Celebrity Constellation Refurb 2024? Is this a nice ship?

[SusieAV8R]

On 4/27/2024 at 1:56 PM, 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 😁🤣

 

We had shower curtains when we built our current house.  We moved in and within 3 months DH asked what I wanted for my birthday.  I told him "sliding glass shower doors".  Great birthday gift! And still enjoying 'em 8 years later. 🤣

[Ex-Airbalancer]

5 minutes ago, SusieAV8R said:

We had shower curtains when we built our current house.  We moved in and within 3 months DH asked what I wanted for my birthday.  I told him "sliding glass shower doors".  Great birthday gift! And still enjoying 'em 8 years later. 🤣

It is a different situation between your house and a cruise ship 😉

Also sliding glass shower doors are outdated now 😁

just build a new bathroom in the house and it had to be a hinged door 

But if you wait long enough they will be back in style 🤣

[SusieAV8R]

6 minutes ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

It is a different situation between your house and a cruise ship 😉

Also sliding glass shower doors are outdated now 😁

just build a new bathroom in the house and it had to be a hinged door 

But if you wait long enough they will be back in style 🤣

Yup!  Concur!! My 80's wide leg high waisted jeans are back in vogue......just add a couple of zeros now to what I paid then.  🤣

[IsanTom]

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. 

We're also Elite. How did Happy Hour 5-7 workout? Drinks available at all bars? Did they limit drinks and wine? Looking forward to Connie in November!

[IsanTom]

On 5/3/2024 at 1:32 PM, 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.

Good Idea!

[flyerbrp]

2 hours ago, IsanTom said:

We're also Elite. How did Happy Hour 5-7 workout? Drinks available at all bars? Did they limit drinks and wine? Looking forward to Connie in November!

 

[flyerbrp]

The happy hour drink elite perk is fine but not perfect. Let me explain- first we are not big drinkers, and second since we are sapphire with Blue Chip Club we drink for free while in the casino. So with that said several cruises ago we stopped buying the alcohol drink package as it always went unused. We still buy the non alcohol and coffee package (I forget what they call it). The one limitation of the Elite perk that bothers me and there are a few that don’t is that you must stop at the bar right outside of MDR or Blu and order your dinner cocktail and carry it in yourself to your table. Not a big deal for us or deal breaker.but certainly it seems a little weird as a rule they enforce. Might have to due with staffing levels but the still have a beverage staff member come to the table “to sell drinks” and take wine orders. Again not a deal breaker. We usually eat at the early time either MDR or Blu if we travel Aqua so we stop at the bar and have a cocktail and then take one with us which we hand carry ourselves. A couple of times our very nice head waiter grabbed our glasses as we were walking in a carried it to the table. Again we appreciate the 5 drink perk so I won’t complain but it just seems weird to have to carry in your own cocktail to use the perk at dinner. Good news is we got to know the bartenders outside the dining room and they always remembered us and our usual drink habit and served us dynamite drinks. My wife’s usual a very dirty martini was always ready when our bartender saw us coming. By day 3 didn’t even have to ask. 
As far as the other limitation be advised that only certain drinks and alcohols and beers and wine are part of the perk. Every bar has a menu of what’s included and excluded. Avail yourself to learning the exclusions so you are surprised with an unwelcome bill. Again we are not drink connoisseurs so we were adequately fine with what was available. As an example my wife drinks martinis and I had vodka gimlets. Both were available and actually quite tasty. I tried to order a lemonchello one night and no dice. So when the casino opened I got my lemonchello. 
We never come close to using our daily allotment and never have a problem getting a good drink at happy hour time. Back in the day you could use the allotment all day long but now it is 5-7 pm but can be used at any bar. I have learned in the 35 plus cruises we have sailed I am there to have a great time at sea. I try not to sweat the small stuff. We sail Celebrity and now also started sailing Virgin. We still love Celebrity but Virgin offers a different experience which is a nice change once in while. I hope this answered your question. 

