Celebration Cruise Line

Great cruise the only problem was the hotel they had us stay at in Ft Lauderdale. It was a dump. No hot water, no meals (we were to have 3 meals a day). Others got to stay at Ramada and had buffet three times a day. The pool water was green. The floors were all stained, especially the hallways. No one seemed to care that we had no hot water for three days. Do not let them stick you at the Saw Grass Hotel. The hotel in the Bahamas, Lucayan resort was the best. Great food, great service and very nice rooms. Loved it there. Had a great Ocean view.

This was the absolute worst cruise line I have ever been on from all that I experienced! And the service was the worst out of all too! To maintain your sanity, you should avoid this cruise line like the plague.
To begin, let me explain the room… We were told that it holds 4 people — 2 sets of bunk beds. When we arrived, the room had one bed that they said comes apart and the other beds would be rollaway beds. We went to the customer service desk, & they found it funny that everyone was complaining about the same thing. Then, we went to the manager booth at the port, before the ship departed, & they too were unhelpful. They said to call the 800 number to reach customer service. The representative was unhelpful & would not transfer me to a manager either. The fact that one member of our party had a disability didn’t even matter.
As it relates to activities, their communication was so poor that nobody knew what time any activities began, so we ended up paying $ 40 per person just to go to the beach when we could have paid $ 10 for a cab, but we learned that after the fact from another passenger.
Anytime we needed to know anything about schedules we asked a staff member, but nobody ever knew anything.
When it was time to leave, we were eating breakfast & they packed up our room for us by putting our stuff in a corner & throwing all our needed papers in the trash– including our ear plugs.
Getting off the ship was also a nightmare. We had to stand in line down a hallway for over two hours — the line moved soooo slowly! And they blamed it on U.S. Immigration rather than their poor way of managing situation by breaking 2,000 into groups, which is what they should have done.
There are many other complaints that we & many other passengers had, but I think you get the point. The bottom line is that you should not take this cruise line if you intend on having a good time. Based on my experience, there are many others out there to pick.

The quality of this cruise has sorely degraded with the new ship. While the ‘Grand Celebration’ is larger (1,200 passengers and multiple pools), the quality has suffered. If you’re a light sleeper, be prepared for a sleepless night. We’ve traveled on this vessel twice and both times, we heard every word, phone notification, snoring, or bathroom break of your neighbors — all night long. If you like sleeping in – be sure to book one of the suites on the 11^th floor. With few rooms and passengers on that floor, it’s your best bet for a quiet night.
This is a ‘party cruise’ with bars on all public levels. The food is ‘okay’. The staff and the service they provide is great. BUT, if you find yourself wide awake at 3 am (because of all the noise from the hallway or your neighbors) and your hungry or thirsty… You won’t find a thing to eat or drink. There are a few bottled waters in the room, but nothing more. When we took this cruise in the spring of 2015, they did have late night snacks available (nacho’s, sandwiches, etc.), but on our June trip — there was nothing available (not even water or juice). A lot of locals use this as transportation to and from the island because they can bring coolers and cargo back from Florida. Bit unfortunately a lot of drunken Floridians (often otherwise underage to drink in the States) also take the 2-​day cruise. If you drink on the ship, it can be rather expensive. And, with the 2-​day cruise — you only have 6 – 8 hours on the island. If you hope to experience the Bahamas, book a 4 – 6 night cruise or check other deals for flights/​hotel or the fast ferry out of FLL.

We absolutely LOVED our stay on the cruise ship and the Bahamas. The ships food was good and the room was a nice size with upgrade. The people on the ship were nice and tended to all your needs. (Love Vivo) Once you get off the ship and arrive to the Bahamas, I hope you’re ready for good spirits. If you love negativity, THIS IS NOT THE PLACE FOR YOU! This is a place full of love and great people. DEFINITELY RECOMMEND!!!

Arrived for a March 17^th cruise and because they were over-​booked, our room was not ready. They gave us a $ 25.00 credit voucher for the inconvenience, but it is April 2^nd and after at least (5) phone calls they have not honored the credit. Same excuse each time, it’s being processed. I don’t think it should take over 2 weeks to process a credit. Was considering going again, but this experience has me questioning whether this company is trustworthy.

Alors ça: CA c’est un bon plan croisière que j’ai trouvé en surfant sur le net un jour où je m’ennuyais. Contexte: Aurélie et ses copines prévoient de partir en Floride, mais né savent pas trop comment s’organiser ni quoi faire tellement y a de choses tentantes. On avait prévu un arrêt à Fort Lauderdale parce qu’on voulait découvrir le coin (la vérité: on voulait à sawgrass Mills faire du shopping dans un super outlet
), ahem.
Mais histoire de pas s’arrêter pour rien, j’ai trouvé cette compagnie de bateau de croisière qui organisait des mini-​croisières de 3 jours dans les Bahamas pour 100 $. Ouais, 100 $. Avec:
— Super cabine
— Super bateau
— Super buffet all inclusive
La cabine où on dormait était bien, pas très grande, mais douche nickel, couchage nickel aussi. On était réellement pas à plaindre (en + y avait de la place pour nos énoooooormes valises).
Le bateau était géant: un bateau américain quoi! Piscines, casinos, salle de jeu, bar, resto… C’était le pied.
Le buffet était merveilleux. J’ai jamais vu un buffet de petit dej comme ça, à volonté et inclus dans le prix, avec gaufres, crêpes, pancakes, croissants, bagels, muffins, cookies, céréales, jus de fruits frais, boissons chaudes, des oeufs de toutes les sortes… une tuerie.
Le bar servait aussi des super cocktails: oh mon dieu les 5 mini margarita aromatisées à plusieurs gouts. Top. On a même eu un ptit cocktail d’accueil :D.
Un super rapport qualité prix qui nous en plus permis de passer presque 2 jours dans les Bahamas (ça va c’est pas dégueu, y a pire: D), on s’est éclatées, le service était top et le bateau impeccable. Et niveau budget, on a connu pire.

