Diamond lover

50 minutes ago, KCalla said:

Thank you Diamond lover!  I was able to find it using your clear directions.  We are on a Feb 9 cruise.  When I submitted our information I got the message "We are sorry, we have no space available".  But your instructions will help me for future cruises.  Thank you again.

 

Do not give up, you may well still get an invite to bid.  And try the celebrity site again next week.  Things change.  I just found out about this program, but everything I have read says “try again next week” even if it says there is no space available”

2 minutes ago, KCalla said:

Jagoffee mentions checking on the Celebrity website for Move Up availablility.  I have not been able to find this.  Can anyone help with further direction?  Thank you.

 

On the main menu of opening page (top left corner, four parallel lines) you will find it there.

I checked  my reservation, still too early.

On 1/12/2019 at 1:09 PM, avp1234 said:

Hi. We leave next week and I received an e-mail yesterday that one of our offers was accepted.  Booked a regular verandah, don't remember the cat., and I bid on Aqua and the two highest Suites.  We won the Aqua, 1A, and I'm happy. 🙂 

 

I did bid on the high end on the Aqua and lower to mid on the Suites.  The ship was sold out,  so someone must have dropped the Aqua.  I looked and now there is one Verandah showing and it's the room number we had. 

 

I was ok with bidding high on the Aqua because I really like the spa and Persian Garden, and...it's my birthday trip,  so why not splurge a little!  All the starting bids were on the higher side, but the ship was sold out, so I considered that also. We got the move up offer about 30 days out and the starting bid never changed.   

Amp how long is your cruise, and would you be kind enough to let me know what the range was for the suites?  I am hoping I have an opportunity to bid for a move up.  I am currently in Concierge, and my cruise is listed today at $3400 per person.  Royal Suite is listed at $9700 pp and Celebrity Suite is $8650 pp.  wondering what I should bid (16 day cruise).  If you remember the ranges would you please share?

warm regards.

I did not even know about this program.  Duh.  I should read everything.  Thanks for enlightening me.  I sail late February so I will research to know what’s a good deal and what isn’t, if I get an offer.

7 hours ago, Wine-O said:

I just made Choice Air flights from IAD (Dulles) to BCN (Barcelona).  I did my own research then called them.  Doing dummy booking Choice Air website showed $704 Econ and $2081 Bus.  

 

I told them I wanted a particular date & airline & flight number.  Choice Air agent initially told me $2657 Econ (I just about crapped my pants), then kept looking and told me $822 Econ.  She then told me $1086 Bus.  I told her to stop right there and book me 2 tickets (totally refundable).

 

Normally 10-11 months out these flights are around $450-500.  Gotta really do your research ahead of time.  I've gotten $220 Myrtle Beach thru Atlanta to Barcelona last year, then added $100 for Econ Comfort (or whatever they call it).

That’s exactly what I did Wine-o!  Researched on my own beforehand, in order to recognize when to say “WHOA, stop right there and book me THAT baby”!!

I only got what I wanted at the price I wanted when I called n....their website doesn’t show everything.  Always phone in.  Human to human. 

We got a fantastic deal with Flights by Celebrity, for our upcoming Solstice cruise in March.  We only needed a one way business class airfare (booked business class to Perth with aeroplan), and we wanted it from Christchurch 16 days after we got off the ship!  No problem for them, and the best Virgin Australia business class deal I have ever seen.  Love them!

Don’t complain to us. When filling out the survey make everthing a 1 and provide your email and phone number.

 

I guarantee you will get a response and then you can explain why

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

I wasn't complaining to you, I was asking if anybody else was annoyed by this, in case this standard practice was embraced by others, and we were being petty as a group. And why would I give them a 1 if they were an 8 or a 9?

