Celebrity Reflection Review 5/20/24-5/24/24 First time Celebrity Cruiser

[VP757]

Celebrity Reflection 5/20/24-5/24/24

 

This is my first post under my new CC account.  I have an older account that I have not used since 2009 and I have no clue what the sign in or password is for it so hence a new account.  I will try my hand at writing a review because I get a lot of useful information from these boards and would like to contribute the best I can.  If you have any questions, I will try my best to answer them. I will try to cover all major categories the best I can. If I miss something and you want to know just ask. I will rate everything on a scale from 0-10, 10 being perfect don’t change a thing, 0 being and absolute S*%# Show and 5 being middle of the road average, not good but not bad.  Be warned this is a lengthy review.

 

Background- On this trip we were a party of 6 with three concierge staterooms, The party included myself male age 36, my son age 12, my daughter age 7, Sister age 39 and my parents ages 69, and 64.  The kids had never been on a cruise before and been dying to try one, so we decided to take them on a small 4 day to test the water before taking them on a 7 day or longer.  We know Celebrity is not a typical “family ship” but my kids are low key and get overwhelmed easily, so ships with all the things for the kids to do would be fun for the kids for a little while, before they got overwhelmed and mentally shut down, so celebrity seemed to fit them very well and they loved it.  So not all kids “will be bored to tears” on celebrity as so commonly stated on these boards.  I have cruised 6 times prior, all of which being Carnival my last cruise in 2010 (a ton has changed industry wide since).  My sister cruised 7 times prior to all Carnival her most recent 2014.  My folks have cruised 7 times 6 on carnival, and 1 on Celebrity last year and loved it and they are the ones that recommended them.  So this review will try to be as neutral as possible, considering my last cruise was over a decade ago, I’m much more mature, the industry has changed drastically, and I don’t like comparing apples to oranges,  I’m sure I will make a few comparisons because it’s tough not to just know that what I’m comparing things too is 14 years old so it more than likely not the case anymore.

 

Embarkation- The smoothest I ever had.  I have done a lot of research on here and thought I knew what to expect, between that and my parents experience from their cruise last year I heard the process was smooth and seamless.  So, my expectations were high, and I was blown away.  Our scheduled check-in time was 1130.  I scheduled UberXl (cost 32 dollars) to pick us up from our hotel the Hyatt House in Fort Lauderdale at 10:45am expecting to be at the port by 11:00 am.  Our uber arrived at 10:30am and after playing Jenga trying to figure out how to fit my party of 6 and luggage into the dodge Durango we were off.  We arrived at the port around 10:46. The porters were waiting at the drop off and whisked our luggage away with no issues at all. We started the boarding process, and I stepped foot on the ship at 10:58, a whole 2 minutes before I even planned to be at the port.  We did all our pre-checks on the APP and was as easy as everyone mentions, scan Xpress pass and passport, go through security and bang you are on the ship.  Lines always went smooth if the employees saw one line backing up the instantly opened another.  Smoothest boarding process ever.  Overall experience 10/10.

