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What should I watch for when buying silver jewelry at the ports?

I've been burned many times purchasing silver that turned black!

Really enjoying your photos, etc... Have you ziplined anywhere else? Wondering how St. Kitts compares to other Caribbean zipline ports.

Barbara

I was a bit disappointed to read that there was no Piano Bar on the Equinox.

What was your favorite after dinner/after show spot to dance and enjoy good "listening" music?

St. Thomas

St. Kitts

Barbados

St. Maarten

Dominica

Not into the usual cruiseport jewelry shops, etc, but do enjoy shopping at small shops and flea market type stands.

Is bargaining usual in any of the above ports?

Thank you!

Mask Interactive Theme Party, Sizzle Interactive Theme Party, and 70's Night Fever Dance Party.

I picked up the above info on another thread, but no other information other than the names of the above mentioned parties was available.

Would appreciate input...Should we bring masks? What is a Sizzle Interactive Theme Party? Do people dress in 70's attire for Dance Party?

Thanks!

We had a nice time on Shasta (sp?) the last time we visited Barbados. Saw quite a few turtles and fish over a few wrecks. The staff was very helpful.

That being said though, it looked like a parking lot with so many catamarans in the same locales.

There was a beach close to these swimming/snorkeling areas and I was thinking that we could have saved quite a bit of money by snorkeling out to the turtles from the shore and would have enjoyed sitting on the beach as well. Does anyone know the name of this beach?

Is there another place in Barbados where other catamarans go to have guests swim with the turtles and/or snorkel without the crowds?

Thank you.

Barbara

Thanks so much!

Can we get a pizza through room service? Separate charge for this?

I remember some ships having a t-shirt sale on one of the last days of the cruise. Does Celebrity do this? Surely dislike paying full price and seeing them cheaper a few days later.

The Solarium pool looks gorgeous, but I really want to sit outside facing the sea. I saw a photo of a pool with outside seating on above deck.

Are there steps closeby that go down to this pool so we could walk down to "take a dip" occasionally?

We'll be on the Equinox in December and have learned so much from your wonderful review also! Thanks.

Like the idea of ordering more than a continental breakfast from room service to enjoy on our balcony before excursions.

What items are available?

Thank you.

Barbara

DH is upgrading to premium....I'm OK w/classic.

I've read that you can only order one drink at a time.

At buffet we usually get our food, find a table and then he goes to the bar to get wine for both of us.

I know Celebrity has servers to get drinks, but I've read that sometimes they are hard to track down.

Question:

If DH goes to the bar to get us drinks while I'm at a table at buffet, can he get us both drinks if he brings both of our cards? (premium for him; classic for me)

Thank you.

Barbara

The 2D cabins are obstructed by tenders (larger lifeboats used to shuttle passengers at some ports) which rise nearly to the level of the veranda. The 2C cabins are obstructed by lifeboats which do not rise as high and top out more or less below the floor of your veranda. There might be 2D cabins with other minor view obstructions as well.

 

You can see this in the following photo of the Eclipse which shows the tender boats in front of 2D cabins on the left and the lower lifeboats in front of 2C cabins on the right:

 

Here is a photo of the Silhouette that is from further out but if you look carefully you can see the higher tender type boats forward of the mid-ship hump where the 2D cabins are located:

 

I've seen other discussion threads here on this forum where someone posted pictures of the view from each type of veranda looking out which you might be able to find with a bit of work in the search feature here.

I noticed a window washing frame on Deck 11...Is this an obstructed veranda w/reduced pricing? Just want to mention that I'm surprised that the poles on Decks 10 & 11 don't bother more passengers. I chose Deck 10 so cabins would be above us and we could walk up to the pool/buffet instead of using the elevator, but considered taking Deck 9 to avoid the poles.

Also surprised that the S class ships have so many balcony cabins over protruding lifeboats which block the view to the water (even if you're on a higher deck).

Over the years of reading here on CC, I have come to the conclusion that some lines have quite a different feel on a 5 day cruise vs. a 7 day cruise or longer. Some lines it seems are more of a party atmosphere and less formal on a shorter cruise. What is the general consensus on Celebrity - we've sailed mostly HAL and once on Carnival, so curious to hear what others think about Celebrity.

