Drinking age varied by state but most states were 18 years or older from 1983 back. In 1984, drinking age turned to 21 in all the states.

I carried a case of soda on recently with no questions asked.  It was a good workout for the arms as it got a little heavy towards later in the journey to the room cabin.

They will also offer a Bill W meeting onboard so tell your sober spouse to be on the lookout for this meeting.  Only 2 of us showed up for the meeting on a cruise I took in December 2023 but maybe more will show up on your cruise. Have a great cruise!

Just now, mac_tlc said:

We did go ashore for an hour and a half or so today. Tenders are fun and a good way to get a different view of the ship. 
 

For shore, she is a beautiful lady:

 

 

Surprised they are not using the Magic Carpet to tender or does Ascent not have this feature?

40 minutes ago, A Sixth? said:

sent this email to ldinardo@celebrity.com

 

Good day 

 

I saw this headline in the Washington Post.

 

“More travelers are ‘dry-tripping.’ Airlines and hotels have noticed.”

 

It should have read:

 

“More travelers are ‘dry-tripping.’ Airlines, cruise lines, and hotels have noticed.”

 

I recently quit alcohol on doctors orders and discovered a new generation of non alcoholic beers which are a huge improvement over non alcoholic ones of the past.

 

What beers are really good? Examples include Heineken 0.0, Corona 0.0%, Guinness Draught 0.0 and Peroni 0.0 all of which are fantastic.

 

I loved sitting at the ship bars and attending activities like the “Silent Disco” sipping on a cold beer and want to continue but with quality zero proof beverages.

 

Celebrity can both capitalize on this trend as well as better serve their loyal customers by being a market leader and offer a selection of booze free beverage offerings.

 

My next Celebrity cruise is May 11th, 2024, booking #72xxxxx on the Eclipse going to Martha’s Vineyard and Bermuda and would love to enjoy a quality beer, just one without alcohol.

 

Word of caution on the non-alcoholic beers.  I tried this(after my doctor said to abstain from drinking) for about 3 weeks and I was soon again drinking beer and other things with alcohol in it.  My own experience tells me that this was not the answer for me.  Just wanted to share my experience with you. Have a great trip!

Stayed in 7309 on the Edge(a corner sky suite) and did not hear a thing from Eden on a 7 night cruise. I liked this location but you will get full sun on your deck for most days and the walk is longer to most areas but you can also hear the waves from this position on the ship.

3 minutes ago, r2h2 said:

Yes.  You need to call them to request this.  She can upgrade anytime.

To clarify, you can get the non-alcohol package and she can get either alcohol package but you need to call them to explain why this needs to happen.

Just now, A Sixth? said:

The ones I drink are truly zero alcohol 

 

Examples include Heineken 0.0, Corona 0.0%, Guinness Draught 0.0 and Peroni 0.0 all of which are good 

 

Do they still have that rule that everyone in the cabin must buy the same package. I just tried to buy the non alcoholic package but it doesn’t seem to let just me get it. My wife wants the regular package 

 

Can she upgrade it once aboard?

Yes.  You need to call them to request this.  She can upgrade anytime.

I originally booked the same type of room as you and went to buy the Classic drink packages and realized that for about the same amount of $ spent, I could move up to Aqua and get the drink packages,Blu, and spa included.  I thought it was a good move. Blu was well worth the upgrade!

23 minutes ago, RinAsami said:

Ok, thanks, @r2h2. Were you still able to hear the waves while sitting out on your balcony? I don't mind some noise, I'm sure we'll hear noise anyway if others are out on their balconies.

 

Did you like 1122 overall and did you feel it was worth it? We're thinking of moving up to 1122 so it's not pretty much right at the end of the ship.

 

Did play movies in the evenings? I just like sitting on the balcony in the evenings to hear the ocean and read. Just concerned that movie noise would be an issue if they do it nightly.

I could hear the waves but barely. The room is in a great location as one set of stairs and you are at Oceanview cafe while going out the door, you are on the walking track one level above the pool and Solarium.  Down hall and one set of stairs from the Sunset bar.  I would stick with it if I was in your shoes! Have a great time!

We were on the Summit(same M class sized ship) in mid December in Aqua class room 1122 and you could here some noise on deck 12 from the movie.  It was not loud but you could hear it. I think the wind direction had to be just right to hear the movie that was playing.

I brought on a case of Inca Kola Diet(a soda) in Miami and no one said a word. Nice to have it on the ship.

Just now, Stem to Stern said:

I did speak with another couple on board Summit that were not at all impressed with the house band.

It wasn't the band as much as the DJ playing music that was loud and obnoxious.  It certainly was not what the most of us wanted to hear.  If it was my choice, 70's and 80's music would have been played at a lower decibel level.

2 hours ago, Stem to Stern said:

Agree.  I found the music on board Summit in December at acceptable volumes.

