SixOneTwo

All of you provided great advice, and quickly, which is exactly what I needed. THANKS to all.

I'm a regular sailor on Celebrity, but I'm not mobile-tech-savvy and I don't use technology onboard, other than the ship's own computers. I understand the limitations of being online at sea...but not the details of how you'll be charged by your carrier. Now I'm advising my boss on taking his devices with him and need some help. I've already informed him that he needs to buy and internet package and work with the computer lab to configure his devices to use on board.

1. When you use an iPad to access the ship's internet service in a foreign country (South America), is it technically FOREIGN coverage? Or is it domestic since the ships are based in the US (assuming they might be using a domestic carrier to provide service)?

2. Similarly, if you use an iPhone for calls TO or FROM THE SHIP (not in port), are you using foreign or domestic coverage?

The user's carrier is Verizon. I'd really appreciate some education on this matter so I can look super smart, and not have to deal with a gigantic expense report when the trip is over. :)

In August I observed a man wearing slacks and a patterned shirt turned away from the MDR on formal night with a statement from the hostess like this: "Sir, we'd like it if you'd wear either a tie or a jacket. Please go back to your room and get one of those and then we'll seat you."

He came back with a jacket and a smile and everyone was happy.

The hostess was super friendly about the whole thing and delivered it in a way that you felt you'd be disappointing her if you didn't comply.

This was on Infinity, British Isles itinerary, Select seating, formal night.

I cannot recommend highly enough the Beatles Fab Four Taxi Tour. We had "Debbie" and she was excellent. DH is the biggest Beatle fan ever, who has read every book, owns every album, can play/sing every song and even he learned something new. They play music, take you to sites, give information, tell stories, share rare photos...

I like any inside cabin on Deck 3 on an M-Class that's in the "bow" half of the ship. We always request a cabin here. I don't know why, but each time we've stayed there, it's been quiet and "out of the way," and felt kind of exclusive. No one seems to cut through this area to get to something else. Yet...it's located really conveniently to Guest Services, Excursions, and the main dining room.

We like interior cabins because we like to spend our money on land, rather than our on-board accommodations.

We stayed here in August 2013 for a few days surrounding a cruise and liked it alot. It's a 3-minute walk to the Tower Bridge metro station, a 5-minute walk to the Tower of London. There are many restaurants at St. Katharine's Dock, just a 10-minute walk away, or multiple pubs nearby. It's in a business district, so very quiet.

When it was time to get to Harwich for our cruise, we took the metro easily to Liverpool Street Station and connected with the train to Harwich. We did the same coming back from the ship after the cruise.

We like using public transportation, so this property was a good option for us.

Also, note that this property used to be owned by Mint Hotels and so retains a very modern minimalist vibe. The rooms are small but well-appointed with coffee/tea kettles, irons, safes, and an Apple Mac for TV/in-room computer use. Bathrooms are "sleek." Beds are comfortable. They have a very nice (but expensive) rooftop venue with great views of the city. We also appreciated their green exterior walls (e.g. plants).

Have a GREAT time!

We're big trivia players and I can't say I've ever seen games conflict with dinner times. Others will correct me if I'm wrong...

One more thing. When you go to Alaska, there is an occasional excursion that takes you into Canada and you may need passports to participate.

For instance, the White Pass & Yukon Railway tour from Skagway goes into Yukon Territory, which is not the US. We took this tour and when the train stopped in Yukon, we were advised to sit in our seats, take out our passports and open them to the photo page. Customs/Immigration officers boarded the train and looked at everyone's documentation before we were allowed to disembark for the return trip (which we took via van).

I'm not sure how those agents would handle 3-year-olds without passports. If you go on an excursion like this, you may consider taking with you all of the paperwork, be it passport or birth certificate and including the parental permission stuff, required at the airport.

I would like to see the return of musicians, rather than just a guitar player with a computer that plays background. Or a duo that has one keyboardist and a computerized percussion section. Unfortunately, the use of computerized music is a trend the world over, putting real musicians out of work.

I don't enjoy production shows, so can't comment on what's currently offered. If most people like it, they should continue. Not sure why it's so difficult to get quality talent, though. We all know waitresses and waiters in our home towns who are looking for singing/dancing gigs.

It would be wonderful if they could have more comedy acts on board and if they would require those comedians to completely refrain from cruise jokes. I've never been to a comedy show on a ship that didn't address the toilet flushing and the buffet and stupid passengers. Just deliver a routine like you would deliver in a land-based venue, please. Comedians work cheap. There are many good ones out there...

No more ventriloquists.

Remember the Ladder Guy? Bring him back.

When you go to the MDR for dinner the first night, ask the manager there if it's possible to get a tofu scramble for future breakfasts and how that would work. The managers in the MDR also work in the buffet, so they can tell you if a special request is possible, and will likely work to make it happen if it is.