Stateroom- We all got concierge class state rooms on the 10^th deck, room numbers were 1106, 1108, 1114.  We decided to book concierge class because at the time we booked it was cheaper than an Oceanview and verandah room, so it was a no brainer.  The rooms were nice and standard cruise staterooms in size and style.  My son and I stayed in one room, my sister and daughter in another room that was connected.  So, our beds were all separated, and they seemed much smaller than the beds on carnival, however I am a lot larger than when I sailed on Carnival so that might have something to do with it too. The rooms were clean, the bathroom much larger and nicer than previous rooms I have stayed in. I have read many reviews on the Reflection saying that the rooms were dated, I’m sure that was the case but to me with absolutely no style to speak of I thought they looked nice.  But I still have wood paneling in my home so what do I know. We had our room steward open the dividers between all three balconies and that was nice.  Our steward did a fine job.  Only ever saw him once and that was the first day.  But the room was always cleaned, picked up, and turned down every evening. He did a great job just wasn’t visible which I’m ok with I don’t need to be friends with everyone, and he did his job so no complaints there.  Only two minor complaints about the room/room steward, one being never had Ice I know I could have requested it but never saw him to request it.  It’s minor and did not ruin the day but seems how the fridge never got cold and ever drink I ordered at the bar (with exception of mixed drinks) were served at room temp Ice would have been nice in the cabin.  Another minor complaint is there are no towel animals.  I knew going in that wasn’t a thing on Celebrity so not a demerit on them, I thought I made peace with the fact I wouldn’t have a town animal every night but apparently, I didn’t, it was a fun thing to look every evening to see what animal we got so a very minor thing I missed on Celebrity but obviously not a deal breaker.  Also to mention this is my first time having a balcony room, it was a little smaller than I thought but had no point of comparison and I liked being able to go outside occasionally, but for me if the price is not right put me in an Oceanview, anytime.  One question I have read a lot on these boards as well as asking internally myself, “Is concierge worth it?”  IMHO no not at all.  We booked this cabin at a time when it was the second cheapest on the whole ship, so that’s why I booked and would again in a heartbeat.  However, if this room was ANY amount of money over your preferred category I would not recommend, the only real perk any of us used was the lunch.  It was great not having to fight the buffet and the food was good, the menu limited but good.  But that alone in my opinion would not be worth the up charge. I tried to use the concierge desk once on our sea day at 10:45 am. No one was there except a sign telling me to go to guest relations, so couldn’t even use that benefit.  Overall Experience 8/10.

 

Ship- The ship was beautiful and in great condition based on her age.  Like many others have noted she is showing a little wear and tear but that is natural for a ship of this age.  She was always clean, and I really appreciate the classy and more sophisticated look of the ships compared to what I had seen on my previous cruises. The layout was easy to navigate, my only con would be the fact she only has two elevator/stair banks.  The ships I have sailed in the past as well as many I looked at for floor plans have three banks, aft, midships, and forward, so I thought it was a very minor miss.  The overall flow was great the cruise was sold out and never felt over crowded, the pool deck did fill up but chairs on the top deck were accessible, most all lounges or bars we were easily able to find an area to accommodate all 6 of us, and the evening shows in the theatre we were always able to find great seats arriving only about 10 mins before the show. (only show that would be difficult to get a seat for in Captain Kirk’s Rock the Reflection show up early if you want a seat, packed theatre and rightfully so, best show on the ship!!!)  Due to the fact it was a sold-out ship, crowd management and flow was great and never felt overwhelming, which was great. Overall Experience 9/10.

Food/Wait Staff- I will start off by acknowledging the fact that food is extremely subjective and what one person likes another won’t so take everything with a grain of salt.  We only ate in the main dining room, we are not fans of buffets in general either on land or at sea, so breakfast and dinner always in the main dinning room, as well as lunch on Sea Day. Breakfast and lunch menu were standard, and the food was good.  The dinner menu IMO was lacking, the starters were only salads or soups, and very little selection.  The dinner dishes did rotate but I feel that not much creativity or thought was put into the menus, I was able to find a meal every evening and did enjoy most everything I had just in years past I would struggle to narrow down which meal I wanted because two or three looked so good, there was one day on this cruise I struggled to find one I wanted to try.  I understand that food quality has gone drastically downhill on Carnival so my statement is probably not true anymore and I recognize that, but I will say I missed the menu selection on the OLD carnival.  But like I said I was able to find something to eat most every night the same with everyone in our group, the food we did get was very delicious.  I give the menu a 7/10 and the food itself a 8.5/10 The dinner service was great, The head waiter, assistant, and sommelier was the best we ever had, very attentive and personable, We had the same team every night on our cruise and they were superb cannot say enough good things about them.  The kids took this opportunity to try a ton of things they never would otherwise, such as duck, escargot, lamb, different types of sea food, etc.  Because of this there were many items that were not finished, and the staff was great with that, made sure they were happy and had enough to eat and would change out their meals quickly with no fuss.  The kids found several new foods they liked, and the Matre’d took a vested interest in the kids and came by every evening to see what they tried today and if they liked it.  I give the evening dining room staff a 9.5/10.   I will have to mention this to be fair the service in the MDR for breakfast and lunch was not good, I understand that the assistant waiters are the head waiters for these meals to give them practice.  Breakfast the service was slow but got the job done, lunch was only one day, and I don’t know what happened if this guy was brand new, home sick, or what but the service was just bad.  He was never rude, always friendly and had a smile on his face. I want to make that clear right away very kind guy.  However he was extremely slow, messed up most of the orders had to come back a couple times to check on what we ordered, our drinks were never refilled took us about 40 mins to get our starters, and another 45 mins after to get our main meals (yes I did time him)  we waited around another 15 mins to see if he would pick up our plates and give us our desert he never did, so we just left.  I try to give grace, but that service was slow and disorganized, so breakfast/lunch service would be a 6/10 and that because most of those 6 points coming from the breakfast team.

