marshacruises

LB_NJ: The best reason to prepay is to pay a lower amount IF the amount of gratuities goes up between the time you book and the actual cruise. The gratuities did go up shortly after we booked our upcoming cruise and we had pre-paid the gratuities. Between the two of us, I think we saved around $50 over the amount we would have paid if we waited to pay at the end of the cruise.

So many things to consider: Is the $500 per person or for two? (that would make it $250 per person if it is for two passengers) Is this a 7 day or 14 day cruise? (That would make it $71.43 per day if it is for 7 day cruise, or $35.71 per day if it is for a 14 day cruise, then you would actually divide that in half if the original $500 was for two persons). Can you get a better location in a concierge than any of the available veranda cabins? Is the size of the concierge cabin larger than the veranda cabins? Does the special lunch on embarkation day of any value to you?

I checked from the USA at 12:44 pm EDT on August 28, 2023 and found that the list for the classic package shows "Non-Alcohol: Non-premium bottled water, premium coffees and teas, and soda" after a list of the list of wines that are included. Celebrity has one of the most confusing websites, often changing what is covered, how it is covered, how much it costs, you get the idea. I have started making a copy of what I purchased, such as the list of the included beverages for the package and dating it then putting it with my cruise documents to take along.

We are on The Solstice that leaves Vancouver for Honolulu on September 22, 2023. Our stop in Maui has been changed to a second day in Kona (an overnight). We will be stopping at Hilo for a day, then Kona for two days then on to Honolulu for disembarkation on October 1. This was done pretty quickly, and I would think that they might have to make different arrangements for each cruise since they have to work with ports that have already been booked years in advance. At least we will be in paradise!

I got an email today from Celebrity offering upgrade from the Classic Drinks Package to the Premium Drinks Package for $9.99 per day per person. They do add the 20% gratuity to that, so the upgrade would cost you $9.99 times the number of days for your cruise plus 20% gratuity. Everyone 21 years of age and over in the cabin does have to upgrade. We decided to go ahead and upgrade just to avoid the hassle of trying to figure out what drinks are covered by the Classic Package. The usual upgrade cost is $20 per day plus gratuity, so this is a deal, I think it is good for just a few days. In answer to your question about wine, asking what is covered by your package usually works. I have also started asking if whatever my favorite wine (currently Eroica by Chateau Ste Michelle-Dr. Loosen) is covered by my package. Sometimes, the sommelier gives it to me even if it is not on the "covered" list. Of course, they do get a nice extra tip at the end of the cruise.

Leyland 1989: This happened to us last spring for an April cruise. TWICE! We called Celebrity and the first time, we got a very helpful person who saw what the problem was and took it off of the account. I went onto our account the next day and printed the invoice showing that the suite and the premium package for drinks, wi-fi, and gratuities was paid. A couple of weeks later, the same message about owing a balance came up on my account. The second time we called, we got a representative that insisted that we did owe the balance, despite the fact that I have the original invoice as well as the one from the correction a few weeks before. After a very long time (maybe an hour of conversation and being on hold) the representative did correct the problem... I would check the account every day after that to be sure there was no recurrence of the balance due message. I also made sure I had the name of the representative each time, so if there were to be a problem when we were at embarkation, I had the history of the problem, a few extra sheets of paper but worth the peace of mind. Enjoy your cruise.

You will be charged the difference between the $10 allowance under the classic drink package and the actual cost of the drink, plus gratuity on the difference. If you order a $20 drink, you will be charged $10 plus gratuity of $2. One way around some of the upcharges is to order a single drink, rather than doubles, I have seen a lot of people order double martini or scotch and pay the difference, rather than just ordering a single drink, then ordering another one when they finish the first one.

The more amazing thing is how difficult it is to get the information you want from the Celebrity Website! I just tried to figure out the cost difference between the regular wi-fi that comes with the All Included Package and the Premium W-iFi package on my cruise in September. After going down many wrong rabbit holes of useless information on the website, I think I might have the right information...but I still put a question mark next to it on my list of information. I know I can get the information by calling and waiting on hold for Celebrity's representatives, but I wanted to have some idea of the cost before making some other costly choices for the cruise, especially since I will be trying to give my husband the information before we make any choices.

