johhnnyt

Welcome ptown and pompano. I'm from the boston area too, living in NYC now. Anyone form NYC?

 

James

Then Mineola growing up, now in Wappingers Falls, a Metro North ticket away from NYC

That's brilliant! How did they react to that? John, remind me to tell you onboard, the story of the ill-mannered SilverSea passengers ;)

After that incident, they were actually really annoyed at first, but I think realized what a bad time they were making for themselves by complaining about everything.

They either got better or just stopped sharing their woes. My guess is you don't change a tigers stripes overnight, but I do think they did realize that EVERYONE at our table was annoyed with their disrespectful attitude towards the staff, and just wasn't going to tolerate it in our presence. I like to think most people learn "Life is short, God's way of encouraging a bit of focus"

Look forward to hearing the SilverSea story!

Sad isn't it? some folks can be such A holes :(

A few cruises ago we had a gay couple in our Pied Piper group that were truly a pain in the butt to everyone they met. They had their cabin moved three times in three days hoping they would be upgraded to a suite for free, because they told the hotel manager they were promised by "someone" at Celebrity they would be upgraded, so he tried to appease them . Treated their cabin attendant like dirt over minor things (the floor was still wet after he scrubbed the bathroom one day, the ice melted in the ice bucket, room service took 20 minutes....).

No meal was ever good enough ("I think I taste sand in the spinach, could you send over the Food & Beverage manager"), they spent more time at guest relations desk than they did on shore.

By the end of the cruise, they were lamenting their daily woes once again at dinner, and said all the bad service it was all because they were a gay couple. A very quiet guy at our table told them "Being a gay couple has nothing to do with your PERCEIVED lack of service, you two have been A holes since the first day you were onboard, and both of you need to grow up before you go into ANY social situation ever again".

Everyone at the table started laughing because they knew he was 100% right. Luckily people like that are the exceptions rather than the rule, and I like to think most people are complimentary rather than critical of service onboard

Hello All,

 

I'm sorry it's taken me awhile to post the Roll Call for our group. Work travels have consumed alot of my time lately, and I haven't had nearly enough time to daydream about our T/A..... I will also forward our listing to Monica so she can post it on her website. If anyone else joins in or wants their information added, just let me know. I've attached the listing as a pdf file.

 

Don

Brian is in 6222 (Washington, DC)

John (aka Johhnnnyt) is in 1625 (Wappingers Falls, NY)

Kevin is in 63?? (Washington, DC)

Interesting, we have friends who booked though AquaFest and so we looked at the cruise. The fare we got through our TA was several hundred less than the AF fare and was in a higher category of Aqua Class than what they got, plus the OB credit was more.

 

Just have to shop around

Shopping around is right word. Have had some group cruise rates that were the same as Celebrity's, Some that were 500-700 PP less. Some travel agents are pretty good so are willing to cut their commission, can usually knock a few hundred PP with some OBC off their commission (typically 10-15% I read somewhere) as they'll make the money on hotels/air.

The challenge is shopping around, and not second guessing yourself, since inevitably someone else always finds a better deal than you got.

Hey everyone, not sure if you're following the main roll call for this cruise but drink packages are 10% off right now, and includes our cruise! Here's the link:

http://www.celebritycruises.com/genericHtmlTemplate.do?pagename=beverage_promotion&ICID=CEL_12Q2_HPAB1_Beverage_PkgSale

Just cancelled my original one and signed up for this one

I am also on the December Silhouette cruise. I wanted to mention a couple of things. First, it is true that Aquafest costs less than booking directly with Celebrity. But that is not a good comparison since nobody should pay the cruise line price just as they wouldn't pay rack rate at a hotel. The cost for my balcony cabin was the same as was quoted by Aquafest but my agency also included an onboard credit and free gratuities which made the cost considerably less. It is still great to book with a gay cruise agency but I wouldn't do it just on price alone.

Also, on the home page of Aquafest you will notice that they have two different kinds of cruises. One type is an "event cruise" which are held mostly on NCL ships and include entertainment, costume parties, etc. The other type is called "hosted group cruises". These are usually to locations farther away from the USA and are more for social contact than partying. That is what you will usually be offered on Celebrity cruises since they have a more subdued atmosphere than NCL. To Aquafest's credit, they are very clear to differentiate between the two types of cruise experiences. From all the comments I am sure that either type of cruise offers a good time and for anyone who is interested in meeting new friends these groups would seem to offer a very pleasant experience. I have sailed on five Atlantis cruises and now I am more interested in smaller groups rather than full ship charters so perhaps I will try Aquafest or Pied Piper in the future.

There is also a Gay Roll Call for the December Silhouette cruise on this website so that is another way to meet other gay cruisers but of course you will miss out on some of the events that Aquafest has scheduled.

