Downgrading of Aqua Spa Cafe

[Brad1185]

[quote name='wedding96']They should be embarrassed about charging $5 for those yogurt parfaits. For those of you who don't know, they opted to include an area of the AquaSpa buffet where they will charge $5 for some greek yogurt with your choice of toppings. The toppings are not especially exotic, noteworthy, or plentiful and certainly not worth the money. Shame on Celebrity for this ridiculous offering! Anyone interested in starting a petition to bring back the delicious variety of rolls (unique to AquaSpa) and homemade jams they used to serve at breakfast, which they have since replaced with highly caloric mini-muffins? What were they thinking![/QUOTE]

Could not have been said any better

[ghstudio]

[quote name='wedding96']They should be embarrassed about charging $5 for those yogurt parfaits. For those of you who don't know, they opted to include an area of the AquaSpa buffet where they will charge $5 for some greek yogurt with your choice of toppings. The toppings are not especially exotic, noteworthy, or plentiful and certainly not worth the money. Shame on Celebrity for this ridiculous offering! Anyone interested in starting a petition to bring back the delicious variety of rolls (unique to AquaSpa) and homemade jams they used to serve at breakfast, which they have since replaced with highly caloric mini-muffins? What were they thinking![/QUOTE]

I suspect the yogurt bar will be one of the "modern luxury" changes quickest to go. They have created a non-revenue venue which is now a cost center since someone now has to stand there with nothing much to do....while the aqua spa cafe has been turned into a negative rather than a positive experience.

Some dislike the lack of grilled to order fish, I dislike having to wait in line behind people deciding what they want on their salad just to get a cup of soup....and I continue to be baffled by one of their "special" offerings which require a 15 minute wait,deviled eggs, which were clearly made much earlier (the yolks had a hard crust on them) and just had to be put on a plate.

It's just an ill thought out change, clearly implemented by the financial folks who probably would like to install pay toilets in the staterooms. Edited January 13, 2014 by ghstudio

[20pluscruises]

[quote name='ghstudio']I suspect the yogurt bar will be one of the "modern luxury" changes quickest to go. They have created a non-revenue venue which is now a cost center since someone now has to stand there with nothing much to do....while the aqua spa cafe has been turned into a negative rather than a positive experience.

Some dislike the lack of grilled to order fish, I dislike having to wait in line behind people deciding what they want on their salad just to get a cup of soup....and I continue to be baffled by one of their "special" offerings which require a 15 minute wait,deviled eggs, which were clearly made much earlier (the yolks had a hard crust on them) and just had to be put on a plate.

[COLOR="Red"]It's just an ill thought out change, clearly implemented by the financial folks who probably would like to install pay toilets in the staterooms.[/QUOTE][/COLOR]

That is hilarious!!!!!!!:D:D:D

[chamima]

[quote name='ghstudio']I suspect the yogurt bar will be [COLOR="Red"]one of the "modern luxury" changes quickest to go[/COLOR]. They have created a non-revenue venue which is now a cost center since someone now has to stand there with nothing much to do....while the aqua spa cafe has been turned into a negative rather than a positive experience.

Some dislike the lack of grilled to order fish, I dislike having to wait in line behind people deciding what they want on their salad just to get a cup of soup....and I continue to be baffled by one of their "special" offerings which require a 15 minute wait,deviled eggs, which were clearly made much earlier (the yolks had a hard crust on them) and just had to be put on a plate.

It's just an ill thought out change, clearly implemented by the financial folks who probably would like to install pay toilets in the staterooms.[/QUOTE]


Your post made me wonder just how closely corporate monitors how changes "work" or not on the ships and just how long feedback from senior staff takes to get back?

[GRBlizz]

Devil's advocate here. I wonder how much usage the old standalone aquaspa cafe was getting? It's gotta be pretty rare for everyone traveling together to want to eat "spa food", and I'd bet companionship wins out over diet most of the time.

I know that I loved the poached fruits and yogurt chicken salad at AquaSpa Cafe on our recent cruise. However, none of the rest of our family could find anything of interest on the menu. So, I only ended up having it that once. Since the two cafes are at opposite ends of the ship, I couldn't just zip down and pick up my items and return to join the family at Oceanview.