Cruise itself was not a bad experience for the $ however the valet parking they make you leave your car with for $ 16 a day will f*#k up your car. Left my car with valet because that’s the only option for a 2 day cruise. Was too tired to check my car when they pulled it in because they start blaring over the loud speakers at 7 am in the ship asking people to get off early. When I finally pulled over to get some gas I found that the valet had swiped a curb, took my car for a joyride over the weekend or something. I called right away to report the situation and they said they would go to the port and review the videos and they would call me back in 24 hours. I never got a call back so I called back 4 days later and they explained to me that my car was out of site of the video and they could not do anything. This did not sit well with my wife so she called back only to be told that they really don’t have any videos because they don’t have any cameras. You pay $ 16 a day valet for a non secure lot where someone can just walk on and take whatever they want. Do yourself a favor if you take this cruise take a taxi to and from the port.
Just want to let the cruise line know valet parking service that’s u using is horrible. Above is my experience from Unilocal

I enjoyed the cruise. Did the two day to Freeport, Bahamas. They must really look at the comment cards ppl fill out. I took my mom for her birthday, which she enjoyed very much. For the price I paid, I can’t complain. There are photographers on board, a casino. We ate at the cove for breakfast, great food. We ate at the crystal and another one that was included with the ship cost… can’t recall the name. But our waiters were awesome! The only thing I didn’t like was if you get the Lucayan Resort Beach Day, don’t get the lunch, it’s burgers and hot dogs. You’re better off going to grab your own food at the nearby marketplace. City tour was fun, you have to move quick to shop because of the couple of stops you make. Our tour guide was hilarious. Food on the cruise wasn’t bad, the comedian, singing, and customer service was great. If you want to get off quickly keep your bags and after breakfast, get in line and you can disembark the ship with no problems. Check it out!

This cruise ship will nickle and dime you to death. And food sucked. Feeling ripped off. They will lie and scam you.

3 words: Not that bad. I cruised in May 2012 and have been meaning to write a review as a public service because I was TERRIFIED to get on this ship. Honestly, I agreed to go and then hugely regretted it, and it turns out I didn’t have much to worry about.
I have cruised on Royal Carribbean and Norwegian, their top of the line ships so I know from a good cruise (even though I am not a big cruise fan). I knew this wouldn’t be that, but it really wasn’t as bad as I expected at all. It’s like shopping at Walmart if you ordinarily shop at Saks, but if you’re prepared for that its okay.
Checking in was no better or worse than any other cruise, and yes, the ship is tiny and old, but honestly it was not as bad as I thought. It seemed clean enough, and the beds were fairly comfortable. European outlets but I was prepared for that and just didn’t even plan to use anything electric. We spent 2 nights at the Grand Lucayan so we were really only on the boat 2 nights, for maybe a total of what, 10 hours each? I felt like the rooms were probably what the crew on the good ships sleep in, you know?
They have Miami tv stations in the room which I appreciated as well. The food was okay, but once again I had low expectations. No better or worse than going to McDonald’s, I ate pizza one night because I figured you can’t go wrong with pizza, and then the second night at in the Crystal dining room and it was okay, but once again, what do you expect?! But it was not disgusting, by far, it was fine. If you think of it as a way to get to Freeport and back, rather than some sort of luxurious vacay, it is fine.
Grand Lucayan is pretty nice, I would consider going back. Freeport is a million times nicer than Nassau which as far as I’m concerned is no different than being in the ghetto in a major American city, what a dump. But Freeport and the Grand Lucayan are nice enough, for the Bahamas.
I would never take this trip again, but I just wanted to write not to be scared of it like I was, trust me I have high standards and it was perfectly tolerable.

