The Secret, Sweet Free Perk You Can Find Aboard Any Celebrity Cruise

Every cruise line lures passengers with a suite of decadent perks, but you often have to spend more to enjoy them. There are a few freebies that add a little indulgence without worrying about surprise charges — you just have to know where to find them. For example, on Royal Caribbean, you can get free room service but only for breakfast. There are ways to get free cabin upgrades, but you have to know how to bid for one or be smart about timing. At Celebrity Cruises, meanwhile, your free perk comes in a cone.

Celebrity cruise ships have a dedicated ice cream station at the Oceanview Cafe. Guests can choose a cone and flavor, add some toppings, and slurp by the pool for no extra charge. A Reddit user notes that "there are eight-10 flavors plus toppings from what I saw on Reflection." There's often gelato available, too, but it isn't free.

On top of that, passengers can typically find a self-serve station for soft-serve ice cream by the poolside Mast Grill, with a selected flavor of the day. The self-serve stations aren't so commonly seen on cruises these days. As TikTok cruise reviewer Josh Cruises states in a post, "After COVID, a lot of cruise lines took away the self-serve aspect of the soft serve."

Celebrity Cruises is well-received for the dining options, so much so that Celebrity Ascent's Fine Cut Steakhouse earned a Four-Star rating from the Forbes Travel Guide winners. With that said, you don't need to spend on upscale restaurants to get a wide range of flavors and treats. What makes Celebrity Cruises one of the best cruise lines for singles and families alike is the generous array of dining options included with every ticket.

Most Celebrity cruises have plenty of complimentary dining areas, including the Main Restaurant, Oceanview Cafe, and Mast Grill. The Main Restaurant is where you get high-end meals in an elegant, sit-down setting. A sample menu includes dishes like seared salmon, New York sirloin steak, or spinach and ricotta ravioli. The Oceanview Cafe is buffet-style, with a full spread presented for all three meals of the day. In addition to the ice cream, the dessert station at Oceanview Cafe is a standout, with fresh-baked pastries and cakes. One Reddit user described the Cafe's Mississippi mud pie as "the best dessert I've ever had from a cruise ship buffet." Finally, the Mast Grill is where you can grab casual bites like a salad or burger right by the pool.