Jump to content

ivanidea

Members
  • Posts

    73
  • Joined

About Me

  • Location
    Saint Petersburg, FL
  • Interests
    Photography
  • Favorite Cruise Line(s)
    Cunard
  • Favorite Cruise Destination Or Port of Call
    Geiranger

Recent Profile Visitors

The recent visitors block is disabled and is not being shown to other users.

ivanidea's Achievements

Cool Cruiser

Cool Cruiser (2/15)

  1. I can recommend the Aurea Museum hotel, very close to the port (we walked with our luggage from the hotel to the ship). https://www.eurostarshotels.com/aurea-museum.html? They can arrange for transport from the airport (extra fee). Close to Fada bars and good restaurants. An excellent European buffet breakfast is included. They even have a museum showing the Roman ruins it was built on. Almost next door to the Taylor Fladgate Port tasting rooms and shop as well. Might not be the cheapest hotel in the area, but we found it very comfortable and quiet. Another hotel, even closer, is the Palacete Chafariz d'El Rei. Also looks good, and I believe a similar price point. The closest one we saw (but did not investigate) is at the station, and is opposite the cruise terminal - The Editory Riverside Santa Apolรณnia Hotel. We didn't see this until we boarded the ship, so did not research it prior to our visit.
  2. So, if my wife wants to enjoy the sun on the balcony, but I want to take a nap in the air conditioned cabin, I have to lock her outside? Doesn't sound very safe to me.
  3. I have enjoyed dressing up for dinner on Cunard. If the number of passengers who dress up reduces, then I will have to reconsider cruising Cunard. My recent experiences on HAL and Celebrity, I have been one of only a handful of gentlemen who made an effort to dress up. In fact, we were often asked what the occasion was - the guests did not notice the gala dress code in the daily programme (or did not care). The Cunard experience may not be worth paying a premium for, couple with the fact that now I live in Florida, there are hardly any opportunities to drive to/from a Cunard cruise. Regardless whichever cruise I go on, I will take my formal wear.
  4. Take one Sharpie, change pm to am, problem solved. Simples ๐Ÿ˜„
  5. There were at least 3 photographers on the Constellation in February. They had the back drops (green & white screens) in a couple of places, with another photographer sometimes walking about the ship. There were no photos at any ports, and I didn't see the photographer in the dining venues (at least at the times I visited). No photographs were printed and put out on display, but they can be viewed on their terminals, and prints ordered if desired. I purchased the print package in advance, but they had issues, so I had to repurchase and get it refunded, just so they had my email on their system. Can't fault the photographers, they did a good job, and went out of their way to take some excellent photos when we wore our formal wear.
  6. The cruise I just came off last week, had 2x USA, and 2x Euro plugs at the desk.
  7. I'm currently on the Connie, since Monday 13th February. My observations and experiences are: Lesser in room breakfast menu, with a charge for what used to be free. No big deal since we prefer to dine in Blu, but object to paying for the convenience on the days we may need it. Service in Blu is mostly good, with one isolated incident where we were sat for 30 minutes before the Maitre D came up to ask if we needed the sun blinds adjusting. We told him how long we had been waiting, and soon received service. Hopefully just an isolated incident. One morning, due to an early excursion, we went to the buffet for breakfast. There was no English bacon available. One of the staff members was surprised, and went to look for some, only to be told there was none left (at least for the morning buffet). The quality of the croissants were poor too compared to Blu. I can't comment on the MDR breakfast though. Minor inconveniences, and not likely to prevent me from booking another cruise with Celebrity (yet). A bigger issue though, is the computerised tills have not been updated for the current drinks packages. The premium package covers drinks up to $17, yet we receive a charge for any drink over $15, which means we have to go to guest services to get it removed, which takes over 24 hours. This is a pain, and should be easily fixed, especially after 2 months since the price increase. I can't fault any of the staff on board, and the food quality has been good, although disappointed to see that the buffet is back to self service. I felt much safer when staff members served the food. At least the muster drill is still virtual. In the big scheme, my rant is little, and hasn't affected my enjoyment of the cruise, or prevent me from booking another one. Appropriate feedback has been or will be given to Celebrity at the appropriate time.
  8. Using the app to look at my next cruise on the Constellation, in the Cellar Masters Bar, 145 Brut, Perrier Jouet, Grand Brut, $22. The same Champagne seems to be listed for $26.50 in the Sunset Bar. I won't really know until I get on the ship and see what's actually available. I do hate the partial drinks menus in the app.
  9. Last year, we could drink Champagne with the premium package. Now, the app shows Champagne is $22 per glass. So no Champagne for the sail away party or as an aperitif. Will have to see what is available when we board in a few weeks time.
  10. We took the class in December 2021, on the Constellation. We were disappointed that we were not given glasses to take away with us, but it was explained that many folk have had them break on their journey home - wouldn't have been an issue to us since we drove to the port. We received the voucher for free glasses (4 glasses each), but had to pay for shipping. Lovely glasses, but I'm not sure they were worth the shipping fee.
  11. This is the 3rd cancellation we've experienced with Cunard over the last couple of years. I just hope they will still honour our Future Cruise Deposit originally purchased back in 2018, which would've expire last September if we had not used it.
  12. A word of warning for anybody thinking of moving to Mint - they have zero coverage in Alaska. Whilst T-Mobile has an arrangement with local carriers in Alaska, Mint does not. It was strange getting 5G in Canada but nothing in Alaska. Mint is still a value for money carrier, if you don't mind paying for extras, and are aware of the coverage limitations.
  13. Update to previous post. Since the laundry team lost my $100 dollar Helly Hanson thermal vest, they will compensate me by providing $20 OBC (10x the 'charge' for cleaning a t-shirt). At least it looks to be refundable, so should be sent to my credit card. Use the laundry at your risk. It has cost me a tuxedo and thermal vest.
ร—
ร—
  • Create New...