Celebrity Constellation Refurb 2024? Is this a nice ship?

[mjlajames]

On 4/20/2024 at 7:22 AM, Ex-Airbalancer said:

Already posted #40 & #46 

Did the cabin washrooms get shower doors during the refurb ?

[Ex-Airbalancer]

9 minutes ago, mjlajames said:

Did the cabin washrooms get shower doors during the refurb ?

What difference does it make 🤔 

we use a shower curtain at home so I couldn’t care if it was changed 

all I care about is a clean shower , hot water, soap and a clean towel 😁🤣

 

[mjlajames]

1 hour ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

What difference does it make 🤔 

we use a shower curtain at home so I couldn’t care if it was changed 

all I care about is a clean shower , hot water, soap and a clean towel 😁🤣

 

Doesn't make a difference. Just curious. Summit has glass

 

[wrk2cruise]

Based on the list published above I would say no.   Looks like the staterooms are getting some general maintenance only.  Only mention of shower doors is to re-silicone them as there are shower doors in the upper suites.

 

The sunset suites are a joke.  That is not a suite bathroom!  1 sink, small shower, no tub and still the same small space.

 

Especially since they generally price them somewhere between a CS and RS.

[artvlay]

Hopefully there will be photos posted showing updates.

[flyerbrp]

Just walked off the Constellation in Revenna and boarded our bus to Venice Airport. This was 10 Day Rome to Ravenna.From start to end the cruise was fabulous. We are Elite status so we have been on many ships. On this cruise we were in a Veranda cabin deck 6. Absolutely no complaints. We sometimes sail Aqua or Concierge so we have a little perspective. To answer the question about shower curtains, yes no door in our cabin. 
The food in main dining was very good. Never a bad meal but food is always subjective. Our servers were absolutely top notch and in many respects the whole experience rivaled or exceeded Blu. 
The entertainment was over the moon based on several past cruises. From Domenick Allen to Rikki Jay, Lifford Shillingford, Leanne Mitchell and Roy Tan the theater shows were superb. 
Ports were awesome albeit very very crowded. Two tender ports but handled efficiently. I don’t like tendering but I don’t fret over things I can’t control. We did excursions pretty much every port. I would be happy to answer individual questions. 
Embarkation and debarkation were seem less, flawless and absolutely no delays. Absolutely no line getting off on on to the transfer bus for the 3 hour ride to Venice. Several ports are very far from city centers etc but shuttle buses were provided. Again I don’t fret what I can’t control. Several ports are actually unwalkable. 
The ship is beautiful. It was clean but the actual refurbishment was limited to common space. Cabins were not refurbished so our while very clean showed signs of aging. Again very clean and our attendant did a great job of keeping it clean for us. We used the laundry service for the first time ever and it is something we will do from now on.

And for you Blue Chip members the casino was very generous to us and thanks to Jasmine for keeping the casino fun. 

[Djptcp]

DH and I sailed on the Constellation in March, before the refurbishment. It needed a lot of it but none of that would change the unfriendly crew and officers nor the mediocre food. Bar waiters on Deck 10 were snarky and we constantly had to wave them down for service. We are 4* Mariners on Holland America and enjoy the HAL ships' friendly crew and officers, the wonderful food, and the beautiful ships. We are also Diamonds on Carnival and even those cruises, those without a lot of kids, have better food and friendly crew. This was our first and last Celebrity cruise.

[m8zenblue]

2 hours ago, Djptcp said:

DH and I sailed on the Constellation in March, before the refurbishment. It needed a lot of it but none of that would change the unfriendly crew and officers nor the mediocre food. Bar waiters on Deck 10 were snarky and we constantly had to wave them down for service. We are 4* Mariners on Holland America and enjoy the HAL ships' friendly crew and officers, the wonderful food, and the beautiful ships. We are also Diamonds on Carnival and even those cruises, those without a lot of kids, have better food and friendly crew. This was our first and last Celebrity cruise.