I think it's better for X to add more spa dishes to the Oceanview selection. I'd love to see them even add an AquaSpa station. Who knows, maybe they'd sell a few more of those greek yogurt parfaits!

Now, don't get me started on the loss of the wonderful Mast Grill selections. Fortunately, I don't eat that kind of food anymore, but hubby does, and he was disappointed!

[chamima]

I ate there every day and there was usually a small line to get food so, at least on the Solstice last year, it was used.

If they added the old menu from the Aqua Spa Cafe to a station in the Oceanview that would be GREAT but I have a feeling the reason the tuna and salmon isn't available has more to do with the cost of the food than the amount of people ordering them. :(

Even if they closed the Cafe I would hope they'd at least leave the coffee and tea stations open. It was my go-to place many times a day as it was just over our cabin! Edited January 13, 2014 by chamima

[need2bespoiled]

[quote name='Chooz2Cruz']Aqua Spa cafe has always been our favorite. We go straight there when we board. Not been on S class yet, but on 5 M class cruises it is our go to, mostly for the made to order fish. Every day DH and I would order one Seared Tuna, and one Seared Salmon to split. It is so tasty and clean and the veggies with it are also delish. We would have it along with our salads. We also would go there for a egg white omelette in the morning, before we we did AQ and Blu. We never, EVER, have eaten at the Mast (greasy) grill, and Avoid the buffet all together. We are healthy eaters, and never find much of anything appealing there, other than when it is sushi time. I don't know what we will do when we cruise later this year, again M-class. From the sounds of it, we won't be eating lunch at all. Very sad![/QUOTE]

As I've stated before, on our recent (month long) trip on constellation, I ordered Salmon or Tuna at least 6 times in the Aqua Spa Cafe even though I never saw it listed on a menu and each time it was delivered to my table cooked as ordered, as wonderful as always. This was a European and Trans Atlantic cruise, so maybe that made a difference, I'm not sure.

I think it may have been gone for a little while and then brought back. I'd like to know if someone actually asked for fresh grilled fish, and was told "no" regardsless of menu listsing.

Happy Sailing,
Jenna

[GRBlizz]

I think there's a lot about enjoying a cruise vacation that requires you to know you can ask for it, especially where food is involved. Cruise Critic has been an invaluable resource to my family for this - even though I'm the only one who participate, they all feed me questions to ask.

Another example that may help folks on here. I generally have plain greek yogurt with whatever fresh fruit I have on hand mixed in for breakfast at home. On my second day in Blu, I asked for plain greek yogurt and some berries as my breakfast. I got it, no question - and the berries were an amazing mix of huge raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, and strawberries. I had this every day after that, except for one day when I switched out to pineapple and mango. Way healthier than the parfaits they sell in AquaSpa cafe, and no extra charge.

Not on the menu, but not a problem.

[chamima]

[quote name='jjwoben1']Was on Nov 30 sailing on Eclipse...did not pay corkage fee for gifted wine or wine from Celebrity in cabin...as to Aua Spa Cafe, you can order the salmon and/or chicken and they make it to order...we did not find that the spa had decreased items but they have added additional pay for items[/QUOTE]



So I asked on a thread from someone who just got off the Eclipse and got this answer.
We'll be on her in February and I am one [B][U][SIZE="2"][COLOR="Magenta"]happy[/COLOR][/SIZE][/U][/B] camper!!!!! :D
I promise to report back.


EDIT: On second reading I noticed she didn't mention tuna.
I'm now a semi-happy camper.
I'll still report back. Edited January 13, 2014 by chamima

[2SeaAll]

[quote name='20pluscruises']I see you have done Regent, Oceania, and Silver, etc. ....would you mind if i asked which of these were your favorite? Thanks[/quote]

Each is a different experience, and since the highs and lows are highly individual and personal, highly dependent upon the person.

