SbbquilterUT

If you are familiar with Royal and enjoyed it Celebrity may fit well, we sail RCCL with our kids and now grandson but enjoy Celebrity when on our own. On the lovely E class ships you will find four dining rooms with open dining - we really enjoyed most of the food in them and as you have access to all menus we also could eat in the one dining room we enjoyed most. There were few kids on our 12 night cruise but many more on our 7 day August cruise. Theater is lovely with circular stage and amazing technical screens - no Broadway shows like Oasis class but production shows that were fine. There is also classic music in at least one space each evening. Eden is a magical space at the aft of the ship - we spent a lot of time there enjoying the scenery and playing board games or reading. The solarium adult area is very nice - as an early riser I would have it to myself to start the day reading or sipping coffee.

Is this your first cruise, if not which other lines have you sailed? We could then tell you things that are similar or different. Also there are a number of good videos over on UTube.

If Caribbean - the Southern Caribbean for the ABC islands. Pacific side Cabo, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta.

We did that one time and hated wasting time at the laundromat. We pack light for all our trips and have laundry done for us on the ship - the cost is part of our planning. We have also stayed in Europe between cruises and used a drop off laundry spot which worked well. Next trip is 12 night to Europe. One night on land then starting a 22 night return to the US (that ship has laundry room so we will see how that works as well).

Yep - DH and I are Elite and are waiting for the day they see our on board spend is microscopic and make our cabin rate higher.

We cannot do justice to the portions so just skip it. Have made the suggestion that there be a shared dinner option with appropriate cost. Apparently we are not the only folks that would like that but I do not really know what that would require.

We have sailed spring and fall, both were lovely cruises with no real weather, but you never know. Fall was warmer than spring though both so much fun and so much better than the long flight.

We have been able to get seats at Jamie's for lunch on embarkation without any problems.

Juneau you are in town and it is easily walkable unless mobility is an issue as it is an uphill trudge or you can walk along the waterfront at pier level. Skagway - when they were rebuilding due to the landslide you had to be driven off but last season you could walk it. And ISP was always walkable though this summer will be our first visit there in many years.

We have sailed the Apex twice (interior) and really enjoyed the cruise. The four smaller dining rooms for meals was a pleasant surprise - enough choice and quieter setting was very nice. The size of Cafe Al Bacio was roomy and light, perfect for our cool weather cruises. The Eden area was a favorite place to watch the water, read a book, play a board game during the day. And our cabin was the biggest interior we had sailed in with a really nice bathroom. Liked it so much we will sail her for 42 days next year. My only disappointment with the Retreat area was it did not allow us to go all the way forward on the deck.

Your daughter may enjoy the beach area in St. Maarten (ferry ride from the pier) - walk along and find a nice spot. Walk in beach and beds/umbrellas for rent. Food is available all along the boardwalk.

We only saw the Magic Carpet move down to act as a tender load once in 28 days of cruising. I was fascinated so watched it from Cafe alBacio and did not seem to be noisy.

The Celebrity Summit is sailing out of Vancouver this season and will sail the inside passage between Vancouver Island and the mainland. We have sailed out of Seattle the past few years and it sailed west of Vancouver Island and then enters the inside passage.

We also enjoy a leisurely walk to the bridge over the creek(the sign for the Lower Dewey Lake moderate level trail is there). If there are salmon running I can spend time just watching them I the creek. We have watched the movie at the National Park building more than once as it is awesome. We were able to walk to the cemetery though you may want to ride.

We have cruised for years on a variety of ships and enjoyed all of them. If you are used to very expensive, immaculate hotels and resorts you might see a ship as dated but we have not had real issues except in the days of fabric shower curtains that get too friendly. We really enjoy an older, smaller ship (when we are without kids) where we can find places to enjoy the sea. I can recall reading reviews for a cruise we were on and the other opinions may be wildly different than ours. Enjoy