I was on the same cruise and it was a pleasure meeting you.  I found the music content at the outside pool in the afternoon to be not what the average age of the people on board want to listen to.  I spoke to many folks who did not like the content of the music as well. Just my opinion and I did let them know my thoughts while on board and after in the survey.

Maybe their cameras will freeze up due to the cold weather and no one will see the game other than those that attend in person!

Good luck on viewing the Saturday night game Dolphins vs. Chiefs as it is only being shown on Peacock(a streaming outlet).  This will be the first ever NFL playoff game where one has to pay to watch it. 

We had a corner aft Sky Suite on Edge a few years ago on deck 7(7309)Port side and we did not hear a peep from Eden. You should be fine on Deck 7 plus your closer to the water!

53 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

I'm going to agree and disagree.

 

Remember that Celebrity is a subsidiary of RCG; the brand president no longer even wears the CEO title. It seems pretty apparent that Liberty and the Board are under pressure and pressuring their subordinates to produce revenue for shareholders. That's kind of their ultimate job.

 

Liberty is a finance guy. LHB has an operations background. With pressure to produce revenue, they're going to default to form. And it's not just quarterly. I'm pretty sure it's been several years since RCG even paid a dividend. A strategic change could take years to have an impact. That leaves nibbling on the margins with slight increases in revenue where you can and slight decreases in expenses where you can. But those conflict with the strategic position of a "near luxury" (whatever that really means) cruise line winning awards for its food and beverage programs in particular. That always looked great as a customer. I don't know that it was as profitable as we all thought? They're changing their strategy through operational decisions, rather than a well thought out process where the strategy informs the operations and finance. It's not fun to watch and I'm glad I'm not on the inside of this...

 

I don't think Celebrity views the true luxury lines as its real competition. I know you do, and it is for you. Celebrity is (or was very recently) targeting the younger, affluent demographic, probably starting at 35-40 and going up to the mid 50's. Those are folks who might cruise with them for another decade or more. That's not the true luxury lines real market, and Celebrity can/could offer product there that the luxury lines don't. Such as 7 day cruises from easily accessible ports. Even if you're paying less on Regent (for instance) but the cruise is longer than you can take off, and/or it takes you an extra day to reach the cruise and return, you're not looking at that cruise. Obviously Celebrity happily takes repeat customers outside that demographic, and for the Retreat, those customers likely are and should compare the true luxury lines.

 

Nibbling at the margins is a symptom to me. Lesser wines for more money. More upcharges. Drinks priced over the drink package limit.  That's NOT what they should be doing especially for their highest margin passengers (the Retreat). People pay the Retreat prices in part to not deal with that. To me the disease is they've lost sight of their overall business strategy. They spent a lot of money on the Edge class in particular to make the Retreat and its all included offerings the keystone of their strategy. And then they insist on defeating that advantage by silly things like a $2.40 upcharge for a wine you can probably buy at Walmart!

 

Time to sit back and enjoy the holidays. At home.

Great explanation! Just got off a 5 day sailing on The Summit in Aqua Class and don't drink booze so the price increases did not bother me but the food quality is going downhill. The Ribeye was the worst I ever had(grisle and thin).  Could not even get Cheesecake for desert the last 4 nights! Not even a mention of any lobster meal available. The music they played at the pool is great if you are 20 years old(Rap and thump) but they missed the demo on board by 30 years.

1 minute ago, doghog said:

Ok, does...🙃

It used to until I came to my senses and just said no mas!

1 minute ago, doghog said:

Dose vodka make you feel loosey goosey? 

I never had Dose vodka! Is it a new brand?

33 minutes ago, Mike981 said:

I'm going to have to step up my vodka game, I just don't notice much of a difference. Now I have noticed that some vodka treats me better the next day than others.

And no vodka treats me better everyday!

23 hours ago, zitsky said:

In North Carolina only hard liquor is controlled.  So wine prices are good.  Still I try to buy wine from everywhere.  NC, NM, CA, OR, WA etc.

 

I’ve enjoyed wine from Pennsylvania my home state and Virginia which was quite good.  I lived in Oregon for a while.  Lot of wine there but you have to separate the wheat from the chaff.  I can recommend Hillcrest in Roseburg.

Rex Hill in Newburg,OR is also a keeper/lived 3 miles from that winery while in Oregon. I quit drinking booze though so its all a memory now!

5 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

The wines by the glass are outrageous,  can you confirm that the PDP has a new cap of $20? Even with 20% tips included the bottle and glass pricing is just ridiculous. 

Jim knows the best way of avoiding these price hikes and I do as well! Don't drink it.

Thanks for doing this!  We will be boarding Summit on 12/16 so looking forward to your observations and photos. Thank you

We will be joining you on the Summit sailing although we will be in Aqua class. Looking forward to the cruise!