Celebrity Reflection

[paskyhawk]

Thanks for the update.

 

 

She seems to be making good progress. You can see where she is here, zooming out on the tab and scrolling down on the page for air and sea temperatures etc that Reflection is reporting:

 

http://www.sailwx.info/shiptrack/shipposition.phtml?call=9HA3047

 

Phil

Edited November 28, 2012 by paskyhawk

[Cruising89143]

I have purposely avoided reading and posting for the last few weeks as I can't stand the bickering. Remember, "One man's trash is another man's treasure".

My husband and I sailed on the inaugural of Reflection, AQ 2149, slightly off the hump. Nine night sailing, eight days of rain, consequently all indoor spaces were utilized to the max. It did not feel too crowded, ever. Seems that the busiest spot was the sales center where people were lined up night and day to book their next cruise, which tells me that Celebrity was doing something right.

My larger, angled balcony on deck 12 worked perfectly on those rainy days. I put on several layers of clothes, and a blanket and thoroughly enjoyed the view, even in the rain, protected by the overhang. Bed was positioned closer to the balcony, but it didn't matter as Aqua Class does not permit triple occupancy. The food and service at BLU were outstanding, and the only time we ever had to "wait" for a table was on the first night, when it was suggested that we arrive after 8 PM. The tables WERE close together, which facilitated conversing with fellow passengers, when we chose to do so, which was every meal. BLU is fine dining at sea, small ship experience on a large ship. We ate in the MDR twice, food and service were really good.

We are not Elite as this was our first time sailing Celebrity, but we have cruised with other lines, so I won't begin to get into the free drinks, coupons debate. On our other sailings we have bypassed ports because of weather, political issues, and all sorts of other reasons. We never received any sort of compensation, with the exception of the inaugural of Sovereign of the Seas, which experienced problems because of the politics in Haiti at the time, and also because the ship was trapped in San Juan Harbor when a tanker ran aground in the channel leading in and out of the harbor. The additional 14 hours in San Juan caused us to bypass St Thomas, and passengers were very upset, missing the opportunity to shop, which I didn't care about, and also missing out on the fanfare of the very first new cruise ship in each port in decades, which I did. All passengers received a certificate for a "buy one, get one free" cruise, which my husband and I used a few months later, to take our kids. All in all, a good deal. If you are unwilling or unable to deal with the unexpected, I suggest you stay at home.

 

I appreciate your comments. Again, it's nice to get first hand reports.

[2morecruises]

I have purposely avoided reading and posting for the last few weeks as I can't stand the bickering. Remember, "One man's trash is another man's treasure".

My husband and I sailed on the inaugural of Reflection, AQ 2149, slightly off the hump. Nine night sailing, eight days of rain, consequently all indoor spaces were utilized to the max. It did not feel too crowded, ever. Seems that the busiest spot was the sales center where people were lined up night and day to book their next cruise, which tells me that Celebrity was doing something right.

My larger, angled balcony on deck 12 worked perfectly on those rainy days. I put on several layers of clothes, and a blanket and thoroughly enjoyed the view, even in the rain, protected by the overhang. Bed was positioned closer to the balcony, but it didn't matter as Aqua Class does not permit triple occupancy. The food and service at BLU were outstanding, and the only time we ever had to "wait" for a table was on the first night, when it was suggested that we arrive after 8 PM. The tables WERE close together, which facilitated conversing with fellow passengers, when we chose to do so, which was every meal. BLU is fine dining at sea, small ship experience on a large ship. We ate in the MDR twice, food and service were really good.

We are not Elite as this was our first time sailing Celebrity, but we have cruised with other lines, so I won't begin to get into the free drinks, coupons debate. On our other sailings we have bypassed ports because of weather, political issues, and all sorts of other reasons. We never received any sort of compensation, with the exception of the inaugural of Sovereign of the Seas, which experienced problems because of the politics in Haiti at the time, and also because the ship was trapped in San Juan Harbor when a tanker ran aground in the channel leading in and out of the harbor. The additional 14 hours in San Juan caused us to bypass St Thomas, and passengers were very upset, missing the opportunity to shop, which I didn't care about, and also missing out on the fanfare of the very first new cruise ship in each port in decades, which I did. All passengers received a certificate for a "buy one, get one free" cruise, which my husband and I used a few months later, to take our kids. All in all, a good deal. If you are unwilling or unable to deal with the unexpected, I suggest you stay at home.

 

 

HQ ..... I could not have stated my feelings better than this.

 

Great Post .

