Royal Caribbean
This large ship offers contemporary style to those who like to travel well
The Ship. This is a sister ship to Celebrity Eclipse, Celebrity Reflection, Celebrity Silhouette, and Celebrity Solstice. The steeply sloping stern, with its mega-yacht-style ducktail platform above the propulsion pods, is attractive, and balances the ship’s contemporary profile, while the bows are rounded to accommodate a helipad.
Between the two slim funnels (set one behind the other) is a grass outdoor area, the Lawn Club, with real grass that seems to like the salty air. The Lawn Club is open to all, so you can go putting, play croquet or bocce ball (like bowling or boules), or have a picnic on the grass.
There are several pool and water-play areas on Resort Deck: one in a solarium (with glass roof), a sports pool, a family pool, and a wet zone. However, the deck space around the two pools is not large enough for the number of passengers carried.
The interior decor is elegant, yet contemporary. Attractions include a Gastropub; a cocktail lounge with jazz; a bar with the look of an ocean-going yacht; Quasar, a bar with large screens that create a nightly light show synchronized to music; and an observation lounge with dance floor.
Celebrity’s signature Martini Bar, with its frosted bar, includes a small alcove called Crush with an ice-filled table for caviar and vodka tastings.
Fortunes Casino has 16 gaming tables and 200 slot machines. There’s a two-deck library, but the books on the upper shelves are impossible to reach. An innovative Hot Glass Show, created in collaboration with Corning Museum of Glass, includes demonstrations and a narrated performance of glass-blowing, housed in an outdoor studio on the open deck as part of the Lawn Club.
Passenger niggles include poor drawer space in cabins; inadequate children’s facilities and staff; congestion when you exit the showlounge; and noise in all areas of the lobby when the Martini Bar is busy.
Good points include the elevator call buttons located in a floor-stand ‘pod’; when an elevator arrives, a glass panel above it turns from blue to pink. Also, the ship has a good collection of designer chairs and sunloungers in various locations.
The ship sails year-round in the Caribbean. Gratuities are charged to your onboard account. A refurbishment in 2014 added more branded merchandise for shops, changed Cellar Masters into a Gastrobar featuring more than 40 craft beers and ‘comfort food,’ and online@Celebrity into the Celebrity iLounge (a computer room equipped with Apple Macs).
Accommodation. The accommodation is both practical and comfortable. There are numerous price grades, depending on size and location. In non-suite-grade cabins there is little space between the bed and the wall, but all include twin beds convertible to a queen- or king-size bed with premium bedding, sitting area, and vanity desk with hairdryer, but little drawer space. Although closets have good hanging space, other storage space is limited. Bathrooms have a shower enclosure, toilet, and tiny washbasin. A charge of $3.95 for room service applies between 11pm and 6am.
Note that cabins 1551–1597 on the port side and 1556–1602 on the starboard side on Penthouse Deck (Deck 11) suffer from ‘aircraft carrier’ syndrome because they are directly under the overhanging Resort Deck. They have little exposure to sun or light, so sunbathing is out of the question. Many thick supporting struts ruin the view from these cabins, which are otherwise pleasant enough.
Other accommodation grades are named Veranda, Family Veranda, Concierge, Ocean View, and Interior (no-view) cabins. Suite-grade categories are: Aqua; Sky; Celebrity; Royal; and Penthouse. Suites have much more space, larger balconies with good-quality sunloungers, and more personal amenities than standard cabins.
Dining. Silhouette, the ship’s balconied main dining room (included in the cruise price), has ocean views on the port and starboard sides. The contemporary design is stunning. At the forward end, a two-deck-high wine tower provides an eye-catching focal point. As for the food, it’s a bit of a let down – the decreased quality is all too obvious to repeat Celebrity passengers.
Suite occupants can dine in the exclusive setting of Luminae, a restaurant with tableside preparation of signature dishes, an eclectic menu, and a selection of over 400 wines. Blu is a 128-seat specialty restaurant designated just for the occupants of Aqua-class cabins. The room has pleasing, but rather cold, blue decor.
Murano is an extra-cost, reservations-required venue offering high-quality traditional dining with a French flair and exquisite table settings, including large Riedel wine glasses. Food and service are good.
The Tuscan Grille, an extra-cost venue, features Kobe beef and premium quality steaks, and has beautifully curved archways – reminiscent of walking into a high-tech winery. There are great views from huge aft-view windows.
QSine is an extra-cost, reservations-required quirky fine-dining venue, with iPad menus.
Sushi on Five features extra-cost sushi and cooked items including noodle and hot pot dishes.
The Café al Bacio & Gelateria coffee lounge serves Lavazza Italian coffee. It is on one side of the main lobby, but it’s small and lines form at peak times. The seating is mostly in large, very comfortable armchairs.
Oceanview Café and Grill is the expansive, tray-free, casual self-serve buffet venue. There are food islands rather than those awful straight buffet counters, and good signage. However, it’s impossible to get a warm plate for so-called hot food items, and condiments are hard to find.
The AquaSpa Café is for light, healthier options (solarium fare), but the selections are bland and boring.
The Mast Bar Grill and Bar is an outside venue offering fast food.
Entertainment. The 1,115-seat Equinox Theater, the ship’s showlounge, has a main level and two balconied sections positioned amphitheater-style around a stage with music lofts on either side.
Colorful theme nights are held in the Sky Observation Lounge, where the daytime decor comes alive at night thanks to mood lighting. The 200-seat Celebrity Central hosts comedy, cooking demonstrations, enrichment lectures, and feature films. The Ensemble Lounge big-band-era cocktail lounge has live jazz, next to the Murano restaurant.
Spa/Fitness. This is a large, two-deck Canyon Ranch SpaClub at Sea. The fitness center includes kinesis (pulleys against gravity) and cardio-vascular machinery. An extra-cost, unisex thermal suite has steam and shower mist rooms, and a glacial ice fountain, plus a calming relaxation area with heated tiled beds, and an acupuncture center.