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A RETREAT BEYOND the stars July 7-13, 2024


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Our new group of friends had a private event tonight with a performer who was very talented vocally and on the piano. We were fortunate enough to be invited to attend. They are such a welcoming group and we’ve already been given info for next year’s cruise to join them. 

Tonight was chic night which is the same as Royal’s dress your best. The nicest we saw was semi dressy with all the accessories and a suit with a vest. Nothing over the top and many only dressy casual so Pop’s long pants and a polo not even tucked in were very appropriate. I wore nice capris and a dressy blouse with my strappy sandals. I can’t do heels yet because of my broken toe so my sandals have been my go to. 

I know you’re all dying to know if we broke vegan for dinner tonight. Pop (with his sickening discipline) ordered from the main menu at Luminae but asked for alterations to reduce as much of the non-vegan items as possible. He said they were okay but then opted not to finish his meal because it just wasn’t cooked well. 

He asked for additional veggies and the Brussels sprouts that were a side order from another dish on the menu and they brought out a very small portion of the sprouts which were luke warm at best, along with under cooked carrots covered in beets!  Are you kidding me????

Victor was taking POP’s plate and pressed him for feedback so he shared that the sprouts were cold and the carrots undercooked. He offered to bring more and Pop refused but I told him I would like them. My dish was supposed to come with veggies and I think there were 3 things on my plate and one was a beet!!!!! 

I, on the other hand, not only fell off the wagon, but the wagon backed up and ran me over.  I had the lobster appetizer, the Ribeye (quite delicious after I had to ask for it to be prepared correctly - I asked for medium rare and got medium well), and cheesecake for dessert!!  Pop encouraged me to send back the steak because if I’m compromising my choice it had better be for what I really want.  So I did.  

Victor, our server was great about it but when he brought out the replacement steak he made a comment about how the chef said it was because of how large of a cut it was, as if to say it was supposed to be dry and barely pink. Really?   Listen, I may be currently a vegan, but it’s not because I don’t love meat!  I LOVE steak and I know what medium rare is!  It almost makes me wonder if they were trying to pull it over on me because we’re vegan and they thought we wouldn’t know any better.  Shame on them!

Our overall feelings were that Daniel Boulud (the Michelin chef who created this menu) would be appalled if he saw what they did to his creations. 

Victor asked us if we had any special requests for tomorrow so we could get exactly what we wanted. We told him we’d like a harvest salad with mixed greens, nuts, fruit, vegan Parmesan cheese (which he told us they didn’t have even though it was on the vegan menu from yesterday) and balsamic vinaigrette, and then asked for a full plate of grilled/charred veggies. We’ll see tomorrow what comes out. 

We really hate complaining about things but when they tout how great things are and they really aren’t it’s disappointing. And it’s not like we have other options on the ship!!

Regular Menu

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Before the meal came out they brought out a small plate appetizer that was a burratta and tomato dish.  It was really good and because I had already chosen to ditch the wagon tonight I ate mine and Pop’s   🥰

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Slow Poached Lobster ❤️❤️❤️

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Roasted Ribeye Steak (read the description on the menu - wouldn’t you expect to see more veggies?)

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Jerusalem Artichoke Soup

(minus the prosciutto and mascarpone)

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Cauliflower Steak (no alterations)

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Charred Brussels Sprouts &  Baby Veggies

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Mascarpone Cheesecake ❤️❤️❤️

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Came back to another animal and our anniversary goodies. Incidentally, our cabin attendant told us Celebrity discontinued towel animals but he’s doing them for me because I specifically asked.  I always wonder when someone tells me something like that. Anyway, I keep getting them so I’m happy!!!

 

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Yesterday was overcast and didn’t resemble the Caribbean at all.  I’m sure it was remnants of the hurricane having recently travelled through this area. The captain took us across the top of Cuba to Grand Cayman. 

Today we woke up and the sky is blue with the sun somewhat visible!  Now it feels right!! ☀️🕶️😎

 

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Dear @FirePantyPop and @CravingaCruise. Please know I appreciate your honest experiences, I always prefer true reports as opposed to those who have something to gain from their report. Please keep the honesty coming as when we do book X in the future we will have expectations grounded in reality.  I'm enjoying sailing with you!! 

