jamacka

On 11/23/2018 at 3:59 PM, Turtles06 said:

I almost forgot to mention one of the most fun things that that Sue and her staff organized for us -- an ABBA sing-along/dance party in the Sky Lounge late one night.  The place was packed and it really was HUGE fun. 

 

A few months ago, we took our first Holland America cruise.  We chose it for the very unique itinerary, and we really enjoyed it.  But I have to say, it could have used some ABBA sing-alongs in the evenings.  😜  

 

We had the ABBA sing-along back on a cruise on the Eclipse with Eddy Jenkins as cruise director.  It was a hoot then too.  I think they could have replayed the video/playlist and the crowd would have gone through it all over again.  We were thinking of other popular musicians they could do that sing-along with.  Maybe Elton John or Queen?  

14 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

Since you quoted my post and repeated your remarks about not "unlashing" balcony furniture that the crew have tied down, let me repeat something I said early on:  the furniture on our balcony was NEVER tied down.  Not ever.  

 

As for spray, of course we had spray.  We were in the middle of an ocean with 30-mph winds or higher.  But in terms of the seas, this crossing was just not that bad.  It wasn't.  The issue was the wind.

 

 

Sorry, Turtles.  I wasn't sure who set up their furniture and who didn't.  I didn't mean to assume in any way.  Ours wasn't lashed down either but is was folded and all intertwined with the table and crammed in the corner.  But I did see photos somewhere.. maybe not this thread... that showed the fancier suite furniture actually lashed down with ropes, like the way they tie down the loungers and furniture up on the pool deck etc...  I know some balconies were physically lashed down and other were like mine where it was just flattened and jammed in the corner. There may have been some that wasn't even folder down like ours was.  I have no idea.  Lots of balconies out there.     I also read in some post (either here or in a different topic) whee some people took it upon themselves to set it up before they were given the "all clear" to do so.  My comments are directed to them.   My apologies if I got you dragged into it.  

And I absolutely agree with you.  In spite of what the reported seas were, it was not a bad crossing.  I only saw a few people with the seasickness patch on the first few days and it really didn't affect the numbers of people lined up at the buffet or making the best of their drink packages.  It could have been so much worse.  It wasn't the best cruise I've been on but as far as the actual trip is concerned, I had no problem with the crossing myself.  

6 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

I was on this TA as well (our 6th),  and we really did not have rough seas the whole way, and certainly not "8 full days of seas 10 feet and higher."  What we had, on a sustained basis, day after day, were very high winds. We had some rolling the first couple of days as we crossed west of the Bay of Biscay (known for its rough weather), but after that, the seas were just not very high.  I've been in far rougher seas, but I can't recall a cruise where it was so windy day after day, that the outer decks were closed so often.  But the seas were not a consistent problem.

 

A few photos taken during our crossing from Southampton to Boston (Nov. 3-11, 2018):

 

Nov. 4:

 

Nov. 5:

 

Nov. 6:

 

Nov. 6 chart:

 

Nov. 7:

 

Nov. 9:

 

(photos by turtles06)

Location might make a difference as far as getting spray on your balcony but it means absolutely nothing to the crew members who make the experienced and informed decision on when it is necessary to secure the balcony furniture.  Just because it looks okay out your window doesn't mean that hell isn't breaking loose elsewhere on the ship.   And a busted stabilizer or a mechanical breakdown in the engine room can change the water on the beans pretty quickly.   We've all heard stories and seen videos of cruise ship that have mechanical breakdowns out in the middle of nowhere and furniture and people inside are literally flung from side to side.  When the Master of the vessel says to lash down the furniture that order applies to everyone on board.  On a cruise ship, the captain is boss of everyone, even us. 