I filled out the survey, and in the comments I noted my distaste that they apparently treat their employees so poorly that staff are anxious at the end of every cruise. That their staff feel they have to reiterate over and over and over how important it is that we rate them a 10. Can you imagine how it must make them feel, and how it made us feel? We enjoyed banter with everyone 8 of the 11 nights, laughing together, and then they feel they have to spend the last three talking about their "rating", and we start to wonder if they ever did enjoy those first 8 nights! Bubble burst.

Nobody begged me for tips. They begged me for a good rating.

Iamthesea, I will absolutely use that line on my February cruise!!!

And Zenica, quite right, I received the surveys from Toyota and Audi and Smart over the years too. It's ridiculous isn't it.

Ghent. Bruges is now really run amok with tourists, you cannot even take a good photo without masses in it. Pretty little town to STAY in, so that you can really enjoy it at night when the hordes have left. But not a day trip.

Having said that, do Ypres if offered....in a heartbeat.

Best meal ever.....my best friend and I enjoying a private Valentines dinner with Guiseppe G (Hotel Director at the time) and John Mc (Captain at the time) with Miki our Maitr D laughing along with us. Cannot remember laughing as much, ever. Yes, that enhanced my trip - and my life.

We had lovely servers and stewards and entertainers and maitre d's etc etc, etc on our recent cruise. But all of us (group of six) were annoyed by the constant pleading on the last three days of our cruise, to "rate them a 10" on the comment survey. I had to actually say to our waiter "we get it, we get it, you have said it many times, we will rate you a 10". It is as though they will be fired if we do NOT complete the survey, and God forbid give the service an 8?

If that is actually the case, shame on Celebrity for making it so. Otherwise, hell, stop it already.

Are we alone in being a little annoyed by this?

Hotel Director's name was Arjan (from Netherlands). Head Chef was Indian, but I apologize, I didn't catch his name. Pleasant fella for sure.

Three of the six of us opted to give Le Petit Chef a go last night....I did not due to a shellfish allergy. The vote was unanimous.....cosi cosi (italian for so-so). As my one friend said, "great idea, but probably in stage 1 of 5 of production". Food was good but no better than MDR they thought, and experience fun but not as good as they had hoped based on teaser video. I on the other hand really enjoyed my roast turkey dinner in MDR so it was a good night for me

Yeah, but NCL specialty dining is just decent. It's very vanilla and not worthy of much of an up charge. NCL, overall kind of sucked. Their specialty restaurants are part of their free at sea shtick which means they aren't very special.

 

To each their own. $50 is pricey but to me, far from outrageous. Especially for a "resort." I don't find it pricey at all for LPC.

 

If you are "absolutely blown away by the cost" of $50 then I would hate to see what I you think about the price of decent dining on shore, lol. Like I said, we easily spend $300-$500 PER PERSON at "specialty" dining during our travels to different cities and even around home.

I loved the steakhouse on NCL. It was my one and only NCL cruise, but for "mass market" (like Princess, Celebrity etc), I thought NCL's entertainment and food was superior to what I am having and seeing on this my 3rd Celebrity cruise.

I have cruised a fair amount....Carnival (ugh, but it was early 1980's and I was young and poor lol), Cunard, RCCL, Celebrity, Princess, and as I said NCL the once. I have 75 nights on Regent (formerly Radisson Seven Seas in the good old days). I thought Celebrity was the top of its market class...but this cruise has proven me wrong. I stand by my earlier statement....the MDR is now mediocre, and it is crazy to only have a cafeteria as an alternative, without paying much more. I do see your point, and I could look at my cruise fare as being for hotel accommodation, and expect to pay separately for good food. But that is not psychologically to me what a cruise should be, it is not what celebrity WAS. It was really good in the past, they didn not nickel and dime you to dearh. They just didnt. I am struggling to wrap my head around it I guess.

I love to vacation! Land based travel and on cruises. I spent 11 nights travelling Italy (where I expected to pay for restaurants!) prior to boarding the Reflection. I have 16 nights in on The Solstice currently booked in February (Australia and NZ), meant to celebrate my January 31st retirement, and I am looking at cancelling it 😢. Just have to figure out how to work around the flights I have booked to and fro.

