jaspersmommy

We have cruised to Alaska in late May, early August and early September. We had a little more sunshine and definitely had warmer temps in both May and August. There was slightly more rain in September.  To be honest though, there wasn’t a significant enough difference in weather on those cruises to make it the determining factor when booking a future cruise. Oddsare you will have more rain in September.  However, when you are only there for a few days you could easily end up with weather that is different from the norm for that time of year.  
 

My timing preference for future Alaska cruises is late May to late June.  The biggest reason is the amount of daylight. In September, it got dark early.  It seemed that it was dark most of the time we were at sea (except for sea days).  We were blown away by how much more scenic the May cruise was, because it stayed light until quite late.  The August cruise also allowed us much more scenic cruising than did the September one. The increased daylight hours in May and August translated into more wildlife viewing too.  
 

We didn’t notice any differences in what was open in ports during those months. However, if you decide to go to Denali or on excursions that take you to higher elevations, there could still be snow if you go early in the season. 
 

I hope this helps!  Good luck. 

We were just on the Zuiderdam last week. It was our first time on HAL.  We have sailed mostly with Celebrity (but not RCI or MSC) in the past and haven’t cruised since the pandemic started. So, I have no idea if we would find things still as good on Celebrity ships. 
 

The Zuiderdam is in great shape everywhere we went, inside and out. We stayed in a corner aft Neptune Suite and it looked almost brand new inside. The common areas of the ship and our stateroom were kept sparkling clean. We never waited for elevators which was really nice.
 

The service around the ship was pretty good for the most part. I can’t say it differed from most other cruises we’ve taken. Our stateroom attendants were awesome.  
 

I was surprised at the number of kids on board, yet it was still the oldest crowd we’d seen on a cruise. Evening entertainment is definitely lacking, although not terribly important to us. We don’t like big production shows but we normally attend a couple of evening things during a one week cruise  - e.g. a comedian or something along those lines.  We missed that a little. Billboard Onboard was OK on occasion, depending on what was on. A couple of things at Lincoln Centre Stage were of interest but there honestly wasn’t much else. 

Stateroom TVs certainly won’t keep you entertained. Free choices were few.  Most of the pay-per-view content wasn’t great either. That’s no different than other cruises we’ve taken. However, if a cruise line has made a deliberate decision not to compete in the entertainment department, then why not allow people to connect their mobile devices to the TV to watch their own preloaded content? I would even be happy to pay a fee to connect my device and have something to watch at night. This would be especially helpful with kids.   

Although I was a little bored at times, it wasn’t really a big issue overall.  I’m usually happy to read a book or just sit out on the deck and watch the scenery.  The big issue for us on this cruise was the food.

Our MDR meals on Zuiderdam were abysmal. We ate dinner there four times. I left my dinner on the plate three times.  I’ve never had that happen before on any cruise. The food was very low quality and one meal was also undercooked.
 

The Lido Market was a sad place IMO. The first time we went there I was wondering where the rest of the food was. The selection isn’t great. The only good meals I had there were the cold foods - salads, sandwiches, meat/cheese, etc. and made-to-order breakfast items like omelettes.  Desserts were awful.  I was surprised to see a big portion of Lido serving stations shut down for long periods during the afternoon and evenings leaving very little food available. One of two drink machines in the Lido was out of commission frequently. 
 

Food at the extra-pay venues was quite good, despite comments I’d seen on this forum. Rudy’s especially was excellent. Unfortunately, on Zuiderdam, Canaletto is a partitioned section of the Lido.  It is not a stand-alone restaurant. 

The location of the cafe was an issue for us. It’s great for views as it’s forward on Deck 10 in the observation lounge. However, if your cabin is aft it’s inconvenient. If you want a latte or cappucino when you get up in the morning, or when your feet hurt after walking around a port all day, it’s a 20-minute round trip.  Marketing literature states “coffee and pastries” are available. There were tiny biscotti there sometimes but we never once saw anything else or anything remotely resembling pastries.  The coffee there was OK. 
 

With three sea days on a seven day itinerary, the small number of dining options and the disappointing food quality really stood out.  I would sail again with HAL, but likely only on a Pinnacle-class ship where there are more dining choices and more to do. I would only sail on a Signature-class ship again if the price was exceptionally good and it was a port-intensive cruise (plus I would book specialty dining for each night).  For our next cruise, it’s back to Celebrity where it will be interesting to see how much cost-cutting affects our experience there. 

It's quite rude to assume people are kid-haters simply because they prefer a child-free vacation.  Many who prefer not have children on board have raised their own families and have been wonderful parents, grandparents, etc.  Others just aren't used to having children around.  I've spoken to people on board that babysit their grandchildren while the parents work, and as a result they just want a quiet, child-free cruise.  

Everyone's entitled to their preference when they're paying big bucks for a vacation.  

I have an option to cancel in my bookings, but when you click the link nothing happens!

Millennium also had a refurb in 2016.  I remember because I was on the first sailing after the drydock. They spruced up many public areas.  IIRC, they also updated the bathrooms in the major suites that time.

