Celebrity Constellation
4-Night Bahamas
03/24/2016: Ft Lauderdale, Florida
03/25/2016: Key West, Florida
03/26/2016: Sea Day
03/27/2016: Nassau, Bahamas
03/24/2016: Ft Lauderdale, Florida
03/25/2016: Key West, Florida
03/26/2016: Sea Day
03/27/2016: Nassau, Bahamas
03/28/2016: Ft Lauderdale, Florida
"I Still Do!"
"I Still Do!"
This time around we will showcase our Vow Renewal on the Celebrity Constellation and try to give you a better idea on how the process for this works in case some of you were interested.
We originally had so many options booked and looked at for our vow renewal, which was our 5th year of marriage, which we finally decided on Celebrity Constellation. It was a hard choice with so many options but we felt this was something we really wanted to do here. Now keep in mind your options for a vow renewal at least on board is very, very limited. You won't know certain things until you are on board, hence why we wanted to share our experience on this page.
We booked the vow renewal with The Wedding Experience. Now we did run into a small complaint with them. The only complaint we really had was the communication with us when we needed things answered. We were told that two weeks prior to sailing we would have our date, time and location. They did email that day and said they had the information and they will contact to confirm everything. We called and emailed to get the information and they said they are waiting on the ship. So we gave them a day and asked again and the same reply. We just would have liked for them, after seeing we left several messages, both email and voicemail to contact us back and even if you had no answer let us know that. Mainly for this was that they were waiting on the ship to get back to them on it since a large wedding was still being planned out. Our thought was then and throughout the cruise at times was that they had a total of four weddings (including our renewal) and that was a lot for them. Well in a way if they could not of handled it, let us know and we would have understood and did another type of renewal that could have accommodated us.
Once we did get on board that first day we received a letter in our cabin from Renata, our wedding coordinator to give her a call when we settled in to go over the renewal. So we did, we met her in the lobby. Long story short, which you will see the details below, we got our original location and were able to have dinner there (Oceanliners) that night all thanks to Renata. Have to say she really is an amazing person with a heart of gold on her.
Now we kept going to Oceanliners every chance we got. We even had Renata take us there just to imagine our day. She was more than happy to do that for us. Everything was going along perfectly, which never happens!
On to the day of the renewal. Everything was confirmed and we had our game plan set. Christine was to go to the spa at 1pm to get her hair done and I (Patrick) was to stay in the room and get ready and wait for her call once she was leaving so at that point I would leave and we would not see each other until later on at Oceanliners. Well close to two hours later I hear the door opening in our cabin and I think to myself, oh-no what happened!! The one thing we did not think would go wrong did.....Her hair! She came back to the cabin in tears because it looked like hell. Keep in mind that Christine brought pictures of the hairdo that she wanted, hell I could have done it myself if I really wanted to. Now they quoted her for $80 then it turned to $150 when she checked out for this, that and the other. So back to the room, we are in there trying to figure out what to do next. We only have an hour or so left until we renew. I run and find Renata and explained to her what had happened. She was speechless and said hold on. At that point I call the cabin and talk to my wife and see how she is and what she wants to do. Renata comes back and says they will take her at the spa now and wash it out and do it over, doesn't matter if she's late its her day. I told her that she will do it herself and we will be there. I then went to the spa to talk to a manager. They were not in so I talked to someone at the desk, they also felt really bad for what happened and said we will not see a charge for this.
So I head back to the room, Christine is getting her hair ready. It's time for me to leave, she saw me in my suit. I help her in her dress (only zipped, didn't see the front!) and off I go. I head down to Oceanliners and get ready. The reception from the large wedding was just getting out, so I waited for them. Renata saw me coming into the room and made sure everything was alright. Renata also called Christine after hearing what happened to make sure she was okay and if she needed anything else. She even offered her own personal beauty supplies.
I'm starting to setup for the renewal, put the camera in place and do little things here and there. Renata asked if I wanted to put flowers down around the aisle, I said sure. Again she is just an amazing, nice person. We had a DJ there, which we brought our music (2 songs) for them to play (put them on a USB). The DJ I'm guessing was just there from the previous reception, not sure though. Also met with the CD (Maarten) who was doing our renewal, very nice guy. So it was almost time to start. I hear my wife outside of Oceanliners and position myself to where I can't see her until shes right at the beginning of the aisle. The music hits and here comes my beautiful wife, looking amazing! The ceremony was so perfect! It lasted about 10 minutes from start to finish, which we expected. Gave us plenty of time for pictures. First a quick champagne toast!
Our photographer Avi took us anywhere on the ship we wanted. We had him for an hour but he didn't mind the time, he just wanted to make sure that we had the pictures we wanted. We went from Oceanliners to the Foyer and upstairs to the Reflections Lounge all the way aft to the outside deck at the back of the ship. By the time that was all done we were sweating and done for the moment!
We headed back down to our cabin to drop off some stuff, fix ourselves up and head back out. Our renewal was on Chic night so several photography stations were up and out around the ship. So we just took as many pictures as we could just incase we didn't buy any with the package for the wedding photography, which was a bit expensive. We did several shoots from around the ship. Some photographers wanted us to do more freestyle poses while some didn't get it and wanted us certain ways. Luckily our photographer was really cool and did what we wanted and some of his own. One girl we ran into yelled at us because we took our own photograph that was just a solid white backdrop. Seriously, come on you see us dressed up with a wedding dress and suit, cut us some slack!
We took a few more pictures inside and outside and headed back to the room to freshen up for dinner. Came back out and took even more picture, this time with more comfortable clothing. We then went to Oceanliners to celebrate, the staff there was incredible!
On to that night.....We requested our cake to be in our room that night, Renata set it up for 9pm for after our dinner. We get back and hard to describe what we got. It was more of a large section of cake from someone elses wedding. Guessing they messed up and brought us theirs instead of ours. It was the wrong flavor and wrong everything. Looked like a wreck. We had our cake topper on top, so we wondered where was our cake. We were a bit aggravated at this, but mostly wanted to have this cake sent to it's rightful place. It was already 10pm and we didn't want to bother Renata anymore. So we went to guest services and they said that tomorrow they will send us the correct one. We said our renewal was today and not tomorrow. So they came back and said that they will send one in an hour. So we went back to our room. We get a call from guest services and that they were sending chocolate covered strawberries and champagne to our room as soon as possible. Finally around 11pm our cake arrives. Looks good and more of what we expected. We got a vanilla cake with buttercream. Well more butter than cream, it was enough butter to where we would have saved it for toast the next morning. We each had a piece and called it quits.
Now on to the photos. We met with Avi on the next day (which was the last day of our cruise) and he showed us on his laptop all of the photos he had taken (106 +/-) which some were already edited. For the most part they came out great. Pricing for these can get a bit much, so one by one we looked at the photos and told Avi to take notes which ones we liked and which ones were maybe. He was so good throughout. Didn't feel rush and didn't feel like he had to go. We decided on getting the package of five photos. We knew walking in that we wanted to have some professional shots, we also planned on taking as many as possible and going from there. So we came back later that night to get our CD, which Avi tested out to make sure it worked. He did a great job and we will highly recommend him!
Don't get us wrong with few hiccups that we didn't care for the renewal and it was a waste and a horrible time. It was the opposite, we loved being able to renew our vows on board. The staff was amazing with accommodating to our needs and wants, couldn't have asked for any better.