 We did have two days when the forecast was "only" for 8 foot swells.  That was Nov. 6th and Nov 10th.  And remember, a swell is different from a wave and depending on the direction the swells are moving will change how the ship will move within those swells.  Sometimes on our crossing the seas were following so they may still have been high but didn't seem it because we weren't crashing into them.  The video I posted earlier with the spray reaching our balcony was Nov. 5th.  We had 16 foot seas that day.  The photo Turtle posted  from Nov 4th. doesn't look all that bad but that was the day we had 20 foot seas.   Nov. 10th was another day when the noontime forecast was for 8 foot seas but that night we passed through a cold front and it was perhaps the wildest night we experienced the entire trip, at least from my location on Deck 6.  That was the night the spray went higher than deck 7 and it was so windy and blowy outside we seriously worried that our balcony furniture (which the crew restored for normal use) might end up on top of us on bed.  we thought about folding it up and stashing it back in the corner as the crew had done earlier but after seeing the height of the spray and the fury of the wind out there we thought we'd better just stay inside.  There was ice on the deck outside when we arrived in Boston.  

4 minutes ago, NeverStopLearning said:

Great shots.  Love the staircase.  In some places that kind of character is known as "termites" .  

 

 

 

 

Here are some photos of the procession. The procession is entering off the street into a complex of apartments within multiple open courtyards.

The band played at the back. In the enclosed space they were quite loud. Everyone was having a good time singing and dancing.

 

 

 

 

A shot of one of the staircases that I thought had a lot of character.



 

42 minutes ago, jimbri said:

Good morning.  I have what may be an odd question.  I have never taken a TA but hope to one day.  What determines a southbound or northbound?  Is it the original port the ship leaves from or it's destination or something else.  Thanks and sorry if this has been explained before.

I think it's more a case of westbound or eastbound.  But within those eastbound and westbound cruises there are southern routes  that going south of the Azores and northern routes that just go straight across.  The cruise in question with this discussion was a westbound TA that was suppose to take the northern route directly from Southampton to Boston but because of the weather it took a southernly route below the Azores from Southampton to Boston.  The extra length of the route added an extra sea day to our crossing so we were a day late arriving in Boston.

Hey OP, I fully understand your comments and I understand that it's difficult for people who were not on the cruise to appreciate it. We had never been on a TA before and coming from Nova Scotia, a province in Canada that sticks out into the North Atlantic, we know all too well what the weather is like in November.  We were well aware it was still hurricane season and we were well aware it was the beginning of Atlantic winter storm season.  That means nor-easters can develop overnight off the eastern seaboard and move up the coast and out across the Atlantic, which is exactly what happened on our cruise.  We were very apprehensive about the weather, so much so that we actually anticipated a change in itinerary and didn't book any activities anywhere.  We had all the right clothes and had plenty of books on our Kindle for a weeks worth of reading inside our cabin.  BUT..... I ask about other people's experiences on Atlantic crossings in the fall here and in other forums and most of the people who responded described the Atlantic on their crossing as being "a mirror" and "like glass".  Nobody who responded had experienced a change in itinerary to the extent we did because of the weather.  

How do we know this crossing was slightly out of the ordinary?  Well, Captain George too the time to post a nautical chart of our altered route compared to what would have been our original route and he included charts for weather systems, wind speed and wave heights for every single day of that  cruise and the entry to the Ocean View Cafe.  I have never been on a cruise before where these charts were made available for public viewing and where the new charts of each day were so highly anticipated by the passengers.  I took pictures of these charts every day.  Nov. 4th we headed into 6 meter swells, or about 20 feet.  That's a two story building.  I am willing to bet that even an "ocean liner" like the Queen Mary ll would have lurched a bit in 20 foot seas.  There was never a day from Southampton to Boston where we had seas that were less than 10 feet.  That's 8 full days of seas 10 feet and higher.  I don't care how many cruises a person has been on, 8 days of +10 ft seas is not typical for a cruise ship.  And then of course, after New York we were right back out there on the way to Bermuda when we had two day of 6ft seas which by now were small potatoes.  The Captain, of course, being an experienced seaman, understood that it could have been a whole lot worse had he stuck with the original route but he knew that it was unusual enough for *passengers* that he chose to take the more southern route.. which was still rough compared to those whose previous experience had been "a mirror" or "like glass" but it was far from being too rough to handle.  I think Captain George deserves a lot of credit for keeping the ship as stable as it was considering we were in 20 foot seas.  It certainly didn't slow down the crowds in the Ocean View Cafe.

