renaroo

We went on our first Celebrity Cruise in June 2015, on the millennium. We loved it! In 2016 we went to Peru (not on a cruise) and while that was absolutely amazing, we are eager to get pampered on another cruise ship and have scheduled the equinox for June 2017. Can't wait to have another great experience on celebrity!

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What is the secret to finding these great TAs who will give you extra perks AND watch your booking for you to notify you about price drops?

I've read many wonderful posts on Cruisecritic about these people, but I know we can't share specific recommendations... Any tips on how I can find a great TA without breaking the rules on the boards?

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The 2 ships, M class to S class, have a 90% total different flow to them. Both wonderful! The Equinox feels open and very roomie. The outside deck for the Oceanview is a great place to sit with a drink and watch the sun set as the wake slowly disappears behind the ship. We were just in Aqua and Blu last Nov, very good. You have to try Silk Harvest, amazing menu. At times you will wonder if most everyone else has gotten off somewhere! :D

Sounds wonderful. :):):)

Having sailed the Equinox 2x, any questions, ask away!

 

First thought, are either of you craft beer people? The GastroBar is simply an outstanding meeting place for a beer.

EW

The only other Celebrity ship we've sailed was the Millennium. I know the Equinox is bigger, but I'm hoping it FEELS bigger. I compared the tonnage, but to be honest, I don't really have a sense of how much more space it really offers. I'm also hoping Blu is just as good as it was on the Millennium. Loved Blu! Wish I didn't have to wait until June!!!!

About beer - We tend to drink more wine, but we do like an occasional specialty brew. We'll definitely have to give GastroBar a try!

I did this breakdown over on the Celebrity board. Hopefully, this will help. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2195596&highlight=parallax

Thank you - this is terrific!!!

This is GREAT information! Thank you so much. Gracias, Danke, Merci ... and no the multi-language aspect doesn't bother me a bit. ;-) I'm a little more concerned about the # of kiddos with the kids sail free concept. Don't get me wrong - I love kids and have worked at both elementary, middle and high school. On vacation, though, I need a little break so I can recharge and face the munchkins all refreshed. :-)

Thank you so much for this information. I was really going back and forth because the entertainment is supposed to be way better (which a few of you confirmed), but I'm still seeing the "hit and miss" that I've read about.

My husband is SUPER excited about going on Celebrity again, especially with a repeat cruise in Aqua Class, so I think for this one, we'll stick with our Celebrity reservation. BUT, I plan to keep an eye on MSC and hope to try the Yacht Club for a future cruise.

Thank you, all!

Yacht Club looks awesome enough to make us try it. We've sailed baclony and concierge class with Celebrity, and probably they're my favourite line. BUT I love trying new things and I've got plenty of more holidays left in my life.

 

I'm a pretty positive person and can enjoy most things, so it'd have to be pretty damn bad to be actually unenjoyable!

The only cruise line I'd be reluctant to try again is Princess. We cruised her once about 10 years ago and the beds were T-E-R-R-I-B-L-E! Poorest sleep quality ever. Even then I heard bad things from the reviews about their beds and how you have to request an egg foam topper to make the beds bearable. IF they didn't run out. After that, I figured any cruise line that would let their bed quality get that out of control can't be trusted with my vacation. Things have probably changed, but there are too many great options to revisit that hassle again.

Thanks to you, both! I'd love to hear your thoughts when you get back. It's a tough decision because we were VERY happy with our 1st Celebrity AquaClass experience, but the Yacht Club on MSC sounds soooo nice, I'm considering it. :-)

I've been on several cruises: Carnival (4), Royal (1), Princess (1) and most recently the Celebrity Millennium to Alaska in Summer 2015.

I loved our Celebrity cruise - we sailed Aqua Class with our first ever beverage package (classic) and while I'm not a HUGE drinker, I'm a HUGE fan of the beverage package. Without the package I think about every drink and try to decide if it's worth it, if I should wait, if it's worth spending money .... ruins my fun. Another thing I loved about Celebrity/Aqua is Blu. Two thumbs up - we loved it!

I have a cruise booked for a 7-day Caribbean cruise this summer on the Celebrity Equinox. We have aqua class again, with the premium beverage package, free gratuities, and $300 onboard credit.

Although, there is another option: We could book MSC in the yacht club for about $400 more (total), plus gratuities.

I read up on MSC a little, but don't know if it's worth it. We really want total relaxation and to just enjoy good food, good drinks, good service, and have fun with the entertainment. We don't even care about the ports of call - we've been to most of them already.

I'd love to get thoughts from any cruisers who have done both (or have info about both) cruise lines - Stick with Celebrity or try MSC for a little extra money.

Thanks, cruisers!

I've been on several cruises: Carnival (4), Royal (1), Princess (1) and most recently the Celebrity Millennium to Alaska in Summer 2015.

I loved our Celebrity cruise - we sailed Aqua Class with our first ever beverage package (classic) and while I'm not a HUGE drinker, I'm a HUGE fan of the beverage package. Without the package I think about every drink and try to decide if it's worth it, if I should wait, if it's worth spending money .... ruins my fun. Another thing I loved about Celebrity/Aqua is Blu. Two thumbs up - we loved it!

I have a cruise booked for a 7-day Caribbean cruise this summer on the Celebrity Equinox. We have aqua class again, with the premium beverage package, free gratuities, and $300 onboard credit.

Although, there is another option: We could book MSC in the yacht club for about $400 more (total), plus gratuities.

