Beyond

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

6 minutes ago, zitsky said:

 Is there a bar inside Eden you can walk to?

 

Absolutely. When it's open you can certainly get your own drinks. If I remember correctly, they only even had servers in the evening/night - when it was open during the day it was go to the bar on your own. Even in February 2020.

[IZZYDAD]

15 hours ago, oceancrusin said:

Any idea what the availability of 'premium' alcohol is currently like on board? I purchased the upgrade to premium for my upcoming cruise out of Bayonne on October 26.

I’ve heard several people with premium drink package, complain they didn’t have premium wines. Also when we sat at a bar l, the bartender will point out which drinks are not available from the drink menu.

[IZZYDAD]

When I was at Eden at around 4:30 there was a server except she was behind the trying to help the bartender. Must have been 30 people at the bar trying to get a drink. Poor server had no idea how to make any drinks except fetching bottles of beer. The service has been terrible. But not to lack of afford by crew. They are really trying but you can see and hear the frustration in there face and voice.

[jelayne]

They have had the Cattier champagne which was out of stock for some of our earlier cruises.  We have let our sommelier pick most of our wines and they have been excellent.

[hcat]

Folks from our  Nov... (5 day) Beyond Roll call are planning to meet  at the EDEN bar around 4:30 pm   for a pre dinner  get together..Gatsby dress theme, We may have to pick another spot.,Thanks for the heads up!

[swooldri]

On this cruise are masks mandated to be worn by passengers?  I have heard conflicting information. We are on the Oct. 26 nine night Beyond cruise.

 

Thanks, Steve

[FBrew]

49 minutes ago, jelayne said:

They have had the Cattier champagne which was out of stock for some of our earlier cruises.  We have let our sommelier pick most of our wines and they have been excellent.

Is the sommelier giving you premium wines? Do you drink red or white? We are on the Beyond for next cruise 9 days. I would think with this brand-new ship there wouldn't be problems. After the Beyond we go on the Summit for 5 days maybe I will pick wine and bring it with me. How is Luminae?  If you go to the retreat pool deck could you please find out who the bartender is at the bar? How is the Butler? Enjoy the rest of the cruise. We are on the TA for next year.

 

Thanks,

Phyllis

 

 

[Sascol]

On Beyond now, sitting in Eden as we speak. We too  had a long wait times for dining at least one evening (1st night).  We had reservations but they were over an hour behind schedule but because this was the 1st night, somewhat understandable. We offered some grace, however since then while we have been seated quickly, service has still been slow. We ate in Cyprus on night two.  Same deal.  Of the four of us several meals had to be sent back because they were not hot. Finally got replacement meals, also not hot and waitress never followed up. We left the food mainly untouched. For my lunch in Eden today I ordered a sandwich at the counter which took 15 minutes to prepare.  
 

The main issues we have had all revolve around bar wait times and lack of table service for drinks. Very few people circulating and when they do finally get to you, long wait to get drinks. Our room steward advised that he has 18 rooms assigned to him. He said the norm is usually 14 rooms. Generally speaking a lot of the staff just seems to be very inexperienced.

 

Specialty restaurants (Le Voyage and Roof top grill) have been an exception to all of this and have been excellent. 
 

None of this of course has ruined the vacation but they need to get their act together soon. 
 

This needs to be resolved sooner rather than later. The passengers are seasoned Celebrity cruisers, as are we and many are losing their patience and voicing a number of complaints.

[jelayne]

The Beyond and, from what I have read, other ships and cruise lines are short of staff also.   Not unlike restaurants, bars and hotels at home.

 

On the Beyond now they have a lot of new crew who are still learning.  Our cabin attendant had another attendant with him for the first few days and it was clear he was training that fellow.   Same in the Oceanview where I have seen crew guiding other crew members in the best way to handle a station. 
 

We have had to wait for drinks at every bar, but even pre pandemic is was rare to go into a packed bar and get served immediately.  So now we wait a couple extra minutes. The Retreat Lounge has been full to capacity daily from 3-7 or later.  I went up about 11:30 a.m today and only a couple of places to sit.  
 

We are in a Suite and had to wait to be seated, except last night when we got there close to 8:30.  We have been served premium wines  (both reds and whites) and some not normally by the glass options.  It seems that like the other dining venues, Luminae is short staffed and some sections are closed due to the staff shortage.  Service has been very good, just waits to be seated. 

Many of the crew have been on since March and while still smiling they are tired and ready to go home for vacation. For some that vacation starts at the end of this cruise others get off when the ship gets to Florida.  

