RETREAT Frustrations

[baytraller]

Will be experiencing the Retreat for the first time on the 9th December on Eclipse have booked CS.

 

Have read a number of post which have indicated that you are able to select from Blu and MDR menus on both M and S class. Due to food allergies the Luminae menu is sometimes limited. Have also read that the fish of the day and Salmon are always available.

 

Asked the Retreat Suite Shoreside Concierge this question via email and received the following reply

 

"Please be advised that as Luminae offers its own exclusive menu, we do not offer the menu selections from Blu or the Main Dining Room to be delivered in Luminae."

 

Is this now the case, would we be able to dine at Blu or MDR (anytime selected)

 

Are you able to make a reservation at these restaurants for date and time.

 

Peter

 

 

Edited November 18, 2022 by baytraller

[George C]

You should definitely be able to dine in mdr , you can dine in blu if space is available, aqua class has priority. Concierge should be able to tell you if blu is available 

[jelayne]

There is no reason you should not be able to order from the MDR menu as the kitchens are next to each other.  Blu on the other hand has its own kitchen which is 3 decks higher and aft  vs MDR which is mid ship on deck 2.     
 

[chemmo]

2 hours ago, baytraller said:

Will be experiencing the Retreat for the first time on the 9th December on Eclipse have booked CS.

 

Have read a number of post which have indicated that you are able to select from Blu and MDR menus on both M and S class. Due to food allergies the Luminae menu is sometimes limited. Have also read that the fish of the day and Salmon are always available.

 

Asked the Retreat Suite Shoreside Concierge this question via email and received the following reply

 

"Please be advised that as Luminae offers its own exclusive menu, we do not offer the menu selections from Blu or the Main Dining Room to be delivered in Luminae."

 

Is this now the case, would we be able to dine at Blu or MDR (anytime selected)

 

Are you able to make a reservation at these restaurants for date and time.

 

Peter

 

 

You will have no issues choosing from the MDR menu in Luminae on Eclipse. Blu is less easy. Simple geography of where the restaurants are on the ship.
 

However, if you let the M’D in Luminae know you have food allergies they will accommodate you. Each evening they will look at the next day’s menu with you. They will point out meals that are all ready suitable for you, meals they can modify for you and if that doesn’t work they will discuss with you what may enjoy and provide off menu items.

 

If you plan on visiting one of the speciality restaurants if you pop by the day before they will also modify the menu to meet your needs.

 

Hope you have a fantastic cruise!

[wineoclock]

3 hours ago, baytraller said:

Will be experiencing the Retreat for the first time on the 9th December on Eclipse have booked CS.

 

Have read a number of post which have indicated that you are able to select from Blu and MDR menus on both M and S class. Due to food allergies the Luminae menu is sometimes limited. Have also read that the fish of the day and Salmon are always available.

 

Asked the Retreat Suite Shoreside Concierge this question via email and received the following reply

 

"Please be advised that as Luminae offers its own exclusive menu, we do not offer the menu selections from Blu or the Main Dining Room to be delivered in Luminae."

 

Is this now the case, would we be able to dine at Blu or MDR (anytime selected)

 

Are you able to make a reservation at these restaurants for date and time.

 

Peter

 

 

I’m gluten free & Luminae had no problem in adjusting menus for me. On a couple of occasions I didn’t like the options I had fillet mignon & salmon. 

[Gracie115]

7 hours ago, George C said:

We only did one CS on a M class and I didn’t care for that at all hated the balcony which we didn’t use, i would rather just book a sky suite , have not tried CS on the other Celebrity classes. 

 

The CS on Solstice class and now Edge are completely different than the M class ones.  The balcony on the S class, especially if you get one on the back or front of the hump is huge.  The bathroom has entrances from both the bedroom and living room.  There is a walk in closet on the S class ships.  We love the S class ships CS, our favorite stateroom on X.   

 

We just finished a TA on the Apex in a CS and while we liked the suite there were definite downsides from the S class ones.  No walk in closet, bedroom is MUCH tighter on space, the tub/shower is more difficult to maneuver than the S class, especially in rough seas.  The balcony was smaller and had no lounge.  We still liked it but probably would not pay for it on a future Edge Class.