 

Drinks/ and Bar Service- I had the premium drink package, as well as my dad, my sister, mother, and kids, had the nonalcoholic packages. I debated for months rather to get the drink package or not, but it went on sale, and I did the math and deemed I could justify the price.  I am glad I did.  I’m not a huge drinker and neither is my dad, however I do think we barely broke even on the package but the ease and not having to worry about charges sure was nice.    One thing I took slight issues with was, temperature of the drinks.  Whenever anyone in our party ordered a soda it was room temp, which is fine if served with a glass with ice and the only time that happen was at the MDR all other times they would order their soda, the server would come back with just the can, than we had to ask for a glass of ice, we finally started asking for both at the same time just because we felt bad for making them run back and forth.   Same issue with bottled water, always room temp and always had to ask for cup of ice, I know first world problems but still an oversight IMO.  I’m typically a beer drinker but I only had 2 this whole trip, the reason you may ask?? You guessed it, it was always served room temp.  In fairness the only two I had was embarkation day and they may just not have been iced down enough.  But after two warm beers in 3 hours, I just decided to switch to mixed drinks, so it wasn’t that big of a deal plus more bang for my buck.  The mixed drinks were all good, the pour seemed heavy but not that I’m complaining, everything I tried I really enjoyed.  The kids and my mom tried a ton of mock tails and said they all were very good, and the staff was very accommodating for the mock tails.  As mentioned on these boards before bar service was slow, the bar itself was always slammed and the bartenders seemed overwhelmed often but always friendly and professional.  In my past cruises it seemed as soon as you sat down anywhere you had 3-4 drink servers asking if you needed anything, this cruise was the complete opposite a server would eventually make their way to you, but it wasn’t fast.  I feel like they had to few of severs for the bar areas, the sky lounge seems to only have one maybe two, walking around taking drink orders while the place was packed for karaoke. Once again, all staff I ever accounted on this ship were super friendly and welcoming, just seemed like no one got into a hurry, which is a change for me.  Overall drinks/service 7.5/10

 

Activities/ Shows- this category will be a lot like food as entertainment can be very subjective.  The daily had a lot of activities on the calendar and we did participate in a few, and they were fun.  I feel like Carnival has way more variety than Celebrity, but I knew that going and I thought the amount they offered was good, and the activities that were offered hit their target demographics so no complaint there.  We went to all the theatre shows, and the Headliners were good, the comedian was funny, it’s always tough to do a family comedy show and I thought he did well with it.  Boy Band Evolution was good and had high energy, their afternoon show on the sea day was a lot slower with less energy but that was because of the play list they selected.  I’m about to state a very unpopular opinion right now but the production shows were not good.  That is my opinion alone, my sister loved the production shows, my daughter and mom enjoyed them, myself dad and son not so much except for the acrobats they were great.  But outside of that not my style at all.  But I’m not a Broadway or music theatre guy at all so I know I’m not the best critic for this, so please take my opinion with a grain of salt, if you like Broadway, or musicals I’m sure the production shows are great. Captain Kirk did his rock show Rock the Reflection.  This is a do not miss show, high energy great setlist, and you can tell he loves what he does.  If you want to skip all the shows and activities that’s fine but do yourself a favor and not miss this show.  Activities/ Shows 8.5/10 ( I am not letting my dislike of broadways style shows and musicals influence my decisions hence the higher score)

 

Specialty Dinning- We all ate at the Tuscan Grill on the last night.  The overall experience was ok.  That’s sums everything perfectly, the service was not bad nor was it excellent, the food wasn’t bad but it’s wasn’t to die for either.  It was a fun and pleasant experience and I’m glad we did it.  But we would not do it again for the price. If it was cheaper it would get a higher score but for 50 bucks a head it gets a lower score overall experience 5/10  not bad just not great and for an added charge I was hoping for more.

