Constelation Review from a new Celebrity guest

[scubamommy!]

Thank you to ALL the folks who reviews I read in anticipation of my cruise. I lived vicariously through you all for about 6 months prior to our cruise on The Constellation on March 31st. I learned many tips and secrets that I used throughout our trip. Hopefully this review will help some of you who are yet to board. Our group consisted of me (45) my DH (54) our two kids (DD9 and DS11) our two friends (45) and son (10) and we were meeting my brother and GF who flew in from OH in their early 40’s. They also had two of their friends from Canada in their late 20’s. Below is day one which probably will be longer than any of the other days and I am sorry in advance not to be able to figure how to posts pictures. But if you like to read then this should work:

 

We arrived in Florida after driving 12 hours through rain in every city we went through. As soon as we arrived it stopped. We checked into our cute little Hotel that hadn’t been mentioned anywhere I could find here on CC. It was a dated 70’s Best Western Plus in Oakdale. It was only $139 a night and this time of year every other hotel was 250++ that I looked into. I figured it was only two nights how bad could it be. Like I said the hotel itself was kinda dated but it had this wonderful little courtyard with a VERY clean pool and tiki hut/bar. The rooms were on the small side but the beds were updated clean and comfy. That night we let the kids blow off some steam in the pool while the adults had a cocktail and ordered some pizza. It was a quiet start to our vacation but just what we had the energy for.

 

The next day I went for my morning speed walk and found the beach about a mile and 1/2 straight down the street. The sun was rising and it was sure to be a beautiful day. When I came back our group was gathering for our complimentary breakfast at the hotel. It was fine, they had eggs, bacon, waffles, breads, muffins, fruits, juices and coffees. After breakfast we loaded up and went to the beach. It was a perfect sunny day and we found a hotel on the beach that served us some drinks and lunch, can’t remember the name but it was nice to be served on the beach! That night we cleaned up and went to PF Changs for dinner because my husband works there in NC and wanted to stop in and see some friends. It was only a mile from where we stayed and is always so good no matter what state you visit!

 

Boarding day, My brother ( who flew in) arrived at 10:30 and the place was empty and they could have walked right on, but they waited for us. We drove and there was a lot of construction around the port, we made a few wrong turns which delayed our planned arrival of 11:00. We arrived at 11:30 and the place was starting to get pretty busy. A few lines and many helpful smiles and we were on board by 12:30 with a champagne in hand. Our first stop to avoid the craziness at buffet was to head to Bistro on 5 since someone mentioned this as a good tip/secret. Guess what, the secret is OUT! It was full with many waiting, so we HAD to go to the buffet. It was extremely difficult to find a table and it was packed but we found one and grabbed some lunch. My son had a burger that was very tasty, I had a salad and egg salad sammy on a fabulous seeded artisan bread, my daughter had some pasta salad and some fresh fruits and pizza and my husband had one of everything he could pile on his first and second plates. EVERYTHING on that buffet is top notch, have not seen a better buffet anywhere! Different stations for ethnic centers , a pasta bar with too many choices to even try, great fresh salads and fruits, a Panini station, a burger bar, a pizza station, I am not sure you could name anything that WASN”T on it! And everything we all tried was DELISH!

 

We enjoyed that and some drinks while the kids got some cookies and ice cream when we hear the announcement that the rooms were ready. Well that place cleared out in seconds like someone yelled FIRE! We decided to grab a drink back on the Sunset Bar and enjoy the sun and some pina coladas. I like mine topped with Myers Rum. Christopher was bartending and I tipped him an extra $5 and for the rest of the trip every time he saw me he had my Pina Colada with Myers ready. I tipped another $5 here and there for him as well. We had the Premium drink package so I really wanted to try some new drinks but it just seemed like they were very busy, although they kept up fine back there, they didn’t really have the time to chat and make suggestions. That’s ok, there were other bars that did. I had a cold drink every time I wanted one.