[Ex-Airbalancer]

“we appreciate the 5 drink perk “🤔

There is no 5 drink perk , it is unlimited between 5-7 

[hcat]

On 5/21/2024 at 8:21 PM, Ex-Airbalancer said:

It is a different situation between your house and a cruise ship 😉

Also sliding glass shower doors are outdated now 😁

just build a new bathroom in the house and it had to be a hinged door 

But if you wait long enough they will be back in style 🤣

our dtr just had  two bathrooms completely re done.  Used  a slider door in the  children's  bath along the tub edge...has nice towel bars.

 

Our aunt/ uncle, late 80's had a  glass slider in their condo on tub edge, but used a curtain in front of it..  said it was for added privacy and she liked how pretty the curtain looked! And could change the decor for a refresh.

 

In Fla, we have a walk in shower...no door or curtain needed just tile and  glass .. In guest suite..it's a pretty curtain with a sturdy liner .

 

BUT:  on Infinity we had a curtain..complete with mildew!  Ew...it was gross! (The whole shower needed bleach) We asked for curtain to be washed or replaced... downfall of older ships!

Edited May 23 by hcat

[flyerbrp]

2 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

“we appreciate the 5 drink perk “🤔

There is no 5 drink perk , it is unlimited between 5-7 

Yes you are correct. Confused it with the 5 drinks on RCCL as Diamond Plus Members which we use all day long. Either way I could not consumer 5 drinks in 2 hours and still enjoy, let alone remember dinner. 🙂

[Ex-Airbalancer]

2 hours ago, flyerbrp said:

Yes you are correct. Confused it with the 5 drinks on RCCL as Diamond Plus Members which we use all day long. Either way I could not consumer 5 drinks in 2 hours and still enjoy, let alone remember dinner. 🙂

Our group of cruising friends do Sunset Bar from 5-7 than go to dinner 😁

[IsanTom]

13 hours ago, flyerbrp said:

The happy hour drink elite perk is fine but not perfect. Let me explain- first we are not big drinkers, and second since we are sapphire with Blue Chip Club we drink for free while in the casino. So with that said several cruises ago we stopped buying the alcohol drink package as it always went unused. We still buy the non alcohol and coffee package (I forget what they call it). The one limitation of the Elite perk that bothers me and there are a few that don’t is that you must stop at the bar right outside of MDR or Blu and order your dinner cocktail and carry it in yourself to your table. Not a big deal for us or deal breaker.but certainly it seems a little weird as a rule they enforce. Might have to due with staffing levels but the still have a beverage staff member come to the table “to sell drinks” and take wine orders. Again not a deal breaker. We usually eat at the early time either MDR or Blu if we travel Aqua so we stop at the bar and have a cocktail and then take one with us which we hand carry ourselves. A couple of times our very nice head waiter grabbed our glasses as we were walking in a carried it to the table. Again we appreciate the 5 drink perk so I won’t complain but it just seems weird to have to carry in your own cocktail to use the perk at dinner. Good news is we got to know the bartenders outside the dining room and they always remembered us and our usual drink habit and served us dynamite drinks. My wife’s usual a very dirty martini was always ready when our bartender saw us coming. By day 3 didn’t even have to ask. 
As far as the other limitation be advised that only certain drinks and alcohols and beers and wine are part of the perk. Every bar has a menu of what’s included and excluded. Avail yourself to learning the exclusions so you are surprised with an unwelcome bill. Again we are not drink connoisseurs so we were adequately fine with what was available. As an example my wife drinks martinis and I had vodka gimlets. Both were available and actually quite tasty. I tried to order a lemonchello one night and no dice. So when the casino opened I got my lemonchello. 
We never come close to using our daily allotment and never have a problem getting a good drink at happy hour time. Back in the day you could use the allotment all day long but now it is 5-7 pm but can be used at any bar. I have learned in the 35 plus cruises we have sailed I am there to have a great time at sea. I try not to sweat the small stuff. We sail Celebrity and now also started sailing Virgin. We still love Celebrity but Virgin offers a different experience which is a nice change once in while. I hope this answered your question. 