Aquafest also offers some nice extras that appealed to me (just like pied piper does), they include

Private group shore excursions in selected Mediterranean ports-of-call

$50 per cabin onboard spending credit

Bottle of wine per stateroom

Private cocktail Party

Private group gatherings and socials

I think these group events appealed to me more than anything else, as over the years have made some great friends on these hosted gay group sailings. Last Pied Piper I was on we even had a gay marriage performed on board by the Captain. I really have enjoyed the intimacy of being part of a group, getting to at least know most of my fellow group members by name, as well as quite a few of the general passenger population.

That to me is the advantage, the cost saving is a secondary benefit. That's why to me it will be interesting to see how Aquafest compares to Pied Piper, in my experience a good onboard host can make a very good cruise, an exceptional one.

You get the best of both worlds... you can go to the Aquafest events and you can come to the Cruise Critic Connections party as well :)

 

(OK, by 'party', you know i mean coffee and snacks. :rolleyes:)

 

I'm not with Aquafest, but should i take this to mean that the FOD gatherings will be swamped with men this cruise? They might need to hold it in a bigger venue than the 'Crush Bar' they held them at last time.

You really do the best of both worlds, you can go on your own, or be part of the group for any events you choose. Plus I've always liked that the groups always get tours of the bridge,backstage, etc.

Made some good friends over the years from both the Pied Piper and Atlantis tours and having a coordinator/host onboard really helps facilitate if any problems do arrive.

Plus the discounted rates, you can't beat them

Just curious about Aquafest. We have a balcony cabin on hold with our regular Travel Agent for this cruise but just looked at the Aquafest site. Prices seem lower than most but in fine print is says that there is a $30. charge per booking and that if the group does not reach 50 persons the rates can be adjusted upward. Those terms make me uneasy. And our regular travel agent provides a very large OBC. Does anyone know how many are now in the Aquafest group for this cruise? I would appreciate it if anyone who has past experience with this group can provide information. We leave next week for Hawaii on the Celebrity Century and would like to make a decision about this cruise before we leave. Thanks.

I found the discount substantial over Celebrity/TA pricing for a C2 cabin (about $800), and $500 for an A2. The heavily discounted rates rates are only for the listed 6 classes though (11,8,2c,c2,a2) So if your travel agent is providing more than a $500 OBC, I would go with them if their pricing is better than Aquafest.

In regard to the terms, I asked the same question abiout disclaimer on rates, and Tom told me rates were locked in long ago by Celebrity, and even if two people went, they would still get the discounted advertised rates.

Really no idea how many in group. I know their advertised extras are

Private group shore excursions in selected Mediterranean ports-of-call

$50 per cabin onboard spending credit

Bottle of wine per stateroom

Private cocktail Party

Private group gatherings and socials

Aside from that not sure as this will be my first time with Aquafest, as mostly done Pied Piper and Atlantis in the past.

Have a great time on Century, we were on her in January, and its one of the few cruise ships that still has that ocean liner feel with all the rich warm woods and open decks.

My understanding was that the booking fee was waived if you were Captains Club or Elite or something like that (wasn't charged for it either)

Bad news, we were told our original flight was getting in too late to get to the ship in time. Good news, now we're an extra day in Rome! Has anyone ever used airline points to book hotel? Had any issues with that?

Used points to pay for hotels in Brisbane, Auckland and Sydney on the Australia cruise in January. Only word of advice is book them early. Like the airlines, they "sell out" quickly on the points available rooms/flights early. I booked them 8 months in advance and hotel people (Hilton/Four Seasons) told me I was LUCKY that something was still available.

Only 34 weeks to go until the cruise...:p

 

How are everyones shore tour plans coming along?

Haven't really begun to look at them yet other than the pre cruise visit to Rome, and did book a Segway tour of Barcelona with the Roll Call group from Cruise Critic

We've been looking at the excursions but haven't decided on anything yet. We're travelling with Aquafest and they are planning to offer excursions to the group, so I think we're going to wait and see what they come up with before deciding.

My friend Brian and I are traveling with Aquafest as well, and I know i haven't even started to think about excursions yet. Can tell you we did the Florence/Pisa one a few years ago and it was good....to a point

The 1/2 day Florence portion was really a mad dash through Florence where didn't see much of anything other than the outside of a lot of places, 1/2 day really didn't give time to see much at all (we didn't even get to see that handsome Italian marble David).

The Pisa is really a nice photo op, but nothing else there in the vicinity other than the tower, and a village of souveneir places.

Couple from SW Ontario, Canada. Looking forward to the TA with Aquafest in December!

Are you doing the two day pre-cruise hotel package with Aquafest as well?

Flying out of New York on the 28th on Alitalia non stop #611, booked through choice air in biz. I chose a pre cruise package that Aquafest offered, it included 2 nights at the Hotel 47 in Rome, some sightseeing and breakfast and lunch each of the days, and then transfers to the ship on the 1st.

I used Rome Cabs before and really liked their service, they were ontime and car was a late model mercedes and was clean, driver friendly as well.

Live up in Dutchess County, and love to cruise. Stay mostly with the Pied Piper gay group cruises, but have tried 2 Atlantis Gay Charters, and 5 or 6 str8 cruises as well. This year trying a gay group cruise with a company called Aquafest. All have their pluses and minuses, but still think cruising is a great value.

