AndersonIslander

[quote name='vulcan1971']Randy,

You have just quoted my friend Russell. He and his friends Randy and Jonathan all live in Vancouver and are on the November cruise. My partner Iain and I had the good fortune of meeting these three wonderful guys on our cruise last November. I look forward to seeing them all.


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COOL! They sound like my kinda guys! LOL I shall look forward to meeting them too! :D

[quote name='Oliver2309']Thanks be to Dog there are still 75 sleeps to mull this over, Walter:o[/QUOTE]

I know!! Right? How in the world will I get ANYthing done worrying about this? LOL

Although I might change my mind, I think I'll probably not pack my tux, unless I decide to get a new double-breasted which I always have loved and some designer friends insist are going to come back in style in the next season or two.

Since I tend to overpack as it is, it is just a lot to haul around considering I'll be gone from home for a month, and yeah, on the spring TA I did try on my rental stuff right away when I got onboard, but (perhaps foolishly) did not bother to try to have it corrected as I figured given my extreme height it would probably be futile... just too much experience with clothing not fitting over the years...everyone seems to think it is cool to be so tall, but it does have its downsides (like the suite showerheads on S Class...lol)

Now, when I cruised RSVP years ago and it was 98% gay men, it WAS very cool to see the entire dining room looking like penguins!

And lets face it almost ANY man looks great in a good tux.

Randy

Another thing to know that many are unaware of is that EVERY night is Smart Casual and above in Blu and ALL of the specialty restaurants, regardless of the dress code for the night (even on formal nights). (in other words, the formal night designation really only applies to the MDR, although some people probably expect those at the show to be dressing)

And although most passengers do observe the code fairly well on Celebrity, the crew are not ****s about enforcing it either.

Randy

Yes, there are three. On the Eastbound TA this spring there were four because it was 16 nights. (although as an interesting aside, the cleaning/laundry (shirt) and pressing for the rental stuff was comped)
Randy

I am debating whether to bring my tux or not. Sometimes I do, sometimes I just bring a black blazer and slacks to save packing space as a tux always proves useless on the non-ship portions of the trip. On my Reflection TA this spring I decided to just pack some fab bow ties and rent both a tux and a white dinner jacket through the ship's service, but found them to be very disappointing in fit and quality. (I do own both tux and tails...lol)

Is everyone dragging along tux and associated accouterments?

Randy :confused:

[quote name='Schplinky']Randy,

We have a transfer to the port arranged and have room for others. If we have 5 people (including us), the transfer will be 170E; if we have 8 people, it will be 200E. You'd have to get yourselves to our hotel in front of the Pantheon and the transfer leaves at 9 a.m.[/QUOTE]

Lee: Don't know if you might be inclined to change, but I believe the service we used in the Spring is somewhat less expensive and has lots of good buzz on tripadvisor. It's Bob's Limousines (you can google "Bobs Limousines Rome") and our experience was absolutely terrific...Immaculate Mercedes van and great driver very fluent in English. They also allowed us multiple drop off points and assume they would do the same for pickup. From my experience in Europe, I would avoid booking 8 people to a van, probably 7 max, because we Americans pack heavier than Europeans, and 7 is also kinda the maximum capacity still comfortable in the vans I've seen.

I would also think it would probably be wise to avoid getting to the pier early. The facility there is very rudimentary... just an outdoor tent without seating and creature comforts, definitely not someplace you want to spend time in, although my only experience there is coming INTO the pier, not departing, so maybe you have more experience than I.

Randy

Randy,

 

I was going to mention that Schplinky (Lee) has room in his caravan to the port. Hopefully that will work out for you. Iain and myself are traveling with sdbart (Bart) and 2 other cruise couples in a different pre-arranged van.

 

One day I will make it to one of those Elite cocktail receptions. Currently I have 4 points toward Elite status, but I'm considered in "Select", which I thought didn't start till you are at 5 points. I'm wondering if they somehow count the RCCL trip I took last year toward my "Select" status. If anyone knows, feel free to comment. After this cruise I will have 3 more points to put us at 7 points toward Elite status. I think the next cruise we do will add 3 more points to put us at put us over. However, with that said, I will be booking at least one cruise while on board and possibly buying one or two "open passage" certificates. I will see if I can work any magic with the sales desk to see if they have any options to advance my status prior to the next cruise. If not, I will be at Elite after the next cruise we complete. We will have access to the Concierge Lounge, which will be a new experience for us.

