Sunshinecrew

We are two couples, our first time in Iceland, and I am torn about what to do while in port in Akureyri. I'm torn because I can trace my Icelandic roots back to 1685 to an area about 60 km or 55 minutes from Akureyri. It's the Ólafsfjörðuri area. I would love to stand on the same ground of my ancestors but at the same time I don't want to miss the typical tour of Lake Mývatn, waterfall Goðafoss, Dimmuborgir, Námaskarð and possibly Jarðböðin. Since we are only stopping in Akureyri from 7:30 AM to 4 PM in August, I don't feel we can risk doing both and I would feel guilty for the other three with me to have to go on my quest which is in a different direction not knowing what we will find. Has anyone been to the Ólafsfjörður area and if so, can it possibly be near something to match the splendor of the usual top tour mentioned above? Were we spending the night, there is no doubt that I would rent a car and do both but, alas,we're not.

Glynda

I have read through their terms and conditions and they say that if you are late for your slot, they will try to book you in for a later one, but that of course if all later slots for that day are booked, then you are out of luck. That seems to me to be all you could hope for.

 

They also say they are non-refundable except at their discretion. So if the ship fails to port, your best bet would be to send a very polite, begging email for a refund.

 

Anyway, it is booked now, so just keep your fingers crossed! I don’t think Belfast is a port which is often missed.

Thank you for looking that up for me. I had read it thoroughly and mentioned it in my OP. Just hoped to find a person, who had shown up late or not at all that had pre-booked, to hear of their experience. However, after reading all the replies, I have become assured that it is unlikely that we will have a problem. Thanks everyone for your replies. If you are going, enjoy! :)

Glynda

I agree with those who are suggesting the Waterloo area. We've stayed in London about 12 times now, in numerous areas and types of accommodations from bed & breakfasts, hotels, rental flats, etc. Last year we stayed at Hampton by Hilton Waterloo for the first time and are returning there this summer to stay prior to our cruise. Excellent location for getting to all major sights. It's clean, updated, AIR CONDITIONED, has a very good breakfast selection, right on the bus line and a couple of blocks to the tube station. There is an excellent restaurant a few doors down and The Old Vic theater is very close also.

I really appreciate each of you who took the time to reply. My question goes unanswered though. I was hoping to hear what happened from someone who had pre-booked and needed to cancel or was late to their time slot. I have pre-booked the Titanic Museum for right after our arrival.

We have been to London around 12 times. I have seen lines in London and at Windsor Castle that were very long and was thankful that we pre-booked. Others, like Kensington Palace's Diana exhibition, The Harry Potter studios, Buckingham Palace State Rooms and Garden, and theaters were unavailable months ahead of our dates. I rechecked often and upon arrival. No luck. While I realize that the Titanic Museum in Belfast probably isn't as popular, I prefer to be sure. Our husbands are seriously interested in all things Titanic.

Glynda

The tickets are 'timed', so I guess the possibility exists that if you wait till you are there, you may not be able to get in at that time if all the tickets for that time slot have been bought. Many of us are trying to do as much as possible in each port, so could be a disappointment if we had to come back at another time.

Thank you for understanding!

Thanks. I’ve read of long lines and would prefer to avoid them!

Looking at booking ahead for the Titanic Museum Belfast. Refunds are not guaranteed if the ship doesn't dock or is running late. The Terms & Conditions state that refunds or entrance, once late for pre-booked time slot, are "not guaranteed except at the absolute discretion of TBL International Group". So has this happened to anyone and what was the result? Did they give you a refund or let you in if you arrived late for you pre-booked time slot? Purchasing for four and that's a lot of money to lose if something happens.

Thanks!

Glynda

We're hoping to visit more reefs for snorkeling than are offered by Carnival. We are considering using Exclusive Escapes for a snorkeling trip. I searched this Grand Turk Forum but did not find an thread or post with their name, if I did it correctly. Has anyone used them? Reviews? Comments? Thanks!

Mom, As you can see, I did begin my first post with stating that we absolutely loved our 2018 MB cruise before listing the various hiccups. There were six of us, the remaining members of my husband's high school rock and roll band and their wives. The guys still play together occasionally. High school reunions and such. So regardless of long lines for venues and the quality of the food not being up to Celebrity's usual, we had a great time! Didn't try the cafe/grill after 10 so can't say. I did like that they served an British sort of "high tea" in the cafe in the afternoon.

So did you encounter any problem getting the cabin of your choice when you booked yesterday? I'd be interested in knowing how soon they "sell out." Unless we can't get three rooms somewhat close together on another music cruise we hope to book tomorrow, we don't plan on going on the On the Blues Cruise in '19.

Dole, You make a good point about sitting so close in the assigned VIP seats. The volume was just too loud. I want to postpone having to have hearing aids as long as possible! :-) I don't even like to sit in the very front rows for a theater performance as I don't like looking up all the time and not being able to see the whole set. Mid theater seems much better.

