We enjoyed the Panama Canal Cruise from Miami to San Diego on the Infinity. The staff were great from the start, although it seemed to take awhile for the bar attendants in the deck areas to relax and start smiling. By the end of the cruise they were just as welcoming as the other staff. In our opinion, and others we spoke to on the cruise, the food in the main dining room was mediocre. However, we found the food in the buffet at dinner to be very good. We especially enjoyed the grill and the stirfry stations in the buffet.
The entertainment was pretty good in the theatre, but many of the musicians in the rendezvous and martini bars were excellent. The lecturers were also very good. It really improved our appreciation of the Panama Canal transit. We took three shore excursions from the ship. Two were excellent, but the one we took in Guatemala to the ruins was a disappointment. The young woman playing tour guide that day was a nonstop talker with very little to say... We were pleased to discover after the excursion that one of the passengers on this tour was actually a Celebrity Ship Representative. I think she was aware of the problem at the end of the tour, and hopefully, will address the problem with the company.
Besides dinner in the dining room, two other things bothered us on this cruise: 1. The smoking areas on the outside decks/pool areas. We were amazed to find they had much better seating areas than nonsmokers. Hey Celebrity, don't nonsmokers deserve some comfy seating areas, not just plastic chaise lounges? 2. The very short port time spent in Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas. The ship docked early before many businesses in these towns were even open and passengers had to be back on the ship by 2:00pm. I've visited these ports many times on other cruise lines and we always had plenty of time to enjoy the places. This time it felt very rushed... Oh, forgot about Number 3: The TV didn't have satellite from about Day 3 of this cruise. Not usually, a big deal with us, as we aren't in the room watching TV very often, but still we've always enjoyed watching the ship's progress. The ship is showing it's age and the balcony room we were in should have some updating and maintenance, but all in all the Ship was a good one to sail with and we have no regrets on taking this cruise. It was GREAT!
We took Celebrity's Shore Excursion to the Mayan Ruins. The Ruins were really a wonderful place to visit. However, the young tour guide, supposedly experienced, just spoke nonstop on the 2 1/2 hour trip to the Ruins without saying anything. It ruined what should have been a great experience.
Would have been better if we could have spent more time in Port. Celebrity had us back on the ship at 2 in the afternoon.
Would have been better if we didn't have to be back on the ship by 2:00pm.
Disembarked in San Diego
We enjoyed two days in Miami before boarding the ship.