This cruise is closer to a 3.5 star. That being said, understand what you are getting yourself into. This is not a high end, amenities filled cruise ship. Book through them directly or Groupon, Do NOT book through the robocaller «you’ve won a free vacation» scheme.
The cheapest rooms are small. Very small. For comfort I’d just pay for the upgrade and not even bother trying to live in 86 square feet for a few days. The beds are not very comfortable but for a night or two, for the price you pay, I couldn’t really complain.
Staff on the ship were all very kind and pleasant. Some even went above and beyond to satisfy my vegetarian needs during dining.
The breakfast buffet wasn’t very good, but everything was edible. The dinner was just ok as well. The night my fiancé and I went to the Hot Rocks place we enjoyed it a great deal. It was fun and I felt the service was a little more upscale and attentive. Food is not available in restaurants ²⁴⁄₇. If you’re hungry after hours there are 3 or 4 items you can call for and have delivered to your room for free. I remember one item was a ham and cheese sandwich with a bag of potato chips.
The pool is very small and for anyone looking to relax and have a quiet journey, I’d advise staying away from the whole pool area.
The entertainment was ok. We paid extra for the comedy show. Again, just ok. One of the best parts of the trip was the adult scavenger hung hosted by a really funny staff member. I don’t want to ruin any surprises for anyone but… this is a must see if you enjoy a bit of outrageous and chaotic fun.
Getting on and off the ship is a bit of a nightmare. A lot of waiting in never ending lines. If I had it to do again, I would just hang around and wait until everyone was off first.
The best thing about the budget cruise is that they offer hotel stays on the island for up to 6 nights. My fiancé and I stayed at Grand Lucayan for a few nights and this was easily the best part of our trip. The island doesn’t have too much to do, even if you rent a car or scooter, not much is going on. However, it is an amazingly beautiful place. The hotel is nice and right on the beach. They have a large swimming pool with a swim up bar. There are several restaurants in the hotel as well. The one restaurant had a breakfast buffet that I thought was great. Across the street is the market place which has some local artisans and duty free shops. There are several restaurants in the market place as well. At night there is live island music that was a lot of fun to see. I really enjoyed it. I’d say this hotel was the best to stay in if you don’t plan on renting a car. Everything you need is directly surrounding the hotel.
Overall, keeping the price in mind and that you are only on the ship for a few nights… I would definitely recommend giving this cruise a try. Just come open minded and keep your expectations in check! My fiancé and I considered it transportation to our several night stay on the island and not the only part of our vacation.

We booked the Celebration Cruise Line with the Caribbean Cruise Line through a voucher we received. This was a huge mistake so if you choose this cruise, just make sure to not book it with the Caribbean Cruise Line or redeem any free cruise vouchers from them. I wrote another Unilocal review focusing only on the Caribbean Cruise Line in Fort Lauderdale if you want to read that before making any decisions.
My boyfriend and I received a voucher and we booked it for 3 days and 2 nights. I mean… it was 3 days and 2 nights, but you don’t get to board the ship until like 4:00 PM that day and the ship doesn’t leave till 6:30 PM or so. So we had that night, and the next morning we were in the Bahamas and the ship would leave around the same time again. The last morning, everyone had to get off the ship by 11 AM the latest so it is not really a «real» cruise in my opinion. Plus, the ship is kind of small… It’s the type of ship where you look at other ships and think, «Dang, I rather be on that one… «
Anyways, before my boyfriend and I could enter the ship, we had to go through a few tables that sell excursions, drink and dinners plans, etc. You had to pick a time for your dinner reservation and you have a chance to upgrade to a nicer restaurant (The Rok) for $ 25.00 a person. As for the excursions, we bought the package that includes lunch at the Grand Lucayan and snorkeling for $ 75.00 a person. I only did this because I always wanted to try snorkeling. If not you can just take a taxi to the Grand Lucayan and enjoy the beach and small vendors there.
They do not accept any type of payment other than your room key. They link your credit card with your room key and that is what you will be using during your stay on the Celebration Cruise.
When we got to our room, I did not really like it since it was just so plain and small, even the restroom. Above the bed were some speakers for the announcement that they would often make and if you were resting during that time, it could be quite annoying since it was right above your head. We walked to the top deck to wait for the ship to leave the port. In my opinion, it wasn’t the best choice for the location of the port. The view and everything was just bad and nothing great to see and that was what I was looking at for hours before the ship actually left the port.
The top deck has a small slide on a kiddy pool and on the other side; there was a small pool and two Jacuzzis. It was okay, but it was just somewhat small. The ship also has a small casino and a game room along with other things to do. They also have live music that was decent, but it was not really for me. They have free shows on the cruise as well and that was decent although I cannot stay for the paying ones since I did not purchase any of those.
The food, that was included, was actually not too bad. There were two different restaurants that you could choose from that was included: Rio and Crystal Room. Rio was just a casual place with decent food where you shared tables and the other place, Crystal Glass; was much more fancy. It’s more romantic and there is a dress code. The restaurants had different items but, they usually give you a menu with five or six items on there for you to choose your entrée. As for breakfast, it is usually a breakfast buffet. Not so great though! On the ship, they have ice cream as well that is complimentary, but if you want a cone, you have to pay for that. This is just a good dessert.
The next day, you would be on the Bahamas and you can do whatever you want. We took a bus to the Grand Lucayan in the Bahamas for our snorkeling session and lunch, but since this review is only focusing on the cruise, I will not go much into the tour other than the fact that it was very nice!
Let’s talk about the service!
We had a problem with our room and talked to one of person that was actually in charge. That person did not sound friendly at all and did not look very approachable. He did not do anything for our complaint. The information desk was helpful, but even they did not seem very approachable or happy to be there. However, the rest of the employees (mainly Filipino) were extremely friendly, caring, and helpful! Especially this young man that came up to me when I was feeling ill to ask if I was okay. Then he went to get me salt for my green apple and a barf bag because I was feeling very sick at sea! All without being asked! All the workers were telling me ways to prevent seasick such as the green apple with salt, no alcohol, don’t drink too much water. Although none of that really helped me even though I had my wristband, I took some medicine, and was eating green apple with salt; it felt nice that they cared enough to try to help you out.
Service 3.5
Rooms 2.5
Food 2.5
Entertainment 2.5
Ambiance 2.5
Overall 2.75

