Just boarded the Reflection!

[jenniebnyc]

Another iceberg salad. I ordered mixed greens. Oh well.

Green curry entree. Inedible

.

Seared tuna. Fine. Nothing great.

Seafood fettuccine and four cheese gnocchi. Both tasty. I will be carb free effective today for at least two weeks! Lol

[keesar]

I see that you took a bridge tour. Did you take it as part of the ship's tour? Or was it a perk for booking a suite? Thanks.

 

I thought that food at the Centurion in the Miami Airport looked REAL good!

[misha1]

I have enjoyed reading your review and seeing your trip photos. We take lots of pictures of our food...people look at us like we are crazy, I do not care, I want to remember (and hopefully recreate) my favorites. We will be sailing Reflection in March of 2017 (seems like a long time from now but we are fortunate to have a Solstice cruise booked this coming September and just disembarked from a back to back Connie cruise a week ago). I am looking at a number of reviews and do not see the cabanas mentioned. What are they all about? First come first serve or do you have to reserve them? Seems like a nice place to relax and read or just veg. We have been on the Solstice class once prior and love all of the venues. Wish we could do a back to back but alas, time is short for our 3/17 cruise slot. Thanks in advance...Julie

[jenniebnyc]

I see that you took a bridge tour. Did you take it as part of the ship's tour? Or was it a perk for booking a suite? Thanks.

 

 

 

I thought that food at the Centurion in the Miami Airport looked REAL good!

 

 

Hi: the bridge tour was invite only...at least for our tour. We asked our Michael's Club hostess and she made it happen for us. It was interesting and an honor. I am sure you could always ask your concierge and maybe they can make it happen for you.

[jenniebnyc]

I have enjoyed reading your review and seeing your trip photos. We take lots of pictures of our food...people look at us like we are crazy, I do not care, I want to remember (and hopefully recreate) my favorites. We will be sailing Reflection in March of 2017 (seems like a long time from now but we are fortunate to have a Solstice cruise booked this coming September and just disembarked from a back to back Connie cruise a week ago). I am looking at a number of reviews and do not see the cabanas mentioned. What are they all about? First come first serve or do you have to reserve them? Seems like a nice place to relax and read or just veg. We have been on the Solstice class once prior and love all of the venues. Wish we could do a back to back but alas, time is short for our 3/17 cruise slot. Thanks in advance...Julie

 

 

Hello: the cabanas usually need to be reserved in advance. They are located far from the pool on the deck above the pool. There is nothing to my knowledge included in the cost of the cabana. All good and beverages would be extra. There are servers for the cabanas. I didn't see a real need for them. There is a beautiful sunning area on the Solstice deck that is quiet and subdued. We like sitting up there away from the chaos near the pool and bars. Let me know if you have anymore questions.

[C-Dragons]

Inside of Michaels Club. Not as big as I remembered. It was generally never crowded. It's way too dark and depressing in this lounge. It's almost pitch dark. They need to lighten it up a bit.

We have wondered who is directing that the lights be so low, especially in the evenings.

We have asked on 3 different ships why this is done in MC, with no response.

The lights are on a dimmer switch, so they can be turned up.

There's really no valid reason for MC to be so dimly lit, especially when there are functions like the Officer meet and greet!

[20pluscruises]

Curious...will you continue to book with having dinner in Luminae going forward?

Comparing MDR, Blu and Luminae which do you prefer? So many mixed reviews for Luminae. Thanks!

[jenniebnyc]

Curious...will you continue to book with having dinner in Luminae going forward?

 

Comparing MDR, Blu and Luminae which do you prefer? So many mixed reviews for Luminae. Thanks!

 

 

I will continue booking suites so our dining room will be luminae. The dining room itself is nice and somewhat intimate. The food and service were hit or miss. I will write more later on this. We did order quite a bit off mdr menu and in most cases, the mdr food was better! I was very surprised! Those dining in mdr must have been very happy on this cruise. We only ate one lunch here and one breakfast. We had all dinners but one when we ate at Qsine. I will say things got a bit overbearing at times. I was getting anxious bc so many people were flocking around us, talking to us, sitting with us, etc. they need to know when to leave the guests alone. I just wanted to eat a nice meal in peace and that did not happen much.

[jenniebnyc]

We have wondered who is directing that the lights be so low, especially in the evenings.

 

We have asked on 3 different ships why this is done in MC, with no response.

 

The lights are on a dimmer switch, so they can be turned up.

 

There's really no valid reason for MC to be so dimly lit, especially when there are functions like the Officer meet and greet!

 

 

I noticed the lights on dimmers too. The bar and bartenders were in complete darkness with no lights overhead. It was really strange. Not sure what concept they are going for in here but it was uncomfortably dark.

[20pluscruises]

Many thanks!

[CHEZMARYLOU]

Michael's Club was never this dark on Summit.

 

We are cruising with friends in December, their 1st cruise. We are all booked in Royal Suites, wonder if he can get an engine room tour. He would like that more than a bridge tour.

[Cafedumonde]

Thank you for posting this blog. It was so fun following along. We have never been on celebrity but will be on the reflection next december. It is great to see it.

[Desertbelle]

Michael's Club was never this dark on Summit.

 

 

 

We are cruising with friends in December, their 1st cruise. We are all booked in Royal Suites, wonder if he can get an engine room tour. He would like that more than a bridge tour.

 

 

My husband, who is a waste water chemist, and has worked for 25 years at the Las Vegas Environmental Waste Water Treatment Plant as a chemist, has been trying to get a tour of the waste water treatment plant on a ship for more than 15 years and has been turned down every time. Plus we are Diamond and Elite, which would seem to count for something. Twice the main engineer has met with him to tell him what their procedures are and to answer any questions. One time my husband even made a request, months in advance, with a referral from the governor's office and the mayor's office and he still got a polite decline. My husband finally gave up a few cruises ago. They seem to hold the inter workings of the ship under very serious security.