If X is one and done for us it will be because we didn't feel our experience warranted another but again our expectations will be realistic. 

Beyond is beautiful and honestly I will book the Retreat guarentee most likely as well. 

To clarify...we are vegetable eaters but not vegan and hubby usually wears Greg Norman shorts to dinner....I to will have to pack some slacks😂

**as an aside I watched a Harr Travel video on the last cabin we stayed in, he was stupid giddy about how big the closet was.....it wasn't and I was shocked. The storage was actually lacking. I just don't actually love surprises like that🤪

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1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

Those bowls of veggies look really sad.

They were!!  We specifically asked our server for a main course helping of veggies for dinner tonight so we’ll see how that goes. I can tell that Victor really wants to accommodate our requests.  The staff at Luminae are truly wonderful!

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Started the day off in Eden. Very peaceful and relaxing. We got some coffee and fruit, and @CravingaCruise got the veggie wrap. Ick 🤮 The problem??? Mushy zucchini…again ick! I went over to take pics and the gals there were interested in why one of everything. I told them it was for a blog. Excitement ensued! They were very interested in following along, so I sent her over to the ‘real blogger’ for the info. @CravingaCruise loved chatting about the RCL big family, and she got all hooked up. I happened to be wearing my special fire britches and told her my name. She about lost it laughing. Great time hanging out this morning. I can’t remember her name, but I’ll go back later and say hi again 👍

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Cafe al Bacio

Eden didn’t have milk alternatives so we wandered over to the cafe for my kind of coffee (with good stuff in it).  Pop can drink anything but I just can’t do that. 

I got a slice of banana bread and asked for a macchiato. The guy at the counter thought I was asking for a tiny cup of coffee. I tried explaining it to him but it was totally lost in translation. I ended up getting a latte and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t oat milk. Oh well. I think what I need to do for the rest of the cruise is ask for an Americano and an oat milk vanilla latte and the I’ll pour my latte into my Americano as my creamer.  

I have to say is that they do make beautiful foam!  

I didn’t have my phone with me so no pics this morning. 

 

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2 minutes ago, CravingaCruise said:

TGFAC (Thank God for AC) !!

Amen to that! When people ask me how bad the heat is my standard response is... not bad, it's 78 in my living room.

I get hot just going from my car to a store and back to my car. It's been even worse than usual the past couple months.

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43 minutes ago, Neesa said:

I watched a Harr Travel video on the last cabin we stayed in, he was stupid giddy about how big the closet was.....it wasn't

Ha!  Exactly!  And don’t forget that every cabin is his absolute favorite…and he’s 6’6”…and he starts every morning off with his special Italian coffee at home each day…and he always brings Euro converters to take advantage of all the outlets in the room!  😂😂 I tease, but because of him I brought one! 😊

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@CravingaCruise You do not come off like a Karen.

I don't understand when being honest turned into some bad or complaining. Not everything that isn't overly positive is a complaint. This does a disservice and then the actual complaints come. 

Saying that, I don't trust any of the travel company's blogs, especially Harr's...... I take them with a grain of salt. 

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Mid-Cruise Thoughts

Now that we’ve had a couple of days to explore and find our way around here are some of our thoughts:

