the penguins

Crew to passenger ratio varies depending on the number of passengers. We sailed b2b on Silhouette in May. Cruise 1 - 2400 pax, cruise 2 - 1100 pax crew numbers remained the same. On our second cruise there were more crew than passengers The cruise after ours was 2400 and then back to 1100. Larger tables usually take longer our table of 6 always took between 90 and 120 minutes don't blame the staff they serve as quickly as we eat but the socialising is part of the experience. Choose the table size you like and enjoy. We are both in our mid 70's and both had Covid in March.

Choice is always good: X in a big bus, various Small Group operators - for us both have the same disadvantages in that we have no control over the itinerary, pace or stops. Or, our choice, ToursbyLocals. We deal direct with the guide, personalise the route, stop for coffee and cakes, split the cost with one other couple (sometimes 2 other couples) from the Roll Call, pay via the "lovely ladies" in Canada and get a full refund if the ship fails to dock. We have used TBL in Japan, China, South America, USA, Europe and never had a bad guide.

We had one on Silhouette in May - well we would have done but it was cancelled due to the weather. Also had one for Aqua only on the same cruise.

Always restricted to Elite and above. Sometimes there has been a separate event for other CC levels.

8 to 10 is the usual time

Thanks. Your description and the pics have confirmed our worst fears. Cannot imagine relaxing in that "box" for 10 minutes let alone the hours we spend on a traditional balcony. Is it a deal breaker - for us yes. Interestingly the other cruise line (Viking) that has extensive experience of this type of cabin on its river ships chose not to have them on its Ocean going ones. I wonder why?

7.0 pm

Exactly the point I was making whereas the original post (alex_drew) claimed that by shutting the inner doors the Aircon stayed on.

If you are there overnight book a 1 day car rental and drive it yourself. To quote the helpful lady at the rental office who also put all the sites into the satnav in order ", the clue is in the title. Whenever you have a choice of direction turn right it's a circle so turning left is wrong". Picked up the car at 10 am, dropped it off at around 6.0 pm (keys through letterbox) and taxi back to ship. Great day, easy driving and no problems.

If it's the same as when they introduced the current system as " the fastest at sea" it will come with a huge price tag.

Surely the Aircon switch is connected to the window dropping not the inner folding doors i.e. as soon as the window drops the Aircon goes off? Yours is the first post I have seen that says you can close the inner doors and still have space to sit between the inner doors and the dropping window or have I misread your post? Anyone have a picture of anyone doing that? Thanks

A great headline but the caveat is there and of course Viking can now blame whatever country has the requirement and that changes all the time. This piecemeal approach just causes more confusion. Better for testing to stay until every country and cruise line is ready to adopt the same rules.

We have always assumed it is just the lowest level there is and you get it automatically after your first cruise. On our last TA we used our card for the Slot Pull and deposited $1200 cash into the machine and even that had no effect on our status.

Yes we are. As previously posted once we had used our credits we would not be booking Celebrity unless they dropped the compulsory AI pricing which for most cruises they have now done. I used inclusive pricing in my comparison between Princess and X because at it gave a more accurate comparison. 14 nights to the Med from Southampton July 2022. All prices per person Inc tips, wifi and drinks Enchanted Princess: Standard balcony £1369 Deluxe balcony £1469 Mini suite £1749 Silhouette Standard balcony £3349 Cunard Queen Elizabeth 15 nights in August Balcony £1299 - this is cruise only

Hi Ruth, please can we have some of yours. Current price here is the equivalent of 💲9.50 per US gallon. Thanks Geoff.

Many ships are still sailing with drastically reduced numbers - it is most definitely not all over. I agree with all your other points and have cruised 4 times in the last 12 months most recently in May.

Cruising from the UK to the Med on a 14 night cruise a mini suite on Princess inc tips, WiFi and drinks is half the price of X' s standard balcony on Silhouette. Similarly Cunard is also around half the price

When you first sign on to WiFi it gives you the choice of using your free Elite minutes or the AI package. The Elite minutes are at the streaming rate and if you accept that option you have to use all the minutes first then swop to AI pricing.

All true but at least its a step in the right direction. At least in Europe from the UK Royal is now more expensive than Celebrity.

No need to hesitate. The original request was for pros and cons. You have given your pros they wouldn't be mine but mine wouldn't be yours. That's the whole point of CC a constructive exchange of views without any rankor.

A pleasure

Another X slogan " modern luxury lives here".

Nothing

We have cruised 4 times during Covid all on Silhouette the last 2 in May. We have experienced none of the issues you describe. For MDR I would recommend choosing Select and prebooking every night for your preferred time. Passenger to Crew ratios are often way above the usual on our last cruise 1100 passengers and 1200 crew.

Not new