 

2MC

 

31 days until enjoying New Years on Reflection :)

[librarylady19]

Thank you Honeymoon Queen (cool name:))

we are in AQ 2146 ....DH will definitely like the overhang as he burns easily:)

We will also like being close by to pop up to the pool bar and solarium.

Was there a lot of noise from above???

[Honeymoon Queen]

Thank you Honeymoon Queen (cool name:))

we are in AQ 2146 ....DH will definitely like the overhang as he burns easily:)

We will also like being close by to pop up to the pool bar and solarium.

Was there a lot of noise from above???

 

Just because I like chocolate, doesn't mean that vanilla is bad. Each of us is entitled to our opinions.

I loved being on Deck 12, just a stroll down the (long) corridor to the Persian Garden, which is free for AQ passengers. Those heated white tiled chairs don't look like they would be comfortable, but after my first time I was hooked. Wish I had one here at home.

Yes, Deck 12 is also convenient to the pool bar and solarium, and the Oceanview Cafe. Did not hear much noise from above, though in all honesty, the weather was rainy so passengers did not use the outdoor venues. Actually, did not hear noise anywhere. Our first night onboard, I was concerned that the loud music from the Grand Foyer would be a problem, but once we closed the door to our cabin, it was quiet.

One more comment about BLU. We had breakfast there every morning that we awoke early enough to do so. We never waited for a table, which is particularly convenient on shore excursion days. I am not a breakfast eater, just toast or a pastry with my coffee is enough for me, but my husband loved the menu. Andrea, the maitre d' is amazing. They promoted her and brought her from another Celebrity ship. She told us she hand picked her staff, and we thought they did a bang up job for an inaugural, with expectations set so high.

And thanks for the compliment about my name. Honeymoon Queen is my alter ego, as I am a travel agent specializing in honeymoons and destination weddings. Even the nicest brides can turn into Bridezillas so I try very hard to be the voice of reason and try not to get into confrontations with brides or know-it-all posters.

[swigso]

" I sure hope I am able to avoid every Elite onboard..."

 

Actually, some of us who have Elite status are really nice people who just happen to enjoy cruising and are looking forward to their Feb. 23 cruise even though we're stuck in the dreaded 12th deck on the hump. Yes, we're in Aqua Class cabins, but it's a first time experience that we and a group of friends thought we'd try on a new ship.

Hi

we just did AQ for the first time on the Equinox dining in Blu

is the best. Blu has really spoiled us will never book CC again

Have a great time.

[gambee]

All this information comes in very handy. Thanks.

 

 

I am thinking about booking her for my bday in April.

[CSGuy44]

Hi

we just did AQ for the first time on the Equinox dining in Blu

is the best. Blu has really spoiled us will never book CC again

Have a great time.

Swigso,

It has occurred to us that we might like Aqua Class so much that we would be reluctant to go back to anything else, and we are traveling with four other couples who have never sailed Celebrity before. One of them asked, "Will we enjoy this so much we won't be happy on other lines?" Perhaps!

[swigso]

Swigso,

It has occurred to us that we might like Aqua Class so much that we would be reluctant to go back to anything else, and we are traveling with four other couples who have never sailed Celebrity before. One of them asked, "Will we enjoy this so much we won't be happy on other lines?" Perhaps!

 

Hope your friends have a great time, we have sailed other lines

But there is just something about Celebrity that makes them special.

If you asked me to put my finger on what it is I couldn't say,

I think it's just.......?????

:cool:

[flahagan]

Hope your friends have a great time, we have sailed other lines

But there is just something about Celebrity that makes them special.

If you asked me to put my finger on what it is I couldn't say,

I think it's just.......?????

:cool:

 

Have to say we didn't feel that way about our Solstice Med cruise last year. We felt the ship, while elegant, had a cold, sterile ambience. We didn't care for all of the long drapes that blocked views in the sky lounge (look at HAL's Crow's Nest for a terrific example of a viewing lounge), And to us, the lawn deck was a complete waste of space - they could have made a terrific miniature golf course there that could really be enjoyed.

We loved our balcony cabin, our room stewards were fabulous, but the food in the MDR and the buffet was just OK, as was the entertainment. Nothing stood out or seemed memorable. To us, it was pretty blah.

Our cruise was port intensive, so we weren't dependent on the ship like people who are on a transatlantic. We did a TA on RCL's Navigator of the Seas - now THAT'S a ship to do a TA on. Wouldn't care to do one on a Solstice class ship. Jut my opinion, of course.

