Not very live from Beyond!

[OysterD]

Morning all, so I'm a bit late to the party here but figured with today being a sea day (it's day 7 already) I'd have a bit of time to put a few thoughts and pics together of the cruise so far. Also upgraded my Internet package yesterday so I can send photos and it's not quite as painfully slow!

 

One of my favourite things on here is reading trip reviews and live from threads, so only fair that I contribute something, even if I'm a little behind.

 

I'm traveling solo with two friends staying in the cabin next door. This is the second cruise we've done together after spending 11 nights on Reflection last year. As this is our first time on an E class ship, I'll be throwing a few comparisons to Reflection and pros and cons of both that we've encountered. 

 

We're staying in Aquaclass and have been/will be eating in Blu and specialty restaurants so won't be able to comment on any food in any of the MDR's. Just as a heads up, the food in Blu is just as good as it was last year, we've noticed no changes in menus or food quality. 

 

Itinerary:

 

Day 1 - Civitavecchia, Italy

Day 2 - Sea Day

Day 3 - Kotor, Montenegro

Day 4 - Dubrovnik, Croatia

Day 5 - Corfu, Greece

Day 6 - Katakolon, Greece

Day 7 - Sea Day

Day 8 - Messina, Sicily, Italy

Day 9 - Naples, Italy

Day 10 - Livorno, Italy

Day 11 - Civitavecchia, Italy

 

 

Ill try and update more through the day, if anyone has any questions about anything onboard feel free to chime in and I'll do my best to answer!

A

[BananaMama66]

Thank you for this @OysterD!!  Looking forward to your review as we will be doing this same itinerary next month. Cheers 🥂 

[Wirral Girlie]

Ooh fabulous, we are doing the same itinerary in a few weeks on 20th October and were also on Beyond last September and had an amazing time!

I'd also be interested to know about the ports and what you have done there. We have been to some of them before so just looking for some ideas.

Look forward to the rest 9f your review.

Thank you!

 

[hubofhockey]

Nice itinerary.  My fear on Edge class ships is that cities like Dubrovnik were moving away from the huge ships being allowed to dock there.  Kotor is another favorite.  Thanks for the news on Blu as we have aqua on Millennium in Japan next spring.  

[OysterD]

Day 1 - Embarkation 

 

We stayed the Sunday night in Rome, just a couple of blocks from the main Termini rail station. Originally booked tickets in advance for the train to Civitavecchia but for whatever reason we could only get tickets on the local train which stops at every station and takes much longer. We checked on the Sunday night and were able to get tickets on the express intercity train instead so did that. Turned up at Termini to be greeted with a board full of delayed trains but luckily ours was only running 10 mins late.

 

 

Arrived at Civitavecchia just before 11am and hailed a cab to take us to the port. Boarding process was quick and easy and we were onboard and on the way to our cabins on deck 9 within 15 mins. 

 

First impressions of the ship as we made our way up deck 9 were wow, she's a beauty! "Still smells new" was a comment from my friends and it does indeed look and smell like new still. 

 

 

 

 

Cabin is fantastic and a definite step up from the slightly dated ones we had on Reflection. The infinite veranda/window is fine for me, I love that the room feels so much bigger, lighter and with a clearer view out. With the window down it feels to me at least much like a regular balcony. However, I will say my friends in the cabin next door don't like it quite as much - one is an early riser while the other likes to sleep in longer. She realised early on that it was impossible to sit on the veranda, close the bifold doors and raise the blind without waking her partner up, and he can be a bit crabby first thing! 

 

The only other downside is the inability to open up the partitions between balconies which we did on Reflection. It was nice last year for one of us to go grab teas and coffees in the morning and sit on our enlarged balconies for a bit first thing. However, we also had hump balconies last year which made it even better, not sure we would have spent as long on them if they had been regular size. Also last year we were much closer to the nearest place to grab a coffee (right by elevators, 2 decks away from the spa cafe), this year we're quite a trek down the corridor, not sure we'd be taking drinks and pastries back to our rooms even if we could sit on our balconies together. 

 

Bathroom is stunning and a decent size. The heated mirror (which our cabin attendant told us was only a feature in AQ cabins) really works a treat. 

 

Overall, I don't think having a real balcony vs the IV ones on E class ships would sway our decision for future cruises. There are pros and cons and we don't think it's that much of an issue to really factor into future plans. 

 

For me, the Beyond IV cabin takes a win over the Reflection cabins as they currently are. Maybe once they're updated one day, some day, it will be a closer competition. My friends are undecided. Our first thing in the morning tea and coffee sessions are now downstairs outside Eden, whenever we are all awake and conscious! 

