markeb

I actually found a place in Manhattan last week that had Conundrum for $22. I think it's $19 now on Celebrity. Their pricing is based on the drink packages. The high end of the package is $0. The first $17 is a sunk cost of the package. The absolute value is essentially meaningless. If you don't look at it that way you'll just go crazy. And I realize not everyone has a package, but that's clearly how they're pricing things.

If you do Acela, you can reserve the Quiet Car (Car 2), but YOU have to be prepared to not have conversations either... 😃 With four of you, there are a few seats that face forward and backwards around a table. Again, if you plan on chatting, don't book the quiet car. The rest of us will stare you down and may call the conductor (probably won't need to, they're usually all over that). The quiet car is kind of a big deal...

So you think auto tips on wine and bottle sales only? And special events like wine tastings? I don't know. I "know" they get extra tips on bottles and events, and that's where I've usually added tips. And I'm not arguing, but this is one of those things that could easily be an urban legend as it's not the "norm" in the hotel and restaurant industry. Actually in some restaurants the sommelier (usually one of them) is part of the management team and gets a commission off sales; they help select the and order the wines, for instance. Not going to be the case on the ships.

Only going off the app, for Ascent, which can be very incomplete... The martinis at the Martini bar still appear to be $17. Gins and vodkas appear to be under $17. At the WCB the Zacapa Old Fashioned, Violet Hour, and Azteca are now $19. The Zacapa "Above the Clouds" was always over the limit and remains over the limit. (The WCB makes the least sense to me. It's a Diageo licensed operation and the pricing frankly discourages sales of Diageo owned or distributed products. Shaking my head...) Using Craft Social as a surrogate for other bars. There's one cocktail (Smoking Bull?) at $19. All of the better bourbons are over $17. Elijah Craig is at the insulting $19. Too many (crappy) beers at $11 ($1.20 over classic...), but a decent selection under $17. I've never found beer to be a strong offering for Celebrity (or RCI for that matter). In general, looks like clear liquors are in the packages and brown liquors aren't. Didn't look too hard for rum or tequila. Most sipping rums appear to be under $17, or not listed and off menu. I'm pretty sure you can get Zacapa 23 or XO neat, for instance, but they're not listed. Only a couple of higher end sipping tequilas mentioned, over the limit. Pretty sure there are more on board. Very few Scotch whiskies listed in bars I looked at. All the Macallan, for instance, was over the limit. Again, there are normally more on the ship, but don't know the price point.

Better prices for the same inexpensive (cheap?) wines.

Business Class on the Acela is a bit of a misnomer. The Acela only has Business and First, but they're are no benefits to Business on the Acela. The Acela is generally faster, I believe more comfortable than the Northeast Regional, and makes fewer stops. You can definitely bring your luggage onboard (per the web page, two bags up to 50 pounds each per person plus a personal item up to 25 pounds). There's Red Cap service available (technically free; tips accepted and more or less expected) at Boston and New York. They'll usually get you on the train first. Notify the conductor you need assistance in NYP and they should get a Red Cap to the track. All seats on the Acela are reserved, so you select seats during booking and can change them in the app or online. Haven't done it to or from Boston, but travel frequently from Washington to New York and it's a simple, pleasant experience.

To have the opportunity to read the disclaimer reserving the right to change specific brands and offerings without notice. Frankly they should drop the “such as” once the specific examples aren’t true. Too many places that need to be updated and consistent and they’re not invested in the systems to produce that consistency.

On that itinerary, probably Day 2 and Day 6. First sea day and next to last sea day.

I have a shorter history with Celebrity, but long ago on HAL and the cruises we did on Royal, the "service charge" included everything but drinks. I can't remember if there was an auto gratuity on bottle sales way back then like there is on Celebrity. But there wasn't a gratuity added on top of the service charge.

No, they're not in the wait staff pool. But the bar staff, including the sommelier, shares the tips for bar (and wine) sales. That does make it more complicated in a specialty versus one of the dining rooms where the only tab (generally) would be for drink sales, but "real" restaurants manage to prorate tips to include bartenders and sommeliers based on alcohol sales. I have to believe cruise ships can do the same.

20%. A relatively recent (post pandemic, I think?) change.

Do you know that for sure? Not disagreeing, but that would be a major departure from most restaurants. I would assume they'd get the tip on wine sales and maybe some of the drink sales. With the packages, that would be whatever the percentage gets absorbed onto package "sales". I'm almost sure they get the gratuity from bottle sales.

