BettyLou260

4 hours ago, Beachlover1989 said:

 

Can I ask what kind of European adapter you use?  I haven't found one that fits in that silly hole for the European plug.

Here is a link to a pic of the kind of adapter I take. These small adapters won't support a heavy plug, but work well for a phone charger. 

If traveling with a group, a magnetic dry erase board for the door is great. That way you can leave messages for each other.

I like to take a Yankee Candle car air freshener, and keep it in the bathroom. It's small but does the trick.

I'm a shoe gal, so I bring a hanging shoe organizer to put in the closet. This keeps my shoes out of the way.

I take at least one european electrical plug adapter, and usually use that plug for my phone charger. USB chargers are all dual voltage,

I pack a stash of envelopes so I have them to use for tips at the end of the trip.

I also take a stack of ones for bar drinks, fives for porters, and twentys to put in those envelopes from the previous hint.

 🙂 

I have never been hounded for tips, although there have been pleas from crew members for 10 out of 10 reviews "if you feel our service was outstanding." I've always had outstanding waitstaff and cabin attendants, and so I do bring cash and envelopes on board to have should I choose to give a cash tip on the last night. On the most recent cruise, I tipped the waiter and assistant waiter, sommelier, and cabin attendant. I also bring a bunch of ones to tip for room service deliveries and drinks on occasion. All of this is optional and not required or expected. If someone goes out of their way to make my vacation special, I do like to show my appreciation with a tip. (On this last trip a bar I frequented started stocking diet tonic in anticipation of my drink order; I walked up to the bar and I got a smile and "Oh, we got you diet tonic!" Sometimes those little things go a long way.

I've used a case like this. It can hold a couple of sea pass cards plus a credit card and some cash.

https://www.amazon.com/WITZ-Surfsafe-Waterproof-Sports-Black/dp/B00022UDZ8/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1532274306&sr=8-3&keywords=waterproof%2Bcase%2Bfor%2Bcredit%2Bcards&th=1

I was on an Alaskan cruise on Millie last month; it was my 4th Celebrity cruise since 2015 and had fantastic entertainment; possibly the best I've seen on Celebrity. Duo Nico, an aerialist team, was the highlight with their amazing performance. We also had two nationally known comedians perform, and vocalist Ashlie Amber performing her "I Will Always Love You" show. Four fantastic shows, filled in with Celebrity's own shows. Maybe things are a'changing! High quality entertainment for sure.

My husband and I just ate at Sushi on 5 on Millennium last week. We had the classic drink package and were pleased to find a few of their specialty cocktails were on the classic package.

Ship: eg., Millennium

Cabin: 8067

Deck: #8

Class: Conciege

Area/Location: eg., Forward/Mid, Port side

Bed Location / View: Wall-facing

Quiet? Yes

Balcony View: Excellent

Balcony Size: Small, 2 chairs and a small table. No footstools.

Wind a Problem? No.

Soot a Problem? No

Problems / Comments: No problems, nice room. Couch is near the balcony; great for Alaska since if it's too cold out, you can sit on the couch and have a good view.

I bought "Bushnell PermaFocus Wide Angle Porro Prism Binoculars 10x50" from Amazon. They were around $40 and are pretty good for the price. I didn't want to spend a much, and these have been great on my Alaska trip. I read a recommendation somewhere on this board for them; you can probably find that write up if you search for Bushnell.

I'm on vacation in Alaska now. We arrived in Anchorage on the 6th and will be taking Celebrity from Seward to Vancouver on Friday. I got Oboz waterproof hiking shoes before the trip and I am very glad I brought them. They serve as my sneaker and hiker. They have great arch support, and as a result, I think my knees are holding up better than expected. They were extremely comfortable in the store, so so breaking in was not required for mine. My husband also got a pair of them, and he's been happy with them as well.

As far as getting everyone new shoes, that may not be needed, but I would definitely recommend everyone have something comfortable and well-fitting; and for the older cruisers, well supportive shoes are worth their weight in gold.Alaska is pretty walking intensive! Even if you don't hike much, you spend a lot of time on your feet.