To those who undid their balcony furniture on their own, I have to emphasize that if the crew feels your balcony furniture needs to be lashed down or secured because of weather, then we passengers should respect that and not set it up on our own or ask the cabin attendant to do it.  As I said earlier, on deck 6 the spray from the waves was *over* our balcony and the day before Boston it was over the balcony on deck 7.  Waves are unpredictable and a rogue one can strike the ship at any time, sending a wall of water onto your balcony when you least expect it, driving you and your unsecured furniture through the glass of your cabin window and into the room or if a problem occurred with the stabilizers the ship could list unexpectedly, pitching you over the side or again slamming the furniture into the glass.  It is incredibly risky to take it upon yourself, second guess the expertise of the crew and set up your own furniture without permission.  It is lashed down for a reason.  

Hey, it's me.  Looks like you're having a great trip so far and your little camera definitely takes amazing pictures.  Keep it up and keep posting and updating.  We're looking forward to hearing and seeing all about it.  Have a great trip and don't forget, if you get wifi, you can use Google translator to communicate.  Most restaurants offer free wifi and often cruise ports also have available wifi.  Wifi on the ship may be spotty and unreliable (if what the folks on our recent cruise were experiencing is typical)

On 11/21/2018 at 2:47 PM, Turtles06 said:

......After a couple of days, we simply turned our balcony furniture upright and used our balcony. 

 

From where we were, unsecuring our balcony furniture would have been risky.  We were deck 6 in the bow, port side.  For much of the trip the swells were coming in at an angle to hot the bow on the port side.  There were times spray from the bow went higher than our balcony.  The attached video was a nice enough day with the sun shine but it was not exactly balcony sitting weather.  The evening before we arrived in Boston the spray reached at least as high was deck 8.  It was absolutely wild.  B then our balcony furniture had been set up and we were afraid that is could come crashing through the glass doors any minute, but we were too afraid to go out and try to lash them down.  Now, none of that spray made a direct high on our balcony but if it had, it would have hit like a wall of water travelling about 18knots.  That's enough to knock a person off their feet and drive them and the balcony furniture into the glass doors.

I would love to see any pictures of what the waves looked like from an ocean view cabin.  There must have been times when those windows were underwater.  I imagine it was pretty noisy too.

On 11/21/2018 at 10:45 AM, cangelmd said:

..........If you planned on sitting in the Library reading, you needed to stake out a spot by about 8 am. ......

Everything you said is accurate.  Being able to get outside would have made a big difference... but Celebrity had no control over the weather and I do think Captain George took care of us and the ship in a most responsible and prudent manner which I really appreciated.  

I have a point to make about the library and the Hideaway.  The chairs in those locations are much sought after but for some reason people take their books to fall asleep there.  People are free to do what they want, I understand that, but we couldn't figure out why people didn't just stay in their cabins to read or return to their cabins when they felt they were getting sleepy leave those high demand chairs for the next guy.  We read (and napped) a lot in our cabin.  It was quite nice and enjoyable.  We'd fix a nice cup of tea of hot chocolate, hunker down under those cosy plaid deck blankets on the bed, and read or watch a movie ... and subsequently fall asleep.  I highly recommend it. Curled up on your own bed under a cosy blanket is a far superior way to have a nap than sitting the a chair, snoring with your mouth hanging in plain view of all the people going up and down in the elevators.

