LIVE! -- Dragon of the Seas goes to the Beyond and Back, October 26-Novemeber 4

[DragonOfTheSeas]

 

Join DH and I on our journey on the Celebrity Beyond from Bayonne, NJ to Fort Lauderdale, FL. The Beyond is Celebrity’s newest ship and this is its first voyage for the United States.  I have seen pictures of the ship from its Med cruises this summer.  The décor is stunning, and I can’t wait to see it. 

 

We are veteran cruisers.  This will be our 37^th cruise.  However, most of the time we sail on Royal Caribbean. With a screen name like Dragon of the Seas I bet you already guessed that.  And, one of the things I will do is highlight a few similarities and differences between the two.  This will be our 7^th Celebrity cruise on three different ships; however, they were widely spaced voyages.  So, I do not feel like a veteran on Celebrity at all.

 

This cruise is a replacement for a 2021 Mardi Gras cruise.  We sailed on the first Celebrity Mardi Gras cruise 4 yrs ago and had a great time.  We were really bummed to miss out on the 2021 cruise.  But we are excited to sail on this new ship.

 

This is the itinerary. 

Another roll call member [PinkSandGirl] is doing a live thread from the perspective of a suite guest.  Her thread has lots of good general cruise information, too.  You can find it here: "LIVE" from Celebrity BEYOND. October 26th, 2022. 9-Night Repositioning. 1st Sailing from the USA. - Celebrity Cruises - Cruise Critic Community

 

Our trip will be a little more blue collar.  DH and I are sailing in a Panoramic Oceanview cabin on deck 6.  It is listed as 10% obstructed. We booked about 10 months ago and the choices were limited. This sailing sold out many of the categories quickly—and the price kept creeping up. 

[PinkSandGirl]

Hi!  Yay!  It is Cruise Day.  🥳

 

Between the both of us, Cruise Critic members will be sure to learn alot.  

 

See you onboard!  Not long now!

 

Kelly 😃

PinkSandGirl 

🍹

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Just now, PinkSandGirl said:

Hi!  Yay!  It is Cruise Day.  🥳

 

Between the both of us, Cruise Critic members will be sure to learn alot.  

 

See you onboard!  Not long now!

 

Kelly 😃

PinkSandGirl 

🍹

You have all of the great information!  We will see you soon.  

[DragonOfTheSeas]

When we got up this morning it did not look much like cruise weather.  This is a view from our hotel window. 

 

 

 

The fog created havoc for many passengers trying to fly into the Newark airport [EWR] yesterday.  I hope there are not lots of passengers trying to fly in this morning. Ugh!

 

We took the train from BWI to EWR.  Our DD lives in Maryland and dropped us off at the Amtrak station adjacent to BWI. We took a Northeast regional train for 2.5 hours at a cost of $63 for the two of us.  We were able to roll our luggage on the train with us and quickly catch the airtrain to the hotel shuttle pick up location when we arrived at EWR.  I would do this again if we sail from Bayonne. It was cheap, fast, and convenient.

 

We stayed the night at the Doubletree Airport hotel.  The shuttle arrived almost as soon as we arrived at the drop off location. It is a modern hotel and has indoor and outdoor pools.  We did not use them.  Breakfast was very good and as a Hilton Honors Diamond member DH and I each got a $15 food credit.  But, we are just outside of NYC and breakfast for the two of us was $60. 😆 Hahaha

 

Our cruise check in time today is 11am. That is the first available and I think many on our roll call are boarding at the same time.  We are going to take an Uber.  It will be my first time reserving an Uber.  Wish me luck. . . So I will see you onboard.

[Jim_Iain]

Looking forward to your Live Post.    Hope the fog lifts and you have a wonderful sail away. 

[Susanb10567]

Have a wonderful cruise…not booked for the Beyond until 2024 but looking forward to a preview 

[Stem to Stern]

I am following along with you.  I really enjoyed what you started off with.  I am looking forward to reading the perspective of a seasoned cruiser who is not a Celebrity loyalist as many of us are on this board.  I would love to see pics of your panoramic ocean view stateroom with 10% obstruction.  I am also interested in your E-Class dining selections among the multitude of included and for-fee venues that you have to choose from on board Beyond.  Bon voyage.  Paul

[julia]

Wishing you a great cruise!! 

We'll be boarding on Nov 8th, so will be following this thread closely!

[mfs2k]

Kat and I are onboard with you.  Looking forward to your live posts. Hope to meet you at the sailaway. 

-Michael. 