 

Kids Club- You don’t see much on kids’ club on these boards, so I was flying a little blind.  I know kids is not Celebrities main target, like I said earlier my kids are low key and the big, exciting things that RCCL and Carnival offer the kids would be over stimulating for them.  So, before I go father, I do want to mention the kids loved the cruise wants to go back for longer this time, and they went to every activity and function we did and had a blast, my son loved listening to karaoke in the sky lounge.  They are both mature for their age and behave well in public, so they did all the same activities as adults did.  So finally, on to the kid’s club.  They only went one day and that was our sea day.  On embarkation day I went and signed them up and talked to the staff. My son is at the age where he can sign himself in and out and he had a phone so he could text me if he needed to go so, I was fine with that, he is a social butterfly anyways.  My daughter is very shy and was a little nervous about going.  When I first met the staff, they said that was fine and they would give me a beeper when I check her in that way if she wanted to leave, they would be able to contact me.  On our sea day I went to check her in because she wanted to give it a try.  I asked for my beeper and was told it was only for kids with special needs, which my daughter is not.  I asked how I was supposed to know if she wanted to go, they replied they would call my stateroom which obviously I was not planning on staying in during the day.  I told them that wouldn’t work, and they said I could come in check in on her from time to time.  I again told them I was informed about the beepers and the lady looked at me shrugged her shoulders and told me I was misinformed.  I asked my daughter if she wanted to stay, and she said yes so, I let her go.  About 20 mins later I had an uneasy feeling, so I went back to check on her.  She was miserable crying, and wanted to leave, I been informed she started about 5 mins after I left, and they couldn’t get ahold of me in the cabin (surprise surprise) So I took her and she had a great time otherwise.  Her kids club experience was a grand total of 25mins.  My son stayed for a grand total of 1.5 hours and that was strictly because he was having Xbox withdrawals, he got his fix than left.  My score is not reflective of the fact the kids were bored in the kid’s club or for the duration they stayed.  It is based strictly on my interaction with the staff and the fact that they had no way of contacting me if my child wanted to go.  Hello, they have this multimillion-dollar app. I feel like they could incorporate something in that app to get ahold of the parents.  I understand kids are not Celebrities focus but if you have kids club, I feel like this is something that needs to be addressed Overall experience 2/10.  The kids’ club did not dictate the kids’ overall enjoyment and like I said they loved it.

 

Premium Access- We got this strictly for the internet.  As mention we are a group of 6 and we decided that we need up to 4 devices on Wi-Fi so we decided to do premium access strictly for the fact it was cheaper than getting quantity of 2,  2-device plans.  That is the whole reason we got it.  The other perks did not interest us because one we already got it with concierge class or two the fact we couldn’t use the perks for all 6 of us only for 2.  No need for priority embarkation because we got on before 11am anyways, lunch was already included in our cabin category and if it wasn’t it wouldn’t be worth and extra charge IMO, priority luggage was a joke, I had baggage tags that said premium access and my bags were the last to arrive, keep in mind all three of are cabins were in a row, we loaded all of our bags at the same time to the same porter except mine I used the designated premium access drop off which was a pain to find.  And my sisters bag showed up at around 1:30 my parents bags showed up around 2:15 and mine and the kids bags ( that had premium access tags showed up at 4:30ish.  No need for reserved show seats, always plenty of room.   So the only time the premium access would be of benefit is if you need Wi-Fi for 4 devices which is the only reason I would get it.  So, with that being said I will give it a 10/10 because it did exactly what we wanted it for.  But do NOT waste your money on it if you don’t need that many devices.