2 hours ago, Nana57 said:

We will be sailing on the Reflection in a few weeks. Do we still get tote bags in Conceige or have they discontinued them?  I remember on a previous sailing a few years ago they were good quality. Also, do they sell Apple iPads on this ship?

We got tote bags in Verandah Class last week on the TA on the Silhouette but they weren't the fancy ones we usually get in AquaClass

I kind of like the filet at Tuscan.  But honestly... the best meal on the ship is that fresh stir-fry station in Ocean View.  

On 11/21/2018 at 1:51 PM, sippican said:

That is interesting. Xpedition did have a brief refurb this fall, I was not aware there is another scheduled for next year. With the Flora coming into service in May, I wonder why they would wait until fall.

We are onboard presently, and it seems that those on deck 4 are reporting upgraded beds. I am wondering if they have  “other plans” for the current deck 3 cabin space. Eliminating those cabins would pretty much account for the decrease in passenger capacity. There is little evidence of other improvements onboard, other than better internet. Parts of the ship are definitely looking tired.

It has been stated that pretty much the entire crew is moving to the Flora.

The agent at Future Cruise told us about the refit and the requirement to reduce capacity.  We liked the idea of being on a fresh ship but didn't think to ask when it would be taking place.  We did a little snooping on the Celebrity site and it seems that there's only about a week where the ship is out of service I think around the end of summer (northern hemisphere summer).  Not sure how much can be done in a week.  It might just be moving the crew up from the bowels of the ship and giving them the lowest deck of ocean view rooms.  However, we're booked into cabin 602.  It's a verandah cabin on Deck 6.  There's only 3 cabins up there and the two other than ours are suites with forward facing balconies (the larger, which is across the hall from us, also has a side balcony.)  Our concern is that the small suite which is right next to us, might be expanded by taking over our cabin 602 so it would also be large with both a front and side balcony to match the suite across the hall.   If I were Celebrity joining those two cabins (602 and 604) into one big suite to match the one across the hall, is what I would do. Not to give Celebrity and ideas, because we don't want our reserved cabin to be swept out from under us but that's why I'm wondering what this refit/refurbishment is about.  :)

We were on that cruise as well.  The cruise overall was a complete success.  The weather was a bit of drag.  We would have liked to spend more time on deck but Celebrity can't control the weather and I admit, I am quite passionate about weather, especially bad weather, so watching the waves was entertaining.  We were in the box, deck 6 and there were days when the bow spray went as high as the floor of the balcony of deck 7 above me.  On the night before we arrived in Boston the bow spray went as high as deck 8.  I didn't dare go out on the balcony that evening.  

About the Silhouette:  We found it looking a little tired.  Its a beautiful ship.... they all are... and we especially appreciated the better use of the glass blowing place, with the lawn grill instead.  It's time for Celebrity to make that change on their other ships.  The Lawn Grill is a much better use of that valuable deck real estate.  But yes, the furnishings are looking a little worn.  I'm not trying to ruffle feathers by offering that small criticism.  It's just that when a ship is used 24/7 for years, things are bound to get worn.  

We found the food good.  We had Select dining but probably only ate in the MDR 4 or 5 times.  This was the first cruise we were on that we didn't go AquaClass.  The money we saved by going regular Verandah we used on Specialty Restaurants. We also bought the Specialty Meal packages.  We ate at Tuscan twice, Quisine once, Murano once, Lawn Grill once, and Blu (for a special lunch promotion) once.  We found the food to be of equal quality everywhere but I miss the old Quisine when we could order a variety of dishes of all sorts.  I thought la Petite Chef sort of missed the mark.  It was entertaining and a great production but the food felt just slightly less.  I have to confess that by the last few days were were done in by the rich food of the dining room and restaurants and we started eating dinner in the Ocean View.  The food in there is just as good if you know what to look for and we really appreciate being able to get a better balance  in our diet... (less meat and more vegetables).  And that Stir-Fry station in the Ocean View?   Fantastic!!!

