Mermen

Hi All,

We are tendering in Villefranche. Our first time in France. We have an interest in visiting Monte Carlo, Eze and Nice. Since we are only in port from 10 AM to 6 PM, would like to make the best use of our time. We have already scheduled 4 ship excursions so would like to do this on our own.

Would love to hear pros and cons on which of these towns to visit? From what I've read and pictures I've looked at, Eze looks charming. Would we be better off visiting the charming village of Villefranche?

I understand Nice and Monte Carlo are in opposite directions, so would prefer to only focus on one - and considering we only have 6-hours, just makes sense. Not big shoppers, and not a super huge fan of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, though interesting to look at the yachts and shops, would rather be intrigued with the natural beauty of a village, history, museum and art, strolling and even a cathedral or 2 (though we'll have had our fill, LOL).

Thanks for your feedback and discussion! :)

Love =X= and the service level, by far the best we have experienced. Enjoy the S class and the M class, for different reasons.

We're doing a Med cruise in September on the Eclipse, from Southampton. Would be great to find family on board. ;)

Happy Sails!

Thank you for sharing. I ask because they are clear on not going inside of the Colosseum, so was curious about other sites as well. We took a golf cart tour in another country and it was fun!

This tour looks great, have seen a few videos. I understand with this tour, we won't see the inside of the Colosseum but are passengers allowed to get off the golf cart to snap pictures is spend time at a site? Or do you just stay in the cart and observe from there?

Thanks all!

We've been on 2 Princess cruises. The first we found the service to be awful, compared to Celebrity. Didn't think we would book another cruise with them, but found an itinerary which we always wanted to try...on the Diamond. We booked the cruise last year in a Penthouse Suite and glad we did so. The service for being in a suite was more comparable to Celebrity's overall standard of excellence, IMHO.

Though we went on the Diamond prior to her facelift, we had a good time. Still find the service in public areas better on Celebrity. To us it seems like the smiles and attention to service on Celebrity are more genuine. On Princess, at times we felt that we were on board for them, rather than the opposite. I do think you will enjoy the buffet and specialty restaurants better (Qsine, Tuscan Grille, Bistro on 5, Murano, Blu and Aft Grill).

Still, everyone is different and tastes are subjective, but I hope your experience on Celebrity is amazing!

Good day, my family and I are avid cruisers, cruising on all the major lines. We booked a cruise for this Thanksgiving on Celebrity Reflection. I have 6 and 4 year old boys and they have already been on 4 cruises. After cruising on the Royal Princess last Thanksgiving I was a little hesitant about booking this ship because of the experience on that ship, but the price was right!! Can anyone out there give me some feedback if you have taken kids on this ship? Thanks.

Honestly, I think other cruise lines would be more "fun" for your children. Our son and daughter are older now but when we started cruising, (elementary age) they seemed to enjoy being with the older folks, dressing up for supper, the treasure hunts, etc. but know of other children who were bored at times with the children's programs. There typically are not a lot of kids running about. I guess it probably depends on your children, the time of year you go and itinerary, and what makes them happy... lots of "theme-based activities" like water slides, events, etc. or not? :)

We have seen the videographer on occasion on some excursions, as we've been in the video - but I don't recall seeing a photographer just snapping pictures on any tour.

Hi all

I booked a cruise to Canada and the New England for Sep. 2015 We go with balcony most cruises and this one also we booked a balcony cabin. Because of the weather I'm not sure we will be able to use the balcony as we normally would. The difference in the price is over $1000.00 for the 2 of us. We never been to this area. Can any one tell me if it is going to be cold to sit out? I love it is in the balcony early morning or evening. Are we going to sail in areas were the view is nice to be outside? I don't want to waist my money on a balcony I will not be able to use. Thanks in advanced for all advices.

I haven't read through all of the reply posts, but no doubt you've received some great feedback.