  • Clock at the pool:  this goes for every resort and cruise ship pool out there. If you have a pool, you need a clock posted somewhere that is visible from the pool because even though many have smart watches that can go in water these days, some of us don’t appreciate a watch shaped tan line on our wrist. Just sayin. 
  • Punching a hole in the key card: On day 2ish, I finally made my way to the concierge in the suite lounge to ask if they could punch my key card. I have the little spiral wrist bands (in every color to coordinate with my outfits, of course) to wear my key card because not all of my clothes have pockets (much to my dismay). Unfortunately, they can’t punch a hole in our cards (don’t know if this is specific to retreat or not) because of how the RFID chip is placed in these cards. Sadness!
  • Hand sanitizer:  On Royal, especially since COVID, we have grown accustomed to hand sanitizer by the elevators. This ship doesn’t have them near elevators.  We have seen them around, but not nearly as many. This is a miss in our minds. 
  • Cleanliness:  Everywhere we go, there is someone wiping down rails, doors, all surfaces really. It is so appreciated!!  I did feel that our room was clean, but that didn’t stop me from cleaning the tub with my own sponge and soft scrub cleanser before we used it.  No sense in taking chances. 
  • Retreat deck & pool:  deck 17 of the retreat is absolutely lovely. There are a ton of very nice lounge chairs/pillows to sun bathe, and just as many in shaded areas. The sunscreen they have available on deck is outstanding also!  We should know-we’re from Oregon!  The pool was the perfect temp and depth for chatting with others, or lounging with your arms on the edge while the rest of your body floats effortlessly. The one miss is that it isn’t close enough to the edge of the deck to see the ocean. I think that would have made it perfect…that and a clock. 😂 There also isn’t any music playing on the pool deck. Not sure if that is always or just today.  Regardless…this location is definitely on the top of my happy places list. 
  • Food:  no surprise, we’re not huge fans of the food choices on board. I think this might be a very personal thing to us so I wouldn’t necessarily take our word as the standard. We’re total foodies and you have to remember that Pop is an outstanding home grown chef, so we have standards that are quite high.  Because of how we’re eating we have found ourselves at the buffet more often than not. I’m pretty sure this was the source of my crankiness!!  Every time we have to figure out where to eat I get sad!!  Sadness should not be an emotion felt on a cruise!  
  • Food choices:  there are very few food choices on board that are included in the cost of the cruise…and even fewer without the retreat.  Royal definitely does complimentary food options better in my opinion!
  • Crowds:  this cruise I’ve definite felt the crowds.  We didn’t make it to any event that told us how close to sold out they are but if I had to guess, I’d say this is a sold out cruise. There don’t seem to be as many places to go to escape the crowds either…except for Eden. That is a lovely space and very quiet!  We’ve found ourselves there quite a bit.  Eden also is on my happy places list. 
  • Cabin thoughts:  we have a Sky suite. It is a beautiful room with a standard balcony and a bed that faces the balcony. It’s a great way to wake up in the morning.  We can also control the lights and curtains in the app on our phones. This is a huge plus!!! Most cabins on this ship (except for suites) have the infinite edge balconies. I’ve not experienced them so somewhat hard to compare but I love (and think I would prefer) a traditional balcony vs what seems to be a large window. 
  • We found a container of q-tips and a container of cotton balls in the bathroom today. A nice touch I’d say.   The bathroom amenities are nice with mild scent. I have not used the shampoo or conditioner because I’m quite particular (I’m sure you never thought that about me, right?) 😂 Pop has used the shampoo and liked it. There is practically no scent, just the way he likes it. The bar soap was fine but,of course, I brought my own from home. Same with the lotion. 
  • We seem to only have one trash can in our room. Not in the bathroom. Whenever I brush my hair in the morning I end up with a few strands of hair that I need to throw away (some days more than others - a moment of silence please).  I have to leave my vanity space to dispose of the sadness.  Don’t judge, I like convenience and efficiency. 
  • The vanity contains a zoomed in mirror, but if you’re as blind as me it’s not good enough. I have a travel mirror I usually bring with me that zooms in 15 times. I would guess this is 3. Or maybe I’m just that blind. 😳
  • The vanity also is not backlit, which makes it hard to see when you have old eyes. At home I have a diva vanity with lights all the way around like you see in movie set dressing rooms.  The full length mirror in the living room is backlit, but the zoomed mirror is affixed to the wall in the bathroom so you can’t have both in one place. 
  • The ship:  The Beyond is an absolutely beautiful ship and the decor is completely our taste. Our home is very contemporary with black, grey, white, and accent colors. Beyond is similar.
  • More to come. Thanks for following along!

    Feel free to ask anything specific if you would like to know anything about the Beyond or Celebrity. If we don’t know well do your best to find the answer for you. 

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Dinner in Luminae

Victor was especially excited to see us tonight and he was really excited to bring out our dishes. He truly loves making his guests happy and it 100% put a smile on our faces!

They always bring out a small dish appetizer that is off menu. Tonight included crab and mayonnaise so Victor checked with us prior to serving it. I’m a terrible vegan so I said I would please like it. Pop passed. 

The small dish was a green pea panna cotta with a crab relish. It was okay. All I can say is that it’s a good thing the crab was on it!