I saw a photo of the hair dryer in one of the Edge threads.  Go to the Edge sticky.  I think it may have been in one of vtcruising's threads.  I think it may have been in her live review (sorry can't remember for sure).  If you do a search you should be able to find it.

BTW... whoever posted the photo of the dryer said it wasn't very good!

I would be really interested in knowing how long most people have waited for a response from Celebrity to their Move Up offers.

You might want to check out X's cruise care coverage very carefully.  Like the previous poster said, it is my understanding too that the coverage is not appropriate for Canadians.  I work in the insurance industry and am very familiar with group travel policies.  I wouldn't risk using X's cruise care coverage.  I'm guessing you're also paying for the cruise care coverage in US dollars.  You'd be much better served booking in Canadian dollars and buying a travel policy yourself.  Go online - their are a lot of companies offering reputable coverage.  You can purchase it very quickly and painlessly.  When all is said and done, you'll pay less in CAD, plus you'll have coverage that won't fail you.

Thank you.  Weird.. when I was selecting a cabin, the description that came up said double bed.  I'm so happy to hear the beds are larger... that puts MSC back in the game!

Celebrity is our favourite line, and we usually stay in a Sky or Celebrity Suite.  However, I'm really becoming disillusioned with X's pricing.  It's getting harder and harder to justify X's suite prices (which is made even worse when the Canadian exchange rate is factored in).  I just don't think X is that much better than the competition that I can justify the price differential anymore - unless I find a super last-minute deal.  I have been really interested in trying YC and was about to book.  However, just when I was trying to find the right suite in YC, I happened to notice that the beds are only doubles, not queen or king (according to the website).  Is that correct?  With a 6'5" husband, there's no way we're sleeping in a double bed.  So unless the website is wrong, they'll be no YC for us.  Why in the world would a cruise line put double beds in its suites?????  I can't imagine we're the only people that don't want to sleep like sardines in a can.

It’s unfortunate that they dropped the ball at Tuscan Grille. But geez... why not give them a chance to make it right? Why hold a such a grudge?

Having been in both on Millie, personally I wouldn't spend the extra money on an M-class CS again. I found the balcony extremely windy since it juts out the side of the ship. That was a definitely an issue in Alaska. The balcony is also very narrow and everyone can watch your every move on the balcony.

I was extremely surprised by the condition of the CS bathroom the last couple of times I had one. The bathroom pieces have not been updated in the CS category since then. The bathtubs had big gouges and scratches all over and mould around the edges. Gross.

The cost difference is usually significant (to me, but that is relative). For the difference in price between CS and S1, I expect more.

There are pros to the CS though, not just cons. There is more room, a dining table, the views are great and you will get some extra benefits if you are not already at a higher loyalty level. If you aren't in your room a lot, the extra cost may not be worth it.

A dog trained to support someone with PTSD is not an "emotional support" dog, it is a service dog and fully covered under ADA rules and regulations, something an "emotional support" dog is not.

 

From ADA: Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. Examples of such work or tasks include guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to take prescribed medications, calming a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety attack, or performing other duties. Service animals are working animals, not pets.

 

Your information is semantics that really don't matter to the issue at hand. Many people seem to think all these animals are pets and anyone with one of these "pets" is a nut who is trying to falsely find a way to get Fluffy on the ship. Nobody is in a position to judge unless you know the circumstances surrounding the dog's presence on the ship.

The other term for "emotional support animal" is "pet."

Not true. I just finished watching a series of pieces on the news about emotional support animals. One guy was a veteran and had severe, disabling PTSD. The "emotional support" dog helped turn his life around. He had become a complete recluse from the PTSD. You would not believe the difference the dog made to his life. There were several similar stories to his.

It just proves that you shouldn't judge by appearances.

But there's a kinder, gentler way to state an opinion.;):)

People are allowed to express opinions. I saw nothing offensive in it. Nothing rude was said. I think the responses criticizing the post were the unkind, non-gentle posts!

If you enjoy overpaying to be herded like cattle on an overcrowded excursion with zero ability to personalize, lots of wasted time and often forced "shopping" stops at venues that give a kickback to the cruise line, so be it. :rolleyes:

 

If one does a little research and books with a reputable private vendor and utilizes a little common sense the chances of missing the ship are minuscule. Perhaps the tiny, remote chance of missing the ship is enough to entice some people to overpay for an inferior experience, but many informed cruisers refuse to partake in a cruise line excursion.

Wow! I don't get why this post has elicited hostile responses! It doesn't appear as though Gonzo is insulting anyone. He is not personally calling people on ships tours "cattle". The reference to cattle is describing how the ships tours treat people. I think he was trying to point out some of the issues with booking through the cruise line so that the OP will be aware.

I've always taken private excursions until a cruise we took this year. We had a lot of OBCs to use up. So we thought we may as well use the OBCs for a few shore excursions. Twice we sat in the theatre way past the tour start times, waiting to be called (and the tours were not extended by the amount of time we sat waiting). The tours were all disorganized and crowded. No apologies for delays were received.

