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A Welcome Break From Work |
| Reviewed By: McLean, Dundee on 11th Jun 2008 |
| Cruise Line: Celebrity Cruises |
Times cruised before: 1-2 |
| Cruise Ship: Infinity |
Sailed:
April,
2008 |
| Destination: Panama Canal |
Age: 46-55 |
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A welcome break from work!
My DH and I are in our late 40's early 50's this was our 3rd cruise. Our cruise last year was also with Celebrity. Our 1st cruise to the Western Caribbean was with RCI, aboard Explorer, 2nd to Eastern Caribbean aboard Constellation. For our next cruise we are trying NCL Freestyle onboard Gem.
We flew from the 'infamous terminal 5' Heathrow London amidst all the turmoil regarding the opening and all the lost luggage-we were so lucky-we had no problems at all! We stayed 2 nights previous to the cruise in Fort Lauderdale's Embassy Suites. They were indeed value for money- 2 rooms for the price of 1. Lovely bedroom area with wet bar etc and an added large lounge with flat screen TV's and Dining table and chairs, suite etc. Free newspapers, free drinks from the bar between 5.30 and 6.30. Breakfast was also complimentary. Would thoroughly recommend this hotel.
We had transfers to the Ship on day of departure which went very well. Embarkation was a little longer than previous cruises due to the fact customs were taking a long time clearing the ship as it had previously been in S. America (at least that was the excuse the line was given us) but I noticed another reviewer said it was because of fog?? Once onboard we wandered around the ship with our glass of Champagne to get the feel of it. We did notice some wear and tear signs, particularly noticed the large area in the forward deck up top that had railings missing! It was cordoned off but I wouldn't have liked to have had young children, it looked pretty unsafe to us. Due to the area being out of bounds it did affect the viewing area when we were transiting the canal. We did think the ship was probably due a refurb but it did not spoil our cruise overall.
We enjoyed the Entertainment more on this cruise, probably because we had longer to experience everything. The theatre was really excellent, especially the big entourage shows. The comedians were good. We went to the Panama Canal lectures in the theatre which were really interesting, also watched a documentary in the cinema on the canal which was very informative and on the way to San Francisco, when the weather got colder, watched a movie in the cinema. The pool band was very entertaining, nothing more relaxing that listening to lovely music as we sailed off into the sunset to our next destination. Pablo the guitarist who played in the aft bar as we were departing the ports, was excellent. His rendition of Pink Floyd music was sooo relaxing. (Incidentally the aft bar is a lovely romantic place to end the night looking out to sea with a moonlit sky full of twinkling stars). The string quartet in Café Cova lounge was also of great quality and a nice way to relax before dinner.
Dining we felt was pretty good quality overall. Breakfast, in the buffet stations were sometimes a little hectic at the times we surfaced and the queues at the omelette station were a bit frustrating. Dinner in the main dining room was always to our liking. sometimes the service was a little slower than we wished but these waiters work hard to be as efficient as time allows. We tried 'casual dining' for the first time on this cruise and it was pleasantly good quality. We also did 'fine dining' in the speciality restaurant and thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience although the waiters were a little pretentious we thought and the food was a bit too much to have visited again.
The service in our stateroom was excellent; our stateroom attendant Clifton was very attentive and friendly. The room did also have signs of deterioration though in which the bathroom was worst, loose floor tiles in which the stagnant water was gathering. A bit of mould in the shower and the design of that curtain was all wrong, it ended up sticking to you throughout your shower!
We did not use Celebrity excursions as we felt the price range for what they consisted of, was extortionate. Even although the British pound to the dollar rate was at its best, the price we would have paid for the trips would have cost the same as the cruise over again! We took local taxis in all the ports of call and found this to be satisfactory. Our greatest disappointment was with Jamaica. Montego Bay City Centre was just a small 1970's style concrete shopping centre that was full of rubbish shops and thronging with poor locals touting for business. There was no sign of old colonial buildings, local culture, bars or cafes nothing in fact to do so we and a few other families just got back in the taxi and went back to the ship. I'm surprised the Jamaican Government doesn't see this as a massive opportunity to improve on to encourage tourism and boost numbers. I see Carnival have dropped this port from their itinerary. I feel other lines may follow. It was not for security reasons we didn't enjoy this port, as we never felt threatened or unsafe, just purely let down by lack of old buildings, somewhere to have a drink etc. We always like to steer clear of long trips in taxi's or mini-buses to visit places of interest, as we usually find just wandering around the town centres of different countries interesting soaking up local culture.
To summarize, as I feel this is getting long! - The Panama Canal cruise was fantastic. The canal itself is such a fantastic feat of engineering that it should be experienced. The ports of call were mostly good. We particularly enjoyed Acapulco in Mexico. Cartagena Columbia was a good experience, we loved the buildings etc. Jamaica and Costa Rica were not as enjoyable as explained above.
The ship was brilliant overall as was the whole experience of cruising. We do like to experience different lines but would not rule out sailing on Celebrity again.
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| Quality of Food |  |
| We ate in the main dining room mostly but ate in the speciality restaurant and the casual dining also. | | Entertainment |  |
| We enjoyed all the entertainment especially the Celebrity singers and dancers. | | Shore Excursions | |
| We explored the ports of call independently as we felt the ships excursions were overpriced. Our favourite port was Acupulco in Mexico and the port we were most disappointed in was Montego Bay in Jamaica | | Staff | |
| Our Cabin Steward Clifton was most helpful and courteous. | | Children's Facilities | n/a |
| | Onboard Activities | |
| The days were filled with activities and entertainment. | | Cabins |  |
| Our inside cabin was small but very good use of space. We did feel the bathroom was needing a refurb though, there were signs of wear and tear. | | Overall Rating | |
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