This is about as honest as you are going to get about this cruise line.
First off, book this either directly through the cruise line or through Groupon. The whole «free cruise» offered by Carribbean Cruise Line is a joke and I’m telling you that is where a good 90% off the complaining comes from.
2^nd, understand what you are getting. The low, low rates are usually for that small 89 sq ft room. Those rooms are very tiny. Go with a 4A or 5A if you want more space. Much bigger rooms and bathroom. For those who are just looking to party for 2 days, that small room is good enough. You just need somewhere to lay your head for a few hours both nights as well as freshen up and hold luggage.
3^rd — «Extra» charges are part of cruising. Yes you pay $ 15 for parking each night at Port of West Palm beach. You pay the same at Port Everglades and $ 20 in Miami. At least here they actually valet park your car for that price. Yes you pay for gratuities, the standard on cruise lines is about $ 12 which is what this line charges. Taxes, Port fees, etc. .. you get charged the same.
4^th — This is a TWO DAY CRUISE. If you are expecting a relaxing vacation, I’d look elsewhere. This is great for a quick getaway/​hangout/​party for people in Florida, those passing through the area and needing something to do for a few days. Great for coworkers, girlfriends, fellas chill trip, couples, families, etc. Just realize it’s over quick and with a ship this size, it doesn’t need to be a much longer trip.
5^th — How many cruise lines allow you to stay over on the island for 2, 4 or 6 days extra? This one does if you book through them (sometimes Groupon offers) and you’ll just take another return trip later on. I think that is a great perk for anybody looking to extend their trip and enjoy Freeport/​GBI a little longer.
Pros & Cons
Pros
The ship is well maintained and the service is up there with some of the best I’ve experienced on a cruise ship.
The food was really good throughout. The initial lunch was above what I’ve had on other ships. The dinner both nights in Crystals was fantastic (reserve online prior to cruise). Breakfast was solid. Pizza spot was the perfect late night munchie scene.
Value onboard. I can’t stress this enough. My girl spent $ 20 to be apart of Girls Night Out. She got like 3 drink vouchers, a specialized itinerary which included a bunch of free drinking. Coupons off massages, pictures, free casino money, etc. We got an entire picture package for like $ 24. Usually you only get like 1 picture for that on other cruise lines.
Drink specials can’t be beat. At one point on the 2^nd night, they announced $ 3 drinks for EVERYTHING. .. including top shelf. Patron, Goose, Kettle. .. you name it. It last maybe 30 minutes to an hour, but it is never that low on other ships. Plenty of times they had $ 4 drinks as well.
The cruise director Steve is a funny guy. Ran into him a bunch and even took a picture.
Freeport is very functional now. Easy taxi’s to Taino Beach or Grand Lucaya to spend the day and a Señor Frogs/​shopping area in port. What more do you want.
Embarkation — Smooth and easy. Just try to reserve everything and have your paperwork completed beforehand. Ignore the upsells unless the 2 women, when you get on, are advertising «Girls Night Out» (I believe it’s every Saturday night sailing now).
Cons
They are noticeably more pushy when it comes to upsells, drinks on this ship. It can get annoying to some. .. I just laughed.
Extra charge for the late night comedy show SUCKED. Every cruise line includes this, there is no need to charge extra for this. The show was funny, but only 1 of the 3 comedians actually got «adult material».
Special rate rooms are tiny /​Avoid «free cruise» offer
Smaller ship, noticeably more rocking than a big ship like Allure/​Oasis. Definitely come armed with motion sickness medicine (go with the Wal-​Mart brand Equate. .. it won’t make you sleepy and is just as effective as Dramamine).
This is a converted European Ferry so the electrical is European as well. A bit of an inconvenience but when you arrive, just ask the front desk for a converter and you are good to go. .. or bring your own.
Disembarkation at Port of Palm Beach is probably the worst disembarkation experience in the cruise industry. We just waited to be the last ones off the ship and the line was still huge. Not really the cruise line’s fault but it’s a negative.
Overall
I enjoyed it. It’s definitely a better value in the summer time for Florida residents. In the winter you can find some last minute specials on a major cruiselines that make a 3 night cruise the same price as this 2 nighter, but in the summer time this is clearly a great value.