I wouldn't rule out ships tours in future, but I can't imagine doing another one unless I have to use up OBCs or there is a specific reason why independent tours would be too risky in the particular port.

We've stayed in 2146 on deck 12 a couple of times. I love it. I think we heard a chair on the deck above maybe twice. It lasted only seconds and we never heard it at night or early morning.

I'd take 2146 or 2151 as my first choice anytime! Note the suite number is different on Reflection.

I disagree with you. I am Elite+, earned my status through many enjoyable cruises, and if I want to read my book and take a snooze on a heated lounger - I am going to do it!

 

If you want the lounger, just arrive earlier.

Wow! And I'll bet you play cards at the Oceanview Cafe tables when there are none left open for people to eat at. :rolleyes:

Deleted - duplicate post.

I couldn't disagree more. It's common courtesy to let others have a chance to use the heated loungers. Anyone who stays in them for an excessive amount of time is just plain rude. No need to hog. There are considerably more loungers by the pool than there are heated loungers in the spa... so hardly an apples-to-apples comparison. I can also honestly say that I never claim a chair by the pool for a full day. I spend a couple of hours at most and then leave and let someone else have a chance.

Everyone in the spa has paid for access, either in their cruise fare (Aqua) or by paying for a pass (everyone else). All should have a chance to use it. Spa staff need to enforce time limits. Too bad that has to happen. Why can't people just be considerate of others and just use common sense.

As for the original post... it's hardly a disaster. There is more to the spa than the heated loungers, so I can't disagree with no refund. When in the spa, I've often arrived when the loungers were full. A few minutes waiting usually does the trick. No biggie. We can't all expect everything to be empty and waiting for us when we're on a ship with that many people.

We've been to Alaska twice on the Milennium, once in mid-May and once in early September. We had some pretty nice days on each cruise. This last May, we were docked at Ketchikan and were sitting out at the Oceanview Bar having frozen drinks and enjoying beautiful sunshine and temps of close to 80 degrees.

You might surprise yourself!

Yesterday I enquired about a cruise to the Norwegian fjords on Celebrity Eclipse. From a reputable TA I was quoted £1710 pp for a C1 and £3272 for a C! for single occupancy - a friend is travelling with us.

This morning when I rang to confirm, I was told that over night the price had gone up overnight to £2050pp for the double occupancy and £4025 for the single occupancy.

This is called dynamic pricing.

Needless to say I shall not be booking or sailing again with Celebrity!

Why in the world would you not book again with Celebrity because of that? If you look at an airline quote today and decide to wait until tomorrow to book, would you refuse to use that airline again if the price went up tomorrow? If you don't book right away (or put a courtesy hold on the stateroom if possible in the UK), that is your fault that you're now looking at a higher price. Do you really think that Celebrity should hold yesterday's rate just for you, while everyone else has to pay a higher price???

I've been to both ISP and Sitka. It's hard to say which is better because it really depends on what you want. ISP is very quiet, there isn't a lot there. IMO, if you don't do an excursion of some sort, there isn't a heck of a lot else to do (except hike). However, it's really beautiful and the native heritage is really interesting. The whale watching is great there. Even when we finished our excursions there, it was nice to sit at the outdoor bar on the ship to enjoy the scenery and watch the bald eagles. Souvenirs and t-shirts, etc. are really expensive in ISP compared to other ports (at least that's what I found).

Sitka is a little bigger. There's more to the town and more shopping, but it's still quaint. There are good excursions there too. We saw lots of whales, etc. If it isn't socked in, the scenery is very pretty. We were there on a Sunday and many of the shops were closed unfortunately, leaving little to do but walk around after our excursion. I didn't think the scenery was as good from the ship as it is in ISP. The other thing to consider is you need to get a shuttle bus into Sitka from the port, so it's a minor inconvenience.

My own preference is ISP, but I wouldn't be upset if I went to Sitka instead. I wouldn't let the choice of ISP or Sitka dictate which cruise you take. I'd look at other factors instead such as the ship, dates, cost, etc.

The Pan Pacific is definitely the most convenient for Vancouver cruises. Although the Westin Bayshore is a nice hotel, I'd look at either the Faimont Pacific Rim or the Fairmont Waterfront before the Westin. Both of those Fairmonts are within about a block of the cruise terminal. The Pacific Rim is a beautiful hotel, and is still fairly new. Be careful if you consider either of the Fairmonts. There are four Fairmonts in Vancouver, but only the Pacific Rim and Waterfront are actual waterfront properties close to the cruise terminal.

Hello,

 

I'll be on the Celebrity Infinity in November and need Internet access to complete assignments (I'm a finance writer) while on vacation. Have not opted for Internet service on a cruise in years because it was so slow and expensive. I'm wondering how good I can expect the new service to be. Anything those of you who have used it can tell me would be much appreciated. Thank you!

We too had the new Xcelerate internet on our recent Millennium sailing. The internet service was terrible. On the rare occasion that we had a connection in our stateroom, the connection would be lost within seconds. Some of the public areas were better (iLounge and Café Al Bacio), but still not great. At its best, it will not be like at home.