Infinity 5-day Cruise

[tonyd285]

We're just back from a five day Caribbean cruise on Celebrity Infinity, stopping at Cozumel and Key West.  This is the shortest cruise we have ever taken but the deal, in Aqua Class, and including a drink package and gratuities was too good to pass up.  The good - the staff was wonderful, the dining experience in Blu, as usual, was terrific.  Tasty food, wonderful servers and no rushing.  Ricardo, the Sommelier was always there with wine for us with a smile and a happy demeanor.  Obviously he enjoys his job.  Daniel, the host, knew our name from day one and always greeted us with a big smile.  He should audition for the entertainment team.  His rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" was among the best I have ever heard.  Coming from the mouth of a host on a cruise ship.  The not so good - the ship is obviously tired.  We were on the Infinity nearly 20 years ago and much of the ship seemed the same now as then.  Our cabin showed its age, with worn furniture and some rusting in the bathroom.  The ILounge was a disaster.  The computers kept crashing (older Apples) and on the final day we could not print our boarding passes due to problems with the system.  The entertainment, including the musical groups were not up to the usual Celebrity quality.  We did enjoy the trip and, for the price, it was quite a bargain.

[Grandmaanne7]

Thanks for sharing.  We, too, are used to much longer cruises but couldn't pass up the deal on an upcoming 5-day on Infinity in March.  It helps to know what to look forward to and what to simply accept.

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review!

[cbfb]

What cabin were you in? Wondering about noise on deck 9. 

[Loujul]

I was on the same cruise and wasn’t able to get a decent time to eat at Blu. We were told that there would be a 20 to 30 minute wait on any night we went there, between 6:30 and 7:30.  I guess there were a lot of people not rushing.   Totally frustrating!!!  We ate in the main dining room every night.   Would never recommend booking this class.  The noise from the upper deck was annoying as well as the wind creaking through the veranda doors.   We never saw our room steward during the entire cruise and the dog food they placed in our room impersonating an afternoon snack was insulting.  Don’t get me wrong, we are die hard Celebrity cruisers, but if this was my first Celebrity cruise, I would consider a different one in the future.

Edited January 11, 2020 by Loujul

[George C]

I agree ship definitely needs a refurbish which it gets later this year , we did a suite as food and service in luminae was amazing  also staff at micheals . We are back in 5 weeks since we are on music charter with America , Todd Rundgren , Steven Bishop and many others so entertainment will not be a issue 😁

[royalcruz]

I did a 4 nt in November and it was great. I had an outside cabin in the conference center with oversized window. Yoli was our steward and she was the best. Food was excellent. Entertainment was very good.  All staff were helpful and friendly, except the bartenders who always seemed stressed out. The martini bar doesn't serve the smaller cosmos on the classic package, but every other bar does,  which is just a stupid policy.  Anyway,  I will go on Infinity again in a heartbeat if the price is right. 

[rollie]

Will be on the Infinity at the end a Feb.  We also got a great deal and will be staying in a suite.  Have seen a lot of negative reviews on the ships condition, and feel it is why we got such a good price.  Knowing this in advance has lowered our expectations.

 

Rollie

[4774Papa]

Short cruises like this must be great for people that live in south Florida, but we don't and just getting there costs too much in time and $$$

[miched]

53 minutes ago, 4774Papa said:

Short cruises like this must be great for people that live in south Florida, but we don't and just getting there costs too much in time and $$$

 

The last few years we have added a short cruise onto a longer cruise because of the great price.

 

This Feb we will be in a SS for 5 days with all the perks and $650 SBC for $1556.   We couldn’t pass it up.  We will then be on a B2B on the Reflection.    
 

Next year we have a few B2B on a 4 and 5 day cruise that give 9 days.  We have met may that do 4 and 5 cruises in a row because of the price.   It will be in addition to a 7 night cruise after spending 2 nights in FL between them. 
 

It wouldn’t be worth it to take a short cruise on its own if you weren’t already there unless the air fare is very cheap.

 

We use to fly to Vegas for 4 days/ 3 nights  and it was further away from us then FL but we were restricted by vacation days.   We drove out there last Aug from MI to spend 5 nights in Vegas but also enjoyed the drive there and back seeing the sites.  
 