We do recommend, which we even did ourselves to an extent is to prepare for a plan b. You never know what is going to happen but just be prepared. For example if the spa accident happened earlier in the day it wouldn't have been a rush-rush later on and Christine could have done plan b and do it herself without a problem. It was just too close. Meet with everyone prior, the salon was the only people we didn't. Doubt it would have made any difference. Again just make sure you have everything you need. We came with a suitcase just for the renewal. Everything from a bouquet to a cake topper and the music. Renada was impressed with us planning it out so well.
Overall with the Celebrity Constellation being our 3rd time on this ship we have noticed things not being as great as they once were. Food was slacking a bit, options a tiny bit less and flavor not there as much as it used to be. Dining room service was the best we ever had, the guys there were phenomenal. Entertainment, we saw iHollywood for a third, which was better than before. Missed out on a few other shows due to renewal taken priority. We did get a Concierge Category cabin, all I can say (will explain below) that we won't waste money on that again.
On to the tour around the Celebrity Constellation. It is not too long and feel free to check out the other two review/tours we have from this ship. Any questions you have feel free to message us at Cruise Addict Junkie on Facebook and ask!
Pros
- Renata, who was our wedding coordinator was absolutely amazing! We were originally supposed to renew our wedding vows in Luminae, which was fine and Renata who saw that we originally wanted Ocean Liners asked us if we wanted to try and switch it to there. We said yes, she also asked if we wanted to do dinner there that night as well, which we were told for months that a party took it over and we were unable to. We also said yes. She walked over to Ocean Liners and talked to them and came back and said you got it! We were beyond happy that we got what we wanted!
- Throughout the entire cruise in the Reflections Lounge the staff had awesome games hosted by the activities staff (can't remember their names). It was great and everyone knew each others faces and the turnouts were perfect!
- Nightly in the Reflections Lounge the activities hosts were hosting a variety of games which were very enjoyable and also received the nickname, Game Show Guy. You really don't want to know why.
- The ship was still just as beautiful as the first day we stepped on her several years ago.
- Liked the Muster Drill was indoors, that's always a plus.
- Met a lot of really nice people throughout the cruise.
- Oceanliners had the nicest people in the world. We saw them throughout the trip since we always stopped by and looked around. At one point came in to check it out the morning that the higher level guests were having breakfast. They were nice enough to offer to help us out with taking pictures and setting up our cameras to get a feel for things. The staff also helped out a lot, they took pictures and again just so helpful and nice.
- Our MDR staff was super friendly, they knew us by name and joked around a lot with us. In our 23 cruises they rank in the top 5!
- Minus the hiccups we will come back for a 4th time with no hesitation at all!
- Seemed like the Sea Day's had so much more activities. Since it was our renewal day we were not able to get to a lot of it.
- We were invited for a sail-away party on our Nassau day. Which was a scheduling issue since we had to meet with our photographer at the same time and his schedule was jam packed as well. However we went to the sail-away on the helipad and it was amazing! The first thing I looked to do was go all the way to the front and stand up there like Jack did in Titanic. Well of course it was roped off. No big deal! It was still a very cool experience nonetheless. They served champagne and cold towels. We stayed up until we were just about to leave and went to see Avi.
- Avi our photographer was amazing. He was patient with us and let us do our own types of photos along with his. He took some amazing shots of us. Highly recommended!
Cons
- The spa was a major issue we had, which explained above. If the person was unable to do what my wife wanted that would have been fine she brought several options or again would have done it herself.
- This was an ongoing complaint for us but port days need to have more going on. Our port days we got off but came back after 3 or 4 hours to eat and then take naps because there was nothing else going on.
- Did notice from our first time to now things have slipped. They were minor but still noticeable. Many people we talked to felt the exact same way. The ship just didn't have its full feel of elegance that it once had.
- Below we will post about our stateroom in detail along with the Concierge Category we choose. For us not worth the extra money at all. More hype than it's really worth, little disappointed at this. Which again many people also agreed with us on this hot topic.
- Oceanliners for us was amazing last time that is why we choose dinner there. Service was amazing, staff so friendly. The food has slipped a bit, not what expected nor had last time around. Still good, but minor slippage in this category.
- Stateroom attendants were not that great. Had to constantly ask for ice and towels. We didn't have a Do Not Disturb sign so often times they knocked and came right in, even if we said "Hold on, we're coming", eventually we found a sign. At that point they would call and see when we were leaving. One morning we said we were leaving in 10 minutes and saw them when we left and came back about 2 hours later and the room still wasn't done yet. Also in our room in the bathroom was mold and behind the TV was a pile of dust that must have been there for weeks. Not trying to nit-pick but I do expect more from Celebrity.
- The Galley tour was neat but not worth it. We honestly expected more of a tour. Everyone met in the San Marco Restaurant and they took everyone in smaller groups. We were one of the very last groups to go in. We waited in the Restaurant for about 45 minutes. During that time they did a Q&A. Once in the tour we had two stops and it was over. It was still cool to see but not worth the wait at all. Didn't see that much. More of an informational tour rather then a visual one.
AquaSpa & Solarium
Bistro on Five / Cellar Masters
They raised the price to $10 per person. We did want to try it, but just didn't get around to it with everything else going on. I do say between this area and Cellar Masters they can do a lot more with the area and change it to something else.
Blu
Café al Bacio & Gelateria
Cafe coffee slipped as well, not as good as last time. Did enjoy the pastries and ice cream. Limited but still good. The ice cream here is for a fee but at the Oceanview Cafe it is free and better options.
(All of the above items here are free!)
(Coffee is not!)
Celebrity Theater
Crush & Martini Bar
Grand Foyer
Guest Services
Have to say they were more of help to us than our "Concierge" was. The Concierge was never at his desk and whenever we called he just transferred us to Guest Services. What did I pay extra for again?!? Guest Services like I said did help us. We had the cake issue and they fixed it. Also if you want a free deck of cards, come here. Overall not a bad experience with them.
Key West, Florida (Port of Call)
We originally figured that we would be at the other section of the port where you could walk off the ship and take pictures and be right near all of the restaurants. Well Carnival Sensation took that spot and we had the Fort side of the port. So we had to shuttle from there all the way to the Conch Train Tour Station. Which was not really a big deal. From there we walked all the way down Duval Street to the Southernmost Point. It is a nice 1 mile walk, but worth it. Duval Street is very busy with tons to see. Took us about 4 fours to go back and forth. We were going to go to lunch here but forgot the name of the restaurant we wanted which was close to the other side of the port where Carnival was. So we just headed back to the ship.
(This is the Southernmost Point, from the Conch Train Station head down Duval street one mile and it will be down another block on the right, can't miss it!)
Luminae
We were supposed to have our renewal held here, which would have been a first for the ship. However our wonder WC (Wedding Coordinator) Renata came through and got us Oceanliners. However this location would have been good for us. Didn't notice it the first two times we were here. It's underneath Blu (maybe above it, not sure) and smaller but still very elegant and beautiful.
Nassau, Bahamas (Port of Call)
Oceanliners Restaurant
Oceanview Cafe, Grill & Bar
Port Everglades (Homeport)
No complaints here. It was pretty easy. We did have to carry on a good amount of stuff, mostly bulky items. No lines to contend with and on the ship by 10:45am. Security helped out Christine with putting her dress in the machine to scan, treated it like a newborn. We went upstairs and waited since we were in priority boarding with our concierge level. It was held up for a very short timeframe because of customs but nothing you can do with that. Getting off the ship was fairly easy as well. The parking was now in an outside lot, which didn't get too packed at all. We found a great spot steps away from the front entrance.
(Waiting area for higher level guests)
Reflections Lounge
Rendezvous Lounge
One of the many lounges around the ship. Nightly music and live bands here. Nice atmosphere.