Caveat - we haven't been on Regent since they went all-inclusive, but will have an updated experience in the near-future. So here goes;

Oceania:

[LIST]
[*]Pluses: GREAT food at every level, wonderful cabins/beds [Penthouse just right size and terrific price point]; improved but somewhat costly Internet; good pool seating; good, but not great service
[*] Minuses: Outrageously priced and boring shore excursions; very high-priced liquor packages; dead times for snacking (dining usually not extended on port days); no welcoming on return to ship [unattended, no cold towels, no drinks]; horrible included airfare arrangements; amateurish shows not worthy of investing your time; pool has no slope/no shallow end on Marina/Riviera
[*]Overall: wouldn't take much to make it GREAT as all the minuses are easily addressed
[/LIST]
Regent:

[LIST]
[*]Pluses; (some based upon distant memories): Great size room and good bedding at standard veranda size level; included amenities seem good, if not very good (but probably overpriced); good frequent guest program (in the process of being somewhat diluted); good pool scene; very good dining (a half notch below Oceania; somewhat further below that on Navigator because of lack of Signatures)
[*]Minuses: Very expensive if all the amenities are not relevant; reviews indicate food may be slipping somewhat and some maintenance may have been deferred; notorious aft vibration problems primarily on Navigator and Voyager; included airfare arrangements are often far below a 6 star experience.
[*]Overall: same ownership group as Oceania and many (but not all) shared resources. With FDR focus on food and facilities it is somewhat perplexing that focus appears to be distracted by Oceania in maintaining standards on Regent. Highly anticipated new build in 2016 that should set a new standard for cruising.
[/LIST]
Silversea:

[LIST]
[*]Pluses: very large cabins; highly personalized, attentive and professional service; some very unusual and wonderful itineraries
[*]Minuses: significant variation in experience according to the particular ship; the stiffest, most impersonal crew on an interaction basis; we personally weren't thrilled with the dining venues or the food which had a classical, European orientation
[*]Overall: buried in the past; the once and past grand dame in a lot of respects; a perfectly fine but uninspired and unremarkable cruising experience.
[/LIST]
Hope the above is helpful, again IMHO and others may see it very differently.

[20pluscruises]

[quote name='2SeaAll']Each is a different experience, and since the highs and lows are highly individual and personal, highly dependent upon the person.

Caveat - we haven't been on Regent since they went all-inclusive, but will have an updated experience in the near-future. So here goes;

Oceania:

[LIST]
[*]Pluses: GREAT food at every level, wonderful cabins/beds [Penthouse just right size and terrific price point]; improved but somewhat costly Internet; good pool seating; good, but not great service
[*] Minuses: Outrageously priced and boring shore excursions; very high-priced liquor packages; dead times for snacking (dining usually not extended on port days); no welcoming on return to ship [unattended, no cold towels, no drinks]; horrible included airfare arrangements; amateurish shows not worthy of investing your time; pool has no slope/no shallow end on Marina/Riviera
[*]Overall: wouldn't take much to make it GREAT as all the minuses are easily addressed
[/LIST]
Regent:

[LIST]
[*]Pluses; (some based upon distant memories): Great size room and good bedding at standard veranda size level; included amenities seem good, if not very good (but probably overpriced); good frequent guest program (in the process of being somewhat diluted); good pool scene; very good dining (a half notch below Oceania; somewhat further below that on Navigator because of lack of Signatures)
[*]Minuses: Very expensive if all the amenities are not relevant; reviews indicate food may be slipping somewhat and some maintenance may have been deferred; notorious aft vibration problems primarily on Navigator and Voyager; included airfare arrangements are often far below a 6 star experience.
[*]Overall: same ownership group as Oceania and many (but not all) shared resources. With FDR focus on food and facilities it is somewhat perplexing that focus appears to be distracted by Oceania in maintaining standards on Regent. Highly anticipated new build in 2016 that should set a new standard for cruising.
[/LIST]
Silversea:

[LIST]
[*]Pluses: very large cabins; highly personalized, attentive and professional service; some very unusual and wonderful itineraries
[*]Minuses: significant variation in experience according to the particular ship; the stiffest, most impersonal crew on an interaction basis; we personally weren't thrilled with the dining venues or the food which had a classical, European orientation
[*]Overall: buried in the past; the once and past grand dame in a lot of respects; a perfectly fine but uninspired and unremarkable cruising experience.
[/LIST]
Hope the above is helpful, again IMHO and others may see it very differently.[/QUOTE]

Many thanks!

