TMLAalum

Been following this thread ever since we booked our Fjords cruise for May 9-16 on the Eclipse!

We are in Alesund (docked) from 7am-7pm and in Geiranger (tendered) from 7am-3pm.

I believe the troll road can be accessed from either port, but I am thinking that since we are in Alesund longer that we should do the troll road that day (either by rental car or through a service such as limousinewest) and then in Geiranger visit Dalsnibba or other vistas or perhaps take a boat cruise. What are your thoughts, Lars?

We will likely be a group of 6 or 8 which would make using a service more feasible than a rental car. Are you aware of any other companies that would be able to drive us?

Thanks!

Does my husband need a jacket and tie on the "formal" nights?

If your DH has a long sleeve shirt and tie, the maitre'd should be able to lend him a jacket from several that are at the ready.

On our last cruise, DH asked for a jacket, and he was told he was fine to enter the MDR on formal night with his very sharp shirt, and Jerry Garcia tie.

Alternatives are the specialty restaurants, buffet or room service.

My B-I-L is on a cruise now. He just booked 3 cabins for himself,us,and our cousins. We all got the OBC and 123 promo. We and our cousins chose the drink pkg and bro took the $300 price reduction. We have it all in writing for 2/15 cruise.

Hope this answers some questions.

Friends of ours are planning on joining us on a Fjords cruise on the Eclipse next May. They are not sailing in the interim.

However, other friends will be aboard the Millennium early next month. Can they book the Fjords cruise for the others, get the perks for them, but not book for themselves? We booked aboard last month, were offered the 1-2-3, so took the $200 OBC vs. prepaid gratuities for 7 nights/beverage package, got $150 OBC applied to the Fjords cruise for booking aboard and, in addition, received $285 OBC from our travel agent (who is the same as the friends who are joining us in Norway). Those would be great perks vs. the $125 they'd get from Celebrity's current offer for new bookings made from shore!

We have a week in a Yorkshire England timeshare reserved for mid-May so our best choice (although the shortest Celebrity fjords itinerary) was to book the 5/9 Eclipse sailing!

So far there are only 2 of us on the roll call:(!

We were on the Millennium's 4/13 sailing and had an excellent voyage, despite Code Red (BiL got the dreaded noro, but his wife was fine and we were, too). Our cabin was well-maintained (7003, one of those humungous OVs), food in the MDR was very good and included the best steak I've had over all our Celebrity cruises and trout prepared as it should be (I was hesitant to try it after not liking it at all on our 1st Silhouette cruise). We had an excellent cabin attendant-Martin.

Although we prefer the S-class ships, we found no significant fault with the Millie.

On our 4/13 Millennium cruise from Hong Kong, our passports were taken and held so that proper visas could be stamped for Taiwan and Japan. The night before we arrived in Tianjin China we had to retrieve our passports per a schedule. This process was well-organized and upon return to the ship we again surrendered our passports to be retrieved the night before arriving in Shanghai where the cruise concluded. Had there been a forewarning about Petroplavosk, passports could have been collected similarly.

Sounds like a mess in Russia that may well be 'politically' motivated. I hope those who failed to comply are located soon...perhaps it's a language barrier?

We'd have been on this itinerary had it's original sail date of 4/26/14 not been moved:eek:!

We've had two fabulous cruises on the Silhouette. I can't even think of one negative to report. I did start a review on our Ocotber '13 sailing, but didn't finish it. (Guess that confirms that people who are unhappy tend to publicize their complaints whereas those who were delighted with their cruise don't.) I did write a review about our April Millennium cruise which we also liked very much to provide a positive perspective among a sea of negativity- hopefully it will be published soon. Enjoy your cruise!

This is cruise critic, people should feel safe coming here and praising complaining, explaining as long as standards are met. When negative experiences are posted and are met with cheerleading only responses those responses become negative. Why negate someone else's life experience? They have a right to it as much as someone's happy experience.

This is right on; however, when no specifics are given about one's experiences, whether good or bad, the poster comes across as either a cheerleader or its opposite. (Is there a Cruise Critic term for a generic complainer?)