 

The balcony on the M class is an "add on"  it did not originally have a balcony at all.  We stayed in it prior to the balcony add on and really liked the suite except for the bathroom location which is through the bedroom.  Have always wanted to try it again since the balcony was added.  

[levramosis]

9 hours ago, baytraller said:

Asked the Retreat Suite Shoreside Concierge this question via email and received the following reply

"Please be advised that as Luminae offers its own exclusive menu, we do not offer the menu selections from Blu or the Main Dining Room to be delivered in Luminae."

I highly doubt things have changed that much in Luminae since pre-pandemic... we have food allergy issues too. We notify the maitre'd and provide an OK/not list at lunch on embarkation day, and every day at dinner they provide us the following day's MDR and Luminae menus so we can choose what we want in case they can make changes so it's safe for us. There are usually plenty of choices and sometimes we even provide a main option and a backup option in case the main one can't be made safe for us.

 

We haven't ever done it but I'm sure could dine in Blu or MDR by reservation - though I sure don't know why you'd want to ever dine in MDR when you could in Luminae.

[George C]

4 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

 

The CS on Solstice class and now Edge are completely different than the M class ones.  The balcony on the S class, especially if you get one on the back or front of the hump is huge.  The bathroom has entrances from both the bedroom and living room.  There is a walk in closet on the S class ships.  We love the S class ships CS, our favorite stateroom on X.   

 

We just finished a TA on the Apex in a CS and while we liked the suite there were definite downsides from the S class ones.  No walk in closet, bedroom is MUCH tighter on space, the tub/shower is more difficult to maneuver than the S class, especially in rough seas.  The balcony was smaller and had no lounge.  We still liked it but probably would not pay for it on a future Edge Class.

 

The balcony on the M class is an "add on"  it did not originally have a balcony at all.  We stayed in it prior to the balcony add on and really liked the suite except for the bathroom location which is through the bedroom.  Have always wanted to try it again since the balcony was added.  

I had heard it was added on, it is really narrow. My only S class was when S was new and that was before they added Luminae and Michaels. We did penthouse last year on edge , next week we have a big balcony on a corner aft sky suite on beyond.

[Treasure Hunter]

We are in a celebrity suite on the Edge in January and a Royal Suite in March ( also on the Edge) I have made my specialty dining for January with the generous OBC. I have not made any reservations for March assuming that I will be contacted before that cruise and I don't want to book and then have to have OBC refunded. But from these posts it seems it is not 100%  guaranteed that you will get what you want in a Royal suite and I don't want any stress. Could I book the  dining with the Edge Concierge on board in January for the March cruise?  Has anyone done that? Also I got a survey about my opinion (a shore side concierge Giedy contacting me pre-cruise) that never happened. Weird.  We have been in a celebrity suite on the Equinox . We had them tape up the window in the bedroom. Service was outstanding and we had a great balcony ( hump) but the bathroom is terrible. I would still take it again as the price is right and we need the separate living room.

[George C]

We did royal suite on summit in February same perks as penthouse free specialty restaurants, liquor setup with two liters of your choice .

[danceswithphones]

We were in an Edge Villa last week on the Beyond. I handled all specialty dining thru the Shoreside Retreat contact. They reached out to me. Nothing showed in the app until we boarded. They assured me it would be fine and it was. RS and above should be the same.

[Gracie115]

Our experience with the shoreside concierge on Apex for our TA that just ended was lousy.  We were in a CS and didn't get contacted until 5 days before the cruise. I had a few different requests and none were taken care of and our email went unanswered.  A 2nd email was sent to her 2 days before the cruise asking if she had received the initial email and that was never responded to either. Pretty lousy experience.  If they are only going to help when they feel like it then why bother?  Thankfully we had a wonderful butler in John who took care of nearly everything we had asked for from the "shore side concierge."    This has NOT been our experience in the past, the concierge was very helpful but this time......not so much.

