jostman

On 10/29/2022 at 2:25 PM, Travellers123 said:

Hi, we are staying on from the previous cruise to Fiji and Tonga, who joining us for the Next cruise from Auckald to Sydney on the 26th.

 

Sam

We are joining this cruise in Auckland.  We being John and Bill.  Our second time on Eclipse

We hope to sail into NYC one day.  We would probably only visit the city then sail back.  Technically I am banned from the US though I'm sure this can be lifted.  I visited NYC 35 years ago.  It will be different now.

We can't wait, but we will be on a short cruise in December, just to try out a new ship.  New to us ,that is.  It will be our first time on the QM2

On 4/2/2022 at 12:42 PM, Travellers123 said:

Hi, 

 

Two guys here from the UK joining this cruise, we are staying on from the prior cruise to Fiji and Samoa etc.

Really looking forward to seeing New Zealad on this whisle stop tour so we can decide if we would like to come back and spend a longer period of time here in the future. Also looking forward to what Sydney has to offer, we are there 10 days once the cruise ends.

 

Look forward to meeting new friends on the cruise

 

Sam & Huw

Hi Sam & Huw,,  Bill and John will be on this cruise too. We will spend 4 nights in Auckland before embarking.  

Sadly no nights in Sydney as we have been before and don't wan't too long away from our dogs and cat.

We received our postponement email at 16.37 today.  Still working out if we can change every one around,

Thanks Mikey,

Not long now! We look forward to meeting you on board.

Hello, John and Bill are looking forward to our second cruise.

Hello,

 

Yes, but. The credit card signatory has to agree to be responsible for both passengers' accounts otherwise it's one Xpress Pass each.

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

No worries. ;)

Yes, you're all set! See you there!

See you on board or in Southampton if you wish. :-)

Excuse my naivety. I have printed "Express pass" it has two names on it. I guess one "Express Pass" is sufficient for two people? Just to be sure

Hello,

 

I'm packed!

 

Beat that anyone?:eek:

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

Gosh! I doubt that we will be packed until the 10th.

Aussie/Mexican couple (Matt and Juan) planning this cruise.

Just hoping our boss will give us time off for this trip.

 

To book thru PP or not ..... ??

 

Fingers crossed

Hello Matt and Juan,

Hope your boss gives you the time off!

John and Bill

Hello Cublet,

We hope you have had and are having a fabulous time. Also hope the Eclipse didn't disappoint in any way.

Regards

Jostman :)

Hi Ken & Ray,

Fully booked! You would think nearly 12 months notice would be enough.

I remember the Novotel being built. This is better for Commercial Road and Shirley. The White Star is (I think) in Oxford Street. This would be handy for http://www.the-london.co.uk Not sure if it's your thing ;-) Both locations have cinemas near.

I am sure either should be acceptable for two nights.

We have one small dog, half Pug, half Schnauzer. We think she is more Schnauzer as she likes to be in charge.

Regards

John & Bill

Hi guys,

 

I think there are going to be more of ‘us’ on this cruise than you think. 

 

We are Ken & Ray (61 & 67) from Dallas, TX & we booked this cruise several months ago. (But we’ve been on two major trips since we booked this one, so I have yet to even begin researching & organizing for this trip. I feel so ‘behind’!) Glad to see we already have a Roll call going, though.

 

We will also be traveling with two other great guys, “Rick & Chris” from Northern California. We met them 3 years ago on a transatlantic crossing from Rome to Miami, & enjoyed being with them so much that we also traveled with them to The Galapagos Islands & Machu Picchu last year (also on Celebrity).

 

All 4 of us are also booked on the Norwegian Fjords cruise immediately preceding this one. But for some weird reason there is a 2 day ‘gap’ between the cruises which, unfortunately, means we’ll have to disembark the Eclipse, find somewhere to go or something to do for 2 days, & then re-board the ship. Ugh.

 

Jostman, congrats on your first cruise. I’ll bet you’re going to love it. We took our first cruise in 2003 on the QM2, and have now been on somewhere between 15 & 20 all over the world. It’s an expensive habit to have (especially being retired!), but we dearly love it. ….& because we both traveled so much in our careers, we retired with almost 7 million airline miles ‘in the bank’! Our running joke is that we can fly First Class for free to anywhere in the world, at a moment’s notice. We just can’t afford to buy LUNCH once we get there!

 

Looks like we now have enough bodies to fill at least a small corner of the Martini Bar. :-)

 

We look forward to meeting you all!

