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prmssk

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Everything posted by prmssk

  1. Number 7 still talks about Suites have double deposits which has been replaced by the link @RosieRoo posted however, there isn't even a mention of whether you can move the deposit so it doesn't give us clarity. The point of my comment is that I don't think anyone on this thread has reliable information as to whether you can move a suite deposit booking made after June 1. Written materials are silent and Celebrity reps are contradicting the old written materials.
  2. There would be no more complaints about inferior cuts of meat...... When I read food complaints, I often wonder if my lack of eating red meat makes a huge difference in how much I still enjoy the food.
  3. They will have a great time on Celebrity. At 4 and 6, they are likely too small to take advantage of all the activities on Royal Caribbean and Celebrity still has a great kids' club. As someone who cruised as a child and who cruises with my niece and nephew regularly, I personally think the water slides, zip lines, etc. matter a lot less than people think. Sign them up for the kids' club, bring things they enjoy to do for quieter times (books, writing/drawing utensils, etc.), and then take them to interesting places and they will have a great time.
  4. Considering at least one of those FAQ is already out-dated, I'm not sure it is any more reliable than Celebrity reps.
  5. Do you have more reliable information you can share? It appears written materials aren't very clear, unless you can point us to something that is more clear. So we are left with what Celebrity reps are saying, which I agree is not always reliable, but until someone has actual experience or they clarify written materials, we really don't have anything else to go on.
  6. They appear to be holding back reservations for holiday sailings to much closer to the cruise.
  7. It all depends on how quickly they can clear the ship of the previous sailings' passengers. The earliest I personally have been able to board is around 11:00 a.m. but it is often closer to noon. I wouldn't necessarily change your time though. It's not an issue if you are a little late and depending on lines, it can take some time to get through the security line and check-in.
  8. @Static events I'm sorry you had such a terrible cruise. Even with all that did not go well, I hope you found ways to enjoy your vacation. One thing I'm seeing across all the lines we have sailed since the restart is inconsistency. So what you experienced on the Silhouette is not necessarily what you would experience on a different Celebrity ship with a different crew and chef. The same is true for RCCL. Overall, I personally still think Celebrity is a noticeable step above RCCL (with the exception of entertainment on RCCL's larger ships - Celebrity can't compete with the entertainment budget for a large ship like that) but that doesn't mean any individual sailing on Celebrity will be when noticeably better when comparing to another individual sailing on RCCL. I suspect the inconsistencies is because of the sheer number of inexperienced crew (a lot of experienced crew found other jobs during the pandemic) and the number of vacancies still to be filled. And I'm not sure suppliers on land are in any better position.
  9. We've done 10 cruises since the restart - 3 on Celebrity (Constellation and Eclipse), the rest on Princess, NCL, Royal, Carnival, and even one on Margaritaville at Sea. And although I enjoyed every one of those cruises because that's just what I do when I am out on the ocean, Celebrity keeps rising to the top for me. The buffet was night and day better on the Celebrity ships than any of the other cruise lines. Celebrity handled my dietary restriction so much better than Princess. We had excellent service on the Eclipse just a couple of weeks ago with one of the best stateroom attendants we have ever had and an excellent waiter/assistant waiter team in the MDR. Service in Luminae on the Constellation (especially for their re-start cruise in November of 2021) was top notch. And even with the inaccuracies in the menus in the app, the app actually works. I can't say the same about all my cruises on other lines. I will continue to try them all as I do think there is value in other lines and variety is the spice of life but even with the cutbacks and challenges since the restart, I am still happy with the product Celebrity offers and it will still be a line I lean towards when choosing cruises.
  10. Of course not and I recognize some things are out of Celebrity’s control but I think it is a very understandable complaint especially for something that hasn’t been working for many cruises in a row. And there may be something they could have done in the design and build process that would have been easier to maintain or provided a backup.
  11. I have a bit more understanding for the helipad which I agree was built for crew and really just an extra bonus sometimes. On the other hand, the Retreat Deck is space built for passengers that Retreat guests are paying for in their cruise fare. When it was built it should have been designed such that they can maintain consistent access for all Retreat guests.
