newbiewaves

Checked our travel insurance for delays and are covered for 12 hrs +............ the delay time Barbados to 'Gatwick' in the TUI letter 11 hrs 34 mins......................... Insurers say to claim off airline up to 12 hrs, not holding my breath.  There is also no procedure to cover the real overall delay of flying to a different airport then coach to the correct one before having to drive home. We were supposed to arrive at Gatwick 5 am 21st got there 6 pm got home after a meal break at 11.30 pm.

However lucky to have the cruise and to get home before Xmas!

We had a guy called Taylor (?) i think. The in-house singers and dancers were ok and did the usual mix of music from musicals, movies, moulin rouge French theme night etc. Sadly some performers were reluctant to crack a smile or seemed to be on an out-singing or out-performing each other kick. Costume changes were impressively timed.There wasn't one show we wish we hadn't attended and competition fierce for good seats.

Would also suggest having some light beach wear in hand luggage even if leaving early just incase there is a random hold up. Hopefully 'Gatwick' will not happen again but when a few extra hours extends into a day being able to make the most of the weather helps. One poor chap on our delayed departure spent all day in his gala frock coat suit (too heavy for luggage)

Our outside cabin on deck 2 worked on euro 2 pin but had to be an adapter with a hole for the third pin which was in the ships socket so you need an adapter that allows this. There was a socket at floor level another by the dressing table which was enough for us so we didnt use any multi plugs. There is a hairdryer and a kettle wired in and switched. The TV has several channels but around the Caribbean it can be random what is shown so dont rely on that for entertainment. Getting Sky or BBC World news was often a bonus. There are 2 in-house movie channels but frankly with the amount of ship entertainment we never watched them even with 6 days transatlantic.

Ship and shore internet is also hit and miss so try going cold turkey 🙂

Must-haves are pegs to hold towels on loungers, empty drink containers to take water ashore. If doing several ports of call they didn't mind rolls and food from breakfast taken as packed lunches so food plastic bags useful.

Ample storage space, cases under beds, no 'magnetic walls' no way to decorated door for Xmas our one 'sticky' snowflake walked frequently (thanks guys...) Plenty of new water dispensers around and glass carafes for water in cabins. Free washing machines including powder and dryers. No washing line in shower room. Hand wash soap dispenser and shower gel dispenser in shower.

This is a lovely friendly ship but still expect the scourge of early lounger bagging on sea days and the 'best spot' bagging in the Broadway sometimes up to an hour before showtime....

Bring clothing and footwear larger than you expect as cold feet in shoes in the UK encounter the shrinking shoe syndrome when they dont fit on the cruise as naturally it isn't your hot swollen feet and ankles 🙂 plus the opportunity to eat 24/7 unless you dare leave the ship.

Do be aware of the Celebration shudder/vibration which can double as a slender tone treatment in rough seas so those more movement sensitive may find they need motion solutions they may not have needed on other ships.

Main criticism is the food.....too much....too good.....omg.

Can help with more q's once the nightmare return trip to Gatwick aka Birmingham has subsided. 🙂

Posting this due to relevant title...just a heads up that the 'Jeep and Beach' trip in St Lucia is a nighmareish bone shaker and only suitable for young thrill seekers with a desire to stare at trees in a rainforest dank and full of biting bugs when they reach the top. The roller coaster ride back down takes in a no through road/road closed route where half the road had fallen away over a precipice but the drivers sideways flare sees him through. Then fight your way through the bank of chargeable beach chairs for a 45 minute glimpse of beach bliss at Rodney Bay. We expect this trip to be modified after our groups white knuckle ride...

<crawling to the keyboard>   Yup the 'Gatwick' passengers joined the Celebration in Barbados guess 3 am ish. We had to leave the ship at 11 pm having last seen our luggage at 2am that morning. A 'short' stay in Barbados until 12.15 pm became an all day affair which would be great if you kept swimming stuff in hand luggage! Still the drink flowed and food filled up all day and evening! We were told we might get away at 2 am 'ish' but luckily some facilities stayed open at the airport. The place was full with the Gatwick and Manchester passengers. We finally got away at 4 am ish landing at 3 pm only we were sent to Birmingham which was handy for those near there unless they were parked at Gatwick like us! Then on to coaches for a 3 hour drive then a 3 hour drive home to Devon terra firma.  Give Tui their due they coped well with a logistical nightmare on top of our out bound to fog bound Malaga! Manchester passengers had the double whammy of their plane being stuck at Gatwick and some busing to Luton........ It was strange however to get our hot meal on the plane at just before 5 am our body clock time...when we just needed to sleep.....

cheers the shower gel was the main thing 🙂

Memory fade...can anyone let me know what toiletries are included in cabins on Celebration? With tight weigh i dont want to lug shower gel or shampoo if i dont have to.  Many thanks in advance. (Urgent sail Friday 🙂   )

We got together with others from our ship returning currency and made up the minimum exchange amount.

After a period of poor email communication we finally got day pass details from the Hawksbill Resort Antigua. For the benefit of others they are now charging US$40 per head for 12 noon til 4 pm then you need to arrange your own taxi transfers.  For 2 that gets a bit expensive for the extra bonus of using their pool and loo as on AI can eat and drink ourselves silly onboard.  Seems they haven't increased prices but are reducing hours...

