EDGE AQUA CLASS REVIEW ....1/27/19, Eastern Carib...by Hcat

[hcat]

 

We sailed on CELEBRITY  EDGE 1/27/19. 

 

It was a special birthday  cruise  which  exceeded  our expectations in many areas, esp based on some early reports and reviews!

 

 I closely followed all the early threads about the ship and had a fairly good idea of how the ship was set up and how things were working.  But as many have said..."being there" is the best way to really know the ship. In only  7 days that could not be accomplished,  and I am happy  we are  returning next fall to explore more! 

 

We have  been sailing with Celebrity starting with Mercury (our all time favorite) ,  and have been on  almost all the M and S class ships more than once.  ( exceptions Millie and Eclipse) We are E + .....with no hope to hit Zenith!

 

 We have been booking AQ Class since it was introduced, mostly for BLU, the Persian Gardens.(.now  re named Thermal Suite ), and the upgraded stateroom amenities.  From that perspective, I thought it would be helpful to focus on our AQ Class experience.  I do have photos, but have not have much luck posting them recently so I will do my best.!

Edited February 5, 2019 by hcat

[Oville]

Looking forward to reading this.  Katie

[lovecruzin]

Looking forward to your review. 

 

[hcat]

Pre-cruise: 

 We drove from the West Coast of Florida the day before the sailing. Heavy rain was expected from Naples across Alligator Alley, but we were so lucky to avoid it all. We had a fast food lunch to save time,  and were checked into our pre-cruise hotel, a Hilton Garden Inn, just in time to beat the rain.  The hotel was fine for our needs..We ate dinner and breakfast ( extra charge) on site.  Food and service were excellent. We met a well known investment author and his wife, and enjoyed their pleasant company during dinner..Travel and meeting people does broaden horizons, even at a Hilton Garden Inn.

 

Parking:

Easy morning drive to the port.  Because rain was threatened and we overpacked a bit, we dropped off our luggage with the porters. I waited with the carry ons while my husb parked in the Mid Port Garage. It was a hefty but manageable walk back to the point of entry...

 

Cruise check in:

As we got off the escalator, a cruise rep scanned our cruise paperwork and passports, and we were invited to take seats .No need to line up  which was very nice

 

. We had a bit of a surprise because there was no sep area for AQ Class or E plus  as in the past.  Seems only suites, Zenith and the upper blue Chip cruisers  have the nice waiting area.  Everyone else waits together without any organization or sorting of priority as a prelude to boarding. 

 

The main boarding area reminded us of a no frills bus station.  It had very uncomfortable circular bench type seating, definitely nothing ergonimic about it and few aisles to get through with the carry on,  With all the hype about this new terminal, we expected more than a cold warehouse environment,  and more staff to keep things orderly!

 

Fortunately , our wait was short!  They announced  boarding for AQ Class  first

and short term chaos immediately ensued...everyone wants to be first! We try not to rush, as the gradient going up around the levels is steep and there are little seams marked in yellow,here and there.  Please watch your step while boarding!

 

To the Stateroom..

Once onboard we were directed to our stateroom for our sea passes and to drop off luggage!  Awesome first reaction to the inf Veranda stateroom!   The flowers I ordered arrived..big arrangenent fit well in the niche, the smaller one went on

 the Veranda table.  Our attendant graciously removed the coral sculpture..it was already chipped,  and he also took away the Hoppen vase  which clearly says "no water" on the bottom. ..Maybe next time I will bring  a colorful paper or fabric bouquet !

 

 At this point we were thrilled to be on the EDGE...and we headed out for lunch!

Edited February 5, 2019 by hcat

[hcat]

This is really my first formal review..so I am glad it may be read..

Next up will be the AQ class stateroom, inf Veranda, bed by balcony...in depth!

[Sandy1975]

Looking forward to reading more. This willreally get me excited for my trip in March! And yours is truly the first aqua review, which is the cabin I have on my sailing.

[jelayne]

hcat,

 

happy to read that overall you had an enjoyable cruise and will be back on the Edge again.  I agree 7 days isn't enough time to experience all that there is to see and do.

 

[Cruise a holic]

Interested in your take on AQ on the edge. Following 

[B-Rizzle]

I'm so glad, hcat! Thanks for the encouragement. Next time in the Fall means you booked AGAIN!

[tompeter]

Enjoying your review. We sail in 3 weeks!

[hcat]

1 minute ago, tompeter said:

Enjoying your review. We sail in 3 weeks!

Thanks I  am ready to write more but stymied about posting photos of the AQ stateroom from my phone or tablet.

 

I click on choose files and locate the pics but they do not post..Hoping I can figure it out..it has always worked before.

[Lastdance]

hcat,

Happy to hear all about your Edge cruise in AQ...you are off to a wonderful start...following!

[Martini Queenie]

Following along as well! We typically book only AQ but decided to try a suite for our Edge cruise, although sadly it is not until Feb 2020. I am curious to hear your impressions of the Edge AQ. 

[hcat]

AQ Class stateroom bathroom..,

We really liked it... a  very well organized space....spa like feel..

