Celebrity Eclipse Review

4.5 / 5.0
1,949 reviews

Celebrity you're the best!

Review for the Baltic Sea Cruise on Celebrity Eclipse
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wheeljammer
First Time Cruiser • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Jun 2014

The cruise was a joy from the time we arrived at the dockside! Registration was a breeze and we were aboard in about thirty minutes having our first beer. Sailing out of Southampton, whilst somewhat limiting in terms of destinations, is SO much more enjoyable than having to fly these days. All the many hassles with weight restrictions, security etc. have ruined the whole experience for us and many others it seems. It was our second time on Eclipse so we knew where 'things' were which meant not having to go through days of asking 'where are we' and 'where's the cabin'! The Eclipse is a fine ship by modern standards and is kept in pristine condition all the time by the wonderful, helpful and smiley crew. I can't think of a negative to report in that respect! Our cabin steward Jimmy and his assistant were fabulous! The cabin was kept clean and tidy and some nights we were visited by an assortment of towel animals adding a little humour to the 'home-coming' of an evening :) Service across the board was of a very high standard too. Our dinning room waiters Jerick and Ruben were first class and the food was hot and appeared freshly cooked most of the time. We ate in the Oceanview Café deck 14 much of the time both for breakfast and lunch. The lay-out is very different to most of the ships we've been on but serves the purpose well and the choice and quality of the food was excellent. Bar staff etc. all had a smile when serving you. We were a little disappointed with the British house/party band "Spitfire". Possibly the most inappropriate name for them for the had little in the way of fire in their performances (sorry guys). The lead guitarist was the best player and the female vocalist was OK. The rest looked like they were going through the motions and most of the material was very old and not for partying. I've certainly seen bands in venues around my home town that are better and more entertaining. The rest of the music on board was pretty good and we thoroughly enjoyed legendary drummer Les De Merle and his trio most evenings in the Ensemble Lounge deck 5. The production shows were perhaps not the best we've ever witnessed on a ship but were, never the less, of a high standard and the visiting artistes were brilliant! In particular, Mike Doyle was amongst the funniest comics we've seen anywhere on the high seas. Singer Peter Grant was also excellent but unfortunately the sound engineer had an off night and ruined the show for us. The ports of call were as expected and we were fairly lucky with the weather although it was much cooler than anticipated! The one quibble we had, particularly with St Petersburg was the amount of ships now cramming into port causing utter chaos and extended queuing times at The Hermitage, Peterhof and Katherine's Palace. We've been cruising for over 20 years and are convinced that the cruise industry is going to 'eat itself' due to greed! With ships now holding over 3000 passengers the whole experience is being ruined by over crowded ports and facilities. We've noticed this phenomenon particularly in The Caribbean over the last few years. It is nonsense to have around six or so ships in a tiny port like St Maarten or St Thomas! Rant over! Disembarkation was as hassle free as embarkation, what can I say? A fabulous cruise with Celebrity and we'll see you back on Eclipse in February 2015!

Cabin Review

A lovely modern, comfortable and clean cabin. Hanging space was more than on some ships and draws were in abundance. The one thing we missed was a bedside cabinet! Why have they done away with them on Eclipse? There's just a free standing 'thing' with a couple of tiny shelves! Nowhere to stand a drink, a clock etc. - stupid. TV system was pretty good with free movies which can be paused and revisited anytime within 48 hours. We didn't care for the modern sink and tap in the bathroom. It was a very modern bowl which overflowed every time you used it and if one needed to bring ones face nearer to the sink you banged your head on the non-movable tap which extended over halfway across the bowl!

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