Now we have the time and drive so another cruise at a bargain price while there is always nice.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[lv2cruisgrl]

We did this cruise for Christmas had the Aqua balcony. Loved Blu we are early eaters, got there when they opened and had a table by the window every night. Food and service was amazing. Didn't like that the pool deck was above stateroom. Noisy during the day. Ship was clean, crew was great. Shows were better than we expected. Got a great deal and we live in FL so no issue driving. 

[tonyd285]

We were in cabin 9040, below the pool deck.  Heard some occasional noise from above but not too bad.  We went to Blu between 6 and 6:30PM.  Never had a problem getting a table.  We were delighted to meet our favorite waiter from several previous cruises, Yaser, in the Tuscan Grill.  We first met him in 2001 on the Mercury.   Aside from the entertainment we had no issues with the cruise.

[Georgia_Peaches]

 

On 1/10/2020 at 2:13 PM, tonyd285 said:

  We did enjoy the trip and, for the price, it was quite a bargain.

We will be on this cruise itinerary in April.  Got a great deal on an over sized OV room on deck 7 with the classic drinks package for $349 pp.  Never have we cruised so inexpensively.  We usually book a suite so I am a little afraid I'm going to miss some of the suite perks.  But we are looking forward to it just the same.  

 

I have a question about the Key West procedure since it's a stop on the return instead of at the beginning.  Will all passengers have to go through customs on the ship before getting off in Key West?  Just those going ashore?  For those who have done this loop, what was the procedure?

 

Also, is there an Evening Chic night on a 5 nighter?

Thank you!

[lv2cruisgrl]

34 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

 

We will be on this cruise itinerary in April.  Got a great deal on an over sized OV room on deck 7 with the classic drinks package for $349 pp.  Never have we cruised so inexpensively.  We usually book a suite so I am a little afraid I'm going to miss some of the suite perks.  But we are looking forward to it just the same.  

 

I have a question about the Key West procedure since it's a stop on the return instead of at the beginning.  Will all passengers have to go through customs on the ship before getting off in Key West?  Just those going ashore?  For those who have done this loop, what was the procedure?

 

Also, is there an Evening Chic night on a 5 nighter?

Thank you!

Yes there is a Chic night and yes we had to go thru customs on the ship. It was fast and no issue.

[tonyd285]

46 minutes ago, lovrccl said:

Yes there is a Chic night and yes we had to go thru customs on the ship. It was fast and no issue.

Actually, we went through an immigration check in Key West.  It was required of all guests whether they went ashore or not.  Customs checks are no longer done unless you have something to declare.

[cbfb]

1 hour ago, tonyd285 said:

We were in cabin 9040, below the pool deck.  Heard some occasional noise from above but not too bad.  We went to Blu between 6 and 6:30PM.  Never had a problem getting a table.  We were delighted to meet our favorite waiter from several previous cruises, Yaser, in the Tuscan Grill.  We first met him in 2001 on the Mercury.   Aside from the entertainment we had no issues with the cruise.

Thank you for the information. We are in 9042 and are happy to hear noise isn’t bad. Bring a sound machine for added protection!! 😂

[vikielynne]

I was on for NYE and found the ship in good condition, wonderful crew, good food and great entertainment. This was my first Celebrity cruise and I was pleasantly surprised with things almost daily.

[DanaDanes]

10 hours ago, tonyd285 said:

We were in cabin 9040, below the pool deck.  Heard some occasional noise from above but not too bad.  We went to Blu between 6 and 6:30PM.  Never had a problem getting a table.  We were delighted to meet our favorite waiter from several previous cruises, Yaser, in the Tuscan Grill.  We first met him in 2001 on the Mercury.   Aside from the entertainment we had no issues with the cruise.

I’ve got the cabin next to yours on an upcoming cruise (9042) as an aqua guaranty. Was the window washing equipment parked there? Was it bothersome?

[Straughn]

Did the 5/4 night BTB last year. I was in Aqua and found the difference in dining time availability between the two cruises interesting. I like to go to the 7 PM show, followed by a stop at a bar (Usually Cellar Masters) before going to dinner. On the 5 night, I had no trouble being seated immediately around 8:15. Blu was half empty. On the 4 night cruise, there was almost always a wait which involved a pager. On the advice of the hostess, I would check in as soon as the show was over, get the pager, and then  go to Cellar Masters. I had time to order my glass of wine before the pager went off. If I hadn’t finished it, I took it with me. 
 

Why the difference? Demographics were significantly different. The 5 night cruise had an older crowd who preferred to eat early. The 4 night cruise, over a weekend, had a younger crowd who liked to visit the bars and then go to dinner. The bars were noticeably busier on the  4 night cruise.

