Will the Infinity be rehabbed before March 2023?

[ERParadise]

We have a cruise booked from Buenos Aires on March 11, 2023.

Some friends who are avid Celebrity fans told me we won't like the ship unless it is upgraded or substituted for an updated ship.  The enhancement that was scheduled I believe was postponed due to Covid and the financial hit Celebrity took.

 

I'm trying to find out what the current plan is for this ship to modernized.  

[Fouremco]

No one knows at this point. 

 

As for your friends, many here will disagree with their assessment.

[curmudgeon98]

Nothing public that I'm aware of.  There has been some speculation as to whether Infinity will even return to sailing for Celebrity, or whether it might be passed down to a lower end line.  I think much depends on how much demand picks back up, and how that fits with delivery schedule of new ships.  

 

I wouldn't count of a major refurb until someone has actually seen it, though something on a more basic level could certainly happen.

 

I've got my eye on a late spring 2022 cruise on Infinity, but at this point I'm holding off on booking until I see she's actually resumed carrying passengers for Celebrity.

[Stockjock]

I just posted this comment on a question about Celebrity Infinity...

Don't forget it was previously all but announced that Infinity and Constellation would be transferred to Pullmantur once they emerged from bankruptcy.  Celebrity denied this, but where there's smoke, there's fire.

A decent possibility exists that Pullmantur does not emerge from bankruptcy, but they could.  Some of the former Pullmantur crew stated a few months back that they were approached about renewing their contracts beginning in December 2021.

My personal opinion is that Infinity and Constellation will not be a part of Celebrity's long-term plans, regardless of whether or not Pullmantur is involved.  Revolutionizing these ships is quite expensive and obviously not only does business suck due to covid, but these are really old ships and they already have 2 revolutionized really old ships.  Celebrity offers a premium product and I think they have enough old ships, albeit with new lipstick on several.

I suspect they'll go "bye bye" at some point, sooner than later.  If you owned these ships in this climate, would you put hundreds of millions into them during a global pandemic when cash is tight?  I wouldn't.

This might mean something and it might mean nothing, but the dry dock is in Spain.  Guess where Pullmantur is based? (Spain).  And Pullmantur, while in a liquidation phase, does still have Horizon floating around out there somewhere.

Could they reemerge with Horizon, Infinity and Constellation?  Absolutely.  Will they?  That remains to be seen.

[jelayne]

IMO it will be a over a year after all ships start sailing.  There are 5 ships whose revolutionizing was stopped due to the pandemic so it’s anyone guess which goes first.

We love the Infinity and would sail her anytime.  We were booked on a B2B for this coming October  that was cancelled.

 

The rumors that the Infinity and the Constellation will be leaving the fleet have been around for well over 7 years.  I guess at some point they will be true.

 

 

[ERParadise]

4 minutes ago, jelayne said:

IMO it will be a over a year after all ships start sailing.  There are 5 ships whose revolutionizing was stopped due to the pandemic so it’s anyone guess which goes first.

We love the Infinity and would sail her anytime.  We were booked on a B2B for this coming October  that was cancelled.

 

The rumors that the Infinity and the Constellation will be leaving the fleet have been around for well over 7 years.  I guess at some point they will be true.

 

 

Does "B2B" mean "back to back cruises?"

 

Thanks for your insight on Infinity.  We are looking at shifting that cruise schedule (March 2023) to a cruise on Oceania or Regent.  We want to go to South America and our previous S.A. cruise was covid-cancelled, but several friends have told us the suites on Infinity are in disrepair.

 

I like the financial analysis that "Stockjock" gave and to me, I don't think any of the cruise lines are out of the woods financially.  The three big public company cruise lines borrowed a huge amount of money to survive covid and those loans/bonds will have growing debt service (especially if interest rates rise in 2022 & beyond).  Covid has added all kinds of costs to their respective business models and the inflation in food, fuel, labor, port fees, etc will all significantly increase costs.  I simply don't see the money to rehab ships as every bit of cash needs to used for the ongoing financial bleeding.

 

It is not far-fetched to consider that there might be more mergers of the big co's simply to survive this mess.

 

For us who like to cruise I would expect us to be paying a lot more in the coming years to cover the increased costs to operate a cruise ship.

 

Just my gut instincts telling me surprises will occur that many passengers did not expect.

[Stockjock]

38 minutes ago, ERParadise said:

Does "B2B" mean "back to back cruises?"

 

Thanks for your insight on Infinity.  We are looking at shifting that cruise schedule (March 2023) to a cruise on Oceania or Regent.  We want to go to South America and our previous S.A. cruise was covid-cancelled, but several friends have told us the suites on Infinity are in disrepair.

 

I like the financial analysis that "Stockjock" gave and to me, I don't think any of the cruise lines are out of the woods financially.  The three big public company cruise lines borrowed a huge amount of money to survive covid and those loans/bonds will have growing debt service (especially if interest rates rise in 2022 & beyond).  Covid has added all kinds of costs to their respective business models and the inflation in food, fuel, labor, port fees, etc will all significantly increase costs.  I simply don't see the money to rehab ships as every bit of cash needs to used for the ongoing financial bleeding.

