smarks

Thanks for the replies. I'm trying to learn as much as I can about Celebrity. So I'm sure I will have a lot more questions.

Hi fellow cruisers, I have a question for you. I will be doing a transatlantic on the Celebrity Edge in April 2019. I have cruised other lines but this will be my first with Celebrity. Are there lounges that we will not be allowed in? Or any other places a 1st time Celebrity crusier is not allowed? I just don't want to wander in somewhere that I'm not supposed to be. Thanks for the heads up.

Usually the late stay onboard is not offered in the US. The latest you'll be able to stay will probably be between 9:30 and 10:00AM. Once you retrieve your luggage and go through customs and immigration, it'll be close to 10:30. I've arrived at the port often between 10:30 and 11:00AM and have been able to check in. Since the concierge class luncheon is from 11:30-1:00, the ship will probably be able to accommodate your arrival with very little lag time. I don't think it would be worth it to pay to stay on board for and hour. Unless you run in to a delayed arrival of your second ship, or extensive extra cleaning measures requiring a delayed arrival, you should be fine.

Thank you for the reply. I really like the way that sounds. That is what I am hoping for. I will have 2 pieces of luggage and I really hate the idea of dragging them around with me. I don't know anything about Southampton. I was told on another board that I could go to Grand Harbour and stay in the lounge for a fee and a shuttle to the port for the P&O Aurora. This sounds much better. Thanks again.

In Europe they sometimes offer Extend Your Stay where for a fee you can stay on past the usual disembarkation time. I don't know if it will be offered on Edge but it's worth checking out.

Thank you cruisestitch. I will call Celebrity to see if that's offered.

Normally they have everyone off before 9:30. You have to vacate your cabin at 8.

Thank you jelayne. I was hoping for later but at least now I know what to expect and can plan around it.

Normally they have everyone off before 9:30. You have to vacate your cabin at 8.

Double post

Hi fellow cruisers, I am doing a translantic on the Celebrity Edge April 2019. I have another cruise booked for the day of arrival. I would like to stay on the ship for as long as possible since I can't board the second ship till after 12. Does anyone know how late you can stay onboard? Thanks for all replies.

Thanks everybody for sharing your knowledge with me on some of the options available to me. I will explore all options. So now for another question. If I find that I can stay on Celebrity Edge till 10:30, by the time I get off it will probably be 11:00 or so. Would there be cabs or shuttles available when I get off the ship that could take me to the Aurora? Thanks again.

Short answer will be you will need a taxi to get from one ship to another. Its a working port ,you would not be able to wander through it. They are fairly close together. Bigger problem is Celebrity will kick you off very early and you will not be able to board Aurora until hours later. The case drop off for Aurora will not open until 11.30 am..your boarding time unless you are in a suite of high tier loyalty with Pando will be after 12 midday.

So what can you do in the meantime. I think your best bet by far is to book yourself into the Grand Harbour hotel cruise lounge. You can go there, and they will take you to your next terminal nearer your boarding time. There is a cost , but you will not be kicking your heels with all your luggage.

Thank you english lady for the reply. You have helped me a lot by walking me through some of my questions. Your answers are really appreciated. Just to clarify, do I book the Grand Harbour for a night or does the hotel have a lounge I can book for a few hrs. to hang out till I can board the Aurora?

Hi everybody, I have a question I hope someone can answer. I will be arriving at Southampton on the Celebrity Edge on May 13, 2019 and will be boarding the P&O Aurora on the same day. How close are the docks for each ship? Will we need to catch a cab from Celebrity to P&O? This will be my first time on both ships and first time crossing the pond. Any info will be greatly appreciated. I am really out of my comfort zone. Thanks.

Another vote for SPB - could not fault them.

Do you have any contact info for this company. We will be there May 2019. Thanks for any info you can share.

My credit card doesn't have a pin number. I don't use debit cards. Do I need to see if my credit card company will give me a pin? Can we check in and log this in when we register? Thanks

You can order an in-room set up prior to cruising, which will be a bottle of liquor, a six-pack of soft drink, and some salty snacks. Or you can order a bottle of liquor once on board.

 

You can bring all the soft drinks you wish. Some people who bring a whole case wrap it in plastic and put a luggage label on it and have it delivered to the stateroom with their suitcases.

