Thinking Reflection? If over 50, think carefully

[asmith19]

Dear PSCruiser- I don't believe that there is a "CD Judging" license or professional certification, and as an occasional cruiser I shared my experience. That is sufficient.

[PSCruiser]

Dear PSCruiser- I don't believe that there is a "CD Judging" license or professional certification, and as an occasional cruiser I shared my experience. That is sufficient.

 

My apologies. After posting that other statement, I realized it had a tone I did not intend, and would not use if conversing directly.

My only point was when I started cruising, I thought every cruise was pretty great. Now, 10 years later, I have a better idea of how good the best cruises can be, and if a certain cruise is up to those standards.

[schlimazel_traveler]

... I actually went up to DJ TX or whatever the initials are because he always seemed slightly miserable. Long story short, he wanted to let it go and really unleash his music/talent but, he said, he could not...

 

Ha! Brad (DJ TX) is the most miserable person we've ever encountered on a cruise ship. He seemed to have been snatched off the street in Miami and was being held hostage.

 

Incredibly, he was previously an activity host on DISNEY.

[dennbr9]

Also just off Reflection having done the TA and following seven day Carib. Demographic changed by a good 25 years for the Seven day, no surprise.

 

Best thing to happen was when one performer missed his connections and did not make it to The Port. Alexander and crew scrambled and found December 63 getting off one of the other Ships there. They are a Jersey Boys act and were excellent. Plays to packed houses and first time I have seen the Crowd call an entertainer back for an encore. They also performed the last night of the TA and were kept on board for the first part of the Seven day.

 

There is a decline though in the amount of live entertainment on Celebrity. We miss a piano man type venue that some lines still have.

 

Was nice that they dumped the canned music in the Martini Bar and had some live and some dj music there now.

[gwesq]

Also just off Reflection having done the TA and following seven day Carib. Demographic changed by a good 25 years for the Seven day, no surprise.

 

Best thing to happen was when one performer missed his connections and did not make it to The Port. Alexander and crew scrambled and found December 63 getting off one of the other Ships there. They are a Jersey Boys act and were excellent. Plays to packed houses and first time I have seen the Crowd call an entertainer back for an encore. They also performed the last night of the TA and were kept on board for the first part of the Seven day.

 

There is a decline though in the amount of live entertainment on Celebrity. We miss a piano man type venue that some lines still have.

 

Was nice that they dumped the canned music in the Martini Bar and had some live and some dj music there now.

 

DIdn't realuize that Sec 63 was a fill-in. Good job by the line. Although we did enjoy them, having seen Frankie Valli himself last year, and Jersey Boys earlier this year, Dec63 wasn't as good as those other two shows. They lacked a good Bob Gaudio type.

 

THe shows were the best thing on the cruise.

 

Really do miss a Piano Bar - was very surprised to find they did not have one on the Reflection. And those "quiet" venues - just were not there. As I said, even in Embassy Lounge we could hear L.A.X. or the DJ coming from the lobby. Tried the SUnset BAr but there was Karaoke there.

 

It's fine to have "house Music", 90's music, etc on a ship - but it should not be forced on the guests as Reflection did by blasting it in an open lobby where it overwhelms attempts at conversation or other music other places on the ship. As people sometimes say: "Get a Room!" :-)

[floridatravelersforlife]

I want to thank the OP for alerting on the noise problem on the Reflection. We were thinking of dipping our feet back into the Celebrity waters for a post New Years cruise, but now no thanks. As I have written before, we vote with our wallet. We can spend our annual cruise budget elsewhere.

 

As far as the noise and other "seniors' irritant issues" , I recognize Celebrity is taking initiatives to refocus on the younger generation. As a RCL investor that's great, but they won't use revenue from me to make this transition and give me a rotten experience. There are plenty of other ways for me to spend our money.

 

To those who like the loud music, enjoy.