We didn't take in too many shows so I can't comment on that.  We're sort of wanderers after dinner.  We especially enjoyed our trivia and met some amazing people during those spirited matches.  (Hello to Janet, Philip and Ron if you're reading... Thanks for the great time).  

I am thankful for the electric kettles in the cabins.  How many cozy afternoons did we spend in our cabins drinking hot chocolate (and eating cookies we scarfed from Ocean View) and watching movies and even the incredible redundant HGTV and Food Network (they had the exact same shows and ads on during this cruise that they had on our cruise back in Feb/March).  But overall, we ate, we read, we napped, we ate, we napped, we played trivia, we napped, we ate, we played trivia and we slept.  Might sound boring to some but its what we went for.  LOL!!

On 11/20/2018 at 10:39 AM, signman said:

 

Hi UK Pete.....Can you post a little more about the Alamo experience?   Was it just due to the number of people renting?   I plan to return my car to  Alamo at the port  "morning of" my cruise in a few weeks.     Then expecting the Alamo shuttle to take me to Silhouette at T29.     Did  you have a long wait to be shuttled over to their rental office.   Thanks.   

Welcome to US.   Hope you have a nice time before returning home.

We rented from Alamo too but at the airport.  We thought it was at the port until we checked our paperwork the night before and realized it was at the airport.  The line-up was quite long at the airport too but doesn't sound like it was as bad as at the port.  We got an airport shuttle at the dock and got to the Alamo place at the airport no problem.  

The Xpedition is going in for a refit in 2019, apparently sometime before November when we are schedule to sail on a Galapagos cruise.  Just wondering if anyone knows what the refit will entail.  We do know they are required to reduce the number of passengers on the Xpedition from 100 to about 65 with the arrival of the Flora.  We're curious if the refit will involve making some cabins larger, increasing the number of suites.  Or is it just a refurbishing of the furnishings?

On 11/17/2018 at 9:53 AM, abcdeflilly said:

Can I ask your opinion?  We are on this cruise in 2019 and arrival in Fort Lauderdale is at 5am. Do you think we will leave the ship earlier than you are?

Have followed your cruise every day and enjoyed your posts.  Thank you.

We were on this cruise and were given Group #14 for disembarking which was around 8:30am.   We had to be at the airport at 8:30 to pick up a car rental so we went down to Guest Relations and had our number changed to Group #2 which appeared to be the earliest, leaving at 7:30am, or something like that.  They had no problem changing our group number.  I talked to a few people who were in earlier group numbers but weren't getting picked up until closer to 10:00 and they were able to switch to a later group number.  

In the end we decided to just drag our luggage off ourselves so we were able to leave as soon as the ship was cleared.  If you need to get off really early, carrying your own luggage is the way to go, if you are able.  If not,  just have guest relations change your number to an earlier number.

It's not like they have a bunch sitting around. They don't have a lot of room on the ship. I would politely ask and if they hesitate then I'd drop it. I don't want to put my attendant in an awkward position. I just bought inflatable footstools for about $16 and they package easy and work great .

 

Back to is it worth it. Not for that price! We like concierge class and have sailed it and Aqua many times. I wouldn't pay much more for it but I also wouldn't sail in an obstructed balcony cabin either. I spend a lot of time on the balcony and wouldn't care to be looking at life boat .

 

It is worth maybe $100 for the entire cruise, to us that is. And that is for the expanded breakfast room service, footstools and cabin location.

 

Have fun .

We like Aqua for Blu. We don't spent too much time on our balcony during the day because we find it cramped so for us it's mostly in the afternoon/evening as we prepare for dinner.

but yes... obstructed view is something you have to watch out for in Aqua Class if you are on a Solstice Class ship (we haven't been on any other type with Celebrity). The deck 12 overhang has supports beams in the cabins in the middle of the ship. We booked a room there once and were disappointed. We always aim for a cabin at the front of the ship, away from the overhang.