 

Ports CoCo Cay and Nassau- Coco Cay is why we booked this cruise.  It did not disappoint, there is nothing I can say that you can’t find out for yourself on YouTube.  But this was the best port I have been to too.  The island is very well laid out, very easy to walk if you don’t want to wait on a tram, and plenty of free things to do with plenty of chairs and umbrellas.  The island never felt crowded.  We splurged on an Over the Water Cabana at Coco Beach club.  It was pricey but right before our sailing they marked them down 70% because they were not selling them at the outrageous price, they had them for.  So, I picked one up for a steal about 2 weeks before we left, and zero regrets.  I was still pricey and a splurge but for the price I paid I would do it again in a heartbeat if I had the extra cash.  I will answer any questions you have about CoCo Cay or the Cabana so please ask, overall experience 10/10

 

Nassau- Been there done that and Bah.  The kids have never been, so we took them to the port area to look at overpriced trinkets and got their passports stamped, after that we took an catamaran and snorkel excursion booked through celebrity.  The excursion was fun, and the crew was good and professional but not overly friendly, a little strict to be honest but never rude or mean.  The snorkeling was great, and the catamaran ride was fun, kids had a blast and that was the only reason we booked.  A major downside of that excursion is where you embark the catamaran is fairly close to the ship, where you disembark is a long walk to the ship and they purposely make you walk through all the shops again, so that was a bummer.  This score is going to be solely based on the excursion and not Nassau itself.  7/10

 

Debarkation- As smooth as embarkation, we were tag number 4, according to the paper left in our room our group number would be called around 7:55am to start debarkation.  We were off the ship, bags collected, through customs and at the airport by 8:05am no bad considering we wasn’t supposed to be called till 7:55.  A very smooth seamless process just like embarkation once you start moving you don’t stop.  Overall experience 10/10

 

Overall Cruise 8/10_ I would absolutely cruise Celebrity again and everyone in our group had a great time and enjoyed themselves.  There were a few negatives and issues but got to let those roll off your back while on vacation nothing will ever be perfect.  I’m sure I forgot a ton, so if you have any questions please ask and I will try my best to answer them.  The kids are now hooked on cruising and I got the bug again so we already plan on cruising next may it’s a toss up between Celebrity again or possibly trying Princess.  Thank you for reading and once again ask anything I may have left out.

Edited May 28 by VP757

[bjahil47]

Thanks for your detailed review, it was very informative.  We will be on Reflection next October!

[lv2cruisgrl]

Good review.  Thank you.  

[mahdnc]

Thank you for posting your review.  Sorry to hear about the issues you had with the kids club.  When they were younger our kids really liked it and never wanted to leave.  However Celebrity does need to improve their ability to get a hold of parents in the unlikely event of a problem or emergency.

[hcat]

What a complete, well.organized  and helpful review!

 

Seems like you will be back on  X soon... maybe if you try an E class ship the kids Club and activities will be better??? Much more hi tech ships.

[Georgia_Peaches]

Thank you for this detailed review!  The lack of means to get ahold of you when your daughter started to cry is not acceptable.  Celebrity needs to correct this.  Beepers for special needs children only is just silly.

[-The-True-North-]

How many people were onboard?

[Jaworskym]

We were on this sailing as the second half of a back to back. Nice details. I put my review on the "review" page. Wondering if its better to put it on the message boards like this to get feedback?  

[May B]

14 minutes ago, Jaworskym said:

We were on this sailing as the second half of a back to back. Nice details. I put my review on the "review" page. Wondering if its better to put it on the message boards like this to get feedback?  

Fun, and helpful to the community, to do both!

[Cruisin Kay D]

Can you recall what the showtimes were?   I have signed us up for 6:45 pm dinners, but will that possibly make us late for show?   (Going in early Oct with son, wife & 2 grandkids 14 & 16) 

[VP757]

3 hours ago, Cruisin Kay D said:

Can you recall what the showtimes were?   I have signed us up for 6:45 pm dinners, but will that possibly make us late for show?   (Going in early Oct with son, wife & 2 grandkids 14 & 16) 

 The early shows were at 7pm and late were at 9pm.  We had fix dinning time at 545pm and typically out if the dining room by 715-730pm. We went to all the late shows always plenty of seats could have walked up right at start time and still find 6-8 seats together.  

[VP757]

On 5/30/2024 at 8:25 PM, -The-True-North- said:

How many people were onboard?

