On the Edge Now…Cutbacks. 🙁

[lux4me]

We are sailing currently on the Edge.  We LOVE being back at sea,   But unfortunately the cutbacks are noticeable. No shows in Eden except for a band at night.   Ship is sailing with 60% crew. 15 min wait for an omelette at the buffet in the am. .  Lack of variety at the buffet (breakfast and lunch) while areas of buffet closed(sandwich station gone, no pasta station).  Dishes served at dinner with missing items.  Some dishes are still very good, others very pedestrian.  Service has been very hit and miss,  I know they are back for 2 weeks.  They are trying,  but the fact is I paid full price,  and the onboard product is not quite ready, especially for the rates Celebrity is asking.
 If anyone has any questions will be happy to answer

 

[jelayne]

Many, including us didn’t care for the show in Eden.  I thought I had read that there were some shows in The Club now.  When we were on the Edge the Club had music & movies.

 

[Debbiem83]

10 minutes ago, lux4me said:

We are sailing currently on the Edge.  We LOVE being back at sea,   But unfortunately the cutbacks are noticeable. No shows in Eden except for a band at night.   Ship is sailing with 60% crew. 15 min wait for an omelette at the buffet in the am. .  Lack of variety at the buffet (breakfast and lunch) while areas of buffet closed(sandwich station gone, no pasta station).  Dishes served at dinner with missing items.  Some dishes are still very good, others very pedestrian.  Service has been very hit and miss,  I know they are back for 2 weeks.  They are trying,  but the fact is I paid full price,  and the onboard product is not quite ready, especially for the rates Celebrity is asking.
 If anyone has any questions will be happy to answer

 

That’s disappointing all round, and like you say, unfair for the price they are charging. Full price for a full service, a discount for a discounted service? Can you complain to someone on board? It needs to be noted!

[marieps]

Very sorry to hear this.   Make your voice heard.  

[Susanb10567]

1 hour ago, lux4me said:

We are sailing currently on the Edge.  We LOVE being back at sea,   But unfortunately the cutbacks are noticeable. No shows in Eden except for a band at night.   Ship is sailing with 60% crew. 15 min wait for an omelette at the buffet in the am. .  Lack of variety at the buffet (breakfast and lunch) while areas of buffet closed(sandwich station gone, no pasta station).  Dishes served at dinner with missing items.  Some dishes are still very good, others very pedestrian.  Service has been very hit and miss,  I know they are back for 2 weeks.  They are trying,  but the fact is I paid full price,  and the onboard product is not quite ready, especially for the rates Celebrity is asking.
 If anyone has any questions will be happy to answer

 

That’s disappointing to hear..

 

We are booked on the Edge on the 17th hearing news like this gives me pause…

 

I know that this is the start up and we have to go with the flow…but we are paying full fare and should expect good things…I was nervous about booking but did and now the rest of my party really wants to go so I would feel bad to say I don’t want to go anymore..

 

I wanted to go because of the promise of low capacity but if the crew is even lower that doesn’t work..now sort of regretting not sailing out of St. Marten they had 400 guests and 700 crew according to posters on board.

 

I also booked because it was advertised as a fully vaccinated cruise..now it’s 95% with bracelets..according to email from Celebrity different sections in dining room, theater and casino for unvaccinated passengers…

 

I know protocols change daily but I just want a safe and happy sailing ..wishing the same to all

[cricketts]

1 hour ago, lux4me said:

 If anyone has any questions will be happy to answer

 

 

Thank you for your opinion and openness.

We were on Edge March '19, so I'm sure we will also notice the differences.  

Meantime, when we were last on, we noticed that some of the main dining rooms were noisier than others and we were told that two of them were larger than the other two.  I can't tell from the deck plans - it's either Normandie and Cosmopolitan or Tuscan and Cyprus...  Please check, or maybe you've already noticed the difference in the noise level!  Thank you!!

[JRG]

1 hour ago, lux4me said:

Lack of variety at the buffet (breakfast and lunch) while areas of buffet closed(sandwich station gone, no pasta station).