[Smmessineo]

@DragonOfTheSeasThanks for letting us sail along with you!

I agree with you on the Mardi Gras cruises. We were on Reflection for Mardi Gras 2020. Loved it !!!!  Sailing up the Mississippi and  spending  days docked in New Orleans so you can experience the incredible parades ...just wow! 

I am also curious about your comparison of Royal to Celebrity. We love X and have never tried Royal Caribbean.

 

Edited October 26, 2022 by Smmessineo

[DELTABLUE]

Beyond excited to be cruising with you again, if only virtually.  Have a great time.  Will be happily following along.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Well, we made it!  😊

 

We took an Uber from our hotel this morning.  The fare from the Doubletree was $18 + tip.  The driver was great and he got a fat tip.  

 

DH has had Parkinson's for years and has done fine with his symptoms.  However, lately he has some mobility issues if he walks too far.  We signed up for wheelchair assistance to get him onto the ship.  When we arrived at the port [10:40 am] we were directed to the Retreat line and a seating area set aside for people who needed assistance.  It was a long wait. [over an hour] We are glad we waited because getting on the ship involved walking the length of the terminal, across another length of hall, taking an escalator or elevator and then a ramp onto the ship.  

 

Since the Beyond arrived in NYC 2 days ago all of the cabins were ready when we arrived.  That was a very nice touch.  

 

 

Here is our cabin.  It is very sleek, modern and elegant.  From the bed area you do not see the obstruction at all.  You need to be near the window.

 

This is the view from our window.  This is standing right beside it and looking down.   The obstruction is clearly visible.  Sitting on the sofa it is not a big deal. It really does not bother us.  I often sit on the bed to read or just chill and you can't see it from there at all. I love the big window.  It makes the cabin so bright. There were no unobstructed Panoramic Oceanview cabins available when we booked.  So, I am glad we took this one. YMMV.  I will add the cabins forward of ours on deck six--6129 have a much more obstructed view. 

 

 

I will make sure the pictures are bigger next time.  

 

Edit: The weather is improving. The Captain just announced he was going to sail around the Statue of Liberty as we leave.  This is not always done.  I will get some pictures. 🙂

 

 

Edited October 26, 2022 by DragonOfTheSeas

[mac_tlc]

6 hours ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

 

Join DH and I on our journey on the Celebrity Beyond from Bayonne, NJ to Fort Lauderdale, FL. The Beyond is Celebrity’s newest ship and this is its first voyage for the United States.  I have seen pictures of the ship from its Med cruises this summer.  The décor is stunning, and I can’t wait to see it. 

 

We are veteran cruisers.  This will be our 37^th cruise.  However, most of the time we sail on Royal Caribbean. With a screen name like Dragon of the Seas I bet you already guessed that.  And, one of the things I will do is highlight a few similarities and differences between the two.  This will be our 7^th Celebrity cruise on three different ships; however, they were widely spaced voyages.  So, I do not feel like a veteran on Celebrity at all.

 

This cruise is a replacement for a 2021 Mardi Gras cruise.  We sailed on the first Celebrity Mardi Gras cruise 4 yrs ago and had a great time.  We were really bummed to miss out on the 2021 cruise.  But we are excited to sail on this new ship.

 

This is the itinerary. 

Another roll call member [PinkSandGirl] is doing a live thread from the perspective of a suite guest.  Her thread has lots of good general cruise information, too.  You can find it here: "LIVE" from Celebrity BEYOND. October 26th, 2022. 9-Night Repositioning. 1st Sailing from the USA. - Celebrity Cruises - Cruise Critic Community

 

Our trip will be a little more blue collar.  DH and I are sailing in a Panoramic Oceanview cabin on deck 6.  It is listed as 10% obstructed. We booked about 10 months ago and the choices were limited. This sailing sold out many of the categories quickly—and the price kept creeping up. 

Interested in your comparison to Royal. We have done 20+ Royal cruises but lately have leaned towards Celebriy, as you can see in my signature😂.

 

mac_tlc

[Barwick Cruiser]

Very glad you are onboard and are happy with your cabin. Def not for me, need a proper balcony, but many do like these infinite verandas. We have a sunset veranda booked on Edge in ‘24 and I’m looking forward to the 4 dining rooms so hope you cover them during your voyage as well as any other dining venues that are available to the non-suite passengers. 
 

Curious as to the visible obstruction in your picture…what is that? Thanks and enjoy every minute of your holiday! 

[hcat]

BON  VOYAGE!

Now we have 2 live from blogs to keep us busy..we are sailing BEYOND NOV 8th.  