 

Off to the rooms. We were on the 6th Floor in 6086 and 6084. The rooms connected (for our kids) through a door in the middle and the balconies did NOT connect. The kids barely went out on theirs as they were not allowed without us so they would always just come over to ours. It was a small balcony with two chairs and a small table. We enjoyed breakfast one morning and several afternoon snacks and naps in the chairs that reclined. There was PLENTY of space in the closet and plenty of nice wooden hangers. There were 6 drawers PLUS two under each nightstand. I had heard to bring small foldaway boxes because storage was at a minimal but I found it to be MORE than enough for us. Didn’t even use the storage boxes we brought. We also brought on some wine and champagne so our room steward, Francis brought us a bucket for the champagne so we could enjoy mimosas on the balcony the next morning, and by request also a separate ice bucket that both were kept full of ice all trip long. Even though we NEVER opened up that Champagne since every night we had so many drinks at every bar we just came back to the room to sleep and every morning I couldn’t think of drinking so early ( we waited till at least 11 AM despite saying we would wait longer each day). The lifeboats were directly under us but when seated you didn’t even notice them, you just looked out to that big beautiful blue sea every time. When you were standing you could see them and of coarse you couldn’t see directly below you because of them, but if you are booked in these 6th floor rooms, have no fear they will not bother you in the least! We did our unpacking because our bags were starting to arrive already and were ready to explore.

 

The kids changed into their swimsuits and we were off to check out the pool and the FUN FACTORY. We checked them in to the Fun Factory and thought the room looked small and they were not thrilled with the looks of it. We had intended on signing them up for the VIP package which was $75 per child and let you stay at the Fun Factory any hours you wanted to play. The factory closed between 12-2 and 5-7 for meals and at 10PM. If you were a VIP you could stay through those hours and eat with that group or stay after 10 to play the games till final closing at 1:00AM. You could also pay $6 per hour per child through those hours as well. The VIP package also lets them attend a couple backstage tours and they get a fun back pack bag with some headphones, a t-shirt and other small things. After a while the kids went to the fun factory and fell in love with ALL the fun activities. They REALLY kept them busy playing things like apples to apples, wipeout, scavenger hunts and pillow fights & movies late night. They wanted to join the VIP after spending just an hour there so we did. BEST INVESTMENT PARENTS!!! If you plan on staying out at night this is GREAT! They loved it, we loved it and everyone was SUPER HAPPY! They even had different games and contests you could win “FUNNY MONEY” and on the last night they had an auction to bid on prizes with that money. The final factory pick up time is 1:00 AM. Most nights we lasted for it, but on the two nights I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer we went to pick them up and they wondered WHY we were there early. The staff was wonderful, I never saw how many kids there were as parents are not allowed past the front door, but you can check on them any time you want. And both mine made fast new friends.

 

We were suppose to meet our other cruisers from Cruise Critic at Sail Away at The Sunset Bar so off we went after a quick muster drill. I had seen one cruisers picture so I went up to introduce myself and chatted for a bit. She was with her daughters and I was with my group so I figured I would see her later on in the cruise as well, but I never saw her again till we were going through customs on the last day. If anyone else was there from our roll call I did not know it. If you plan on meeting others I suggest name tags or wear beads or have a sign or some kind of better plan than just “lets meet at this place” because who is to know who is who? It’s a shame Celebrity does not offer anything for a 5 day cruise. We had a ton of friends with us but had it been just my husband and I, we would have enjoyed meeting some others. Not that we didn’t meet plenty of great folks throughout the week. It just would have been nice to meet the folks I had been talking to throughout the last couple of months.

 

We let the kids hit the pool and discovered there were not to many available chairs ( read: none) around there to sit. Many chairs had towels but no people so instead we sat on this ledge ( plenty big even to lay on) and watched the kids take a dip. We decided that IF we wanted any chairs for tomorrow we had better “claim” them with towels early. I know many of you will scoff but if that is what every one else is doing than how are we to do it any other way. We woke the next day, claimed some chairs on the second deck facing the pool since all the other ones by the pool on the main deck were already claimed at 8AM ! We ate breakfast and would go lay out for a while. Towels were never removed by anyone from anywhere that we saw. If you want those big comfy chairs better get up at 6 to claim them, I never got to even sit in one. But that’s ok, we liked our spot on the upper deck with the nice view. When the kids wanted to swim we would go and sit on those ledges with our feet in the water.

 

But I’m getting off track, back to dinner. It was time to get ready and head out. We stopped at the much spoke about Martini Bar and met the two best bartenders aboard!!!!! Marko and Challas. They made some suggestions and I was hooked on the French Martini for the rest of the trip. Also liked the White Cosmo and The Sunset . My husband enjoyed a new found fav of Belvedere Intense Black Label with blue cheese olives ( the olives he loves and they didn’t have any that first night however on night two those guys had a WHOLE BC WHEEL just for my hubby for the rest of the cruise) We tipped them several $5’s throughout that night and they took GREAT care of us through the ENTIRE trip. They are entertaining and ON TOP of things! Always doing tricks and ALWAYS have smiles on their faces. I think they would have taken great care of us without the extra tips, but we are used to tipping being in the service industry ourselves. Its always nice to have a little extra. And really, what else are you going to do with the small bills in your purse? Everything is already paid for! LOL. As soon as they saw us coming they would start to make our favs without even asking and reach OVER the CROWD to hand us our drinks. Love them I tell ya!

