Nyhawkeye

Did one on RCL years ago and by the end of the cruise they had already started taking apart railings, moving furniture around, etc....  Won't do one again.

2 minutes ago, gerelmx said:

 

I don't want to cancel because I already have a notice of cancellation

Yes, I was also a bit concerned that it might mess things up since I had received a cancellation notice but worked fine and I avoided the long wait on hold.....

I had this happen recently and just went ahead and canceled the excursion on line so that the cruise planner would let me book a replacement.  I had paid with OBC and was refunded immediately even though the email said the refund would take 30 days,  I was then able to book a replacement that happened to be on sale.

We went to the fjords the first week of May and had a great cruise.  We were a few weeks early for the full thaw of the waterfalls but they were still great.  We took a full day train from Flam and had some heavy snow at times but it was beautiful.  Did a whole day of hiking in Bergen with heavy rain - a bit crazy at the time but a great memory.

7 minutes ago, IMswimmer said:

My friend filled in Solstice Cruise ship as local address and his evisa was denied. They wanted the seaport address. I wish they will and should make it easier for cruise passengers. 

Yes - I hope they can make the process easier considering the issues it can cause if done incorrectly.  I was worried after submitting that ours would be denied due to lack of seaport address.  Glad it went through but lack of clear direction is frustrating.  (never had a good breastroke so I guess that makes me FLYswimmer)

Received our evisas back - we used "Celebrity Solstice Cruise Ship" as our local address and selected the correct province.  Everything went through fine.  One interesting thing is that our evisa does not list the port of entry.  It looks like they have simplified the evisa some compared to samples I have found on line.

1 hour ago, PTC DAWG said:

Bridge cam or the routing map channel for me…these may be one and the same.  The ocean depth on the info always fascinates me.  

I watch the routing map channel each night before bed to see where we are located.  One morning they had a contest to see who could guess how far we had traveled so far on the cruise.  I think I was within 10 miles - won a deck of Celebrity cards!

Just now, Rick&Jeannie said:

Thanks for the reply...but this seems to address OBC...not FCC (from a cancelled cruise.)

Sorry - didn't read correctly.  Not sure on FCC....others will have to respond.

I normally go to "Plan my cruise" for the cruise I am interested in and verify that I see the correct amount of onboard credit listed at the top of the page.  Usually shows up pretty quickly after booking.

The e-visa seems to be the easiest approach if you are eligible.  This is the link -

https://evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn/web/guest/trang-chu-ttdt

Take a look at this post - most recent information I have seen.

I have a one year future booking as well and have noticed that X has gotten much more aggressive in trying to get these converted into a real booking.  I am sure it is a push for revenue.  I am just ignoring the calls, emails, etc....until I am ready to book.

48 minutes ago, mac_tlc said:

I wish Celebrity left more than one ship in the Caribbean from May - Oct. I’d love to see one in Port Canaveral. 
 

mac_tlc

Sounds like a new cruise terminal in the works for Canaveral - just hoping it is Celebrity!

22 hours ago, tschwa2 said:

I think this is because they are still in their covid error change policy.  I expect them to revert back to their $100-$150 penalty sometime in the next year.  

As far as the airlines, the main driver for eliminating change fees was the decline in business travel during COVID.  Business travel continues to be below pre-COVID levels so there is not as much need for price segmentation between leisure (change fees) and business (flexible) travel.  Moving forward we will probably see a growing price difference between "Economy" (change fees) fares and "Main Cabin" (no change fees) fares.  If the airlines continue to recover it will cost more and more to buy a Main Cabin fare with no change fees.

I personally feel that given the poor state of Celebrity's IT system that they just want to get away from FCC management as soon as possible.  The airlines struggled a bit in the beginning but now have pretty decent IT solutions for managing credits for future bookings.  Celebrity can also continue to tweak the premiums required for refundable deposits as needed based on business performance.

17 minutes ago, CruisinShips said:

I read this thread (and others like it) and continue to be amazed at how so many seem to feel what others wear impacts their own dinner experience.  We I dine out, I care about the person/people sitting across from me at my table, and the quality of the food and service.

 

I can't think of a time I  can specifically say "I like that restaurant; the food and service were impeccable, but if only that guy 4 tables away dressed nice it would have been a great night."

