markeb

Me neither. If that's using an iOS 17 unique feature, that would (like it or not) explain it. Whether a guest wallet is really a necessity is a different question. I guess I'll see next month...

Are you going to skip the wine pairing? I know it gets ridiculous at some point, but I want to believe it's curated for the menu. Which unfortunately the standard wines won't be. But the wine pairing can also be a LOT of wine, and at some point you stop appreciating it. (Years ago on I think Brilliance of the Seas we did a Chef's table that automatically came with the wine pairing. It was a great dinner. I rarely do wine pairings, even though I understand the theoretical benefit.)

Arrived today. Haven't had a chance to use it yet. The infamous FW50 batteries were dead (haven't shot for awhile). Slapped it on the a6500 and just focused across the house. Even that was impressive. I think the longest lens I've owned was a 55-250 "kit lens" for a Canon Rebel. I can already see this will blow that out of the water! Have a road trip next week where it's probably the absolute wrong lens, but I think it's going anyway. Need to play with it and check its limits before trying to turn that brown spot on the spring snow into a bear...

Apple pretty much defines any iPhone model that hasn't been sold in at least 5 but less than 7 years "vintage". They can theoretically be repaired (subject to parts availability) and receive major security upgrades. They're a little unclear on version (whole number, if you will) upgrades, but I don't think they receive them. iPhones become obsolete at 7 years. No official support. The 8+ seems ancient to me, but it was discontinued in 2020. Apparently iOS 17 requires an A12 chip or higher; the 8 has an A11. Odd, because it's not even "vintage" by Apple's own definition. No idea what's different in iOS 17 (probably from a security standpoint) that Celebrity doesn't want to make its app backward compatible.

@mcatmcat Why did you book Aqua? Many if not most people on the board actually think the Aqua cabins are an upsell for less desirable cabin locations (not sure about that on E Class). Arguably the only benefit to Aqua you couldn't otherwise buy is Blu; you can pay for a spa package and fitness classes (if you even plan to do them). The charge for those is often less than the upcharge to Aqua. So again, you're left with Blu as the reason to upgrade. Blu was originally set up as a "healthier" cuisine restaurant. It's arguable on that now, but the menu is probably the most adventurous on the ship. My wife and I did our first Celebrity cruise in Aqua, then got hooked on the Retreat and Luminae (before the fares went through the roof). When we took that cruise, Blu seemed to be in a state of flux and that "Clean Cuisine" wasn't really there. But the food was excellent and the service was great. It's tight (I'm sure they'd market it as "intimate"). But as a general rule you're not going to find typical MDR dishes in Blu. Looking at the app, I don't see shrimp cocktails or French onion soups or prime rib. If that's what you're looking at on the MDR menu, you probably should price a standard IV or maybe Concierge cabin and add on the thermal spa. For the record, on that first Celebrity cruise after years on Royal, the last several in Junior Suites, we didn't know exactly why we booked Aqua either. It seemed more "special" without the upcharge of a suite. It was only well after booking and maybe even after boarding that we appreciated Blu. But not everyone appreciates Blu. We're all different...

Yes. With two logons you can both be online at the same time. That's what you're paying for (even if it was included in the Retreat package). To be clear, you CANNOT both be online at the same time sharing a logon.

Thank you! (No sarcasm.)

When you check in, you’ll have instructions to create an account for each passenger. You can do both from one account, but that defeats the purpose of having two logons. Very simple and straightforward.

It should be one logon per person. Two total logons. Each logon can support one device at a time, but there's no limit on how many devices can be used. What level of suite are you in? At one time I vaguely believe I recall some of the higher suites having two devices per logon. Not true in a Sky Suite, for instance. There are levels, even in the Retreat...

That's one of the oddities. It wouldn't let me sign in and I had to use the "Forgot Password" link. No prompt to change my password. My wife hasn't tried her account.

OK, JB, I've spent a lot of time in Brussels! It's not THAT bad... But for a day excursion, I'd definitely go to Bruges. Too much lost time traveling, and Brussels is a big place with very different neighborhoods/areas scattered over a fairly large area. And how many times can you see Mannekin Pis... 😃 I'm sure you can get great stoofvlees and stoemp in Bruges!

With the way folks are talking about reusing their old password, they’d get your password from a relatively soft target (Celebrity), then try it on banks and credit cards. Probably successful 50% of the time…

Thanks. It's still bad internet security to change back to your existing password, and even worse on their end to allow it.

Two hydrogen atoms covalently bonded to one oxygen atom with trace elements in solution in a generic plastic bottle is included. Two hydrogen atoms covalently bonded to one oxygen atom with trace elements in solution in a bottle with a designer name is not included.