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on your upcoming Regent cruise...this is what we started to seriously look at for Sept 2014.

[Go-Bucks!]

Wow . . . . . this thread is making me wonder if we should have chosen another cruiseline to try. My friend and I [I]love[/I] Princess and will be Elite in October. But we decided to take a short Caribbean cruise this March and wanted to try a new cruiseline. We thought about HAL and RCCL, but ended up picking Celebrity Reflection. Reading about so many "cutbacks", especially in food, makes me nervous about what type of experience we'll have.

Princess has always made us very happy so hearing all about the bad food and service on Celebrity may make this next cruise a once-in-a-lifetime happening. :( Edited January 13, 2014 by Go-Bucks!

[C 2 C]

[quote name='Go-Bucks!']Wow . . . . . this thread is making me wonder if we should have chosen another cruiseline to try. My friend and I [I]love[/I] Princess and will be Elite in October. But we decided to take a short Caribbean cruise this March and wanted to try a new cruiseline. We thought about HAL and RCCL, but ended up picking Celebrity Reflection. Reading about so many "cutbacks", especially in food, makes me nervous about what type of experience we'll have.

Princess has always made us very happy so hearing all about the bad food and service on Celebrity may make this next cruise a once-in-a-lifetime happening. :([/quote]

You always have to be careful when reading about "cutbacks".
We noticed some on our recent Constellation cruise but we also noted some improvements to the menu.

From another thread, a person who just disembarked from Summit:

[quote][quote name='evandbob']I thought the Connections Party on the Jan 4 Summit was very well attended, and I circulated through the crowd meeting many of the 140 posters who participated in the roll call.

My first Celebrity cruise after 25 cruises on other lines, and it was one of the best cruise experiences I've had. Even won on the slots in the casino.
[/quote]

Some of those posting have not been on a Celebrity cruise in 5 years and some will always have an "axe to grind".

There are also many of us who love the Celebrity product and return because there is always something to love.

[NLH Arizona]

[quote name='Go-Bucks!']Wow . . . . . this thread is making me wonder if we should have chosen another cruiseline to try. My friend and I [I]love[/I] Princess and will be Elite in October. But we decided to take a short Caribbean cruise this March and wanted to try a new cruiseline. We thought about HAL and RCCL, but ended up picking Celebrity Reflection. Reading about so many "cutbacks", especially in food, makes me nervous about what type of experience we'll have.

Princess has always made us very happy so hearing all about the bad food and service on Celebrity may make this next cruise a once-in-a-lifetime happening. :([/quote]
I believe you will find that some are over exaggerating the cut backs. I enjoyed my last cruise on Celebrity just as I did my first. The food is great, the staff is wonderful, etc. Don't let some scare you away, read all the reviews and you will see that some of the exaggerations are not happening to other cruisers. Any changes, even though there might be improvements at the same time, are considered cutbacks by some. Edited January 13, 2014 by NLH Arizona

[ISABELLA]

[quote name='2SeaAll']Anyone else notice and upset by the changes?

We were on Silhouette in December - overall a wonderful cruise; not perfect by any means, but with all the challenges of a holiday cruise and all that could go wrong we were favorably impressed on balance. Given the pricing challenges that Celebrity has in a very competitive market, IMHO Celebrity is doing a great job striking the necessary balances.

We (and my wife more than anyone) were upset by how the once innovative Aqua Spa has been converted from a cost center delivering a wonderful assortment of alternative, light, tasty foods into what is now a profit center delivering a greatly scaled back selection of included foods. To make matters worse, the charged items were not of great interest to us. Taking the Aqua Spa out of our lunch (and sometimes breakfast) rotation downgraded our lunch routine.

One further nit - Celebrity, please bring back the wonderful onion rings to the Mast Grille.

None of these are show stoppers, but there needs to be a point at which the constant cutbacks stop and reason and good judgment needs to be applied to changes of offerings.[/QUOTE]

We noticed the changes during our TA in Equinox few months ago. The manager overheard our complains and explained that the changes were made to benefit more " healthier" choices in food, which we said that it looks like Celebrity is cutting corners and that is very visible. He got a bit agitated and said it is not true and now it much better than before. They even closed beverage station after lunch. I wrote my opinions in the comment card. Was very disappointing.
I am sure Celebrity is care less what we all think about Aqua Cafe. Not the first time.....