Victor brought our salads that we had requested and he was so excited to present them to us. He checked back a moment later to make sure it was what we had wanted. It was great!

Next came the main course which was grilled/ charred vegetables. It was a pretty small portion as a main course but it was exactly what we had asked for. We asked if we could both get another portion and they happily obliged. 

Victor, knowing Pop is not a dessert guy, told him he was bringing something for him anyway just in case.  It was a surprise. And he was so giddy about it. 

It turned out to be a mango tapioca dish and it was quite good. I hadn’t eaten tapioca since I was a kid because I wasn’t a huge fan of it. I’m also not much of a mango fan but I couldn’t disappoint Victor and crush his spirit so I gladly ate it. I wasn’t unhappy about it. 

All together, a much better experience tonight with the food!

Oh!  Our neighboring table saw we were taking pics and overheard that I forgot to take a pic of my salad before mixing it all up. They offered pics of their salad and when they got their desserts I asked for more pics because they looked so good!!  

Now we’re at the show. Looking forward to it!!

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@CravingaCruise am i unwell or can you not order MDR dishes in luminae?

i understand the whole purpose of having the suite dining experience is to be able to partake of those meals but i know one of the things that called to me about aqua class was that we could (hypothetically) order MDR dishes if something wasn't to our liking on the main blu menu.

to be fair, i believe blu is centrally located to the four main dining rooms, so that may account for some of it, but i hate that you guys have such limited options from a vegan standpoint!! just trying to think of an alternative solution so you can keep the dining experience but have a little more variety in your selection 💚

loving your thoughts!! thank you for sharing!!

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4 hours ago, asquared17 said:

@CravingaCruise am i unwell or can you not order MDR dishes in luminae?

i understand the whole purpose of having the suite dining experience is to be able to partake of those meals but i know one of the things that called to me about aqua class was that we could (hypothetically) order MDR dishes if something wasn't to our liking on the main blu menu.

to be fair, i believe blu is centrally located to the four main dining rooms, so that may account for some of it, but i hate that you guys have such limited options from a vegan standpoint!! just trying to think of an alternative solution so you can keep the dining experience but have a little more variety in your selection 💚

loving your thoughts!! thank you for sharing!!

We can order from MDR but we’ve been told that the vegan menu we receive in Luminae is from the MDR and that Luminae doesn’t offer vegan dining. That means for dinner there is literally one salad, one soup, one entree, and one dessert for vegans offered across the ship.  It’s only for dinner also, so we’re left for forage for food the rest of each day.  More on that in a bit  

 

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Last night’s show was magnificent!  Loved the technology and the acrobatics together. One of the singers was great, and the other 4 were okay.  There were several mini sets that seemed to have a tiny thread of a plot, but we don’t really know what that plot was. It doesn’t matter though because the performances were outstanding!  I think we both enjoyed this performances over the Royal theater performances. It may have also topped the water shows on Royal - maybe!

Incidentally, when we told our butler we were planning to go to the show last night and requested seats, he made a point to tell us that there are no reserved seats for retreat. Instead, they only offered it for the magician the previous night.  Really?  The last show we went to with a magician on a ship was invaded by all the littles kicking, screaming, and crying during the entire thing. That happened to be the night I discovered long island iced teas at the bar in the back of the theater. 🙄

Our butler hadn’t even bothered to tell us about the only show for which we could get  reserved seats. We’ve decided that the butler on Celebrity is pretty much useless. Nothing like the Genie on Royal!  Royal wins this category hands down!!! 

Here are some of the pics of the show last night!  If you ever have the opportunity to see one of the shows in the theater you must do it!  Apparently they offered 3 different shows this cruise  

 

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On 7/9/2024 at 2:34 PM, CravingaCruise said:

He’s practically non-existent.  I think Star Class ruined us to regular butlers. 😳

Just catching up. This is my worry too.  I have had 3 Celebrity Edge class cruises either booked/holds and I always end up cancelling and booking star class. 
The other thing that worries me is the food options. We are not adventurous eaters so I appreciate your food updates.  We would most likely purchase specialty dining so that may address my concern. 

