My Cruise experience on the Celebrity Infinity

  I have just returned from a trip on board the Celebrity Infinity.  I was already a fan of Celebrity Cruises based on my past experiences on the Celebrity Equinox launch party and from feedback my returning clients had given me. 
 
  Would this trip change my mind about Celebrity Cruises?  Are they really “Modern Luxury” or are they something else? 
 
  Read on to find out….

  On this particular blog I would like to focus my thoughts on the on board experience I had on the Infinity, I did get chance to visit Vigo, Spain  and Porto, Portugal whilst I was on the cruise but I will talk about these places in separate blogs at a later time.
 
  I am going to split this blog into sections, concentrating on different aspects that make up the whole cruise experience, these are the ship itself, my cabin, the dining experience, the entertainment, the service on board and finally my overall verdict.

  I have decided that I have so much to say about the dining experience that I will only be making  brief comments about it on this blog.  I have now done a separate blog covering in more detail what I thought about the dining experience on the Infinity.  You can read that blog HERE.
 
  I will also do a future blog on the Classic drinks package as this is something that Celebrity have been promoting and including with on a lot of their cruises.  I decided that as much as it pains me to drink beers, wines, premium spirits, cocktail coffees and cocktails, it would only be right that I experience the Classic drinks package first hand so that I can pass on my experiences and advice to my passengers.

THE SHIP

  The Celebrity Infinity is a medium sized Millennium Classed ship accommodating 2170 passengers. 
 
  She was originally launched in 2001 but she has recently had major refurbishments to bring her standards up in line with Celebrity’s newer Solstice Class of ships. 
  I do feel that the quality and feel of a ship a very important factor of the whole experience to me, I do personally prefer larger, more modern ships to smaller ones. 

  When I boarded the Infinity my first sight was the grand foyer, it felt luxurious, clean and classy to me, a good start !

  The ship in my opinion was very well presented throughout and did feel luxurious to me.  I can honestly say that I did not find any part of the ship that felt at all worn or tired.  Celebrity would like to compare the quality of surroundings on their ships to a decent 5* modern hotel and I would have to agree with them on that.

  I liked the fact that some of the elevators on this ship are on the outside of the ship meaning that you are looking out to sea as you travel between the decks, although this sometimes made me feel slightly uneasy, I think it was the mixture of the height, movement and motion.

  One thing that was noticed about the ship was that there was lots of modern art around the place.  From talking to others the art wasn’t to everyone’s tastes, although it did make for some talking points.  I personally liked the fact there was modern art on board instead of more traditional art as I feel it represents Celebrity “Modern Luxury” feel.

  Here are my thoughts on certain areas of the ship that stood out to me.  I am not going to go into detail on every single area of the ship as I could go on forever, I would rather point what stood out to me as key areas from my experience.

Rendezvous Lounge

This lounge area is actually a little different to most other areas of the ship due to the fact that it still has the darker wood panelling as opposed to the lighter wood that has been used to refurbish the rest of the ship. 

  There is a small dance floor where often a few couples would do ballroom dancing, they normally have live musicians performing and I must say that the singers and musicians on the ship are extremely talented.  The dancers (passengers) were also very good too. 

  There is plenty of seating, low lighting and a warm relaxed atmosphere.  A great place to sit and relax with a drink whilst being entertained.

Casino

  If you like to gamble your luck’s in !  The casino on the Infinity is massive,  glitzy and has the American casino feel to it.  There are lots and lots of gaming tables, slot machines and of course a bar.

 Constellation Bar

  This is a large bar/nightclub area on deck 11, it is very large with loads of seating and a massive dance floor. 
  This area is used for all sorts of entertainment including ballroom dancing classes, quizzes and karaoke but it really comes alive later on in the evening  when DJ Krazy Prince get’s the party started. 

  If you are a night owl you will no doubt find yourself in here at the end of the night.

