trabeler

Larissa from Little French Key is very helpful and answers emails fairly quickly, she sent me this when I asked her about the cost of extra drinks:

 

How much are additional drinks? I ask this regarding package IV for

$98 that only includes 2 drinks! BEERS AND MIXED DRINKS ARE @ $5, SODAS @ $2....blended speciality drinks @ $7

We were just there last week and their policy is that the two drinks in the package are only water, beer, and soda. If you want a mixed drink or blended drink it is extra. There were some people that successfully traded both of their drinks for one blended drink.

Note that there is no drinking water on the island other than bottled water, which counts as one of your "drinks", so bring water with you.

20% is a pretty good offer if it wasn't in response to a specific complaint.

On our hurricane cruise (Jubilee out of Galveston), our two ports in Mexico got cancelled and we ended up in New Orleans instead for a few hours after several diversions.

Carnival gave us only $20 per person on our accounts for the inconvenience. Granted, that was 2002, so maybe it'd be a little more, but certainly not a 20% future discount.

The obstructed view are 2C and 2D. Both have a limited view straight down since you're directly above the lifeboats. The difference is that for 2C the tops of the lifeboats are even with the floor of your balcony while for 2D the lifeboat tops can come up to almost the railing. Either way, you have a clear view straight out above the railings (other than the periodic lifeboat davit).

We've sailed in a 2C before and were quite happy with it.

We just returned from the Eastern Mediterranean and had a late departure from Dubrovnik so we had dinner at a wonderful restaurant called Restoran Komarda. Their web site is http://komarda.hr/. They are located outside the wall, right on the water with a wonderful view of the wall and city. I am not sure if they are open for lunch, but it would be worth finding out.

They are definitely open for lunch. We had a nice lunch there last June after walking around the city walls. The restaurant has great views and shade for the outdoor seating. It was reasonably priced as well.

Was just on the Summit last month. The dry saunas in the spa changing rooms are free, however the steam rooms are in the persian gardens, which costs extra (unless you're in an aqua class cabin). On our 7 day trip, they were charging $20 a day or $99 for the entire cruise to use the persian gardens.

Deck 6 has two types of obstructed view verandas... 2C and 2D. The obstruction is due to the lifeboats, which are on Deck 5.

For the 2D cabins, the top of the lifeboat comes up to the top of the veranda railing. For 2C, the top of the lifeboat comes up to the bottom of the veranda.

With either category, you can look out straight, but your view down is obstructed.

We have sailed in 2C and found it to be a good value. When you're in the cabin, you can look out straight and not really be bothered by the top of the lifeboat. To us, the 2D is not lower enough in price to compensate for a view of the orange lifeboat while in the cabin.

I have some pictures of the view from a 2C but don't know how to post them to show you.

Go on the early train. I think there is one about 7:40am/

A strong second to this proposal if you have no issues with getting going early. We took the first train that would connect with the rack rail (it was around 7:40 am or so on a Monday). That early in the morning, there weren't any helpers at the train station to assist with buying tickets from the kiosk, but the machine was self-explanatory, particularly if you've done your homework in advance and know which package ticket you want.

By getting there on the first train, we pretty much had the place to ourselves for at least a half hour. There was no line at all to see the Black Madonna... we were able to spend as much time as we wanted in front of the statue. Within a few hours, there was quite a long line so be sure to see the statue first.

When we were last there, I tried to find the place in Placa Catalunya but it was closed when we went by. Hopefully you'll have better luck (I think it was a Sunday).

We ended up buying the tickets from the machines at the train station where you board the train to Montserrat. If you plan to use the machines, either be sure your credit card has a PIN for foreign use or bring cash.

Deck - 6

Cabin # - 6175

Class - 2C

Starboard or Port Side - Port

Bed near?(balcony or bath) – Bed near bath. Couch (top converts to bed) near balcony.

Quiet Cabin (With comments on problems. Note if connecting. ) – Very quiet. Connecting cabin, although we didn't connect with our neighbors.

Balcony View - 2C so partially obstructed. Lifeboat at feet. Davits are on either side of the balcony, so they don't block the view straight out. Can see straight out just fine.

Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Normal sized.

Was wind a problem? - No.

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - n/a

Any specific problems with this cabin? - Cabin was in good condition.

Any other comments? - Good location - relatively close to both forward and mid-ship elevators. Far enough from atrium / iLounge so you didn't hear any noise.

There is a site that allows you to book access to St. Mark's Basillica. The price to skip the lines is 1 euro pp. The website is www.venetoinside.com/en/saint. It seems like a good idea as our time in Venice is limited. I am thinking of taking the vaparetto on the first day to see the Grand Canal and the ship's shuttle the next morning as we have a reservation for the Doge's Palace Secret Itinerary Tour.

We made pre-booked reservations for the Basilica and it was well worth the 1 euro per person. You get a 10 minute or so entry window and I've heard it's important to be within that window or you'll get sent to the general admission line. We booked for 11 am on the second day. We did the Rick Steeves audiotour (free to download on his website or through itunes) and still had plenty of time to get back to the ship by 1 pm for lunch so we could see the 2 pm sail-away.

Concerning the vaporetto versus the ship shuttle, if you are going to take the vaporetto on the first day to see the canal I suggest you consider buying a 24 hour vaporetto pass. We bought these in advance for something like 13 euro per person (I don't remember exactly). You get a code number when you make the purchase online and get your tickets from a vending machine at Piazza Roma. The 24 hours starts from when you pick up the ticket so it will be good for the entire time the Solstice is in port. From Piazza Roma, you can take the more scenic ride down the grand canal (which takes 45 min or so) or you can take a more direct route on # 41 or # 51 which follows the same route as the ship shuttle (and is only about 20 minutes or so).

With the various vaporetto choices, you can find something that is as frequent as the ship shuttle, plus on the second day you can head out earlier than the 8 am that the ship shuttle starts. Venice was really fun to wander around before all the crowds arrived, plus we were able to get some great pictures.

Can you recommend some place with good food. We have children in our group, so it would be great if they serve something for them

We were just in Dubrovnik last week and had lunch at Komarda Restaurant based on good reviews on other travel websites. The view was superb and the food was quite good. Prices were reasonable. It is located just outside the wall near the Ploce gate. We liked that there was a cool breeze there which restaurants inside the city walls didn't have. They had a pasta dish with meat sauce that my daughter enjoyed.

As an additional note, last week they were accepting credit cards for tickets to walk the wall, but we had gotten cash in advance just in case.

p.s. I have been looking for where you sign up for 3 reservations at the Specialty Restaurants at a discounted price.

TomMMD - We were on the same sailing. Celebrity didn't offer this deal in advance... only onboard. If you have a reservation already made, they can apply it to the package deal. Note that the package requires a visit to each restaurant (you can't use the discount to visit the same one three times).