[gwesq]

 

 

Best thing to happen was when one performer missed his connections and did not make it to The Port. Alexander and crew scrambled and found December 63 getting off one of the other Ships there. They are a Jersey Boys act and were excellent. Plays to packed houses and first time I have seen the Crowd call an entertainer back for an encore. They also performed the last night of the TA and were kept on board for the first part of the Seven day.

 

BTW dennbr9 - do you know who was supposed to be the performer?

Wondering who we missed.

Edited November 15, 2015 by gwesq

[purpletequila]

Ha! Brad (DJ TX) is the most miserable person we've ever encountered on a cruise ship. He seemed to have been snatched off the street in Miami and was being held hostage.

 

Incredibly, he was previously an activity host on DISNEY.

 

Great description! But after I talked to him, I can see why. He wasn't allowed to play what he wanted or how he wanted. However, I'm sure it was discussed in advance so, really no excuse to be so unhappy. Anyone know if he's still onboard?

[hvsteve1]

Aside from this long discussion of music, I never thought I would see a topic about anyone being too old for a mainstream cruise line ("X", HAL, Princess):rolleyes:

[phbr]

Also just off Reflection having done the TA and following seven day Carib. Demographic changed by a good 25 years for the Seven day, no surprise.

 

Best thing to happen was when one performer missed his connections and did not make it to The Port. Alexander and crew scrambled and found December 63 getting off one of the other Ships there. They are a Jersey Boys act and were excellent. Plays to packed houses and first time I have seen the Crowd call an entertainer back for an encore. They also performed the last night of the TA and were kept on board for the first part of the Seven day.

 

There is a decline though in the amount of live entertainment on Celebrity. We miss a piano man type venue that some lines still have.

 

Was nice that they dumped the canned music in the Martini Bar and had some live and some dj music there now.

 

I talked to December63 late night up in the Ocean Cafe and asked them what ship they had just got off. Seems they were on Holland America a couple of weeks beforehand and it appears while they were due to join Reflection in St Maarten on the Tuesday, stay a week and then head off to the Eclipse, they were NOT due to play on that Tuesday night until whoever it was failed to show. Lucky break for them I suppose.

[asmith19]

Thank you, PSCruiser. I genuinely appreciate it.

[seastar2]

I was also on this crossing....over all enjoyable but found little to do during the day other than several speakers (they were good) "art classes" and "I learning classes" that charged a fee.... There was little activity by the pool until the last few days.."baggo" and vollyball with the crew anyone??

 

They only had one evening pool event...singers from the entertainment staff with the orchester doing show tunes.. and another event that got moved indoors due to weather.....How about a caribbean evening...last crossing Silhouette had a lunch time BBQ..

 

 

 

Is this the Alexander from South America? If so I think we had him on a Summit cruise about 5 years ago, didn't care for him then.

 

J.

 

He was from NYC...we didn't care for him...

 

Is this the band LAX, you're speaking of?

 

 

Yes, this is the group...the dark haired singer disappeared half way through the crossing...People commented that they were using "canned" music to fill in the sound....they need (all the groups) need bigger playlists for longer sailings..no matter how good the same songs get "tired"

 

we commented that the only time they used the grand piano in the lobby area was for embarkation...no about a string quartet or even a piano player during the dinner hours..

Edited November 15, 2015 by seastar2

[SoBe2010]

xxx

Edited November 15, 2015 by SoBe2010

[dennbr9]

BTW dennbr9 - do you know who was supposed to be the performer?

Wondering who we missed.

 

 

Do not remember his name, was a young Broadway singer, dancer I think.

 

Likely we were much better off with December 63.

[warmwinds]

Ohhh, D'oh I just "got" the name..."late December back in 63, what a very special time for me, what a lady what a night"...I would LOVE a Franki Valli type group on a cruise. One of the best shows from our Canada cruise last year was a Billy Joel guy.

[dennbr9]

I am 63 though and had a great time on the Reflection. Since most the Theater shows were early at 7&9 and the late night shows were not to our liking I found myself up earlier than normal and enjoying the day. Never had a problem finding quieter venues when I really wanted one and still enjoy Celebrity and will keep sailing with them happily.