Thank you cruisestitch, I did go onto Celebrity web site and didn't see this option. Sounds like what I am looking for. I will go back to the website and look a little better for this. Thanks again.

mini fridge in cabin, yes. yes and yes.

 

bon voyage

Great. Thank you for the reply.

Hi all, can you purchase alcohol for your cabin through room service or pre order a bottle for you room?

Can you bring water or soda onboard?

Thanks for the replies.

If you drink a lot of water, you can do like others and bring it on at boarding or at ports of call too.

Are you allowed to bring soda's also? Thanks.

Yes.

 

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Thank You.

Are you allowed to take a mixer like ginger ale?

I just booked a TransAtlantic for April 2019 on the Edge. I am new to Celebrity. Can you pre-order drinks to be delivered to your cabin before sailing, or buy a bottle of liquor from a Bon Voyage dept? Thanks for the replys.

Here's a basic list of hotels in the city centre of Southampton, and at the bottom a thumbnail map showing them, the cruise terminals etc.

https://www.londontoolkit.com/travel/southampton_accommodation.htm

 

Ibis Budget is usually cheapest - modern and clean but very basic),..................

IMHO best amongst the mid-range are Premier In West Quay or Novotel

.............. then there's Holiday Inn (the one at Herbert Walker Ave) .

............... at the expensive end are Grand Harbour Hotel and a new one, not on the list https://www.southampton-harbour-hotel.co.uk/ which is the city's only 5-star hotel (other 5-stars are in the Hampshire countryside around Southampton, inconvenient for a cruiser without a car)

................ for something a little more quirky, boutique hotels https://www.thepighotel.com/in-the-wall/ (not on the list), or Ennios, or White Star Tavern http://www.whitestartavern.co.uk/ mentioned by cruisegrammie.

Or there's the Mercure Dolphin, a historic coaching inn.

Southampton has two Hilton Doubletrees & two HI Express's but all are on the city limits & poorly-located for a cruiser.

 

Celebrity normally berth at City cruise terminal (berth 101)

Holiday Inn is right by City cruise terminal (red B on that map) and very popular with those cruising from there. Premier Inn West Quay, Grand Harbour, Ennios, and Pig-in-the-Wall are only a short walk, even with luggage

 

P&O ships berth at Ocean terminal (berth 46) (red D on that map) or Mayflower (berth 105/6) (red A on the map).

Those same hotels plus Southampton Harbour Hotel and White Star are walkable to Ocean terminal

With luggage, there's no hotel within comfortable walking distance of Mayflower.

 

Since berths won't be allocated for another year or more, and all the hotels on that map are within a five-minute taxi ride from any cruise terminal I suggest you choose a city centre hotel that suits you best rather than one which might be a little more convenient to a cruise terminal.

 

Closest match to P&O ships would be Princess, which is theoretically a subsidiary of P&O within the Carnival empire,

but P&O are more under-stated and less glitzy than Princess.

Dining is perhaps not quite as good, especially the buffet, and the mainly- Indian crew more reserved than the SE Asian crews you might be used to.

Clientele is mainly Brit, hence your difficulty sourcing thro a US T/A. Perhaps check out Brit T/As by googling "UK cruise agents"

P&O's ticket-pricing is on two scales, with a big price difference. At the higher price you can select a specific cabin and evening dining plan (1st or 2nd sitting or anytime) and there are a number of freebies such as shuttle-buses in appropriate ports (shuttles payable on the cheaper ticket plan). At the lower price you have a guarantee cabin and specified dining plan.

Aurora is a favourite ship of ours, and we've sailed her to the Baltic. Just our size at 2000 passengers and she's a "proper" cruise ship with tiered open decks at the stern. Two full-size pools on the main deck - one with a retractable roof which will doubtless be in "indoor" mode for the Baltic. And an adults-only pool and bar at the stern.

Bear in mind that ship's currency is sterling so there'll be some small conversion cost, but you'll be delighted with on-board costs which are much much lower than on US ships, especially bar prices and daily service charges.

 

Post-cruise if you have your hearts set on both Paris and London .......................

Aurora's itinerary probably includes Zeebrugge (for Bruges) as the last port-of-call.

Rather than disembarking back in Southampton you can save yourself 2 or 3 days of time and travel by jumping-ship at Zeebrugge (needs permission, normally given). 2 miles on ship's shuttle from port to Blankenberge station, direct train to Brussels (90 minutes) where you change to Eurostar (90 minutes direct to Paris) and spend a few days in Paris

Then it's Eurostar train direct to London in little more than 2 hours.