[Beachlover1989]

7 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

We just finished a TA on the Apex in a CS and while we liked the suite there were definite downsides from the S class ones.  No walk in closet, bedroom is MUCH tighter on space, the tub/shower is more difficult to maneuver than the S class, especially in rough seas.  The balcony was smaller and had no lounge.  We still liked it but probably would not pay for it on a future Edge Class.

 

We will be in a CS on Apex in August...what made the tub/shower more difficult to maneuver?  And what did you mean about it not having a lounge?  We need a separate bedroom and have always liked the CS on M class ships.  CS on Edge class are the most affordable suites with a separate bedroom.

[Gracie115]

7 minutes ago, Beachlover1989 said:

We will be in a CS on Apex in August...what made the tub/shower more difficult to maneuver?  And what did you mean about it not having a lounge?  We need a separate bedroom and have always liked the CS on M class ships.  CS on Edge class are the most affordable suites with a separate bedroom.

 

The balcony did not have a lounge, just chairs.  The "S" class has lounges.  

 

The tub/shower combo, especially in rough seas is very difficult for one to stay stable and upright.  There is a fixed glass panel that you reach across to turn the water on and then a glass door that opens into the tub.  There is one small grab bar on the wall opposite the opening.  The tub wall itself is unusually high, higher than the "S" class, which is also high.  Anyone with mobility issues would have a problem. It was ok until we hit the high seas from Hurricane Martin but with only the one grab bar I nearly fell several times because of the rocking seas.  On a good note, the shower itself is great, with lots of power.  If you are young and have no mobility issues you will be fine.  

[Tranquility Base]

When booked in a suite and dining in Luminae, is it "open seating" ie the same as "select" dining ?

My booking shows 6pm dining which was automatically selected. 

Is this just a default setting when booking, or do I need to have this changed to select , ie anytime dining ?

[Gracie115]

4 minutes ago, Tranquility Base said:

When booked in a suite and dining in Luminae, is it "open seating" ie the same as "select" dining ?

My booking shows 6pm dining which was automatically selected. 

Is this just a default setting when booking, or do I need to have this changed to select , ie anytime dining ?

 

It is open seating, show up when you want.

[baytraller]

Thank you for all the valuable information

 

Peter

 

 

[jelayne]

14 hours ago, Treasure Hunter said:

We are in a celebrity suite on the Edge in January and a Royal Suite in March ( also on the Edge) I have made my specialty dining for January with the generous OBC. I have not made any reservations for March assuming that I will be contacted before that cruise and I don't want to book and then have to have OBC refunded. But from these posts it seems it is not 100%  guaranteed that you will get what you want in a Royal suite and I don't want any stress. Could I book the  dining with the Edge Concierge on board in January for the March cruise?  Has anyone done that? Also I got a survey about my opinion (a shore side concierge Giedy contacting me pre-cruise) that never happened. Weird.  We have been in a celebrity suite on the Equinox . We had them tape up the window in the bedroom. Service was outstanding and we had a great balcony ( hump) but the bathroom is terrible. I would still take it again as the price is right and we need the separate living room.

The Shoreside Concierges worked initially with Royal Suites and above.  For CS and SS it has been a more perfunctory contact, if any.  A generic email that, some of which makes no sense like what time do we plan to arrive, how many bags will we have; they don’t escort CS or SS guests onto the ship and don’t assist with luggage. 
Our experience had been about 50% of the time in a CS we have been contacted via email and in SS it’s about 25%.  

[Gracie115]

5 hours ago, jelayne said:

 
Our experience had been about 50% of the time in a CS we have been contacted via email and in SS it’s about 25%.  

 

We've always been contacted in a CS and all but this last cruise on the Apex they were very helpful.  This time they may as well have not bothered.  In fact, I wish they hadn't bothered, if I had known the "contact" was totally generic as if coming from a "bot" of some kind I would have reached out to Celebrity myself earlier to handle some of the items I had waited for the concierge to handle.

 

Better to do nothing than to half a...  something. Just saying.

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

A new question….which CS is “on the hump”? With a larger balcony. Please offer cabin numbers. 
thank you. 
sheila