My problem with RCCL has mainly been it's food. When Carnival's oldest ship has better food than RCCL, there is a problem! At least the RCCL Mariner of the Seas for the '19 On the Blues Cruise will have been refurbished and they say it will allow for more indoor event space rather than having to cancel due to rain and wind.

Sunshine,

 

I know the ship was 100% full. We know some people who decided late to book, but couldn't. The TA who worked this cruise told them it was full with no rooms left, and 2000 people on a wait list.

 

There are levels of VIP. Not sure what the difference is. We had the highest level as we had been on all prior MB cruises.

 

We received an email today that booking for the 2019 cruise starts tomorrow (Tuesday Afternoon). It is RCCL, and they have only announced some of the bands. We are definitely going to let this one slide! But anybody who wants to go needs to book tomorrow. On past cruises, all the good suites (of RCCL has any) will go in minutes, along with all the budget cabins.

Oh, I didn't know there were different levels of VIP before.

On the 100% booking, we wondered if perhaps some decks, or portions of, were undergoing maintenance and not available for booking. Again, just based on the number of people in areas where we had experienced many more five months prior on same ship. I have nothing else to base our assumption on. I see that the RCCL has the capacity to hold 650 more people than the Celebrity from this year. With 2,000 on a waiting list, they need to book bigger ships!

The booking today, March 6, 2018, is for past MB cruisers. General booking opens later. Not sure when. The link to book will supposedly be disabled until then for those who have not cruised the MB cruises before (now called "On the Blue Cruise".

Waiting to hear from friends as to whether we are going. I hate to miss Al Stewart and The Orchestra particularly. We definitely are going a different one in March on Celebrity.

Sunshine,

 

To be fair, we had the VIP tickets and a suite. So we had reserved seating for the concerts in the auditorium and a separate dining room and separate open bar. And we never visited the pool. And I'm well aware that the suite portion of a ship (any line) can be much different from other portions in all respects.

 

I do agree that musical events outside and in lounges were too crowded and seating too hard to find. But the ship was sailing at 100% capacity (or above) and that factor always diminishes the quality of any cruise. I've had a senior cruise line official tell me that all ships "cruise better" at no more than 90% capacity.

 

And I've felt for a few years that the promoters of these music cruises need to negotiate a little harder on inclusions and quality with the lines. After all, a Moody Blues cruise guarantees the line 100% occupancy -- something that many cruises are unable to achieve these days.

 

In my earlier post, I was comparing Celebrity suite class experience to a cruise experience with more "standard accommodations" on Regent for about the same price -- and without regard to the music part. We found Celebrity to be a bit more enjoyable largely due to the spacious suite. And we did, in fact, book Celebrity for Alaska this summer in a suite based on this.

 

As for 2019, we have cruised Royal Caribbean before and liked it not at all. For mainly that reason, we'll be skipping the 2019 cruise.

If we go again, it will VIP though I see that VIP has been divided into Silver and Gold level VIP. Hmmmm...between that and it being RCCL, we may not be going either. We were concierge class and found that the benefits of concierge were not great on a charter. Spa or suite class would have given us the different dining rooms as well as VIP and its benefits. We are looking at another music cruise that is on Celebrity for Spring of 2019.

Sorry I wasn't clear on the pool. I meant people were saving seats early on for concerts; pulling chairs from the sides over, etc., and leaving towels or other items on them. We didn't actually use the pool area other than for concerts either, though we crossed through the area numerous times a day.

Are you sure that the ship was sailing at 100% capacity? We wondered because the cafe/grill and dining room were far less crowded than when we were aboard the same ship 5 months earlier for 2 weeks. On the MB cruise, we never had to wait for a table in the dining room and never had trouble finding one, even one for 6 people, in the cafe/grill. That was a different story on our earlier cruise.

We are booked on Celebrity out of England this summer for two weeks to Ireland and Iceland. Enjoy Alaska!

I feel that the Moody Blues Cruise in Jan. 2018 went over well with all who went. The Celebrity Eclipse was a great ship that was very classy -- not a graffiti filled joke like the Norwegian Pearl was in 2016. Plus, if you booked a suite you got great accommodations, a separate open bar lounge, and a separate open dining room. It was luxury cruising at not (quite) the price plus great music.

I absolutely loved this year's (2018) Moody Blues Cruise. But as with all travel, there can be hiccups. Unless one is VIP, seating and waiting in lines will be a problem. Some bands were simply too loud with no reason to be. One in our party measured the decibels of an outside performance to be over 100!!! Damaging. Next time we'll bring earplugs. Also, the space at the pool area did not seem sufficient. Some passengers saved seats quite early and we had to stand for several outdoor concerts. And then there was the rain and cancellations. That couldn't be helped though the sponsors have stated that the Royal Caribbean ship for 2019's cruise (with Justin Hayward of the Moody Blues performing but not the other members) will have larger indoor venues.