Not currently cruising, but the best bet is the app. The easiest snapshot is going to the be the MDR as it specifically lists wines by the Classic and Premium packages (Whites in Classic, Whites in Premium, etc.). Today for the Premium Package, that looks like: Kendall Jackson "Elegance" Chardonnay Louis Jadot Chardonnay Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc Wairau River Sauvignon Blanc J&H Selbach Kabinett Riesling Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling Jean Luc Columbo Rose Bertani Bertarose Rose Chateau Souverain Cabernet Sauvignon Excelsior Cabernet Sauvignon (South Africa) Kendall Jackson Vintner's Reserve California Pinot Noir Torres Ibericos, Tempranillo (Crianza) Avivo Sangioves (California) Jean Luc Columbo Cotes Du-Rhone That's from the MDR on the current Equinox sailing. There may be slightly different offerings in Luminae or Blu.

Unless something's changed, the dress for Luminae and Blu is Smart Casual every night. The Celebrity web page is its usual consistently inconsistent and really doesn't specifiy. I've never seen a difference in dress from night to night in Luminae. Some small percentage will wear a jacket in the Caribbean, probably more in Europe, but the dress has always been treated the same as the specialties (Smart Casual). (The marketing firm hired models and provided wardrobe for the pics on the web...)

Difference in price plus gratuity on the difference. If it's $2 over the limit, you pay $2.40.

What incentives were they offering onboard? It used to be reduced deposits and OBC. if there’s little or no OBC and the deposits are all or mostly non refundable, what’s the incentive to book onboard? In the past I’d say that was a good indicator, but I don’t know today. And if you’re in the Retreat booking a next cruise, you can do that in the Retreat. I realize that’s not a big percentage of passengers, but I’d think historically it was a group more likely to book onboard. Unless the CEO of RCG is making misleading public statements, which the SEC might take an intense interest in, someone is booking.

Not directly cruise related, but I said I'd do this if the thread was still going... We spent 4 days in the Napa Valley in early December. We visited 6 wineries. Five were more or less boutique wineries and one was one of oldest and best known in Napa, but not available for sale outside of Napa. We pretty much picked the best possible week to be in the valley, other than the day we went to Spring Mountain and you couldn't see Howell Mountain for the rain! The first week of December is a total down week. The hotel was affordable, the wineries weren't busy, and for the most part the weather was good. The wineries: Porter Family Vineyards: Located in Coombsville. $75/person tasting fee waived with an equivalent purchase. A great visit. We were the only ones on our particular tour and tasting. It was a wonderfully clear day in that part of the valley, and we had great views of Atlas Peak, Stags Leap, and much of the valley. Porter sells their product in a limited number of states (Virginia is one of them!). The tasting is in a manmade cave. Great cabernet sauvignon and Bordeaux-style blends. Our fun fact from Coombsville is that it's typically cooler than the rest of the valley, and you get what I would consider much more "French" style fruit and wines. Absolutely delicious and a great visit. Caldwell (I mistyped Crawford originally): Also in Coombsville. $130/person tasting fee. 1 tasting waived per six bottles purchased. They only sell on premises and online, so no widespread distribution. I have mixed feelings about this one. The wines were lovely. The tasting is also in a cave. On our visit, the experience was iffy, and we didn't buy a full case (we did buy 6 bottles; they were very nice wines) so we ate a tasting fee. Many of the tastings are with the owner/winemaker, John Caldwell, sort of affectionately known as JFC; our wasn't. The "F" is a reflection of his apparently favorite word... Paloma Vineyards: Spring Mountain, north of Saint Helena. $100 deposit refunded with purchase. Tastings are one on one in Sheldon Richards' dining room. Literally. Our favorite experience during the trip. It was rained in pretty badly and it was hard to see much, but when it cleared a bit, you could see Howell Mountain just across the way. Their specialties are Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. This tasting was an absolute blast. It was a total wine geek tasting, obviously. The merlot was amazing, and they'd put together a six year vertical. Yes, we bought it. We actually joined their club having sworn we wouldn't do that. (6 bottle a year commitment for 2 years. One of the most innocuous wine clubs out there). We would go back tomorrow! Only sells on premises and online. Venge/Trespass (Trespass tastes at Venge): Venge tasting fee is $45/person waived with purchase. I don't know what the fee was for Trespass but it was waived. Venge is in Calistoga at the north end of the valley. Trespass is in Saint Helena but they make their wines at Venge in Calistoga. They were both wonderful tastings separately at the Venge tasting room. Again, we were the only two there, and Donny Gallagher from Trespass met us at Venge. Venge had some incredible Cabernet sauvignon, but also a beautiful Chardonnay sourced from Los Carneros. The Trespass tasting was a blast because we were sitting there with Donny as we tasted. Great Bordeaux blends, a Napa Zinfandel, and a very nice Pinot Noir that actually doesn't show up in their catalog. Or in the Cellar Tracker database. Fun tasting. If you're a wine geek, contact these two wineries if you're in Napa! Hendry: Hendry Ranch is just west of Napa (just a few miles from the Marriott where we were staying). They're largest production wine is Albarino, which they didn't have on hand when we were there! If you can find it, it is one of the best fish wines you'll find out there. They also had an amazing Los Carneros Chardonnay (not for the wine lovers: Los Carneros is a great source for Chardonnay!). Hendry Ranch actually butts up to Los Carneros, which isn't obvious on a map. This was our last tasting of the week, and we really enjoyed it. We left (well, had shipped actually) a cabernet sauvignon, the Chardonnay, petit verdot, and a wonderful and not expensive at all Primitivo. V. Sattui: V. Sattui is actually one of the oldest wineries in Napa Valley, located in Saint Helena. They are a very popular spot for visitors to Napa Valley. They also own Castello di Amorosa in Calistoga. It's been 20 years since we'd been there, and it has changed. If you're a first timer to Napa, it's a fun stop. There's a great deli and a nice lawn for a picnic. Their standard wines are, unfortunately, pretty pedestrian. Their reserve wines are much better. When we were living in California once you bought a case you were in their cellar club and you never really went to the main tasting room again. We did taste a couple of their reserve cabernets and they're still good. Not as good as the other stops, but if you're in Napa and want a nice cabernet, their single vineyard cabs are still good (although I didn't price them). The also have an excellent California "Madeira". It's kind of a large group tasting bar experience, and we hadn't done that on this trip, so that was different. OK. That's too long and I'm counting on Anne to humor the thread. I don't think you can cruise to the Napa Valley. Maybe 10,000 years ago...

