NutsAboutGolf

Alaska/Hawaii aside, there isn't much comparison between staying in a hotel in "anytown USA" and taking a foreign cruise as it isn't visiting "expensive" US ports; staying in a Caribbean AI resort is much closer comparison. You're not wrong about US hotel pricing, however cheaper options exist such as hotwire and airbnb/short-term rentals and you can usually save a boatload compared to two hotel rooms if you rent a 2BR and 2ba short-term rental if traveling with another couple. Rentals usually have full kitchens so if one wishes can save money cooking their food and can hit up a liquor store

Got to bring up the elephant in the room...Most who think they're washing their hands aren't doing it long enough While washing your hands for any duration is better than not washing them at all, it is generally recommended to wash your hands for at least 20 seconds to effectively remove germs and pathogens. 99% of the time, I do not see people do that, perhaps five seconds on average, which is not long enough to eliminate potential pathogens This is why those automatic hand washers are helpful as one doesn't need to think about duration

When it comes to private tours, you definitely need to do your due diligence. In some cases you can save money by booking only a private driver for the day

Sounds like you need to visit the Cancun/Playa Del Carmen/Tulum area, they have AIs (yet often the food isn't great and the drinks are weak) or non-AI resorts beachfront. Like a cruise, one week could be $400/night and the following $100/night. We shoot for $150/night, if AI we generally go to restaurants for better food, we prefer Playa Del Carmen as they have a nice downtown area with a lot of restaurants, which is on the water so a lot of boat tours including fishing are all right there

The Beyond was like that and therefore much faster speeds than most have at home

Thanks, I checked here (low hanging fruit), first. We join every FB sailing group we book; haven’t booked virgin yet

Your Carnival on board experience will greatly vary by ship because when older Carnival ships are redone they simply don't have the space to add latest and greatest. Mainly dining venues, their newest ships made three specialty restaurants free. The restaurants are BBQ (free for lunch), Italian and Asian/Mexican, free and you don't need reservations On Carnival you're going to have a lot of kids and a younger crowd. On Carnival you have a lot more choices when it comes to nightly entertainment, will probably have a main show, 3 or 4 comedian shows, an ongoing piano singalong bar and karaoke all in the same night

Yup, the great international United devaluation that just quietly happened

Where are you seeing these "plenty of bad reviews"? I skimmed the first 5 pages on here, there was one thread on dining where they shared their opinion with slow service but were positive with the food itself. With service, since everyone gets free specialty dining restaurant and therefore service isn't as good as other lines PAID specialty dining service. And there was a half hour wait at get poached at the Galley during breakfast but said it tasted great

Totally understand and I'm sure the food has always been on a steady downward spiral since day one. During covid, restaurants shutdown twice where I live as restaurants were forced to do take out only which removes service and atmosphere from the equation. The outcome was simple, produce good food and they could become more profitable than pre-covid. Continue to produce bad food, they risk going out of business. Maybe X just simply wants to focus on the Hotel side with the Forbes Guide and not the food

If someone doesn't like sea days, a full transit isn't for them; a partial is the best compromise

For the most part, its usually not the chefs training although lately I've had many overcooked chicken dishes (jerk chicken is one of the least bland things they serve in the MDR) although we're usually in Blu, perhaps MDR dish standards slip when ordering in Blu. It's the quality of the meat that's often the chief complaint, with the sole exception of Blu's filet mignon which is usually excellent, the rest of the MDR/Blu meat is average at best. Finally there are the recipes themselves, often just bland. Nearly everything could be better with marinading (if they already are, they need to try a different one), add some more garlic and some Unami

Where can one find this info?

Loyalty is the one thing cruise lines somewhat do well as they all offer lifetime status (except for MSC) which could go away in the future for NEW CRUISERS, they may need to requalify perhaps bi/tri-annually. Even with MSC, you can use their status match program which matches to your airline/hotel status

You have two chances for an upgrade/room change and of the two, the best chance will be to try and be one of the first people to arrive to the terminal and once on the ship, immediately "do not pass go" head to guest services as that's first come first come. FYI, most ports let you drop off your carry on and let you go off the ship, since it'll most likely be early, probably before noon, can grab a nice lunch if one wishes to avoid the buffet/mast grill If no luck there, go to guest services again 15mins before the all aboard as they'll most likely be a long line and you may be able to grab a CONFIRMED cancellation (X has confirmed with the customer that they will not be joining at a later port) stateroom

The largest factor is, are people relying on you for this meeting? If you're presenting something or "trying to close a deal", then one should reschedule...If you're just listening in the background, assuming there aren't major consequences to not making/dropping off meeting, you should be fine. You can truthfully say a variety of wifi issues such as "been having wifi issues all day" I want to be clear its entirely possible one could do a zoom meeting without issues yet there are variables such as how long the meeting is, if you're audio only vs video, if you're sharing your screen/device, etc

Based on this, book with Flights by X, have a layover, it far better than landing at midnight and not even checking into a hotel until 1am With the internet, pre-sailing is the best deal, they may have flash sale, make a note to check 4th of July and Labor day, if nothing on labor day, you're fine to buy. With tours, you can book now to ensure they don't sell out and if there's a flash sale, cancel and rebook. We just had a memorial day sale and many including ourselves were able to cancel our sold out tour and rebook it

Would you mind elaborating? Did you pay extra out of pocket or did Celebrity pay for the change from England to Norway? Did they cover your Norway transfer from the airport to the port? Local port security isn't supposed to admit anyone without a keycard, one would request they call someone from the ship but occasionally, like you experienced, getting them to do so can be challenge

Can tender at almost all ports…Most local govts and retail owners want as many passengers as possible, its often the residents who do not

They’ll close down venues for a private event if you’re willing to pay

It's near impossible X would take a loss on them so either perhaps they meant it was costing the staff in reduced tipping or X isn't bringing in as much compared to when folks were paying per drink. Whatever they meant, X will continue increasing the price and reducing the selection for the drink package

FYI: The coffee at CaB (Cafe al Baccio) is expresso based; what's the difference you ask?

Pro tip, if you simply want the shortest wait, go to any restaurants host stand and ask which has the shortest wait as they're able to see

You open each thread report them

You'll need to pick an itinerary if you already haven't, then you go here to skim the FAQ https://theweddingexperience.com/celebrity-cruises Just note that it isn't remotely cheap (minimum of several thousands) and you can get whatever you want but for a (in most cases expensive) price I would suggest an alternative...While you'll need to check with the ports, there can be many ports where you can get a Justice of the Peace to meet you on a beach, they'll bring a photographer and you have a ceremony in the sand with a photographer for under a grand. Since it's symbolic, the wedding license in a foreign country potential headache isn't even a factor