Thanks for your great answer. You hit all the points we needed! Enjoy all your future cruises!

[the mistral wind]

We were on this ship last year. It was wonderful. FOOD WAS GREAT. SERVICE WAS GREAT CREW WERE WONDERFUL. AND THE ELITE HAPPY HOUR WAS VERY GENEROUS  UNLIMITED DRINKS 5 TO SEVEN A SPECIAL DRINK MENU BUT I WAS ABLE TO FIND SOMETHING I LIKED. I LIKED IT SO MYCH YHAT WE JYSF BOOKED ANOTHER CRUISE ON THE CONSTELLATION SHIP WE HAVE TRAVELED ON MANY SHIPS AND I WAS IMPRESSED. I LOVE CELEBRITY

[lwid77]

I just got off Connie May 24th, 11 night Rome to Ravenna and it was our first cruise and here are my observations and experiences.

Cabin: Deck 7

You can tell she is an older ship.  Our cabin was tired, especially the bathroom shower and it is a shower curtain for whoever asked about it.

My husband went to wash up when we first got to our cabin and when he hung up the towel he noticed what looked to be a nickel sized red blood spot on a ratty bath towel.  The hem of the bath towel was ripped and it was quite thin, especially compared to the replacement towels we received after we called the service desk.  I don't think the cabin was cleaned particularly well as there was medication packaging in the bedside tables and visible hair in the bathroom.

This was all rectified satisfactorily and we felt the room was cleaned appropriately after this was resolved.  But it was not a good first impression.

Other than older furnishings I felt there was ample storage for clothes and other items and we really liked our balcony.  I wish they had electrical outlets/USB ports by the bedside tables but realize she is older.

 

Staff:

For the most part, outstanding and very hard working.  

I had 2 similar & annoying interactions with one of the hostesses at the MDR on two different occasions but I just went to the other hostess instead on subsequent visits.

I would agree that the bar on Deck 10 lacks a bit of service but we never had any rudeness.  We had to clear our tables of other peoples used dishes and go to the bar to get drinks every time we were there but everyone was very friendly.  I can only guess that there may have been staffing issues.

 

Food:

Tuscan Grill, excellent.  My husband had the filet both times we were there and he raved about it.

In the MDR, food was just okay.  One night my husband ordered the NY Steak and when our waiter brought it he mentioned it was poor quality meat.  Boy was he right.  It was tough and inedible and I can only assume there was a known issue because of the comment of our waiter and he was actually quite embarrassed and upset about it.  You would think they would just pull it off the menu and have their supplier rectify the situation instead of serving it to guests.  We just ordered another entrée for my husband and it was fine.  Not our waiters fault and he apologized profusely about it.

 

Buffet:

Good selection of food we felt.  Fruit and vegetables were fresh and staff hustled.  Big time.

They were all so friendly.  We ate here often- mainly salads and options were plentiful.

 

Overall, we had a good trip despite some of the experiences.

 

 

 

[canderson]

Back to the topic at hand:

 

Has anyone personally seen one of the FV > Sunset Suite conversions yet?  It appears that Constellation converted these during this last go around.  Have not seen a decent set of photos yet, just some cropped ones on the X site that don't really show the 'back room' at all.  The site that posts all of the cabin photos doesn't seem to have anything for these new Sunset Suite cabins, either, even on other Millennium Class ships.  Booked one for 'the kids' and hoping I can show them a photo representation of their proposed digs.  Can anyone point me in the right direction?

 

 

As to overall condition -

 

All of the public space and upper level suites got new soft goods and other features upgraded shortly before Constellation's post-COVID restart in December 2021.  I was the first to walk the brand new carpet and sit my keister on our brand new couch in a RS.  Other cabins were apparently not refitted at that time, but public space looked really good (new furniture, carpets, etc).  Seems they already had the soft goods in question warehoused for the Revolution that was due right after COVID hit, and didn't happen, so they went ahead and installed what they had before the restart.