[Newbury newbie]

Michael's Club was never this dark on Summit.

 

We are cruising with friends in December, their 1st cruise. We are all booked in Royal Suites, wonder if he can get an engine room tour. He would like that more than a bridge tour.

 

The engine room tour is limited to the engine control room. Don't think you'll get the opportunity to walk around the plant and machinery. It's still interesting and worth doing though.

[CHEZMARYLOU]

Thanks for the information. I'll tell him not to get his hopes up but be pleasantly surprised if something transpires.

[SAC69]

The seafood tower at THE Porch. And menu. Did not eat here. Just took pics

 

Wow, That tower looks completely devoid of any special prep like....seasoning or sauce, no special touch.:rolleyes:

Edited January 31, 2016 by SAC69

[vedettes1]

I will say things got a bit overbearing at times. I was getting anxious bc so many people were flocking around us, talking to us, sitting with us, etc. they need to know when to leave the guests alone. I just wanted to eat a nice meal in peace and that did not happen much.

 

Chummy servers are the scourge of modern dining. For a server to actually sit down at your table is outrageous and should never occur anywhere, much less in a "fine dining" establishment.

[keesar]

Thank you for the time and energy you put into your posts!

 

What did you think of the party band? Who was the cruise director?

[flowery]

Thank you Jennie- this was one of the best blogs I've seen: funny, frank, blunt, descriptive. And wonderful photos!! Look forward to more details when you get around to it- hope you had a good flight home.

[jenniebnyc]

Thank you for the time and energy you put into your posts!

 

 

 

What did you think of the party band? Who was the cruise director?

 

 

Party band was fine. Not horrible but not the best I've heard on X.

 

Cruise director is Alexander. He wasn't as annoying and obnoxious as last cruise two years ago. I saw him in Michaels club once where he only conversed with a group that included a gay man. Never came over to anyone else that was in the club. The only other time I saw him was as MC at a show in the theater. That was fine by me. No need to see him more than that [emoji57]

[jenniebnyc]

Chummy servers are the scourge of modern dining. For a server to actually sit down at your table is outrageous and should never occur anywhere, much less in a "fine dining" establishment.

 

 

They ask how your meal is and they want open feedback. With that said, if something was not hot temperature-wise or not prepared properly or came with random sides that don't compliment the main entree we gave feedback. They asked for it. They begged for it, but then when they got it they didn't know how to handle it. I don't need a hug, I don't need you to sit with me, I don't need to hear excuses, I don't need 10 pounds of more food. We continued to say, what would be best is if you get it right the first time --hot food hot, cold food cold is 85% of the food being good imo. And, anticipate the customers needs. I continued to repeat myself for the first leg of the trip. After a few days I just said everything was fine bc I couldn't handle talking to another person in the dining room. I shouldn't have to tell you my food is cold. You should be properly trained to not bring me food unless it's hot and when I give you feedback that you ask for, take it back to the kitchen staff and fix the problem. It was really too much after a few days. They need a lot of improvement in this dining room.

[misha1]

They ask how your meal is and they want open feedback. With that said, if something was not hot temperature-wise or not prepared properly or came with random sides that don't compliment the main entree we gave feedback. They asked for it. They begged for it, but then when they got it they didn't know how to handle it. I don't need a hug, I don't need you to sit with me, I don't need to hear excuses, I don't need 10 pounds of more food. We continued to say, what would be best is if you get it right the first time --hot food hot, cold food cold is 85% of the food being good imo. And, anticipate the customers needs. I continued to repeat myself for the first leg of the trip. After a few days I just said everything was fine bc I couldn't handle talking to another person in the dining room. I shouldn't have to tell you my food is cold. You should be properly trained to not bring me food unless it's hot and when I give you feedback that you ask for, take it back to the kitchen staff and fix the problem. It was really too much after a few days. They need a lot of improvement in this dining room.

 

I could not agree more with the level of chumminess that we have experienced in the speciality and Blu restaurants. I really do like to dine undisturbed by unsolicited conversation. We never had anyone sit down, but there were times that we felt like they stood over the top of us. Now, don't get me wrong, I love being pampered and wanting for nothing, but there is a line that sometimes gets crossed, at least with me. Some may enjoy the, what seems like, personal attention and conversation. To each his own. Believe it or not, this was one of the reasons we spent many a meal in the Buffet, so we could fend for ourselves, at our pace. DH made the mistake of telling a gal that appeared to be a level higher than the usual buffet bussers that the temp of the buffet food was cold, well...we were sitting outside on a 60 degree windy day, whaddya expect. He was explaining to the gal why he did not eat something on his plate (do not know why he feels compelled to do this) and we listened to 10 minutes of how important our feedback was and how the food is prepared and kept warm in the buffet...unsolicited. It is a first world problem for sure, and would never deter us from enjoying our surroundings and the awesome service that is Celebrity. Happy Sunday...Julie

Edited January 31, 2016 by misha1

[pete_coach]

Thanks for ll the photos jenniebnyc.

We are boarding Saturday and cannot wait...there just does not seem to be a downside to anything about a cruise. :)

Glad you had a good time and forgive me for saying this but it was not as good a time as I am gong to have :)

[kikki21]

Thank you for the photos & your review! Looking forward to sailing on the Reflection soon & yes I'll be taking food pics! [emoji12][emoji4]

[twins_to_alaska]

Thank you so much for your review and pictures, especially of the coconut cake which I've heard complimented many times, and the drink cases in Michael's Club. We're in a CS on Solstice in Aug.