The biggest scam artists on the planet. Using robocallers in both the United States and Canada, they have repeatedly called my mobile phone with a message claiming «Congratulations, You Won A Free Bahamas Cruise!» followed by a series of faux political topic questions just to make themselves look like they’re a bonafide survey company (as survey companies are exempt from «Do Not Call List» registry laws in the U.S. and Canada). When you press #1 you get a call from one of their travel agents who seems determined to sell you a travel package («What happened to the free cruise?») and asking me for my credit card number.
Please be aware, as a legal aide I have file complaints with the following law enforcement agencies in the United States and Canada:
* Federal Bureau of Investigation — Frauds and Scams Division
* Royal Canadian Mountain Police — Frauds and Scams Division
* Canadian Anti-​Fraud Centre
* Federal Trade Commission
* Federal Communications Commission
* Florida Attorney General Pam Biondi’s Office
* Canadian Radio-​television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)
Presently Attorney General Biondi has opened a civil investigation to this company and their illegal practices. As a member of Canada’s «Do Not Call» Registry they have repeatedly violated my privacy and harassed me with many calls from the following numbers:
* (920) 241‑9079
* (603) 315‑5514
* (313) 938‑5721
* (202) 935‑7473
* (313) 938‑5288
* (202) 427‑2637
* (716) 406‑8687
* (202) 740‑2584
* (678) 781‑4530
* (514) 382‑9318
* (514) 392‑9121
* (514) 392‑9199
* (226) 336‑2502
* (773) 747‑4422
* (613) 686‑3848
* (206) 258‑0898
* (416) 613‑5802
* (613) 686‑3848
and their main number (when they call you back) is (800) 446‑1524.
Please block the numbers above using any programs or options provided by your telephone company to assure you won’t receive their calls.
As you can see this company is one the biggest violators of the «Do Not Call List» laws in the U.S. and Canada.
Here are some links/​telephone numbers for U.S. and Canadians residents can use to file complaints against this company:
Canada:
* Do No Call List Complaint Form (CRTC) —
* Do No Call List Complaint Hotline – (866) 580‑3625
*Canadian Anti-​Fraud Complaint Form:
*Canadian Anti-​Fraud Complaint Hotline – (888) 495‑8501
*Royal Canadian Mountain Police offices (contact office closest to your home) –
*Better Business Bureau Complaint Form –
USA:
*Do No Call List Complaint Form –
*Federal Trade Commission Complaint form –
*Federal Trade Commission Hotline – (877) 382‑4357
*Federal Communications Commission Complaint form –
*Federal Communications Commission hotline – (888) 225‑5322
Mobile Phone Spam Text Messaging Complaint form –
*Federal Bureau of Investigation (Frauds & Scams Division) —
(**Contact office closest to your home**)
*Florida Attorney General Pam Biondi’s Office Complaint Form–
*Attorney General’s Frauds hotline: (866) 966‑7226 or (850) 414‑3990
*Better Business Bureau Complaint Form –
Here is their business license as it appears on the Florida Department of State website –
You can use the address above to send them registered mail addresses to their legal counsel/​division to stop. Please track and save the tracking info. You can use this in court to file a lawsuit in small claims court if required. Once received they will either have to stop calling or respond to your letter within 14 days (make sure to mention your deadline in your correspondence) before you can take legal action.
File as many complaints as possible in order to assure they’re out of business soon.

I would say this cruise is pretty great for the money. I just went on the 2-​night cruise on 1÷23−1÷25. We paid $ 69+ $ 60 taxes on a Travelzoo deal. I It was my first cruise ever, so my expectations weren’t as high as many.
One thing you will notice is that all of the crew members are very nice, but they are also VERY persistent with selling add-​ons, especially alcohol!
The Boat: I would say that this boat definitely had an early ’90’s design vibe– but it wasn’t too distracting. I didn’t like that most parts of the boat smelled faintly like a port-​a-​potty. but it’s just faint. We had a category 8 room, and it was incredibly small, but I expected it from some Youtube videos I watched. Our friends had a category 6 room, and it was much more livable, don’t spend too much though, because we spent very little time in the room. The boat does rock a little when sailing, so bring some Dramamine. That made me a little sleepy and drunk –feeling– so we ended up asleep by 11pm both nights!
Drinks: DON’T BUY THE ALCOHOL VOUCHERS they try to sell you at check-​in! There are so many drink specials throughout the cruise, it’s not worth it! By the last night, all drinks were $ 3, but the vouchers cost about $ 6 per drink. 4 and 5 dollar specials were going on very often! And… don’t fall for the «we’re giving away free drinks» at the sail-​away party. You have to participate in an embarrassing dance contest, AND win, to get a free drink. The little party is fun though.
Food: I would advise you to avoid Rio’s (one of the two free restaurants) because the food there was SOOO bland and unimpressive. Book both nights’ dinner reservations at The Crystal Room (the other free restaurant) and you won’t regret it! The difference in food, aesthetics and service was DRASTIC. No one enjoyed their dinner at Rio’s, and everyone loved the Crystal Room! Plus it’s more classy, dressy and dimly lit. You’ll have to eat at Rio’s for the first lunch on board and breakfasts (hated breakfast!) but other than that, AVOID IT! I was actually very impressed with Trattoria Di Gerry… the late-​night pizza/​pasta place. They even had this Caprese Salad with tomatoes and mozzarella… it was so yummy! The pizza was good, and they even baked up a gluten-​free slice for one of my friends (plenty of gluten-​free options on the boat). I actually prefer that place WAY over Rio’s, but I guess you have to be in the mood for Italian. I was also OBSESSED with the white chocolate covered strawberries in the dessert section. At $ 1.25 apiece, I didn’t mind paying!
Excursions: Unless you really want some adventure, I don’t recommend going on an excursion. Instead, my group just took a $ 5 taxi to Grand Lucayan (11 miles away). We walked around the straw market, and had dollar rum/​vodka shots in the marketplace! After that, we took some obligatory beach pics and headed back to the boat! If you like to party, there is a Señor Frogs in Freeport as soon as you get off the boat. Some girls from my group went, and were thoroughly intoxicated off free shots by 2pm!
Entertainment: We spent a lot of our time lounging by the mini-​pool, it was so comfy and relaxing! Next time around, I would definitely take advantage of the shows, it was just hard to wrangle 14 girls in my group to agree on things. I heard the shows were good. They are offered at 7pm and 9pm each night in «The View» (the club/​theater), so make dinner reservations accordingly. They had a comedian, a circus contortionist and a «voice impressionist» (whatever that is.) There was also karaōke in the «Ocean Breeze Lounge». I should’ve gone up there during daylight, because it seemed like it would be a really pretty view at sunset.
Misc: One reviewer said that you could put the «Do not disturb» sign in your door to refuse maid service, and avoid getting charged $ 24.95 for it. Well, there’s no getting out of that charge. It was still on our bill. the front desk people said it was for gratuities and other BS… I’m gonna chalk that up to the gratuity fees they warn you about in the beginning…
Other than that, I would totally go on this cruise again, but never paying more than $ 69 before taxes. I kept thinking it would be the perfect romantic cruise for a couple, nice and quick! Just remember that this is not the Royal Caribbean or Carnival… it’s definitely a bargain cruise, but with good company, I really had a blast!