Another thread says there are no lobster to be had on a 5 day cruise - bummer:( We have just booked two shorter back to backs on Celebrity, so I am hoping there won't be much of a different "feel" to it than a 7+ nighter.

Can anyone outline any differences you see between the shorter vs. longer sailings?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

Just my two cents....

We are extremely active seniors and had great fun on the NCL Sky and even on the Bahamas Celebration...Both just a few nights. It seemed that the party atmosphere started as soon as we boarded with dancing, drinking, more people in their 20's and 30's looking to have a good time. More of a long weekend trip with the ports not really mattering (usually Bahamas)...

On longer cruises the atmosphere seems much more relaxed.

We went on one 5 day cruise and there were many "groups" and children.

The vibe isn't as crazy as the 2 - 3 night cruises. We live in FL and can drive to the port, but still thought a five day cruise wasn't work the effort it took to pack, unpack, make arrangements, etc. By the time our fun really started, I felt we had to think about getting off the ship.

A 7 night cruise is usually fun without feeling too rushed. Still alot of children though usually depending upon the time of year.

We prefer 9 - 11 day cruises so we can relax on the sea days, and enjoy the Southern Caribbean ports without flying into Puerto Rico first. Plus, the weather is usually better in the S. Caribbean than it is in the Western Caribbean in December when we usually cruise. Definitely feel the Bahamas could be too chilly for us at that time of year.

Barbara

I started coughing the second day of a TA in Nov. Finally got over it in Jan. Had three weeks of excellent health. Got off the Enchantment on Feb. 14 and was just starting to cough a little. By 4:00 p.m. that afternoon I was really sick. Cough medicine wasn't cutting it. Went to Urgent Care on Sat. a.m. and was diagnosed with URI. Stayed in hotel room 3 days. Finally got feeling a little better so we made the two day drive home. Went to my dr. and I had pneumonia. I am finally, just this week, starting to feel human again.

 

I do take precautions but I think on our TP in September I'll ask to have the air filters changed as soon as we get to the cabin as suggested on another board. Sure don't want to be sick like that again.

Never heard of this before, but I thing I might try it....I really was sick after last cruise and missed Christmas holidays. When we were in the theater ready to disembark, numerous people were coughing alot.

Thanks so much! Now I'll move on to planning excursions in those ports. Been to most of them (enjoyed St. Maarten and Dominica the most) so I'll be searching for something different...Unfortunately I have plenty of time to plan before our cruise....It can't come soon enough!

We've cruised quite often and thankfully never experienced Norovirus or Code Red on any of our cruises. We do the handwashing and sanitizer thing religiously onboard.

That being said it seems that on the first day home from most of our cruises I start feeling ill with much coughing. It takes a good week to get rid of this. I rarely get a cold other than after our cruises.

We live in FL so don't fly to the ports here so I can't blame the plane.

Does anyone else experience this? I'm attributing this to contact with so many passengers daily.

Barbara

I recently read that your "stuff" will be removed if you are away from your chair for more than half and hour and you'd have to go to Guest Services to pick it up.

Is this correct? I'm totally not into being a chair hog, but do spend lots of time in the pool with my feet in the water, especially if it is hot....Don't want to feel like I have to "keep an eye" on my lounge if I'm there for awhile or have to go back to "sit on my chair" for awhile before going into the water!

I found a site to determine if a particular port is tendered or at dock, but some of them refer to both.

Does anyone know about the Equinox at:

St. Thomas

St. Kitts

Dominica

St. Maarten

Barbados

Thanks.

Barbara

Sailing on Solstice next week, and was wondering what options, other than the buffet, there are for lunch after we board. I usually find that the buffet is something of a mad house on embark afternoon and something to be avoided, if possible. Is it possible?

 

Thanks

Bob

Really like to hang poolside on embarkation day if weather permits.

Thanks for the info...My TA gave me a $215 OBC and a $70 "dining credit".

Equinox

We have a $70 dining credit from our TA and wonder if this must be used at one time or if we can use it at the Bistro a few times?

How does this work? Can it be used as on OBC for anything other than dining?

Also, is Blu open to non-Aqua class passengers for a fee? If so, fee?

Thanks

Barbara

Don't remember the ships, but some offered $10 free play on slots w/$20 initial expenditure.

NCL also had something where you could buy $50 slot coupons for $25 or similar.

Does Celebrity do anything like that?