Directly from the Celebrity website, under compare drinks packages, it shows the beverages included in Classic Drinks (listed right beside the photos), Premium Drinks (listed on the far right), and Zero Proof Packages (listed at the bottom of the page): Drink Packages TYPE OF DRINK CLASSIC PACKAGES PREMIUM PACKAGES Gin Beefeater Gordon's Praire Gin Bombay Sapphire Hendrick's Plymouth Star of Bombay Tanqueray Gunpowder Liqueurs and Cognacs Campari Galliano Hennessy VS Kahlua Licor 43 Ouzo Sambuca Romana Southern Comfort Tia Maria Baileys Irish Cream Chambord Cointreau Courvosier VSOP Disarronno Amaretto Disarronno Velvet Drambuie Godiva Remy Martin VSOP St. Germain Aperol Rums Bacardi Captain Morgan's Malibu Myer's Wray & Nephew Bacardi 8 Años Brugal Flor de Caña Pyrat XO Zacapa 23 Bumbu Rum Tequilas Teremana Blanco Don Julio Blanco Cazadores Reposado Teremana Reposado Don Julio Reposado Patrón Reposado Patrón Silver Ghost Tequila Vodkas Absolut and flavors New Amsterdam Smirnoff Tito's Belvedere Chopin Christiania Ciroc Snap Frost and Flavors Grey Goose Ketel One and Botanicals Pearl Reyka Whiskeys Dewar's White Label Famous Grouse Jim Beam Johnnie Walker Red Monkey Shoulder Seagram's VO Aberfeldy 12 Bulleit Bourbon Chivas Regal 12 Dewar’s 12 Gentleman Jack The Glenlivet Jack Daniel’s Black Jack Daniel’s Rye Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Johnnie Walker Black Johnnie Walker Double Black The Macallan Lumina The Macallan Quest Maker’s Mark Rittenhouse Rye Wild Turkey Woodford Reserve Cocktails A large selection of classic cocktails made with Classic Beverage Package spirits Craft cocktails, large martinis, and long drinks, all made with Premium Beverage Package spirits Wines A large selection of wines from various regions around the world, including California, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Argentina, Chile and Australia. Champagnes and favorite wines such as Conundrum White and Red Blends , Decoy Cabernet Sauvignon , J&H Selbach Riesling Kabine, Mouton Cadet Bordeaux Blend, and Edmeades Zinfandel. Beers Budweiser Bud light Coors Light Corona Franziskaner Heineken Kirin Kirin Light Miller Lite Moretti Michelob Ultra Newcastle Brown Ale Strongbow Cider Anchor Steam Blue Moon Blue Moon Haze Dogfish Head 90 Minute Grolsch Guinness Kronenbourg 1664 La Fin du Monde Leffe Blonde Rouge Peroni Lagunitas Ale Terrapin Luau Sapporo Sierra Nevada Stella Artois Topo Chico Seltzer Non-Alcoholic Juices Sodas Non-Premium bottled water Premium coffees Premium teas Acqua Panna water Evian water San Pellegrino Premium coffees Red Bull and Editions Vitamin Water Premium teas Bottled Iced Teas Soda Spa Café Fresh Juices Zero Proof Cocktails, Frozen & Non Frozen Disclaimer: Includes alcoholic drinks up to $10. Does not include Smoothies or Aqua Spa Fresh Juice. 15% OFF wines by the bottle. Disclaimer: Includes alcoholic drinks up to $17 and those of the Classic Drink Package. 20% OFF wines by the bottle. ZERO PROOF PACKAGE Acqua Panna water Evian water San Pellegrino Premium coffees Red Bull and Editions Zero Proof Cocktails, Frozen & Non Frozen Sodas Premium teas Aqua Spa Fresh Juices Bottled Iced Teas Vitamin Water Select Your Country /content/dam/celebrity/miscellaneous/nav-project/country-language-icon-white.svg

Yes, it is about how to make reservations, and you usually can do it on the Celebrity App.