It was a sold out cruise I dint think the ever released official count that I know of.  Capacity if this ship is a little north of 3,000

[livelytee]

Great review. My family and I will be sailing on the Reflection July 8-13. This will be our First time on Celebrity ☺️. Previous cruises include RCCL & Carnival.

[firegirl1013]

Did you try the pizza? How does that compare to carnival? 

[Mr305]

Will be on Reflection in late July, at what time does online check-in open up, midnight or early morning hours?

[Saturngrl]

Thanks for the info on Premium VIP.  It's interesting to learn your assigned debarkation group was number 4, instead of being able to disembark whenever you want (like the Key on Royal).  Did you wait to disembark in the designated Concierge area in the MDR?  They have caffeine and pastries as part of that privilege. 

 

The Premium package sounds like it's not even half of what The Key offers on RC.  I like The Key for the priority embarkation check-in, boarding priority, internet, special disembarkation breakfast, being escorted off the ship and The Key luggage area in the terminal.   

[VP757]

9 hours ago, firegirl1013 said:

Did you try the pizza? How does that compare to carnival? 

 

I did, just a couple times later in the evening.  It was ok,  nothing to write home about but wasn't terrible.  It's been 14 years since I sailed Carnival and while I did eat a lot of pizza on Carnival I don't really remember it enough to offer a good comparison. 

 

8 hours ago, Mr305 said:

Will be on Reflection in late July, at what time does online check-in open up, midnight or early morning hours?

 

Check in starts at midnight ship time.  I live in the CST time zone and the ship was currently EST when I checked in so I was able to check in at 11PM CST hope that answers the question.

[VP757]

3 minutes ago, Saturngrl said:

Thanks for the info on Premium VIP.  It's interesting to learn your assigned debarkation group was number 4, instead of being able to disembark whenever you want (like the Key on Royal).  Did you wait to disembark in the designated Concierge area in the MDR?  They have caffeine and pastries as part of that privilege. 

 

The Premium package sounds like it's not even half of what The Key offers on RC.  I like The Key for the priority embarkation check-in, boarding priority, internet, special disembarkation breakfast, being escorted off the ship and The Key luggage area in the terminal.   

We did not wait in the concierge area, disembarkation was so smooth and quick.  We were suppose to be out of our rooms by 730am so we took full advantage of that and did not plan to leave till 730 AM, group 4 was called at 720AM so no need to wait anywhere besides our room.

 

The premium package IMO was not worth the extra money unless you need 4 internet devices that was the only cost savings.  If you only need 2 devices save yourself a ton of money and only get the 2 device plan.  Embarkation and debarkation was so smooth and effortless their was no need for "priority" anything at least that was the case for this sailing.  The other "perks" were so minimal not worth the charge.  Only other perk I used was free room service but that was only once and it took and hour and 20 mins for it to arrive, (two slices of pizza and a plate of cookies)  in fairness it was 1130PM when I called it in but still a little ridiculous timing IMO.  Service on the entire ship had the theme of being very slow, always great and friendly, but slow.

[retired dude]

9 hours ago, firegirl1013 said:

Did you try the pizza? How does that compare to carnival? 

we sailed on this ship in april of 24' and found the pizza to be worse than any frozen pie that we have ever eaten...no sauce at all, very bland but that did not stop people from eating the stuff as soon as it came out of the oven...Only decent pizza that we have found in 40 years of cruising is the pizza shop on the promenade of the explorer of the seas..

[KKB]

@VP757 Thanks for the great review!

Our kids sailed Celebrity when they were 15-17-20 & had as much fun on it as Disney at 5-7-10 (as well as RCCL & Princess inbetween & after as well). Sometimes kids/teen club was a fit, sometimes it wasn't, but luckily like your kiddos, they mostly like to do what we do.

I agree that Celebrity production shows are "meh" as are Carnival (and Princess). EXCEPT Eclass ships (Apex, Edge, Ascent & Beyond)--those are AMAZING, right up there w/ RCCL & NCL top shows.

I am sad that the menus have become more limited. I think you put it well--the food we order is good, but sometimes I struggle with what to order. We spent a month on the Regal Princess in April & the menus & food were AMAZING--it was quite a comparison.