The worst part for us was that we had sailed on the Celebrity Eclipse just five months prior to the Moody Blues Cruise on the Eclipse. We had bragged about the food and service to our friends who accompanied us on the Moody Blues Cruise. But the food and service were just not the same on the very same ship! The food was not nearly as good and the dining room seemed understaffed as did the cafe and other areas on the ship. I can only suspect the quality was less because it was a chartered cruise; that corners were cut. That doesn't make sense to me as Celebrity should be hoping to gain new customers on future cruises. I heard a number, of new to Celebrity, cruisers say that they will not ever go on another Celebrity Cruise. I didn't think it was THAT bad (better food than on RCCL) but it was certainly not the usual Celebrity standard. All said, we still would do it again!

We used Marysol Tours for the 12 Waterfalls and they were very professional. Their website lists several types of tours, since you are looking for something less active.

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I have looked at the Marysol website and see where they say they allow cancellations but I see no information on the circumstances in which one may cancel or what happens if the ship reschedules the stop or is late and there is not enough time to do the tour of the waterfalls. Can't decide whether or not to use them.

My husband, myself and our 16 year old granddaughter will be staying overnight prior to our Celebrity cruise in early July in Southampton. I'm searching hotels but the reviews don't lend themselves to a party of two adults and a teen that would be considered an adult by hotels. I'm reading that the beds or rooms are small at a number of places. The Novotel doesn't have A/C and that concerns me in July as I've been in England in July when it was quite hot though our granddaughter would love the modern decor! We're not concerned about having to take a taxi to the port or booking a very low budget hotel and it's just one night so any suggestions?

Thanks!

Glynda

Can you get unlimited internet for just 1 person (device) or do you have to purchase 2?

I asked this yesterday and was told that you can share a package but only one person at a time can be signed on. That is what we did on our Royal Carribbean Cruise last year. We just had to take turns signing into our devices once the other person was off.

Can I assume that more than one device use the same sign-in information, just not at the same time? So that two in a cabin don't each have to buy the package but can share it?

We were in cabin 1534 on the 10th level. Great balcony cabin and location for us. Awful mattress!!!!!

I was also on the cruise from 3-27 to 4-3 and it was rather odd to have sleep interrupted three times at that hour of the morning looking for, I thought, a female "Cooper." And I thought that the Captain said in his morning announcement that the person had been located.

When are the Christmas markets at their height? I see some cruises for early in November and wonder if the markets would all be operating that early?

The food is not as good as on Carnival? Really? Because our food on Carnival's Fantasy was bad. I'd hate to think I've paid more to cruise RC and it won't even be as good as that! ARGH!

On previous cruises, we have booked private excursions in Florence, Rome, Sicily, Dubrovinik, Venice, Nassau, and Barbados. All were the highlight of our trips! In each case, we got to our destinations before the cruise buses and had time to add other points of interest, eat and take restroom breaks when we wanted to.

If you study Cruise Critic and Trip Advisor recommendations, you shouldn't go wrong.

"If you build it, they will come"..... Btw, what city isn't in a publication for best place to visit. There are so many different rankings. Listen to the people who you want to visit verse being so close minded. Btw, there is a place called Norfolk Va that has a similar airport and they have a Bermuda cruise. It's almost sold out, with 10 months to go!

And of course, you have either conducted feasibility studies, or studied such already conducted, concerning building/adding all that you suggest here. You understand all of the various entities involved. You are familiar with the environmental concerns. You are an expert on the Charleston harbor itself, its channels, depths, dredging schedules, container shipping and other commercial shipping in the harbor? You are well versed in the post 9/11 regulations for a cruise terminal. Evacuation procedures and requirements. You have familiarized yourself with the State Ports Authority, it's available land mass and its plans for a cruise terminal and future contracts with cruise lines? The same concerning the Charleston airport? Traffic? Parking? Carnival's wishes concerning destinations from CHS? I could go on and on but I find it interesting that people think that they have all the answers without ever actually looking at the real issues and facts. Easy for YOU to say.

As far as being "close minded" see posts numbers 19 and 42 concerning how I feel about people who make such comments. :roll eyes:

They are sold in cans, and very expensive. Carnival allows each cruiser to take 12 -30 oz. soda on board. But, they must in your carry on luggage.

Thanks! I read if you buy the soft drink/beverage pass that it's in a glass so I assumed fountain, not cans. I prefer canned. I plan to take some on board in carry-on luggage for the cabin but didn't know about dining, bar, pool area, etc. if I buy the soft drink beverage pass.

I didn't find it that bad with the tea/coffee, but I couldn't drink it straight. I couldn't do it on the Fascination either. I always buy the bottled water for the room. It was like that with my first RCC cruise too.

Do you know if the soft drinks like Diet Coke are served from a fountain or are in cans/bottles? Can you board with your own bottled water and soft drinks?