[Lexcruiser]

We are also on the Beyond.  While the ship is beautiful and the staff seems anxious to please, there are several issues which make this cruise disappointing. The first was the luggage drop off in Barcelona. Knowing that most of the passengers will ignore the times given for embarkation, celebrity needs to do a better job of handling arriving passengers and their luggage. Since everyone shows up at the earliest possible time, the lines are ridiculous. once inside the port, the check in with fairly well but the confusion outside does not leave a good first impression.  The ship is short on staff and that is nowhere more apparent than in the bars. On our first night aboard, we went to the hyped Martini bar (which is a poor replacement for the ice bar).  After waiting 20 minutes with no server in flight, I decided to try to fly down one of the two bartenders.  Picture trying to flag a cab in New York City at rush-hour. My attempts were unsuccessful, but our party managed to find a server who took our orders and then disappeared for almost 30 minutes. When she returned, the very dry Bombay Sapphire martini with olives that I had ordered had changed into a glass of vermouth with no discernible gin and a lemon peel.  Other bars on the ship have presented similar problems. We also dislike  the dining arrangements on Celebrity.  We find the menus unimaginative with the main dining restaurants having only two or three choices that vary from day to day and the remainder is the always available selections. The room service menu is pitifully small which is just as well because we never had a room service order which arrived less than an hour from the time it was placed with the food being lukewarm or cold. We were very dissatisfied with the policy for the specialty restaurants. If you book the specialty restaurant package pre-cruise, you are not permitted to make restaurant reservations until you board the ship. By then, any reasonable time for dining is unavailable. Curiously, when we first boarded the ship I spoke to the maître d’ at the steakhouse and was told that the only opening available was that night at 8:00 PM. We took it, and when we appeared the restaurant was almost completely empty. On the positive side, the ship is well appointed. We like the layout of our concierge’s class state room although the closet is a bit small. The staff has been very friendly, but clearly needs some seasoning. With these in the other problems mentioned by other posters, I think celebrities claim to be a luxury cruise line may be a bit premature.

[IZZYDAD]

Like I said it’s Carnival with Celebrity pricing.

[CruisingWalter]

On 10/14/2022 at 5:24 PM, jelayne said:

The ship is beautiful, the weather is great, food is very good and if it takes a couple of minutes longer wait for a drink or a wait to be seated for dinner so be it.  Since I don’t have to cook, clean up or make my bed I can be patient.

 

 

"Go with the flow" is the best attitude for cruising. We had severe F&B shortages on the Carnival Mardi Gras in March, but the crew that was there was amazing. Always smiling, always doing what they could to keep our vacations amazing. So yes, a little patience on a cruise ship goes a long way and if there is a problem, don't take it out on the crew members. They are trying their best. 

 

If there is a long line at the MDR/Restaurant, we have been known to run up to the buffet or Cafe Al Bacio to have a little appetizer/nosh/cookies to tide us over while we wait. I recommend others do the same. It takes the edge off waiting if you at least have a little something, something. 🙂 

[CruisingWalter]

23 hours ago, Lexcruiser said:

On our first night aboard, we went to the hyped Martini bar (which is a poor replacement for the ice bar).  After waiting 20 minutes with no server in flight, I decided to try to fly down one of the two bartenders.  Picture trying to flag a cab in New York City at rush-hour. My attempts were unsuccessful, but our party managed to find a server who took our orders and then disappeared for almost 30 minutes. When she returned, the very dry Bombay Sapphire martini with olives that I had ordered had changed into a glass of vermouth with no discernible gin and a lemon peel.  Other bars on the ship have presented similar problems. 

 

The Martini Bar is a good show, not good drinks. I've tried the Martini Bar on two of the four Celebrity ships we've sailed and all I do now is watch the show if we happen to be nearby. The World Class Bar is where you get a really good cocktail. That's the only bar where I will spend money on Celebrity, even bringing my cocktails with me from that bar to dinner. And the Sunset Bar on Beyond is supposed to be really good. Looking to book that ship for March and that's one of the bars intend to try.

[zitsky]

5 minutes ago, WheresWalter said:

 

"Go with the flow" is the best attitude for cruising. We had severe F&B shortages on the Carnival Mardi Gras in March, but the crew that was there was amazing. Always smiling, always doing what they could to keep our vacations amazing. So yes, a little patience on a cruise ship goes a long way and if there is a problem, don't take it out on the crew members. They are trying their best. 

 

If there is a long line at the MDR/Restaurant, we have been known to run up to the buffet or Cafe Al Bacio to have a little appetizer/nosh/cookies to tide us over while we wait. I recommend others do the same. It takes the edge off waiting if you at least have a little something, something. 🙂 

All kidding aside we have seen two Celebrity cruises canceled.  We have two booked for 2023.  I can be picky at times but I will just be glad to be on the ship.  If I have to wait for Blu at least it will be worth it.