Sailaway Helipad Party
So much fun and a great experience. We've done everything from dinner with the Captain to Bridge Tours and this was right there with all of that. Loved it so much! Bad part only was that we didn't get to stay the entire time since we had to meet with our photographer and go over our renewal pictures. Hopefully we are invited again next time!
San Marco Restaurant
Food for the most part was good. Service was amazing, our waiters were really great. Everything we asked for we got without a hiccup. One of the days we did a galley tour, which like I mentioned above wasn't worth it for us. More waiting than anything else.
(Loved our waiter! Such a great guy!)
(I asked if I could get extra cheese, woah!)
Stateroom 7186 (Concierge Category)
Well...I posted this short cabin review on Facebook and got a bit of heat from other passengers but also a lot of people agree with the lack of service in this category compared to other rooms and ships. Below is just a review of the type of category cabin we booked, it is not an entire review of our trip.
Here is what the Concierge Category cabin includes;
Our signature friendly, personalized service with a guest to staff ratio of nearly 2:1.
- The Concierge person was never at the desk in the lobby nor ever answered the phone when we called. When he was there and we called he transferred the call to Guest Services. Expected a lot more with this service.
Twice daily service (makeup and turndown)
- Our two room stewards would constantly call and ask how much longer we would be in our room so they can come clean it. One day we said we will be out in 10 minutes and we saw them when we left, came back two hours later and still not done. Also the bathroom had spots of mold along with piles of dust behind the TV set which looked like it wasn't cleaned up in weeks. Not friendly at all.
Daily ice service in stainless steel ice buckets
- Had to constantly ask for ice, even though we said keep it full for the champagne and waters since the fridge was completely packed with items you had to buy.
24 hour complimentary room service
- The breakfast was amazing, when it wasn't messed up. We were impressed with that. Regular menu was alright, nothing that great.
Complimentary tote bag
- Actually very useful and liked having them.
Custom blended bath products (shampoo, conditioner and lotion), shower cap, cotton balls and cotton swabs
- Didn't see any shower cap, cotton balls or swabs. The other stuff is usually in every room we've ever been in. Also the "custom blended" bath products...isn't every bath product a "custom blend"...just saying!
Water / wine glasses
- Okay I'm going to post this one time and will put "see above" just so you know to come back to this section for the same exact response because you will see it several times throughout this short review of the cabin.........Had this in every room we've ever been in, nothing exciting.
WCelebrity eXhale bedding featuring custom premium mattresses, plus duvets and pillows, and 100% pure Egyptian cotton linens
- I've had more comfortable beds on about 90% of other cruises. Pillows were worse!
Hair dryer
- See above!
Private mini-bar
- See above! Nothing special at all especially since it was jammed packed with their items that you had to buy. Then they lock it in the middle of the afternoon on our last day. What was the perk in that again?
Interactive Samsung flat-screen television system to view and select shore excursions, order room service and watch movies
- It is a tv, nothing special and it's small like everyone else. I am glad that it wasn't a tube tv which are still around! So since it's "interactive" can you let me know why the shore excursions worked for only one port? Or why did the room service have only part of the menu on there? Or what movies were free that I could watch?
Private safe
- Really? See above, not going into this.
Dual voltage 110/220AC outlets
- Sure, whatever you say. I do have to say you need more in the room. Can I get an AMEN!?!?
Priority check-in
- We did get on the ship early, which was nice. Roughly around 11am or so.
Express luggage delivery
- The bad was outside of our room early so we wanted to bring it in. However the person doing the luggage said we were not allowed to take them now and that the stateroom attendant will deliver them later on that day. I'm sorry but when I have my luggage there I take it so I can put it away and enjoy my vacation. So I waited for him to leave and I took it. Not going to tell me I can't take my own belonging.
Personalized Concierge service
- This was a complete joke. Our wedding coordinator did more than the Concierge ever did. Heck, the staff at Oceanliners did more than the Concierge ever did. Even the person who held the elevator door for me did more than the Concierge ever did. Even the.....okay you get the point. The "personalized" service was non-existent and neither was the actual person.
Priority disembarkation based on your travel needs
- Our final morning a selected group was able to meet in the San Marco Restaurant (total of 10 of us showed up). No announcements or anything, just some coffee, juice and pastries. We were supposed to be off by 7:30am, so about 15 minutes go by and the CD comes on and says that self-assist is also up for anyone traveling with all of their bags. Wish we would have known, we would have just went there vs traveling down the stairs with everything. No big deal, we were off and at work in no time.
Complementary shoeshine service.
- Did not have a need for this service.
Access to the exclusive Concierge Class Pre-departure lounge
- It was nice but only 10 people showed up, including us.
Main and specialty restaurant seating time preference
- Oceanliners was our only want for the evening of our renewal. For months and months we were told we were unable to book since a reception had taken it over for the entire night. Once we were able to talk to our wedding coordinator she quickly went over there to secure our wishes and told us just to pick a time and it was taken care of.
Expanded room service menu
- This was actually good for breakfast. Good options and you didn't even have to leave your cabin. Some orders did get screwed up, but overall a good option.
Welcome Blanc de Blancs sparking wine with a commemorative label featuring exclusive art work for the ArtCenter/South Florida artists
- It was just a bottle of wine, wasn't too much of a big deal for us. Should actually give other options, not everyone drinks and not everyone drinks this.
Pillow menu to suite your sleeping preferences
- Now a menu usually is a piece of paper (or similar) with several options. Nope, I called up and said where was the menu they said its on the bed and they had another type of pillow if we wished. Every pillow was very uncomfortable.
Daily delivery of Afternoon Savories
- Crackers and spreasd were not our ideal choice of "Afternoon Savories". We honestly expected more options or selection. Carnival blows them out of the water. We were told once we were home that we could have asked for something else. How about a baked potato? Never saw one of those on the ship. Did make an amazing one last night! Crispy on the outside and steaming good on the inside, yum!
Plush Frette bathrobes
- It is a bathrobe, nothing special at all. Had them on plenty of other cruises. Also if we used them they actually hung them back up and didn't just throw them in the corner. Didn't notice that they were "Frette" either, opps.
Fresh fruit
- I really would hate to see the amount of fruit thrown in the garbage everyday from just this alone. If I want fruit I will go to the buffet and get some, not a big deal for us.
Custom-blended bath amenitites
- Isn't every bath product a custom blend?
Use of binoculars and golf umbrella
- Binoculars were really cool, used them often. Until they hid them on the last day, but I found them! Yes I am taking it on the golf umbrella!!! Okay it was good to have just in case it rained. Also in case when I'm setting up my mini-golf in my room and it's raining outside I would be sure to use it!
Oversized 100% cotton bath towels
- "Oversided" my you know what! They were just as big as every other ships bath towels. The pool deck had ones double the side and thickness. Also had to constantly ask for more.
Extra handheld hair dryer
- We had one in almost every room we ever had. Also extra means two or more. We had one. Not a big deal for us.
Celebrity tote bag
- Liked it! Very useful on the ports. Wished I had a backpack though.
Hansgrohe massaging showerhead
- Really? Just cause it has a fancy name I can't pronounce doesn't mean it's any good or different. Actually several rooms (even interior) we stayed in had this same style showerhead. Might have even been from that fancy place called Wal-Mart! I hear that Great Value massaging showerhead really is an amazing tool!
So overall, NOT worth it at all. We hear from many others that it is not either. Aqua Class Category seems to be worth the extra money.
