Celebrity has a good reputation and the ship was a beauty. The change of ports after final payment left a bad taste in my mouth. Among the reasons I booked this cruise was that at the time of booking Ft. Lauderdale was the port which was much more convenient for me than Miami. Had Miami been the port at the time of booking I would have kept looking. It was a bush league move by a cruiseline with a pretty good reputation.
Embarkation
2 out of 5
After final payment was due Celebrity switched embarkation from Ft. Lauderdale to Miami which was sleazy. If you knew enough to ask they agreed to bus us from Ft Lauderdale airport to Miami cruise port and back. Big deal! When you arrive the day before embarkation and leave a day after disembarkation that means going from airport to hotel, back to the airport and then the cruiseport and then the same in reverse. A gigantic hassle. The wait for the buses was exceedingly long and disorganized as there were not enough buses nor enough people loading luggage on the buses to expedite the process. As the saying goes you only get one chance to make a first impression and Celebrity blew it.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Food in the main dining room was okay. The buffet at breakfast and lunch were good but dinner was subpar. Ate one night at the Tuscan Grille and while the food was good it doesn't warrant a $90 cover charge. The food and service in Blu was excellent.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
Entertainment
5 out of 5
The entertainment line up was a highlight. Great variety and very talented performers.
Children's Programs
traveled without children
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
staff in all the restaurants were very friendly and attentive. Room steward likewise. Bartenders were uneven. some friendly some not so much.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Beautiful ship kept immaculately clean
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Very comfortable, very clean and for a cruiseship pretty spacious, especially the bathroom. My only quibble was with the pillows which had seen better days. They were flat.
Ship tip
During sea days finding deck chairs was nearly impossible. In spite of requests by the staff, people are rude and selfish, saving many chairs for extended periods, many of which went unoccupied for hours at a time. We sat next to a group from France one day who reserved 8 chairs in the shade and four more in the sun so they could have the option depending on their mood. Selfish.
Loved Sand Juan but didn't like arrival at 3:30 in the afternoon. That made for a short visit and I would have liked to be there during the day. Buyer beware and check not just the port stops but time of arrival.
Took an excursion through a third party company which was excellent. Very thorough tour of both sides of the island but the devestation from the hurricanes is still obvious.
They are building a new terminal that can support The Edge. Construction began late last year. We still embarked and disembarked at Port Everglades, but they bussed us to the convention center for ground transportation. There was no porter service for luggage, you had to carry it. Personally, I wouldn't have minded changing to Miami to avoid that. I guess it's personal preference.
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