Our Operations Manager, Jacqueline, shares with us why she thinks our passengers will enjoy Celebrity and what you should know before you choose to cruise with this line.

Hi folks! Jacqueline here and as many of you probably know by now because, it’s been mentioned a few times, I used to work on a cruise ship. It was only one contract but it happened to be on Celebrity Eclipse which is a ship that we are offering this coming year (2018). This made me very excited to talk about the brand and shed some light on the differences this line has compared to others. There are no bad cruises, just the wrong cruise for certain people so it is important to double check that this is what you’re looking for.

We have chosen Celebrity for two Mediterranean cruises in 2018 and we did this for a reason. One was the uniqueness of the itineraries and the other was because we believe our clients choosing this type of trip will enjoy this cruise line.

Okay, so what makes Celebrity so different?

Celebrity Cruises – “Modern Luxury”

At Celebrity it’s all about taking what’s expected and turning it up just a notch. It’s taking the old style of cruising “classic and elegant” and adding modern takes to bring them to the present day. Examples of this would be “Lawn Club” their top deck where several of their ships have real grass. Guests can relax and enjoy a picnic there or performances. This deck even offers a Hot Glass Show in conjunction with The Corning Museum of Glass. It may sound odd, but relaxing on a well-manicured lawn of grass while in the middle of the ocean is a pretty fantastic experience.

The staff on board are excellent and well trained. They are friendly and thoughtful and with nearly a 2:1 guest to crew ratio you’ll be well looked after. While the ships are large it rarely feels that way with a lower passenger count than some other cruise lines and the layout of the ship is well-designed for exploring. The ships themselves feel high-end with amazing art throughout, sophisticated decor, and little hideaways placed all around the ship.

You’ll also find that their bars are not regular bars. Several bars like the Molecular Bar or Martini Bar have “Flair” bartenders on staff. That means not only can they make a mean cocktail (even with dry ice!) they also perform. I’ve seen one of these bartenders pour over 10 drinks at once and make it look easy. Even if you’re not a drinker, spending some time at these bars is well worth it for the entertainment.

Ships

Celebrity has two fleets: Millennium class and Solstice class. Millennium class came before Solstice and has since been “solstizied” and brought up to date to the current standard of the cruise line. The two classes ships differ in size. Millenium class are Summit, Infinity, Constellation, and of course Millennium. These ships have around 2,200 passenger capacity. Tonnage at around 90,000.

The Solstice class ships include Solstice, Silhouette, Eclipse, Reflection, and Equinox. They are slightly large with a capacity of around 2,900 people.  Tonnage at around 122,000.

Celebrity also has three far smaller ships that only travel to the Galapagos Islands. This includes Celebrity Xperience, Xpedition, and Xploration. They have a capacity of around 100 people each and tonnage of 2,900.

Activities

Not sure what to do on board? You won’t be bored on Celebrity. Between talks, wine pairing classes (partnered with “Reidel”), dance classes, and cooking classes (partnered with “Top Chef”) you will be busy with sophisticated and adult-friendly activities. There is also a gym and amazing spa where you can go pamper yourself. In the evenings they have an array of live music to choose from as well as some adult-only shows and live comedy. This is not to mention the incredible mainstage productions in the style of Broadway and Cirque de Soleil. You will be wowed, there is no doubt.

Oh and before I forget, the shopping on board is pretty great. Again, I’m biased as this is the area where I worked but you will find some excellent high-end watches and jewellery on board Celebrity that you won’t find on other lines. You will also find specialty shops like Michael Kors on select ships. Like many areas of the cruise line, even the shopping is just one touch above!

Cabins

You will find the cabins to be well appointed with modern designs and all the amenities you are used to. You will find even the inside cabins roomy as they feature a sofa in addition to the bed(s). You’ll be particularly impressed with the well laid out storage in the cabins. There are lots of nooks and crannies to store stuff. Just remember where you put everything when you’re ready to disembark! They also supply complimentary Celebrity Tote as well as bathrobes in select cabin categories. 

Food

The main dining room is stunning. With a giant column of incredible wines as the showpiece of the room and two floors to eat and enjoy it’s simply a beautiful environment. Since you will typically be seated in the same location at every dinner you will get to know your wait staff and they will get to know you which is a unique pleasure.

The Oceanview Cafe is the buffet-style restaurant on the top deck of the ship that is open most hours of the day. Apart from the regular warm food stations they also have made-to-order pasta, meat-carving stations, and a sushi bar with a sushi chef making fresh creations. This is an excellent option if you do not feel like getting too dressed up for dinner.

Specialty Restaurants:

The food is AMAZING. This might sound like an exaggeration but I fell in love with food at the Tuscan Grille, one of the specialty restaurants on board. Full transparency, I’m not a meat eater but all my fellow crew members raved about the steak at this restaurant. People from around the world told me daily how it was the best steak they have ever had in their lives. I had pasta every time I visited and I can confidently say it was the best pasta I ever had in my life (and I’ve been to Italy several times, sorry Italy!). The antipasti grilled veg and cheese at the beginning are such a perfect start to the meal and the desert… okay I have to stop. My mouth is watering thinking about it and this is only ONE specialty restaurant.  Check out the menu HERE. 

Another one I would highly recommend would be Qsine. This is an experience like you’ve never had before. You order using an iPad and they surprise you with food from all over the world. My favourites are sushi lollipops, disco shrimp, treseviche, and M’s Favorites. You can probably tell from that that I love fish but there are plenty of amazing meat options too. It’s whimsical, it’s fun, and it’s an experience worth the price.

I’m only touching on a FEW of the options on board. To see what else there is and review the menus please click HERE. 

Things to know…

• If you are looking for nightlife after 10:30 pm, this may not be the line for you. They do have events but they aren’t as high energy as they are perhaps compared to Norwegian Cruise Lines.
• There is no smoking in the casinos. Smoking is only permitted in designated outdoor areas and never on personal balconies.
• There are no “Formal Nights” any longer but they do have “Evening Chic” nights at least twice on a 7-day cruise. This is dressier than “Smart Casual” but less dressy than formal. It means you no longer have to wear jackets and ties for dinner on these nights but t-shirts, ripped jeans, or shorts are not permitted in the main dining room. Frankly, bring something a little more dressed up or you’ll risk feeling out of place on these evening. For women bring a cocktail dress, skirt, pants or designer jeans and for men a sports coat or blazer with pants, or designer jeans with a dress shirt, button down shirt or sweater will work. A golf shirt probably won’t be dressy enough on these evenings.

• Celebrity still maintains the tradition of having a featured Captains Table and they have now added Officer Tables where officers with three stripes and above join tables in the main dining room. Hint: This is a night where you’ll want to dress up or only dine in the buffet.
• In keeping with tradition, Celebrity still has Pre-Booked Dining which means that you are assigned to a table with the same guests every night of your cruise. They have tried to update this policy with Celebrity Select Dining where you can make reservations day by day or simply show up and have the Maitre d’ seat you. We will warn that this doesn’t work as seamlessly as it does on Norwegian. If you do not plan to dine with our tour group, as we will have reservations for our entire group, you may want to be proactive in picking dining times when on the ship and not leave it to the last minute. Of course, if you do not wish to eat in the main dining room you can eat at the buffet or a specialty restaurant where seating is a little more flexible.

These are only the highlights of the cruise line. Why not visit their YouTube Chanel to get a better picture of the cruise lines and what they have to offer by clicking HERE.

If you have any questions about this cruise line reach out to Target Tours and we would be happy to help you out. Email [email protected], use the chat function in the bottom left corner, or call is at 1-877-214-5367.