  12. Or spend your first days interviewing passengers so that by lobster night you have compiled a whole table of passengers who won’t order the lobster for themselves! (Just make sure none of them are severely allergic to shellfish or they may discourage you from ordering it.) 😂
  13. Generally, no as most hotspots can only share a cellular connection, not a wi-fi connection. But there are some exceptions to this depending on the device you are using and what you have set up. It does not work with iPhones.
  14. If you purchase the basic or premium plan outright, once you board, connect to the ship's wi-fi and then a screen will open to create an account. The wi-fi plan you pre-purchased is tied to a specific passenger so just make sure you enter that passenger's cabin number and details when you create the account. The username and pin you create during that process is what you use to log in to the internet. And if you use it on more than one device, it will just ask you if you want to log off the other device each time you try to log in to a different device. A voucher may require doing something different to upgrade.
  15. There's an interesting change on Celebrity's page about wi-fi packages. If you click on "Compare Wi-Fi Packages", there is a footnote at the bottom of the chart which says "Basic Wi-Fi only available with eligible "All Included" rate or guests that purchased Basic WiFi before June 1, 2023" You may not be able to buy the basic internet package after today. https://www.celebritycruises.com/things-to-do-onboard/onboard-packages/internet-and-phone-packages?fbclid=IwAR0jfFdlnp2uNi5_DP7QJlVYxjNeQtRCOpkzBD2ziFNE3xqcWuECnwJ59pM
  16. Summit has been revolutionized whereas the Eclipse has not. The Eclipse is a larger class of ship so has more dining options, a larger martini bar, Celebrity Central, the lawn with glass blowing, etc.
  17. In my experience, when you see the “Amazing Experiences Coming Soon” statement, you are too early and nothing has been released yet for your cruise. For my last cruise, I believe I was making dining reservations about 6-7 months out which you are almost at.
  18. With a prior sale earlier recently, I had success by calling the captain's club line. I have heard a few others have success by calling the captain's club number. The answer seems to be pretty consistently no if you call Celebrity's general line.
  19. When did you book? This was the policy for bookings prior to March 2, 2023. Then they eliminated the option to get FCC.
  20. When the press release/information came out on the change earlier this year it was supposed to be effective for all cruises booked March 2, 2023 and later. When you try to book a cruise, if you read the fine print, it also references the March 2 date. So personally, I don't suggest anyone booking a non-refundable fare if they aren't okay with fully losing their deposit in the case of cancellation.
  21. A refundable deposit is fully refundable. The official policy now on non-refundable deposits is that you lose the entire deposit. That said, many are still having success moving a nonrefundable deposit to a new cruise usually with a $100 per person fee.
  22. We always book non-refundable and I track prices. In most cases the non-refundable price increases (often significantly) between when we book and final payment. I've heard others mention doing what you are suggesting but I'm not sure that suggestion would have ever paid off for us. But maybe that is because we try to book really early.
  23. Just a heads up, the Xploration is a 16 passenger ship that doesn't have the same amenities of Flora and the Xpedition. Some love that very small group experience but I'm not sure it is for everyone. Also, in all I have read and interacted with others, it seems most do a cruise/land package for the convenience of the charter flight from Quito to the Galapagos. We are on a 10 night with 2 nights in Quito pre-cruise and 1 night in Quito post-cruise. They also have an 11 night package for 2 nights post cruise and a 16 night package which adds Machu Picchu.
  24. Those prices are actually pretty comparable when you consider the only cabins left on the Xpedition for that sailing are Ocean view cabins (no balcony) compared to Sky Suites with a balcony on the Flora. Our November Xpedition sailing has skyrocketed in price. An ocean view room now costs quite a bit more than we are paying for our suite.
  25. Correction - I was looking at those costs as per cabin but now realize they are per person rates which makes the AI even more insane. There has to be something going on with that AI fare as it does not seem at all right.
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