We've been on two sailings of Canada and New England. Once in September and once in September - October. Early in September, the foliage is not as vibrant. Weather is hit / miss in September or October. On our Sept / Oct. cruise we were hit with the tail end of Hurricane Wilma and we had a bumpy ride. I think we had clear skies for 3 or 4 days out of 14? Lots of rain and ocean motion. In early to mid September, it rained only 3 or 4 days tops - Quebec and Bar Harbor I believe. If you book a balcony on the 9th deck, you will have more of an overhang. I think you will enjoy the balcony to some degree!

If you book a cabin in Aqua Class, you receive unlimited use of the Persian Garden (wet and dry sauna, warm tiled loungers, rain showers, etc.).

To another poster's point, the free dry sauna is small, maybe holds 4 or 5 men comfortably? The showers on S-Class are better however with a changing area and bench and place to hang robe or dry clothes (in the locker room / changing area).

I used to say "Princess" but we gave them another shot last year and had a good cruise, and pretty good service in a Penthouse suite. We're confident with =X= and the great service we have always received there, but if we try Princess again, or any other line, would book a Grand / Penthouse Suite or higher...:D

For us, it's a combination of itinerary and service level.

We just got of 28 days on the infinity in blu after the first few days we went to select dining. The food in both is basically the same except served on different nights. You might as well eat by yourself no room for interaction with others. If that is what you like than blu is for you but we cruise to enjoy ourselves and interact with others and make new friends !

 

 

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The menu is absolutely not "basically the same except served on different nights". The menus are vastly different. There may be one or two items (chicken or steak) which one can order in either restaurant on any night, but the food is not basically the same. :rolleyes: How could you state this when you admit you only ate in Blu for a "few days"? As far as "no room for interaction with others", we always eat at a table for 2 and have always engaged in conversation with those around us.

On our B2B cruise (15 night / 11 night) of course there were a couple of meals which were repeated...but who does not have a weekly rotation in their home for supper, repeating a dish maybe twice in 3-weeks? :)

Hi,

Sailing on the Milli next month in Alaska, was upgraded to

Aqua Class.

Is Blu included or is it extra?

Also how does it compare with the main dining room?

Thanks

I have not read all posts replying to your questions, but no doubt you know now that it is covered.

We love Blu -and prefer it to the MDR. Love the service, lighter portions, (more reductions than fatty sauces) and the ambiance. Aqua Class is really the only category we stay in now on the S-Class or M-Class ships. Can't say enough positive things about it!

Thanks Bob++ and orchestra pal!

No worries about the abbreviating lesson, it is a real problem here in San Francisco as well, especially with street names and our districts - as I imagine many places. I want not attempting to be "trendy", nor do I consider that even a trend. Working for a hotel bureau and in contact with US-based hotel properties, I understand the difference. Here in SF we have the Park Hyatt, Grand Hyatt and Wharf Hyatt - all Hyatt Regency properties - same with a few Marriott properties. I get it. The Grosvenor House or Grosvenor Place was not what I was questioning (as the two properties are only yards away from one another). I was attempting to keep this thread on track with my original question. Thanks for your concern! :)

Thanks for the tips, and er...the lesson on abbreviating? :rolleyes: I wasn't asking for an opinion on the Marriott Grosvenor (House, by the way); however, I was asking about the Sofitel.

All in good fun, no worries.

Thought I would start here....

For the last night of our post cruise this September, we decided to stay at the Sofitel, which is adjacent to Terminal 5 at London Heathrow, for the sake of convenience.

Have you stayed here? Their website is not terribly specific. I'm curious about the quality and convenience, if you have experience. We're flying British Airways.

If not terribly convenient, we may remain at the Grosvenor Marriott in Mayfair and cab it to the airport last morning.

Thanks all!

We sailed one cruise through Pied Piper and saved a bundle on Concierge Class (Celebrity).

I don't think we would be inclined to re-book through them as our experience on board wasn't all that great. We made a couple of friends, but the tour director was an idiot, IMHO. We were early into cruising and assumed we were stuck with him and our dumb@ss table mate who made every dining experience painful.

What we did like was the comradery of some and making a few new gay friends.

All Celebrity ships have a private men's dry sauna, in the locker changing area (with showers).

