durberville

I JUST booked a Bermuda cruise for June…before I began to read these boards. I guess I was living in my own little bubble and thought things were getting better 😝 Now I’m kicking myself!
 

We’ve ordered new masks and will take all necessary precautions but with all the testing requirements and how easy it now seems to pick up the virus (and be oblivious) I’m stressing out…

I’ve read that lady’s “horror story” and rather agree with the poster above, but I must say I was taken aback that her husband in quarantine had to order only from the room service menu for days on end…that is very limited. Oh well, it is what it is. I love Bermuda and haven’t been on a trip for two years…we will hope for the best and prepare for any issues. (First World problems, considering what’s going on in the world) 

*grins okay this made me smile. My mom gave me hot toddy’s for ANY cold symptoms… when I was…maybe 10. 😬 Child protective services might have an issue with that now. 🤣 She also used mustard plasters and warm onions in my socks. Yes I am that old…with a British mom. Hahaha! Just cracked myself up remembering the  “remedies”. Carry on! Happy cruising!! 

1 hour ago, true45 said:

Thank you for your comments phoenix_dream.  Agree.
Linda

I’m going to second this. Dual citizen here with 40 years in Canada and 20 in the US.

It’s been my experience that Canadians love to feign superiority, particularly now that the States are in such a mess. But...just as the provinces have had varying degrees of response to COVID, (ie: the Maritimes versus....say Quebec) so too have our states (look at the stringent measures taken by New York and NJ). Yes, some have been more successful than others but please don’t flippantly paint the entire country with one brush. It’s insulting. We are a very populous and diverse nation. 
 

Canadians are known far and wide as being polite. Smugness is unbecoming. I wish you happy cruising! 🙂🇺🇸🇨🇦
 

Yikes! They knew they had positive cases among the crew and they let the passengers off in port to roam around freely?! Am I reading that correctly?! I suspect this will be a major setback for the resumption of cruising....ports will certainly think twice about reopening to cruise ships. 😳

13 hours ago, My hero 6 said:

I love wearing masks!  They hide most of my wrinkles. 😷

Yes!  I’m getting quite used to them. I saw someone call a particularly pretty mask, a “face accessory” and that’s how I consider them now! 😁

I’m open to cruising with mandatory masks. 

The best thing I’ve read on the forum for months! Thank you so much for sharing! I’ll be reading every word - enjoy your cruise! 🙂👍🏻👏🏻

w00t w00t!! Happy Canada Day!! (Canadian American here 🇨🇦 🇺🇸)

I was on this cruise also. As we were leaving to debark we passed a female steward in our hall wearing a mask. Startled me a bit since we’d never seen her or anyone else wearing one up to that point. I’m now hoping it was simply because she was using a strong disinfectant in the hall...and not because she or anyone in her cabins was ill. 
 

...and I do wish the staff would serve in the buffet.
 

(I enjoyed my cruise, but not gonna lie - pleased to be off it!) 
 

Ack! Yes! This is a pet peeve of mine! I’m appalled at people who put their feet on anything that isn’t actually intended for feet...couches and chairs are bad enough but tables?!! Ewwwww!!!...and see it all the time. 
 

Okay! Thanks for the info....I’ll leave my wee power strip at home. I do have a few of those multi plug thingies. 

No power strips across the board on Celebrity? I was under the impression that small ones were okay if they don’t have surge protectors. (I’m sailing on the Infinity next week and looks to me like that ship only has a couple of outlets in the cabin...yikes!)

I don’t think it’s a silly question at all...some of you guys are harsh. 🙄

We booked a short Caribbean cruise for the end of February on a whim about a week before the Corona virus really hit the news. What is funny, is that we will be in an inside cabin for the first time ever - that was the only category available and we thought “what the heck”? Since it is only five days...

Because of that inside cabin, I’m a tad worried about quarantine but also have confidence that the passengers will be well screened and this location is (presently) low risk. 
 

All future cruise bookings will be on hold until we see how this current situation unfolds. 

Wait...you saw the amount of OBC from your TA on the Celebrity site?! I didn’t think that was possible. Now I’ll wait for an answer with you!

Wonderful news!! I hope everyone who is still going on the cruise has a great time! I adore Bermuda - even when it’s not swimming weather! 👏🏻👍🏻👋🏻

Yikes...I feel for everyone involved and expect you’ll be fairly compensated.  On a hopeful note - doesn’t it sound like it is more a matter of fine tuning the new itinerary rather than a concern about a positive test result? Let’s hope!

One further question on that - do I have to go to the cashier to redeem all my little wins (cuz mine are always “little” 😆) or does the ship’s casino have a ticket redemption machine like land casinos? 
 

thanks for the help!

edit/ just realized the ship is cashless - so I suppose there are no machines. Sorry, that was a stupid question! Ugh!
 

Thanks for the heads up. I cancelled a tour in Cozumel as it was listed 15% off but when I went to rebook it is now listed as “privateELK” whatever that means - so I didn’t rebook. Not worried about it - wasn’t hell bent on doing that particular excursion - I’ll consider others. 

Thank you soooo much for the detailed review! It’s the most information I’ve found on Gate1 and in particular, this ship, since we booked almost a year ago!

We are leaving tomorrow for Budapest where we’ll board the Princess for a 14 night trip to Amsterdam. I’ve saved your dailies for the several ports we will share...gives me a great idea how things generally run.

Thanks for your note on docking in Budapest - I’ve been worried about finding the ship. We will ask our hotel or concierge to call.

Oh, as an amusing aside - We will be partaking of EVERY onboard meal and EVERY included tour....haha! My husband would cut off his right arm before not using whatever is included.

(Not sure if it is just me but a few of your photos aren’t showing up - the first 2 of the ship? And the 2nd photo from Budapest)

Glad to hear you are in remission. But I can’t fault Viking. One buys insurance for the unexpected. My husband and I are young’ish and both in excellent health, and WOULDN’T DREAM of traveling without it.

As stated above, if a company waives its policy, it is penalizing those of us who buy insurance. Not fair at all. We could have spent that $400 on an extra night or two after our cruise...instead we’re flying home.

Yes they do provide maps, some not very detailed but we were quite happy. Most of the towns are so small anyway that its almost impossible to get lost.

They handed us a map as we were walking out the door each day.

We were very happy with gate 1 and are eagerly looking for more great deals with the company.

Thank you so much! I know I can pull up any info on my phone, but like to have a hard copy in my hand. :) Happy to also hear that you were pleased with your experience!

Could anyone who has been on a Gate 1 river cruise tell me if the ship provides city/local maps for each stop, or do I need to print my own?

Duberville, Did you ever find out anything about the "Monarch Princess"?

Not a thing, charlou. Looks like you and I...and now “Susan” (hi!) will be going on this cruise just hoping for the best!

If I do stumble across anything I’ll post it here. We’ve got a few months yet. :D

I can’t express how much I detest the Celebrity site! I can find no indication of any of my perks - although I paid to upgrade to “best”. After going through all sorts of hoops I have found the excursions I booked (which I suppose indicates my OBC) but that’s all.

Not too concerned, as I’ve never had a problem with missing amenities on Celebrity, but I don’t understand why such a huge company has such a horrible site. I’m taking a cruise on Princess for the very first time immediately following this Celebrity cruise, and their online cruise “personalizer” is totally user friendly and a pleasure to use. What a contrast!

Thank you! I think I’ve learned more about Gate 1 river cruises from this one post than I have trying to research online for the last few months! The breakdown, both pros and cons, is very useful!

I’m now much more confident that the line will suit us well. :)