Eclipse to Alaska review, May 28, 2023

[Alsmez]

We just returned from a fantastic 7-night Alaska cruise on the Celebrity Eclipse, and I wanted to take a moment and share my thoughts with my fellow Cruise Critics! This was our 6^th Celebrity cruise and our first since the restart, plus our first-ever trip to Alaska. Our last one was on Summit in 2019, and we were thrilled to be back on the S-class and exploring a new-to-us ship (previously sailed Equinox, Silhouette and Reflection). We're now in our mid-late 40s and have witnessed a lot of changes in X over the years since our first cruise in 2011 – some good, some bad – but nothing could detract from Alaska’s magnificence. Even with post-pandemic cutbacks, this was one of our favorite cruises to date. Here’s the skinny:

 

EMBARKATION: Smooth other than a long line at customs. We arrived at 11:30 (our pre-arranged “wellness check” arrival time) to find that no one cared about that pre-arrangement – it was a free-for-all. Customs took about an hour and a half, everything else took 15 mins or less, and we were on the ship by about 1:15. I was bummed that they cut the welcome champagne, but I do like the new practice of proceeding directly to your room to drop bags and get Seapass cards.

 

THE SHIP: Despite some age-related wear and tear, Eclipse is still a beautiful and elegant ship. We love exploring the vast array of artwork on S-class ships and were delighted to discover some beautiful pieces on Eclipse – maybe my favorite collection across the entire S-class fleet. Public areas were clean and tidy. She could use a refresh but I didn’t notice any issues that affected our cruise in any way. Crew was great across the board.

 

CABIN: Sunset Veranda 6315, port side of center. Our first SV but not our last – it was a great room and a perfect location for AK (though I might hesitate to book one in the Caribbean due to lack of shade). Beds were firm but reasonably comfortable, though my side sloped away from the middle, causing me to almost roll out a time or two. Pillows were too small and very limp – luckily, our lovely steward was able to track down two extra king-sized pillows for our use, which improved things dramatically. No sheers on the windows, but no other problems.

 

POOLS/OUTDOOR AREAS: It was pretty cold throughout our cruise so no one used the outdoor pools. The outdoor hot tubs were always taken when we walked by, though, and the Solarium was typically packed (frequently with children, even outside of family hours, which I find very annoying). The lawn and Sunset deck were definitely in use but not terribly busy – we spent quite a bit of time up there playing bags and enjoying the view from the bar when the wind/rain allowed.

 

FOOD/DRINK: I posted a separate, extensive review of all of the dining venues and bars we patronized onboard: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2942993-celebrity-eclipse-dining-review-may-28-2023-sailing To recap briefly, we’re not big on the MDR and ate mostly in specialty restaurants and the buffet. The buffet was actually better than I expected, but the post-pandemic cuts are noticeable elsewhere, even specialty restaurants (especially Murano). Liquor selection was fine but wine was ABYSMAL, another very obvious cutback.

 

ENTERTAINMENT/LECTURES: We loved having a naturalist on board, and Michaela did a great job educating us about whales (of which we saw many right off the ship!). We are professional classical musicians and were largely unimpressed by the entertainment, but that’s not unusual. The production shows ranged from odd but not terrible (Topper) to truly awful (Amade). There were a couple of small ensembles and soloists we enjoyed, but not much else. Trivia was fine, the comedian was good for a few laughs, and beyond that we just concentrated on Alaska!

 

CASINO/SHOPPING: We’re not really gamblers but we played video poker one afternoon – good way to lose $20 and an hour of your life. The casino seemed quieter than we’ve experienced on other cruises, probably due to the itinerary. Shops were also relatively quiet except during the big flash sales. Selection was similar to what we’ve seen on other S-class ships.  

