Gilpet

As somebody else has already said, they allow smoking on the upper level of G32, my husband and I are smokers but sometimes it was a bit much even for us. It was very lively in there and the group were outstanding.

Gill

I agree with the OP's comments about the barely warm/cold food in the Britannia restaurant, we were on the same crossing and didn't have one hot meal in the whole week (table 232 late sitting). No problems with noise or the bathroom but we were on deck 6 not deck 5. We also had the worst waiters we've ever had on a cruise - so bad that for the first time in 20 cruises we didn't give a gratuity. Every night we had to ask for more rolls and then for more butter as there was just enough on the table for one roll each, we also had to ask for our water glasses to be refilled even though one gentleman at our table had explained that he needed his water to be constantly topped-up as he needed to take medication during the course of the meal. On the last night we didn't have our order taken until 9.00 despite all being at the table by 8.30 and finally finished our meal at 10.45.

Gill

Thanks to both of you for your responses.

Gill

I'm certain that on our previous Cunard cruise in 2011 we received a discount on any on-board spend but even though I've searched their website I can't find any mention of this. Can anybody tell me if this has now been discontinued.....or maybe I just dreamt it lol.

Thanks

Gill

Try doing a dummy booking and see if all dining options are still available, that should at least give you an idea. Good luck and I hope you get your preference.

Gill

Katakolon is just one street with shops on both sides and lots of restaurants looking out on the harbour..........but that said it is a very relaxing place if you're on a port-intensive cruise. The main attraction from Katakolon is Olympia but I'm afraid I have no idea if it is possible to diy.

Gill

Well we'll soon be leaving for our 8th cruise on Indy in a few weeks and we've never found our way to the Helipad so a huge thanks for that information :)

As somebody previously said, the ice show tickets are collected from the Royal Promenade on date and time shown in the Cruise Compass (daily sheet) but if you're not particularly bothered about what date and time you see the shows then you can pick up tickets from the Guest Relations counter later in the day and save queuing. Seating for the ice shows is also on a first come/first served basis.

Gill

I wasn't comparing Cunard to Celebrity, Royal Caribbean or P&O. :)

Sorry, I misunderstood :)

Gill

I haven't encountered any snobbery or racism on Cunard.

 

How can I say this next part without coming across as snooty? I think there's a bit of self-selection among Cunard passengers - they're not after the cheapest cruise experience and so Cunard passengers tend to be the ones with the inclination and means to pay more for a more elegant experience. As a result the passenger mix tends to be people who have had varied and enriching lives and generally make for good tablemates for a meal or a week of meals regardless of their ethnic heritage or where they grew up.

Maybe you should check out the prices of some other lines (RCI, Celebrity, P&O) and you'll find them not much different from Cunard so I don't think your supposition about cost is correct. I also don't think only people with "the inclination and means" are interesting so for me I'm afraid your comments did sound quite snooty.

Just returned from a cruise on RCL Brilliance. My husband and I found the food in the main dining room the worst we have ever had on a cruise. The positive was we both lost weight.

 

I did a return ta on the QM2 and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food. There are snobs on all cruise lines. I find it amusing. There are wealthy people that book inside staterooms and some others that will go into hock to be pretentious. Is constantly telling everyone you meet that you are a Diamond member with RCL being a snob? There sure were a lot of those people.

 

Cunard has the most interesting and varied passengers of any line I have been on. Have a chuckle at the snobs, we all have the same final destination.

I'm really sorry you had a bad experience with the food on Brilliance, we've not cruised on that particular ship but have never found any fault with the food on any of our RCI cruises - of course it all comes down to taste and everybody is different. Where we don't differ is a dislike of the "status snobs" - we avoid them like the plague lol. Why do some people think that because they've been lucky enough to take several cruises with a particular line, and thus gained a status, that they have to advertise it? To be honest, I think RCI are the worst for that. We often say that it would be great if we could put together our perfect cruise ship/line taking our favourite bits from all the others.........but we'll leave the status snobs at home :)

Gill

I have traveled all around the world and I have cruised many times with RCI. I would like to try this line however I was afraid that it may be too snooty. I am a quiet well educated person that enjoys the finer things, however not so stuffy. Am I worrying for nothing?

I'm not sure about snooty but it's certainly more formal than any RCI cruise we've been on. I must admit that we're not Cunard fans and the main reason for that was the attitude of some of the staff and passengers that Cunard is the best and we're lucky to be sailing with them - this was only a small minority, but enough to take the shine off and quite honestly (in my opinion) RCI beats them hands down for food and service, especially in the MDR. When we came back from our Queen Elizabeth cruise in 2011 we said we wouldn't sail with Cunard again, but as I don't fly we will be on QM2 from New York to Southampton using it purely as a form of transport! I really hope that QM2 changes our opinion of Cunard because I hate to rule out any cruise line, especially after just one experience.

Hardly snooty, Carnival has a reputation as a "party" line, think Las Vegas. We have met some wonderful people on the ships. If anything RCL would be too snooty for most Carnival cruisers.

I think you may be a bit confused! I know Cunard is part of Carnival but "party line" and "Las Vegas" don't really sound like a description of Cunard to me lol.