 

 

Walter

 

Walter: Not sure if you meant RCCL's concierge lounge, but be aware that Celebrity does not have Concierge Lounges They do host almost every day a special buffet breakfast with comp mimosas and champagne as well as almost every night the hosted cocktails for Elites, although as I mentioned some cruises have so many Elites that they forgo the evening cocktails and just give every Elite three drink coupons per day. On the Eastbound Reflection TA earlier this year I think there were something like 850 Elites!! Made the Elite check in line VERY long! LOL I was very glad I was in a suite, when I checked in there was no line at all for suites... Also, a non-elite companion in the same stateroom as an elite is eligible for the elite events. Two of my great friends from Florida that were on one of my Alaska cruises in June are both elites and were traveling with non elite daughter and son-in law (in separate stateroom), and realized they should have split their booking!

 

Lee: Thanks, I probably will be able to join your van, but let me finalize all my stuff before I commit, as I'm still looking into switching to an Apartment, and deciding maybe whether maybe to spend a few days OUT of Rome Such as Florence for a while...I overslept too late and missed my excursion to Florence on the Eastbound TA earlier this year...$170 down the drain... :(

 

Randy

Randy,

 

You are probably familiar with registering for the Celebrity "Connections" meet & mingle. As of this weekend there were 237 people signed up. On embarkation day, there are plans for our roll call to meet before and after the muster drill. I think the location is the Sunset Bar on Deck 15. One of the other posters can correct me if my memory has failed me.

,

 

Walter

 

 

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Hey Walter, yes, I registered for the Cruise Connections party even before I first posted on this thread. The TA's always have a huge signup for them.

 

It will also be interesting to see how many Captains Club Elites are onboard, as the TA's also usually attract an unbelievable amount of Elites, often too many to be able to hold the regular nightly Elite free cocktail party, so they wind up just giving each Elite 3 free drink coupons per day.

 

Has everyone made their arrangements to get from Rome to the Ship? It's quite a long journey. On my spring TA ending in Rome, I'd been cautioned that the train can be problematic if one has more than a minimal amount of luggage.

 

I have not made arragements yet. For the spring TA, I managed to join three couples who had reserved a van though a very good service, and it worked out to only 35 Euro per person (including a good tip) for door to door service for everyone even though we were staying at four different hotels. I found this vastly preferable to other options.

 

Anyone interested it joining up for this? I still have the contact info for the limo service... Or what has everyone planned?

 

Randy

Randy,

 

Walter: Since you stayed on Reflection in a suite earlier this year, you know that two sets of passes come with these bookings (more than 12 days) to go to any specialty dining options. I am thinking that I will opt for a dining package option once on board so that we can try each restaurant at least once. The Reflection TA offers a 4 and 5 dinner package option; however I most likely will wait till on board to buy. I don't think that they will sell out or stop offering by the time we board. I'm also waiting to buy a drink package till I'm on board since I have a sizeable OBC to spend.

 

 

Walter

 

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Absolutely correct, I knew you guys were in Aqua but didn't know you were in Aqua suites...I'll be curious about you bathroom, I kind of assume it won't have the shower panel, but instead have the suite arrangement which is a big rainfall shower from above (which I am rather too tall at 6'6" for...lol) plus a hose wand with about 50 jets on it? I've never seen the inside of an Aqua suite... I do know that Celebrity has limited sales of the 5 dinner package on some cruises...but you're right, if you have a suite and a hefty OBC, I wouldn't probably pre-purchase either. Also, depending on your Captain's Club level and how well the restaurants are selling they often offer discounts to elites, etc. during the cruise.

 

Thanks very much for the info on the apartments, I'll look into the link you posted!

 

Randy

Hi Randy,

 

Welcome to the thread. Sounds like you know your way around a cruise ship. Several of us are arriving in Rome a week early. It would be great to meet you ahead of the cruise. Where are you staying in Rome? Again, several of us are staying in private apartments in the Trastevere neighborhood. Many of us are in Aqua rooms on the ship... how about you?

 

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Hey...I just realized my accommodations in Rome are fully cancellable, so I would be very interested in looking into one of the apartments...are you guys all at the same apartment building/complex? Can you tell me how to look into these?

 

Thanks!!