If you are using the Celebrity App on your phone, you might be able to do it there as soon as you get onboard. I was able to book specialty dining from my phone faster than talking to someone at the restaurant. If that doesn't work for you, then the above posts have given you several good options.

Our September cruise has two large groups scheduled. For a while, there were no cabins being offered, then the final payment was due...and the groups had to make the payment or release all the cabins that they had put aside for them. Now there are a lot of good cabins being offered by Celebrity's website. This might be what has happened with your cruise. I found the names of the groups (Cruise and Crop and Abraham Hicks) on the Cruise Critic Roll Call for our cruise, and on a social website that also has a roll call for our cruise (not sure if I am allowed to name the site on Cruise Critic). People who booked with the groups would post a question asking if there were any other (whatever group) were booked.

When I started looking at a September 2023 Hawaii cruise in February, I found that no suites or Aqua class cabins were available. I thought that that was odd, but then later found out that two groups are going to be on that cruise. I got the group information through the Cruise Critic Roll Call and another social media roll call. The groups get to hold onto the cabins until the final payment is due, then they will turn back in any unsold cabins because they don't want to have to pay for them. I am predicting that a number of unsold cabins will become available after the final payment is due. In fact, Celebrity is not even offering the September cruise on their website. I presume they will offer it again when they get the unsold cabins back. Best of luck with getting the cabin you want.

We had this happen to us twice on the same booking. We booked a cruise online directly through Celebrity after the "balance due date" so we paid in full when we booked it. I always keep a copy of the emails and online receipt for payment in my computer's travel file and am glad that I did. After about a month, we got the first email saying that we owed over $6000US, so we called and the Celebrity representative apologized and got the balance due back to $0US. Then we got another balance due email two weeks before the cruise. The second Celebrity representative was snarky, saying that we must owe for something and kept leaving the line to check something else. I got the feeling that he was not a Celebrity employee but a contractor who had no idea of what to do. He also never apologized for our inconvenience. When he finally got the balance back to $0US, I pointed out to him that he did not apologize or treat me with the same respect and curiosity that I usually get from the Celebrity representatives. He still did not offer any apologies. Oh well, at least we got the balance due taken off. I did print the most recent statement showing that we had paid all and put it into the folder I take on trips just in case there was a problem. I sure did not want to arrive at the terminal and find that we could not get on the ship since we had not paid some balance. My advice, give Celebrity a call this coming week, be prepared to spend a lot of time on hold since they are closed an extra day for the holidays, and have had a number of specials offered this weekend.

Thank you for offering your experiences and opinions. Since we used the nonrefundable deposit (saving over $1200) and this is the cruise we really want to take, we decided that the groups should not be a big problem for us. I really appreciate that each of you were willing to share your thoughts.

I found out about the groups from joining the Cruise Critic Roll Call for our specific cruise. I also have joined another (not to be named) social media group for this cruise. I have learned a number of details about the cruises I scheduled from just reading or asking questions on those sites. The people who mentioned this cruise asked if anyone on our roll call was with their specific group. There was also a post from one of the scheduled Beyond the Podium speakers.

No, it is not the EQ. It is the Celebrity Solstice September 22, 2923. Have an enjoyable cruise!

I just found out that there is a group on our scheduled cruise in September. The group is Abraham Hicks. I have never heard of them and just wonder what to expect with the group on our cruise. I have been other cruises where there are groups and have had only one unpleasant experience where the group would try to kick people out of bars or other areas, saying that they had reserved the room/bar for themselves. We found out from crewmembers that it was not true. All other groups were usually in the theater or other areas that don't have any other "public" events scheduled at the time. I also have learned a lot from the members of the groups when we would be seated near them, it has been a learning experience too.

I suggest that they join the Cruise Critic Roll Call for their specific ship and date. For our cruise in September, there was a post from the man who is going to be presenting the "beyond the podium" from his experiences with the NFL, and other topics. Something for us to look forward to and it helps the presenter gain a bigger audience since we know to look at the schedule to find when and where he will be talking.