My issues with the website disappeared when I started using Chrome instead of Internet Explorer.

Most of what I prefer about Celebrity has been mentioned in previous posts, but I'll list them anyway.

-Morning announcement only, and then it's quiet for the rest of the day. On our last Royal cruise, the announcements just didn't stop.

-Quieter pool atmosphere. There will be live music at times, but no "sexiest man" contests. The beach towels are nicer too, and you don't have to sign them out with your room card.

-Less of a mall-like atmosphere than what you will find on Royal. Oh sure, there are plenty of trinkets being sold, and sales to attend, but quite a bit less than on Royal.

-Reservations not needed for shows. No spectacular high dive shows, but there will be some entertaining shows. The best evening I had on Celebrity Constellation was watching the Liars Club game show. The Captain was laughing so hard he had tears streaming down his face. Actually I think we all did! It was memorable.

-The Mast Grill. Get a burger outside by the pool for lunch. Very enjoyable.

-Quiet spots to sit and enjoy. Those can be hard to find on Royal.

-Specialty coffees and pastries from Cafe al Bacio. It's embarrassing to say how many lattes I can drink in a day.

-Frozen Martini Bar top. It's fun, it's frozen. And the martinis are pretty good too.

-Drink stations and beach towels near the gangway on port days. Celebrity makes it pretty easy for you to get a drink before you leave the ship on port days. I really appreciate that.

-Elevators that aren't usually very crowded. Now there are times it can get crowded, but most of the time, we don't have much of a wait at all. On our last Royal cruise, very often full elevator after full elevator would stop at our floor, we resorted to going down in order to go up.

I've been on Oasis, Allure, and several Celebrity cruises, including on one Equinox. Equinox would be my first choice for a vacation with my husband and friends; RCCL has been our choice when the kids (college age) come with us. It really does just depend on where you want your money to go. I thought the cruises on Oasis and Allure were pretty pricey, but it does cover all the entertainment. If you spend the same amount on a Celebrity cruise, you will get a few perks (drink package, onboard credit, or prepaid gratuities) thrown in for a similar cost. I did really enjoy the shows we saw on Oasis; the next year I was not so enamoured with the shows on Allure. We did enjoy the comedy club, Jazz club, and diving shows on the Oasis class ships and it didn't feel super crowded unless you were on the pool deck during mid-day.

We did cruises with the kids on RCLL in 2015 and 2016, then on Equinox with my husband and a group of friends 2017. We didn't miss the lack of elaborate shows on Equinox at all. The entertainment was a little more low key but it was enjoyable; we could always find live music to enjoy somewhere. (My husband did miss the roast beef sandwiches from RCCL's Central Park Cafe, man are they good!)

We stayed in 9382 on Equinox as part of a large group; we had all aft cabins on that deck except one sky suite and 9303. We really enjoyed it; as did our friends in 9307. I agree with the above recommendations to avoid being right below a public deck. Enjoy!

I felt the quality of room service breakfast was as good as the dining room, but since it's delivered to your room, it gets to room temperature pretty quickly. I agree with the above comment about ordering all the extras, such as cream for your coffee and butter for your toast. Also be sure to fill in the number of people, so you get more than one set of silverware. I also order something extra, like a banana or yogurt, so I have a snack for later. We are sure to clear off the coffee table in front of the couch before bedtime, so it is ready for the room service tray. I just love eating on the balcony, so I don't mind if the eggs have cooled some. If I remember correctly, you can get small danishes, croissants, english muffins, bagels, muffins, as well as toast. I think we too stay away from the toast since it does cool off quickly. My favorite CC breakfast is a mixed fruit smoothie, eggs with asparagus and sausage links. I'll be cruising in one month...can't wait. Although I'm not sure if we will be eating breakfast on the balcony in Alaska!

