Covepointcruiser

We will be traveling soon to Cuba on Azmara.   I have done some research on Cuba and illnesses/diseases.   Quite a few folks were treated by hospitals for serious stomach problems after visiting, a few died.   I checked on the CDC site and Cuba is now listed as having a Cholera outbreak in addition to some nasty parasitic infections.   We will enjoy Cuba but will not eat there.   We will also carry bottled water from the ship.   It seems there is a sewage treatment problem on Cuba as their facilities have not been updated in 50 years.   Needless to say with untreated sewage being piped into the rivers and the ocean we will also not be going into the water.

Getting to all the ports on a South American Antarctic cruise would certainly be unusual.

most of us who have cruised in the area have had ports missed and itinerary changed.

if you absolutely have to get to a certain destination it is better to fly.   You will have a much better chance of getting there when you want.   If you continue to cruise you are bound to be frustrated second guessing the captain.   He or she alone knows the ship and it’s capabilities.

Thanks for the info about now being able to upgrade from Premium Package to Ultimate.   It’s not worth an extra $45 per day, it’s too bad they won’t give you credit 

for having the premium package.

We are sailing on the Journey 3/25 and we have the Premium package included in our fare.   Can we upgrade to the Ultimate and will we be able to pay the difference between the packages $5 per day?   Would like to do this before we get to Miami to avoid the Miam sales tax.   Thanks for any info!

Surprised to hear that Celebrity uses Cashmere mattresses, that doesn’t seem practical.   They would need a very heavy mattress pad to protect it.   I wouldn’t mind that kind of mattress as long as it was clean.   I would consider bringing a sleep sack if you are irritated by the sheets.   As for the aroma in Eden, how do you deal with perfumes and aftershave not to mention the aroma emanating from the clothing of smokers.   Cruise ships are certainly not the place for folks with respiratory allegies.

We have had no problems debarking in New York in Grill Class.   We had our carry on with us and our checked luggage was available when we put our feet on land.   Customs was also easy but we always get a porter and breeze through.   He also took us to the taxi.   Well worth the tip and we always give them a good one.

The Celebrity Suite on Solstice cLass ships is a waste.   You get no additional benefits over the cheapest suite and you get very limited additional space.   When you upgrade to a Royal Suite you get an additional half bath, a dining table and room to walk around.   You also receive unlimited internet, Specialty Dining and premium beverage packages.

This is very useful on transatlantic voyages when nothing is included for lower suites.

Michaels Club is also very crowded on these voyages making the premium package more worthwhile.   The Edge has many premium suites above Royal Suite and I am not sure of the perks included with those suites.

In the Royal Suite on the Reflection,the bed could not be separated.  It was a wonderful  electronic bed with all sorts of options for either side..   My favorite was the Zero gravity mode.   On the Silhouette, we had a regular dumb bed and we were disappointed.   It was an odd side and also could not be separated.   No rounded corners on either bed.

We took a transpacific (Japan to Vancouver) and it was cold to cool every day.

we had snow in the northern port in Japan.   Bring fall clothes and a winter jacket, hat and gloves.   We did not have weather for sitting in deck chairs or on balcony.   Folks ate outside on one or two days and they wore winter coats and used blankets.    The weather is so crazy, maybe it will be different this year.   We were on the Azmara Quest May 15 for 19 days.   

As small as the shower is, how will the average sized passenger fit with the shower door closed?   Maybe they expect you to keep it open.

I am glad, in the U.S., we can get all vaccinations that are required for travel.   No mention has ever been made of our age.    We also had to take anti malaria tablets through our sailing on the Amazon.  Have not heard of a rabies vaccine except for our dogs or cats but I would gladly have the vaccine if it was offered.  We do have rabies in the U.S., usually in wild animals who can bite our animals.   Folks have been bit and have to have a series of painful shots.   If you have a compromised immune system you would not get the vaccines and you probably don’t want the further risk your health by traveling.

We enjoy Blu when we are in Aqua Class but have never had a problem eating in the MDR whenever we wanted.   You can probably ask to be moved to MDR for the entire cruise.   This will free up space in Blu for the Suite passengers who can eat there on a space available basis.

