Celebrity Beyond – November 30, 2025 – 7 Night Caribbean

This review is made the the sole purpose of promoting travel.  If you would like to plan this cruise or any other vacation, please contact me for assistance: 

For my 60^th birthday, we embarked upon the Celebrity Beyond in Miami with a group of 25 people sailing to the ports of Tortola, BVI; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.   The Beyond is part of the Edge Class of ships with Celebrity Cruise Line and I have sailed on her sister ship Edge, so I did know what to expect and have to say that Celebrity Beyond did not disappoint at all!   My only disappointment is that this was my lifetime 59^th cruise and I really wanted this to be my 60^th lifetime cruise for my 60^th birthday but was just too busy to squeeze in a short cruise before this one!  (I will catch up in 2026)

First, a bit about getting to Miami.  Because traveling over the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend can be challenging, we decided to fly on Friday, 2 days before our cruise. We were already in the Bay Area for family Thanksgiving, so it was a real treat to take a non-stop flight to Miami.  Living in Reno now for 4+ years, we are getting used to connecting flights but truly a treat to take a non-stop flight once again!   There were 7 of us on the United non-stop and then another 6 on the American non-stop an hour later and the rest of our group traveled at a variety of other times from other airports.

I had pre-arranged rides for the groups arriving together, so we had a Sprinter Van waiting for us, our driver met us in baggage claim, and we were quickly in our van heading to our hotel.   The next group experienced the same perfect service.   

Most of us stayed at the JW Marriott Marquis Miami on Biscayne Blvd.  We have stayed there before and enjoyed our previous stay, loved the location and amenities and when comparing costs to other Marriott branded properties, the pricing was competitive.  We were hungry for a snack once we checked in, so we met up in the restaurant for a light lunch and then later that night when more of our group arrived, we went back for some dinner at the same place and then met more of our group for cocktails once they arrived.  We closed the bar and finished our cocktails in their open mezzanine lounge before we all headed to our rooms for a good night of sleep. 

We all had a free Saturday to do whatever we wanted.  Well, sleeping in was a priority for Bill & I and once we got up and had missed breakfast at the hotel, we strolled down a few streets to the nearest Starbucks to grab some food and returned to the hotel.  I still had some work to finish as I was determined to leave the laptop in the safe during our cruise if possible.   I finished my work around 5pm and that was about the time our last two friends arrived, and the others were starting to think about dinner plans.    Seven of us gathered for a nice dinner at our hotel’s fancier restaurant and then returned to our rooms for the evening.  

Sunday, cruise day- best day!   I had pre-arranged for two Sprinter vans to transport 15 of us from the Marriott to the Port of Miami, though we could have all fit ourselves into one van, with luggage it would have been impossible.   Our two vans arrived on time and the drivers were very efficient at getting all our luggage stowed and then we headed to the port, which was a traffic nightmare!  It took us almost 90 minutes to get to the port and we were only 10 minutes away.  There had been an accident, and cars were not being allowed to go a certain way, so we had to turn around and basically “ground hog day” it again.  It was a little frustrating but nothing we could do.  We were grateful that we had early boarding times, so we were not in jeopardy of missing our ship.   Once we got to the port, the luggage porters were quick to assist with our luggage, and we then began our check-in process.   Things were moving slowly in the terminal, but they got us on the ship as quickly as they could.

Several of our football friends had already boarded and scoped out a spot to sit and watch our 49er game together, so once we dropped off our luggage and I secured birthday decorations on everyone’s doors, we headed to Eden Lounge to join our friends to watch the game.  We ended up bringing some lunch down to the lounge during halftime and enjoyed a 49er win together with our tailgate family who joined us for this cruise- one of whom was also celebrating her 60^th birthday on the cruise.

We stayed in a Concierge Infinite Veranda cabin on Deck 10, located very close to the elevators.   We love the layout of these cabins and love having the Infinite Vernada where you have this extra living space in the cabin when the window is all the way up.  The only drawback is when you have the veranda window down, your AC stops working and the room can get a little humid, but we only tend to open our balcony window in the evenings to listen to the ocean before going to bed. 

We spent most of our Sea Days sleeping in and then enjoying sunshine by the pool.  The Pool Area can get full, and it is hard to find chairs, but we managed to find space with a little perseverance.    Because we have visited most of these ports before, we also stayed on the ship for 2 of the 3 ports.  Truth be told, we had confirmed an excursion in Tortola, but when the alarm sounded at 730am, we were not in the mood to get up and be ready to get off the ship, so we decided to bail on the excursion and sleep in a bit more.   We love “empty ship” days by the pool when everyone is gone. 

We did take an excursion in Puerto Plata, DR.  It was called the Ultimate Beach Excursion at the Ocean Club, and it was horrible.  So many promises made in the excursion description were simply not what we experienced.  We did complain and received partial refunds.  The weather was nice, the pool was freezing, we were limited to what we could access, the lunch was OK but some items sitting in the hot sun did not appeal.   I was happy to be back on the ship.   I love the way Celebrity greets you when you return to the ship from your excursion with ice cold wash clothes and a variety of beverage options in case you are dehydrated from your excursion.

Our food on Celebrity Beyond was very good.  We had assigned tables together in the Tuscan Dining room.   Celebrity Beyond has 4 “main dining restaurants” that are included:  Cosmopolitan, Tuscan, Normandie & Cyprus and you can rotate between the restaurants as you wish and come and go at various times.  However, to dine as a large group you will be assigned one dining room and after the first night, you are also presented with the “exclusive menu” which includes the “everyday” items from the other restaurants- essentially the specialties from those restaurants.  It’s a great way to have the best of both worlds.   We had great service from our wait staff and the cocktail server and sommelier.  They get to know you, what you like and what you might want to order, etc.  So, I like that about having the same place night to night.  

Additionally, you always have the option to dine in the Marketplace (Buffet) or you can take the option to dine in one of the specialty dining restaurants for a small charge.  We had dined at two of the specialty options. One night a group of 15 of us dined at Le Petit Chef for the dining experience and another night a group of 10 of us dined at Fine Cut Steakhouse to celebrate Denise’s 60^th birthday together.  Both meals were fantastic and service was wonderful. 

We rarely make it to breakfast, we did one morning and opted for the sit-down service breakfast in the Cosmopolitan restaurant prior to our excursion; otherwise, we would wake up late and pick up coffee at Café Bacio and then get lunch from the Marketplace or from the Grill to eat by the pool.   We enjoyed the late-night pizza in the Marketplace for a few nights, and the pizza was very good.   

Entertainment on Celebrity Beyond was fantastic.  Each night there was a production show or comedy/variety show in the Theatre.  Easy to get seats for the most part, we didn’t always sit together as a large group but managed to sit into 2-3 mini-groups for most of the shows.   We also attended some of the audience participating games in The Club and a very well-done speak-easy jazz club production in The Club.  We enjoyed the live music in the Grand Plaza (aka Martini Bar) and there were also some shows in Eden Lounge that we didn’t always get to see. 

We really enjoyed the vibe of the ship, the elegance that is understated, staff that truly appear to love what they do.  Even on the saddest day- the day the cruise is over, you are given warm wishes to sail with them again and have a safe journey home by multiple staff and officers as you head down the gangway.

From a professional perspective, working with Celebrity Group Department was wonderful.  They were extremely responsive and helped with anything I needed.    

To view more photos from this cruise, you can view them here: 

Celebrity Beyond Photos