Aqua Spa Area

  The paid Aqua spa area on Infinity (the Persian garden)  is actually quite small, but in contrast to that there is a large indoor solarium area that can be used by all guests. 

  This area has a thalassotheraphy pool as well as a couple of indoor hot tubs and lots of seating and comfortable loungers where you can chill with scenic sea views. 

  It is really nice to have this area to go to if the weather isn’t too great outside on the open deck.
  There is of course a well-equipt gym that can be used by all guests as well as treatment rooms and a vast array of services on offer.
  Although I will cover the Aqua spa cafe in my Infinity dining blog I would like to add that this is also in the solarium area and a great place to get a healthy meal in a relaxed environment.

Martini Bar

The Martini bar was added to the ship when she was refurbished as it is one of the Solstice Class ship features.  It is a great addition to the ship as the Martini Bar is a modern lively bar and different to a traditional bar. 

  The Martini bar normally has modern music playing in the background which I liked and again helped to keep that “Modern Luxury” feel.   The bar itself is a circular bar with the bartenders in the middle. 

  The counter of the bar is covered in ice which keeps your drink cool, you can also have fun drawing and writing in the ice. 

  One of the main features of the Martini bar is its bartenders with their showmanship and skills.  The bartenders will be pouring multiple drinks at a time, juggling and tossing bottles all over the place, this really does help to liven the atmosphere.

The Open pool Deck Areas

  The open pool deck area on the Infinity was a lovely area to be in on the sunny days we had. 

  There are two outdoor pools and a couple of hot tubs.  There were lots and lots of sunbeds available with comfortable cushions, also lots of big comfortable seats to the outer side. 

  There are a couple of pool bars so you won’t have to travel far if you fancy a drink.
  The atmosphere on the pool deck was great on a sail away with live music being played.  Again the music was modern in touch with Celebrity’s take on things, I liked it.

Café al Bacio

  This open plan café area on deck 5 has a luxury coffee shop feel to it. 

  Sometimes the café would have entertainment but otherwise it was just a nice place to go and get a decent speciality coffee. 

  One thing that I must recommend that people try from Café al Bacio are the coffee cocktails, my favourite was the Aspen coffee which has Baileys, Kahula and coffee topped off with whipped cream, this was included with the Classic drinks package. 

  Coffees from Café al Bacio can be bought to drink in the café or be taken away in takeout cups. 

  There is also a large selection of complimentary cakes and pastries on offer, these again are top quality.

  I think that this is an interesting idea. 

  Cellar masters is made up by lots of automated wine dispensing machines.  The idea being that you can pay to automatically dispense a small amount of each wine to taste and compare them without having to pay for a full sized glass or bottle. 

  We thought we would try out Cellar Masters and made this short unrehearsed video below. 

  This video is a great example of why making a video unrehearsed doesn’t always work out, I thought I would include it anyway though as it quite funny.

MY CABIN

  I stayed in a standard category 12 inside stateroom.   I was pleasantly surprised by my cabin, it felt spacious and modern, it had everything I needed.

  One of the great things about this cabin I thought was that it was laid out differently to a lot of the other inside cabins.  I would enter the cabin from the side and have the bed to the right and bathroom and wardrobes to the left. 

  My cabin had a large Samsung flat screen TV, a minibar, a table, a couple of chairs, a safe, lots of wardrobe space and drawers and lots of mirrors.  There was a Celebrity bathrobe hanging in my wardrobe also.

  The bathroom was about the size I expected but was fit for purpose.  It was modern looking, clean and everything worked as it should.

The TV has an interactive service where you can keep an eye on your on board account as well as other things and worked very well.
Considering the cabin I stayed in was the lowest grade of cabin on the ship I was really happy with it.

THE DINING EXPERIENCE

  As I said earlier on this blog I will be doing a further blog on my dining experience on the Infinity as I have so much to say about it.  You can read that blog HERE.