 

It is not far-fetched to consider that there might be more mergers of the big co's simply to survive this mess.

 

For us who like to cruise I would expect us to be paying a lot more in the coming years to cover the increased costs to operate a cruise ship.

 

Just my gut instincts telling me surprises will occur that many passengers did not expect.

I'm a bit concerned about the Delta variant, but we shall see.

I had an 11-night MSC cruise booked out of "Rome" sailing mid-November and cancelled it this morning, about a week before final payment.  I'm sure I'm not the only one.

So far, still good to go for a December Celebrity sailing and a May Celebrity sailing, but that may or may not change depending on the status of Covid.  But the December sailing is a short one out of Miami so I feel a bit more confident about that one versus stops and flights in various European countries and having to deal with EU travel restrictions, or getting thrown off the ship in Malta or Sicily due to a positive covid test.

I guess the main point is that the cruise lines are likely seeing some unexpected cancellations and weakness in new bookings due to the Delta variant, which certainly doesn't help matters during a difficult financial environment.

Edited August 10, 2021 by Stockjock

[ERParadise]

Delta has already peaked in the UK and cases are declining.  Likely that will occur elsewhere.

However there are already 4 more mutations coming after Delta.  In Los Angeles is appears there is a breakout of fast growing Epsilon and in other countries Zeta.

 

People don't seem to want to research the 3 most recent SARS viruses before Covid-19 and each one had a long series of mutations that followed.  The difference then was it was neither political and media worthy.

 

Most people don't realize that 7.7 million people die per year in the USA (the 5-year average ending in 2018).  North do they know that right now the Red Cross is desperately calling out because of an extreme increase in demand for blood and blood platelets.  Hospitals are filled up with cancer and heart diseased critically ill patients.  So many either were shut out from the hospitals and doctors or they were freighted.  According to the Red Cross in the past 3 months there is a huge increase in critically ill patients that has nothing to do with Covid or Delta.

 

The media campaign to frighten people has been very successful.  I am not discounting covid or Delta deaths, but merely pointing out there are far more people dying right now from non-covid illness.

[Saab4444]

11 hours ago, ERParadise said:

Delta has already peaked in the UK and cases are declining.  Likely that will occur elsewhere.

However there are already 4 more mutations coming after Delta.  In Los Angeles is appears there is a breakout of fast growing Epsilon and in other countries Zeta.

 

People don't seem to want to research the 3 most recent SARS viruses before Covid-19 and each one had a long series of mutations that followed.  The difference then was it was neither political and media worthy.

 

Most people don't realize that 7.7 million people die per year in the USA (the 5-year average ending in 2018).  North do they know that right now the Red Cross is desperately calling out because of an extreme increase in demand for blood and blood platelets.  Hospitals are filled up with cancer and heart diseased critically ill patients.  So many either were shut out from the hospitals and doctors or they were freighted.  According to the Red Cross in the past 3 months there is a huge increase in critically ill patients that has nothing to do with Covid or Delta.

 

The media campaign to frighten people has been very successful.  I am not discounting covid or Delta deaths, but merely pointing out there are far more people dying right now from non-covid illness.

How is this related to Infinity?

[RonPaula]

On 8/13/2021 at 5:39 PM, ERParadise said:

Delta has already peaked in the UK and cases are declining.  Likely that will occur elsewhere.

However there are already 4 more mutations coming after Delta.  In Los Angeles is appears there is a breakout of fast growing Epsilon and in other countries Zeta.

 

People don't seem to want to research the 3 most recent SARS viruses before Covid-19 and each one had a long series of mutations that followed.  The difference then was it was neither political and media worthy.

 

Most people don't realize that 7.7 million people die per year in the USA (the 5-year average ending in 2018).  North do they know that right now the Red Cross is desperately calling out because of an extreme increase in demand for blood and blood platelets.  Hospitals are filled up with cancer and heart diseased critically ill patients.  So many either were shut out from the hospitals and doctors or they were freighted.  According to the Red Cross in the past 3 months there is a huge increase in critically ill patients that has nothing to do with Covid or Delta.

 

The media campaign to frighten people has been very successful.  I am not discounting covid or Delta deaths, but merely pointing out there are far more people dying right now from non-covid illness.

Making some big assumptions regarding people’s interest in health issues.  All these deaths from COVID or hastened by COVID are loved ones that quite possible died alone and were afraid. Then consider the patients admitted for other illness who were fighting to live or passed away all alone. The media didn’t hype it. The numbers and visuals did all the work.

[LGW59]

On 8/13/2021 at 6:39 PM, ERParadise said:

Delta has already peaked in the UK and cases are declining.  Likely that will occur elsewhere.

However there are already 4 more mutations coming after Delta.  In Los Angeles is appears there is a breakout of fast growing Epsilon and in other countries Zeta.

 

People don't seem to want to research the 3 most recent SARS viruses before Covid-19 and each one had a long series of mutations that followed.  The difference then was it was neither political and media worthy.