Lol, you seem a bit entitled, never had an issue on the Constellation with rude/unfriendly crew, maybe you should stay on HAL.

[sasset]

Have you been in a sunset suite since the drydock?

[Nachosdelux]

4 hours ago, m8zenblue said:

Lol, you seem a bit entitled, never had an issue on the Constellation with rude/unfriendly crew, maybe you should stay on HAL.

uncalled for.

 

 Just because YOU never had an issue on Connie, doesn't mean someone else can't.

 

BTW, if someone says they enjoy Carnival, I would not call them entitled.

 

Also - go Bucks!

 

Edited May 3 by Nachosdelux

[the wandering two]

6 hours ago, Djptcp said:

DH and I sailed on the Constellation in March, before the refurbishment. It needed a lot of it but none of that would change the unfriendly crew and officers nor the mediocre food. Bar waiters on Deck 10 were snarky and we constantly had to wave them down for service. We are 4* Mariners on Holland America and enjoy the HAL ships' friendly crew and officers, the wonderful food, and the beautiful ships. We are also Diamonds on Carnival and even those cruises, those without a lot of kids, have better food and friendly crew. This was our first and last Celebrity cruise.

Couldn't disagree more, we were on the transatlantic prior to dry dock, fantastic crew/bar staff/officers, always visible and available for a chat,

Captain very present and involved in many of the events.

Had no issues with food quality or condition of the ship, given its age, well above any comparable Royal Carribbean vessel.

Variety of entertainers outstanding. 

[m8zenblue]

19 hours ago, Nachosdelux said:

uncalled for.

 

 Just because YOU never had an issue on Connie, doesn't mean someone else can't.

 

BTW, if someone says they enjoy Carnival, I would not call them entitled.

 

Also - go Bucks!

 

I think most would say entitled !

[Ex-Airbalancer]

On 5/3/2024 at 11:16 AM, Djptcp said:

This was our first and last Celebrity cruise.

If that was your last Celebrity cruise why are you on this section of the forum 🤔

[retired dude]

we are booked on the "connie" this nov 24' and after sailing on her many times, we like the ship and her sailing out of our hometown----tampa is a real perk..Only down side after the dry dock was the fact that the balcony cabins on deck 7 &8 were barely touched in the process...We despise shower curtains and as we use the our balcony alot, they needed to be spruced up and that did not happen. In reading the thoughts of people that have sailed on her since the dry dock it seems that they upgraded the public areas and left many of the cabins as is...I guess if the ships are sailing at near capacity, corporate probably feels that they don't need to address the cabins...On a recent cruise on her the shower curtain in our cabin was filthy and had shrunk and allowed the water to flood our bathroom. I asked our great cabin attendant for a new curtain and it took her several hours to get one, but she got it done...She got a nice tip!!!!!. As far a entertainment, customer service, bar  and mdr service, it does not get any better...Food has gone downhill, but according to the food and beverage folks at corp that is not going to get any better..I guess that keeps us from gaining any weight while sailing with celebrity...bottom line, still better than ncl, carnival, rccl & princess,  and we will stay loyal customers of celebrity.

[m8zenblue]

3 hours ago, retired dude said:

we are booked on the "connie" this nov 24' and after sailing on her many times, we like the ship and her sailing out of our hometown----tampa is a real perk..Only down side after the dry dock was the fact that the balcony cabins on deck 7 &8 were barely touched in the process...We despise shower curtains and as we use the our balcony alot, they needed to be spruced up and that did not happen. In reading the thoughts of people that have sailed on her since the dry dock it seems that they upgraded the public areas and left many of the cabins as is...I guess if the ships are sailing at near capacity, corporate probably feels that they don't need to address the cabins...On a recent cruise on her the shower curtain in our cabin was filthy and had shrunk and allowed the water to flood our bathroom. I asked our great cabin attendant for a new curtain and it took her several hours to get one, but she got it done...She got a nice tip!!!!!. As far a entertainment, customer service, bar  and mdr service, it does not get any better...Food has gone downhill, but according to the food and beverage folks at corp that is not going to get any better..I guess that keeps us from gaining any weight while sailing with celebrity...bottom line, still better than ncl, carnival, rccl & princess,  and we will stay loyal customers of celebrity.