[RichYak]

Nice to see two sides--both reasonably presented--of the IV debate in a single live post. Well done. Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

[Texed]

We will be on board, hopefully, for the transatlantic.  We are looking forward to sailing Beyond again.  So, thanks for posting.  😊 

[OysterD]

Day 1 - Finding our way around 

 

So I previously mentioned the ship is beautiful. It is. Everything is new, the design and artwork is all stunning, a lot of thought has gone into making the ship look and feel very upscale. However, after looking past how amazing it looks, on the first day (actually probably couple of days) our thoughts turned to whether or not they had a ruler available when designing it...we frequently ran into dead ends, got lost, had no idea how to get from A to B or just couldn't understand why something was where it was! I will say, after a week onboard, it's become a lot easier. But I guess the ship design and layout doesn't quite flow as well as Reflection does. 

 

We all miss the glass elevators and atrium which runs from deck 3 to the top of the ship. The grand atrium on Beyond, while fantastic, doesn't feel as big. 

 

 

 

So we had paid for a 4 night dining package when it was on sale, after having a brief wander around the ship we headed to Eden to make a few bookings. We managed to get Eden for that first night and Le Voyage for night 6 and figured we'd decide the rest as we go.

 

We also asked about the magic carpet dinner. I was pretty sure it wasn't includes in the dining package but the guy we spoke to outside Oceanview said yes we could use it however it was booked up but he would put us on the waitlist. Pleasantly surprised we were even more surprised to find later that day that the booking had appeared in the app for us all but said payment was due at the venue.

 

Long story short, we spoke with several more staff and got different answers from everyone! Guest services finally got the Maitre D to come and talk to us and he confirmed that we were not booked on it (even though it was showing on our apps as booked) and it was not included in the dining packages. As way of an apology for the confusion and miscommunication he gave us a free lunch at Le Grand Bistro, so we were happy with that 🙂

 

After a few drinks at various bars we retired to our rooms to unpack and get ready for the evening.

 

This might take a little longer to catch up, turns out this sea day was a bit busier than just sitting around doing nothing all day! 

[minger]

Glad to see a current review as we will be on it in April, also Aquaclass Deck 9

  

[Diane Rose]

Thank you!  We are looking forward to sailing her on the TA next month.

 

Diane

[breezin101]

On the same cruise in Aqua as well and having a great time. Ship is packed and super active in the evenings. We were on the Beyond's inaugural cruise last year and she is just as stunning today.

 

Blu has not disappointed. Bistro for lunch was a letdown. But Eden, Fine Cut and Rooftop were great as usual. Think Rooftop is my favorite. Have Raw on 5 tonight after our day in Sicily.

 

The shows have been absolutely wonderful. The level of performance you can get on a cruise ship these days is mind blowing.

 

Having a great time!

[OysterD]

Day 1 - Evening and Eden

 

Booked into Eden for 8pm and I'd been quite looking forward to eating here. It didn't disappoint. Food and service were excellent. Love the open kitchen and seeing the chefs prepare the food.  Watching them use fine tweezers to delicately arrange food on the plates somewhat puts my cooking skills of slapping the food from pan to plate with a big spoon to shame!

 

 

We had originally asked for a table by the windows but realised that was somewhat pointless at the time we were eating as it was pitch black outside, so asked to switch to a table by the kitchen. Much better! 

 

 

 

Dinner was great, service was excellent. Followed up by a few cocktails and then grabbed some seats on the upper deck of Eden to watch the 'Decadence' show. Production cast did a great job and put on a good show, very enjoyable!

 

 

 

Off to bed to discover they are still leaving mini chocs on the pillows!

 

[OysterD]

Slight interruption to the normal (slow) programming for some live views from the ship... 

 

 

 

 

We're currently sailing north past Stromboli, a tiny volcanic island off the coast of Italy. Apparently its always in a state of eruption but not always as visible as it is tonight. It was also lightning in the background but I couldn't manage to capture that at the same time! Certainly added to the already surreal view! 

[OysterD]

Day 2 - Sea Day

 

Let me try and get a bit of catching up done...

 

Work was stupidly busy for me in the weeks leading up to the cruise, I didn't manage to get my hair cut before we left so on day 1 I went to the spa and booked myself a mens hair cut for 930am on day 2.  I'd checked online before hand and saw a price of I think £34 listed. A bit more than the £15 I normally pay back home for a cut that normally takes a half hour, but ah well, I thought it would be a wash and cut and take a while. Nope. 15 mins later I was done and somehow the bill came to $62. Just like last year when I had a spa treatment and the bill was way more than anticipated, I vowed never to use the spa again and went on my way! Sorry but $62 for a 15 min long, dry mens hair cut is ridiculous.