The Movenpick hotel is attached to the cruise terminal. The Doubletree is around the corner and walkable. Both of these are within walking distance of the train terminal.

We stayed at the Doubletree, which was perfect in every way.

I can confirm that they no longer stock TWININGs brand. They have something akin to English Breakfast and Earl Grey, as those are the ones I drink. Can't tell you about the rest, but there was quite a nice variety.

We did the Manningtree connection both ways this summer. On the way to Harwich, there were actually a few men on the platform in uniforms offering to help up and down the stairs with luggage. On the way back to London, the train stopped at Manningtree, but we were told we didn't have to change trains. Not sure why, but we got to London on time as planned.

$8 London to Harwich and about $16 Harwich to London (we paid slightly more for an earlier departing train).

It was INCREDIBLY easy and I wouldn't do it any other way in the future.

Oh, and there was NOT a big rush of people getting off the train and checking in to the ship. It was very relaxed and I would say the number of Celebrity reps to passengers in the terminal was about 1:1.

If you're a member of AAA you can get them there with no transaction fee. Our local AAA sells TCs in US funds or Euros.

They can be cashed on the ship. You can also cash them at an American Express office.

Yes, there are plenty of other alternatives out there now, but some still use traveler's checks and they also are completely protected from loss or theft, as long as you have your receipt.

Regarding how early you can book your flight, I would like to relay our experience returning to the US via Heathrow from a cruise that ended at Harwich.

We took the train to London to extend our trip, so I can't help you there. But the AIRPORT situation we experienced is something to consider. We arrived 2 hours in advance.

First of all, there was quite a long line to check your bags. I would say there were 100 passengers in line at the Delta/KLM counter.

Once bags were checked, we went to the security line. As we waited, we were asked NO LESS than 20 times, "Do you have any liquids? Please take one of our ziploc bags." Then we got to the conveyor belt and there was a person there giving the following speech: "If you have any electronics, phones, laptops, e-readers, ipads, tablets, ipods, etc. TAKE THEM OUT OF YOUR BAG and set them in the security bin. If you have liquids, take them out of the bag, put them in a ziploc bag and set them in the security bin. If these items are found in your bag by the X-ray machine, you may be delayed up to ONE HOUR for us to hand search your bag. We are not responsible if you miss your flight." She said this clearly and loudly to everyone standing around us.

I would say 6 out of 10 bags, when X-rayed, were subject to a loud alarm and flashing lights, then pushed aside for hand inspection. My bag was one of them. All of my liquids and electronics were outside my bag in the bin as instructed. (I had been warned in advance of the very adept security process at Heathrow, so was diligent.)

I then walked through the scanner and was pulled aside for a random search. I had no metal on me. I was assured it was some sort of random number that caused me to be searched.

Next, I joined 10 people at the end of the security line and watched for no less than an hour while security hand searched each person's bag. EVERY SINGLE PERSON BEFORE ME had electronics or many, many liquids packed within their luggage. It wasn't like the passengers were trying to get away with something, nor were they surprised when the goods were found, it was like they didn't have a clue. Once the "contraband" was removed the bag had to be re-X-rayed, so more waiting.

When it came time for my bag to be hand inspected, they took everything out and found no liquids. They told me they were searching for somethig that looked like liquid, but it was not present. The X-ray screen even showed exactly where the item should have been in my bag... They re-X-rayed my bag, then offered to help me re-pack (at least they were nice!)...

We walked on to our flight with the very last passengers at the gate. I would say we had about 10 minutes to spare.

Please keep this in mind when booking your flights out of Heathrow!

Is this a question of getting the best cruise value for your money or getting the best value for C3?

Personally I would never put "C3 Cabin" and "Value" in the same sentence, simply because it's not my priority to pay that much for a cabin. I know others have different priorities, but most would agree that you can cruise for much less than a C3 fare.

You can do it yourself. There's a tourist information center along the main road very close to the tender stop. They will tell you how to get there by city bus.

OR, you can take the bus that circumnavigates the island, but I'm not sure that it gets you "right there" at the Occupation Museum.

I found this website helpful: http://www.visitguernsey.com/home

We also stayed in Cobh. On such a port-intensive cruise, we decided to just take it easy here. We walked up to the Cathedral, where there are great views. If you're a photographer, don't miss the colorful row of houses up here called the "Deck of Cards."

We also took a Titanic walking tour that leaves from the Commodore Hotel twice daily (11:00, which is cheaper and 2:00). There is not much walking, but you do see quite a few landmarks and the guide is knowledgeable about Titanic history and will debunk various myths. (He talks about the Lusitania ship disaster as well, since Cobh received many survivors and victims.) A good way to spend 90 minutes or so.

The Titanic Experience was "just OK." I would say give it a try if you don't have anything else you want to see/do.