 

Time for dinner and everyone piled into the San Marco main dinning room. The only time I really felt like cattle, but after enough martini’s who really cares. We told our kids.....

 

WAIT: side note for those of you who scoff at drinkers with kids: It is ok to have fun and have a drink when with my kids as long as they are behaving and everyone is still in control, most of the time I am saying things in jest and fun about over drinking so PLEASE do not scold me for drinking around my kids. I AM Catholic after all, we are known for our drinking! LOL

 

...we told our kids they HAD to eat with us on the first night and formal night ( which was night two) and then they could decide if they wanted to sit through the two hour dinner or go to the kids club. They enjoyed tasting so much of the different dishes and enjoyed the conversation and really the service too, they both choose to eat with us all but one night. The service was excellent. Sarono was the head waiter who was very professional and remembered what everyone liked each night, how they liked it and so forth. I am a vegetarian and he had a special menu waiting for me (different each night). They also were able to adjust some of the regular menu items for me as well. Some of the dishes for the vegetarian menu were on the bland side and a few were pretty good like the pasta the last day, the spring rolls and gnocchi, but over all I would say this is were they could use some improvement, plenty of options, but they could lesson the options and make them a bit more tasty. The assistant was Angela who was a pleasure to talk with and joked with us from time to time. She nicknamed my son James Bond due to his wearing his tux on Formal night and whenever she would see us in the daytime ( she worked in the buffet then) she would stop and talk with us. The dishes that got raves from our table: The escargot, the lamb and a few of the steaks. Most of the fish dishes were less to be desired besides a seafood risotto dish that included shrimp, scallops and calamari. Some fav desserts were the chocolate cake, the crème brulee and the grand mariner soufflé. We ate in the main dinning room every night and although the food was not “the best I ever had” it certainly wasn’t bad at all, I would say most at our table were happy and ALL were full at the end of the meal. We enjoyed the service and the wine at dinner. Our Sommelier Belinda was quiet, made suggestions and ALWAYS kept our glasses full. We tipped all three of these folks extra on the last day. They deserved it!

 

Also to note: I had read two different things about the guests on Celebrity: 1- they were older and might be too boring and 2- because of the drink package the Spring Breakers might be to rowdy. But we did not see any Spring Breakers ( really at all) getting out of hand and all different ages on board, not just a bunch of boring seniors. There was a great mix of old and young and everything in between plus plenty of kids to boot. And I also read more complaining here on this board than I ever heard on the board the ship! LOL

 

After dinner we signed the kids into the VIP Fun Factory and went to explore the night life. First back to the martini club for another martini ( or two). Marko and Challas entertained and took care of us again. The Rendezvous lounge had a funny guy playing guitar and cracking jokes. We listened to that a while but were in the mood to dance so we went to the Reflections lounge on the 11th floor. They had a band playing that was not bad, but not great either. Not fitting to our dancing mood. But that was all we could find on that first night so we went back to the Martini Bar to get to know our fav bartenders better. After several more it was time to sign the kids out of the Fun Factory and hit the beds. The kids came out all smiles and when we got to the room we all found nice little chocolates on our pillows. Everyone was happy, full, some a bit tipsy, all exhausted and went to bed with smiles on our faces!

 

Fini Day ONE.

[scubamommy!]

more to come for the other days, but I just noticed I spelled Constellation with only one l. Any way to edit the title?

[BosoxI]

more to come for the other days, but I just noticed I spelled Constellation with only one l. Any way to edit the title?

 

 

Thanks but I would prefer a review, rather than a blow by blow autobiography, and it'll be easier for you to write.:p

[scubamommy!]

Well thanks, if you can tell me how to change my title I will write blow by blow instead of review. :)

 

You can skip the rest of this thread, because unlike you I enjoyed reading guests blow by blow before my cruise. Hopefully some others will too.