Spend those saved days in London, then travel down to your ship in Southampton (90 mins by train, 2.5 hrs by road) on the morning of the sailing.

 

Alternatively you can

- visit Paris from your Le Havre stop. I'd not recommend it cos journey time is 2 to 2.5 hours e/w, giving you just one seriously-foreshortened day in a city that's worth a week. From Le Havre the D-Day beaches and sights would be a much more valuable use of your time, or a relaxing day in the picturesque fishing/tourist town of Honfleur.

- visit Paris in a one-day excursion by Eurostar from London. Again, it can be done & plenty of folk do it. but it makes for a very very long day for a half-day or so in Paris.

- spend time in Southampton post-Baltic. It's not a tourist city, it has enough to interest the visitor for no more than a day - but it's a great base for day-trips to places like Bath, Salisbury+Stonehenge, Portsmouth, Oxford, etc. That said, London and Paris come top of the list for first-timers to Europe.

 

Lots of options, lots to think about. But lots of time to do that before your trip.

 

JB :)

Hi John, oh my, what a fantastic detailed response. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and taking the time to share it with me. I will take note on all the suggestions. This gives me a lot to work with. This is really appreciated Thanks again.

I really don't get that. A tie or bowtie around your neck shouldn't be tight. All men need to do is have their neck measured properly and know how to tie a tie properly. You really can't comfortably fit a 17" neck into a 16" collar. Its not rocket science.

Sorry, I didn't mean to offend. I personally hate things around my neck, tight or not. It is just my personal feelings. I think a man looks sharp in a suit and tie. Guess I was just stating that it's a good thing I am not a man. I couldn't wear one.

Happy to offer you some day trip ideas from Southampton if you guide me as to your interests: you’re near the New Forest for walks in..well in a forest! Ferry to Isle of Wight for quaint history like watermills. Within 2 hours you could be at Windsor Castle or Hampton Court Palace. Or indeed London as all it’s delights. Train from Southampton takes you into Waterloo, and a pleasant walk along the south bank gets you to Tower of London, or walk over the river and you have Big Ben and Westminster within 10 minutes. So you could have a great day of sightseeing and not have to worry about the confines of the underground trains if they might trouble you.

 

 

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Thank you Linda. Sounds like some great ideas. We love to walk, hike or just stroll through forest. I will be keeping your suggestions in my travel folder if you don't mind. I am getting some great info from this site. Thanks again.

I for the life of me don't know how a man can put something around their necks that seem so tight. I have to give it to the men on this one. Women do have to go a little further by tucking stuff in, putting on a face and walking in 6 in. heals, but men have to choke themselves. Glad I'm a woman in this case. Sorry I just had to throw that in.

Just a word of reassurance for your husband about the dark suit, instead of dinner suit/tuxedo - more and more men have ditched the fancy dress in favour of something more comfortable and sensible, and I can assure you that he won't feel at all out of place in a dark suit.

 

Things are starting to change in the UK on formal dress as younger people replace the older generation, but it's going to take a little while yet before the formal nights are finally gone.

Thank You docco for the information. He will be glad to hear that.

You can take the train to Edinburgh, if you choose to visit Scotland. It's probably about a 6-7 hour train ride (Virgin), and there are train fares starting at about 30 pounds. However, if you have never been to London, there is plenty to do there also without going too far away. The public transportation system in London is amazing and so simple to figure out. It's truly one of the easiest cities to get around in that I've ever visited. You could take the train to Paris...if that's a bucket list visit, but with only 4 days, I would use it to see London & surrounds.

 

Where you stay in Southampton may be easier to figure out if you knew which terminal your ship would be using. From the Ocean Terminal, there is a quaint tavern called the White Star Tavern that is just a two block walk to the cruise terminal. The food and service were great! The only way to get upstairs to the hotel is via stairs though, so that would be a consideration. Some people can't do the stairs. But we thoroughly enjoyed our stay there the night prior to our cruise.

 

Good luck with your plans! You will love the Baltics and London!

Thank You for all the great tips. I have switched coming over from Cunard to Celebrity crossing over.This will add a couple of new countries. It will be going to Portugal, Spain and Le Havre, France. Your suggestions are much appreciated.