The Pool Deck
The pool deck was a nice place to hang out for the parties or sit by the pool. We had a complaint on our first time and it was an issue again. The kids for some reason are very controlling of this area. Yelling, screaming and splashing us to where we got our clothes wet and we were at least 10 feet from the pool. They had a band one of the nights that did 80s music. Have to say when it comes to parties, no one does it like Carnival. The deck was never too crowded and did have a few chair hogs.
Vow Renewal
Don't want to keep you too long here since a lot of our renewal experience was mentioned above. Overall with the entire experience it was nice and give it a 7 out of 10. Your options please understand are very limited and the staff will do everything they can to accommodate you. When you book with the Wedding Experience just make sure you stay on top of everything. Give them time to respond and any questions let them know and make sure to have it answered. Honestly some questions may not be answered until you are on board so don't go too crazy if you can't get them answered prior. We did bring our own things to jazz it up ourselves. A cake topper and a fake flower bouquet. You are free to do your own additions as you'd like to and the staff will do whatever they can to make sure your day is truly your day. Like I said before always plan for a backup just in case. If you get your hair done make sure you have pictures of what you want and talk to them throughout, if you see them not doing it correctly say it. Do not settle it's your day. If you want to do your own hair you can as well. With our photos we did print out a few pages of different poses, we didn't use them but the photographer would have been open to that. Your music options put on a USB drive and a CD and make a list of what song is to be played when. We have two songs and that was more than enough.
Thank you again for reading this blog of our vow renewal we hope it will help you out in planning process. If you have any questions please feel free to contact us on Facebook.
This time around we will showcase our Vow Renewal on the Celebrity Constellation and try to give you a better idea on how the process for this works in case some of you were interested.
We booked the vow renewal with The Wedding Experience. Now we did run into a small complaint with them. The only complaint we really had was the communication with us when we needed things answered. We were told that two weeks prior to sailing we would have our date, time and location. They did email that day and said they had the information and they will contact to confirm everything. We called and emailed to get the information and they said they are waiting on the ship. So we gave them a day and asked again and the same reply. We just would have liked for them, after seeing we left several messages, both email and voicemail to contact us back and even if you had no answer let us know that. Mainly for this was that they were waiting on the ship to get back to them on it since a large wedding was still being planned out. Our thought was then and throughout the cruise at times was that they had a total of four weddings (including our renewal) and that was a lot for them. Well in a way if they could not of handled it, let us know and we would have understood and did another type of renewal that could have accommodated us.
Once we did get on board that first day we received a letter in our cabin from Renata, our wedding coordinator to give her a call when we settled in to go over the renewal. So we did, we met her in the lobby. Long story short, which you will see the details below, we got our original location and were able to have dinner there (Oceanliners) that night all thanks to Renata. Have to say she really is an amazing person with a heart of gold on her.
Now we kept going to Oceanliners every chance we got. We even had Renata take us there just to imagine our day. She was more than happy to do that for us. Everything was going along perfectly, which never happens!
On to the day of the renewal. Everything was confirmed and we had our game plan set. Christine was to go to the spa at 1pm to get her hair done and I (Patrick) was to stay in the room and get ready and wait for her call once she was leaving so at that point I would leave and we would not see each other until later on at Oceanliners. Well close to two hours later I hear the door opening in our cabin and I think to myself, oh-no what happened!! The one thing we did not think would go wrong did.....Her hair! She came back to the cabin in tears because it looked like hell. Keep in mind that Christine brought pictures of the hairdo that she wanted, hell I could have done it myself if I really wanted to. Now they quoted her for $80 then it turned to $150 when she checked out for this, that and the other. So back to the room, we are in there trying to figure out what to do next. We only have an hour or so left until we renew. I run and find Renata and explained to her what had happened. She was speechless and said hold on. At that point I call the cabin and talk to my wife and see how she is and what she wants to do. Renata comes back and says they will take her at the spa now and wash it out and do it over, doesn't matter if she's late its her day. I told her that she will do it herself and we will be there. I then went to the spa to talk to a manager. They were not in so I talked to someone at the desk, they also felt really bad for what happened and said we will not see a charge for this.
So I head back to the room, Christine is getting her hair ready. It's time for me to leave, she saw me in my suit. I help her in her dress (only zipped, didn't see the front!) and off I go. I head down to Oceanliners and get ready. The reception from the large wedding was just getting out, so I waited for them. Renata saw me coming into the room and made sure everything was alright. Renata also called Christine after hearing what happened to make sure she was okay and if she needed anything else. She even offered her own personal beauty supplies.
I'm starting to setup for the renewal, put the camera in place and do little things here and there. Renata asked if I wanted to put flowers down around the aisle, I said sure. Again she is just an amazing, nice person. We had a DJ there, which we brought our music (2 songs) for them to play (put them on a USB). The DJ I'm guessing was just there from the previous reception, not sure though. Also met with the CD (Maarten) who was doing our renewal, very nice guy. So it was almost time to start. I hear my wife outside of Oceanliners and position myself to where I can't see her until shes right at the beginning of the aisle. The music hits and here comes my beautiful wife, looking amazing! The ceremony was so perfect! It lasted about 10 minutes from start to finish, which we expected. Gave us plenty of time for pictures. First a quick champagne toast!
Our photographer Avi took us anywhere on the ship we wanted. We had him for an hour but he didn't mind the time, he just wanted to make sure that we had the pictures we wanted. We went from Oceanliners to the Foyer and upstairs to the Reflections Lounge all the way aft to the outside deck at the back of the ship. By the time that was all done we were sweating and done for the moment!
We headed back down to our cabin to drop off some stuff, fix ourselves up and head back out. Our renewal was on Chic night so several photography stations were up and out around the ship. So we just took as many pictures as we could just incase we didn't buy any with the package for the wedding photography, which was a bit expensive. We did several shoots from around the ship. Some photographers wanted us to do more freestyle poses while some didn't get it and wanted us certain ways. Luckily our photographer was really cool and did what we wanted and some of his own. One girl we ran into yelled at us because we took our own photograph that was just a solid white backdrop. Seriously, come on you see us dressed up with a wedding dress and suit, cut us some slack!
We took a few more pictures inside and outside and headed back to the room to freshen up for dinner. Came back out and took even more picture, this time with more comfortable clothing. We then went to Oceanliners to celebrate, the staff there was incredible!
On to that night.....We requested our cake to be in our room that night, Renata set it up for 9pm for after our dinner. We get back and hard to describe what we got. It was more of a large section of cake from someone elses wedding. Guessing they messed up and brought us theirs instead of ours. It was the wrong flavor and wrong everything. Looked like a wreck. We had our cake topper on top, so we wondered where was our cake. We were a bit aggravated at this, but mostly wanted to have this cake sent to it's rightful place. It was already 10pm and we didn't want to bother Renata anymore. So we went to guest services and they said that tomorrow they will send us the correct one. We said our renewal was today and not tomorrow. So they came back and said that they will send one in an hour. So we went back to our room. We get a call from guest services and that they were sending chocolate covered strawberries and champagne to our room as soon as possible. Finally around 11pm our cake arrives. Looks good and more of what we expected. We got a vanilla cake with buttercream. Well more butter than cream, it was enough butter to where we would have saved it for toast the next morning. We each had a piece and called it quits.