Not quite THAT bad!

Cheaper than an MLB park…

If you want a beer that’s actually met a hop, you either need the premium package or pay an upcharge per beer. Blue Moon is a premium beer and over the limit… Oddly, looking at Craft Social on Equinox, Dogfish 90 is $15 and Grosch is $17. Michelob Ultra is $8. Actually, Michelob Ultra and Sam Adams are the only beers on the Craft Social menu in the classic package. They do have the usual Bud and Bud Light in other venues. Beer isn’t necessarily a strong point for Celebrity. Probably never has been. Oh, to correct a previous post, Newcastle is also now $11.

Then you got a great deal or someone screwed up. It's listed at $25/glass, same as it was in mid-November. That's an $8 + gratuity or $9.60 upcharge. Compared to the others on the menu, that was worth it to me. But it certainly wasn't a $3 upcharge!

She was hired to make shareholders money. As Orator says, it's working. I'm going to agree with you, but if they continue to fill the ships with new cruisers, the language they understand is welcome to the future and it looks profitable. We enjoyed having you along for the ride. That pretty much explains it in a nutshell. If they're sailing full they don't care about phone calls and emails. If they're sailing full with new cruisers they can keep for 10 years and who won't be looking for expensive loyalty benefits, even better. And if, as seems likely, they have the business analytics to support that, then we adapt or move on. They (RCG as a whole, not just Celebrity) may be spending a ton of money down the road to recruit new customers to replace the crop they're bringing in now. It seems clear that coming out of the pandemic and a bunch of capital investment in ships the mission is to reward the shareholders. Which is theoretically the mission of the officers and board of any publicly traded corporation. Part of me thinks they're shooting themselves in the foot by offering packages then moving the most popular items just out of the package. It seems to defeat the whole modern luxury market space they had largely to themselves. But much though I personally like that offering, I have no idea if it was a successful business model or not. RCG does not report earnings on its subsidiaries. I do feel like they're setting their business strategy as a cumulation of operational decisions, and that rarely works in the long run. We'll see.

The last time I remember this coming up, there was some ship to ship variability. Millie was the one ship people were able to get them punched. Not so much Reflection (at the time), so I'm guessing no to Edge class. For the OP: I wouldn't count on being able to punch the card. I'm honestly not sure if the bartender has an RF reader for your card. On Equinox in November they just asked for our room number at the pool (we had a drink package). I don't expect consistency...

You do realize that Fumé Blanc is another name for Sauvignon Blanc? Different style, same grape…

Typically two nights of a 7 day cruise, I believe the nights of the production shows, there will be reserved seating on the upper deck for Retreat guests. The seats are released 10 minutes before showtime. I can’t tell you how early. We gave up on the main theater shows years ago. I’ve personally never seen them anywhere near full, but I’m sure others have. I’d be amazed if you had any issues getting in.