Nov 2, 2013 Girls Weekend Cruise was better than expected. I paid $ 150 to upgrade to a suite that was large and quiet. It only had a queen bed and a sofa, so one of us did sleep on a couch in our «suite». 1 Day/​2 Night Cruise/​taxes alone costs us $ 510+ parking/​tips/​excursions, etc. I feel slightly «robbed».
The pros:
— Our «Party Captains» were fantastic. They had a lot of fun festivities. Not all scheduled events happened, but it was nice to meet and hang with a great group of woman who wanted to have fun.
–They gave us way more booze at the events (i.e. martini mixer) than expected! Fabulous event! Then things like the blackjack tournament never happened, and our 40+ person «group» picture ended up being about 6 of us, plus none of the bars semed to be informed of our discount drinks either — oh well.
–The food was excellent. One dining room we could serve/​get our own appetizers/​salads & desserts. Well done! Side dishes and the medium well prime rib entrée I ordered was excellent — other than the fact that it was medium rare. The formal restaurant and breakfast buffet were all very good. LOVE the walk-​around Brazilian meat offerings!
–Just like Carnival & Royal Caribbean, Celebration has a sweet bar. I was relieved to see that I did not have to pay extra for premium desserts (which is what someone wrote here on Unilocal). It is extra $$$ at the sweet bar OR, you can enjoy the regular restaurant desserts (ps — the almond cookies at the no-​pay Italian Restaurant are DIVINE!).
–They played the 4:15 NFL Patriots Game in a lounge. SO HAPPY to catch this. Thank you Celebration for paying for satellite/​NFL game! The bummer was some DJ started playing wacko music during the 2^nd half of the game. Not sure why they planned a music/​dancing event ON TOP of the nfl game. Very bad event planning by Celebration!
— The ship was in good shape (better than I expected from these Unilocal reviews and I am a Plantinum/​Diamond cruiser with most lines). The pool was oddly above floor, but they have nice outside relaxation/​cushioned couch/​benches and played good vaca music for most of the trip.
— Most impressive was the nonexistant line at the help/​info/​concierge desk. Other cruise lines have massive lines here. This told me that many passengers must be enjoying themselves instead of lodging complaints or having problems (I guess they shouldn’t have much to complain about if most of them got the cruise for free like most of the reviews here)!
— Our cabin service was excellent — never saw the guy other than to introduce himself. Very efficient and perfect.
— The shows were surprisingly good — better than expected. We paid $ 10 extra for the dirty comedy show and it was ok. The intro act comedian from the 1^st night was MUCH better than the main act.
— Most of the staff were very nice (aside from all the lying).
The cons:
— I feel like I was lied to a lot by Celebration Cruise Line. I was told the girls event was «almost sold out». We thought it would be over 1,000 girls and it was around 40 of us! We were told the pool was heated at the expensive excursion resort (NOT!). That a massage was included (as in a free one in addition to the $ 35 massages) in our girls weekend package (NOT). We endured a LOT of BS (I’ll say anything cuz I can attitude). I would have enjoyed myself much more had everyone just been honest because the whole deal was pretty good as is (probably 4 star). There was zero need to be so dishonest about so many aspects of the experience.
— I was very concerned after I booked my cruise to find these reviews (horrified in fact). The customer service I received (specifically from Celebration’s «customer service manager») was even more horrifying. I was left on hold for long periods of time and told repeatedly to buy a better room if I wanted to ensure a better experience. I’m glad I didn’t buy a better room because the suite upgrade was $ 150 extra no matter what room I had purchased!
— I had a FABULOUS $ 35 massage for what was supposed to be 25 minutes. The girl showed late (I «met» her naked on the table face-​down as I was told to go into the room, get undressed and lie there to wait for her). She also left early, but she did a damn good massage! Again, it was good but nothing near to what was advertised.
— Smoking in the casino — and it was smokey — as in zero clean air — YUCK!
— The ports are TERRIBLE (they both felt like Waste Sites). I’m ticked I was FORCED to sit/​listen to port advertisements in a lounge to board my expensive excursion (which was tardy and wasted much of our port time). I felt like I had no choice but to pay for an excursion to enjoy the port because they dump you in a shipping (nonvacation) port.
— Bad bumpy boat ride back from port.
I would recommend this IF it was less expensive, and you can wear ear plugs to ignore the BS. This line has a lot going for it. Too bad they miss so many customer service opportunities!

