kearney

I have cancelled a few cruises due to changing health protocols around Covid.. we have managed to cruise on one of the last full cruises before the shut down in '20 and just before Omecron or Delta (can't recall which) in early Dec and then managed to get a relatively safe cruise in April. During this last cruise DH really suffered with his bad knees and I had an Afib episode during most of the cruise and frankly was afraid to go to medical.. I am relatively knew to afib so I now realize I over reacted. However the one thing this last cruise pointed out is that if you are older..you have no idea how long you will be healthy enough to cruise. My advise is take it.. and roll with the supply chain issues..if there are any. Yes your favorite brands may not be there.. but it is an opportunity to try some other brand.. you may find a new favorite.. but if it were me.. I would go....

As a note... back before we had AI... I liked to go to the pancake section of the Ocean View Cafe to get a dollop of whipped cream to add to my coffee .. if you do this.. make sure you get the whipped cream and not the whipped butter 🙂

Can you tell me where you saw $11 instead of $9... I only find the $9 price which we experienced last cruise in early May

If you are someone who has strong preferences for brands of alcohol on the Premium list or if you have a sensitive palette when it comes to wine...then the premium package is for you. But if you like a regular cocktail and don't really care what brand it is... then the classic package will do and if you want to try a more expensive drink..you just pay the difference vs classic max..plus gratuity. My husband had no trouble getting regular vodka martinis and manhattans on the classic package. My drink before dinner is Kir Royale...which is Sparkling white wine and creme de Cassis.

Thanks.. I keep forgetting to take advantage of the OBC...

How soon before your cruise do you need to request OBC from BofA? We are sailing in late August.. and this would be a nice touch... Thanks in advance

In going through my parents stuff... I came across a menu from the Captains Dinner on the SS Atlantic for July 30 1958. My family sailed on this ship from Amsterdam to NYC... I was about 5 years old at the time... My first cruise...so to speak. Not as fancy an offering as on the more modern cruise to cruise type of sailings... this was more transportation. In fact we sailed to bring back my Dad's 1958 Mercedes 190 coup. I think we were all sea sick on that sailing...no stabilizers back then.

Originally I thought that the short staffing issues were to do with reduced capacity...but I recently heard on the news that the State Department was backed up with paperwork which impacted cruise staffing. So their labor issues are a bit different than local businesses... last two cruises..crews were happy to be there and some delaying end of contracts to help get caught up after not working for a long time. Supply chain issues may also impact drink options and perhaps meals as well. I guess the key is to be patient and flexible and realize that for a while cruising may not be quite up to the standards you are used to... but they will get there... at some point. I hope to still be alive then 🙂

I found this link which shows the menu at Cafe al Bacio on Celebrity... it will be helpful when looking at the non alcohol coffees and ones with alcohol. https://www.myvirtualvacations.net/cafe-al-bacio--gelateria.html Doesn't seem to show prices for the ones with alcohol...

When I think of Celebrity targeting younger passengers... it makes me think of when I worked on Lilt Home Permanents back in the day. I described our demographic curve as a toothpaste tube...where we were losing on the back end and not replenishing on the front..or younger end.. guess I was right..since I haven't seen home permanents on store shelves in decades.... While we older folks make up a large percentage of their loyal users...they need to generate more younger people and the earlier they can get them ..the more likely they will hold on to them as customers for a long time. Since Celebrity has not gone the flow rider, ice skating more active way of Royal..which is interesting to families...it makes sense that Celebrity target DINKs (double income no kids). Like an earlier poster.. I don't mind..I expect that...I just love the visuals of the ships. Now I will say that I prefer the S class ..with its old fashioned libraries and card rooms.... mostly I like these areas and additional public spaces to use when I don't want to sit in the sun or go to an activity.... sometimes it is nice just to sit and read someplace outside the cabin and not in the middle of everything.. I too miss the 14 day itineraries..but like the 10-12 days ... love getting to the southern caribbean.

In the past we never got the drink package because..we don't drink sodas...unsweet iced tea and coffee were my go too beverages... and the Elite Cocktail Hour met my alcohol needs... and 90 mintes of internet were enough to check my emails. but I have to say... once we did get a package... I found my self drinking more specialty coffees and tried more cocktails than I did in the past...and was on the internet constantly... which in March '20 was handy to find out what was happening with covid while on Reflection. Our next cruise pricing was so good that the sale without the package was slightly higher... But in the future... I am wondering if I can go back to cruise only.....

