Jim_Iain

I'm along for the ride. Look forward to reading of your experience. Loving the photos of Singapore.

Ok for my final post - I sought the help of Open AI - ................ We are at last home from your long cruise to New Zealand and Australia. We had a great time, and our journey was a euphoria. We sailed through the vast ocean, and saw the beauty of the sea, The waves, the breeze, the sunsets, and the horizon so free. We explored the lands of Kiwis and Aussies, and their culture so rich, The food, the music, the people, and the landscapes that bewitch. Now that we’re back, it’s time to celebrate the festive season, With our loved ones, our followers, and everyone with a reason. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all who followed our Live Post, May your days be filled with joy, love, and a warm eggnog. May the new year bring you peace, success, and prosperity, And may your memories of this cruise and your upcoming cruises last for eternity. Thank you for following our journey. We look forward to more adventures, more travels, and more glory. Happy Holidays!

Well it is time to wrap up this Live Post. I wanted to thank each and everyone that have been along for the Journey. I've enjoyed our conversations and enjoyed hearing from many that contact me directly. I often hear from folks that are uncomfortable posting on Celebrity due to the attacks and remarks from some posters. I hope my live reviews feel like a safe place where any and all polite comments are welcomed We arrived yesterday around 9:00 AM to beautiful Blue Skies and mild temperatures. I did get 8 hours sleep on the plane but was still suffering jet lag. I took a 1 hour nap around noon and barely stayed awake until 9:30 PM. I came down with "Cruise Cough" the day before the end of the cruise and it only got worse during the flight home. I knew it was a matter of time before we caught it as people were hacking and coughing throughout the ship and on all the excursions. I took a TheraFlu (Nighttime) before dead and was in shock when I awoke and looked at the clock. It was 10:30 AM. Iain of course greeted me with "Good Afternoon", I was going to check if you were still breathing, He then confessed he had not awaken until 10:00 himself. I did my short walk (5 miles) this afternoon as I didn't want to push it. I'm feeling really loopy and disorientated but that is common of Jet Lag. I wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

oops.. Typo -- Solstice was not revolutionized. She still has no Retreat Deck and Original Michael's Club. I'm not disappointed at all as I like the Michael's Club in the old Club Like Paneling.

Look forward to your remarks and experience. Go Vols!

Great to hear. I never saw them working on the Magic Carpet and happy it is back in service. It is a nice way to board Tenders. Curious. What time and day did they move from the terminal to the anchor location in Sydney Harbor.

Merry Christmas to you also. One day we may get to see your beautiful Norwegian Fjords, Covid got in our way last cruise we booked there and ended up spending 10 days in Lymington UK instead.

I have really been enjoying the new iPhone. It is incredible with low light photography. Just have to learn to hold it steady and it pulls the best frames and creates a very usable picture. Like you I always have a couple batter packs with me in my DayPack. Somehow I didn't pack one and had to buy a new Day Pack in Singapore. A couple days later I noticed it had a USB connection from the inside package to a pocket on the outside. Makes it easy for charging. The iPhone 15 really runs hot and burns the batter quickly when shooting.

I hope you have a wonderful Xmas and New Years. We will be thanking of you.

Duckhorn is a very well known winery in Napa Valley - They purchased their first 10-acre property in St. Helena in 1976 named Marlee's Vineyard after Dan's Wife - Marlee. They now own 40 Wineries. Theirs is an incredible journey - 1978 was the first production of Merlot under Tree Palms, that year they also harvested Cabernet Sauvignon for Stag's Leap and Howell Mountain. It was not until 1979 that they released their own labeled Merlot. It was not for another 20 before they opened the Duckhorn Tasting room adjacent to Marlee Vineyard in St Helena. Prior to that they were only doing tastings by appointment only. They grow grapes for many of the smaller vineyards and have a great portfolio.

Hope you have a wonderful cruise. New Zealand was far more amazing than I had even dreamed. Make sure you check the weather - I usually google each port and month to get a good average of temperatures. Be prepared for windy and cooler temperatures but again they can often change over night to hotter and calm weather. Many Kiwi's have told us, If you don't like the weather just wait.

Wonderful to hear. Curious which ship and itinerary is your next cruise. We are next on Solstice (revolutionized) with the old Michael's Club. We sailed her last year and love her. My expectations are once again high.

Gracie - Thanks for your recommendations. Now that I'm home I will explore our next cruises. Like I said earlier - I only have 3 cruises booked with Celebrity. Two of those are in April of 2024. I have never had so few cruises booked..... I really trust your judgement and recommendations so Oceania will be on our short list.

