Jump to content

twentyknots

Members
  • Posts

    567
  • Joined

Recent Profile Visitors

The recent visitors block is disabled and is not being shown to other users.

twentyknots's Achievements

Cool Cruiser

Cool Cruiser (2/15)

  1. We were on the Reflection January 29-February 5. We wore masks in airports, planes, and public places on the ship, especially elevators, casino, theatre, and busy areas. We ate breakfast and lunch at the OVC outside. We ate dinner in the MDR and sat with our son and his wife. Off the ship we wore masks in all the shops. We were definitely in the minority. Our son and daughter-in-law never put on a mask. No Covid for any of us. Very few crew wore masks.
  2. We were on the Reflection in cabin 2214 just beneath the OVC. I know the Reflection is a S class but I would think your question would apply to either class. We read every review we could find about that cabin trying to decide if the noise was worth having the cover. Because the reviews said the noise was minimal and mostly in the early morning we decided to go with it. Big mistake for us. We heard scraping noise all day long. Never again for us. We'll go down to deck 9 and put up with the full sun.
  3. I dont think anyone in line for dinner that night cared or complained. The maître d' who was only doing his job, enforcing the dress code clearly posted.
  4. In my case I was quarantined for the last day of the cruise. I was told that my cruise card would be flagged to deny permission to leave the ship. I assume any other use of the card would also be denied and possibly alert someone that I was out of my cabin. I was also told that security would check on me, but my cabin steward said that wasnt true. I was feeling fine but had no interest in doing much that day. I was ready for the cruise to be over so sat on my verandah and finished my book and napped. Around 6 I went upstairs to the OVC and fixed myself a plate for dinner and brought it to my cabin.
  5. When Celebrity decides a passenger is to be quarantined, what happens if the passenger decides to ignore the quarantine?
  6. My wife and I along with our son and his wife were on the Reflection 1/29-2/5. We flew from NC to FL the day before. Very few masks seen in the airport or plane. We stayed in the Riverside hotel in FLL the day before and were out and about most of the day and evening. Again, almost no masks. On the ship, same thing: very, very few masks, even in crowded elevators, casino, shows, bars. Few seem to care anymore whether they get covid or give it. They see it like the flu or a cold and no one wore masks before covid to stop that spread so why now? My wife and I wore masks in every crowded area. We ate outside for breakfast and lunch, and we had dinner in the MDR with just the 4 of us at the table. Our son and DIL never wore masks and have had covid twice, but arent afraid of getting it again. We know that masking is no guarantee of avoiding covid but we believe it helps and it's not burdensome. We're in our 70's; they in their 50's. Maybe thats why we see it differently.
  7. Reflection cruise review January 29-Feb 5, 2023 Overall I gave the cruise a C+, the others a B-. Pre cruise Riverside Hotel Fort Lauderdale: Older hotel but has charm. We stayed one night in the classic section which was old and small but adequate for a short stay. If I were staying longer I think I’d book the newer tower section. The area around the hotel is what makes this place special. Great for people watching, shopping, eating and drinking. We ate at the Big City Tavern for lunch, Gran Forno Pronto for dinner and JJ’s for breakfast. We had cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory, donuts from Hollywood donuts, and gelato from Pan'e Dolci Italian Bakery, all very good. We bought wine for carry on at the Greenwise market just a few blocks from the hotel. Embarkation: We had 12:00 check-in so got Uber XL from hotel to pier since it was 4 of us with 8 bags. Fare was about $30. We arrived around 11:30 and explained that we were early and looked for 12 o’clock line but were told to proceed to check in. We were on the ship in 15 minutes. Cabin: My wife and I were travelling with my son and his wife. We had adjoining Concierge cabins on deck 12 in cabins 2214 and 2223. The cabin itself was as expected. We did not feel cramped and the size of the verandah was fine. We had the cabin steward remove the panel between the cabins on the verandah. My wife and I have cruised many times in aft-facing cabins and love the view. We wanted our son and his wife to experience that. Our decision to book deck 12 was based mostly on the deck being covered. The other aft cabins are partially covered. We did not want to be sitting in full sun. We knew from reviews that deck 12 has noise from the chairs in the OVC above but most reviews said it was not a big problem. We all disagree; it was nosy most of the time. The last 36 hours of the cruise was very rough. The ship creaked and rolled like it was some old rust bucket. The sea didn’t appear to be that rough. Condition of the ship: The ship appears to be in excellent condition. Clean and well appointed. Staff: Very hard working and friendly. Dining: We ate breakfast and lunch in the OVC most days. The food there was disappointing. The selection was okay, but was bland and often not hot when it should be. We had most dinner meals in the MDR except one evening in the Tuscan Grill. Like the OVC, the MDR food was bland for my tastes. I will say though that my wife is a vegetarian and she liked her meals in both the OVC and the MDR. The Tuscan Grill was very good. We had anytime dining option for the MDR and the first