Constellation 8185, opinions please (balcony)

[cruise kitty]

Hi all,

 

I haven't been on an M class ship in quite a few years.   I have 8185 on the Constellation booked for the Suez canal cruise, & I'm hoping I've made a good choice.  If not, I have two years to switch ;)  My main concern is the balcony.  It would appear that it's a little bigger than normal.   As this will be a warm weather cruise,  I like the idea that the sun won't hit our cabin doors, which should keep things a bit cooler.   However, I do have a concern that we will smell the exhaust from the ship?  Any experience of this?  This cruise has lots of sea days (9!)   & the ship will have undergone it's 'edgeification'...  I'm wondering if they will change the configuration of the balcony...  Anyone with experience of the aft C1s on M class, I would love tips &/or opinions.    Thanks!

[Cruise Junky]

I’ve had the FV next door. No smell whatsoever. My only hold back on booking a C1 is the current price which is crazy high for that cruise. You’ll have a hard time getting a price reduction as they go pretty quick.  Which sailing? I may be booking the April 2021 tomorrow. 

[cruise kitty]

8 minutes ago, Cruise Junky said:

I’ve had the FV next door. No smell whatsoever. My only hold back on booking a C1 is the current price which is crazy high for that cruise. You’ll have a hard time getting a price reduction as they go pretty quick.  Which sailing? I may be booking the April 2021 tomorrow. 

 

Hi, I booked the April 2021.  I was originally on the April 2020 one, but had concerns that it was the last cruise before dry dock.    I'm still considering just switching to AQ...  looking at the 2019 pricing this one is definitely expensive, but Petra & the Suez canal are both on my must see list :)   I've never had an aft cabin, are they that special?

[Cruise Junky]

4 minutes ago, cruise kitty said:

 

Hi, I booked the April 2021.  I was originally on the April 2020 one, but had concerns that it was the last cruise before dry dock.    I'm still considering just switching to AQ...  looking at the 2019 pricing this one is definitely expensive, but Petra & the Suez canal are both on my must see list 🙂   I've never had an aft cabin, are they that special?

They really are wonderful on the M class and the balcony is huge. We had this one booked last year but had a deal come up for Australia which we switched to. I was paying $1,200 cdn for a balcony including taxes. Such a steal. 2021 prices make me weep. 

[Wine-O]

We were in 8170, in the same place on the Starboard side.  You will just love all the room you will have on the balcony -- big enough for 8-10 people comfortably.  We had a huge table with 2 chairs plus two loungers on ours.  The first half of the balcony is shaded by overhead canvas.  It's a great balcony for all those sea days.  With the huge table, it would be a great place should you wish to have dinner on the balcony.  You can order from the MDR menu.

[PelicanLvr]

Have sailed in 7208 (aft, 1 deck below) and the C1 balconies are huge and really outstanding.  Perfect for a canal trip! 

 

You ask what makes it "special?" - It's the giant balcony you can retreat to with a beautiful view of the ship's wake. 

 

You made a great cabin choice.  I would NOT move.

[cruise kitty]

6 hours ago, Wine-O said:

We were in 8170, in the same place on the Starboard side.  You will just love all the room you will have on the balcony -- big enough for 8-10 people comfortably.  We had a huge table with 2 chairs plus two loungers on ours.  The first half of the balcony is shaded by overhead canvas.  It's a great balcony for all those sea days.  With the huge table, it would be a great place should you wish to have dinner on the balcony.  You can order from the MDR menu.

 

Thank you Wine-O :)   Am I correct in thinking that the back half of the balcony will be private from the upper decks, & the front part will be open to above?  I'm good with that, just would like shade from the sun.    Happy sailing to you 

[cruise kitty]

4 hours ago, PelicanLvr said:

Have sailed in 7208 (aft, 1 deck below) and the C1 balconies are huge and really outstanding.  Perfect for a canal trip! 

 

You ask what makes it "special?" - It's the giant balcony you can retreat to with a beautiful view of the ship's wake. 

 

You made a great cabin choice.  I would NOT move.

 

Thanks!  you are making me feel better about my decision.  

[Cruise Junky]

3 minutes ago, cruise kitty said:

 

Thanks!  you are making me feel better about my decision.  

Check your roll call, you have company :)

[Wine-O]

14 minutes ago, cruise kitty said:

 

Thank you Wine-O :)   Am I correct in thinking that the back half of the balcony will be private from the upper decks, & the front part will be open to above?  I'm good with that, just would like shade from the sun.    Happy sailing to you 

Yes, you are correct.  First 1/2 is covered and 2nd 1/2 is open for viewing by those at the rail at the Sunset Bar on Deck 10.