We were on a ten-day Caribbean cruise with a group that took about half the ship. They all worked for a company in Europe that paid for their cruise. The group had the attitude that it was their ship and would try to kick people out of public areas and bars, saying that the area was reserved for them. We verified with the bartender or other crew members that the area was not reserved for a group. They were only onboard for the first half of the cruise, when they were disembarking, a lot of people who were staying for the rest of the cruise were at the rails waving good-bye. I think a lot of them were glad to see them leave (and a lot of the crew seemed relieved too). The second five days of the cruise were a lot nicer. Suggestion about finding if there are any large groups on the cruise: Join the rollcall for your cruise and ask the question on that board. There are also other media areas that have groups for your cruise where you can post the same question. So far, on my next cruise this fall, we have found that Abraham Hicks group and a crafting group have set aside a lot of cabins. When the final payment is due, they will turn back any cabins they (the groups) have not been able to sell.

A number of years ago, on a Cruise Critic posting about chair hogs, one person posted his solution. He would move items from two chairs to another two chairs that had been "reserved" by another chair hog and move the items from those two chairs to a third place. He then sat in the original chair with a friend and watch the other two sets of chairs, to see what happened. I picture the original poster as a tall and fit person who could easily intimidate anyone who would confront him. It did make me smile to think that the other inconsiderate and rude people were inconvenienced in having to search for their stuff.

Ferry_Watcher: I don't show two staterooms on my account. I did sit down and try to figure out where the $6401 came from and found that adding up the discount for second guest (at the time it was 75% off second guest, offered in a mailer addressed to me personally) and a couple of smaller discounts offered in that same package, the total was $6401. It was just an error on the part of Celebrity where the special code for the package was deleted at some point. But the same error was made on my reservation two different times! I had to call and spend a lot of my time trying to get their error fixed. That is what is so frustrating. I have worked in customer service for most of my career and understand that mistakes can happen. The sign of a good company is what they do to fix the error. Thanks to everyone who has posted about my post. I hope that maybe someone in Celebrity who cares and has the authority to fix the problem sees this.

Reading several responses to my post, makes me think that the best way to be sure that you don't have any problems at embarkation is to check the Celebrity website every day, verify that they have your reservation correct, and call them if they don't. It means that you are spending your time and energy to make sure that Celebrity does not spring any surprises on you. I had not gotten any emails from Celebrity that I still had a balance due, I was just checking on making dining reservations when I saw the balance due on my account on the Celebrity website. I keep hoping that Celebrity someday gets their computer programmers to understand how the company works and figure out how not to have so many "glitches". They would start to save money on not having to hire so many people in the customer service department, and have a lot happier customers.

I have read the other post (Final Price Increased...), and see that they have not yet paid the final balance, so that is different from my situation because I paid the total amount when I made the reservation. But it does seem that Celebrity is having trouble with the computer system. Again, no surprise there, since there are a large number of posts over the years about the Celebrity computer system. Still, we passengers should not have to keep calling, waiting on hold, then talking to different people to get the problem solved, when it is Celebrity that is responsible for the error/problem. Thanks for the comments from Cruise Critic's helpful and friendly posters. I have printed all the paperwork from Celebrity's emails, and website, showing that my balance has been paid, and I owe $0.00. If I run into a problem, when I board on April 7, I have a paper trail to prove that I paid in full.

I made a reservation online on February 15, 2023 for a cruise on April 7, 2023. I made full payment at the time I made the reservation. My credit card showed the charge on my account that same day. Celebrity sent three different emails to me, showing the total for the cruise, the amount paid, and the balance owing of $0.00. Twice since then, Celebrity has posted that I owe another $6401 for this reservation. I have called twice and spent over three hours total (on hold and waiting for the representative to figure out what was causing the problem, and how to fix it) trying to get the problem resolved. Today, the representative was not very knowledgeable about the problem, and was not at all apologetic for all the time and effort I had to put into getting Celebrity to fix a problem that I had not caused. If this were my company, I would hire and train people to be apologetic for problems and to fix the problem without making it seem like the customer was in some way to blame. Has anyone else had problems with being charged by Celebrity even though they had fully paid the balance?