I’ve been on a couple of cruises before, and Celebration is on par in terms of quality and service as the others. Celebration definitely is a smaller ship, but the staff is incredibly helpful and easy to chat with. Never had a single issue with anyone. In fact, because the ship/​staff/​vacationers is on the smaller scale, it was easier to get to know folks and see familiar faces on the cruise!
My meal at the Rio restaurant came out cold, which was disappointing, but when we were at the other restaurant on the return trip, the food was phenomenal.
Rooms were normal and public bathrooms were kept very clean. Overall, a good experience for a quick overnight cruise to the Bahamas.
Btw, if you meet Jeff, he’s awesome. One of the best guys there on the ship!

Meh meh meh…
Even never being on a cruise before, I know better. Gf’s coworker who went on the cruise prior said this is the Walmart crowd of cruise lines and she was right.
Staff was pretty friendly, but it felt like they were trying really hard to sell and upcharge everything. I realize this wasn’t all-​inclusive, but seriously just leave me alone. If people want to give you commission they will.
Food was ok. Think Old Country Buffet. Didn’t think the upcharge for the special dining was worth it, but I did like the nicer dining room that wasn’t an upcharge.
Ship itself… Well it’s old and you can tell. While on the cruise, workers were painting and working on things. That should be done prior or after. 220V outlets and one adapter. Seriously. I loved how my gf’s sorority sister’s bf simply put, «I was okay with the ship, until I saw the Royal Carribbean docked next to us.»
Overall, even as a deal it’s still not great and I would gladly pay more to trade up in accommodations and also the crowd. *No offense intended for the mullet wearing, wife-​beater wearing, ghetto-​fabulous, and other people who like/​may like this cruise.

If I’d never been on a cruise before, I would’ve rated this higher. But having been on a Royal Caribbean cruise to the Bahamas before, the difference is quite clear. I took the 2-​day cruise to the Bahamas to Freeport out of the Port of West Palm. I went with a group of 12 friends and we supposedly got some sort of «special deal», which, in retrospect, I don’t think was much of a discount — definitely not enough to justify the price of this cruise respective to the Royal Caribbean 3-​day Bahamas cruise.
Now, I’m not going to say that I had a terrible time. It’s hard to have a bad time when you’re with a big group of friends and a date for the weekend doing nothing but drinking, acting like drunken idiots in the pool, eating, drinking some more, eating, drinking some more, and having drunk karaōke. But, I’d say the ship felt kind of «cheap», the food was of a much lesser quality (seriously, the lunches were school cafeteria grade), the activities on the ship were lacking, and there was way too much pressure to up-​sell you.
On the activities, with Royal Caribbean, it seemed like there was stuff to do all the time, even when the boat was docked. Whereas on Celebration, once the boat docked at Freeport, the activities on the boat came to a screeching halt — which is where the up-​sell came in.
Basically, everything, once you got to Freeport, was geared toward getting you off the boat and to the resort at Lucaya. Now, to go to Lucaya, you had to drop $ 50 — that’s just getting there and doing nothing but lying on the beach, which is ridiculous. (In both Royal Caribbean stops, it cost nothing to get off the boat and go to the beach.) If you want to go to Freeport and explore town, you’re talking another $ 50 or so round-​trip for a cab, since the port is so far from the city. Some of the group decided to take the Lucaya option, but neither option appealed to me nor my date, so we decided to stay on the boat.
Since we stayed, all cruise had for us to do during that day was to either lounge at the pool, or they had some board games for you to play (I’m dead serious — board game play-​time was listed as a «to do» event in the guide). I wanted to play in the Wii bowling tournament they had listed but it turns out that was at the little kids club, and being a «kid at heart» doesn’t count. *sad face*
One of the trivia tournaments listed in the guide was completely un-​manned, so nobody ended up showing up. I went down to ask if I was in the wrong location, and they basically tried to grab a guy eating breakfast and tell him to go to the club to host the trivia tournament, which I then told them not to bother, because even I can’t beat me at trivia. :-) All joking aside, though, that was completely unprofessional on their part.
As far as the positives — I liked that we were able to pre-​pay for a bottle of vodka plus a six-​pack for mixing for $ 80. We finished off the bottle, and I’d say it was cheaper than ordering drinks individually (although we still ended up paying for drinks on top of that). I don’t know if Royal Caribbean does anything like that now, but they didn’t when I cruised with them before; so, that’s a plus for Celebration. But as far as everything else goes, Celebration is just a noticeably lesser quality product, and I’d say save your money for a higher-​quality cruise line.