[bigmohes]

I know that the lawn club is not everyone's cup of tea, however, we played bocce, we had a putting contest and just relaxed on the grass. One evening there was a string quartet celebrity provided cushions, candles and we had wine while listening to beautiful music under the stars. The Lawn Club does have its fans.

[wdr59911]

After 13 days on the TA, I have to stand by most of my comments that started this thread.

 

The noise level on Deck 12 aft is unacceptable. (Yes, I should have known better, but I figured it is a new ship and this problem exists on the the other Solstice class ships as well). It is still a problem. I was not the only one complaining and to Celebrity's credit, they tried to make some changes to the way they were working in the restaurant during setup (the 5:00 AM noise). In reality, there was nothing that could be done. So.....don't book a cabin there unless you 1. like to get up with the chickens or 2. like to wear ear plugs.

 

The food and service on the ship is excellent. Prior to this cruise, we just finished three weeks on Seabourn and while it is hard to compare...I would rate the food on the Reflection as right up there. Service is excellent for a 3200 passenger ship. Our cabin steward was probably the best we have ever had in our 50+ cruises.

 

My memory is a bit foggy but it seems when we were on the Silhouette in May, select dining was only on the port side of the upper restaurant deck. On this sailing, it seems the entire upper deck was select dining. A few waits for tables, but nothing excessive. What did get a bit excessive was the occasional delay of food coming out of the galley. We had several meals that stretched into 2:30 or so. Again, nothing traumatic but we did leave the table a few times in order to make one of the shows.

 

We did miss a port. Celebrity was quite generous in granting each booking a $150 shipboard credit that was refundable. No problems there whatsoever.

 

Internet service was a bit problematic. It is a new ship and there are bound to be problems. Again, Celebrity bent over backwards to try to make you happy. Even to the point of refunding some packages for guests that were having a great deal of trouble. I used my own laptop and had very few problems. I found that wifi was good throughout the public areas on the ship and certainly good in my cabin.

 

Embarkation in Barcelona was a bit hectic. However, most of the delay was cuased by port security and not Celebrity. They were using a different system (at least to me) where checkin lanes were based on deck assignment, with a special area for Captains Club and Concierge Class. We were eligible for both and elected to use the Captains Club lanes which proved to be the best choice (more agents in ratio to the length of the lines). I know that never works in grocery stores..the line you get in is always the longest.

 

The Elite cocktail party... mmm lots of comments on that. I actually preferred the way they did it. Each elite was given three coupons per day that could be used in most of the bars on the ship. The "known" bars were terribly crowded (at least in the first few days) but the coupons allowed you to seek out the lesser frequented bars (like the Casino Bar) where service was great and the wines were better than they would normally serve at a monitored Elite event. The other benefit was that since there was not a "hall monitor" at each bar, it was very simple to take drinks into the dining room. I know this system was only used because of the 860+ elites on board the ship. The staff was scrambling trying to figure out what to do with all of us and I think their solution was quite good. I was a bit amazed at the number of Elites that do not tip the bartender or waitress for their free drinks. We did and had great service.

 

Debarkation was a bit of a hassle but only because it was the first time that the ship had been to the US. It is pretty well known that the first time into a US port, things go a little more slowly than normal. We were in the 0615 "walk off" group and did not get off the ship until 0715. This was where we witnessed the worst of the "crew abuse" from passengers. You can guess the dialogue. Finally, someone shouted that "you are doing a great job" and everyone applauded and the loud mouths finally shut up.

 

All in all it was a good cruise. We love Celebrity and we love the Solstice class ships. I still say that Reflection would be my last choice among them. That is my OPINION. Everybody has their own opinion.

 

After seeing all the written abuse on here, I will probably not be posting on here again. If you can't express your opinion without being berated, then don't expect to hear opinions.

[c-legs]

After 13 days on the TA, I have to stand by most of my comments that started this thread.

 

The noise level on Deck 12 aft is unacceptable. (Yes, I should have known better, but I figured it is a new ship and this problem exists on the the other Solstice class ships as well). It is still a problem. I was not the only one complaining and to Celebrity's credit, they tried to make some changes to the way they were working in the restaurant during setup (the 5:00 AM noise). In reality, there was nothing that could be done. So.....don't book a cabin there unless you 1. like to get up with the chickens or 2. like to wear ear plugs.

 

The food and service on the ship is excellent. Prior to this cruise, we just finished three weeks on Seabourn and while it is hard to compare...I would rate the food on the Reflection as right up there. Service is excellent for a 3200 passenger ship. Our cabin steward was probably the best we have ever had in our 50+ cruises.

