twincheryl

3 hours ago, Not a username2 said:

They're basically the same price cabin. I'd like to know if others have sailed a Sunset Verandah on Reflection on an ABC cruise, if there are problems with being AFT with balance and if there are any concerns with exhaust from the stack whilst sailing?

I would say that one thing to consider is that there is not a lot of shade on the SV cabins, and it's likely to be quite warm on an ABC cruise.  Last time we did this on a different Caribbean itinerary, we had to keep the curtains closed most of the afternoon due to the heat from the sun beating on the slider.  It would have been way too hot for me to sit out there, but DH could handle it for a bit.  Long walk back to the cabin, but we find it quieter back there with very little hallway noise.  A personal decision for sure... but on a "hot weather" itinerary it wouldn't matter to me if I stayed somewhere else on the ship.

The biggest incentive we find is the $100pp deposit and a bit of extra obc above what is available for the current promotion that Celebrity is offering online, if any.  Amount depends on cabin category and length of cruise.

On 10/18/2023 at 5:28 PM, John Bull said:

Bournemouth is a genteel seaside holiday resort town.

Pleasant enough, but little to attract the international tourist.

Frequent direct trains to Southampton take 30 to 50 minutes & cost about £6

https://www.bournemouth.co.uk/

 

Perhaps more to your taste - "love beautiful parks/nature areas and lovely small(ish) villages."

Brockenhurst is a village in the heart of the New Forest National Park- walk thro the Forest (actually a mix of forest and heathland) as far as you want in any direction. You'll see wild ponies, donkeys,perhaps deer and certainly other wildlife. . 

 If you tire of walking, you can rent bikes(including e-bikes) or take horse-rides or a wagon-ride or a New Forest ho-ho bus,  but for the little lanes and places like Rhinefield Ornamental Drive & Bolderwood Arboretum Ornamental Drive you'll need a car + driver.

The village has good hotels, a number of well-regarded restaurants. and several pubs & tea-rooms.

It also has the advantage of 3 to 4 direct trains per hour to Southampton (15 to 20 minutes, about £9) because it's on the line from Bournemouth

https://www.thenewforest.co.uk/explore/towns-and-villages/brockenhurst/

https://www.morebus.co.uk/about-NFT

 

JB 🙂

 

Thanks so much, John Bull and everyone else!  Never imagined that we could stay with hotel points in Bournemouth and also take the train to Brockenhurst or other stops nearby for a day trip.  We are not "tour" people, so this will allow us to do only the things that interest us in each place and not need to hire a guide or taxi.  Everyone in our party will be happy now!

This past summer we stayed in London and Southampton before our cruise.  Next October we're cruising out of Southampton again and would like to see some other areas.  Will stay 2 nights after flying from California and make our way to the port the morning of the cruise.

We've come up with Bournemouth or Winchester as possibilities that have lovely scenery and places to walk around as well as eat out.  Those of you that live on the other side of the pond from us... do you have any comments about those areas or others within an hour or so of Southampton?  We are three seniors with no disabilities... will need 3 hotel rooms at a hotel with air conditioning.  Will hire a private car to wherever we end up.  We will not have a car, but ok to Uber or taxi... don't care about tourist locations like Stonehenge... love beautiful parks/nature areas and lovely small(ish) villages.

Thanks, in advance, for any suggestions... 

9 hours ago, Silkroad said:

There’s a $100 b2b discount for cruises 10 nights or longer, and a $50 discount for cruises less than 10 nights. TAs and CVPs should know to get the discounts applied, but not all reservation reps seem to know about the discounts. Note: I’m not sure if there’s a minimum cruise length for the discount because my shortest cruise was 7 nights.

We did a 7day b2b with a 4 day this past summer and had to call… got $100 discount.

We have sailed in Concierge cabins several times.  In my opinion, there is no difference.  We decline the afternoon canapes because they often sit around all afternoon while we are doing something in port or around the ship.  The price is rarely worth the one bottle of sparkling wine that you now have to ask for if you'd like it.  We have never used the binoculars or umbrella, the pillow selection, or the key holder.

