently they only had one automatic vehicle, but had given out two reservations. We got it (as it had been preassigned to us), but there was an unhappy other customer. Also $180 for a VW Golf was kinda expensive.

 

Different person on the return and we had no problems -- except leave a few minutes to find a parking spot, as there is not a dedicated lot. From the line at National it looked like they had similar issues.

 

Thanks. We're renting from Avis down the block, and stick shift won't matter to me -- my wife's driving. :D

[67Miner]

I have only a few comments to add to your excellent review:

 

I thought the embarkation was the best of my experience with Celebrity -- 15 minutes from arrival at the pier to my cabin. Luggage was delivered within 2 hours of my arrival at the pier. That's hard to beat.

 

The Captain's Club pre-dinner cocktail events were disorganized with terrible bar service. The cocktail wait staff seemed to wander aimlessly around the Sky Lounge and rarely took the time to pick up empty glasses and soiled napkins. The hostess was rarely there to mingle with the guests. She seemed to focus more being a bouncer at the entrance.

 

Although I had a lousy table location on the 4th floor crowded in the corner to the right as you entered the dining room, our great waiter and assistant waiter, along with two wonderful Canadian couples that shared our table more than made up for the lousy table location.

 

I, too, enjoyed the onboard entertainment, especially Lindsay Hamilton, the male vocalist/impressionist, and the pianist. I thought the three production shows showed signs of low budgeting -- focusing on overly loud, squealing vocalists with a decreased emphasis on costuming and staging that have characterized production shows of the past.

 

Que, the cruise director, didn't have the personality, warmth, and humor of many of my past cruise directors but, overall, did what he needed to do to keep things moving.

 

Unlike captains of the past, never saw captain on this cruise around the ship except for the mandatory formalities.

 

Very nice cruise, though. Great weather, smooth seas, excellent food, and excellent service in the dining room.

[ghstudio]

I will write my own review but I agree that the elite cocktail event each night was understaffed and crowded...but that's more the nature of this cruise with over 500 elites on board. The lectures were terrific, the corning glass demonstrations were just outstanding, food was good, not excellent...pretty much unchanging in the buffet from day to day. Qsine was wonderful ONCE during the cruise....Murano has slipped in service and the Tuscan Grill was underutilized with a wonderful menu and food that almost lived up to the menu.

 

I never thought the Atlantic could be that smooth...you could have rowed a boat across in safety. More in my review....

[Orator]

I have only a few comments to add to your excellent review:

 

I thought the embarkation was the best of my experience with Celebrity -- 15 minutes from arrival at the pier to my cabin. Luggage was delivered within 2 hours of my arrival at the pier. That's hard to beat.

 

The Captain's Club pre-dinner cocktail events were disorganized with terrible bar service. The cocktail wait staff seemed to wander aimlessly around the Sky Lounge and rarely took the time to pick up empty glasses and soiled napkins. The hostess was rarely there to mingle with the guests. She seemed to focus more being a bouncer at the entrance.

 

Although I had a lousy table location on the 4th floor crowded in the corner to the right as you entered the dining room, our great waiter and assistant waiter, along with two wonderful Canadian couples that shared our table more than made up for the lousy table location.

 

I, too, enjoyed the onboard entertainment, especially Lindsay Hamilton, the male vocalist/impressionist, and the pianist. I thought the three production shows showed signs of low budgeting -- focusing on overly loud, squealing vocalists with a decreased emphasis on costuming and staging that have characterized production shows of the past.

 

Que, the cruise director, didn't have the personality, warmth, and humor of many of my past cruise directors but, overall, did what he needed to do to keep things moving.

 

Unlike captains of the past, never saw captain on this cruise around the ship except for the mandatory formalities.

 

Very nice cruise, though. Great weather, smooth seas, excellent food, and excellent service in the dining room.

 

 

Here is a case where two people on the same cruise had an exactly opposite experience. I found the Captain to be the best in my cruise experience. Kept running into him and he asked my DW and I to join him at the Captain's Table on a Smart Casual night. All the people seated at the table met the Captain under similar circumstances and none knew him from prior cruises. Told us that he would be hosting 5 tables during the cruise, rather than the usual two, so he could meet more guests. Stayed on for the 4 day Cork and we had coffee and conversation at Al Bacco. If you mentioned the Captain to any crew member they raved about him. Asked several who were leaving the ship what they would miss most and most said "The Captain". He was very down to earth and I hope that you have a chance to meet him in the future.

[67Miner]

Here is a case where two people on the same cruise had an exactly opposite experience. I found the Captain to be the best in my cruise experience. Kept running into him and he asked my DW and I to join him at the Captain's Table on a Smart Casual night. All the people seated at the table met the Captain under similar circumstances and none knew him from prior cruises. Told us that he would be hosting 5 tables during the cruise, rather than the usual two, so he could meet more guests. Stayed on for the 4 day Cork and we had coffee and conversation at Al Bacco. If you mentioned the Captain to any crew member they raved about him. Asked several who were leaving the ship what they would miss most and most said "The Captain". He was very down to earth and I hope that you have a chance to meet him in the future.

 

Indeed, he was quite personable and I talked to him briefly at a Captain's Club function. That's why I was surprised that I didn't see more of him. From my many experiences on Celebrity I was just commenting that he wasn't as visible as others I have observed. My favorite, and I can't remember his name, always told stories about his Chinese friend. He seemed to be out and about everyday exchanging pleasantries with the passengers.