and second nights we arrived around 6:30 and were told there would be a 15 minute wait. We were given pagers. We waited 40 minutes. Once seated the service was very slow. I complained and was told to book an early seating time of 6pm and there would be no wait. We did and the service improved. On the 2nd night we responded to our pager and were standing in line behind two men and two women. The men were wearing shorts and flip flops. The maître d' was called over and the two men were refused entry. A heated discussion developed as the men in shorts argued that they were being disrespected. The maître d was firm and the men and women left. One of the women returned and was very angry and made some nasty remarks and obscene gestures. Security was called. Later as we were leaving the dining room we saw the two men dressed in nice suits as they made their way back to the MDR. Entertainment: We attended three shows, none of which was very good in our opinion. Ports of call: Nassau, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel. We’ve been to all of these numerous times in the past so nothing of interest for us. We walked around some but mainly enjoyed the ship with fewer people. Oh, a word of caution. On Friday evening after dinner I started feeling some gastrointestinal distress. I had brought a few pepto bismol tablets with us but used them all so went looking for some to buy Saturday morning. I couldn’t find them for sale so asked around and was told to go to the “pharmacy” on deck 2. Well there is no pharmacy, just medical. When I asked for some pepto the nurse asked about my symptoms and had me fill out a lengthy questionnaire followed by quarantine for the last day. My advice: unless you think you’re having a heart attack keep your mouth shut.
  8. Good to know. Thanks for the responses.
  9. We'll be boarding the Reflection on January 29, 2023, the date of the NFL Championship games. I wonder what the opportunities will be to watch those games. I'm sure they'll be available to watch at bars but that will be limited viewing with so many people trying to watch. I think we were on a cruise years ago during a similar time and they showed the games in the theatre, and maybe in the cabins.
  10. Is it the honor system? If you're in a line for 11:00 boading for example, how do they know that's where you belong? Maybe you pre-selected, didnt like your time and got to the terminal at 10:00 in hopes of getting in so you got in the 11:00 line. Or you didnt pre-select, have no idea what an App is, so you got in the earliest line you could when you arrived.
  11. Can someone please explain how Celebrity manages the boarding line at the terminal? I've searched for an answer and all I can find is they enforce it. I'd like to know the process by which they manage it. I assume when we arrive at the terminal we go to the back of the line. We, along with many others have pre-selected our boarding time on the X App. But there are sure to be a good number who either haven’t pre-selected or who have but came early. All in one big line I imagine. How does Celebrity manage this fairly?
  12. I quite sure my TA doesnt know what the procedure is. We had some conversation about this when I decided to buy the insurance and I could tell she was just guessing. I'm sure she would be willing to make some calls to find out, but I'll probably do that myself. We havent decided yet. I would like to talk with the airlines also to see if they will issue a voucher for future travel.
  13. klfrodo, thanks for your reply. I will share what I learn. In the meantime I'd be interested in what you infer from the policy as to what the likelihood is that they'll actually issue the FCC or try to wriggle out of it somehow. It seems clear enough, but one can never be sure with contracts
  14. We’re booked on a January 29, 2023 cruise on Celebrity. We purchased the Cruisecare policy when we made final payment. For purpose of this discussion I’ve excerpted the key provision of the policy that I would like clarification. In the event that you choose to cancel for a reason not authorized above or for a reason that is otherwise restricted, at any time up until departure, and you have purchased the CruiseCare, Celebrity Cruises will provide you a cruise credit equal to 90% of the non-refundable value (excluding Flights by CelebritySM, previously known as ChoiceAir) of your Cruise Vacation prepaid to Celebrity, for your use toward a future cruise. We’re thinking of cancelling because we feel like we’ll have to wear a mask much of the time, (self imposed) and will have a negative impact on the quality of the cruise. We knew this was a possibility when we booked and hoped Covid might not be an issue but recent reports suggest otherwise. Since our reason for cancellation would not be one of the covered reasons such as sickness or death, etc, what claims process do you think would need to be followed? I know we have to give notification of our intent in writing before the cruise date so I’d get my TA do that. Is it as simple as that? Celebrity just refunds the taxes and port fees back to the credit card, and issued a 90% FCC for the remainder? No questions asked? Also, I note this clause in the T&C’s: To be eligible for the credits: 1. the travel protection plan must be purchased prior to having made final payment for the cruise; We made our payment for the Crusiecare policy at the same time as the final payment, three days before the due date, not prior to the final payment. So, is it semantics or does the Cruisecare policy really have to be paid before the final payment, not at the same time? Thanks for your thoughts.
×
×
  • Create New...