 

Most people don't realize that 7.7 million people die per year in the USA (the 5-year average ending in 2018).  North do they know that right now the Red Cross is desperately calling out because of an extreme increase in demand for blood and blood platelets.  Hospitals are filled up with cancer and heart diseased critically ill patients.  So many either were shut out from the hospitals and doctors or they were freighted.  According to the Red Cross in the past 3 months there is a huge increase in critically ill patients that has nothing to do with Covid or Delta.

 

The media campaign to frighten people has been very successful.  I am not discounting covid or Delta deaths, but merely pointing out there are far more people dying right now from non-covid illness.

Lot of assumptions here about what most people do or do not realize.  FYI, the OP subject is re Infinity

[chisoxfan]

Wow, we just booked Feb 2023 Antarctic cruise on Infinity.  We thought it was a solid deal with AQ.

Anyway never imagined the fate of the ship would be questionable when bookings are so far out,

But based on cruise economy it makes sense these ships would be first to go.

Not sure there really is a suitable 'replacement' ship in the fleet if Millenium Class ships leave.

Maybe we will think of backing up this booking with one on Princess to be safe. My understanding is that these (more exotic and limited) itineraries are booked years in advance and finding out about a cancellation in 2022 may limit any options for a 2023 Antarctic cruise.

 

 

 

[davekathy]

On 8/9/2021 at 6:07 PM, ERParadise said:

Does "B2B" mean "back to back cruises?"

Yes.

On 8/9/2021 at 4:53 PM, ERParadise said:

Some friends who are avid Celebrity fans told me we won't like the ship unless it is upgraded or substituted for an updated ship. 

I disagree with your friends. IMO, nothing wrong with any of Celebrity's ships that haven't been revolutionized. 

Edited August 16, 2021 by davekathy

[foodsvcmgr]

I am also interested in an Infinity Antarctic sailing in early 2023.

Hopefully if bookings are fairly solid Celebrity would substitute another ship if they felt it was necessary to sell off Infinity.

Remember these cruises from Buenos Aires had once been scheduled for Silhouette and then switched to Infinity, so Celebrity seems to want to continue this route thus far.

[foodsvcmgr]

Note that e-Mail received today for 2023 Antarctica program references new Retreat areas and other enhancements, so presumably they intend to do some work prior to that time.

 

[zitsky]

Have other ships been pulled out of service when they are scheduled for cruises?  Let's say the Infinity is replaced.  Everyone has to go somewhere else or "merged" with another ship.  If I have cabin 100 on the old ship and you have cabin 100 on the new ship, well then, where do I go when everyone is shifted to the new ship?  Do they just randomly put people into open cabins?

 

Edit:  I'm on Infinity in October 2022.  From what I'm read here, I think I'll be happy.  I just wish I could use the app.

Edited August 23, 2021 by zitsky

[foodsvcmgr]

If the ship was switched but your itinerary remained they would try to accommodate you in the same cabin grade or an upgrade normally.

It does happen from time to time for various reasons.

[goofysmom99]

Yes, the Infinity hasn't been updated, however is still has one thing going for it that's better than a revolutionized balcony cabin = the sofa.  They were revolutionized to a big chair with a lot of space on either side.  So, if you travel with someone, only one of you gets the comfy seat.  (BTW, beds are for sleeping; sofas are for napping.)

 

I'm planning to book the Infinity for 2023 while onboard the Equinox next week.

Edited August 23, 2021 by goofysmom99

[zitsky]

39 minutes ago, goofysmom99 said:

Yes, the Infinity hasn't been updated, however is still has one thing going for it that's better than a revolutionized balcony cabin = the sofa.  They were revolutionized to a big chair with a lot of space on either side.  So, if you travel with someone, only one of you gets the comfy seat.  (BTW, beds are for sleeping; sofas are for napping.)

 

I'm planning to book the Infinity for 2023 while onboard the Equinox next week.

 

Is the big chair the standard for all ships now?

[goofysmom99]

17 minutes ago, zitsky said:

 

Is the big chair the standard for all ships now?

Only on revolutionized M-class ships.

[zitsky]

11 hours ago, goofysmom99 said:

Only on revolutionized M-class ships.

 

That's too bad.  So one person has to sit on balcony or bed.  Would another chair fit in that space?  Could you ask for another one?

[goofysmom99]

55 minutes ago, zitsky said:

 

That's too bad.  So one person has to sit on balcony or bed.  Would another chair fit in that space?  Could you ask for another one?

There's still the desk chair.

[zitsky]

24 minutes ago, goofysmom99 said:

There's still the desk chair.

 

Didn't think of that.  Is it reasonably comfortable?  Ergonomic?

[goofysmom99]

19 minutes ago, zitsky said:

 

Didn't think of that.  Is it reasonably comfortable?  Ergonomic?

If you go to the Celebrity website and click on the upper left side menu, select Ships, then the ship for which you have questions.  There will be a ship's tour video available, including the cabins.