 

PORTS: Alaska is just amazing, period. We arranged our own excursions except for the Hubbard Glacier small boat expedition offered exclusively by Celebrity. This was pricey but TOTALLY worth it – we got vastly closer than the ship could and saw tons of calving. Incredible. Our excursions in Juneau (helicopter ride to a dog sled camp on Herbert Glacier) and Ketchikan (UTV off-roading to Mahoney Lake) were also fantastic. We went whale watching in ISP and that was a bit of a letdown, but it really depends on the day’s whale activity. I loved the itinerary overall but will probably look for a cruise that goes to Skagway and/or Glacier Bay (possibly a one-way from Anchorage) next time to explore some new areas. Also, after seeing the inside passage, I have no interest in a Seattle round-trip – Vancouver all the way! Stunning scenery as well as an opportunity to visit a really cool city.

 

DISEMBARKATION: Painless for the most part. We were in a later group (9:05) and just waited in the buffet until it was time to go. Luggage area was well marked and easy to navigate. There was a bit of a wait to hand in our customs cards, but once that was over we quickly got out of Canada Place (had to lug our suitcases up the exit ramp but that was FAR preferable to waiting for the single elevator), walked a couple of blocks to the rideshare pickup area and called a car. I think we were at the airport by 10:30 or so.

 

CONCLUSION: We remain fans of X and the S-class but I sincerely hope they take steps to remedy some of the issues caused by their cost saving measures, especially with respect to dining and wine. We’d happily sail Eclipse again, but we’re looking at the E-class for a change of pace for our next X cruise and also considering other lines that may offer a better dining experience.

[SFCAcruiser]

Thank you for your comments here, and in your dining reviews. Although I have cruised to Alaska a couple of times, I enjoyed seeing your perspectives and ideas for shore excursions.

Also, I much appreciate your format - paragraphs with headings. Easy to read and this format would be a model for other posters, IMHO. 

[TraderSam]

Thanks you for the informative review. 👍🏻

We board next week so shall see for ourselves. 

[CaliB]

4 hours ago, TraderSam said:

We board next week so shall see for ourselves

We're cruising next week as well.

[Alsmez]

Enjoy, TraderSam and CaliB! I'm sure you will have a wonderful trip (and hopefully some warmer weather).

[Northern Aurora]

20 hours ago, Alsmez said:

......

 

EMBARKATION: Smooth other than a long line at customs. We arrived at 11:30 (our pre-arranged “wellness check” arrival time) to find that no one cared about that pre-arrangement – it was a free-for-all. Customs took about an hour and a half, everything else took 15 mins or less, and we were on the ship by about 1:15. I was bummed that they cut the welcome champagne, but I do like the new practice of proceeding directly to your room to drop bags and get Seapass cards.

.....

 

Glad that you enjoyed your first visit to our special state.  

 

But just a quick comment regarding the embarkation sparkling wine.  I was on the Eclipse on a B2B2B2B this spring, leaving the ship on April 19th.  On all four of the turnaround days there was a tray with glasses of sparkling wine sitting on the Cafe al Bacio counter available to be picked up.  Generally the Cafe al Bacio folks kept four or five glasses on that tray.  People were free to just pick up a glass.  This practice has happened on other Celebrity ships as well.  Did you ask about the embarkation sparkling wine?

[Alsmez]

1 minute ago, Northern Aurora said:

On all four of the turnaround days there was a tray with glasses of sparkling wine sitting on the Cafe al Bacio counter available to be picked up.  Generally the Cafe al Bacio folks kept four or five glasses on that tray.  People were free to just pick up a glass.  This practice has happened on other Celebrity ships as well.  Did you ask about the embarkation sparkling wine?

 

Interesting! I didn't ask, and as it happens we headed directly up the stairs to our room on 6 when we embarked and didn't even turn toward Bacio. The entryway was crowded with people asking about where their Seapasses were, etc., so we wanted to get out of there ASAP! I'll keep that in mind on our next sailing. They did have a group of staff members dancing on the gangway and shouting welcome as we walked in, however - cute if you're into that sort of thing but definitely not my style and IMO not really harmonious with X's "modern luxury" positioning. 🤷‍♀️