That being said, if you are close to the next Captain's Club level, it might be worth getting the 2 extra points each day.

3 hours ago, Last Lion said:

I see. And if there were an existing discount on a wifi package before the cruise would we get both discounts applied?

Yes… unless it’s a flash sale.  Check the fine print at the bottom of the offer. 

Just off a packed full Silhouette B2B out of Southampton... lots of coughing, sneezing, etc. and no mention of Covid anywhere... many evenings there was nobody at the entrance to the buffet with hand sanitizer, although generally someone during breakfast and lunch.  I was surprised that there were no sinks for hand washing as on most of the new or revolutionized ships... which would be my preference.  

My sister tested positive when we got home...  both of us had allergy-like symptoms during the cruise but assumed it was due to the a/c as we generally experience in that type of situation.  I imagine many others did not test either and expect that many would have been positive.  Maybe saw two or three people with masks out of over 3000 passengers

3 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

In the past four months have been on the Millie and Summit, X's new thing seems to be to post a DJ by the Martini bar playing top 40 or music that was top 40 at one time in the past dozen or so years

Just off Silhouette and this was the case...and one evening the DJ was by Cafe al Bacio... quite loud and certainly not our favorite!

Just returned from Silhouette Norwegian Fjords... had Sunset Veranda on deck 8... asked Stateroom Attendant to please skip evening cabin service as I don't need someone turning down my bed covers and closing the drapes... but still he couldn't resist and also got a chocolate each evening, which I left on the bedside table for the whole cruise... lol... go figure.  

2 hours ago, cublet said:

Hello,

 

When I was on in June the coffee machine had gone but the cupboard on which it stood was still there.

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

We have the coffee station on Silhouette this week… deck 7, I believe.  I have seen it from the elevator.

9 hours ago, sonnycruises said:

Not on the Eclipse in May 2023

 

No cookies by ice cream on Silhouette right now… they are putting the bread pudding or other warming tray desserts next to the ice cream at this point.  Three types of cookies in Cafe al Bacio, plus the other rotating selection of pastries and desserts depending on time of day.

5 minutes ago, lurkernj said:

I am assuming with all the cuts there is no longer a buffet extravaganza?  I can't seem to find anything about it in over a year.  We will be on a 10 night med cruise on the Apex end of October and was fine tuning my dining and was trying to see when this might be, but I see no accounts of anyone attending in the past year. 

We are on Silhouette now and have been on Apex and Summit in the past few months.  There is a normal, very extensive buffet at lunch but dinner is scaled down a bit.  Still plenty to choose from but not what they had in the past.

5 hours ago, bnurick said:

These are the fresh cookies. The day old cookies will end up at the OVC.

And if you are a home baker you will know that day old… or even 3 day old… cookies are still good.  Even wedding cakes are baked a few days before they are decorated… lol… we are on Silhouette now and all is fine… three types of cookies in Bacio and gelato station empty as usual.

Have cruised both RC and Celebrity with basic package and have never been able to make phone calls unless it was wifi calling, which comes with many US phone plans and/or phones.  If you’re in port… yes… with Verizon the int’l plan is only $10/day… some are free int’l…

1 hour ago, Cruiscs said:

Sorry if this post sounded negative which was not the intention. We were just suprised on the amount of kids and teens on this cruise. The rest was fantastic. The food was amazing and the service was exeptional- the best we have ever experienced on land and at sea. The ship was spotless and high end. 

Many of us feel the same way... we have raised our children and enjoy a more peaceful environment.  We made the mistake of doing a Mexico cruise last Thanksgiving week... oh my, we have never seen anything like it, especially on Celebrity.  The Sky Lounge had family games all week and there were kids running all over.  Live and learn... we rarely cruise now unless during times that kids are in school.  

47 minutes ago, mauimary said:

  It can be done or else we were just lucky with the phone rep we got. We were booked directly with Celebrity. 