[Flafun888]

great review...thank you! I was on this exact ship/itinerary (different sail date), so interesting to hear your perspectives. I love broadway type stuff, so we disagree there - enjoyed that. But totally agree on Rock the Reflection. Didn't expect much going in and was 100% blown away.

[txtechmk]

Thanks for this detailed and honest review.  It's been 2-4 years since we were on the Reflection but it is one of our favorite ships.

[peanut head]

Thank you for the detailed review--the good, the bad and the ugly🙃

 

I was wondering if you could go into more detail regarding the Over-the-Water Cabanas on Coco Cay?  Specifically, what was offered?  Restroom facilities?  Could the other cabanas see/hear you or was it very private?  How was the food service? Was it comfortable--too hot, windy?  How was it to get in and out of the water?  Were any water gear provided (snorkel/mask/other)?  And, anything you can think of that I didn't ask?

[VP757]

1 hour ago, peanut head said:

Thank you for the detailed review--the good, the bad and the ugly🙃

 

I was wondering if you could go into more detail regarding the Over-the-Water Cabanas on Coco Cay?  Specifically, what was offered?  Restroom facilities?  Could the other cabanas see/hear you or was it very private?  How was the food service? Was it comfortable--too hot, windy?  How was it to get in and out of the water?  Were any water gear provided (snorkel/mask/other)?  And, anything you can think of that I didn't ask?

 

I could go on forever and start a whole thread on CoCo Cay and the Over Water Cabana, it was truly the highlight of our trip.

What’s included- The over the water cabana includes entry for up to 8 guests (can add 2 more for an additional charge) to the CoCo Beach Club, which sounds like a perk, but we never left the cabana never needed too.  As well as lunch, floating mats, and snorkel gear. Bluetooth sound system, but if you don’t want to pair your own device several preset stations.  There is a mini bar in the cabana which is an additional change if you do not have the drink package, if you have the drink package it is included.  The cabana also comes with all you can drink water.  You have a cabana attendant that takes care of all your needs, your food, and your drinks, extra snorkel gear, extra mats, basically whatever you need they take care of.  Our attendant Charles was fantastic about anything and everything we wanted he took care of with no issue. 

 

Food- You are given a menu in the cabana to the restaurant for the beach club, the menu is great, and there is a ton of choices, you can order as much as you on apps, entries, and desserts.  Also, if you want something from the snack shack all you do is just ask and the attendant will get that for you too.  The restaurant opens at 11-3 if I recall correctly.  I saw on YouTube someone recommended you pre order and space everything out, so you do overly stuff yourself and that’s what we did and it work perfectly.  We ordered all our food by 9:30 Am.  We requested our apps to come out right at 11, entries at 12:30 and desserts at 2.  Everything arrived exactly when we wanted, and the spacing allowed us to continue playing in the water and relaxing and we didn’t get over stuff trying to eat everything at once.  I would highly recommend this process.

 

Water Access- We were cabana #5 in the morning I would say we were roughly in 7-8 feet of water, by the afternoon when low tide came in, we were roughly 5 and a half feet, I’m 6’ tall and could tip toe.  If you’re not a strong swimmer they provide life jackets for you if requested, and also come with two float mats but if you want more just ask your attendant.  Same with snorkel gear comes with two want more just ask (but you need to sign a waiver to snorkel) There is a ladder to the side of the cabana to get out or into the water, or of course you can just jump off the side or use the water slide.  The water temp was great, very little waves, always plenty of lifeguards around.  Just be aware of your surroundings and the ocean floor, lot of sea life, sting rays, nurse sharks, sea urchins, none bothered us at all just be aware of what you’re jumping into that’s all.

 

Restrooms Privacy- No restroom on the cabana itself, there is a freshwater shower and changing room but no restroom.  There was once a short walk away, maybe a minute or so walk, not terrible at all.  Privacy, you can see other cabanas especially while in the water, there are curtains you can use for privacy, but no one seemed to use them including us.  The noise level wasn’t bad, and you could hear the occasional laughter of another cabana but besides that there was no real noise or music issue.  So, they are not super private, but you were not on top of each other and had your own space.  The weather was great never got to hot, the cabana has a celling fan with really helps, plus a nice breeze off the ocean, and plenty of shade and umbrellas.