We will also be on Connie this November, 2024.

Definitely need to upgrade cabins, shower, USB connectors carpet.

[AC Stew]

We were on her this past Christmas (Aqua Deck 11) and again in February/March (Ultra C1 on deck 6). While matters such as the lack of USB ports will impact the experience for some, those things aren't important to us. We're not techies, so just one phone to recharge. And maybe we lucked out with a new shower curtain?

 

We've sailed on the Constellation many times over the years. We love this size ship, and Tampa is convenient for us. Is "food" as good as it was years ago? Honestly, not often, but what has been the same since Covid cutbacks? I will, however, attest to the fact that slowly but surely, there have been noticeable improvements since the re-start. Considering our most recent experience in the MDR, we thought that it seemed crowded, but service was stellar, and while some Dinner entrees were just OK, others were surprisingly good.

 

Public areas and carpeting had been spruced up. Our cabin steward was amazing. Staff and crew everywhere, were warm and welcoming. Celebrity has started to re-introduce Captain's Club evening events. The Constellation is a beautiful design with lots of window features to remind you that you're actually at sea.

 

For the life of me, I can't comprehend how someone could find an entire crew to be "unfriendly." That has never been our experience on this ship or any other!

 

We'll also be back in November for the transatlantic crossing!

 

 

 

[Travelling2Some]

3 hours ago, AC Stew said:

For the life of me, I can't comprehend how someone could find an entire crew to be "unfriendly." That has never been our experience on this ship or any other!

 

Yes.  You know how the crew seems to quickly "pass the word" about those who tip extra? If the whole crew was being unfriendly towards me, I would think it might be negative word-of-mouth.  I'm sure they also warn each other about difficult passengers and try to stay away from them?

[hcat]

On 5/3/2024 at 11:16 AM, Djptcp said:

DH and I sailed on the Constellation in March, before the refurbishment. It needed a lot of it but none of that would change the unfriendly crew and officers nor the mediocre food. Bar waiters on Deck 10 were snarky and we constantly had to wave them down for service. We are 4* Mariners on Holland America and enjoy the HAL ships' friendly crew and officers, the wonderful food, and the beautiful ships. We are also Diamonds on Carnival and even those cruises, those without a lot of kids, have better food and friendly crew. This was our first and last Celebrity cruise.

sorry you disliked your Constellation cruise.. Celebrity  is not for every one but credit you for trying something new to you...

 

Seems you are happier on Holland and Carnival..We never tried either as Celebrity has  been our "go to" for many yrs.. without  any  issues with  bar service.

 

We could not imagine taking 50 cruises on Carnival!

Edited May 5 by hcat

[sofietucker]

We sailed on Connie in March too, just before the TA and refurb. Folks who work on board, officers, staff, bar & restaurant, crew--and even the shop personnel--were lovely, ship was great, entertainment rocked... Food was fine; we only did MDR, OV and the free venues this time (cruising with friends & fam). Our concierge stateroom was just okay--but we're spoiled Elite who usually stay in Sky Suites, so that's on us, lol. BTW, a hidden side door in the minbar cabinet holds the ice bucket, corkscrew, glasses, etc.

[Sun Lover]

On 5/3/2024 at 3:17 AM, flyerbrp said:

