Great Cruise but Definitely a Different Experience than Normal

Celebrity Edge Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 61

Overall rating:

4.6 out of 5
Verified Review
Celebrity Edge

7 Night Eastern Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: March 24, 2019

Ship: Celebrity Edge

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 12105

Traveled as: Family (young children)

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

The ship was new, interesting & definitely different than any other cruise ship I’ve been on in the past. It was still a cruise ship with th pool, buffet, theater, etc but definitely different than the standard model. There were very few outdoor spaces to enjoy if that’s your thing. No sports deck, climbing wall, golf, garden (or other such activities). There was the “rooftop garden” but the restaurant was speciality and simply BBQ (burger, wings and hardly worth it). We never saw it at night but it never seemed very full and was really a lost space in my opinion. The put out a couple of board games up there but that was it. Also the loss of bar space was missed. No wine bar, speciality bar, sunset bar inside etc. - just the one martini bar. That meant we spent most of our time at The Retreat but felt we missed a lot of th ship. There was an open air bar at the back of the ship but it was very windy and not really someplace you could sit if you were all dressed for dinner. It was more like a place to visit befor you were showered and ready to enjoy the evening so I guess you could head over there from the pool deck or after lunch time. It’s just nice to enjoy some of the bar spaces for an evening cocktail which typically needs to be inside due to the windy conditions, which are great during the day in shorts and a swimsuit but not for ladies sundresses and hair! The food was all very good, better than most ships I would say. There seemed to be less activities going on in general. There was also a focus on more high end shopping. There were none of the market type shopping venues that typically pop up in the centrum on cruise ships. Well there was really no centrum or promenade. It was just the martini bar that was the single focal point of the ship. Everything else was sectioned off so it had a very different feel. Due to that we spent most of our time at The Retreat but I can’t imagine what it would have been like were we not in a suite. Seems like you’d feel there was stuff missing. Also the shows were not bad but certainly not great. We felt like that was a point that suffered. The Eden show was strange as most people pointed out and only ran at 10pm. A lot of the activities that were offered happened very late. If your not a night owl you’ll feel like you’re missing half of what there is to do, which is us. We kept trying to stay up later and later to see the shows and events but ended up suffering in the end as we were simply exhausted everyday. I’m not sure why so much is centered on late night...........

Embarkation

4 out of 5
Fairly good with the suites entrance but they forgot to check us in and we had to wait extra time. They apologized but it was not as smooth as it should have been.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5
The type of suite we were in allowed for all inclusive speciality dining as well as Luminae, which has the quality of the speciality restaurants. It was all very good. I felt the speciality restaurants still had portions that were too big but Luminae seemed to have just the right sizes. Never tied the buffet but it looked impressive. All th drinks were good as well but only one main bar (martini bar) for the whole ship. Seemed a little off given the number of passengers. It was definitely packed most of the time.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5
There seemed to be less activities onboard. The main pool was very busy so we stayed at the Retreat Pool. There was no sports activities but the gym was nice. It had fabulous equipment and even Peleton bikes. By far the most impressive cruise ship gym I have ever seen.

Entertainment

4 out of 5
I wish it was excellent but some of the shows were not as impressive as I’ve seen on other ships and we were expecting a lot from the Edge. Some of the shows were great but the other half was just ok.

Children's Programs

3 out of 5
It was just ok. They tried to do some activities with the kids but it’s just so so. I think older kids would like the teen space, but for the younger ones it was a nice new space but not much else going on. I felt like it was the same as my gyms kids club so nothing special.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
The service and staff were excellent. They really shined in this category. Our butle was also great and available almost all the time to answer any questions and handle anything we needed. Five star service for sure.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5
The design is very cutting edge and looks great. It’s also super clean so no complaints there!

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
Of course a suite of this class is going to be impressive, and it was. It’s the largest suite type we have ever stayed in. The space is great and certainly helped with a child with us. These suites do come with a pretty hefty price tag, though. I’m not sure if it’s really worth it. We bid for the upgrade and won, thus paying about half what the brochure price was. I think at the brochure price you’d be pushing the limit for value. If $30K is a small sum for your vacation then go for it. The room is roughly $20K a week (depending on season, etc) and then you’ll have to budget airfare, tips, excursions, etc. so pushing $30K is not an exaggeration. We enjoyed it very much but would not pay full price if we were considering the Edge again.

Ship tip

They have removed several of the common bars as a lot of space was dedicated to The Retreat. Think about that if it’s impor to you.

Ports of call

Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida Did not visit port

It was just embarkation day.

San Juan, Puerto Rico Did not visit port

Been there so many times and there’s not much to do.

Tortola, British Virgin Islands

4 out of 5
Nice island. Still suffering some of the effects of the hurricane.

Philipsburg, St. Maarten

5 out of 5
Always love St. Maarten as there’s a lot of options on what to do there.

Disembarkation

5 out of 5
Being in a suite the embarkation was amazing. The best I’ve ever had. Not sure how it compares to the other staterooms though.
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4 Comments

wgammon1    3 years ago

Glad you had a good cruise. Thanks for the great review.

cruisellama    5 years ago

Thanks for the review.

cruisellama    5 years ago

Does the Retreat keep copies of the menus for guest review? Can you order items from the other restaurants in Luminae? (In the past , on other ships, we found Luminae menu to fall short on some nights.)

cruisellama    5 years ago

Nice review. Reading much of the same. We're in a suite this Nov, it will be interesting, but at least we'll have the Retreat

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