Georgia_Peaches

We are also on the May 31st sailing to Alaska. Not really sure what to expect with regard to weather temps as it will be our first visit. But I recommend you do as others have suggested and prepare your granddaughter for a different type of cruise. She is old enough to understand. The app may never show the correct info 😳 bc it’s wonky. But definitely has a better chance of being more accurate the closer you get to embarkation. Regarding soda, I read in Celebrity’s FAQs that you can bring on as much as you can carry on embarkation day. see you on board!

Solstice will definitely be a more calm and peaceful ship experience compared to the other amusement park types. Frankly, my opinion is that Alaska itineraries deserve the quiet of the Solstice. Having said that, your children can have a ton of fun! Since they’ve been before, maybe this time around they can dig deeper into the beauty of their surroundings. Here’s a couple things I might consider doing if I were taking my kids: 1. Picture challenge: Who can capture the most wildlife photos? 2. Scavenger hunt bingo card (made in advance) 3. Experience Challenge: “The one new thing I did today…. Ate today…. Saw today.. since it’s summertime, the chances of your children meeting others their age are really good. I think you have the opportunity to make this a vacation they will never forget…the ship is just the vessel! Have a wonderful time!

Happy to be following along on your adventure!

Bimini has a dock. It’s quite a long walk from ship to “town” but the tram is free. It stops in 5 places along the way and you can hop on/off wherever you like. Also, check out YouTube for videos of the port. Not a lot going on here. I’m with @bikerunner regarding remaining on the ship.

Anthem holds 4900 pax at max capacity while Beyond holds 3200 at max. Not sure how the public spaces of the 2 ships compare but 1700 pax makes a big difference.

Thank you for the encouragement! 😊 I'm biting the bullet in the very near future! Jeez...when did old dog and new tricks start applying to me?! 🤣

Thank you for all the food pics! Do you recall seeing any sugar free desserts?

Love your pictures. I really need to invest in new equipment…ie update my phone before our cruise to Alaska. I’m still working with an iphone 8+ from 2016 which was state of the art complete with a home button and everything. I simply dread the prospect of changing over to a new phone and have no idea how I will function without my beloved home button….seriously. But alas, I will repeat, your pictures are lovely.

Oh what a nice looking room! Can’t wait to read more. I will be on Reflection in July with DM. Have sailed her once before in 2015. It was our introduction to Celebrity and honestly, I don’t remember many details specific to this ship.

So you’re saying they both appear at some point in your cruise planner? Are you able to purchase the USD package while it appears in your planner?

Omg I have to say we feel the exact opposite of this. We stayed in a “steerage” category and then in a suite on a b2b on Ascent. We felt the “steerage” experience was hands down superior to the retreat. The retreat areas are lovely but try as we may, we could not get a drink on the sun deck and our room steward was just ok. Luminae was crowded and loud and hot. In contrast, we had a eagerly attentive cabin steward in “steerage” who made sure we never wanted for anything. We enjoyed the flexibility of picking our dining room and the venues outside retreat were excellent. We were so astonished by the contrast that we booked a follow up cruise on Beyond, also in “steerage”. I guess it just proves that no two cruising experiences are alike…which is why we should all take reviews with a grain of salt.

I’m not sure I understand. Celebrity regularly has items in the cruise planner priced differently per region of the world in which the customer is making the booking.

Yacht Club is the only way to go on MSC in my opinion. So glad you had a great experience! And yes, the word is getting out as reflected in the increasing prices...still not as high as Retreat though.

Not to mention the 3% cc fee that is also passed along to the customer. The other day DH and I went into an ice cream shop and each got a cone. The little tip box you mentioned popped up...10, 15, 20% were the options...for the 30 seconds it took to scoop a cone! More and more, I've gone back to paying in cash for this very reason. Hats off to the young people behind the counter hoofing it to earn a little extra spending money...but I push back on the excessive tipping culture. I would never remove the auto grats on my cruise no matter how bad things got. Like you said, it's part of the cost to cruise. Not sure why removing the grats even came up...

@Stem to Stern I’m taking my sweet mother on her first Celebrity cruise on this ship/itin in July! Like you, Reflection remains one of my favorite ships. Can’t wait to show her off to DM. Thanks for sharing your experience. I thoroughly enjoyed your pics and hope Captain Kirk is still on board when we sail.

How does one have the option to book AUD vs USD?

We were on the pre-inaugural of the Ascent last year and it was one of our best cruises ever! The crew were so excited to be on a brand new ship and service was exceptional. My thinking is that Celebrity are opening new ships with their best, most experienced crew as opposed to the other way around. We enjoyed it so much, we are also considering the maiden voyage of Xcel….DH just doesn’t know it yet 😂.

Welcome back to Celebrity! Would be helpful to know the ship. Facilities vary by ship and class. From Celebrity's FAQ's: Children ages 3-9 must be signed in and out of the Celebrity Youth Program. Children ages 10-12 are free to come and go as they please but are required to sign themselves in and out. Children ages 13-17 may come and go as they please.

If you get the Premium Access Pass (available in the cruise planner under WiFi), one of the perks is a waived room service fee for anything other than the continental breakfast mentioned by @1Virgo.

While I agree with your carpe diem sentiment, and further concur that Legionnaires has been around for a while, and that it is not spread person-to-person, it CAN be very worrisome for high risk persons, ie. the elderly and pulmonary challenged. Enough so that Celebrity saw fit to inform passengers on previous cruises as well as the one OP has posted about. Not sure why you object to other people's concerns about the risk, especially not knowing their individual story. I pray you are grateful not to have such health worries! Happy cruising! 😎

Happy Embarkation Day! Hope you have smooth sailing!

Wow! What a great day in Melbourne! Thanks for the Blu menu. Have to agree that the space looks way more intimate and appealing (to me) than Luminae.

And I answered the question. Which is why I was confused. Perfectly settled over here. Was genuinely asking bc I wanted to be helpful. Peace.

Whew! That’s high! It’s been before Covid since I was in the Haven and I’m sure we didn’t pay that. Sign of the times, I guess.

Bimini was one and done for us. The little island has a nice resort and is convenient for those in southern florida who want to get away for a weekend...There's the Bimini express which commutes passengers over the island for a very reasonable fare. We spent an hour in the very small resort casino and then headed back to the ship. Like many islands in the Bahamas, it's quite impoverished. Opening this up to cruise ships will hopefully stimulate their economy.