Just walked off the Constellation in Revenna and boarded our bus to Venice Airport. This was 10 Day Rome to Ravenna.From start to end the cruise was fabulous. We are Elite status so we have been on many ships. On this cruise we were in a Veranda cabin deck 6. Absolutely no complaints. We sometimes sail Aqua or Concierge so we have a little perspective. To answer the question about shower curtains, yes no door in our cabin. 
The food in main dining was very good. Never a bad meal but food is always subjective. Our servers were absolutely top notch and in many respects the whole experience rivaled or exceeded Blu. 
The entertainment was over the moon based on several past cruises. From Domenick Allen to Rikki Jay, Lifford Shillingford, Leanne Mitchell and Roy Tan the theater shows were superb. 
Ports were awesome albeit very very crowded. Two tender ports but handled efficiently. I don’t like tendering but I don’t fret over things I can’t control. We did excursions pretty much every port. I would be happy to answer individual questions. 
Embarkation and debarkation were seem less, flawless and absolutely no delays. Absolutely no line getting off on on to the transfer bus for the 3 hour ride to Venice. Several ports are very far from city centers etc but shuttle buses were provided. Again I don’t fret what I can’t control. Several ports are actually unwalkable. 
The ship is beautiful. It was clean but the actual refurbishment was limited to common space. Cabins were not refurbished so our while very clean showed signs of aging. Again very clean and our attendant did a great job of keeping it clean for us. We used the laundry service for the first time ever and it is something we will do from now on.

And for you Blue Chip members the casino was very generous to us and thanks to Jasmine for keeping the casino fun. 

 

[Sun Lover]

We have this same cruise on a courtesy hold until tomorrow, as I'm still researching it and trying to decide what to do.  We've never cruised on Celebrity.  We've been on numerous Caribbean cruises with Royal Caribbean but only on the large ships.  If you could answer some questions for me, it would be very helpful.

 

Which ports used tenders? About how long did they take?

 

Which ports were far from city centers and in those ports how long did it take to get to the city?  Did you always use the shuttle buses that were provided?

 

When you say several ports were unwalkable, what do you mean and which ports were they?

 

Did you do excursions through the ship or privately?

 

If you have recommendations for any excursions you liked, I'd love to hear them.

 

Thanks so much for your help!

[flyerbrp]

Regarding tenders, Portofino and Kotor were tender ports. We experienced no issues and had minimal delays. The tender was a little rocky from the ship in Portofino but not excessive. The crew did an admirable job keeping the passenger flow well organized. Several ports are a distance from center city, Florence and Messina come to mind. Revenna was a 2 hour bus transfer to Venice. We did our transfer to the airport through Celebrity. Luggage and disembark was seamless and painless. 

We did all of our excursions through Celebrity- maybe a little more expensive but disembarking at the ports received priority and we had nor worries of missing the ship if we were late returning. The excursions were well run-Florence we did the train and walking tour/shopping. Lots of fun. Messina we did the Mt. Etna and Taormino walking tour. Awesome tour guide and experience. Naples were went to Pompeii. Lots of walking very crowded but interesting to see it once. We walked into town after we were dropped off at the ship- 15 minute walk from the ship to the shops. We had about 3 hours of shopping. We stopped at a sidewalk cafe for Cappuccino and sweets. Several ports ran shuttles from where we were docked, Florence, Naples, Brindisi, we were docked in industrial area of the ports. Celebrity ran free regular shuttle busses. Kotor if you have an opportunity go to Perast and a boat tour to the Church Our Lady of the Rocks. This was the second time to Montenegro-one of my favorite places on earth. If you go to the old city for shopping or lunch which I recommend stop into the rug store Silk and Silky. Say hi to Max and enjoy some excellent apple tea. Tell him Brian said hello. Split the first time we were there (on Virgin) we did a walking tour of the old town. This time we ventured out on our own. We walked from the pier to town (15 minute walk) and shopped on our own and revisited the Uje Restaurant for a wine tasting and lunch (the bread, olive oil and wine is superb. We brought home a bottle of each. Awesome place-do the ship excursion if this is your first time. The guide will take you through the castle which is worthwhile to see.  

Again, I add we cruise regularly and this was one of our best experiences- not perfect but we would do it again in a heartbeat. June 8-15 we are sailing in Apex doing the Norway Fjords and July were are sailing from Port Liberty to Bermuda. 

Hopefully this helps-sorry my response to you is late, I haven't been on Cruise Critic in a few weeks. Busy packing for our next adventure. Brian

[Sun Lover]

Thanks so much for replying.  The information is really helpful.