 

Randy :D

Was wondering if any of you have purchased the 5 dinner specialty package for this cruise...I have done so and, IMHO, it's a great deal. It has been my experience though that Celebrity limits the number of these sold, and they may not be available onboard. So, for those interested, you might want to consider grabbing them now...it's $139 (a savings of almost 1/3) for 5 specialty restaurant visits... While all the pay venues are terrific, I think Qsine is a must do and the new Lawn Club Grille, which is only on Silhouette and Reflection is also great fun. (for those of you who may have only done the other Solstice class ships, it replaced the Hot Glass Show.)

 

BTW, being a huge fan of escargot, I have been very sad that my my last several Celebrity cruises have not included them on the menu, apparently due to a shortage...I've heard talk that they are back on the everynight menu in the MDR. Anyone else heard this?

 

Randy :D

Hi! I reserved a place in Rome that is recommended by Rick Steves and seems to have extremely good reviews online. It's called Nerva Accommodation, PIAZZA DELLA SUBURRA 2, Rome. It looks very modern but is probably pretty basic, and I'll have internet, ensuite bath and they even have complimentary loaner bicycles. My Reflection TA earlier this year was my first time in Rome and was only there a few days before going on to Paris and London (both of which I am very familiar with, and so I'm still not that familiar with Rome. One objective of my spring trip was to see the Sistine Chapel, but on the way in from the Ship we passed the horrendous lines of people waiting in the rain to get tickets...decided I wouldn't do that without online tix in advance on a future trip.

 

And no, I'm not in AQ, in fact I'm in steerage...(although on the penthouse deck) I have the only very aft inside on that deck, #1671. It's basically kinda across the hall from the beautiful suite (1688) I had earlier this year, so am hoping to have the same great cabin stewards I had then (especially cause they'll probably remember I tipped them very well! LOL) And although I won't officially have his services, I hope to be able to harass the absolutely super Butler I had in the suite... his name, believe it or not, is Elvis! LOL

I decided to go economy on this TA partly because it has so many sea days. The eastbound Reflection TA had many more ports. I did use blu a couple times on that TA as a suite guest so I could dine with an AQ couple I met onboard, but don't know if they'll let me slide in on a space available basis this trip...although I am Elite, so that might help. I have elected select dining, so as to be flexible...and have never had a problem joining friends I meet in the MDR or the pay venues. One advantage of always travelling solo is its almost always possible to add a single chair to a table if everyone is so inclined.

 

And yes, would be fun to meet before the cruise in Rome...and would be great to be able to get your advice while there about what to see/do!

 

On the spring reflection TA all the FOD's and our admirers kind of took over the Sunset bar as our own...with occasional early evenings in the Martini Bar...if everyone is interested we might plan a sailaway out of Rome in one of those venues...have done this before where everyone wore mardi gras beads to recognize each other...just a suggestion... Oh! and congratulations to the newlyweds...hope we can all make your honeymoon cruise very memorable!

Randy

Hi everyone! My name is Randy. I'll be joining all of you on the 11/1/13 Reflection TA! (traveling solo)

 

I did the Eastbound Reflection earlier this year (April/May) and it was fabulous! Lots of gay and gay-friendly people and I certainly had a great time! (Schplinky, were you on that crossing too? and if so by any chance were you at one of my parties in my suite? ...I had the very aft Port corner suite on Penthouse deck) Also the Reflection crew were outstanding.

 

Glad to see that it looks like a lot of FOD's will be onboard... Just did a 14 days back to back on Millennium - Vancouver to Seward 7 days, then return) and there seemed to be almost NO gay people onboard...although there were lots of cool folks and still had a great time. Not to mention incredible weather, who could expect Juneau to be upper 80's in early June!!) Also I am going on the Solstice America's Cup cruise next month, I kinda expect a fair number of "family" onboard.

 

Oh, and ottowapuppy, I was (solo) on the fall 2011 Westbound TA Eclipse cruise too! Yes, that crossing really did a lot of rock-and-rolling! You might remember me for my height (I am 6'6" tall...lol, although I did catch a bad cold and wound up spending a lot of time in my stateroom...)

 

I will be arriving Rome a week before (morning of the 24th) and would also be interested in joining any of you for dinner or whatever get-together might get planned!

 

Can't wait to see you all onboard or even before in Rome!

 

Randy :D