 

Enjoy.  Sounds like a fun cruise.

[ptrpanpens]

Hi Debbie,

 

My friends had one of those aft balconies on our cruise on Connie last month and it was huge. One thing I noticed about the ship this time was how good the food was in the MDR. I was on Azamara in June and the food in the MDR was definitely comparable to that..also the staff was very friendly. Unfortunately the food in the Oceanview was still just soso, but then, there are always some good choices there too. I thought the ship looked great too but then I like the smaller ships with the older decor better than the S class.

 

All I can say is that I am happy I went to Israel on Connie in 2014 and 2016 as the prices are almost 3 times what I paid on those cruises. But from what I have seen, the prices on the Dubai cruise came way down this year and last year so you may get a break closer to sailing date. 

 

Celebrity is overly ambitious with the prices on their new cruises for 20-21 and I cant see them getting them in the long run. With some of the excellent deals you can get if you search hard on Azamara, I am looking at booking more and more with them, especially because the smaller ship experience is so much better in every way, (Except maybe the small showers lol).

 

i am paying less per day for my Azamara cruise next April than many comparable cruises on Celebrity, so I would definitely check them out. The deals on Last minute cruises and the quarterly le club voyages are sometimes very reasonable, and right now they have double upgrades and extra OBC, too.

 

anne

[cruise kitty]

6 hours ago, ptrpanpens said:

Hi Debbie,

 

My friends had one of those aft balconies on our cruise on Connie last month and it was huge. One thing I noticed about the ship this time was how good the food was in the MDR. I was on Azamara in June and the food in the MDR was definitely comparable to that..also the staff was very friendly. Unfortunately the food in the Oceanview was still just soso, but then, there are always some good choices there too. I thought the ship looked great too but then I like the smaller ships with the older decor better than the S class.

 

All I can say is that I am happy I went to Israel on Connie in 2014 and 2016 as the prices are almost 3 times what I paid on those cruises. But from what I have seen, the prices on the Dubai cruise came way down this year and last year so you may get a break closer to sailing date. 

 

Celebrity is overly ambitious with the prices on their new cruises for 20-21 and I cant see them getting them in the long run. With some of the excellent deals you can get if you search hard on Azamara, I am looking at booking more and more with them, especially because the smaller ship experience is so much better in every way, (Except maybe the small showers lol).

 

i am paying less per day for my Azamara cruise next April than many comparable cruises on Celebrity, so I would definitely check them out. The deals on Last minute cruises and the quarterly le club voyages are sometimes very reasonable, and right now they have double upgrades and extra OBC, too.

 

anne

 

First off, it's so nice to hear from you Anne.   I agree, the pricing for the 2020-2021 seem crazy.   I'm thrilled that they are redoing the M class ships, as I actually prefer the itineraries they can go on...  Like you pointed out, the upcoming Suez canal cruise has come way down in price, & I'm thinking that ours might as well.  However, with such a limited amount of those aft cabins, I'm thinking those C1 prices might hold...  so I just may switch to the least expensive balcony that's available that I would be happy with, & then hope to upgrade to at least AQ from there,  with so many sea days it would be nice to have the persian gardens.    

 

I'll also check out Azmara's pricing, the last time I really looked at booking with them, the balcony pricing was higher than I'm comfortable with.   

 

We're not yet in a position to take advantage of last minute deals, DH tried retirement for about a year & it was not for him, so we're both still working full time, luckily we can get off for longish vacations, but have to give notice far in advance.  

 

Nice to hear from you, & happy sails

 

-Debbie

 

 

[ptrpanpens]

Debbie

 

with Azamara you have to monitor constantly. Some of the last minute cruises are 3-4 months ahead (but not as far ahead as you probably like). In June I lucked into a cruise that I loved about 2-3 months ahead. Many of the Med cruises are done all the time and many people have taken them so they often come way down in price. Also you have to chance a guarantee usually. Right now they have automatic double upgrades to balcony which can be good deals ( for Azamara - all is relative). Some of the cruises are also on the quarterly specials and give another 10% off. If you book onboard celebrity you can get another 6-7% off plus 300 OBC (300 more per cruise on b2b. It adds up.

 

i was just able to upgrade to a balcony on AZ from OV for basically no increase in price plus I took advantage of the 500 OBC special they are running now. Some of the cruises are outrageous, like Africa (I could almost buy a car) but others don’t cost that much more than celebrity.

 

i would not be surprised if you were able to snag a cheap Aqua cabin closer to your sail date on the Dubai cruise. I am not interested in Dubai and have been through the Suez Canal but would love to see Petra. Probably never will, though.

 

good luck whatever you decide.

 

anne