We found Bethlehem and Nazareth to be wonderful stops.  We are Christians so the New Testament is important to us and it was wonderful to see those areas.    Understand that Bethlehem is in Palestinian territory so they don’t have the funding or services you see in the the areas under Israel.    In Jerusalem, the stations of the cross were clearly marked on the walls though well worn down by countless Pilgrims.

The last time I was in the port for Caracas, on the QE2, I started down the gangway.    At the bottom of the gangway there were two young soldiers with large assault rifles, I immediately turned around and stayed on the ship.   I was not comfortable with a port where heavily armed soldiers were needed to guard the ship.   Why don’t the ABC islands welcome all of the refugees?   Many in the U.S. expect us to open our borders to all refugees.   The people in Venezuela are starving and they deserve our compassion.

They were covered in the Premium Drink package in November.  There is a long wait for the smoothie and are served at room temperature.   I tried a couple of types but I couldn’t get over the warm temperature of the smoothie.   We have had the mango and berry smoothie in Blu and there were no bananas in them.   We always had the real dairy smoothies so I don’t know if the mix is different for almond or soy.

No, that is what most passengers do.   We also leave the automatic tip in place and tip extra to those who have served us well.    We budget for the cruise with the tips and if we can’t afford the tips we don’t take the cruise.   In this part of the 

world tipping is expected unless you are totally dissatisfied with the service.

Because you are on a very short cruise the demographic will be much younger than on the 7 day cruise.    Usually Celebrity is not a party ship but that won’t be the case on your cruise.    You will certainly have only one chic night and the only thing ever questioned in the MDR were shorts and sleeveless T-shirts for men.

However, men have gotten away with shorts on the first evening (didn’t get their suitcase) and last evening (already packed any long pants).   You won’t have any hairy chest/legs type contests on Celebrity.

I was more annoyed by the chair hogs, most sleeping and some snoring.   Some also had active respiratory infections and coughed and sneezed constantly.   I can’t think of a better venue, other than the buffet, for spreading disease aboard the ship.  Always give both venues a pass!

The books on display are much like the books in Michaels Club, just for display, believe I saw a bunch of old law books.

It is illegal for Cubans to accept U.S. currency and they can get jail time or worse.   

On other theads about Cuba, passenger speak about bringing a bag of toiletries with them to assist the Cubans.     They often have shortages of toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, etc.    Right now there is no toilet paper available for the common citizens but that would be difficult to pack.   The airlines that fly to Cuba allow you to bring an extra bag for such items.    We will exchange money for CUC, luckily we have some leftover Euros so we won’ be charged a surcharge.

Be wary of using U.S. currency as you may unwittingly put a Cuban at risk

The only well cooked lobster we have had on Celebrity was at the Petit Chef.   They also had the best fillet.   Guess this is because they are cooked to order and do not stand around waiting to be reheated.   If I remember correctly, the Murano had some additional charge items and one item was a whole lobster.   I don’t know if it is a southern lobster.    We have also enjoyed Steak Dianne in Murano.   Some of the Gelato is very good, we enjoyed the mango and the coconut.

We will take our first Aramark cruise in March.    We will compare it to the Suite class on Celebrity.    We have also sailed on Seabourn.    It seems the cabins, and bathrooms are much smaller on Aramark compared to Seabourn.   There is no question that the basic suite on Celebrity is much larger than Azamara.    We will judge the rest of the experience on the Journey in March.    I have noted quite a few complaints about the Azamara experience in Cuba and I hope our experience is better.   

We live in a hot and humid area of the U.S.    We sleep with our thermostat at 78 so we can probably tolerate 82 but not 86.   On the new Celebrity Edge, the air conditioning turns off if the balcony door is open.   Those folks with balcony door open are really adding to the humidity on the ship and that certainly adds to your discomfort.   

They have one or two manicurists on board.   The prices are 3 to 4 times higher than onshore.   My $35 onshore manicure was $130 or so without the 18% gratuity.   It’s a good manicure but not worth the extra dollars.

If all Type 2 diabetics on board want Select dIning it will always be overbooked.   Most adults over 60 are either Pre diabetic or Type 2.   Lucky the buffet is almost always open.