 

Met up with friends in The Club for the escape room event. It was nice to see quite a few people turned up for it and we were split off into teams of 10, I think 5 or 6 teams total. Basically each team received a box, a series of clues to get in the box and once in the box, had to solve a number of other clues to ultimately race to open the main big box on stage. We didn't win but it was good fun anyway!

 

Off to Eden for a cocktail and a bit of hanging around in the swingy egg chairs looking out at the wake.

 

 

 

Followed up by lunch at Eden Cafe, salad and sandwiches. Most sandwiches at Eden are free (and delicious), but there were 2 or 3 'premium' ones with a $9 charge which seemed a bit penny pinching tbh. 

 

 

 

There may or may not have been an afternoon nap, but that's what holidays are for, right?! 

 

Somehow it got to half seven and we headed to the theatre for an intro from cap'n Kate plus the evenings production show - Stage Door. The theatre is impressive in itself and then you add in the talented production cast and you have a great show. It was also really nice to see the theatre pretty much full. Granted the ship is sailing at pretty much capacity I believe, but last year on Reflection which was at around 60% capacity, the theatre always seemed less than half full which was a shame. 

 

 

 

 

 

That massive screen is seriously impressive. Also loved the lack of pillars so you had a great view from pretty much anywhere. 

 

Dinner in Blu after the show, forgot to take pics and can't remember what we had tbh! It was good, and service was OK.  We caught the end of the silent disco and were going to go watch the jazz joint in the Club but due to tech issues they had to cancel it. Couple of drinks and then bed!

[Bejay219]

5 minutes ago, OysterD said:

 

Followed up by lunch at Eden Cafe, salad and sandwiches. Most sandwiches at Eden are free (and delicious), but there were 2 or 3 'premium' ones with a $9 charge which seemed a bit penny pinching tbh. 

 

 

 

Please correct me if things have changed.... We have never seen anything at Lunch at Eden Cafe being "up charged" on any "Edge Class" ship, have sailed them all!  Two or three Premium sandwiches $9.00 extra?!? 

[Diane Rose]

Wondering…..what exactly is the Jazz Joint?

[OysterD]

29 minutes ago, Bejay219 said:

Please correct me if things have changed.... We have never seen anything at Lunch at Eden Cafe being "up charged" on any "Edge Class" ship, have sailed them all!  Two or three Premium sandwiches $9.00 extra?!? 

Yep I'm afraid so. Just checked menu on the app too, turns out one of them (lobster roll) is actually $14! 

 

[OysterD]

24 minutes ago, Diane Rose said:

Wondering…..what exactly is the Jazz Joint?

I'm afraid I can't answer that one yet as it was cancelled the night we wanted to see it. They said they'd try and reschedule for later in the cruise and it looks like it should be on tomorrow night now, hopefully we'll get there and find out for you!

[vickykay]

Dinner at Eden looks yummy. We’re booked for Eden next Sept on the Ascent.   What did you order?

[OysterD]

3 minutes ago, vickykay said:

Dinner at Eden looks yummy. We’re booked for Eden next Sept on the Ascent.   What did you order?

It was yummy! 

 

Appetisers we had the bazaar bowl, tandoori beef and I think either the risotto or gnocchi and then we got the shrimp and the crab cake for the middle of the table.

 

For mains it was the salmon, lobster casserole and I had the filet and short rib Wellington and we got the roasted chicken for the middle to share. All were delicious but I'm glad I ordered what I did!

[hcat]

1 hour ago, OysterD said:

Yep I'm afraid so. Just checked menu on the app too, turns out one of them (lobster roll) is actually $14! 

 

sheer greed!

[Cap_D]

39 minutes ago, hcat said:

sheer greed!

Ridiculous!  

[jelayne]

2 hours ago, OysterD said:

Yep I'm afraid so. Just checked menu on the app too, turns out one of them (lobster roll) is actually $14! 

 

The included sandwiches were great.  I would not expect a good lobster roll or prime rib sandwich to be no charge options.  

[jelayne]

2 hours ago, Bejay219 said:

Please correct me if things have changed.... We have never seen anything at Lunch at Eden Cafe being "up charged" on any "Edge Class" ship, have sailed them all!  Two or three Premium sandwiches $9.00 extra?!? 

These are new options that weren’t offered previously.  

[lv2cruisgrl]

If guests don't pay, it will go away!