catperson02

We stopped at Cartagena last year on Azura on my own with my daughters who were 14 and 15. The Roman theatre is a few minutes walk and very easy to find. We then wandered around the shops before taking the hop on hop off buss. It was a scorching hot day and my daughters were going through one of their "we don't want to walk anywhere too far" phases (thankfully now worn off) but it was all very easy. I would definitely recommend "doing it yourself".

I am really glad I read this as when I checked my account I discovered that the drinks package had not been applied for my daughter. I have had several invoices and could not make head nor tail of them but when I followed the instructions to view my orders on my account I found that I had the 123 go classic package, my younger daughter had the non alcoholic for guest 3 but my eldest daughter guest 2 - nothing. I have called celebrity who have promised to raise this and sort it out, lets see how long and how many calls this takes.

I have booked on the Eclipse to sail to the Baltic departing end of July 2016. My daughters have never been totally thrilled with the kids clubs on P&O who we have previously sailed with. They will be 16 and 17 (turning 18 in 2 months after we return - aaagh!) Having never sailed Celebrity before we were wondering how many other older teens to expect and whether they will be mainly British as it is sailing from Southampton. They are hoping to meet new friends from different countries.

This is no deal breaker as they will be perfectly happy doing their own thing and will be fairly tired after busy days ashore.

I intend to join the roll call nearer the time to see who is sailing and, lets face it, we have this years cruise to enjoy first (Rome and Florence so should be wonderful) but we are a family of planners so would really appreciate any advice on this or any other tips on how to get the most out of our cruise.

We are booked on the eclipse departing end of july with 2 girls who will be 16(just) and 17 when we sail. They have been to kids clubs but in the past have become bored with them as the main aim of the girls they met seemed to be to find boys and get served alcohol (they succeeded in neither much to my girls amusement) We are on a Baltic cruise and they are not bothered that there may be fewer children on board.

Yes you can, I have done it uprading cabin grade. There is no charge, you just pay the difference in cost based on the prices at the time you booked, not the current prices. I just called them and sorted it out over the phone.

We are going to St Petersberg on the Eclipse in August 2016 and I am considering booking the evening excursion to the ballet. Both my daughters dance to a high standard and we have seen many major ballet companies when they have toured the UK.

The tickets for the 3 of us will be in the region of £300 and I am conscious of the fact that if we are going to spend this amount we may have to curtail any tours for that day (I don't imagine that snoring during the performance would go down well and it would be a very expensive sleep!)

I have read somewhere that the Kirov ballet do not perform in August and I would really appreciate any advice.

With the 123 go offer I have got classic drinks packages included. I have pretty much decided to upgrade my alcoholic one. My 2 daughters have both got classic non alcoholic packages. On previous cruises with a different cruise line they both discovered mocktails! Are these included on either package? There seems to be loads of information about the benefits of premium vs classic alcohol package on cruise critic but very little about the non alcoholic packages. It is very little extra to upgrade but is it worth it? My eldest daughter is a coffee fan and the younger LOVES hot chocolate. Many thanks

Thank you so much for your replies. We have chosen fixed dining already so our waiters will be the same. I am so glad to hear that macaroni cheese is always available as she would happily live on that given the option (at 14 she may choose items off the childrens menu anyway). The nut issue isnt too bad as it is only almonds that she currently reacts to and that is managed with antihistamines rather than an epipen.

Is it too early to be getting excited?

OK so I know it is a long way ahead but I have just booked a cruise to St Petersberg for 31 July 2016! My youngest daughter is a vegetarian and a somewhat fussy one too (also has an allergy to almonds so nuts are an issue too). Do Celebrity have a vegetarian menu? I have found some MDR menus on cruise critic but there seems to be only one vegetarian dish each night and you can bet that she will turn her nose up at that! She will, at a push, eat fish (well she does at the moment but that may change at a moments notice) Her issues with meat are not an ethical choice but due to issues with the nerves in her jaw meaning that the texture causes her to gag.

Also it is a Southampton sailing, I normally would tip for room service, anyone who goes above and beyond etc. Do I need to get some US dollars for this or would UK Sterling be acceptable? Its not a big problem but I would rather not exchange if I don't have too.

Many thanks

A family we met this summer had their son sleep between the twin beds on a mattress on the floor after he hurt his foot on board and was unable to climb the ladder to the bunk. This may be another option for you. It would give you a bit more sleeping space, I think that the cabin steward put the mattress away during the day.

We all suffered after this summers cruise. Three sea days across a rocky med and bay of Biscay didn't help. It was somewhat scary to watch my daughter having a ballet lesson wobbling away on her pointe shoes on the evening of the day we docked. She managed to stay upright and reckoned that afterwards the earth stopped swaying while the rest of us wobbled about for another couple of days.