If you were disappointed, you did NO research at all
I went on this cruise to Freeport Grand Lucayan in July 2012 with my elderly parents which one is handicapped and wheelchair bound nearly. I was very concerned going on this trip because of this.
The check-​in process was a pain but the folks working there were super nice and let me go off to the side with my mom while the others filled out all the paperwork.
The ship is OLD but OK. Upon entering the starboard entrance we were greeted by the only two elevators that would accommodate a scooter (which my mother uses instead of a wheel chair). However, one of those were out of order which left us ONE, and that was was as slow as frozen molasses.
Once we got to my parents room, we got them settled. We went to our cabin and found it was one of the suites and was HUGE. Of course we offered it to my parents but they were already settled. The cabins were clean and tidy, however they also showed their age. The suite was quite large and had a full length sofa along with a small desk and chair. A mini bar and snacks were also available.
All electrical outlets are not US so you must have ROUND adapters and possibly even power converters. Tip– those are available at the information desk for those that really need it.
Food: The buffet was more than adequate for this cruise. Hot dogs, hamburgers, salad, roasted carved turkey, potatoes, spaghetti, deserts etc. And believe me, other cruisers piled their plates FULL.
Dinner was a delightful experience (one of the few I had actually) with our head waiter Jose treating us like royalty. He quite possibly single-​handedly made this entire cruise a delight. His smile was infectious and he and the assistant waiters were at our beck and call. He loves his job and it shows. The food we had was very flavorful– we all actually had the prime rib which was mouthwateringly tender. The Sommelier who brought our wine was knowledgeable and friendly and we even got a 10% discount on the second bottle (used on the cruise on the way home). They all were just as delightful on the way home as was the food.
Casino: The casino is small but very functional. The machines are tight and ate our money as quick as possible. Roulette fared no better unfortunately.
All in all, the cruise was fine and quite honestly, after reading the horrid reviews, it was surprisingly fairly fun and a good experience. It’s unfortunate that the staff on this ship are wasted on such a poor boat and low budget company. The other cruiselines could learn a lot from the staff on this ship. I’ve been on many cruises on RC and I can say with out a doubt, this ship has the best overall crew I’ve experienced. Mad props to them all. If you go, tell Jose he’s much appreciated.
Even though the experience was OK, I don’t think we’d go on this cruise again.EVER. Grand Lucaya is a time-​share nightmare and once you get there you are STUCK with every place sucking the money out of your wallet. And on top of that, most stuff around it just looks abandoned. So although the cruise isn’t a good one, the staff really saved it for us

OK, so I won another cruise with them. I won the 2^nd place photo contest. This time I took my boyfriend, who’s never been on a cruise other than an air flight carrier ship in the Navy.
Sail dates were 2÷18÷11−2÷20÷11
We have the same birthday so we decided to use it for that. We flew in the day before and stayed at the W in Ft. Lauderdale.
Valet Parking was $ 15 a day not $ 30 like how I mentioned on first review.
Curbside Check-​In was optional this time… and since they lost my bags last time we didn’t want the service and carried our bags with us. We had all our docs filled out and printed from online so easy process for Embarkation.
Dining Options: Paid extra $ 25 for the Cove for 1^st night and Crystal Room the 2^nd night. Since we were making reservations for the Cove they took us out of that long line and brought us to the front.
Stateroom: was ready after boarding… we were on the 7^th floor. I have to say they did hook it up! They gave us a suite… separate queen size bed area, a living room area, vanity, full stocked bar, good size bathroom. Nothing like the room I had on 1^st sail.
The Cove: Sooo Worth It! There is no line and private dining. You get about 3 waiters serving you all night. The food was outstanding. My order from menu:
Appetizer: Suateed Escargots in Herb Butter with Cognac & Pernod. Very scrumptious and you get 6 of them. Already shelled and serve on one of those escargot plates with breadstick laid on top.
Soup: Fresh Water Crayfish & Mussel Bisque with Chives. Yummy! It was loaded with scallops too.
Salad: Arugula, Goat Cheese, Sun Dried Tomatoes, Vinaigarette, Pine Nuts & Fried Onions.
Entrée: Pan Seared Fillet Mignon with Pomme Purée, Wild Mushrooms Haricots Verts, Cognac Cream Sauce & Grain Salad. Ordered it medium and it was nice and tender and full of flavor.
Dessert: Lemoncello Soufflé: Great for lemon lovers like myself. Texture was creamy and tasty. I was so full I couldn’t finish it all.
We decided to go to the Lucaya Resort for our Excursion. It was well worth it. For $ 39, we got to go to the resort & use their pool chairs & towels. Great experience the view was spectacular. Their pools were freezing. It was a great sunny day in the Bahamas but the water this time in February was kinda chilly. Didn’t enjoy swimming in it as I did in August. We enjoyed a couple of piña colodas at resort, they were about $ 14 for 2, but really good. We enjoyed having lunch at one of the bars in theLucaya Village Shopping Area.
For dinner that night we did the Crystal Room, and have to say was pretty darn good than my first experience with them. They were almost as good as the Cove. Maybe the menu for the 2^nd night is better. The Café Au Lait they served with Dessert was sooo good. My boyfriend doesn’t drink and I didn’t notice it having any alcahol… but he was bright red. I ask’d the cocktail lady and she said it did have Spanish Brandy. I enjoyed it Sooo much I had 2.
Entertainment: Comedian Steve Zimmerman, who was pretty funny, an Elvis Act who was pretty good and some Jugglers and Crazy Hula Hoop Girl. The Jugglers & Hula Hoop Act were fun to watch, but their song that was playing was a total Buzz Kill… Some annoying chant, reminded me of Willy Wonka with Johnny Depp… how it had that annoying chant in the movie.
Overall a great experience and enjoyed it well…
FYI if you got charged port fees like I did in previous cruise… it’s not the cruise line who charged you. It’s probably your agent like Caribbean. I wasn’t charged any this time or picked up any vouchers since Celebration gave us the cruise.
I also want to give kudos to Jackie Finley who booked our Cruise, been very helpful since day one and who helped us to see if we can relocate our photos taken on cruise… since we left them behind @ The Westin in Ft. Lauderdale and the cleaning lady threw them out when we called an hour later from the airport :(
Very thankful that the cruiseline did locate our photos and sent us copies @ no charge! So they did go Far & Beyond for us and totally made our trip meaningful :)