 

We booked another Celebrity while on board making four I have in the next year and a half. Also have a few Princess on the books and have tried many others. They can all be noisy and loud at times but not something I can't work around.

[Chazteach1]

Ohhh, D'oh I just "got" the name..."late December back in 63, what a very special time for me, what a lady what a night"...I would LOVE a Franki Valli type group on a cruise. One of the best shows from our Canada cruise last year was a Billy Joel guy.

 

 

Isn't the line late September back in 63? I'd liked a for seasons group to sing Sherry to me as my name is Sheri.

Edited November 16, 2015 by Chazteach1

[warmwinds]

December ’63 (Oh What a Night)

 

By Frankie Valli, The Four Seasons

 

Oh, what a night,

Late December back in sixty-three

What a very special time for me,

As I remember, what a night.

 

Oh, what a night, you know I didn't even know her name,

But I was never gonna be the same;

What a lady, what a night.

Oh, I, I got a funny feelin' when she walked in the room.

Oh my, as I recall it ended much too soon.

 

Oh what a night hypnotizin' mesmerizing me,

She was ev'rything I dreamed she'd be;

Sweet surrender, what a night.

I felt a rush like a rollin' ball of thunder,

Spinnin' my head around n' takin' my body under.

 

Oh, what a night.

Why'd it take so long to see the light,

Seemed so wrong, but now it seems so right.

What a lady, what a night.

 

I felt a rush like a rollin' ball of thunder,

Spinnin' my head around n' takin' my body under.

Oh what a night!

Oh what a night!

Oh what a night!

Oh what a night!

Oh what a night!

Edited November 16, 2015 by warmwinds

[gwesq]

Do not remember his name, was a young Broadway singer, dancer I think.

 

Likely we were much better off with December 63.

 

Seems that way.

[chisoxfan]

We've been on Reflection twice and will be leaving again in Jan. Late 50's.

 

I couldn't name one CD from any cruise I have been on and for us if there was no CD we would probably be happier. In my mind the X CD's seem less manic than those on NCL and Princess which is a good thing.

 

Music is a crap shoot. IMHO X tries to mix it up. We have seen good and bad and with the changing 'artists' there would seem no way to plan your cruise to

insure ideal entertainment. We eagerly anticipated the BB King venue on HAL

and while it was good the band was (again in my subjective view) not as enjoyable as ones I had seen at the BB Kings land based props.

 

We approach the cruise entertainment with small expectations and if there are one or two decent entertainers that is a bonus.

[notsomadhatter]

 

We approach the cruise entertainment with small expectations and if there are one or two decent entertainers that is a bonus.

 

We do exactly this with every sailing, no matter the line.

[SaintL]

We've been on Reflection twice and will be leaving again in Jan. Late 50's.

 

I couldn't name one CD from any cruise I have been on and for us if there was no CD we would probably be happier. In my mind the X CD's seem less manic than those on NCL and Princess which is a good thing.

 

Music is a crap shoot. IMHO X tries to mix it up. We have seen good and bad and with the changing 'artists' there would seem no way to plan your cruise to

insure ideal entertainment. We eagerly anticipated the BB King venue on HAL

and while it was good the band was (again in my subjective view) not as enjoyable as ones I had seen at the BB Kings land based props.

 

We approach the cruise entertainment with small expectations and if there are one or two decent entertainers that is a bonus.

 

Finally someone i can agree with, to me a CD is a pointless job. in the late 90s they were more part of the scene as there was less entertainment onboard but not when whoever comes on stage after a show i just leave, i dont know what they do all day, nor do i care. I know alot of people like the nostalgia of CDs, Meeting the captain, do the electric slide i just dont understand it.

[shipshape sam]

I want to thank the OP for alerting on the noise problem on the Reflection. We were thinking of dipping our feet back into the Celebrity waters for a post New Years cruise, but now no thanks. As I have written before, we vote with our wallet. We can spend our annual cruise budget elsewhere.