[jelayne]

38 minutes ago, WheresWalter said:

 

The Martini Bar is a good show, not good drinks. I've tried the Martini Bar on two of the four Celebrity ships we've sailed and all I do now is watch the show if we happen to be nearby. The World Class Bar is where you get a really good cocktail. That's the only bar where I will spend money on Celebrity, even bringing my cocktails with me from that bar to dinner. And the Sunset Bar on Beyond is supposed to be really good. Looking to book that ship for March and that's one of the bars intend to try.

I think you will like the Sunset bar.  It is larger than on the other E Class ships and has more covered area making it more comfortable on a hot afternoon. 
The World Class Bar is lovely with some nice seating.  Can’t speak to the drinks as I don’t care of any of the drinks on their limited menu. 
Craft Social is also nice and has had good service this cruise.  It hasn’t been as crowded as the others although when a popular game is being televised it is probably jammed and service slower.

[jelayne]

Okay it’s is close to 11 pm seems most are having fun.  Silent disco just started, drinks are flowing and the complainers have gone to bed.  
Your glass can be half full or half empty, I I choose to see it as half full and having a great time.

[zitsky]

19 minutes ago, jelayne said:

Okay it’s is close to 11 pm seems most are having fun.  Silent disco just started, drinks are flowing and the complainers have gone to bed.  
Your glass can be half full or half empty, I I choose to see it as half full and having a great time.

Why can’t complainers stay up late?  It’s not fair!

[mfs2k]

This sailing seems to be a tale of two cities. 

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. 

Passengers are quarantined in their cabins with locked infinite verandas. Passengers are dancing the night away in the silent disco. 

The seas are rough and there’s damage everywhere.
The moon is beautiful from the sunset bar. 

The MDR service is slow or nonexistent. 
Luminae is the place to be. 

You can’t get a drink anywhere. 
Everyone is drunk. 

Covid is rampant and everyone is quarantined. 
The bars and restaurants are packed. 
 

As for my wife and me, we’re sailing on Beyond in a week. I choose to follow @jelayne’s example and keep my glass half full. 

It is the best of times. 

[jelayne]

Just a update

We are on day 1 of 5 crossing the Atlantic.  Winds up to 55 knots, 17 ft waves, outside decks closed, production show rescheduled, lots of rocking, ship creaking, internet is hit or miss.  
A whole new set of things to complain about.  So far I have heard “how do they expect you to sleep if the ship keeps moving”. “No one told me when I booked that we would not be able to go outside, that’s just not right”

 

Announcement early this morning thevCaptain said the bad weather would slowly improve and by late tomorrow night it would be more like 9 ft waves and less wind.  He came on recently and said they were increasing the speed in order to get out of this weather and it should improve by mid day tomorrow.

 

We plan to spend the afternoon in our cabin sipping champagne, enjoying some cheese and crackers and playing some games. 

[hcat]

Hope the seas  calm down.. with smooth sailing ahead

 

Has anyone tried SPA services on board?

Who is the Captain,?  CD?

Will there be  switches in Pt Ev?

[jelayne]

2 minutes ago, hcat said:

Hope the seas  calm down.. with smooth sailing ahead

 

Has anyone tried SPA services on board?

Who is the Captain,?  CD?

Will there be  switches in Pt Ev?

Captain Demetrius 

CD Luigi

Kate & Bug on board but not working, probably on for the press and events surrounding the arrival.

Haven't tried the spa. 
There will be crew leaving in both Cape Liberty and Port Everglades as many have been on since March.  

[Texed]

26 minutes ago, jelayne said:

Just a update

We are on day 1 of 5 crossing the Atlantic.  

Jelayne,

We hope you have a wonderful crossing. We were on Beyond for the September 24th cruise.  We could tell there was a staff shortage. But, we had a wonderful cruise. 😎

[Redtravel]

Sadly, your experience is not limited to Celebrity.  There are supply shortages everywhere.  Getting experienced help is also a challenge.   Everywhere you go, there are signs looking for workers.  When I go food shopping, it’s amazing if I get most of my desired items.  The pandemic has changed the world.  Accept it.  We all remember prepandemic cruises and many expect pandemic cruises to be the same.  Sadly, it isn’t happening now. Maybe things will improve.  

[kwokpot]

2 hours ago, mfs2k said:

there’s damage everywhere.

Can you elaborate on this? I don't remember reading any accounts where there's mention of damage to the ship? 

[PTC DAWG]

1 hour ago, kwokpot said:

Can you elaborate on this? I don't remember reading any accounts where there's mention of damage to the ship? 

The sarcasm came through loud and clear to me.