 

I found the ship’s  decor to be dated, but clean and very well maintained. My Aqua class cabin was in much better shape than many suites I have stayed in on both M and S class ships. Other than some stained, loose  grout in the shower, I could find nothing to complain about. No stains on rugs or furniture, a few normal wear and tear type scratches on the furniture, but nothing bad.  The bed was quite comfortable and my cabin attendant always had my room made up when I came back from breakfast.

[lv2cruisgrl]

On 1/12/2020 at 9:30 AM, tonyd285 said:

Actually, we went through an immigration check in Key West.  It was required of all guests whether they went ashore or not.  Customs checks are no longer done unless you have something to declare.

Yes we had to do it the morning we docked in Key West.

[Teacherloves2Cruise]

On 1/12/2020 at 7:24 PM, Straughn said:

Did the 5/4 night BTB last year. I was in Aqua and found the difference in dining time availability between the two cruises interesting. I like to go to the 7 PM show, followed by a stop at a bar (Usually Cellar Masters) before going to dinner. On the 5 night, I had no trouble being seated immediately around 8:15. Blu was half empty. On the 4 night cruise, there was almost always a wait which involved a pager. On the advice of the hostess, I would check in as soon as the show was over, get the pager, and then  go to Cellar Masters. I had time to order my glass of wine before the pager went off. If I hadn’t finished it, I took it with me. 
 

Why the difference? Demographics were significantly different. The 5 night cruise had an older crowd who preferred to eat early. The 4 night cruise, over a weekend, had a younger crowd who liked to visit the bars and then go to dinner. The bars were noticeably busier on the  4 night cruise.

 

I found the ship’s  decor to be dated, but clean and very well maintained. My Aqua class cabin was in much better shape than many suites I have stayed in on both M and S class ships. Other than some stained, loose  grout in the shower, I could find nothing to complain about. No stains on rugs or furniture, a few normal wear and tear type scratches on the furniture, but nothing bad.  The bed was quite comfortable and my cabin attendant always had my room made up when I came back from breakfast.

I am headed on the 2-nighter Feb 8- I am sure the bars will be packed and I will be one of the ones packing them!

[TeddysBabe]

We were on this same cruise.  It was our first experience with Celebrity.  We went with a big group and the price was great.  The food was great and really impressed us.  Outside of the food, nothing really stood out for us.  Good or bad.  It was quieter and the entertainment was lacking (according to my 21 year old).  We had a nice relaxing cruise.  Not sure we'd do Celebrity again, though.  Also, I hope the person that was airlifted off by the Coast Guard is doing well.

[mahdnc]

@tonyd285,

 

Infinity is docked at Key West today and is visible in the port webcam: link

 

The weather and water look beautiful and it is a 3 ship day today over there.

[tyr00000ne]

We were on this cruise as well. First time on X and I don't think I'll go back to Carnival or NCL (unless the price is right).
We had a HUGE oceanview room (8003), Drinks & More package, an unbelievable amount of on-board credit which we used for gratuities and "laundered" the other $400 though the casino. Non-smoking casino was a huge plus for us! Had a great experience with all staff. Loved our sommelier Lenin. We didn't catch much entertainment because we ate at 8pm most nights. Food was great. Late night buffet pizza was awesome. Best pizza I've had on a ship for sure. We were big fans of the spa cafe and solarium adults-only pool areas. 

One miss was the karaoke sound system was pretty terrible.

I'd do this cruise again in a heartbeat! 

[Georgia_Peaches]

6 minutes ago, tyr00000ne said:

We were on this cruise as well. First time on X and I don't think I'll go back to Carnival or NCL (unless the price is right).
We had a HUGE oceanview room (8003), Drinks & More package, an unbelievable amount of on-board credit which we used for gratuities and "laundered" the other $400 though the casino. Non-smoking casino was a huge plus for us! Had a great experience with all staff. Loved our sommelier Lenin. We didn't catch much entertainment because we ate at 8pm most nights. Food was great. Late night buffet pizza was awesome. Best pizza I've had on a ship for sure. We were big fans of the spa cafe and solarium adults-only pool areas. 

One miss was the karaoke sound system was pretty terrible.

I'd do this cruise again in a heartbeat! 

How did you go about getting the Drinks and More package?  Upgrade ahead of time?  Did you start with the Classic package or the Premium package?  Thank you!