Finally, we took a short cab ride to the old church cemetery, which was quite antique and "creepy" in a good way: Tons of Celtic cross gravestones, wrought iron, moss and plant overgrowth. Again, a good spot for photographers. There are Lusitania victims buried here which is interesting. It seems a bit remote, but you won't have trouble getting a cab back.

There is plenty to eat or drink here, but not really any shopping. I recall a grocery store, a candy store and a very small "Irish" gift shop, all along the main drag.

We don't regret at all not going to Blarney.

In Belfast we used City and Causeway Tours.

http://www.cityandcausewaytours.com/index.html

Please be aware that when you make an inquiry via their website, you will get a PHONE CALL to discuss your needs. Alister and Stevie are the guides (and I assume owner/operators). Both were amazing to work with.

We talked to Alister on the phone, he also accommodated a ship's itinerary change for us via e-mail.

Stevie was our guide. It was like we had a friend just drive us around wherever we wanted to go, giving us commentary and conversation all the way.

They sent photos of all of the places we visited to our e-mail address when we got home.

VERY good value. VERY accommodating, friendly folks.

Just as a price comparison for some of these ports:

LIVERPOOL: Celebrity offers an "In the Footsteps of the Beatles" 4-hour tour for $64 per person. This is on a motorcoach. INSTEAD: We booked a private tour for two people, 3 hours, with a guide expert on the Beatles for 55 pounds. Every question we had was answered and the tour was customized with our choice of beatles music. We went into places that the bus tours only saw from the outside (if at all).

INVERNESS: Celebrity offers a cruise of Loch Ness and visit to Urquart Castle Ruins, a 4-hour tour for $52 per person. INSTEAD: We took the city bus roundtrip from Invergordon for about 11 pounds each (it's 20+ miles each way), then paid the same tour company Celebrity uses and paid about 30 pounds each for a small-format tour to these places PLUS a stop at the Loch Ness Monster Visitor Center. All admission fees included.

BELFAST: Celebrity offers a trip to Giant's Causeway ONLY for $72 per person. INSTEAD: We booked a private company that gave us 8 hours in a van with a guide for the two of us. We took winding country roads that a motorcoach could never traverse. We stopped at the Giant's Causeway, the rope bridge, the castle ruins, a tiny port town with WWII significance and the Dark Hedges and did it all on our own schedule. The cost was about 200 pounds and I believe we paid about 20 pounds each in admission fees.

LeHAVRE: Celebrity offered a bus tour to some WWII sites for $178 per person. INSTEAD: We joined up with two other couples from our roll call for a Normandy excursion which was in a mini-van and involved lots of historic information and allowed us to customize how much time we stayed at the various beaches & cemeteries. The cost was about 30% cheaper than what Celebrity offered. But we would have done it without the cost savings, as it is a much more moving experience with a small group.

Sometimes it's much less, sometimes a little more, but we enjoy traveling without the burden of 48 other people on a big motorcoach. We ask alot of questions, we take alot of photos. We enjoy public transportation and we like mingling with locals. We don't like to stop for lunch, coffee, or the local wine. We don't like to be taken to shops. We don't like to stop at a truck stop for a bathroom break and stand in line behind 20 women. We don't like to wait for people who need more time to linger (shop, etc.)

Yes, it's alot more work than the ship's tours, and sometimes we still do take excursions when we think we might be overwhelmed or risk missing the ship (we took the Edinburgh Tattoo excursion, for instance). But I think the planning and anticipation of the trip is just as fun as the trip itself, so it's never a problem to do the research. It CAN be done!

We stayed this August at the Doubletree Tower of London. Can't get closer to the Tower or the Tower Bridge. A tube station is a 3 minute walk. Price was great... around 125Euro per night. The restaurants at Victoria Embankment were a close, pleasant walk. Two restaurants here and an rooftop bar with amazing views.

A few years ago we stayed at the Marriott County Hall. London Eye is on the premises, Westminster Abbey and Big Ben are 100 yards' walk. Tube station within 5 minutes' walk. Not a budget place by any means, but we used loyalty points there. Restaurants in the hotel were overpriced (think $25 for breakfast).

Both nice options that I'd highly recommend.

If you would tell us your ports and what excursions interested you, we might be able to make some specific suggestions about either saving money doing it yourself or adding value in other ways.

I wonder if they weren't doing this on Infinity when we sailed in August. Michael's club was always dark with a "private function" sign out front. They definitely weren't using it as a craft beer venue. I never saw a soul in there.

I'm in favor of upping the ante for passengers heavy on the Celebrity loyalty, but all of Michael's Club for the entire cruise for three people seems maybe inappropriate? Is there not a more intimate area to accommodate 3-6 people?

Gig103, just wondering, in order to avoid wrinkles, do you roll him or fold him wrapped in tissue paper?

Have you looked at the Roll Call for the cruise you're considering and see if there any similarly-aged kids discussed there? If not, you are certainly welcome to post there with the same question.