Now on to the photos. We met with Avi on the next day (which was the last day of our cruise) and he showed us on his laptop all of the photos he had taken (106 +/-) which some were already edited. For the most part they came out great. Pricing for these can get a bit much, so one by one we looked at the photos and told Avi to take notes which ones we liked and which ones were maybe. He was so good throughout. Didn't feel rush and didn't feel like he had to go. We decided on getting the package of five photos. We knew walking in that we wanted to have some professional shots, we also planned on taking as many as possible and going from there. So we came back later that night to get our CD, which Avi tested out to make sure it worked. He did a great job and we will highly recommend him!
Don't get us wrong with few hiccups that we didn't care for the renewal and it was a waste and a horrible time. It was the opposite, we loved being able to renew our vows on board. The staff was amazing with accommodating to our needs and wants, couldn't have asked for any better.
We do recommend, which we even did ourselves to an extent is to prepare for a plan b. You never know what is going to happen but just be prepared. For example if the spa accident happened earlier in the day it wouldn't have been a rush-rush later on and Christine could have done plan b and do it herself without a problem. It was just too close. Meet with everyone prior, the salon was the only people we didn't. Doubt it would have made any difference. Again just make sure you have everything you need. We came with a suitcase just for the renewal. Everything from a bouquet to a cake topper and the music. Renada was impressed with us planning it out so well.
Overall with the Celebrity Constellation being our 3rd time on this ship we have noticed things not being as great as they once were. Food was slacking a bit, options a tiny bit less and flavor not there as much as it used to be. Dining room service was the best we ever had, the guys there were phenomenal. Entertainment, we saw iHollywood for a third, which was better than before. Missed out on a few other shows due to renewal taken priority. We did get a Concierge Category cabin, all I can say (will explain below) that we won't waste money on that again.
On to the tour around the Celebrity Constellation. It is not too long and feel free to check out the other two review/tours we have from this ship. Any questions you have feel free to message us at Cruise Addict Junkie on Facebook and ask!
Pros
- Renata, who was our wedding coordinator was absolutely amazing! We were originally supposed to renew our wedding vows in Luminae, which was fine and Renata who saw that we originally wanted Ocean Liners asked us if we wanted to try and switch it to there. We said yes, she also asked if we wanted to do dinner there that night as well, which we were told for months that a party took it over and we were unable to. We also said yes. She walked over to Ocean Liners and talked to them and came back and said you got it! We were beyond happy that we got what we wanted!
- Throughout the entire cruise in the Reflections Lounge the staff had awesome games hosted by the activities staff (can't remember their names). It was great and everyone knew each others faces and the turnouts were perfect!
- Nightly in the Reflections Lounge the activities hosts were hosting a variety of games which were very enjoyable and also received the nickname, Game Show Guy. You really don't want to know why.
- The ship was still just as beautiful as the first day we stepped on her several years ago.
- Liked the Muster Drill was indoors, that's always a plus.
- Met a lot of really nice people throughout the cruise.- Oceanliners had the nicest people in the world. We saw them throughout the trip since we always stopped by and looked around. At one point came in to check it out the morning that the higher level guests were having breakfast. They were nice enough to offer to help us out with taking pictures and setting up our cameras to get a feel for things. The staff also helped out a lot, they took pictures and again just so helpful and nice.
- Our MDR staff was super friendly, they knew us by name and joked around a lot with us. In our 23 cruises they rank in the top 5!
- Minus the hiccups we will come back for a 4th time with no hesitation at all!
- Seemed like the Sea Day's had so much more activities. Since it was our renewal day we were not able to get to a lot of it.
- We were invited for a sail-away party on our Nassau day. Which was a scheduling issue since we had to meet with our photographer at the same time and his schedule was jam packed as well. However we went to the sail-away on the helipad and it was amazing! The first thing I looked to do was go all the way to the front and stand up there like Jack did in Titanic. Well of course it was roped off. No big deal! It was still a very cool experience nonetheless. They served champagne and cold towels. We stayed up until we were just about to leave and went to see Avi.
- Avi our photographer was amazing. He was patient with us and let us do our own types of photos along with his. He took some amazing shots of us. Highly recommended!
Cons
- The spa was a major issue we had, which explained above. If the person was unable to do what my wife wanted that would have been fine she brought several options or again would have done it herself.
- This was an ongoing complaint for us but port days need to have more going on. Our port days we got off but came back after 3 or 4 hours to eat and then take naps because there was nothing else going on.
- Did notice from our first time to now things have slipped. They were minor but still noticeable. Many people we talked to felt the exact same way. The ship just didn't have its full feel of elegance that it once had.
- Below we will post about our stateroom in detail along with the Concierge Category we choose. For us not worth the extra money at all. More hype than it's really worth, little disappointed at this. Which again many people also agreed with us on this hot topic.
- Oceanliners for us was amazing last time that is why we choose dinner there. Service was amazing, staff so friendly. The food has slipped a bit, not what expected nor had last time around. Still good, but minor slippage in this category.
- Stateroom attendants were not that great. Had to constantly ask for ice and towels. We didn't have a Do Not Disturb sign so often times they knocked and came right in, even if we said "Hold on, we're coming", eventually we found a sign. At that point they would call and see when we were leaving. One morning we said we were leaving in 10 minutes and saw them when we left and came back about 2 hours later and the room still wasn't done yet. Also in our room in the bathroom was mold and behind the TV was a pile of dust that must have been there for weeks. Not trying to nit-pick but I do expect more from Celebrity.
- The Galley tour was neat but not worth it. We honestly expected more of a tour. Everyone met in the San Marco Restaurant and they took everyone in smaller groups. We were one of the very last groups to go in. We waited in the Restaurant for about 45 minutes. During that time they did a Q&A. Once in the tour we had two stops and it was over. It was still cool to see but not worth the wait at all. Didn't see that much. More of an informational tour rather then a visual one.
- This was an ongoing complaint for us but port days need to have more going on. Our port days we got off but came back after 3 or 4 hours to eat and then take naps because there was nothing else going on.
- Did notice from our first time to now things have slipped. They were minor but still noticeable. Many people we talked to felt the exact same way. The ship just didn't have its full feel of elegance that it once had.
- Below we will post about our stateroom in detail along with the Concierge Category we choose. For us not worth the extra money at all. More hype than it's really worth, little disappointed at this. Which again many people also agreed with us on this hot topic.
- Oceanliners for us was amazing last time that is why we choose dinner there. Service was amazing, staff so friendly. The food has slipped a bit, not what expected nor had last time around. Still good, but minor slippage in this category.
- Stateroom attendants were not that great. Had to constantly ask for ice and towels. We didn't have a Do Not Disturb sign so often times they knocked and came right in, even if we said "Hold on, we're coming", eventually we found a sign. At that point they would call and see when we were leaving. One morning we said we were leaving in 10 minutes and saw them when we left and came back about 2 hours later and the room still wasn't done yet. Also in our room in the bathroom was mold and behind the TV was a pile of dust that must have been there for weeks. Not trying to nit-pick but I do expect more from Celebrity.
- The Galley tour was neat but not worth it. We honestly expected more of a tour. Everyone met in the San Marco Restaurant and they took everyone in smaller groups. We were one of the very last groups to go in. We waited in the Restaurant for about 45 minutes. During that time they did a Q&A. Once in the tour we had two stops and it was over. It was still cool to see but not worth the wait at all. Didn't see that much. More of an informational tour rather then a visual one.
AquaSpa & Solarium
Well it wasn't a good spa experience for the hair. They did offer my wife a free massage, however due to when we received the message she couldn't accept it. Above if you missed it was the full review of the spa. The Solarium pool which is the Thalassotherapy Pool was still great as always. Could use a good scrubbing though. It was very draining, so don't stay in too long.
