Celebrity Eclipse, a superior cruise ship

Celebrity Eclipse is a superior cruise ship. She is one of five Solstice class ships built by Meyer Werft for Celebrity Cruises. All of these ships are nicely designed with attention to detail. They also offer a very good array of dining options ranging from casual to healthy to classic fine dining. In addition, they offer a good program of reasonably sophisticated entertainment and activities even though the enrichment program is not as cutting edge as it was just a few years ago. They are also good ships from a nautical perspective.

Of the five ships, Eclipse seems to win the most awards and I am told receives the highest marks from guests. Why this is so is not glaringly obvious. While there are some differences in the décor and the features, the five ships are very similar. Yet, people seem to like Eclipse best. As Cruise Director Sue Denning observed: “It has a nice heart.”

Immediately after she was built in 2010, Celebrity sent Eclipse to Southampton. Her mission was to break into the British market. Sister company Royal Caribbean International had done so a few years before but Celebrity was still relatively unknown in the UK. Furthermore, there would be a lot of competition from other cruise lines.

The ship has been quite successful and now has a substantial following in Britain. I asked Hotel Director Tom Brady and Ms. Denning to explain just how Eclipse managed to establish Celebrity in the UK. Our conversation is posted at http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-eclipse-hd-cd-interview.html

One of the things that has made Eclipse a popular ship both in the UK and when she sails of Miami in the winter months is the ship's dining. Accordingly, we have added a Celebrity Eclipse menu page with copies of menus from the various dining venues and a dining slideshow. It is at http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-eclipse-menus.html

We also have a review of the Tuscan Grille specialty restaurant - - a mixture of Italian cuisine and an American steakhouse. http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-eclipse-tuscan-grille-review.html

As mentioned earlier, another Eclipse strong point is the entertainment. Therefore, we have a new slideshow showing some of the entertainment offerings on a recent cruise. http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-eclipse-entertainment-slideshow.html We also have a new page of daily programmes from Eclipse listing each day's activities and entertainment. http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-eclipse-daily-programs.html

Finally, we have a video showing Eclipse departing from Southampton. http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-eclipse-soton-video.html

Talking with the Captain and Hotel Manager of Grand Princess; Restaurant reviews; Photos of Celebrity Eclipse

            Clearly, the biggest thing to happen to Grand Princess in recent years is the massive refurbishment that Princess undertook last Spring.  Reportedly, Princess spent $80 million to transform Grand Princess into a new ship.

            Accordingly, when I spoke with the two people who are directly responsible for providing the cruise experience on Grand Princess, her Captain and her General Hotel Manager, the conversation focused on the refurbishment (often referred to as the “drydock” by those onboard).  What was done?  And perhaps more importantly, how has it affected the cruise experience that Grand Princess offers?

            Captain Roger Bilton, first went to sea in 1979 and has been with Princess since 1989.  Hotel General Manager (a position formerly called “Passenger Services Director” at Princess) Adam Gorst has been with Princess three years longer, joining after graduating from hotel school.  Thus, both men have a substantial experience at sea.

            It is difficult to see how anyone could dislike what Princess has done to Grand Princess.  The public areas of the ship are comparable to any in the Princess fleet and Princess is a first rank cruise line.  However, what I found interesting was these two men’s insights into how the changes have affected the ship both nautically and from a hotel perspective.

            My conversation with Captain Bilton and Mr. Gorst is posted at http://www.beyondships2.com/grand-princess-captain-hotel-manager-interview.html

            Two major changes made to Grand Princess were the addition of two new specialty restaurants.  Accordingly, I have posted reviews of both venues.

            Alfredo’s Pizzeria is a concept that debuted on the new Grand Princess.  It is an informal venue located in the ship’s new Piazza complex.  I found it an ideal place to relax after returning to the ship from a morning ashore on one of the Caribbean islands. You can sit by one of the large picture windows and enjoy the sunshine, the view and of course, the food.  More at http://www.beyondships2.com/grand-princess-alfredo-pizzeria-review.html

            The refit also gave Grand Princess the Crown Grill steakhouse.  Yes, Grand Princess had a steakhouse before the refurbishment.  But the Crown Grill is a much more upscale venue with a wider menu.  The concept first debuted on Crown Princess and was so successful that Princess has been adding to its ships ever since.  My review covers both this new Crown Grill and the original Crown Grill on Crown Princess, which I revisited a week after sailing on Grand Princess.  It is posted at http://www.beyondships2.com/grand-princess-crown-princess-crown-grill-review.html

            For a change of pace, I have also posted a new photo essay on Celebrity Eclipse, a personal favorite of mine ever since attending her naming ceremony in 2010.  The third ship in Celebrity’s Solstice class, Eclipse is based in the UK most of the year.  However, in the winter she sails from Miami to the Caribbean.  This photo essay shows this charming ship enjoying the sunshine.  http://beyondships.com/Celebrity-Eclipsephoto-Caribbean.html

Profile and Photo Tour of Celebrity Eclipse

As I mentioned last time, the primary motivation for my European sojourn was to attend the naming ceremony for the new Celebrity Eclipse. After the ceremony, I stayed on for the inaugural cruise and two other voyages. This allowed me the opportunity to take numerous photos and to get the material for what is one of the most extensive profiles of a cruise ship on Beyondships.com.

Eclipse is the third ship in Celebrity’s Solstice class. The first two ships in the class have been quite successful, winning an array of awards. These are large ships, 122,000 gross tons, so they have the space to house a large number of dining and entertainment venues. Their hallmarks are creativity and attention to detail. More3over, they are distributed throughout the ship in a way that promotes good passenger flow and spaciousness.

Eclipse follows in her predecessors’ footsteps. However, Celebrity has not merely cloned this ship. The choice of colors and artwork is one difference. Perhaps more significantly, Eclipse has a new restaurant, Qsine, which is different its menu and style from any other restaurant on land or sea. In addition, the standard Internet café has been replaced by an iLounge that is equipped with Apple computers. Guests can also learn about and purchase Apple products onboard.

Another thing that sets Eclipse apart is the fact that she is being marketed primarily to the British and Irish markets. Indeed, the ship is based in Southampton, England summer cruising season . While the overall cruising style is the Celebrity style used throughout the Celebrity fleet, there have been a number of tweaks to make it more attractive to British and Irish tastes.

While I very much enjoyed Solstice and Equinox, I was impressed by Eclipse. The ship just has a nice feel to her and the team that brought the ship into service have successfully avoided the usual new ship pitfalls.

The Beyondships profile of Celebrity Eclipse appears at. http://www.beyondships.com/Celebrity-Eclipse-Profile.html The photo tour and commentary begins at http://www.beyondships.com/Celebrity-Eclipse-Tour-1.html