 

This is very disconcerting.    Hopefully it is just the re-starting blues.

 

I'd be disappointed at a lot of the breakfast and lunch meals if selection was limited and I paid full price because I wouldn't have expected those types of cutbacks.

 

 

 

[KKB]

I will take this comment with a grain of salt...

Less staff for less passenger capacity seems reasonable.

I have had long waits for omelets many times pre-COVID.

Food has always been subjective--generally quite good but occasionally a miss.

 

Eden shows were a love/hate relationship to be sure, and word had been that they might be severely modified or on the way out. Personally save the shows for the theatre; I prefer a band myself.

 

Many others have said while everything isn't perfect (but then again, when is it?), overall service has been great. Yes, they are still getting back up to speed, a bit rusty in some regards. 

 

Patience, flexibility & compassion are key these days. 

 

[Germancruiser]

Sorry about your dissapointment OP, my Maiden Voyage on the Apex was exactly the opposite. Strange really , taking into consideration that the Apex staff tried so hard and succeeded with flying colors. 

[Pickels]

1 hour ago, lux4me said:

We are sailing currently on the Edge.  We LOVE being back at sea,   But unfortunately the cutbacks are noticeable. No shows in Eden except for a band at night.   Ship is sailing with 60% crew. 15 min wait for an omelette at the buffet in the am. .  Lack of variety at the buffet (breakfast and lunch) while areas of buffet closed(sandwich station gone, no pasta station).  Dishes served at dinner with missing items.  Some dishes are still very good, others very pedestrian.  Service has been very hit and miss,  I know they are back for 2 weeks.  They are trying,  but the fact is I paid full price,  and the onboard product is not quite ready, especially for the rates Celebrity is asking.
 If anyone has any questions will be happy to answer

 

True, it's very disappointing but, that's what to expect on a start-up.  It's not going to be 100%, both in service and amenities.  That's why we are waiting to cruise in 2022; hopefully, things will be better by then.  Got to "bite the bullet" for this year. 

[Jeremiah1212]

Last week they said they new Eden show was not ready yet. That space seems to be consantly evolving so it's no surprise there is a bit of a delay. 

[PTC DAWG]

I too have had omelet waits in the past..I would miss the pasta area...it was almost to order...

 

Agree with others on the band comment in Eden...seems nice enough.  

 

I do understand the complications that having many less passengers on board could cause...I'm not sure it just a case of "scaling down" and offering less of the same things..something has to give.  

Edited July 7, 2021 by PTC DAWG

[TeeRick]

1 hour ago, lux4me said:

We are sailing currently on the Edge.  We LOVE being back at sea,   But unfortunately the cutbacks are noticeable. No shows in Eden except for a band at night.   Ship is sailing with 60% crew. 15 min wait for an omelette at the buffet in the am. .  Lack of variety at the buffet (breakfast and lunch) while areas of buffet closed(sandwich station gone, no pasta station).  Dishes served at dinner with missing items.  Some dishes are still very good, others very pedestrian.  Service has been very hit and miss,  I know they are back for 2 weeks.  They are trying,  but the fact is I paid full price,  and the onboard product is not quite ready, especially for the rates Celebrity is asking.
 If anyone has any questions will be happy to answer

 

Yes understand the disappointment after paying full price.  I am not criticizing but asking what did you expect on one of the first cruises out of the US after 16 months?  Why not sign up for a cruise a few months down the road after everything is worked out and also you have had time to read reviews of these first cruises?  

[PTC DAWG]

11 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Yes understand the disappointment after paying full price.  I am not criticizing but asking what did you expect on one of the first cruises out of the US after 16 months?  Why not sign up for a cruise a few months down the road after everything is worked out and also you have had time to read reviews of these first cruises?  

I'm looking at Equinox for Aug 1...with tempered expectations...

[TeeRick]

1 minute ago, PTC DAWG said:

I'm looking at Equinox for Aug 1...with tempered expectations...