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1 hour ago, CravingaCruise said:

We’ve decided that the butler on Celebrity is pretty much useless. Nothing like the Genie on Royal!  Royal wins this category hands down!!! 

I often wonder if this is due to the Sky suite. That is why I told Hubby if we try X for research, we have to book an upper suite to compare as close to star as possible. I will see how this goes in a few weeks. So far not too impressed with shoreside. 

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Minor freak out moment!  We spent the afternoon in the retreat pool visiting with others and just came back to shower for dinner. We were both in the main room of our cabin sorting out our laundry that had just been delivered, both sporting our birthday suits.  I looked out the window to see the magic carpet going down the side of the ship right outside our balcony!  We both made a run for the bathroom and after Pop covered up, he hit the close option on our control to shut the drapes!  Thankfully, we learned that nobody is ever on it while it is traveling. 

Incidentally, my watch is now commenting on my heart rate!  🤪😬

View from our balcony

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10 minutes ago, CravingaCruise said:

Minor freak out moment!  We spent the afternoon in the retreat pool visiting with others and just came back to shower for dinner. We were both in the main room of our cabin sorting out our laundry that had just been delivered, both sporting our birthday suits.  I looked out the window to see the magic carpet going down the side of the ship right outside our balcony!  We both made a run for the bathroom and after Pop covered up, he hit the close option on our control to shut the drapes!  Thankfully, we learned that nobody is ever on it while it is traveling. 

Incidentally, my watch is now commenting on my heart rate!  🤪😬

View from our balcony

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First instinct run…second was to do a little diddy. I’m pretty sure I’d get the frowny face from @CravingaCruise if I chose incorrectly here. 🤷‍♂️ maybe??

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WOW!!!  Luminae Dropped the Mic Tonight!

Two nights ago Victor asked for us to give him an order for the following night in order to ensure we were happy with our meal. Last night’s meal was great and we asked for a little different tonight. 

Earlier today after trying to find food at lunchtime and ending up in the buffet again (my least favorite place on this ship), we asked to speak with the matre’ d to discuss options for meals other than just dinner. She encouraged us to join them for breakfast in the morning where we could have one of our favorites, avocado toast. That means we have to wake up in time to eat at the restaurant. 😳   She also told us that Celebrity is actively working on building out their vegan menu options, which really made us happy. 

Tonight, the chef truly knocked it out of the park!  We were so happy with dinner that we asked to thank him personally. I forgot to get a pic of him but chef Pawan did such an outstanding job and we are truly grateful.  I know Pop enjoyed it because it inspired his creativity and curiosity for making new dishes. This only happens when he experiences new and great things. This happened during our salad course when we got our salad with a mock goat cheese that truly tasted like goat cheese!!  He stopped at one point and was worried it wasn’t vegan!!

Victor, as always, was a true pleasure tonight and we made sure to tell the maitre d’ how wonderful he’s been.  

The team really out performed tonight and we’re so full that we can hardly move!!!  Check out the pics. Our meal about brought tears to our eyes!!!!!

Yummy crackers that Pop wants the recipe for!

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Amuse bouche - vegan made special for us since 

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Salad with vegan goat cheese

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main course - crispy teriyaki tofu, grilled mixed veggies, brown and wild rice

They had to come make room on our table for all the dishes!  I invited the staff to join us since they served us such a beautiful feast!  They politely declined.

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Chocolate pecan cake - heavenly!!!!

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3 hours ago, asquared17 said:

okay THIS light bulb moment is what i’ve been waiting for!!!

yessssssss!!!!

Us too!!  All of the friends we’ve made on this trip have been on this journey with us and it was a huge celebration moment tonight!  

Tonight’s dinner took us back to when we were on the Anthem in Star class just after the cruise come back. The CK manager during that trip wanted nothing more than for us to join them for every meal and would literally do anything to make his guests happy!  🥰

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On 7/10/2024 at 11:23 AM, CravingaCruise said:

 Exactly!  And don’t forget that every cabin is his absolute favorite…and he’s 6’6”…and he starts every morning off with his special Italian coffee at home each day…and he always brings Euro converters to take advantage of all the outlets in the room!  😂😂 I tease, but because of him I brought one!

Please don't forget his favorite part of any room with a separate bedroom ... the door. 

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