 

My memory is a bit foggy but it seems when we were on the Silhouette in May, select dining was only on the port side of the upper restaurant deck. On this sailing, it seems the entire upper deck was select dining. A few waits for tables, but nothing excessive. What did get a bit excessive was the occasional delay of food coming out of the galley. We had several meals that stretched into 2:30 or so. Again, nothing traumatic but we did leave the table a few times in order to make one of the shows.

 

We did miss a port. Celebrity was quite generous in granting each booking a $150 shipboard credit that was refundable. No problems there whatsoever.

 

Internet service was a bit problematic. It is a new ship and there are bound to be problems. Again, Celebrity bent over backwards to try to make you happy. Even to the point of refunding some packages for guests that were having a great deal of trouble. I used my own laptop and had very few problems. I found that wifi was good throughout the public areas on the ship and certainly good in my cabin.

 

Embarkation in Barcelona was a bit hectic. However, most of the delay was cuased by port security and not Celebrity. They were using a different system (at least to me) where checkin lanes were based on deck assignment, with a special area for Captains Club and Concierge Class. We were eligible for both and elected to use the Captains Club lanes which proved to be the best choice (more agents in ratio to the length of the lines). I know that never works in grocery stores..the line you get in is always the longest.

 

The Elite cocktail party... mmm lots of comments on that. I actually preferred the way they did it. Each elite was given three coupons per day that could be used in most of the bars on the ship. The "known" bars were terribly crowded (at least in the first few days) but the coupons allowed you to seek out the lesser frequented bars (like the Casino Bar) where service was great and the wines were better than they would normally serve at a monitored Elite event. The other benefit was that since there was not a "hall monitor" at each bar, it was very simple to take drinks into the dining room. I know this system was only used because of the 860+ elites on board the ship. The staff was scrambling trying to figure out what to do with all of us and I think their solution was quite good. I was a bit amazed at the number of Elites that do not tip the bartender or waitress for their free drinks. We did and had great service.

 

Debarkation was a bit of a hassle but only because it was the first time that the ship had been to the US. It is pretty well known that the first time into a US port, things go a little more slowly than normal. We were in the 0615 "walk off" group and did not get off the ship until 0715. This was where we witnessed the worst of the "crew abuse" from passengers. You can guess the dialogue. Finally, someone shouted that "you are doing a great job" and everyone applauded and the loud mouths finally shut up.

 

All in all it was a good cruise. We love Celebrity and we love the Solstice class ships. I still say that Reflection would be my last choice among them. That is my OPINION. Everybody has their own opinion.

 

After seeing all the written abuse on here, I will probably not be posting on here again. If you can't express your opinion without being berated, then don't expect to hear opinions.

 

Thank you for a very mature and rational post. Well said.

I agree with your closing remarks......: dignity has value and it deserves preservation.

Thanks again

Cheers

[C 2 C]

All in all it was a good cruise. We love Celebrity and we love the Solstice class ships. I still say that Reflection would be my last choice among them. That is my OPINION. Everybody has their own opinion.

 

After seeing all the written abuse on here, I will probably not be posting on here again. If you can't express your opinion without being berated, then don't expect to hear opinions.

 

Thanks for your well expressed OPINION ;). Clear, precise and accurate from my perspective as well. We're not quite as enamored of S-class but, despite the wonderful food, the excellent service that we enjoyed on board (promised by all X ships), only a great itinerary would bring me back to Reflection. Its Celebrity's people, not the ship, that stand out and provide a product that keeps us coming back again and again.

[skylight]

We will be on Reflection in May. We will be enjoying ourselves as we usually do. Our favourite ship is The Solstice but it has just arrived in Sydney where we live so to do Europe we are on The Reflection so here's hoping. We chose the same cabin Aqua under the Persian gardens. It is good to read all the different opinions as everyone has different ideas and tastes. Can't wait for our cruise regardless we will be having the best time. Hope you all do to.:)

[Redlondon]

Can anyone tell me pros and cons of Aft cabin 1216 on Reflection? Doing TA in October. Thanks

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[AstridSJ]

Can anyone tell me pros and cons of Aft cabin 1216 on Reflection? Doing TA in October. Thanks

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

I hope you enjoyed your trip. Can you tell me what you thought of cabin 1216 if you ended up staying in that one and was the bed near the veranda or the bathroom?