All M-Class & S-Class Celebrity ships have co-ed Persian Garden which includes steam, dry, scents, warm tiled loungers / benches and showers. There typically is a fee for these, unless you book Aqua Class.

The dry men's only saunas are nice on the M-Class...fairly large with a window overlooking the sea. The men's only dry sauna on S-Class has smaller dry saunas, which face out into the shower area.

On Princess, have only sailed Diamond and Pacific, and both had men only steam areas. Diamond also had men's only dry sauna, Pacific did not.

You know what works better than a flash light? Battery powered tea lights. They're cheap and 2 lasted the whole week of being on all week. They also cast a nice lights that won't wake you all the way up. Just turn them on and leave the door cracked.

Great idea! Creates a better mood too...whereas a flashlight makes me feel like I'm camping! LOL.

I think Bed Bath and Beyond sells night lights with freshener in them....or so I read in an older post.

Funny, we started with Celebrity about the same time, but were already in our early/ late 30's. Now in our mid-40's/ early 50's ( the new 29, or so I'm told!) and Celebrity continues to fit us well, with our 13th Celebrity cruise in May. Oh, we flirt with Princess now and then, and had a torrid affair with Cunard(as torrid as Cunard can be...) but, for the moment, mostly Celebrity.

 

(The funniest thing about this thread is that I re-read my last post, and have no idea who I was talking about...ah, cruise ship friendships...)

 

Andrew

Same with us Andrew...we began in our early / late 30's and now in our late 40's, early 50's. Never once thought =X= to be stuffy or rigid, but always amazing. We like leaving the theme-park at home and just enjoy the ambiance and stellar service on board the =X= ships. We've also dipped our toes in Princess, because of the itineraries, but always come back to our preferred. BTW, I think we sailed with you on a Barcelona TA a few years back...:)

Beautiful pictures everyone, thanks for posting. I think we have had most of these dishes…our loves: Tuscan Grille, Blu and Bistro on 5…

I wish =X= would prepare east coast / cold water lobster though. Still, all said and done, their food is still the best.

I guess we enjoy Blu as the portions are a little smaller, some unique and while the flavor is still there, the fat or carbs are not the main source. :) Not that I'm complaining about fat or carbs on a cruise, LOL! Bring it on…

Thanks for the valuable information. So possibly only one of us can upgrade to the Premium Package, leaving the other on the Classic? Good deal.

We are getting married on board the NCL Breakaway in April. We will have close to 100 guests with about 25 sailing. We will be married in port which allows us to have guests attend who would not otherwise be able to sail.

 

NCL and their group team have been really very good to work with in planning the event. Don't leave anything to chance and ask for anything you want/need. Also check out the wedding forum on CC.

Robert and Ralph, what a great website you have created! Wishing you both all the best in wedded bliss, a terrific cruise with friends and family and a lifetime of joy (and more cruising!) :)

I am glad you posted, and may reach out to you with questions. Rowell and I live in SF and are looking at a 14-day round trip cruise in 2015 from SF to Alaska on Celebrity. For the past few weeks have been discussing the option of doing what you are, getting married on embarkation day. Since most of our family and friends are here in Nor Cal, it makes sense (wish it was a warmer cruise like you are taking - but we'll be cozy!).

How exiting for you both!!

Yep, another two votes for =X=...I realize this is an old thread, but never hurts to give a shout out for your preferred cruise line. The only time we deviated from =X= was because of a particular itinerary which we wanted to try, that they didn't offer. The itinerary may have been great, but the service does not compare to what we receive on all of the X ships we've sailed on.

And this might have been a little "white trash" of me...but we topped ourselves off as well. It was kind of a joke with the steward and he didn't mind at all, he actually showed me where he was placing the bottle. We had three premium package people who really like their wine....so it would take super human speed to keep up with us........

LOL! No, not white trash at all...just thirsty! :) I probably would too (especially if our server in Blu and the wine steward / sommelier were busy)...

Mermen, the wine steward will put the wine bottle right next to you in the bucket, just like with a normal bottle of wine. They will keep pouring and topping you off throughout dinner.....

Thanks so much for your reply!