Just had to change my password as well. As an FYI... Celebrity (or RCG if this also includes Royal) hasn't given any indication that I've seen as to why they're requiring people to change their password. One reason could simply be that they've changing their authentication system on the back end. The other reason could be concern of compromise. If you're "changing" your password to your old password and there's been a security compromise, you're changing your password back to the compromised password. Choose a different password. If you used your old Celebrity password on other sites, change your password on those sites. Especially if it was a bank or credit card site. It's really poor internet security to reuse passwords, and it's pretty bad on Celebrity to let you use your old password on a forgot my password link. Don't reuse your new Celebrity password on other sites or reuse your password from another site on Celebrity. And yes, I have a bunch of rarely used sites that need a cleanup as well. Edit: Requiring password changes also effectively freezes old, unused accounts. Another good security idea.

And pay for international roaming if not included for when off the ship. It may not be cheap, but if it’s important it’s worth it.

Thanks! Probably sticking with the APS-C body for now. The 70-350 is almost 3/4 of a pound lighter, so that may be a factor as well. It’s in the B&H cart…

Yes. Probably every night. Some of them are meatless, some of them aren't. They've all been very good in our experience. Can't imagine that you could order from Tuscan, regardless of proximity. That would be like going into Capital Grill on 51st and asking for the tuna carpaccio from Le Bernadin. They're across the street from each other... 🙂

Nothing to do with cruising, but a simple answer. When I remember them, I'll take a compact pair of binoculars to a large venue concert, and occasionally a sports venue. Neither will typically allow anything more than a cell phone camera, and sometimes I'd like to see the artist, or player, with my "own eyes" instead of on the screen. More often than not I forget them, so it's kind of a wash...

Does anyone on this thread believe this campaign is directed at them? This is a new customer campaign, even if they're sending it to existing customers. Cue Carly Simon... The email sent to Captain's Club members... The email sent by Celebrity Cruises... Apologies for the sizing; they're both animations. The first one is thanking Captain's Club members for inspiring the new campaign. The second is soliciting new bookings. Are there any differences? Yeah, it's marketing. We're just not the target. Maybe it works, maybe it doesn't, but the reaction on this thread probably doesn't matter either way. Closing line in the Celebrity Cruises email: YOU'LL NEVER WANT TO VACATION ANY OTHER WAY All vacations are good. Sometimes, they’re even great. But we’re about to ruin all of that. Because once you get away with us, you’ll never settle for less. And why should you?

I'd drop this into the Alaska thread, but I might get more thoughts here. I have an a6500 (would love to go to the a6700 just for the battery, but I can buy a lot of batteries for the cost of a new body!). We're doing an Alaska cruise with a pre-cruise trip to Denali. My primary walk around lens is the Tessar/Zeiss 16-70. I don't have much reach. The Sony 70-350 OSS G lens is on promo, I assume for the month, for $898 down from $998. It "should" be a great lens for Denali, and probably the cruise, and I'm sure I'd use it post cruise. Anyone have any experience or thoughts? Not currently doing the FF upgrade. There's a certain fear of spending the money and time to go to Alaska and being frustrated with not getting any good pics. Thanks!

Interesting. We don't have children, so that wasn't an issue. Most people I follow online treat the Oyster with the sort of historical reverence I'd give to a carburetor... I assume you need a child's Oyster for reduced rates? Your contactless wouldn't have an age associated with it. And the children would each need their own unique contactless card. I've found Apple Pay to be so simple that I don't really look at the alternatives anymore, and I've always been a huge Oyster fan. I mean, you can use you iPhone on MTA in New York now! (Or in Singapore, and who knows how many other locations...)

Can't help with the first, although if you have an eSIM capable phone you can probably buy one online and download onto your phone. You no longer need an Oyster Card if you have either a 1) contactless credit card or 2) a phone with Apple Pay or Google Pay. Each traveler needs their own credit card or phone. Oysters have become kind of a thing of the past. Obviously you want a credit card with no foreign transaction fees.

Demand is only half of the equation. RCG has invested heavily in cruising mostly from Florida, with Trans-Atlantic cruises to reposition for what appears to be a very profitable European season. From the West Coast, Trans-Pacific cruises from Vancouver allow them to transport passengers to Hawaii, which would be a PVSA violation from California. Seattle and Vancouver give them the Alaska season; Vancouver makes the longer one-way Alaska cruises legal In their current environment (pretty high debt) their ROI using the facilities in Florida is going to be higher than California and they'll break even sooner. Florida is almost certainly a better business environment for them as well. To divert a ship to California, they'd have to sail at least as full as they're currently sailing in Florida, AND almost certainly raise fares to offset costs in California and their opportunity costs for not using their Florida facilities. Or the apparently profitable European and Australia/New Zealand cruises. Their business case must say they can't do that and be competitive with the lines you're listing that are already there. There may have been a time when they would have been willing to make less to build the market, and that may happen again, but not now.

On the app, click on the Calendar icon at the top middle at the bottom, below the dates, there’s a link that says Change Ship/Dates. Click on that. You’ll have to browse ships and select another ship, or yours. The first sailing will be the current one. Select that.