[Go-Bucks!]

[quote name='~Cruisenut~']There are also many of us who love the Celebrity product and return because there is always something to love.[/quote]


I always try to take negative comments with a grain of salt, but there were 4 pages of them and from long-time Celebrity cruisers who seemed to agree on most of the issues. Makes a person stop and think. Edited January 13, 2014 by Go-Bucks!

[20pluscruises]

[quote name='Go-Bucks!']I always try to take negative comments with a grain of salt, but there were 4 pages of them and from long-time Celebrity cruisers who seemed to agree on most of the issues. Makes a person stop and think.[/QUOTE]

Since this is your first Celebrity cruise...I believe you will enjoy it and not notice any cutbacks as it is still good cruise for the money...just voicing opinions so that it continues to stay good and the cutbacks stop.

[C 2 C]

[quote name='Go-Bucks!']I always try to take negative comments with a grain of salt, but there were 4 pages of them and from long-time Celebrity cruisers who seemed to agree on most of the issues. Makes a person stop and think.[/quote]

We took our first Celebrity cruise in 1994 and have sailed many, many times since then, including a dozen each with Princess and HAL. The menu now is not the same as it was then, but the overall cruising experience is as good as ever. I'm not a fish lover and don't miss the salmon and tuna but I love the Asian stir fry station and different salad options available in the buffet area.
What I miss the most is the grilled chicken upon request for the Mexican fajita alternative that I craved at the outside grill.

[Iamthesea]

Go-Bucks - You will love the Reflection...don't worry. We have been on Princess, and it compares favorably with Celebrity. ;)

[quote name='GRBlizz']I'm also a healthy eater, and the good news is that the buffet now has some excellent choices for us! You can get your made-to-order fish there, the salad bars have much more selection, and they have a stir-fried veggie station that rocks (just tell her to use olive oil only, and don't add in the rice unless you want it.) Of course there are also the fresh fruits. I think you will be pleasantly surprised by what you can find at the main buffet.[/quote]

Same here...more than half of our cruise days on a ship, I eat a salad from the salad bar at the buffet. ;)

[quote name='GRBlizz']Devil's advocate here. I wonder how much usage the old standalone aquaspa cafe was getting? It's gotta be pretty rare for everyone traveling together to want to eat "spa food", and I'd bet companionship wins out over diet most of the time.

I know that I loved the poached fruits and yogurt chicken salad at AquaSpa Cafe on our recent cruise. However, none of the rest of our family could find anything of interest on the menu. So, I only ended up having it that once. Since the two cafes are at opposite ends of the ship, I couldn't just zip down and pick up my items and return to join the family at Oceanview.[/quote]

I have the same problem when cruising with my husband, who BTW weighs less and is healthier than me.:(:o:rolleyes: He does not like salads, fresh veggies, fruits, etc. and would prefer to eat in the buffet.

[cruisetrail]

[quote name='Go-Bucks!']Wow . . . . . this thread is making me wonder if we should have chosen another cruiseline to try. My friend and I [I]love[/I] Princess and will be Elite in October. But we decided to take a short Caribbean cruise this March and wanted to try a new cruiseline. We thought about HAL and RCCL, but ended up picking Celebrity Reflection. Reading about so many "cutbacks", especially in food, makes me nervous about what type of experience we'll have.

Princess has always made us very happy so hearing all about the bad food and service on Celebrity may make this next cruise a once-in-a-lifetime happening. :([/quote]

The Reflection itself is a huge cutback by design in comparison with the original Solstice class ships: more passengers, less public space, more commercialization, Solstice class "key features" went overboard.
On that background, a minor (although unpleasant) change in a tiny cafe (which is a counter in a pool deck corner) won't affect your experience.