 

Ken & Ray

Hi Ken & Ray,

Thank you for the kind welcome. We are John (55) and Bill (66) from Fareham, Hampshire.

I used to live in Southampton and have stayed at the Grand Harbour. So I can reccomend this as a pleasent place to stay, handy for the docks too. There are less expensive places to stay.

If you would like to meet for a beer on the 8th or 9th we could pop over to Southampton.

Southampton has a good art gallery and the common is nice for recreation. There is also the Mayflower Theatre, although it is too early to see what will be on!

Less than a year to go! :-)

Kind regards

Jostman

Hello,

We do indeed have the classic drinks package. Would not the increase in gratuities mean that fewer drinks will be priced below the limit. We may upgrade to the premium package. The upgrade price will have increased.

Though only a little.

Regards

Jostman

Hello,

Pleased to see there may be more than 3 FOD's

Hello,

Spotted the increase in gratuities. Oh well! No point me moaning about it. :o

Hello Cublet,

I found the place to register for "Celebrity Connections". I can not do this until May. This is fine. However it also indicates that one person is registered. How can this be if registration is not more than one year before sailing?

You wrote "For 13 nights three of us FODs were there drinking"

I find it surprising that on a ship that can accommodate up to 3000 passengers only 3 people attend FOD socials.

Regards

Jostman

Hello,

I see that some people get the name "Gastrobar" confused. I like the look and sound of it. I will try to sit so that I can't see the screen.

As well as F.O.D. m&m's there are Cruise Critic ones?

Are these worth a try? I guess they will be larger than the F.O.D.'s mingle.

Regards

Jostman

Hello,

I hadn't seen a brochure, but viewed one online yesterday. I like the sound of Gastrobar. Although, I have never known London Pride described as Brown Porter. I think X are going to put TV's in Gastrobar, not sure why?

You said "charged per item". Does this mean nothing in Gastrobar is inclusive?

We look forward to FOD meetings.

Regards

Jostman

Hello Cublet,

Lots of information in your last posts!

I don't think our travel agent gave a dining choice. We were just told 2nd sitting, 8.30. So TD it is.

We probably will have a couple of nights of special dining and will try Tuscan Grill and Murano. I believe you are correct about the fix-mix dining packages. So will probably give those a miss.

If on the day in Reykjavik we miss the mdr can we still get food (should we need some)? I guess if all the restaurants are closed there is room service.

I have been meaning to ask about your first post in this thread. What is "Martini bar event"?

Regards

Jostman

Hello,

 

I hope the £740 is for two of you.

 

There are three specialty restaurants: Tuscan Grill which as an OK Italian with very good steaks, Murano is superb whatever cuisine it calls itself and Qsine which is pretentious asian/eastern nothingness whose sole USP is ordering via iPads. Ask on the main Celebrity notice board to see if anyone has any menus they can post.

 

I think you have a set number of sittings in nominated restaurants that you cannot vary so if it was me and my money I wouldn't go for the package. I would skip Qsine, maybe go to Tuscan Grill but put all my digestive effort in Murano. On embarkation day, go to Murano and book a place for Afternoon Tea - they only do one per cruise and is on a par with Reid's Hotel in Madeira.

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

Hi Cublet,

The £740 is for both.

I have sent myself an email to remind me to book afternoon tea at Murano.

So I should remember to do this on embarkation day.

I am a little concerned, you wrote "I think you have a set number of sittings in nominated restaurants that you cannot vary"

I am a complete newbie, but is it true that i will be told when and where I am allowed to eat? Perhaps you are joking with me?

I have registered for Captains Club.

Should I register again for my partner, or will it make little difference?

Thank you again for all the valued information.

Kind regards

Jostman

Hi Cublet,

Thank you for all the info. It will be £740 for the cabin upgrade. We have chosen to do this. I hope I can drink enough. I don't drink tea and only about 4 espressos a week.

Now that drinks are sorted (ish). Would you buy a meal upgrade? I think three nights costs around $100 each. We will have a couple of celebrations during the 12 nights although one of these could be in Belfast.

Thanks again for you advice.

Regards

Jostman

Hello,

 

If you book an Ocean View or Balcony, you get TWO of: Drinks, $300 OBC (per stateroom) or Free Grats. If you book Concierge you get all three.

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

Hello,

I have phoned my agent. They will email me in the morning with upgrade prices. If you were to choose two of the three offers, which two would you choose and why?

Regards

John