We had a delightful time on our recent Dynasties & Dragons cruise. Yes, there were glitches, but based on some previous threads and posts, I expected to sail on a rustbucket with crew that could care less about the passengers. I'm happy to say those preconceived expectations were not met!

The Millennium was in fine form last month. We had an excellent stateroom attendant, but MDR service could have been improved had the staff not been under noro regimen and had time to adjust to having to take drink orders. Our sommelier was very attentive. I found no fault with our cabin other than the bedskirt could use replacing.

Most evenings the dress code is "Smart Casual" except for formal nights.

However, there are options for avoiding the formal night dress code on Celebrity!

1. Book Aqua Class for dining in Blu which is anytime dining & smart casual every night.

2. Dine in the specialty restaurants on formal nights as the dress code there is smart casual at all times.

3. Room Service

4. Last (and least) is to have dinner in the Oceanview Café; however, choices are limited in the evening.

Was on Millie Last Week....Looks Fine

Even carpeting looks good, didn't see any signs of any run down spaces

Agree with you, Johnny! We enjoyed our cruise, loved our roomy OV cabin 7003, and found the ship to be very well maintained.

Nothing wrong that can't be repaired...door hinges are rusting so doors to the cabins are falling off. Many of the beds are on the floor due to collapsed bedframes. A few of the rooms still have running water and toilets that flush and they have managed to contain the rats from eating in the buffet at the same time as other passengers. Passengers are catching norovirus as they check in on embarkation and everyone is confined to their rooms for the length of the cruise. (Is this a loose summation of the reports you must have been reading?).

 

Fortunately, we sailed on her for 28 wonderful days earlier this year in Asia prior to the what must have been the very sudden deterioration you've found in all those negative posts.

 

Our perspective is that it's a very nice ship, in very good condition and we'd sail on the Millennium again in a heartbeat if it were sailing somewhere we wanted to go.

Thanks for the humor! We board tomorrow and are looking forward to our voyage on athoroughly sanitized (if not thoroughly modern) Millie!t

We arranged a private tour with Tours of Puglia for Alberobello and Polignano al Mare.

I am so glad we saw the trulli homes of beautiful Alberobello. Don't skip it!

If you do a half day morning tour, you could spend the afternoon in Bari. We didn't get to see it, but I remember returning to the ship and encountering a woman burdened down by 2 huge shopping bags filled with shoes she'd purchased for a steal in Bari!

So last night we were discussing with friends the mileage we used for our upcoming Asia trip- 32,500 UA economy class to HK and 67,500 AA 1st class from Shanghai each.

My one extremely frugal friend's eyes grew wide as she said, "You had to use that many miles? We only used 35,000 each UA round trip to/from Sydney last February (2013)!" My other friend and I were incredulous, asking are you sure you don't mean one way. But she was insistent, even as we clarified that would mean only 17,500 miles one way, because they only had that many miles in their account.

Could she be right?

I was thinking Accademia in Venice when I wrote my earlier post:o!

In Florence, our pre-booked tickets for the Accademia allowed us right in, even though we were early. We did have to search a bit for the sign for those with tickets already. Enjoyed seeing David from all angles, but disappointed we missed "Pink Dave"!

I will also take the wait and see route. However, I would add that our Feb 8th trip this year on silhouette I found the events themselves interesting enough I thought much of the staff was disinterested. Especially in things like trivia and the arts/craft section.

 

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Maybe the disinterest was due to knowing that their jobs were being eliminated...

We are sailing the Millennium in 10 days on a voyage with 5 sea days. It will be interesting to see how Celebrity will fill those days. Our roll call has had a post from the Guest Lecturers who've been aboard the ship since November. In addition to informative presentations, they'll be doing an 'improv" comedy workshop. I'm interested in what they'll be offering, but JIC I'll be packing some knitting and downloading beaucoup books to my Nook.

We enjoyed Ravenna very much. Most of the churches with mosaics were open, although we did have to wait until after Mass was over at the Basilica San Vitale. You could attend a service there and then you will be able to stay afterwards. The mausoleum of Galla Placida is adjacent to San Vitale and was one of my favorite sites in Ravenna. Some of the basilicas are "de-sanctified" and open as museums. If you take the shuttle into Ravenna from port, it is a very walkable city. Shops do open late morning, and there are many.