 

There was a towel bar along the wall under the art photo  and under sink storage to pile towels which were a bit scratchy.. In my opinion, AQ  class should have plush spa towels  as in the past..they were great! No luck on that,,

 

Storage was sufficient there was a large divided  drawer under the  trough style sink with two side by side compartments.   I used it for  my hair dryer and cosmetics..

 

The bathroom socket was convenient for the  hairdryer but our elec toothbrush base  needed a longer cord to reach so we kept that on our desk top plugged into the white power box.

 

The open wall shelves on both sides of the sink were enough to hold  our drugs, lotions and potions, etc.  .BUT , the shelves should have a higher lip to secure items in rough seas. They will likely slip off  if the ship is rocking...lucky for us we had smooth seas,  only a gentle rocking at night...

 

The shampoo,  cream rinse,  body wash and  body cream, plus one  smal facial bar soap for the sink were all CO Bigelow,,,my favorite product...such a refreshing scent.  The large pump containers were refillable so no little bottles to take home! 

 

The sink was not very deep but was okay  for rinsing out swimsuits, which we hung on the 2 hooks in the shower. A  special feature in this AQ bathroom was the huge heated mirror..to prevent fogging. It worked well but did heat up the bathroom quite a bit. Wish there was a heated floor,  There was no swing out magnifying mirror.

The commode functioned well..good water  pressure

Edited February 6, 2019 by hcat

[hcat]

[hcat]

Aqua class shower

It was awesome.. very nice size..room to maneuver, and in my opinion an upgrade over the prior AQ showers with all the very intense sprays.  There was a great overhead spray plus a hand held feature.  It was tricky to figure it out at first..they should provide a direction card.

 

  There was a guard installed to reduce leakage and some of the showers have already been re-caulked..guess it was a design flaw.  But we did not have any flooding as some of the suites have experienced

 

 

Edited February 6, 2019 by hcat

[hcat]

 

Shower pics next... not loading at the moment.

[Sandy1975]

50 minutes ago, hcat said:

AQ Class stateroom bathroom..,

We really liked it... a  very well organized space....spa like feel..

 

 

The shampoo,  cream rinse,  body wash and  body cream, plus one  smal facial bar soap for the sink were all CO Bigelow,,,my favorite product...such a refreshing scent.  The large pump containers were refillable so no little bottles to take home! 

 

I also like the CO Bigelow products but I am a bit hesitant to use bathroom products that are refillable. I guess I am afraid of other tampering with them.  Did you feel like it was the same quality as what you would buy at the stores and did they look new or at least full? I know I sound like a germaphobic but I need to make a decision about bringing my own stuff vs. using the ship's offerings. Thanks

[hcat]

4 minutes ago, Sandy1975 said:

I also like the CO Bigelow products but I am a bit hesitant to use bathroom products that are refillable. I guess I am afraid of other tampering with them.  Did you feel like it was the same quality as what you would buy at the stores and did they look new or at least full? I know I sound like a germaphobic but I need to make a decision about bringing my own stuff vs. using the ship's offerings. Thanks

They seemed fine ... and my lotion had a refill while we were there. I would not use a shower based dispenser...germy...but after wiping these down  they sermed fine.  The shampoo and cond were brand new.

 

  I bring my own shampoo and conditioner but loved the lotion.  The  size they have costs a small fortune.  I buy much smaller size..keeps them fresh...

[Sandy1975]

3 minutes ago, hcat said:

They seemed fine ... and my lotion had a refill while we were there. I would not use a shower based dispenser...germy...but after wiping these down  they sermed fine.  The shampoo and cond were brand new.

 

  I bring my own shampoo and conditioner but loved the lotion.  The  size they have costs a small fortune.  I buy much smaller size..keeps them fresh...

Thanks, maybe I will give it a try...

[hcat]

These are the shower shots..handy grab bar...easy to open door.

 The stateroom was quite "greige" over all, but the bathroom seemed lighter and brighter. Very spa like!

 

Tomorrow I will  show the closets,  counter area, bed, and then the Inf Veranda set up. Hope photos will load.

 

 

[vtcruising]

Great job so far, hcat!  Looking forward to hearing more!! 😊

[hcat]

13 minutes ago, vtcruising said:

Great job so far, hcat!  Looking forward to hearing more!! 😊

Thanks for the encouragement..not easy to  organize so many random thoughts.  AQ class is popular so I'm giving it a try...and hope others chime in with their take on AQ.

 

We are feeling much better...colds with congestion are challenging..but under control.

[miched]

Is your bed by the bath or balcony? 

Thoughts on arrangements?

 

The shower looks the  similar to the rain shower and wand  they have in the S Class suites.  

 

Thanks 

happy cruisng 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[hcat]

We had the bed by the Infinite Veranda.  ( cannot  really call it a balcony,)

Had hoped and carried on about wanting the bed by  the bath but this actually turned out very well.  Easy access to the closet,  had a nice open room feeling and one  could lie in the bed and have a view . 

 

Only drawback was my husb had the  Veranda side of the bed.  There was not much room to get in, out,  or around....there's a bit of a seam with the Veranda floor and cabin carpet,,,plus the french doors/ door track.  But he managed well. The nightstand on that side was small but it was ok..trying to put up a few bed photos..

Edited February 6, 2019 by hcat