But yet when you get the Daily news letter delivered to your room each evening, it doesn't specify that Evening Chic does not apply to Blu and that Blu diners only need to be "smart casual".

All I can add is that in my experience, most Blu diners wear at the very least "smart casual". Most women wear dresses or dress pants every night. About half the men wear jackets every night. Very few wear jeans. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever seen man wear jeans (on occasion a woman will wear dark designer jeans with a nice top). On evenings that the news letter designate as 'smart Casual", most men wear dress pants/ dress khakis and a button down shirt with a collar. yes.. sometimes they are Hawaiian patterned. On "evening chic" nights, they may but a jacket over it. When I person makes no effort at all.. like the guy who wore cargo pants and NASCAR t-shirt... THAT's what stands out in Blu. A tux would stand out because it looks sharp. Cargo pants and t-shirt stands out because it looks sloppy. A regular suit and tie, or dress pants and jacket )with or without tie) would not stand out at all no matter when the evening dress code is.

We're doing a Nov 3rd, 2018 trans-Atlantic sailing from Southampton to Boston. I have been a weather enthusiast for quite a few years and I live in Nova Scotia. I track Atlantic storms so I know the risks of traveling the North Atlantic this time of year. Although it is at the tail end of Hurricane Season, it is at the beginning of Atlantic Storm season. The water on the route from Southampton to Boston is probably cool enough that hurricanes would be unlikely anywhere much more northeast of the coast of Nova Scotia. However, hurricanes that are downgraded to tropical storms or post-tropical depressions can still pack a very powerful punch. And the risk of plain old Nor-easters is always a possibility. Quite often these storms will develop off the coast of the Carolinas and head up the coast. They can be very powerful and sometimes have wind gusts as strong as Cat 1 hurricanes. This summer has been a hot one all along the eastern seaboard of North America and as a result the water temperature is warmer further north which will fuel any potential storms. So far hurricane season has been quiet due in part to a giant dust cloud stretching across the mid-Atlantic from the Sahara. Its hot out but so far the dust has kept this relatively dry.

If you are not concierge and request a foot stool, will they really tell you "no"?

I have no idea. I would be very surprised if they would say no. I have complete faith in the service onboard the celebrity ships. we have found that crew will trip over each other to help out if you ask.

We have always cruised AquaClass and have had almost every meal at Blu. As a faithful to that restaurant, I would say "yes".. bring a suit. It doesn't have to be a tux but people are generally dressed a wee bit neater in Blu than the MDR. And without trying to be snobby, the other patrons appreciate the effort of people who actually dress for dinner. We all pay a lot of money for the extra perk of having a private dining room and for most cruisers, dressing for dinner becomes part of the cruising experience. Even on the casual night where the dress code is a little more relaxed, it's always nice to dress up a bit. Last cruise we were on there was a guy who consistently arrived in Blu wearing cargo pants or worn jeans, often topped with a NASCAR t-shirt or something like that. Staff said nothing. I suppose it becomes difficult to tell passengers they can't enter the dining room if their clothes are too rough, but we felt it was a bit unfair to the rest of the diners in the room who paid extra to have the Blu option and who took the time to plan for proper dinner attire.

We've specifically asked a celebrity TA what the real difference was between a Concierge cabin and a regular verandah Class and she was unable to give specifics. Often they are on the same deck, sometimes right next to each other. We have always found the service on Celebrity impeccable so we still don't know.

That said, we have. in the past, always sailed in AquaClass where we can actually see the difference just by having the option of going to Blu. However, our next cruise is the transAtlantic from Southampton to Boston/NYC/Bermuda/Bahamas/Fort Lauderdale in November and we booked a regular balcony on deck 6. I'm about the experience the difference between Verandah Class and Aqua. It's an amazing value... the two of us for less than $4000CAD for 15 nights, but it is the North Atlantic in storm season and weather is a huge factor.