We have Millennium late September.  By design wanted to not be a guinea pig for the first couple of months of cruising.  But eager to get back in any case.

[clivey]

We were on last week and it was fabulous!  Service was outstanding so we didn’t even notice that there was a reduced capacity of the crew.  No wait for an omelette and didn’t realize the sandwich station or pasta bar weren’t on there.  I did notice the wonderful donuts and bread pudding!  Only wait we had was at Eden Cafe for lunch. We go again this weekend so I’ll see if anything has changed from the first sailing. 
 

[CajunHeavyCruiser]

18 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

I'm looking at Equinox for Aug 1...with tempered expectations...

We are also on EQ Aug 1, going in with eyes wide open.  Hope to get some good actionable information from the EQ’s July 25 cruisers.

[DonnaMW]

We are on this week and are enjoying it greatly.  No wait at omelette station?.

 Crew so very helpful and grateful to be back. Loving it. 

[mafig]

what kind of room do you have?  How's the service there?

 

 

[Gracie115]

2 hours ago, lux4me said:

We are sailing currently on the Edge.  We LOVE being back at sea,   But unfortunately the cutbacks are noticeable. No shows in Eden except for a band at night.   Ship is sailing with 60% crew. 15 min wait for an omelette at the buffet in the am. .  Lack of variety at the buffet (breakfast and lunch) while areas of buffet closed(sandwich station gone, no pasta station).  Dishes served at dinner with missing items.  Some dishes are still very good, others very pedestrian.  Service has been very hit and miss,  I know they are back for 2 weeks.  They are trying,  but the fact is I paid full price,  and the onboard product is not quite ready, especially for the rates Celebrity is asking.
 If anyone has any questions will be happy to answer

 

I'm sorry you aren't happy with the service provided.  I would think that 60% of crew when you only have about 40% customers would still be more than enough.  

 

I also wouldn't expect the entire buffet to be open with so few customers on board.  I know that was also true on the Apex and also on the Adventure of the Seas last week.  

 

Hopefully the rest of your cruise will go more smoothly. 

[kebrown]

2 hours ago, lux4me said:

Lack of variety at the buffet (breakfast and lunch) while areas of buffet closed(sandwich station gone, no pasta station).  
 

I am very disappointed to hear that the sandwich and pasta stations are closed.  Could you please ask someone if they plan on opening these stations up soon?  I have a cruise on the Edge in October and I hope everything will be open by then.  I do not want to pay full price for a cruise but only receive half the product.

[shibby sails]

I was on last week and of course never having sailed the Edge I had no comparisons in mind but I have been on over 40 cruises and it was one of the best experiences of my life. Maybe I was shaded by just wanting to be on a ship after 15 months, but no complaints. 

[DonnaMW]

23 minutes ago, mafig said:

what kind of room do you have?  How's the service there?

 

 

We are in aqua. Love the layout especially the bathroom. And lots of storage. Really nothing major to complain about and this is my about 45th celebrity.  Just glad to be back at sea.

[Jeremiah1212]

6 minutes ago, shibby sails said:

I was on last week and of course never having sailed the Edge I had no comparisons in mind but I have been on over 40 cruises and it was one of the best experiences of my life. Maybe I was shaded by just wanting to be on a ship after 15 months, but no complaints. 

 

It's always funny to read feedback from people who were on the exact same cruise who have such differing experiences. We went in with an open mind and thought nearly everything was fantastic. The few little quirks we experienced were similar to those on other Celebrity sailings such as it taking several minutes to be seated once you check in at a restaurant (both MDR and Specialty). I did see people at Guest Services with a list of complaints before 8am on Sunday but I suppose those are on every cruise. 

 

[Tatka]

Oh... Thank you. We are next...

We were really disappointed by our last cruise on Princess which we considered top line together with X, hopefully X is keeping its standards.

 

Please enjoy your cruise... learning from last year, who knows when the next cruise will happen and if it happens.