Ergates The Ant

Well, I’ll be setting off soon in an Infinite Balcony cabin for the first time, so I’m still interested in reading the views of those who have already experienced them! Please carry on posting your likes, dislikes and comments. Everyone brings an individual viewpoint, and I’m happy to sift through the posts to pick out the issues that might be relevant to me!

I’m sure the ship and passengers wouldn’t have been in any danger. However, the restriction would likely to have been to preserve and protect the delicate underwater systems of the local marine life. The damage to the environment could be irreparable, and the damage to the already dubious reputation of cruise ships could be far reaching. At a time when cruise lines are having to invest hugely in minimising their environmental impact, and already facing a backlash from ports of call like Venice, and the UNESCO Fjord areas, if the ship did contravene local restrictions, this will and should IMO end badly.

One difference you may notice if that a lot more women will wear skirts and dresses, especially in warmer weather. I visited a big airshow in California in temperatures in the 90s F, and I think I was the only female in a dress despite the heat. Everyone else was wearing either knee length shorts, or even jeans. The current fashion in the UK is to wear dresses, often below knee length, with white trainers with those no show socks. Very practical in warmer weather, cool around the waist and comfortable for walking. And you can wear them into the evening with pretty sandals and a nice necklace. ‘Capri’ trousers tend to be only popular with older ladies, and short shorts for the very much younger. You will see a lot of women in leggings in the UK, despite them only really looking good in smaller sizes.

I’ve never seen a man in a thong on a cruise ship! However, European men often wear fitted bathing suits, like underpants? Speedos? In fact, in France, long swimming shorts used to be banned in public pools , as deemed unhygienic. I don’t know if this is still the case? Another thing you may notice on port calls in European cities, is that many residents will be dressed for work, and will be very smartly dressed indeed. Obviously more relaxed at weekends, but cruise passengers dressed as if they are attending an archeological dig might feel as if they stand out a bit.

I have always printed off our boarding passes, and don’t have a smartphone. I’m assuming the boarding pass will show somewhere in the Celebrity app on my iPad, but that doesn’t have a wifi connection of its own. I hadn’t thought of taking a screenshot as well, but that’s a very sensible suggestion, so I shall do that as well! Nothing like belt and braces!

Have only done one cruise in the US and that was Alaska, so nothing to compare. However I would say that most ladies on board in Europe tend to dress up a little in the evenings, although not to the extent of very formal ballgowns as apparently is common on Cunard. I tend to put on a nice dress or a glittery top with smart trousers. My husband doesn’t dress up but wears tidy shirts and ( long) trousers, and doesn’t look out of place. Always makes me laugh when I see comments about men being required to wear pants in the evenings, as pants usually means underpants in the UK! I also see a lot of comments about men being upset that they can’t wear shorts in the dining rooms in the evenings. Unless you are in the Med in high summer, temperatures in Europe are often lower than expected, and some ‘long pants’ would probably be very welcome indeed!

Thanks, StopThe World, that’s really helpful. We always decline the evening service, but didn’t realise we would get any captains club benefits. Would be nice to get a choice of service time too.

Re the GoGreen programme, there is a link for it on the Celebrity app for our upcoming cruise, but the link doesn’t take me anywhere, just a blank screen. We only want our cabin serviced in the mornings, so presumably I’ll just arrange that with the room steward as usual?

Thanks for the responses. Sounds like I’ve asked how long is a piece of string! On our last Celebrity cruises, just pre Covid, we were able to watch a film most nights, not the just released blockbusters, but recent enough for us not to have seen them. It was a big bonus to be able to start and stop them at will, unlike one other line, where the films started on a strict timetable which was very inconvenient. Not interested in news or sports, or listening to music via the tv. Thanks, Phoenix Dream, I haven’t been criticised yet! We cruise because it’s like staying in a nice hotel, but waking up in a different place every morning! And only having to unpack once! The big advantage of evening entertainment in our cabin is that we can turn down the volume to a sensible level!

On those nights when we are too tired to do anything but relax in the cabin, we do enjoy watching a movie or two. On our past Celebrity cruises, there was a good selection of free to watch, on demand, films etc. Is this still the case, or have Celebrity started to charge for everything? We are sailing out of Southampton in May 2024.

I had to phone to book our upcoming cruise, as we had some future cruise credits from Covid to use. The person doing my booking took my captains Club membership numbers and gave me an additional £100 off. Pleased with that!

That’s very useful, thanks. Sometimes the high decks are too cold and exposed to be pleasant, so it’s nice to know that one can access the outside without getting very wet or blown about. Can be fun to be a bit nearer the water too. Not interested in sitting out, so not an issue for us, and we can turn back before hitting the smoking section.

Is there anything resembling a prom deck on Apex, or are the only opportunities to take a walk outside on the top deck jogging track?

My guess is that they have sold quite a few guarantee cabins. Rather than upgrade those passengers free of charge, it would make sense to offer any of the higher grades to passengers willing to pay for an upgrade.

I suspect many of those who remove the auto gratuity might be from the UK. For most services here, the price we pay includes paying all the staff involved, including the behind the scenes ones. Tips are an extra thank you for going above and beyond the service paid for. It can be very confusing for us, especially as it’s illegal in the UK to price a product without including any compulsory extras. If the autogratuities are labelled as an extra and not included in the price of the cruise, they are seen as optional and can be treated as such.