Until a few years ago we never had a package... but we were Elite... so the evening cocktail hour from 5-7 was all we needed. Plus the occassional bottle of wine with dinner.. you can save that same bottle for the next evening..if you don't finish it.... I like unsweet iced tea.. so the Ocean view cafe satisfied that need..along with their coffee... sometimes at breakfast...I put a dollop of whipped cream..from the pancake section... A few years ago we had an AI perk.. and I have to say..it will be hard to go back... I love specialty coffees from the Cafe.. which run about $5.. if you don't have AI. And it was nice not to have to think about the bill total. But I did find I drank a lot more than normal... because it was covered....

Need to keep an eye on the banners... prices shown are cruise only until you get deep into it... price actually slightly better than the original sale..but... about $875 more than what I booked back in January.

My husband has bad knees and issue resulting from quad detachment (surgery only partially successful). So we rent a scooter for him. If more than 2 of you are in a stateroom... parking in a stateroom can be a problem unless you get an accessible cabin. There are a few spots around the ship were you can park it and it does not interfere with hall traffic... those spots are near elevators. Like Royal.. regular cabins have a step up into the shower..and no real grab bars.. FYI. My husband has never had problems getting help in the Ocean View cafe..usually someone will approach him..but you can always ask one of the managers hovering around the area. You might want to study the deck plan in selecting cabins. We tend to pick one near the elevators in the mid section of the S class ships. The idea is that if something happens to the scooter... walking is minimized. For this reason we usually go on deck 6. The area around the elevators is surprisingly quiet except periodically there might be music from the atrium. You might consider getting wheelchair assistance for getting on and off the ship at the end of the cruise. It is a long walk even if you are mobile. (there is a form for this... not sure how critical it is). If you use wheelchair assistance you will need to flag down a chair at the port..or ask the luggage porter... at the end of the cruise, they usually ask you to meet at a place like Sushi on 5 to get a wheelchair off the ship... I also suggest that the first night on the ship you ask the host for a table not far from the entrance... usually we end up at the same table each night (select dining). There are two groups that rent scooters... special needs at sea and Scootaround.. look for them online.. Special needs site will walk you through the different options so you can see how much it will cost. You might want to look on FB there is a group "Royal Caribbean Accessible Cruising" where people discuss issues associated with travel..

This post reminds me of experience on our last cruise..back in April. When DH and I arrived at port.. the port agent looked at my husband and said.. "oh Mr Kearney are you traveling alone". The pusher who handled DHs wheelchair..took charge and got us to the counter..where after some time..they corrected the situation...however..they told me that I would have to go to guest relations to get my key card... which I did.... later we went to the Martini Bar and just before dinner we went to the sky lounge.. while there the bar tended noted DH's card listed Classic package..but my card did not.... so back to guest relations to get a new card...later I noticed a charge from the earlier visit to the Martini Bar.... a long way to go to remind people to make sure their cruise card notes your beverage package.

I put several links (everything in bold)... and I meant to say that if you looked right there is a bit of a blockage... looks like the rail for the magic carpet.

This link should help list of obstructed cabins on Edge and Apex...click on to check photos Compare Deck plan for Beyond to the comparable cabin..looking at deck plan for Edge/Apex .. Off hand it appears your cabin compares with 8196. Looking straight out..no issues but looking to the left..the view will be partially blocked by the magic carpet jut out section.... look at Edge/Apex cabin 8198

If I recall the free bag of laundry with Elite status allows up to 30 items per bag. a pair of socks is one bag. Last cruise the bag was cloth..stronger than the paper bags that we had previously...

It is very hot in Atlanta today... 99 degrees right now... but the air is unusually dry.. so little chance of storms today. So any flight delays will likely be due to weather other places or pilot shortages... but if you are flying Delta out of Atlanta... they should have many options to get to Florida... best of luck and safe travels... I have noticed Infinity hanging out around Florida for several weeks... noticed it leave port before the last storm and wondered where it was going I assume they were getting the ship back ready for passengers.

I thought the corkage fee...at one time was something like $25... in the main dining room... which is why we only brought wine to have in our cabin. Alas our cellar is now bare ... we found we drank faster than we collected 🙂 Nice to hear that this is gone....

Now that does make sense... As a side note... seeing the supply issues..which only appear to get worse..now might not be the best time to spend extra for premium package

Good to know... I thought there was a charge in the dining room.... but wasn't sure..in past I brought a cork screw to open in the cabin... any idea when that changed?

What is the corkage fee on bottles you bring