 

As far as the noise and other "seniors' irritant issues" , I recognize Celebrity is taking initiatives to refocus on the younger generation. As a RCL investor that's great, but they won't use revenue from me to make this transition and give me a rotten experience. There are plenty of other ways for me to spend our money.

 

To those who like the loud music, enjoy.

 

Guess I will have to make darn sure about music and a number of other aspects that are important to us before booking our next cruise. We were planning to book a couple in next 60 days, but will now wait.

[jenniebnyc]

I was on Alexander's cruise 2 years ago. He was terrible. I am in my 40s and live in NYC and you know what, when I get on the ship for vacation, I want to relax...not party like I am in SoBe, Vegas or NYC. If I wanted that I would stay in NYC or fly to South Beach or Vegas!

 

What I thought was most rude was the DJ music at the Martini Bar after hours. It was so loud no one could speak and they played horrible Eurotrash music. If you want to play loud music go into a contained venue and not at the Martini Bar or the pool. Background music, great! Music that is so loud you can't speak...that is only good to drunk people who can't speak any longer so they just dance. Ridiculous and juvenile if you ask me X...unless you are looking for 20 somethings that drink and dance until they pass out. Is this the demographic X is looking for? Are they mirroring a Vegas or South Beach hotel as their new image? Bc last I checked that is not what most people on Celebrity are looking for.

 

I would love for the CEO to try to hold a conversation in the Martini Bar after 10pm on a cruisee where Alexander is CD. I bet the policy would change pretty damn quickly.

 

I was really hoping they got rid of this CD. When I was on Reflection he was pretty new. He had friends on the ship and he hung out at the pool and Molecular Bar with them most of the time. I also heard him making fun of the passengers, etc. He didn't seem like a good person. Not genuine, annoying, and obviously not on the same page with most passengers.

 

I guess this is what I have to look forward to in January. Swell.

Edited November 16, 2015 by jenniebnyc

[chisoxfan]

I was on Alexander's cruise 2 years ago. He was terrible. I am in my 40s and live in NYC and you know what, when I get on the ship for vacation, I want to relax...not party like I am in SoBe, Vegas or NYC. If I wanted that I would stay in NYC or fly to South Beach or Vegas!

 

What I thought was most rude was the DJ music at the Martini Bar after hours. It was so loud no one could speak and they played horrible Eurotrash music. If you want to play loud music go into a contained venue and not at the Martini Bar or the pool. Background music, great! Music that is so loud you can't speak...that is only good to drunk people who can't speak any longer so they just dance. Ridiculous and juvenile if you ask me X...unless you are looking for 20 somethings that drink and dance until they pass out. Is this the demographic X is looking for? Are they mirroring a Vegas or South Beach hotel as their new image? Bc last I checked that is not what most people on Celebrity are looking for.

 

I would love for the CEO to try to hold a conversation in the Martini Bar after 10pm on a cruisee where Alexander is CD. I bet the policy would change pretty damn quickly.

 

I was really hoping they got rid of this CD. When I was on Reflection he was pretty new. He had friends on the ship and he hung out at the pool and Molecular Bar with them most of the time. I also heard him making fun of the passengers, etc. He didn't seem like a good person. Not genuine, annoying, and obviously not on the same page with most passengers.

 

I guess this is what I have to look forward to in January. Swell.

 

No disrespect, I enjoy a quiet cruise also but loud music at the Martini Bar is not going to ruin my cruise. Why get worked up in advance over a 'problem' that you may not experience? Even if the the music is so bad and so loud that you cannot stand it this is just one small venue on the ship.

We were warned by friends and posters that our first HAL cruise would be the voyage of the 'ancients' and that our very young age (59) would stand out and be terribly bored. It turned out to be one of the younger passenger complements we have cruised with and a delightful cruise (as they all have been).

While I am not generally a very 'flexible' individual, one of the beauties of cruising is that each cruise is different- passengers, weather, crews, ports they can all change from week to week so why try to start with a negative mind set over some minor 'possibilities'? JMHO