I would do the over the water cabana again in a heartbeat depending on the price.  The original price of this cabana was 3,500 and on top of that is the 18% gratuity.  At that price I don’t see the value.  But they were not sailing at all at that price (I been keeping my eye on them on the cruise planner for 8 months) about 2 weeks before our sail date they lowered them to 1,050 plus 18%.  It was still a splurge, that’s for sure, but when you break it down to 6 people it’s about 207 a person for an all-day completely included shore excursions with fantastic food, I would pay that price every time.  So, it is a splurge and pricey but for me the value was there, and I would hesitate to book again at that price or even up to 1,500. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[peanut head]

1 hour ago, VP757 said:

 

I could go on forever and start a whole thread on CoCo Cay and the Over Water Cabana, it was truly the highlight of our trip.

What’s included- The over the water cabana includes entry for up to 8 guests (can add 2 more for an additional charge) to the CoCo Beach Club, which sounds like a perk, but we never left the cabana never needed too.  As well as lunch, floating mats, and snorkel gear. Bluetooth sound system, but if you don’t want to pair your own device several preset stations.  There is a mini bar in the cabana which is an additional change if you do not have the drink package, if you have the drink package it is included.  The cabana also comes with all you can drink water.  You have a cabana attendant that takes care of all your needs, your food, and your drinks, extra snorkel gear, extra mats, basically whatever you need they take care of.  Our attendant Charles was fantastic about anything and everything we wanted he took care of with no issue. 

 

Food- You are given a menu in the cabana to the restaurant for the beach club, the menu is great, and there is a ton of choices, you can order as much as you on apps, entries, and desserts.  Also, if you want something from the snack shack all you do is just ask and the attendant will get that for you too.  The restaurant opens at 11-3 if I recall correctly.  I saw on YouTube someone recommended you pre order and space everything out, so you do overly stuff yourself and that’s what we did and it work perfectly.  We ordered all our food by 9:30 Am.  We requested our apps to come out right at 11, entries at 12:30 and desserts at 2.  Everything arrived exactly when we wanted, and the spacing allowed us to continue playing in the water and relaxing and we didn’t get over stuff trying to eat everything at once.  I would highly recommend this process.

 

Water Access- We were cabana #5 in the morning I would say we were roughly in 7-8 feet of water, by the afternoon when low tide came in, we were roughly 5 and a half feet, I’m 6’ tall and could tip toe.  If you’re not a strong swimmer they provide life jackets for you if requested, and also come with two float mats but if you want more just ask your attendant.  Same with snorkel gear comes with two want more just ask (but you need to sign a waiver to snorkel) There is a ladder to the side of the cabana to get out or into the water, or of course you can just jump off the side or use the water slide.  The water temp was great, very little waves, always plenty of lifeguards around.  Just be aware of your surroundings and the ocean floor, lot of sea life, sting rays, nurse sharks, sea urchins, none bothered us at all just be aware of what you’re jumping into that’s all.

 

Restrooms Privacy- No restroom on the cabana itself, there is a freshwater shower and changing room but no restroom.  There was once a short walk away, maybe a minute or so walk, not terrible at all.  Privacy, you can see other cabanas especially while in the water, there are curtains you can use for privacy, but no one seemed to use them including us.  The noise level wasn’t bad, and you could hear the occasional laughter of another cabana but besides that there was no real noise or music issue.  So, they are not super private, but you were not on top of each other and had your own space.  The weather was great never got to hot, the cabana has a celling fan with really helps, plus a nice breeze off the ocean, and plenty of shade and umbrellas.

I would do the over the water cabana again in a heartbeat depending on the price.  The original price of this cabana was 3,500 and on top of that is the 18% gratuity.  At that price I don’t see the value.  But they were not sailing at all at that price (I been keeping my eye on them on the cruise planner for 8 months) about 2 weeks before our sail date they lowered them to 1,050 plus 18%.  It was still a splurge, that’s for sure, but when you break it down to 6 people it’s about 207 a person for an all-day completely included shore excursions with fantastic food, I would pay that price every time.  So, it is a splurge and pricey but for me the value was there, and I would hesitate to book again at that price or even up to 1,500. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amazing experience!  Thank you for sharing in detail.