 

I also find it hard to believe that people who pay the money to go on a Celebrity cruise depend upon the dress of others in the room to make them feel like they are getting their money's worth.

 

I am not sure what I am missing here.

I think what you may be missing is that others may have a different set of criteria for a good dining experience.  I agree that the people, food, and service are important but for me the environment is also important - is it quiet or noisy, well lit or romantic lighting, and yes, is it a formal or informal setting.  I don't think it is so much a matter of getting your money's worth but whether the experience meets the expectations.  Celebrity needs to clearly communicate what the dress code is and then enforce it.  If they want to get rid of the dress code fine, then we can all make our own decisions.

11 hours ago, terrydtx said:

Oh, for joy another endless thread on dress codes, sitting back with my popcorn to enjoy the show.🍿

I do love the dress code threads - much better than the latest pictures of the salami in the OVC!

9 hours ago, Wakepatrol said:

The pork and beans are for the passengers that schlep two liter bottles of Dr. Thunder aboard

Nothing better than Diet Dr. Thunder!

My recommendation is not to wait for FBC to ticket the reservation if you have made final payment.  Just wait a couple of days after making final payment and call FBC to ask to be ticketed.  I did that for an October cruise this morning - no waiting time and I saw that the reservation had been ticketed immediately and I can now manage it through the airline website.

A while back I received a letter from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service which indicated that there was a tax issue that needed to be resolved and that I should call ASAP.  Tried a few times and just got a message that they were too busy to even put me on hold and was immediately disconnected.  Guess it wasn't that important!

Maybe just lucky but I have noticed that the wait times  have improved at Celebrity.  I normally call 1st thing in the morning and on the last call got right through to a representative.  They were able to help me but spent a lot of time reading pre-written scripts about upgrades, etc...and always seem to need to go on hold several times to accomplish any request.  A waste of time.

10 minutes ago, C4HCG said:

Me and my husband respect the MDR rule, to be honest we don’t think the restaurant is all that good anyway and being from the UK with the weather being far better over there he won’t pack trousers as he’s on hols. So the MDR rule doesn’t matter to us but the theatre (spelt correctly 😁) rule, get real, who sees when you’re sat down? Think I might start a new thread on that rule 👍

Oh - don't get me started on the people who go to the show in their pajamas and bring along a pillow in case they get tired. 😀

47 minutes ago, C4HCG said:

Genuine question so someone wearing shorts spoils your cruise experience? I get it’s breaking the rules but on our last cruise in May, people were turning up before their check in times, pushing in queues at bars, hogging sun beds, etc etc. Rules are consistently broken, seems dress code is the one that matters. Going to tell myself off soon for joining in the debate 😁

No - none of the things you mentioned will spoil my cruise experience.  What I don't understand is the belief that someone can do whatever they want as long as they feel that it shouldn't bother anyone.  Generally the purpose of having rules/codes/guidance is so we don't have to make that decision individually.

The first cruise I went on (many years ago) I was disappointed to find out that the pools and hot tubs were closed each night at 5pm as people were expected to be a bit dressier at night.  I guess I could have just removed the nets from the hot tub and jumped on in since it wouldn't bother anyone.  Glad that rule was eliminated 😀

9 hours ago, Redtravel said:

Why are lots of you getting upset with other people ignoring the dress code?  Celebrity obviously doesn’t care. Give it up and accept the new normal.  Celebrity is now a no dress code come as you are experience.  If you like it, great. You have found your cruise line. If you don’t,  then avoid Celebrity. It’s your choice.  Stop dictating what you want other people to wear.  

If this is true then Celebrity should simply update the dress code and people can make informed decisions on their choice of cruise line.  Right or wrong, people do choose specific cruise lines hoping for a particular type of experience.  We choose different lines and itineraries depending on if we are cruising with children, looking to tour a lot, looking to chill by the pool, etc...and the consumer should be able to count on the experience being as advertised.

I noticed the exact same thing when trying to prepay gratuities - just decided to wait and pay at the end of the cruise.

Anything more in the glass except gin, a hint of vermouth, and an olive then it is not a martini 😀

We submitted one a few weeks ago and received an updated invoice showing the OBC applied followed closely by an email saying it was rejected.  You really have to love Celebrity's systems!  I just spent it quickly on some dining in case they try and pull it back.