Have tried two cruises out of NYC area, one from the Manhattan piers and another from Port Liberty in NJ, both went pretty well as well, although time to the Manhattan pier was double the time than the NJ ones and both are same distance mileage wise for me.

I went ahead and booked Aquafests' 15 night transatlantic for December on the Celebrity Silhouette. Price for a C2 cabin was about $800 less than if I had booked it directly with Celebrity, so it was a no brainer. 15 nights for about $2500 total for two people plus air

When Celebrity had male masseurs a few years back, had this one guy who told me he was the highest rated handball player in Romania (I think). He was drop dead gorgeous, so even though his massage was probably just above average, it felt superb at the time.

Recently though was on the Century and remembered the spa manager from another cruise , she suggested I try Jessica (a blonde girl from the U, probably late 20's maybe). She called her the Queen of deep tissue.

She was right, it probably was the best deep tissue I ever had. Deep tissue is generally more expensive since it much more work for the massage therapist. Swedish is like a light rub, hot stone or bamboo are nice, but nothing compares to deep tissue to really get at the muscle

So, who thinks that the massage company's on the ships should hire men/boys to give massages? No offense ladies!

People from Steiner told me they got rid of male masseurs as just didn't have demand for them since Str8 guys wanted women, and women wanted women

My partner and I are cruising with aquafest to alaska in august 2012. read some comments here and they seem positive.

I've read some good ones as well, but most seem to be from a while ago, so would appreciate hearing your comments after your August sailing

Any thoughts? Looking at booking one and was wondering if any experience with them? Have done Pied Piper, Atlantis, RSVP in the past and wonder how you think Aquafest compares?

Going to be joining you guys as well, as part of the Aquafest group. My friend Brian as well. Last TA I did was on the constellation which was terrific

Just talk to everyone and go from there! I've sailed solo several times and most of the time I'd befriend straight girls. They then made it their mission to find a date for me! Problem solved! ;)

I loved what JSNOW said as I had a similar experience. Seems like straight girls traveling together make it their prime directive to find a gay man a sweetie. Been on two cruises when that happened, and strangely enough their gaydar is better than mine.

I think over the years, I've done about 6 cruises solo and 9 with someone. Each have it advantages. To me the best part about traveling solo is it does kind of force you to meet other people both gay and straight that you might not meet otherwise. While traveling with someone gives you that protective safety net, and not having to leave your bubble if you choose not to.

Been on some gay group cruises where people in the gay group will not associate with people outside the group, and other where you see people that seem to virtually no every on onboard by the 5th day of the cruise. I'm trying to be more like the latter these days, as you can meet some fascinating people if you open your door enough to let them in.

I think every cruise I've been on, I meet someone on the next to last day of the cruise that is utterly fascinating, and wish I had met them earlier, so now I make a concerted effort to try and put my shyness on the back burner and at least say a few words to many people onboard instead of just ones that are in my initial comfort zone.:D

You are right about that. I can honestly say never been on a bad cruise, and Pied Piper's have always been my favorite, but some certainly stand out more. That makes sense about entertainment, all the PP groups I've been on were in the 50-80 person range so never seen entertainers with those sized groups

Like every cruise, its all tradeoffs. Been on all gay charters that were less than memorable and others that were fantastic. Same true with gay group ones and even straight ones. So much depends on the crew, the other passengers, and just plain old luck.

My RSVP fare for next February's Caribbean cruise is about 25-30% more than HAL is charging for the same cabin the week before and the week after our charter. And that is without any discounts such as when booking onboard (we were not on this years cruise) or RSViP points.

Thats why I like the pied piper gay group cruises, they actually run about 5% less than the advertised cruise rate of whatever line they sail (RCL,Cunard,Celebrity, Etc). True they don't provide entertainment, but never been on ANY cruise (gay, gay group or straight) where entertainment was all that memorable a week or two after I returned.

Having tried all gay charters (Atlantis, RSVP), Gay Group (Pied Piper), and STR8 conventional cruises they all have advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage of the gay charters I think is you feel you're in a whole new world, and the blinders come off. Its geared toward singles. I guess as someone said the disadvantage of the all gay cruises were the price, and the letdown after coming back. It was a lot of fun but it wasn't reality, and then you do have to return to reality. As a recovering member of AA (15 years), the constant alcohol and drug use was a big turnoff.

The gay charters I like, as the price is right, they do some great get togethers, and you generally find someone from the group around the ship. If you're single, downside to them is they are mostly couples, On almost every one I've seen a positive change made to other passengers perceptions of gay people. Downside to them is a small turnout (30-80 people), and the hosts can generally make or break the experience.

Str8 cruises are a whole different game. So much it seems is up to the Hotel Director/Cruise Director onboard. They can either be involved or non-existent. Have been on STR8 cruises where they had organized involved FOD meetings, and others when the meetings where they were like speak easy's where unless you specifically hunted them down, you would never find them