[ghstudio]

[quote name='ISABELLA']We noticed the changes during our TA in Equinox few months ago. The manager overheard our complains and explained that the changes were made to benefit more " healthier" choices in food, which we said that it looks like Celebrity is cutting corners and that is very visible. He got a bit agitated and said it is not true and now it much better than before. They even closed beverage station after lunch. I wrote my opinions in the comment card. Was very disappointing.
I am sure Celebrity is care less what we all think about Aqua Cafe. Not the first time.....[/QUOTE]

Celebrity tries to "sell" the healthiness of the new choices and they promote that the meals are SPE approved. From my perspective, they used SPE as a cover to reduce the offerings to lower cost. Maybe I've missed them, but I haven't seen too many raving about the wonderful new SPE dishes in the MDR and almost no one raving about the new aqua spa cafe. Heck, the new aqua spa cafe is now essentially a salad bar ...and they already have a salad bar (a few actually) in the MDR.

So why not go to the buffet. Easy...aqua spa cafe pre plated things...you took a plate. In the buffet, you grab the tongs and serve yourself.....those tongs that the last person touched after coughing on their hands, fell into the food, and so on....and then you have to find a table. I'm far from a clean freak...but I've just seen too many ugly things in buffets to enjoy them any more. (e.g. the child (or worse, the adult) that tastes something and puts it back because they don't like it...and so on).

[Chitown12562]

I sailed years ago on the Eclipse when it first arrived in the Caribbean. I didn't find the Aqua spa Café to be that great or even that good. The selection was very bland to me.

I understood what they were trying to do there. I found the food at Blu to be exceptional. But now ASC is worse?!

Guess it does matter for me since I planned on not eating there on my next trip.

[AlexDouglass]

This is my third time spending much time on CC (the previous two also in the lead up to a cruise). Both the boards I was spending time on - RC and then Cunard - were filled with wailing about cutbacks that were destroying longtime cruisers' vacations, to the point where I was sort of dreading each in turn - surely a week on the Queen Mary 2 had to be a [I]little[/I] better than being in steerage on a galley, as one poster had put it over on the Cunard board?

In both cases, I had a marvelous time on what I thought were beautiful ships.

This month I'm paying just about the same now, three years later, on a far more competitive route, for a suite on Celebrity as I did for a similar cabin on RC. Unless people want prices to continue to rise, rise, rise (instead of staying flat or, especially with multiple discounts, falling, as they've been doing of late), they have to know that companies will be watching the bottom line. And I think at least some of what people perceive as cutbacks are either just differences - not every experience can be exactly the same - or reflections of how companies phase different things in and out to see how they work. Edited January 13, 2014 by AlexDouglass

[Wine-O]

[quote name='cruisetrail']The Reflection itself is a huge cutback by design in comparison with the original Solstice class ships: more passengers, less public space, more commercialization, Solstice class "key features" went overboard.
On that background, a minor (although unpleasant) change in a tiny cafe (which is a counter in a pool deck corner) won't affect your experience.[/QUOTE]

That's a bunch of yada, yada, yada, and your post has nothing to do with the cutbacks at the Aqua Spa Café, which is S-Class wide, not just Reflection.

We just spent 33 days on Reflection, and it never seemed any more crowded than the other S-Class ships.

[GRBlizz]

[quote name='ghstudio']
So why not go to the buffet. Easy...aqua spa cafe pre plated things...you took a plate. In the buffet, you grab the tongs and serve yourself.....those tongs that the last person touched after coughing on their hands, fell into the food, and so on....and then you have to find a table. I'm far from a clean freak...but I've just seen too many ugly things in buffets to enjoy them any more. (e.g. the child (or worse, the adult) that tastes something and puts it back because they don't like it...and so on).[/QUOTE]

Yikes! I guess you could wear medical gloves while getting your food. Or simply only choose food items that are handed to you by servers. There are quite a few choices like that in the buffet on S Class: stir fry, pasta bar, carvery, caesar salad of the day - and of course ice cream. Also, if you're that concerned about touching communal tongs, I'm sure one of the staff would be happy to plate your food for you.

(And I am assuming you stay away from the yummy poached fruits in AQ Cafe, since those are self-serve?)

As to finding a table, this proved much more challenging for us in the Aqua Spa cafe than it ever was in the buffet.

I think you might want to check out the modern buffet. It may surprise you!