 

We have sailed on EDGE in an Inf Balc in AQ Class  and BLU, and a Sunset Veranda with the 4 mdrs...will be fun to compare all the options.

[Ipeeinthepools]

Enjoy your trip.

[kwokpot]

1 hour ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

Well, we made it!  😊

 

We took an Uber from our hotel this morning.  The fare from the Doubletree was $18 + tip.  The driver was great and he got a fat tip.  

 

DH has had Parkinson's for years and has done fine with his symptoms.  However, lately he has some mobility issues if he walks too far.  We signed up for wheelchair assistance to get him onto the ship.  When we arrived at the port [10:40 am] we were directed to the Retreat line and a seating area set aside for people who needed assistance.  It was a long wait. [over an hour] We are glad we waited because getting on the ship involved walking the length of the terminal, across another length of hall, taking an escalator or elevator and then a ramp onto the ship.  

 

Since the Beyond arrived in NYC 2 days ago all of the cabins were ready when we arrived.  That was a very nice touch.  

 

 

Here is our cabin.  It is very sleek, modern and elegant.  From the bed area you do not see the obstruction at all.  You need to be near the window.

 

This is the view from our window.  This is standing right beside it and looking down.   The obstruction is clearly visible.  Sitting on the sofa it is not a big deal. It really does not bother us.  I often sit on the bed to read or just chill and you can't see it from there at all. I love the big window.  It makes the cabin so bright. There were no unobstructed Panoramic Oceanview cabins available when we booked.  So, I am glad we took this one. YMMV.  I will add the cabins forward of ours on deck six--6129 have a much more obstructed view. 

 

 

I will make sure the pictures are bigger next time.  

 

Edit: The weather is improving. The Captain just announced he was going to sail around the Statue of Liberty as we leave.  This is not always done.  I will get some pictures. 🙂

 

 

Booo. The fog rolled in and Statue 🗽 cruise by cancelled. 😥

[PistolPete13]

2 hours ago, kwokpot said:

Booo. The fog rolled in and Statue 🗽 cruise by cancelled. 😥

It rolled in thick!  Was hoping to get a view of the ship going past the Verrazano bridge but no go.  Have a great cruise!

[lola2013]

Following along…it will be fun reading two reviews of the same cruise!
Bon Voyage 

Susan

[DragonOfTheSeas]

One thing I decided I liked immediately was the colors of the elevators when they arrive at your floor. If the elevator is going up it has a green light around it if it’s going down it has a red light.

 

 

I often found on Royal Caribbean ships that if I was in an area that was very noisy an elevator would arrive and I wouldn’t even hear the ding and would miss it. 
 

Of course the elevators were still crazy busy today. They were much better by this evening. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Our roll-call met at the Sunset bar starting at 3:15 for sail away. On the way I passed the magic carpet. This hall leads to the magic carpet and it has a very interesting architecture.

 

 

This is the entrance to the Magic Carpet

 

You can have dinner or drinks here. The magic carpet hangs off the side of the ship. If we had tendering on this cruise that would be the boarding area with the magic carpet in the down position. It only goes up and down one time a day. 

 

it seems like a little bit of a gimmick to me. I’ll have to check it out later in the week and see if I think it’s interesting. i’m sure you have a incredible view from there. 

[hcat]

24 minutes ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

Our roll-call met at the Sunset bar starting at 3:15 for sail away. On the way I passed the magic carpet. This hall leads to the magic carpet and it has a very interesting architecture.

 

 

This is the entrance to the Magic Carpet

 

You can have dinner or drinks here. The magic carpet hangs off the side of the ship. If we had tendering on this cruise that would be the boarding area with the magic carpet in the down position. It only goes up and down one time a day. 

 

it seems like a little bit of a gimmick to me. I’ll have to check it out later in the week and see if I think it’s interesting. i’m sure you have a incredible view from there. 

Great spot for a morning Bellini!

[nimiq]

Very interested as will be on this ship November 20th. 
‘Thanks fo sharing.

‘Sea ya 

‘Eric

[davekathy]

1 hour ago, hcat said:

Great spot for a morning Bellini!

Looking at that view makes me think one Bellini to many. 🥂

[countess5]

Following along, two different perspectives of the ship. We board in February for a B2B so your views and thoughts will be appreciated. 

 

By the way we love the Magic Carpet to play cards and just relax. Only observation ( as everywhere on the ship) getting up out of the seats is a challenge! 😂. Not sure what they were thinking with the seating… 🤔

 

Cheers!