Decided to do a ships excursion which at least can be varied with the weather...

ah ok we are on 7-21st Dec finally booked mostly ship excursions just in case....

how has it changed?

ooooh thanks muchly Kerry....new astro turf and sun loungers!...given have only found about 4 other people going on my cruise so far we will be in the lap of luxury lollllll

Lol yup be a bit daft if they left their own passengers behind!  Ports of call are a different matter though where there is some advantage to booking ships excursions for peace of mind they will wait if you have a stressy nature (like me)

As long as its ready for our transatlantic on 7th December all nice and shiny 🙂

Are you thinking about booking the speciality restaurant for New Years Eve? or just 'whenever'?  We were on the Dream for Xmas and New Year (eve day etc) and NYE they did a gala dinner with sittings in the Orion MDR with great atmosphere. For Xmas day i think we were seated in part of the Kora la restaurant' so maybe not open.  The other premium restaurants are quite small and by the pool deck so for NYE there may be comings and goings as they prepare for the festivities there. Sadly cant remember if they were open that night. Booking on board for the restaurants at other times shouldnt be a problem they are always touting for business.

Hi if the flights are part of the cruise then the ship will not go before everyone arrives. Cruisers seem to get whisked through customs on arrival and off on the coach before you can catch breath (Jamaica) as your luggage goes straight to the ship.

Steaks would be available at the premium restaurants (extra charge). Food wise when we were on the Dream we were spoilt for choice and you can check out the main menu and the buffet then decide...maybe gently nudge him into expanding his menu 🙂 Lunchtimes he can always have a burger lol  Think cider (strongbow) is available if you are on all inclusive you should be ok.

Personally I would switch to deck 3 then you are between relatively quiet decks.  We only had choice of decks 1 or 2 for December and took a 2 outside midships. Previously we were below the card room on Dream so quiet. Also depends on the cruise demographics as cant say our Xmas cruise in 2016 was full of noisy people keen on losing cash in the casino.....plus you will have mostly British passengers and less Americans hoping for Las Vegas stakes...not saying we are tight but....lollllll

Oh and we arrive Malaga 17.25 and it says ship sails 18.00! and 'latest ship check-in time is 2 hrs berfore sailing' erm....okay.............

Do you mean your cruise terminates on Christmas Day? in which case bit of a b&4mer, do you know if the next cruise starts that day too? in which case the emphasis might be for the evening meal for them.  Maybe you will get a buck fizz at a special breakfast? Usually kicked out cabin at 8.30 am but can use facilities until transport to airport but with a possible changeover anything special at lunchtime might be tricky? Can you check with TUI?

Yes if you are not that fussed about cabins waiting can save money. We weren't sure about a holiday this year and checked around pricing a cruise and other options. When in Sept finally deciding on a December cruise the price had dropped, A1 was then included and the cabin was now an outside included! It also went down a bit more after we booked. Then prices changed yet again however the airport changed and A1 was extra which brought the price back to more than we paid. timing is a key!

Oh forgot to mention several passengers take some little bits of Xmas decorations for cabin doors (and inside) which can be a great help finding your way back especially after 'celebrating'. 'Clingy' stick on decs are great for that.

We were on a Dream cruise Xmas Day and New Year 2016/17. The ships make a great effort to decorate around. The Xmas Day meal was equal to a gala/dress to impress and we were given sitting times (normal meals were eat when you liked)  they put on a typical Xmas meal and we had crackers and decoration on the table, there were balloons around and the staff wore Santa hats. OH did wear his DJ and wasnt out of place. Cant remember day time but it was an at sea day so lots of eating and drinking

🙂

As we dont get chance to dress up much we do like to make a bit of an effort on the special nights so i took 2 long dresses then several evening looking tops for trousers/skirts. Men get off lightly with a smart suit or dj couple smart evening shirts and tie/dickie then shirts and long trousers for evenings.

There are always those however that think shorts and polos are fine whilst their women sit done up with gritted teeth (not Xmas day tho think captains gala)...

As one of the very few passengers on this ship on 7th December after the transatlantic our first port of call is Antigua. Having had 2 long holidays there before I am familiar with the island.  My dilemma however is whether to do the ships Catamaran and lobster lunch excursion or a DIY taxi/ day pass to a resort like Hawksbill in the hope of a bit of snorkeling and collapse on the beach. Sadly although a Sunday Shirley Heights is off the menu as the ship departs at 7 pm.  I have also done a longer catamaran trip around Antigua before however as a 'stresser' the ship organised excursion whilst slightly more expensive may be more relaxing despite the urge to simply collapse on terra firma.

So has anyone gone to Hawksbill recently / experience of the reliability of taxis in Antigua  (there are some historical forums) or done the lunch trip?

Luckily there are resources like the ports of call on CC or Tripadvisor as well plus you can check what other ships are in port same time as you to judge the competition for any DIY trips.  We did find that when our trip in Belize was rained off the tour touts at the port would only do tours they wanted and not necessarily the place you wanted to go. (dont recommend wandering around Belize much) Check also the hurricane impact on your ports as some places have lost the shade cover in storms. We have booked TUI Caribbean tours on the islands we are not familiar with purely for peace of mind and no stress. Despite having been to Antigua twice i have found it impossible to even contact my chosen hotel for a day pass after the initial email exchange they now bounce! My reasoning is that there is only a short time available in port and if you want to do anything other than collapse on a beach the tours are a good bet for organisation and safely seeing the best parts and no worries re delays or refunds if plans change.

eek i will be unpopular then if no sauna on board... what plug type is needed for a UK 3 pin to plug in to please?