Bistro on Five / Cellar Masters
They raised the price to $10 per person. We did want to try it, but just didn't get around to it with everything else going on. I do say between this area and Cellar Masters they can do a lot more with the area and change it to something else.
They raised the price to $10 per person. We did want to try it, but just didn't get around to it with everything else going on. I do say between this area and Cellar Masters they can do a lot more with the area and change it to something else.
Blu
Blu we ended up looking at just to see it since it was just so beautiful. Really wished we could have had some photos of us here for the renewal but since it was so late in the day it was impossible.
Café al Bacio & Gelateria
Cafe coffee slipped as well, not as good as last time. Did enjoy the pastries and ice cream. Limited but still good. The ice cream here is for a fee but at the Oceanview Cafe it is free and better options.
(Coffee is not!)
Celebrity Theater
We saw for a third time iHollywood, which was even better than before. They had other shows but due to our hectic schedule we did not see much else. Which we knew going in that this trip was more for our renewal than a vacation. We suggest a longer trip.
Crush & Martini Bar
Finally after three cruises we got to see the bartenders doing a mini-show at the bar. It was one of the hot spots on the ship.
Grand Foyer
I wish I would take this Foyer home, just love it! You first walk onto the ship and this is where you end up with a glass of champagne to celebrate. Well that one glass turned into five, well we're here to celebrate! Truthfully, when we got on and we even said this before, when we went and sat down we said that we were home. Just that kind of feeling. Chic night was stunning, loved what they did with the long curtains.
Guest Services
Have to say they were more of help to us than our "Concierge" was. The Concierge was never at his desk and whenever we called he just transferred us to Guest Services. What did I pay extra for again?!? Guest Services like I said did help us. We had the cake issue and they fixed it. Also if you want a free deck of cards, come here. Overall not a bad experience with them.
Key West, Florida (Port of Call)
We originally figured that we would be at the other section of the port where you could walk off the ship and take pictures and be right near all of the restaurants. Well Carnival Sensation took that spot and we had the Fort side of the port. So we had to shuttle from there all the way to the Conch Train Tour Station. Which was not really a big deal. From there we walked all the way down Duval Street to the Southernmost Point. It is a nice 1 mile walk, but worth it. Duval Street is very busy with tons to see. Took us about 4 fours to go back and forth. We were going to go to lunch here but forgot the name of the restaurant we wanted which was close to the other side of the port where Carnival was. So we just headed back to the ship.
(This is the Southernmost Point, from the Conch Train Station head down Duval street one mile and it will be down another block on the right, can't miss it!)
Luminae
We originally figured that we would be at the other section of the port where you could walk off the ship and take pictures and be right near all of the restaurants. Well Carnival Sensation took that spot and we had the Fort side of the port. So we had to shuttle from there all the way to the Conch Train Tour Station. Which was not really a big deal. From there we walked all the way down Duval Street to the Southernmost Point. It is a nice 1 mile walk, but worth it. Duval Street is very busy with tons to see. Took us about 4 fours to go back and forth. We were going to go to lunch here but forgot the name of the restaurant we wanted which was close to the other side of the port where Carnival was. So we just headed back to the ship.
Luminae
We were supposed to have our renewal held here, which would have been a first for the ship. However our wonder WC (Wedding Coordinator) Renata came through and got us Oceanliners. However this location would have been good for us. Didn't notice it the first two times we were here. It's underneath Blu (maybe above it, not sure) and smaller but still very elegant and beautiful.
Nassau, Bahamas (Port of Call)
Nassau, Nassau, Nassau. This was our last port on our very short trip. We originally were just going to stay on the ship and relax. At the last moment we decided to just get off and walk around, well one thing led to another and we ended up on a $4 (per person, per trip) taxi to Atlantis. It was worth it. Keep in mind you can get to Atlantis several different ways, either by a taxi, bus, ferry, long walk or tour. If you want to just walk around we suggest taking a trip to Atlantis. Now you are limited to the inside areas, so for the most part the aquarium and outside areas are off limits and you will need to purchase a wristband or be on a tour. You can just walk around a good portion of the resort and the casino, still worth checking it out. For $8 back and forth per person kinda can't say no to that. On our way back we had a taxi-bus outside (they line up all day long back and forth) and we got on along with a couple of other people. Well the driver wants to leave with as many people as possible, understandable. Well she sees another person taking people from the other side of the pickup location so she just steps on the pedal and pulls up right next to the other taxi-bus and tells the people to get out and go with her. They were a bit thrown off but ended up with us, which we had room for. She then yelled at the other driver while another person said they requested a taxi for them only. Well our driver didn't care at all. The two girls were only going a short distance up the road to one of the bars (not even off Paradise Island), and charged them more then she charged us. Oh my....We got back to the port and headed to lunch on the ship.
Oceanliners Restaurant
The location of our vow renewal, love this location so much. The feeling of this location is just right out of the older oceanliners from way back. Which is great for us! Staff was amazing the entire trip, loved them so much! We did manage to get dinner reservations after months and months of being told we were unable to. The food from last time did slip a tad, not much flavor. Service was incredible.
Oceanview Cafe, Grill & Bar
The buffet was decent. Food flavors were lackluster for us personally. Decent amount of choices. Easter we saw that here and throughout the different areas of the ship were chocolate displays. The crew worked so hard on this and before the undid the ropes people and children (mostly) were tearing it all apart. Felt bad because the staff barely could take pictures before some savages came through and demolished it.
Port Everglades (Homeport)
No complaints here. It was pretty easy. We did have to carry on a good amount of stuff, mostly bulky items. No lines to contend with and on the ship by 10:45am. Security helped out Christine with putting her dress in the machine to scan, treated it like a newborn. We went upstairs and waited since we were in priority boarding with our concierge level. It was held up for a very short timeframe because of customs but nothing you can do with that. Getting off the ship was fairly easy as well. The parking was now in an outside lot, which didn't get too packed at all. We found a great spot steps away from the front entrance.
No complaints here. It was pretty easy. We did have to carry on a good amount of stuff, mostly bulky items. No lines to contend with and on the ship by 10:45am. Security helped out Christine with putting her dress in the machine to scan, treated it like a newborn. We went upstairs and waited since we were in priority boarding with our concierge level. It was held up for a very short timeframe because of customs but nothing you can do with that. Getting off the ship was fairly easy as well. The parking was now in an outside lot, which didn't get too packed at all. We found a great spot steps away from the front entrance.
Reflections Lounge
Hung out here mostly for the nightly activities hosted by the amazing team. The room for these events are broken up my Port and Starboard, so what room you are in is what side of the room you are in. We did have a fun time with all of the events here. Everyone knew each other's faces and we all had our spots every night. You have to go!!
Rendezvous Lounge
One of the many lounges around the ship. Nightly music and live bands here. Nice atmosphere.
Sailaway Helipad Party
One of the many lounges around the ship. Nightly music and live bands here. Nice atmosphere.
Sailaway Helipad Party
So much fun and a great experience. We've done everything from dinner with the Captain to Bridge Tours and this was right there with all of that. Loved it so much! Bad part only was that we didn't get to stay the entire time since we had to meet with our photographer and go over our renewal pictures. Hopefully we are invited again next time!
San Marco Restaurant
Food for the most part was good. Service was amazing, our waiters were really great. Everything we asked for we got without a hiccup. One of the days we did a galley tour, which like I mentioned above wasn't worth it for us. More waiting than anything else.
Stateroom 7186 (Concierge Category)
Well...I posted this short cabin review on Facebook and got a bit of heat from other passengers but also a lot of people agree with the lack of service in this category compared to other rooms and ships. Below is just a review of the type of category cabin we booked, it is not an entire review of our trip.