I agree with the above post. While my husband and I prefer Celebrity, we took our college-age kids on a Royal Caribbean cruise. The Royal Caribbean ships tend to have a lot more to do for the young people, such as rock climbing, zip line, surfrider, just to name a few.

SHIP: Equinox

CABIN #: 9382

DECK #: 9

CLASS: Concierge Class C1

AREA: Aft Balcony near center of ship

BED NEAR: balcony door

QUIET?: Yes

BALCONY VIEW: Lovely Aft view

BALCONY SIZE: Oversized. Larger balcony than the cabins on either side of it.

WIND A PROBLEM?:No

SOOT A PROBLEM?:No

PROBLEMS/COMMENTS:Optional connecting with 9307. Balcony dividers can be opened up in you have a group with adjoining cabins. Great room, would book again.

I was just on the Equinox. The worst "chair hoarders" were near the pool, in the shade, and in the cabana's for two. More than once I did see staff members collecting things that were left unattended for too long and freeing up the spots.

I was on a cruise from 3/13-3/24. We tried to take Uber from the Reniassance on 17th St to the cruise port but the driver said he wasn't allowed in the cruise port. We ended up taking a van from the hotel.

We went on a family cruise in June last year and we had the (adult) kids in the 3 person ocean balcony room and my husband and I had a Central Park balcony room. We were on deck 10. My biggest complaint with the Central Park balcony was lack of a breeze when sitting out there during the day. I did enjoy the music at night, but the lack of a breeze made it pretty hot out there. Maybe there is a breeze higher up, but not much of a breeze on 10.

As for breakfast in the MDR, we found the lines longest around 9:30am. They had two lines for seating, one for the buffet and one for if anyone in your party was ordering off of the menu. The quickest option was to be seated for the buffet, and then the line for those wishing to order off the menu was pretty quick if you were willing to share a table with another party. You will wait longer if you want your own table. We loved the MDR breakfasts. Even my high school and college age kids would get up early enough to join us for breakfast in the MDR. Usually one of us wanted to order off the menu, so we would agree to share a table with another party if the wait for your own table was too long.

If you want to keep your 7:30 reservations, your server can help you get out of there quickly. Just going heavy on appetizers and salads may work, and you can always stop by the WJ after the show for a snack if you are still hungry. :)

I was on Oasis last summer and could get Pellegrino at every bar and most eating establishments. It was always in a little bottle, and if you are near a pool they want to put it in a plastic goblet. Just tell them if you don't want ice. I prefer mine without the ice. It's easy to drink before it gets too warm.

We were on Allure of the Seas with our teens, and this was the first cruise for everyone in the family but me. We thought there was something wrong with the elevators, because several times we tried to catch an elevator, the doors opened and then immediately shut before we could jump in. Later in the cruise, it happened again but I was (rudely) waiting right in front of the door (I was prepared!) and quickly jumped in and held it open for the rest of the family. At the next floor, when doors started to open and a lady standing right next to the elevator panel pushed the button to close the doors. Mystery solved. :D

Even later in the week, we got on an elevator that already was transporting a man in a scooter. The next stop was his, so we stepped off to allow him to exit. A large family pushed past us to get in the elevator and when we tried to get back in, they told us to wait for the next elevator. My husbands, reply was "Oh, don't worry, we will fit." They were visibly upset. :evilsmile:

Some of my favorite drinks to get on a cruise: Dark and Stormy (dark rum, ginger beer, lime or orange slice); Beach Flower (club soda, Tanqueray, St Germain, lemon slice. The bartenders don't usually know it by name but will make one.); French Martini (vodka, Chambord, pineapple juice.)

We've been on two different snorkeling trips in St Maarten, the first one was the "Tiki Hut." It was well run and the equipment was fine. The second one was a snorkeling trip via boat, and the snorkel location was just off Maho Beach. This is right off the airport runway and the approaching planes are really close. My husband is a pilot so he really enjoyed this snorkel trip, even though we had significant waves to deal with due to a storm. This approach is famous. I recommend either of these two excursions!