That is our experience as well... just get lucky with a phone rep who is trained or able to do it, or ask the person on the phone to escalate.  

You will need to call Celebrity to use your Elite discount precruise.

Not sure about Connie, but have been on Apex and Summit since the buffet debacle and there was plenty to choose from… even a rotating grill station, stir fry, and pasta station.  No issues for us and we only dine in buffet for dinner, so we are happy it is getting back to more normal!

I have found that it is possible to get your CC discount when it's "on sale", but not on "flash sale".  I fought pretty hard on the last flash sale, but came up with a negative response, regardless of who I spoke with.  

As with most Celebrity sales these days, they just raise the price to put them on sale.  All of my six bookings are at least $1000 more… and that’s for a single passenger.  Not like pre Covid when it was normal to get at least a couple of price drops if you booked early!

1 hour ago, Markanddonna said:

I mentioned my booking was a non-suite. 

We do this often… as with everything Celebrity, if not using a travel agent just call back and get someone who knows what they are doing… lol

I get cans of club soda free on classic. Ask for a couple slices of lemon or lime and good to go!

On 6/16/2023 at 1:18 PM, hampshirelad said:

Like Hawkezbaynz I live 20 miles from Southampton ( I wish people would have an easier name to copy across ). We have grey hairs so have had a suite over the last few years while we have our health. There are a limited number of cruises from Southampton and tend to be priced up for the Brits because we have no air fair to add in.

 

I have tried looking at the North American site , is it called a (consolidator  who want to Go to their Vacations) but I have found that those cruises from Southampton are often not listed. However that company have provide us with many good deals over the years even when sterling has been on its back. They are 100%  reputable and my cruises have been on the cruise company website as soon as the phone as been put down. There is no messing about here and if you use them its not " I will think about it exercise " Thank you V to G - a great deal for Japan pre pandemic. I get a weekly email which covers all the deals for 90 days. Mrs Hampshirelad can get a case together in 24 hrs

 

As has been said the Southampton Cruise terminal is operated by its own staff. For those of you without booze packages their is an opportunity to stretch the boundaries ( I except no liability )

 

I do not know if check in is structured on Cabin grade but if you check in early on the first day available you should get an early time. For our Overseas cruisers you can get a late checkout. I can think of many worst places to have to wait . You will have your bags taken straight away ( Forget tipping to sneak in)

 

UK Celebrity Cruises from the UK now have a package for UK residents which includes tips, and gratuities plus booze and OBC. That is because tipping is not part of our culture and we expect it in the price. We cannot cope with tipping and we become stressed.to Thanks to Celebrity as  they have taken that stress off our hands. Now the crew smile at us. 

 

If you are looking for some ideas on the day before the cruise what to do in the area. Flag them up. 

 

I see that a previous poster is booked to check in at Yokohama soon . Its a Zen like experience, no body raises their voices. You can see the ship from most Hotels. You might even fall asleep during check-in .  However for some reason  Celebrity  have historically covered the area during the Typhoon season, buts that another story.

Since you are from the UK, can you answer a question for me?  In all ports we've been to in the US, we always tip the porters that take our luggage.  Do the porters expect that at Southampton port?

Along this line, do you know about needing local currency in Norway & Netherlands?  We have debit and credit cards with chip/pin, but thinking about how much currency we will need for tipping and maybe food stands, etc.

Anyone else that has experience in this area, please also advise.  Thanks!

20 hours ago, cruisestitch said:

Celebrity ??? forgot to consider the passenger vessel services act which does not allow your proposed itinerary. You would be boarding in one US city, Disembarking in a different US city without visiting the REQUIRED distant foreign port.  No port in Mexico qualifies as a distant foreign port.

Wondering what I am missing here... the itinerary is Los Angeles, sea day, Cabo overnight, sea day, San Diego, Los Angeles.  There are several of them in Oct/Nov 2023.  If Mexico does not qualify as a distant foreign port, how would this cruise be allowed, and why would it be impossible to debark in San Diego the day before Los Angeles?  They aren't stopping anywhere else...