TheHawk1

Yes, by all means, encourage people to break the rules before they've even boarded. Why not just tell them they can also smoke on their balcony, hog a sun deck chair with just a towel for hours and wear flip flops in the dining room. Celebrity provides boarding times for a reason. People should stick to their assigned time.

If that were actually true then Cruise Critic would cease to exist.

Interesting that the deadline for her responses was today and a lot of questions were left with no response, particularly in the first couple pages of thread. Interesting she chose to reply to the most recent questions first and ignored many of those who submitted early in the process. The whole thing seemed like a pointless exercise in marketing.

I would put that under the negative column.

Don't presume to know the motivation for other people. For those customers that have had a lounger on a particular cabin category in the past, whether suite or SV, there is a reasonable expectation that this would continue for future cruises. Not a fad at all.

Hmm, I'm not sure some self serve ice cream would be enough to have me overlook the typical passenger behavior on a Carnival cruise: https://cruise.blog/2024/07/passengers-banned-after-large-fight-breaks-out-carnival-cruise-ship

I guess it RCI wants to write off the generation with the most discretionary income, that’s their choice. Millennials and Gen Z can’t even afford to buy a house, so not sure they will be spending a lot on future cruise vacations. Only time will tell.

The cruise planner site was glitchy yesterday for sure. Trying to book some of the July 4 advertised 35% off amenities and many of the choices wouldn't load into the shopping cart.

I think just the opposite. Using both of the new Oasis class ships on short cruises limits the available options for longer cruises in that class, which is my favorite (been on all five). While I might consider a Quantum class cruise on the right itinerary, I have no interest in the older, smaller ships that Royal now wants to pawn off on the 7+ day cruising crowd. There's a reason I have three upcoming reservations on Celebrity E Class ships and none with Royal... this!

I usually look forward to booking a cruise on the newest Royal ship, but not this time. No interest in a short cruise to nowhere with a party crowd. RCI is literally wasting their newest asset on a potential customer demographic who may or may not ever return again, rather than serving their long time loyal customers. Makes no sense to me.

Lesson learned for next time for sure.

I don't believe there are any amenities there, e.g. chairs for rent, so a little more roughing it. But my reliable sources tell me that's why it's quieter.

Or perhaps, someone who has never had a balcony with a lounge chair doesn’t know what they’re missing, so they don’t know that they should be causing an uproar? I think Celebrity is just playing the odds.

That's what I thought. We've heard that Celebrity is monitoring the online debates regarding the removal of balcony loungers. Now they decide to send out an email marketing campaign specifying saving me a lounger? Coincidence? Sure, they'll hold a lounge chair for you. Just not in any location where you'd actually want to use it... like on your own private balcony!

Lucky you. It covers all the main islands in Greece, compared to some of the shorter sailings. There are still some cabins left, but for that long a cruise I would prefer a junior suite with more space. Will have to wait until November and see what’s available for 2026 (probably at even higher prices).

There is a great 12 day Greek isles cruise on Odyssey in Sept. 25, but most of the good cabins are sold out. I'm hoping they repeat this itinerary in Fall 2026. I will be the first to book.

Thank you for empathizing. Surprisingly, it was a female taxi driver. Maybe if we'd waited another hour, she might have returned. But it was after 2pm and our ship left at 5pm, so didn't want to cut it close. I've since talked to other people who visit Grand Cayman regularly and they advised us to find a taxi to take us to Governor's beach next time. A lot less crowded and touristy and therefore less prone to people trying take advantage of visitors.

Here's the thing about this endless circular topic, it doesn't take long for the pitch fork mob to start saying "go somewhere else if you don't like the rules" or the tired trope of "just put your big boy pants on and follow the rules". However, it has been my experience, thankfully, that the people who comment on this site are usually not representative of the typical Celebrity customer. Why is it that accountability for maintaining decorum in the MDR only rests with the men on board? I've seen many women wear a dress or skirt so short that it barely qualifies as an article of clothing, yet no one bats an eye. But let a man show a little knee below his "dress shorts" and the hysteria around how this will be the start of anarchy in the dining room is over the top. It's the hypocrisy of this double standard that is the most galling.

Hugo Boss shorts for example, which cost more than most of the tacky jeans or chinos that some people here want to promote as being the only acceptable attire.

Trust me, I am special 😂, although I'm certainly not out to flout any rules just for the sake of it. But let's be honest, an MDR on a cruise ship is not five star dining. It's more akin to a chain restaurant, albeit with a few service frills, to make you believe it's upscale. Having people adhere to anachronistic dress guidelines in an otherwise bourgeois restaurant is just Celebrity's way of coddling a group of passengers who are still stuck in a bygone era.

I wish the fashion police would stop telling people who don’t like the dress guidelines (not code) to go and eat in the buffet like they’re the hired help. This is a cruise ship, not some British period piece like Upstairs Downstairs.

I did this Med itinerary two years in a row, first on Wonder then last year on Symphony. Loved it both times. I think this class is the perfect size ship, except when it comes to port access. I wish RCI could find some other ports in that part of the world that would allow them to dock Oasis ships at, because the route they have now would become too repetitive to cruise more than a couple times.

Looks like the Celebrity lounger police raided your balcony too. Maybe for an Alaskan cruise, it isn't a big issue.

Just checking that it's the notch (indentation) on the deck plan that shows the location of the bed? That's why 15608 has bed closer to the balcony?

I booked an SV on the Edge two years in advance for an Australian cruise. Less than a month later, they were all sold out. You have to be fast to get one of these cabins.