With the exception of the end of cruise survey we have never been asked our opinion. I've not heard of any Zenith's that have been sought out for feedback other than that passed on during conversation to Staff. Zenith's do have the opportunity to get the ear of Chief Officers and at lunches and gathering. Having said that, the feedback I get from other's is they usually listen and then just give the company line. I haven't seen it ever makes a difference as the decisions are made in Miami.

I hope you have the opportunity to post about your experience. To be honest this is the first time I remember about being negative about a Ship. I try to always be upbeat but felt like I had let myself down by being such a whiner. I look forward to having a much better experience on Solstice in 3 months. Time to get planning.

Hi, Wondering how they were "Fixing" this for suite guests? As you know we are both Zenith and Retreat guests. While on Edge - things were really confusing. Prices were in USD of course but listed with an up-charge of 20% to cover gratuities. I understand it has to do with Australia / New Zealand requires prices to be all inclusive. I never saw an explanation of what the Max Premium Price Limit was. Some had to fight to get over charges removed I don't drink but do advocate for those like Iain who do drink. I met Laura at the Zenith at lunch and when she asked her canned introduction - "What amazing memories have we created for you on this cruise? " I responded there were far to many negatives that positives. She was concerned and asked me to explain. I as a gentleman, I answered this isn't the right time or place to go into detail and would write her upon return home. I will be including this as a minor point.

Interesting -- I did notice that the boilerplate has been update - Our Retreat Butler and Team Hmmmm.... Just coming off Edge in a RC - I can definitely confirm they do not take reservations in Luminae. The MD did give us his personal number and said to call him and he would call us when a table was ready. We often asked the Retreat host to call down and say we were ready for dinner and could the call when a table was ready. Even once called we usually had to wait a minute or two while the setup the table. This is both good and bad. It is good for those that arrive and are waiting for a table an see an empty table to know someone else is getting it. Bad if they call you and you expect the table to be ready.

Well it’s almost 10:00 and time to try to get some sleep. 💤

Of course my favorite desert is an Ice Cream Sundae built to order.

Dinner Time. I always set destination time before take off and beginning living new time. 9:00 pm dinner time. We preordered I ordered the beef brisket. Now if United can serve a hot meal that is tasty and hot both in the center as well as the plate. Why can’t Luminae. It was tasty. I don’t drink but here is the wine list and of course no up charge. Noticed they had Whispering Angel that many have been speaking of. Also Duckhorse on the cart but not on menu’s

got to airport quickly. United Business have a choice of either Singapore or Air New Zealand lounges. We chose Air NZ Had a light snack of Tea Sandwiches, Scones, Jam and Cream. Boarding was quick I chose 5L and 7L as Seat Guru and some travel site recommend them as the seat is close to window as opposed to close to isle also has a double window and good foot area. Douvet and Blankets by Sacks 5th Avenue

We went to Retreat around 8:00 and were immediately escorted to the gangway. They had called walkoffs and earliest busses. The terminals was set up like Disney with back and forth lanes. Took approximately 30 minutes to get processed through immigration. We booked a 9:00 am Uber and when outside the terminal in a light rain our driver texted saying he was running early and could see we were already at the pickup location and would immediately head our way. He arrived quickly. I noticed Ubers were plentiful but the Taxi ranks had lines of over 100 deep

Lura was out and about. We know some that approached her in the Theater and MDR. Most passengers were very respectful as she is officially on Vacation with her Husband. I heard many reports of her being in Retreat for drinks but we are late diners and generally don't arrive in Retreat until 7:30.

Will have to check them out when I get home. I haven't been in the planning mood. I did purchase 2 Future booking certificates for a total of $400. If not used they are refundable.

It is 12/21 at 7AM and we are sitting in Sydney again. It is starting as a grey day as we sit here sipping coffee and having a light breakfast. We had a wonderful farewell dinner with a friend in Luminae last night. We were the last out of Luminae and had one of the best nights of the past month. I must say many of the recent discussions of late were part of our discussion. We booked an Uber to pick us up at 9:00 AM in front of the City Cruise Passenger Terminal - for those interested the address is 110 W Circular Quay, NSW, 2000 - The cost to Sydney Airport is AU $52 or US $35.53. I know they do charge a little extra to pre-book but after seeing the queue's a couple week ago though it was prudent. On a side note. When David and Robert departed a couple weeks ago they went to Upper W Circular Quay where there are shorter Taxi lines. David was fuming that they charged a $15 surcharge while the airport only charges $5. I don't know if they charge a surcharge downstairs.