Gill

It is easy to confuse "duty free" which is what you are buying on the ship, and "tax and duty paid in the EU" . You also cannot mix the allowances

If you buy ashore for example the EU eg France and Spain, you are buying tax and duty paid in the EU - although their tax and duty is lower than in the UK so they are still cheaper than in the UK there are technically no set limits other than it must be for personal use. 800 gigs are generally regarded as "enough" for personal use and if you have more you are likely to be questioned. (These accepted Amounts are published on HMRCs website - somewhere!). If you buy them on the ship, you are allowed 200 duty free. No more. You cannot then add "tax and duty paid bought ashore on top. . There are limits on spirits and wine too.

Sorry to disagree but you can "mix" the allowances if by that you mean bring back 200 cigarettes bought duty-free and also cigarettes bought Tax and Duty Paid in an EU country - they are two different things and don't affect each other...........as far as I'm aware, but we have always done this with no problems and I've also checked HMRC's website and couldn't find anything on there saying they couldn't be mixed.

We were stopped by customs after a cruise on Azura. We had a lot of Tax & Duty paid cigarettes (enough to last till our next cruise) and also 200 Duty Free each, it was a real pain as all of our suitcases had to be emptied :eek: but we were totally legal and had the tax receipts to prove it, so ultimately it wasn't a problem. The customs officer was very friendly and polite and suggested that in future we pack all of our cigarettes together in our hand luggage, rightly or wrongly we interpreted this to mean that cases unloaded from the ship were x-rayed - either way it would certainly have been easier for us not to have to try and re-pack all the cigarettes after we'd retrieved them from where they were dotted all through our luggage.

Gill

I'm unfamiliar with the Q4 Penthouse but the name "Penthouse" makes me wonder if there are stairs/different levels within the stateroom. If this is the case I don't think it surprising that Cunard wouldn't allow young children in these staterooms purely for safety reasons.

Gill

All done and £21 saved :):) - thanks again Kevin

Gill

Thanks Kevin, I meant to book our parking today but forgot!!! Some things are just meant to be lol - I'll do it now.

Gill

We had a sofa bed in our balcony cabin in November 2012 so they definitely do - I'm afraid I can't remember our cabin number but the cabins with sofa beds are marked on the deck plans.

We loved this ship even though (before it had it's re-fit) it was a little tired - it's so well laid out.

Gill

I don't normally use "full screen" and didn't even know the panel was there until I read this thread lol - just narrow the size of your window , if you can't see it it won't wind you up :)

Gill

Thanks for your answers everybody, it sounds like I'm not very likely to come across this lol.

Gill

We are first time Celebrity cruisers and both over 55. Can anybody tell me if the senior rate available on all cruises or just selected ones? Also is it still available if you book a "guarantee"?

Thanks

Gill

As a newbie to Celebrity (nine weeks and counting :)) thank you so much to ClaudiaB - you have given us so much useful information.

As I've said we're new to Celebrity so I can't make comparisons but after our first and only cruise with Princess we are unlikely to go with them again (never say never). Having read all of the other posts I think a lot comes down to the itinerary with regards to how lively the ship is. Our cruse was Round Britain and Iceland and I believe that attracts more older passengers - everything was dead by 11pm, even the bars were closing! We had a couple of tender ports on our itinerary and we found the organisation terrible - at one port we waited 3 hours to get off the ship :eek:. The vast majority of the staff were very helpful and efficient (though lacking the extra friendliness we have found on RCI) but on the first night in the MDR our waitress was very rude and actually argued with me about whether or not my very pink in the middle steak was well-done. It never happened again but I suspect that was because one of our tablemates (who were equally horrified) complained to the head waiter - we had decided not to say anything and give her a second chance. I know it's not something that ruins a cruise but it doesn't create a great first impression.

I hope that whatever you decide you have a great cruise with your family.

Gill

I recently got the Diamond discount on a balcony on an RC cruise based on being a Celebrity Elite member.

That's great :), I didn't see why it shouldn't apply but couldn't say for sure from my own experience.

Gill

If you look at the Ports section of Cruise Critic they list some licensed tour operators and give links to their websites. We used Alla Tours and found them to be very helpful, I'm sure they would be able to assist you, if you send them a message on their website they are very quick to respond. We would recommend Alla to anybody. They take care of all visa requirements for anybody booking with them.

Have a great cruise

Gill

One of the Diamond benefits on Royal Caribbean is a discount if you book a balcony or above cabin, I can't say for certain that you would be eligible for this but I can't see why not. If I were you I would contact RCI before you book to get your Crown and Anchor number.

Gill

Helsinki - we took the shuttle and then walked to the Church in the Rock (it is actually built into the rock), it took about 20 minutes but it was beautiful. We then walked back down to the market in the fishing port where my husband tried the reindeer sausages :eek:.

Gill

I think the port of Venice have now rescinded those regulations but it's probably too late for any changes to be made for next year.

Gill

Indy Girl, we've been looking at Celebrity for a while and a friend told us that we could join the Captain's Club before we'd actually cruised with them so we signed up months ago lol - there's nothing like being prepared :). What a shame we can't get our balcony discount, but that's being a bit greedy isn't it :p

Gill