There is a Silverseas 11 night cruise that is LESS expensive, with no need to add on beverage packages and gratuity packages and dining packages and internet packages....sheesh. I have never sailed Silverseas before but imagine any of the EIGHT restaurants (all included) are quite good.

I am absolutely blown away by the cost of alternative restaurants on Celebrity. I was on NCL earlier this year, and had thought that $25 was ok, but $45-$79 (The Porch) .... please. I haven't been a huge fan of the MDR menus, but apart from 2 upsell options (Tuscan Grill and Lawn Club Grill) i have been eating there. Better than the cafeteria. But, disappointed for sure.

Nada! Except on your balcony you can play your own music, not have families and people in speedos lying on the lawn in front of you for your viewing pleasure :') Alcove over and out (but for $99 the four of us could afford to give it a go one day)

I am sitting in an alcove right now. $99 port day charge, as we are in Barcelona, sailing away at 5. Our 2nd day in Barca, so I had done enough yesterday. Two of 10 alcoves in use. Rest are vacant. I did not receive a bottle of alcohol or wine, but all I have to do is lift the phone to have them bring me a glass. Pity they are yucky acrylic wine glasses. You may use your premium or classic beverage packages for drinks, of course. They brought us lunch from a very limited food service menu - hamburger, club sandwich, pizza type offerings. Cheese plate and cold water, towels, thats about it. Staff are nice, and they muted the useless movie (that cannot be viewed with the sun shining directly on it all day!) I will cancel my 2nd booked day. Not worth it overall.

Look under the dining section. Book for only one person - even though more can be in the Alcove. May give you the option of a silly time of 3am but just accept it and then it is yours for the day.

Wendy

Thanks Wendy

I cannot find a way to book an alcove on my cruises, online on mycelebrity. Can anyone guide me?

Thank you!

The alcoves, do you book them before or after boarding? Do you book them for a day, or a cruise?

But you also cannot find chairs underneath the shaded area adjacent to the outdoor pool or inside the Solarium, because all of those loungers have been "hogged" as well! Those of us that need to stay out of the sun for melanoma or other issues are also trying to find chairs in the shaded areas near the pool or in the Solarium and are having the exact same issues with the hogs.

We definitely have different doctors, and advice. The shade, outside, is just “less sunny”, but still not preferred for my condition. Next time you are in the shadiest area, hover your hand over your other arm. See a shadow? You are still getting harmful rays. So while I COULD sit in the shade with all my fashionable “uvskinz” clothing, I prefer not to unless I have to. And I never “have to” on a ship. Which is why I love cruising vs., say, an all inclusive. Ships have SO many indoor activities, for people like me, it’s fantastic. If you are on a ship and claim you are bored....you are too high maintenance lol.

I cannot sunbathe because of having Basel Cell Carcinoma, which is unfair in and of itself, because I was never a sun worshipper like all my friends! And when I do venture into the sea for a quick swim covered head to toe, I get a lot of stares as I waddle in wearing what I call a “Burkini”. But THIS post makes me feel better about my lot in life!! Thanks all! I can’t lounge by the pool. Check.

:) I wish there were thumbs up, or “❤️“ or laughing out loud options for posts lol. Maniacal, you would constantly get “laughing heartily” from me!

I would have enjoyed more of the frivolity in the atrium of The Escape. When we finally clued in accidentally (happened upon the hilarious dance contest) we had missed so many already, like The Newlywed Game etc, thinking they would be “hokey”.

I would have made a point of seeing comedian Dean Edwards more than once. He was freaking hilarious. I would have caught as many Beau (piano) and Orly (guitarist) moments as I could. SUCH talent.

I would have asked if I could sit in front of the stage in the Manhattan dining room, to really enjoy the dinner show.

I would have stayed for back to back cruises

BTW, thank you maniacal....agree 100%. I was embarrassed for some of the people I heard complaining....knowing they just were scammers looking for something for nothing. Sad society...