Probably was not the best of ideas to let her go to her lesson but she had a big exam coming up.

We sailed with P&O this summer with my veggie, nut allergy daughter. Each evening she was given the special veggie menus for the next day, for both lunch and evening meals for her to make her choice, This was in addition to the veggie choice on the main menu. If I remember correctly she had between 4 and 6 choices for both main and starter. She was more than happy (particularly enjoyed a sweet potato, lentil, black sesame and tofu creation). I hope this helps.

I had to ring and tell tem of her requirements before departure

It looks like a wine package will be a good idea. How exactly does it work, from what I have read you get some sort of vouchers, will the wine steward bring a list of wines in your chosen collection for you to choose from each evening or do you prechoose (?) your wines when booking the package?

I am considering purchasing a wine package for my cruise on Azura next year. I will be the only person drinking (oldest daughter who is old enough to drink doesn't and youngest would dearly like to but is too young!) Although I will not drink a whole bottle at a single sitting I assume that it will not be a problem for the restaurant to recork and store it for the next day?

Can I also assume that it will be ok to take any remaining wine back to my cabin to sip on the balcony while getting ready for dinner the next day. I know that I can take my own on board but to be perfectly honest lugging it in my hand luggage as I did last time as I did not want to risk it breaking in my case was a total pain in the neck (literally).

Four or possibly six bottles would certainly see me through the fortnight. Would a wine package be a good idea? Ant advice would be very greatly received.

Its not just boys, my 14 year old daughter loved "just popping to the buffet for a small snack" between meals where she regularly ate all her meal, my desert plus anything our table companions couldn't manage. She came home still needing a belt to keep her size 6 jeans from falling down!

Ooops yes, that will teach me to do too many things at one time. I don't know if it is possible to change title to Pleased with select fares which is what intended to put.

Having read numerous posts complaining about P&Os pricing policies I felt that I had to comment that I have been pleasantly surprised with my(limited) experience. Working in education may mean that I have to book in the school holidays but I do know term dates up to 2 years in advance so am able to book as soon as the cruises are released. It also means that booking this early I have no problems getting a cabin to accommodate myself and my 2 daughters. Ok on this years cruise some people did pay less but this was only a couple of hundred pounds and some were very unhappy with their cabin position and dining arrangements.

For next years cruise in August 2015 the select fares are currently significantly higher than I paid, to book today would cost almost £1000 more. I noticed that early saver fares which appeared today are almost the same as what I paid for my select fare.

So to sum up in my case the pricing policies have definitely worked in my favour, I have no doubt that others will disagree but for the record I am a happy cruiser!

I took some 2 in 1 washing tablets, the water on the ship is so soft that I only needed one per wash. Depending on how long you are cruising/how many washes you anticipate a couple of packs of 2 don't take up much space.

Many thanks, I priced it with p&o and a mid decks cabin is only about £200 per person more than my existing balcony cabin so I have booked. We are sailing on azura next August.

This is the second time I have tried to post this, lets hope it works this time!

I am considering upgrading from a balcony cabin to a superior delux. My 16 year old daughter will be sleeping on the sofabed. Could anybody comment on how comfortable they are. She is not totally convinced despite me pointing out that it has got to be better than being hit by falling pillows from her sister in the bunk above and hitting her head when she gets up. Putting her sister in the sofa bed is not an option as she is a sleepwalker so sleeping just in front of the balcony doors is not the best idea.

I am unsure whether to spend on this, although more space with 2 teenage girls is always a good thing!

Not long until our cruise on Azura. Does anybody have any tips on attaching the luggage labels once I have printed them out so they do not get ripped off before they reach our cabin. This is our first ever cruise so I am trying to cover all bases. I have considered laminating them at work (with my own pouches I hasten to add) to make them stronger but if the upgrade fairy calls after we break up I will not be able to laminate the new tags.

Any advice would be gratefully achieved.

Oh thank you. Free WIFI will go down well as I have told them that I am not paying for internet on the boat and it saves us having to go searching for somewhere (mcdonalds or suchlike) for their essential social media fix. It looks like we will find plenty to do without spending a fortune on a ships excursion.

We are calling at Cartagena on our cruise on Azura in August. I have decided against booking an excursion as there seems to be plenty to do in the port. Will the Roman theatre and other museums be open on a Sunday? What about the shops as I will have 2 teenage girls in tow.

We are going on our first ever cruise on Azura in August (just a bit excited!). Thinking of next years holiday would we be best to book when the 2015 itineries come out in a few weeks or would there be better offers available on-board. I booked this cruise last Spring and have had great pleasure in watching the prices steadily climb for our cabin grade. As a teacher and with two school age children I have no choice but to go in the school holidays so waiting for a last minute deal isn't an option.

Thanks