  I would like to say though that I really enjoyed the dining experience on the Infinity.  The food I experienced was amazing everywhere I went. 

  I ate way too much on my cruise but I couldn’t help but try lots of the amazing things on offer.  

  If you enjoy good food, like myself, then you would certainly in for a treat.

THE ENTERTAINMENT

  The first thing I want to cover on the entertainment section is the main theatre.  The main theatre is situated at the front of the ship and spread across decks 3, 4 and 5. 

  The seats in the theatre are comfortable and one thing I really liked is that they have little glass tables next to the seats which light up from underneath to put your drink on.

  I went one evening to watch a “Best of Broadway” production in the main theatre.  I don’t normally go to watch these type of shows because they just aren’t typically my thing but I must say that the show was really very good.
 
  The quality of the production and talent of the performers was of such a high quality, everything was perfectly executed.  I was really impressed, I don’t think they could have been any better, their performances were faultless.
  I also went one evening to watch the Mr and Mrs show in the main theatre, this was hilarious and the contestants were really good sports. 

  The show was really made by the Canadian guy who hosted the show, he was so funny and sharp witted and did a great job of presenting the show.

  Other entertainment I saw on the ship was mostly the live musicians and singers in the Rendezvous lounge and the Constellation Bar, again I have to say that I was really pleased by the quality of the entertainers and couldn’t fault any of the entertainment I saw.

THE SERVICE

  My cabin steward was extremely efficient and serviced my room a couple of times a day with a high level of attention to detail, top marks.

  The service I received by our waiter and his assistant in the main Trellis dining room was also spot on and the whole experience was like clockwork.  As I used to work as a head waiter for a large hotel in earlier life I can really appreciate everything they did, they were friendly, informative and never kept us waiting for anything.  I must also add that the sommelier that served is in the main restaurant was also very good, again I was never kept waiting and she was usually over to top up my glass of wine for me just before I was about to finish it.

  Around the rest of the ship whether it be at guest services, a bar, in the buffet restaurant the service was always prompt and professional and nothing ever felt too much trouble for anyone.

With this ship being a 5* ship would I class the service as being up to a 5* standard ? 
Yes, from my experiences I certainly would.

MY OVERALL VERDICT

  I did a live blog on our forum site whilst I was away on the Infinity and I said on my last day that after sitting and thinking about my experiences, could I think of anything that I could really fault or didn’t like about the cruise ?

  At the time I couldn’t think of anything without being petit or trying to pick fault where it was not due.  I am still of the same opinion, I absolutely loved the whole Celebrity Cruises “Modern Luxury” experience. 

  Everyone has different tastes of course but “Modern Luxury” really does sum up what I want from a cruise personally and Celebrity Cruises certainly delivered on my expectations and dare I say exceeded them which I am personally pleasantly surprised about.

  I would recommend Celebrity Cruises to anyone considering cruising with them in a heartbeat.

  This cruise for me did not just show me how good Celebrity Cruises really are but also a great reminder of what a great holiday cruise products are in general and what a lovely part of the travel  industry I work in.

  Without calling out individual names I would like to personally thank…
My employers, Cruise.co.uk for letting me go and have this experience.
Celebrity Cruises, especially the two trainers that looked after our group on the trip, they were so knowledgeable and passionate about Celebrity Cruises and they really looked after us and helped to make the trip as good as it was.
All crew on board the Infinity that I dealt with and looked after me whilst on board, you truly are a credit to Celebrity Cruises.
My colleagues that I travelled with, we all got on so well, the cruise wouldn’t have been as good as it was without travelling with good company.

  A last point worth mentioning is Celebrity Cruises on-board booking program. 

  If you book your next cruise on board you can have your booking put back through to your travel agent and also get extra benefits on top of the best currently available deal, this is normally in the form of extra on board credit. 

  Even if you can’t decide on a future cruise whilst on board you can put a small deposit down that will get you extra benefits next time you book.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.