[Longhorn Tex]

Thanks but I would prefer a review, rather than a blow by blow autobiography, and it'll be easier for you to write.:p

 

I disagree. I enjoy her writing style with her embedded editorials. Makes her review easy to read and one I look forward to reading in the future. In other words, don't change a thing.

[summer slope]

Posting so I can follow your posts. Leave on Connie in 2 weeks.

 

AND can you walk the deck all around the ship. Not the jogging track but the deck?

Edited April 7, 2014 by dixiefinn

[Lois R]

Well thanks, if you can tell me how to change my title I will write blow by blow instead of review. :)

 

You can skip the rest of this thread, because unlike you I enjoyed reading guests blow by blow before my cruise. Hopefully some others will too.

 

Hi:)...if you email Host Andy he can update the title of the ship for you.

You have only 15 minutes to edit a post on here.

[scubamommy!]

Posting so I can follow your posts. Leave on Connie in 2 weeks.

 

AND can you walk the deck all around the ship. Not the jogging track but the deck?

 

Deck 11 has a track between the row of deck chairs on the inner side and outside of the ship ( looking down on the pool). I think we figured that ten times around is about one mile.

 

I walked that so I don't know if there is a deck that goes around the entire ship. Sorry, maybe someone else knows that answer?

[NLH Arizona]

Thanks for your review, can't wait to read more.

[Texed]

Scuba,

 

Thanks for posting. :)

[JFontaine]

Enjoying your review very much.

[Northern Aurora]

Just wanted to comment that I am also enjoying this detailed review, and find it interesting to read the observations of a cruiser new to the Celebrity product. Looking forward to reading more!

[hcat]

Well thanks, if you can tell me how to change my title I will write blow by blow instead of review. :)

 

You can skip the rest of this thread, because unlike you I enjoyed reading guests blow by blow before my cruise. Hopefully some others will too.

 

So odd....I was just thinking how much I was enjoying your writing style...upbeat and very informative....when someone asked you to change your style...that was not very kind.....we are booked for Connie ...have not been on her for several yrs so this is great!

Edited April 7, 2014 by hcat

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

Enjoying your review. Too bad you didn't catch the distinction between M class ships (of which Constellation is one) which have plenty of storage space and S class ships which have only 3 drawers in the cabin and thus the collapsible bins come in handy for the over-the-bed storage. Oh well, you'll be prepared when you sail on an S class ship!

[scubamommy!]

DAY TWO : At Sea

 

Day two I thought I would be able to sleep in since I was FINALLY ON SHIP! But no such luck, the kids slept a little and the hubby CERTAINLY slept, when I called the other cabins I found out my walking buddy slept in and my brother slept in so I walked by myself that day. I claimed some chairs on deck two above the pool with some towels and flip flops. They were being claimed fast that day. Breakfast in the buffet was no let down. Omelets to order and every kind of eggs benedict you could think of. Tons of meats, cheeses, fruits, pastries, breads and the best crunchy hashbrown squares, pancakes and waffles with several toppings including whipped cream. Tons more, again, name something that wasn’t on it! We took our plates to the Sunset deck which was just so lovely with the breeze and view of the beautiful blue water. It was easy to get refills on our plates since it is so close to the buffet too. We ordered some waters swearing not to start drinking till much later. The coffee there was ok so we made a mental note to stop at Café Bacino before breakfast the next day. After breakfast we went to our chairs. The kids checked into the Fun Factory and we enjoyed some people watching. After a bit of sunning and watching the Zumba class ( my friend participated) on the pool deck I decided to head down to The Photography Shop. They were running a special on the photo package if you bought it the 1st and 2nd day ONLY. I was planning on getting it anyway and I am soooo happy I did. If you have a big group or kids or just like photos I HIGHLY recommend getting this. It is usually around $200 for the 5 day just for the photos but I had a coupon ( thanks to a CC member who MAILED it to me- THANK YOU) combined with the discount and got all pics AND the CD for 179.00. There must be a face recognition aspect or something because it is suppose to be just for your cabin but it included our whole group. We were photo happy the entire cruise and had a great time. Now we have a TON of photos PLUS the CD. GREAT DEAL!

