Celebrity Xpedition Review

4.0 / 5.0
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The trip of a lifetime

Review for South America Cruise on Celebrity Xpedition
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Vacation Nut
6-10 Cruises • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Aug 2011
Cabin: Xpedition Suite with Veranda

We booked this trip 18 months in advance after visiting a travel show. I was a little concerned because I didn't think the Galapagos cruise on Celebrity could be as good as everyone said, but I was wrong... It was better. We have never sailed Celebrity before, but now I will try their other ships. The care this company takes of its clients is just incredible. We were met at baggage claim in Quito by a porter who took our bags through a scanner for us, led us to the Celebrity representative and loaded our bags in the bus. From here on out that Celebrity representatives took care of our every need until we boarded the plane to Baltra and again when we returned from the cruise. We arrived at the JW Marriott at about 9:30 pm and were greeted with juice. This hotel is beautiful, there are roses everwhere and when we came to breakfast on Saturday morning I was amazed by the view of the Andes. The tour of Quito was very well done and included a lovely buffet lunch at the Theater Restaurant. Then it was off to the equator monument ( you've got to do this just to say you have been there!!). After a couple of hours back at the hotel we were taken to Carmine restaurant which I loved as we sat outside on a very nice patio. By this time we were all beginning to make friends and this was to be a feature of the cruise; we would come to know nearly everyone and everyone was so friendly. The last thing before bed was to take our bags downstairs to be locked away for an early morning inspection and transport to the ship. You can carry liquids in hand luggage so it is not a problem to part with you suitcase.

Sunday morning we filled out some forms before boarding the bus to the airport. Without our luggage it was so easy. We boarded our plane for a flight that American airline companies should emulate. The flight attendants were attentive, the plane was clean and the meal was served with real silverware and napkins. It was about 2 hours to the islands and our first glimpse of the ship. Arriving in Baltra was equally easy, just had to have our forms stamped and we were outside to meet our Celebrity naturalists. A short bus ride took us to the dock and our zodiac ride to the ship which was anchored in the bay.

The ship is gorgeous, I was so glad that we had chosen it. We came to love the Beagle Grill at the back (stern) as it was the meeting place before and after excursions, when we were greeted with drinks and snacks. We tended to eat lunch here and also sit here in the late afternoon after returning from the second excursion, talking with new friends and watching the sun begin to set. We would pop to our cabin at about 6:45 to shower and change for the evening briefing in the Discovery Lounge, by Jorge our cruise director. He was so happy, friendly and informative. Every evening you sign up for the excursions you want to do the next day. Win are in our late 50s and always did the long walks with absolutely no problems. We also did not use walking sticks as we didn't find walking on rocks difficult. The walks may be longer than some people normally do, but they are generally not steep and they are very slow as people are listening to the naturalists and taking photos.

Cabin Review

Xpedition Suite with Veranda

Cabin XS

Cabin 504. Good size, comfortable bed, lovely balcony, loads of cupboard and drawer space. Great shower.

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