Here is what the Concierge Category cabin includes;
Our signature friendly, personalized service with a guest to staff ratio of nearly 2:1.
- The Concierge person was never at the desk in the lobby nor ever answered the phone when we called. When he was there and we called he transferred the call to Guest Services. Expected a lot more with this service.
Twice daily service (makeup and turndown)
- Our two room stewards would constantly call and ask how much longer we would be in our room so they can come clean it. One day we said we will be out in 10 minutes and we saw them when we left, came back two hours later and still not done. Also the bathroom had spots of mold along with piles of dust behind the TV set which looked like it wasn't cleaned up in weeks. Not friendly at all.
Daily ice service in stainless steel ice buckets
- Had to constantly ask for ice, even though we said keep it full for the champagne and waters since the fridge was completely packed with items you had to buy.
24 hour complimentary room service
- The breakfast was amazing, when it wasn't messed up. We were impressed with that. Regular menu was alright, nothing that great.
Complimentary tote bag
- Actually very useful and liked having them.
Custom blended bath products (shampoo, conditioner and lotion), shower cap, cotton balls and cotton swabs
- Didn't see any shower cap, cotton balls or swabs. The other stuff is usually in every room we've ever been in. Also the "custom blended" bath products...isn't every bath product a "custom blend"...just saying!
Water / wine glasses
- Okay I'm going to post this one time and will put "see above" just so you know to come back to this section for the same exact response because you will see it several times throughout this short review of the cabin.........Had this in every room we've ever been in, nothing exciting.
WCelebrity eXhale bedding featuring custom premium mattresses, plus duvets and pillows, and 100% pure Egyptian cotton linens
- I've had more comfortable beds on about 90% of other cruises. Pillows were worse!
Hair dryer
- See above!
Private mini-bar
- See above! Nothing special at all especially since it was jammed packed with their items that you had to buy. Then they lock it in the middle of the afternoon on our last day. What was the perk in that again?
Interactive Samsung flat-screen television system to view and select shore excursions, order room service and watch movies
- It is a tv, nothing special and it's small like everyone else. I am glad that it wasn't a tube tv which are still around! So since it's "interactive" can you let me know why the shore excursions worked for only one port? Or why did the room service have only part of the menu on there? Or what movies were free that I could watch?
Private safe
- Really? See above, not going into this.
Dual voltage 110/220AC outlets
- Sure, whatever you say. I do have to say you need more in the room. Can I get an AMEN!?!?
Priority check-in
- We did get on the ship early, which was nice. Roughly around 11am or so.
Express luggage delivery
- The bad was outside of our room early so we wanted to bring it in. However the person doing the luggage said we were not allowed to take them now and that the stateroom attendant will deliver them later on that day. I'm sorry but when I have my luggage there I take it so I can put it away and enjoy my vacation. So I waited for him to leave and I took it. Not going to tell me I can't take my own belonging.
Personalized Concierge service
- This was a complete joke. Our wedding coordinator did more than the Concierge ever did. Heck, the staff at Oceanliners did more than the Concierge ever did. Even the person who held the elevator door for me did more than the Concierge ever did. Even the.....okay you get the point. The "personalized" service was non-existent and neither was the actual person.
Priority disembarkation based on your travel needs
- Our final morning a selected group was able to meet in the San Marco Restaurant (total of 10 of us showed up). No announcements or anything, just some coffee, juice and pastries. We were supposed to be off by 7:30am, so about 15 minutes go by and the CD comes on and says that self-assist is also up for anyone traveling with all of their bags. Wish we would have known, we would have just went there vs traveling down the stairs with everything. No big deal, we were off and at work in no time.
Complementary shoeshine service.
- Did not have a need for this service.
Access to the exclusive Concierge Class Pre-departure lounge
- It was nice but only 10 people showed up, including us.
Main and specialty restaurant seating time preference
- Oceanliners was our only want for the evening of our renewal. For months and months we were told we were unable to book since a reception had taken it over for the entire night. Once we were able to talk to our wedding coordinator she quickly went over there to secure our wishes and told us just to pick a time and it was taken care of.
Expanded room service menu
- This was actually good for breakfast. Good options and you didn't even have to leave your cabin. Some orders did get screwed up, but overall a good option.
Welcome Blanc de Blancs sparking wine with a commemorative label featuring exclusive art work for the ArtCenter/South Florida artists
- It was just a bottle of wine, wasn't too much of a big deal for us. Should actually give other options, not everyone drinks and not everyone drinks this.
Pillow menu to suite your sleeping preferences
- Now a menu usually is a piece of paper (or similar) with several options. Nope, I called up and said where was the menu they said its on the bed and they had another type of pillow if we wished. Every pillow was very uncomfortable.
Daily delivery of Afternoon Savories
- Crackers and spreasd were not our ideal choice of "Afternoon Savories". We honestly expected more options or selection. Carnival blows them out of the water. We were told once we were home that we could have asked for something else. How about a baked potato? Never saw one of those on the ship. Did make an amazing one last night! Crispy on the outside and steaming good on the inside, yum!
Plush Frette bathrobes
- It is a bathrobe, nothing special at all. Had them on plenty of other cruises. Also if we used them they actually hung them back up and didn't just throw them in the corner. Didn't notice that they were "Frette" either, opps.
Fresh fruit
- I really would hate to see the amount of fruit thrown in the garbage everyday from just this alone. If I want fruit I will go to the buffet and get some, not a big deal for us.
Custom-blended bath amenitites
- Isn't every bath product a custom blend?
Use of binoculars and golf umbrella
- Binoculars were really cool, used them often. Until they hid them on the last day, but I found them! Yes I am taking it on the golf umbrella!!! Okay it was good to have just in case it rained. Also in case when I'm setting up my mini-golf in my room and it's raining outside I would be sure to use it!
Oversized 100% cotton bath towels
- "Oversided" my you know what! They were just as big as every other ships bath towels. The pool deck had ones double the side and thickness. Also had to constantly ask for more.
Extra handheld hair dryer
- We had one in almost every room we ever had. Also extra means two or more. We had one. Not a big deal for us.
Celebrity tote bag
- Liked it! Very useful on the ports. Wished I had a backpack though.
Hansgrohe massaging showerhead
- Really? Just cause it has a fancy name I can't pronounce doesn't mean it's any good or different. Actually several rooms (even interior) we stayed in had this same style showerhead. Might have even been from that fancy place called Wal-Mart! I hear that Great Value massaging showerhead really is an amazing tool!
So overall, NOT worth it at all. We hear from many others that it is not either. Aqua Class Category seems to be worth the extra money.
Here is what the Concierge Category cabin includes;
Our signature friendly, personalized service with a guest to staff ratio of nearly 2:1.
- The Concierge person was never at the desk in the lobby nor ever answered the phone when we called. When he was there and we called he transferred the call to Guest Services. Expected a lot more with this service.
Twice daily service (makeup and turndown)
- Our two room stewards would constantly call and ask how much longer we would be in our room so they can come clean it. One day we said we will be out in 10 minutes and we saw them when we left, came back two hours later and still not done. Also the bathroom had spots of mold along with piles of dust behind the TV set which looked like it wasn't cleaned up in weeks. Not friendly at all.
Daily ice service in stainless steel ice buckets
- Had to constantly ask for ice, even though we said keep it full for the champagne and waters since the fridge was completely packed with items you had to buy.
24 hour complimentary room service
- The breakfast was amazing, when it wasn't messed up. We were impressed with that. Regular menu was alright, nothing that great.