Have a wonderful day!

We took a private tour with Garceth Cunampio, a native Embera. We visited the same village that was featured on "The Amazing Race" and it was amazing! An authentic experience- in that our trip was far down the river and reached by motorized dugout canoe, the people were dressed in traditional garb, food was prepared over fire and served in plaintain leaves and we participated in a traditional dance with the tribe. From what I understand, ship tours go to a commercialized village.

We were transported via van to the river and back. Those who'd signed up for the ship tour had their excursion cancelled due to rain, but the drizzle we encountered on our canoe ride back added to the experience.

Hi to Jim and Missy (our friends from the 2012 Silhouette sailing).

Where did you hold this wine tasting event? It sounds like a wonderful time and would be something I wouldn't mind organizing, although we leave in just 2 weeks for our Dynasties & Dragons cruise out of Hong Kong. But as they say, it's never too late!

Please feel free to email me: beejaybeeohio at netscape dot net. Just title it Celebrity CC Wine Tasting.

Thanks so much!

I used the initials of my high school in Queens NY- The Mary Louis Academy + alum. There are a few other alumnae who are Cruise Critic members who have recognized the TMLA!

When DH had some questions he wanted me to post, I suggested he join as USMMAalum (United States Merchant Marine Academy)

Personally, I think Royal Caribbean's Club Royale Casino Department, takes such good care of me, as I almost don't see the reason to go back on Celebrity.

 

Through them, I now have reservations for all my dining, including specialty, for my Quantum cruise: which is a full month 1/2 before, reservations open to the general public, on May 15, 2014.

Royal Caribbean is the parent company for Celebrity. I'm happy you love them, keeps me, a shareholder, happy. As they say down south, "bless your heart"!

In Cozumel my DH took a bottom fishing shore-ex which he really enjoyed. There are also deep-sea fishing opportunities out of other Central America ports.

Look for more unique opportunities- in Colon Panama, we took a private tour with an Embera Indian guide via dugout to a village deep in the jungle. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience! Cave- tubing in Belize sounds like fun, although we opted for a ship ex to the Xunantunich Mayan ruin.

Sea days can prove difficult for the antsy-type, but if you choose active activities for your ports, your DH might just enjoy chillaxing!

We stayed here and loved it: http://www.residenzacanali.com

It's on the Via dei tre archi and highly rated on Trip Advisor.

On our very 1st cruise (NCL) we missed our last port-of-call, Victoria BC. I was devasted because I'd been dreaming about returning to Ferris Oyster Bar there for FIVE YEARS:rolleyes:!!! We were informed that Victoria was a no-go because of Azipod issues when we boarded the Pearl. They knew ahead of time and we got nothing:eek:!!

Then, can you believe on our 1st Med cruise with Celebrity, we had to miss Mykonos?? The reason given was that the port was closed due to high winds and tendering couldn't be risked!! There were quite a few like the OP and the Rowdys who were furious about missing Mykonos- they missed the point that Ship Happens but it wasn't the Ship Happens experience that the Carnival cruisers endured last year. And missing a port can't begin to be compared to the wreck of the Concordia..

We never even entertained any thought of "compensation" for missed ports. There are lots of disappointments in life and that is what occurred for cruisers on the Constellation who missed Cozumel- a disappointment not a disaster.

We will have our very first car rental (from Hertz, who will supply my required automatic) in Italy in May when we spend our Livorno port day in Volterra. Any and all suggestions greatly appreciated!:)

Volterra's parking garage is clearly marked and if you use a GPS or follow Rick Steve's directions you will find it easily. Even if the sign says full, just line up and before you know it a spot will open up! We had a great meal at La Vecchia Lira, which is a deli during the day, but a restaurant in the evening. Be sure to visit the Etruscan gate and the Roman amphitheatre. We had an evening guided walking tour with Annie Adair that was excellent-http://volterrawalkingtour.com/index.html. Have a wonderful visit!