marieps

Then perhaps the buffet at 11:00. 🙂

Ponant does as well.

True, I had to wait til the very end to "enjoy" the sun. I don't know how the furniture was before, but it was only ok. Still, better then the horrible outer furniture we had in an SS on Summit courtesy of Kelly Hoppen.

We were in 8340 for the TA in October. The room is great and the porthole window is huge. The pole was not an issue for us. Best side depends on the itinerary and whether you like sun or shade. You didn't mention where you were sailing. The rail of the balcony is not private, but toward the glass door you can lay out "naturally" with no issue.

Weekly? You're lucky. I get at least 3 per week.

I received an email immediately that by benefit request had been received, but never got an email that it was approved. After making another payment, my new invoice showed it was approved. $250 for a 17 night TA on Insignia. You can always shop for shore excursions and see how much credit you have. As an aside, very happy to see the share price is nearly a dollar above my basis. Took a while. Speaking @PhD-iva 's language here!

DW and I each use the passport photos taken at AAA in 2021. There's never an issue. Perhaps we are outliers. We used them on Connie, Reflection, EQ and Silhouette.

Thanks for a very positive review. We were on Connie's first voyage post Covid and thoroughly enjoyed it. Perhaps we'll snag on of those aft AQ cabins on Deck 11 one day. Aft stairs and lifts set M class apart, IMO.

Don't forget about breakfast in Blu as well.. Faster than MDR and more relaxed than the OC. No lunch, though.

For us AQ is about Blu, access to the PG and since we sail forward with no overhang, proximity to the Solarium, Spa Cafe and Fitness Center. This is regarding S class, of course.

I love it when a CCer backs up his/her post with a clear and no nonsense foundation. Props.

No more of that gross room temp tea either. Yay.

We buy an annual specifically for the medical evacuation. So sorry for your circumstance. As an aside, Elite is worth a bag of laundry and a few drinks, which mean nothing if you're on the package. The points aren't what they used to be, IMO.

You have a sauna in the locker room as well. Connie is not updated so the PG is quite dark and small compared to the S or E class.

October we were on the Silhouette TA in the corner aft on Deck 8. Before that Equinox 2022/2023 holiday cruise in the same room, though it's a different number. Eq had a butler, Sil did not. The attendant was awesome but still not a butler. We've dropped back to AQ for cruises on Eclipse and Silhouette in '24 and '25. I have not heard butlers are returning to SS. Hope they do.

We've been in one on Silhouette and Equinox. A long walk, but the room is lovely. No more butler, however. Would not pay for it again except for Silhouette since she's fully Revolutionized.

Not true on E Class unless something has changed. No problem on S and M classes. You can get escargot, however. At least we did on Edge.

We did Silhouette's TA last October and our Bermuda stop was our best weather day. Lots of folks on the beach. IMO the port side rooms, catching southern sun during the crossing, would be preferable.

We are on Ponant 2/2/24 which has more than 100 people, but still does zodiak excursions to shore. I agree a sail by does not compare to what we expect to experience.

This sounds great. We're on her TA in August from Tilbury. I'm sure there will be plenty of crew turnover by then but it sounds like the culture of the ship is very pax centric. Thanks for a very positive review.

I had an issue with the depth of the pool on Riviera. Too deep to just stand and converse with fellow passengers. Everyone had to hang at the edge. I prefer a variable depth. JMHO.

Is the risk about wind or someone able to throw them off the balcony? Did they explain?

Linda, we smell what you're cookin'! That's southern for "totally agree."

Thanks for your review. It sounds as though you found value in the SS, even though the room is not really the star. We never saw our head butler on our last SS cruise in October. I'm very glad for you that you were happy with Luminae, especially since ordering from other venues on E class is a no go. Overall I view this as a very positive post and should quell some of the fears of those who've read such negativity here of late. Glad you're back safe and hopefully rested.

If you are open to an AirBNB or VRBO, there are several in the S. Kensington area. Quick walk to the Tube and from there you can get anywhere. The tube offers contactless paying...meaning you tap your chip-enabled credit card to get on and off. Just remember to use a card w/o foreign transaction fees.