 

From what little I've been able to see, certain cabins (e.g., the FV > Sunset Suite mentioned above, and possibly the old Concierge > Aqua Suite) will have had a complete overhaul recently as part of their suite reclassification, and therefore should also look quite good.  Reports here say other cabins still may be lagging behind, so I'd definitely expect some wear and tear there.

[Abigailrose]

Trying to find conversation on the Connie for Nov 30 2024. I am not able to even start a conversation. Of course this site has changed since I was on it 10 years ago.

[Ex-Airbalancer]

10 minutes ago, Abigailrose said:

Trying to find conversation on the Connie for Nov 30 2024. I am not able to even start a conversation. Of course this site has changed since I was on it 10 years ago.

Have look under the roll call section

 

[retired dude]

On 6/1/2024 at 4:01 PM, lwid77 said:

I just got off Connie May 24th, 11 night Rome to Ravenna and it was our first cruise and here are my observations and experiences.

Cabin: Deck 7

You can tell she is an older ship.  Our cabin was tired, especially the bathroom shower and it is a shower curtain for whoever asked about it.

My husband went to wash up when we first got to our cabin and when he hung up the towel he noticed what looked to be a nickel sized red blood spot on a ratty bath towel.  The hem of the bath towel was ripped and it was quite thin, especially compared to the replacement towels we received after we called the service desk.  I don't think the cabin was cleaned particularly well as there was medication packaging in the bedside tables and visible hair in the bathroom.

This was all rectified satisfactorily and we felt the room was cleaned appropriately after this was resolved.  But it was not a good first impression.

Other than older furnishings I felt there was ample storage for clothes and other items and we really liked our balcony.  I wish they had electrical outlets/USB ports by the bedside tables but realize she is older.

 

Staff:

For the most part, outstanding and very hard working.  

I had 2 similar & annoying interactions with one of the hostesses at the MDR on two different occasions but I just went to the other hostess instead on subsequent visits.

I would agree that the bar on Deck 10 lacks a bit of service but we never had any rudeness.  We had to clear our tables of other peoples used dishes and go to the bar to get drinks every time we were there but everyone was very friendly.  I can only guess that there may have been staffing issues.

 

Food:

Tuscan Grill, excellent.  My husband had the filet both times we were there and he raved about it.

In the MDR, food was just okay.  One night my husband ordered the NY Steak and when our waiter brought it he mentioned it was poor quality meat.  Boy was he right.  It was tough and inedible and I can only assume there was a known issue because of the comment of our waiter and he was actually quite embarrassed and upset about it.  You would think they would just pull it off the menu and have their supplier rectify the situation instead of serving it to guests.  We just ordered another entrée for my husband and it was fine.  Not our waiters fault and he apologized profusely about it.

 

Buffet:

Good selection of food we felt.  Fruit and vegetables were fresh and staff hustled.  Big time.

They were all so friendly.  We ate here often- mainly salads and options were plentiful.

 

Overall, we had a good trip despite some of the experiences.

 

 

 

the quality of the food on this ship has gone downhill in the last two years and it is no secret..The recent refurb did nothing to the balcony cabins on deck 7 and 8 that we normally book. The old sayin' if it aint broke, dont fix it holds true as this ship continues to sail with full capacity now and corporate is ok with that and will not upgrade the cabins or food quality.

[Judyrem]

14 hours ago, retired dude said:

the quality of the food on this ship has gone downhill in the last two years and it is no secret..The recent refurb did nothing to the balcony cabins on deck 7 and 8 that we normally book. The old sayin' if it aint broke, dont fix it holds true as this ship continues to sail with full capacity now and corporate is ok with that and will not upgrade the cabins or food quality.

I was thinking of doing a similar cruise in January on the Beyond but the Constellation is very port intensive and has unique  and varied ports which makes it a better fit for me.  I won't be in the room very much.

 

The Beyond was also a 1000$ more.🤔