 

I stopped at Café Bacino on my way back to the pool and got the Affogato: espresso over a scoop of gelato, which is a GREAT TIP I learned on these boards. It is included in the Premium package. The gelato is not, you have to pay for gelato. However with this you can order the espresso on the side and any flavor gelato you would like and its all included. Niiice! I ate the gelato and took the espresso to my still sleeping hubby. He loved it. Back to the pool where some of our group had already ordered adult drinks. Well, if you can’t beat them, join them! The kids came and swam a bit while we sat on the ledge sunning. The pool server named Devon came around and made us laugh as well as kept our glasses full ( again, a small tip of $5 may have helped that situation too) For lunch it was that wonderful pizza, some burgers that we waited WAY to long for in line and a few other things from the buffet. I especially loved the Panini station all the way in the back. Made to order grilled sandwiches with your choice of bread and toppings. Not half as long as the burger line and much better IMO. More sunning/swimming/drinking and before you knew it was time for a nap for the my youngest ( and maybe mom too). Later my hubby grabbed some sushi ( gets put out at 5:30 every day) and a few beers and brought it back to the room so we all enjoyed some on the balcony. BTW, they will only give you one drink at a time per card but you can take as many cards you want to order drinks. We learned to order water every time we headed back to the room and kept it in our cleared out mini fridge. Also learned to ask for that to be cleared out upon arrival from these boards. The fridge kept it nice and cool for whenever we needed it.

 

We dressed in our tuxes and formals and went down for some pictures and martinis before dinner. Have I mentioned how much I loved this bar? LOL They even made some fancy N/A drinks for the kids. Dinner was fun for everyone even the kids. We all had a great time dressing up and being waited on by this fine staff! The kids went and changed clothes and off to the Fun Factory. We headed back to the Martini Bar and then found our dancing in Reflections Lounge on deck 11 that night. The DJ was pumping ( yes LOUD) music and we loved dancing till 1:00AM when we had to check the kids out of FF. When we left, the place was still jumping. My brother said they stayed out till after 2.

 

When we got back to the room we found some towel animals and more chocolates on the pillows. The kids loved it. I filled out the room service request earlier and hung it on the door for breakfast the next morning. We had big plans to swim with the dolphins at Chankanaab the next day in Cozumel. We ALL slept VERY sound that night! zzzzzzzzzzzz

[scubamommy!]

Enjoying your review. Too bad you didn't catch the distinction between M class ships (of which Constellation is one) which have plenty of storage space and S class ships which have only 3 drawers in the cabin and thus the collapsible bins come in handy for the over-the-bed storage. Oh well, you'll be prepared when you sail on an S class ship!

 

AHHAAA, I didn't catch that and good to know, we WILL be sailing again, and probably on S class although I loved every bit of Connie and would not hesitate to do her again and again!- Thanks!

[scubamommy!]

Hi:)...if you email Host Andy he can update the title of the ship for you.

You have only 15 minutes to edit a post on here.

 

 

Thank you I will do that!

[cruise47]

I enjoyed your review and it sound like your kids ejoyed their VIP Kid package.

[alliegaga]

I really love your review. We are sailing on the Connie in a week. I am going to have 3 kids with me. If you could post some feedback from your kids about FF, that would be great! Keep up your posts in the future.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[scubamommy!]

I really love your review. We are sailing on the Connie in a week. I am going to have 3 kids with me. If you could post some feedback from your kids about FF, that would be great! Keep up your posts in the future.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

I can't say enough about the FF! They loved it. They made some friends, the staff was great, they loved the scavenger hunts , the funny money rewards from the contests and the auction at the end. They mostly ate with us for all the meals but if you sign up for the VIP they can eat there at meals and give you some quiet date time for the parents. Mine are easy at dinner and are real foodies so they enjoyed joining us and trying the escargot and frog legs and other things I could never afford or find to get them at regular places. BTW, they also have a kids menu in the main dinning room with chicken fingers, burgers, dogs and what not. Every night at 12:00 they put on a movie, they have bean bags to relax on and some fall asleep, but no worries, they drowsily come out when you come to get them. How old are your kids? Any specific questions?

[Iamthesea]

Thanks but I would prefer a review, rather than a blow by blow autobiography, and it'll be easier for you to write.:p

 

I love this review and the OP's writing style. Makes me feel like I was onboard with her. :D:D:D

[scubamommy!]

I love this review and the OP's writing style. Makes me feel like I was onboard with her. :D:D:D

 

teehee you made me laugh! For those that are reading this, she WAS on board with me!:D

[May B]

teehee you made me laugh! For those that are reading this, she WAS on board with me!:D

 

GREAT one!

 

Just about everything you do is different from my cruising style. I'm one of those old boring seniors, I could never handle all the calories in those drinks you enjoyed, and I never cruised with my kids.

