No, not Cabo and Celebrities, Cabo and Celebrity. Our first and only Celebrity cruise was over 25 years ago, and we won it at a Travel Fair. We can't usually afford to go on Celebrity. It's fancy. It's chic. It's stylish. It's swanky. We've compared all our cruises to Celebrity for more than 25 years. So imagine our wondering eyes and surprise when an email was delivered for a 6 night Celebrity on the Eclipse, to Cabo. A Balcony room was at a special price less than a Carnival inside room for 3 days.
What would you expect us to do? There was no choice. BOOK IMMEDIATELY! Ask questions later. I know better than to take several days or weeks to think about it. Guess what? Several days later, that same room was over $1000, and the inside room was now the same price as the balcony, but still a good deal.
We asked everyone to go with us. Told them how fancy Celebrity is. We pleaded. We tried to convince. The only one we could convince was my boss and his wife - Chad and Shelly, who we've been trying to convince to come with us for years.
We flew to LAX, since the flights were only $23
The ship was decorated for Christmas
Our room was very spacious with a very comfortable bed!
Unlike most ships, Celebrity usually has an actual game room! So you don't have to play games at the buffet tables
And unlike most ships, Celebrity usually has an actual library too
The Eclipse had real grass for golf putting, bocce ball playing and just relaxing on. They also had glass blowing classes out here
The pool area was spacious and inviting
We left from the San Pedro cruise port
The pizza station was busy - always making pizzas with fresh dough
There were a lot of chairs and loungers all over, and we never had a problem finding some to sit at
Our room was an upgraded balcony room, called 'Concierge Class' which included a sail away part on the heliport - normally off limits to passengers
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We left right at sunset
Our first night's meal was at a the specialty Italian Pasta/Steakhouse and wow. Was it fantastic! So good! So much food! We wanted to repeat it every night! Here the waiter is cutting fresh basil for the oil/vinegar dip for bread
This was the appetizer
The meal was fantastic and service was amazing
We then had 2 days as we sailed down to Cabo. We read books, napped on loungers, listened to the waves, played games, ate food, ate food, ate food and ice ream
The shopping area on board
Unlike other ships, the singers and dancers could ALL sing..not just some of them.
We celebrated my and Chad's birthday (both are on the same day) and the dining room staff brought us birthday cakes...it was also Chad and Shelly's anniversary and they got a cake for that too
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We had so many pillows to chose from....it was a tough choice
Always somewhere to sit and relax
The hammocks however, were always full
The indoor solarium was always nice too
We finally made it to Cabo and took a boat ride around the arch
OK.....maybe it wasn't quite that boat, but it could have been!!
Chad and Shelly acting silly
Since we are seasoned cruisers, we didn't have to wear life jackets
Quick pick of our ship. It's medium size and older, but it was in excellent shape
Not sure what happened to Chad.....did he fall overboard?
Not sure what's happening here
The ship spent the night in Cabo, so you could go back and forth all night long if you wanted it. It's about a 15 min tender ride to/from the ship
The next day we went out to snorkel at a beach not close to the arch. We had the same driver as we did for the arch tour! And the same boat!
The ship had hard serve ice cream with flavors that changed daily. We got it everyday, sometimes multiple times per day!
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Our special room included a tour of the kitchen
Beautiful sea days on the way back
A typical dining room dinner
If you know who Larry David is, he was on this cruise! He is the creator of Seinfeld and his own show Curb your Enthusiasm
The ship stopped in San Diego on the way back and we walked around the wharf area, found a few geocaches
Our last dinner on board - Shelly was having some technical issues with her phone apparently trying to take a pic of me taking a pic of her
The Broadway show productions were so good. This one was a little abstract, but very fun and entertaining to watch
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Chad and Shelly went back home, but we stayed in LA area because Shelley had to work that day - Thursday and Friday. So I found a hotel (free of course) we stayed in until our flight went back home on Sunday.
We stayed at the Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad, halfway between LA and San Diego. Wow. This place was fancy. Chic. Swanky. Ritzy. Our room was upgraded to a suite and it was very spacious. The room normally would go for more than $800 a night. wow.
It even had a walk in closet
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Hotel grounds:
There were so many pools and hot tubs!
The morning breakfast was so good!
After working most of the day, we went for a little hike around a nearby lagoon
View of the hotel from the lagoon
Saturday, we had a tour of the Mission San Luis Rey. It's one of two still operating missions where retired Franciscan Friars still live
The oldest pepper tree
Before returning home, of course we had to walk along the beach. The weather was perfect and so nice!
We had dinner at a local Mexican restaurant that was highly rated. The wait was 90 minutes but it was very yummy!
The next day it was time to return back home. It was a great trip and great company! Maybe next time you will come with us????