I read up on MSC a little, but don't know if it's worth it. We really want total relaxation and to just enjoy good food, good drinks, good service, and have fun with the entertainment. We don't even care about the ports of call - we've been to most of them already.

I'd love to get thoughts from any cruisers who have done both (or have info about both) cruise lines - Stick with Celebrity or try MSC for a little extra money.

Thanks, cruisers!

Thanks again, everyone, for your replies.

ghstudio ... your first response was great and your second response had equally wonderful tips! I even called my husband over to the computer to read everything because there were so many tidbits that will help make our experience even better - my husband and daughter LOVE sushi, my husband is an eggs benedict fan (and I don't make it at home), and I sleep with a body pillow and never would have thought to request one on the cruise.

I'm printing this page and bringing it with me and surgie, we are going to try to to see if any great offers are available at one of the speciality restaurants so all 5 of us can dine in style! Thank goodness there's a fitness center on board.

neverbeenhere - I'm originally from Upper Michigan, although I moved waaay down south a number of years ago, so I'm sure I'll recognize those birdlike creatures for what they are - mosquitoes. :-)

I just want everyone to know that taking the time out of your day to share is very much appreciated. I'm going to print off this page of tips, then I'm off to put the finishing touches on my packing project before catching my flight to Vancouver a little later today. Thanks, everyone!!

ghstudio - thank you for taking the time to share so many ideas! There are many things you mention that I want to keep in mind. I will definitely let them know at Blu that we have a little larger group. I'll be sure to try Bistro on Five for embarkation day. Perfect time to try them out.

chemmo - what is the 'Ballon Rouge?' I'm intrigued...

rnrcruzin - I didn't realize Vancouver had especially good coffee. I LOOOOOVE excellent coffee - strong and black, my favorite. Do you have a particular suggestion close to the cruise terminal? We're staying close to Canada Place.

SECdawg - I WILL come back and write a review!

Tomorrow I head for Vancouver for an 11-day Alaska cruise tour on the Celebrity Millennium. This is a long-anticipated family vacation that includes: my husband, my college-age daughter, and my retired parents. We'll be in Aqua class.

I've cruised on Carnival, Princess, and Royal Caribbean and cannot wait to try Celebrity. I've been reading the forums for m-o-n-t-h-s and have benefitted from the many posts even if I never chimed in. I can tell Celebrity has a loyal bunch of cruisers and I'm about to join you. :)

If anyone has any last minute tips or any exciting comments that will get me even more hyped-up about our approaching departure, post away! I have no specific question or concern, just very excited to be on my way.

Big hugs to the OP ((hug))

I second that! ... and congratulations to your daughter. :)

I hate that it never applies to an inside room. Talk about a deceptive tease.

Think about it this way: if they applied the perk to the inside cabins, the price would go up several hundred dollars per person. By not offering the perk on the inside cabins, they can keep those prices low for the people who truly want or need a much lower cruise cost. For some people, they wouldn't be able to cruise if those low inside prices were eliminated.

I personally like all the options. Last summer I didn't plan on taking a vacation and had no vacation budget at all. However, I found a super-cheap inside cabin (not on Celebrity) and was able to take a 7-day cruise that I would never otherwise have been able to do. Very small, no perks, but it was great!

Thanks again! I know exactly what to expect now. We won't book in advance, but just head outside and wave someone over. :)

Thank you. Now that my request has been moved to the right forum, I can see many of you have patiently answered the same question many times.

Aerocar seems like the best bet for us since there are 5 of us and we'll be a little tired from a full day of travel.

Do I need to reserve a car in advance this late at night (arriving just before midnight), or just walk over to the curb and find one vehicle that will accommodate all of us?

Thanks again!

That's wonderful! It'll make an exciting cruise even more special.

I'm sure this question has been asked and answered, but I'm just not sure where to look. I'm posting in the Celebrity forms simply because I'm cruising on the Celebrity Millennium. If anyone can assist by answering the question or pointing me in the right direction, I'd be grateful. :)

In about a week, I'll be arriving at the Vancouver airport at nearly midnight after a very long day of traveling. We have reservations at the Pan Pacific hotel, right on the cruise terminal. Does anyone have any idea of how much a taxi will cost OR any suggestions for organizing a car company to pick us up and get us to our hotel? There will be 5 people in our travel party.

Thank you for any help you can offer.

I have you as a Facebook friend or like, but for some reason, you don't really ever appear on my feed so I never really pay attention there.

Same here.

Just a few days away from your cruise. Were you able to confirm your reservation? I hope everything worked out and you have a wonderful vacation with your family.

How is it that they can't tell you onboard which beverages/cocktails are covered under the Classic package? Let's say you read the list from these forums ahead of time and specifically ask for one of the listed drinks. Do they all of a sudden know that that particular drink IS covered?

I was already planning to upgrade to Premium, but if they are out of a lot of the better wines, I'll just stick to the Classic package and drink coffee and smoothies. I'll buy myself a couple of nice bottles of wine when I get home and enjoy them post-cruise.

I've read similar threads, mostly by people worrying that this exact thing may happen. I'll be in Blu for the first time in June and it appears that suite guests are also choosing Blu and in some cases, aqua guests are waiting.

I wonder if they could come up with a system where for every suite guest who showed up at MDR (or Blu) to eat, a MDR (or Blu) customer could have the option of going to Luminae to eat.

We're taking a family vacation in a couple weeks and will be on Celebrity for the first time. First time for aqua class, first time on Celebrity, first time to Alaska! We all have aqua class cabins and can't wait to try Blu. Blu sounds perfect for me: cleaner eating, smaller venue, more personalized service. I'll report back. :)