 

But I'm loving your enthusiasm.

 

And that's where we go to eat our breakfast and lunch buffets, absolutely, outside.

 

And I have loved all eight of my Celebrity cruises, including four on the Connie, with one more booked right now.

 

Looking forward to the rest of your fun, all written up for those of us who "like to read", and that's me, for sure.

Edited April 8, 2014 by May B

[scubamommy!]

DAY THREE: Cozumel

 

knock knock at 7:30 from Francis our room steward. Good Morning he says in a quiet whisper since I am the only one awake to answer the door and tip him. He places our room service on the table and leaves with his usual smile. My son smells food and wakes immediately, my hubby smells coffee and kinda wakes up and my daughter snoozes away. Hubby and DS have their omelets and bacon ( both not cold as warned here on the boards) on the balcony and we all watch as we pull into Cozumel and dock. DD wakes up and we switch chairs for her to enjoy her yogurt, fruit and hot chocolate and me my bagel and juice. It would have been nice to open that connecting balcony so we could all sit together, I will say that, but no complaints as it was still a lovely way to start the day. We pack our bag for the day to go to Chankanaab to swim with the dolphins. We head down to 5th floor to grab some waters for the day and coffee for the hubby ( he had to finish it before we went ashore) before heading off ship.

 

The kids loved the dolphin push and pull experience, they got to kiss, hold and swim with him and be pushed on a boogie board. After, we reviewed the MUCH TOO expensive prints. Since I had just bought the photo package on the ship I wasn’t going to shell out another couple hundred for this days pics. The kids really wanted to get a picture of themselves with the dolphins so my brother, Uncle Deanie bought the whole disc for them! These kids are spoiled I tell ya! BUT we are on vacation. They got spoiled rotten and now back to reality with no sodas, no candy till Easter and certainly no staying up past midnight!

 

 

After the experience we head to the beach to do some snorkeling and boy what colorful ( and BIG) fish we saw! DH and I are scuba divers and DS took his first diving lesson last month but we promised we wouldn’t go family diving till DD was old enough to go with the family. So they snorkeled some more while we sat under the breezy little huts on another beautiful day. We ordered drinks.... and what's that you say? We have to PAY for these!!??!! Well ok IF we have to. We also ordered some wonderful fresh made pico and guac with homemade chips and some very fresh shrimp ceviche. Best fish they had all week! We could have stayed at that park longer, it really is beautiful and even if you don’t do the dolphin gig you should go for a relaxing day on the beach. There is a coupon to download from their website that gives you a discount. After some of them took naps in the hammocks and some of them tried about 30 mini shots at the Tequila factory it is time to head back to the ship for for a dip in the pool, some pizza and sushi munchies at the Sunset bar and more drinks poolside. I tried the lemon ice cream this day and it was really good. The kids had been enjoying a cone a day but today was my first and I have to say I liked it better than the gelato.

 

We dressed and got ready early so we could see the magician before dinner. Kids enjoyed it more than the adults. It was entertaining but nothing to write home about. The contortionist was impressive and scary at the same time. Martini Bar for a French Martini and some more entertainment and off to dinner. It was another lovely evening. Kids went off to kids club after dinner and adults went to see the late night Comedian. Get there early as spots are limited and I heard many complain the next day that they tried to get in and were turned away. Don’t worry if this happens as it is the same show again on the last night so you will have another chance. The headliner was pretty funny. They mix a burlesque dancer in between acts which many of the guys enjoyed, I actually enjoyed her little show too. What I could have done without was the juggler. I am not a juggler fan. He did about 25 minutes of juggling which I found got old fast, but my husband enjoyed that part. I had a drink in hand and a full belly from dinner so I was just fine. After the show I was EXHAUSTED so we all agreed to sleep in the next day at Sea. Pick up kids from FF. More chocolates on the pillows but no more towel animals.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

AHHAAA, I didn't catch that and good to know, we WILL be sailing again, and probably on S class although I loved every bit of Connie and would not hesitate to do her again and again!- Thanks!

 

I love the Connie too, have sailed her several times.

 

For your situation, sounds like S class would be a better fit. You can open the balcony dividers between the staterooms. Get two adjacent cabins (1A) on the slant of the hump and you'll have large balconies to share. And you can slide the chairs back and forth through the opening. I sailed with 3 friends on the Reflection in January and we had cocktail hour on the larger balcony every night.