Complimentary tote bag
- Actually very useful and liked having them.
Custom blended bath products (shampoo, conditioner and lotion), shower cap, cotton balls and cotton swabs
- Didn't see any shower cap, cotton balls or swabs. The other stuff is usually in every room we've ever been in. Also the "custom blended" bath products...isn't every bath product a "custom blend"...just saying!
Water / wine glasses
- Okay I'm going to post this one time and will put "see above" just so you know to come back to this section for the same exact response because you will see it several times throughout this short review of the cabin.........Had this in every room we've ever been in, nothing exciting.
WCelebrity eXhale bedding featuring custom premium mattresses, plus duvets and pillows, and 100% pure Egyptian cotton linens
- I've had more comfortable beds on about 90% of other cruises. Pillows were worse!
Hair dryer
- See above!
Private mini-bar
- See above! Nothing special at all especially since it was jammed packed with their items that you had to buy. Then they lock it in the middle of the afternoon on our last day. What was the perk in that again?
Interactive Samsung flat-screen television system to view and select shore excursions, order room service and watch movies
- It is a tv, nothing special and it's small like everyone else. I am glad that it wasn't a tube tv which are still around! So since it's "interactive" can you let me know why the shore excursions worked for only one port? Or why did the room service have only part of the menu on there? Or what movies were free that I could watch?
Private safe
- Really? See above, not going into this.
Dual voltage 110/220AC outlets
- Sure, whatever you say. I do have to say you need more in the room. Can I get an AMEN!?!?
Priority check-in
- We did get on the ship early, which was nice. Roughly around 11am or so.
Express luggage delivery
- The bad was outside of our room early so we wanted to bring it in. However the person doing the luggage said we were not allowed to take them now and that the stateroom attendant will deliver them later on that day. I'm sorry but when I have my luggage there I take it so I can put it away and enjoy my vacation. So I waited for him to leave and I took it. Not going to tell me I can't take my own belonging.
Personalized Concierge service
- This was a complete joke. Our wedding coordinator did more than the Concierge ever did. Heck, the staff at Oceanliners did more than the Concierge ever did. Even the person who held the elevator door for me did more than the Concierge ever did. Even the.....okay you get the point. The "personalized" service was non-existent and neither was the actual person.
Priority disembarkation based on your travel needs
- Our final morning a selected group was able to meet in the San Marco Restaurant (total of 10 of us showed up). No announcements or anything, just some coffee, juice and pastries. We were supposed to be off by 7:30am, so about 15 minutes go by and the CD comes on and says that self-assist is also up for anyone traveling with all of their bags. Wish we would have known, we would have just went there vs traveling down the stairs with everything. No big deal, we were off and at work in no time.
Complementary shoeshine service.
- Did not have a need for this service.
Access to the exclusive Concierge Class Pre-departure lounge
- It was nice but only 10 people showed up, including us.
Main and specialty restaurant seating time preference
- Oceanliners was our only want for the evening of our renewal. For months and months we were told we were unable to book since a reception had taken it over for the entire night. Once we were able to talk to our wedding coordinator she quickly went over there to secure our wishes and told us just to pick a time and it was taken care of.
Expanded room service menu
- This was actually good for breakfast. Good options and you didn't even have to leave your cabin. Some orders did get screwed up, but overall a good option.
Welcome Blanc de Blancs sparking wine with a commemorative label featuring exclusive art work for the ArtCenter/South Florida artists
- It was just a bottle of wine, wasn't too much of a big deal for us. Should actually give other options, not everyone drinks and not everyone drinks this.
Pillow menu to suite your sleeping preferences
- Now a menu usually is a piece of paper (or similar) with several options. Nope, I called up and said where was the menu they said its on the bed and they had another type of pillow if we wished. Every pillow was very uncomfortable.
Daily delivery of Afternoon Savories
- Crackers and spreasd were not our ideal choice of "Afternoon Savories". We honestly expected more options or selection. Carnival blows them out of the water. We were told once we were home that we could have asked for something else. How about a baked potato? Never saw one of those on the ship. Did make an amazing one last night! Crispy on the outside and steaming good on the inside, yum!
Plush Frette bathrobes
- It is a bathrobe, nothing special at all. Had them on plenty of other cruises. Also if we used them they actually hung them back up and didn't just throw them in the corner. Didn't notice that they were "Frette" either, opps.
Fresh fruit
- I really would hate to see the amount of fruit thrown in the garbage everyday from just this alone. If I want fruit I will go to the buffet and get some, not a big deal for us.
Custom-blended bath amenitites
- Isn't every bath product a custom blend?
Use of binoculars and golf umbrella
- Binoculars were really cool, used them often. Until they hid them on the last day, but I found them! Yes I am taking it on the golf umbrella!!! Okay it was good to have just in case it rained. Also in case when I'm setting up my mini-golf in my room and it's raining outside I would be sure to use it!
Oversized 100% cotton bath towels
- "Oversided" my you know what! They were just as big as every other ships bath towels. The pool deck had ones double the side and thickness. Also had to constantly ask for more.
Extra handheld hair dryer
- We had one in almost every room we ever had. Also extra means two or more. We had one. Not a big deal for us.
Celebrity tote bag
- Liked it! Very useful on the ports. Wished I had a backpack though.
Hansgrohe massaging showerhead
- Really? Just cause it has a fancy name I can't pronounce doesn't mean it's any good or different. Actually several rooms (even interior) we stayed in had this same style showerhead. Might have even been from that fancy place called Wal-Mart! I hear that Great Value massaging showerhead really is an amazing tool!
So overall, NOT worth it at all. We hear from many others that it is not either. Aqua Class Category seems to be worth the extra money.
The Pool Deck
The pool deck was a nice place to hang out for the parties or sit by the pool. We had a complaint on our first time and it was an issue again. The kids for some reason are very controlling of this area. Yelling, screaming and splashing us to where we got our clothes wet and we were at least 10 feet from the pool. They had a band one of the nights that did 80s music. Have to say when it comes to parties, no one does it like Carnival. The deck was never too crowded and did have a few chair hogs.
Vow Renewal
Don't want to keep you too long here since a lot of our renewal experience was mentioned above. Overall with the entire experience it was nice and give it a 7 out of 10. Your options please understand are very limited and the staff will do everything they can to accommodate you. When you book with the Wedding Experience just make sure you stay on top of everything. Give them time to respond and any questions let them know and make sure to have it answered. Honestly some questions may not be answered until you are on board so don't go too crazy if you can't get them answered prior. We did bring our own things to jazz it up ourselves. A cake topper and a fake flower bouquet. You are free to do your own additions as you'd like to and the staff will do whatever they can to make sure your day is truly your day. Like I said before always plan for a backup just in case. If you get your hair done make sure you have pictures of what you want and talk to them throughout, if you see them not doing it correctly say it. Do not settle it's your day. If you want to do your own hair you can as well. With our photos we did print out a few pages of different poses, we didn't use them but the photographer would have been open to that. Your music options put on a USB drive and a CD and make a list of what song is to be played when. We have two songs and that was more than enough.
Thank you again for reading this blog of our vow renewal we hope it will help you out in planning process. If you have any questions please feel free to contact us on Facebook.
Thank you again for reading this blog of our vow renewal we hope it will help you out in planning process. If you have any questions please feel free to contact us on Facebook.
Wow, such a great and detailed review! Can't wait to see your next adventure! Congrats on your renewal, love the pictures!
ReplyDeleteJohn & Maggie Perez