[luvbluseas]

I was on the Reflection from 10/12 until 10/21. We had a lot of rainy days, so pretty much everyone was inside all the time. The place where I noticed the most change in capacity during all this bad weather - was the midship elevators. They seemed like they weren't programmed right - we'd call one to our floor and it would seemingly always have all elevators go past our floor then come back (not sure if the elevators each reached capacity and therefore didnt stop - or what - not sure if elevators are that "smart" or not). So, it always felt as if we waited longer for an elevator than we did on the Equinox the year prior during the same time of year.

 

I can't speak to Blu but I dined in the oceanview for breakfast daily - it was definitely crowded but never annoyingly so. We ate in the MDR every night except maybe 1 - and we were always seated within a short period of time (we tend to go around 730-8p).

 

As for cabin noise - unfortunately we need to pay attention to where the cabins are when we book them - as every cruise line will sell less than desirable cabins unfortunately. My cabin, while sandwiched between 2 cabined above and below, had loud toilet noises from neighboring cabins - really hope they fix that issue because it honestly kept me awake at times - very disconcerting. Others have mentioned the "jet engine" toilet flushes on the reflection too, so maybe it didn't bother just me.

 

I hope Celebrity is reading this boards, and learning how to tweak the Reflection for future passengers. I don't think 300 extra passengers is killing the ship - however where they placed the cabins could be.

 

You mention "I hope Celebrity is reading this boards, and learning how to tweak the Reflection for future passengers."What in the world makes you think that Celebrity cares?!?!?!?!

[AtleeH]

No B52's in Dyess AFB. In fact, no B52's anywhere but at 8th AF HQ at Barksdale AFB in Bossier City, across the river from Shreveport, LA and Minot, ND. When the Afgan war was in full bloom, some B52's were forward deployed to Diego Garcia island in the Indian Ocean. Our one time huge fleet of B52's has been reduced to a relative handful.

 

I noticed you "cleaned" up BUFF. To the aircrews, it's known as BUFF, but the last F is not "fellow". Much like FUBAR and SNAFU from WWII. On the home front, the press always used F(ouled) instead of what the servicemen overseas used F(@#$%&).

 

Not to be exclusive (which I railed about before), Abilene is the home of Dyess AFB and they fly the B-52s (sometimes referred to as a Big Ugly Fat Fellow -BUFF for short) and the KC-135 (maybe the KC-10 now) which is a refueling aircraft, thus the gas-passer moniker.

 

Now, that was 30 years ago so some things might have changed since then so YMMV!!!

 

Sorry to have hijacked the thread for that. I'll stay on subject from now on.:o

[Lesleyvip]

Hello, we're booked on the May 16 Reflection sailing and want to know if they're agreeable to refunding prebooked tours , dining, spa etc. so we can use on board credit? It frustrating knowing we have hundreds of dollars sitting there that can't be accessed. Thanks, Lesley

[t923347]

Pre-booked excursions can be canceled up to 24 hours before. Not sure about the other things but suspect there is a similar policy.

[jagoffee]

Hello, we're booked on the May 16 Reflection sailing and want to know if they're agreeable to refunding prebooked tours , dining, spa etc. so we can use on board credit? It frustrating knowing we have hundreds of dollars sitting there that can't be accessed. Thanks, Lesley

 

Pre-booked excursions can be canceled up to 24 hours before. Not sure about the other things but suspect there is a similar policy.

 

A good question IMO.

 

Certainly you can cancel per the appropriate policy. I would not think you would be able to refund your monies, so you could use OBC. Anything is possible, but that would a really silly thing for Celebrity to allow. Can you imagine how many people would want to do this if it was allowed?

Worst case you could cancel and then try to rebook, but you might not find your particular excursion or time no longer available. Or cancel them all and then book on board using your On Board Credit. You could check on available for a new reservation when you get on board, then cancel, and rebook.

 

The bottom line is I do not think Celebrity would be agreeable to allowing you to keep all your reservations, refunding you original form of payment, and then allowing you to use a different form of payment.

 

I do like Princess's policy where you do not need to prepay for excursion reservations.

[Tommy3putts]

Agree this is a good question. Scratching my head. Seems like this kind of useful information would have been better shared in a separate thread rather than resurrecting an old thread.

[Lesleyvip]

Agree this is a good question. Scratching my head. Seems like this kind of useful information would have been better shared in a separate thread rather than resurrecting an old thread.

Hello, I'm new to this posting to threads business. I put it under what looked like a general Celebrity Reflection category, and not as a reply to anyone else's post that I could figure. Thanks for the reply.

[Tommy3putts]

Pretty easy. Just create "new topic" give it a name/subject and type away. You might get more responses that way.