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Hi Everyone,

I know the weather can vary massively on a crossing and be very unpredictable. I wondered if you ever tend to get any days that are at least sunny enough to lie out in the sun or use the pool? Will the pools be open?

I have quite a good threshold for being able to lie out in weather that others may deem too cold, so I'm just trying to gauge if it's likely to be a possibility for our holiday. Part of the fun of 7 sea days is relaxing by the pool!

Thanks :)

Hi Everyone,

My partner and I are doing our first Cunard cruise on May 24th on the QM2 and are very excited to try it, as we usually sail Celebrity / Princess. We sail from Southampton to New York and then after disembarking are traveling to Washington, NYC and Niagara Falls for 9 days :).

We were not going to do a holiday in the first half of this year as our summer holiday is rather steep, but I saw this cruise at a bargain of a price for an Oceanview Guarantee so I saw no harm in trying a last minute cheapie. We haven't not had a balcony before but for 7 days I figured it was doable, especially on a TA crossing. In the least pretentious way possible, we usually go for a reasonably sized suite on Celebrity, and so I knew this was going to be a bit of a reality dose, but was confident the cabins would still be lovely.

We were allocated our cabin yesterday and sadly it appears to be an accessible / handicap cabin - 6002. The advantage of this is the greater amount of space which I'm of course grateful for, but it has a very small porthole window, and I'm really not fond of the handicap bathrooms / location of the cabin on the ship (right at the front almost within the bow). I personally don't like the rooms being modified in this way and often find they are the last to be updated as well. I also feel quite guilty having a handicap room.

I wondered if anyone had any feedback about this cabin? I think I may call up and see the cost of upgrading, but I have also heard it may be worth going to the Pursers Office onboard and seeing if we can swap out of a handicap room? Does anyone have any experience of changing cabins once onboard? Or paying onboard to upgrade?

Many thanks for your time!

Adam

I always favor going to At.Mosphere either the restaurant or the lounge over going to the outside observation deck or Sky Deck.....and you will be having a drink at the highest bar in the world:D

 

You should be able to gain mall access via Armani, ask a staff member to escort you. You will really like Amal. The food is excellent. If you have an extra night, try Armani Deli and sit on the terrace. Delicious food and great views of the fountain.

 

Take time to see the Sheik Zayed Grand Mosque before you leave Abu Dhabi and head to Dubai. You won't be disappointed.....

Thank you so much for this. You've really reinforced what I was thinking and made me feel much better.

We have two days in Abu Dhabi before we leave the ship so we're doing the mosque as well, even better than you said that :).

I picked Amal because of the reviews but we could potentially do the Deli if it has a view over the fountain? I had hoped the Amal restaurant also had a terrace which overlooked the fountain but perhaps I was wrong?

Sadly we only have one night at the Armani hotel as we are also staying at the Atlantis on the Palm. Should be a nice contrast though!

Hello everyone,

My partner and I are on the 14th November Suez Canal Cruise on Celerity Constellation, finishing at Abu Dhabi on 28th. We are then getting a car to Dubai and staying at the Armani hotel in the Burj Khalifa.

Naturally, one of the things we want to do is enjoy the view higher up the Burj Khalifa than our hotel room. We are torn between reserving a window table at Atmosphere lounge on level 122 (minimum spend of 250AED per person), or going to the At the Top SKY observation deck on level 148 for 300AED per person.

Either way we will be going at approximately 5pm, so we get to enjoy the view in both daylight and sunset. We will be eating dinner at the Armani Amal restaurant later in the evening.

The advantage of us going to At.mosphere is that for the same cost as SKY we are getting drinks / snacks, and a refined atmosphere. It also has the entrance from the Armani hotel where we are staying, making everything smoother and easier. The disadvantage is it means we need to get ready for the evening much earlier since you need to be smartly dressed, and it also isn't as high.

The advantage of going to SKY is we can say we've been to the highest observation deck in the world, and also we don't need to already be as smartly dressed, so we can come back down to our hotel room after and enjoy the room getting ready for the evening before we go to the restaurant. The disadvantage is we have to get to Dubai Mall and back so lose some time, and also we aren't getting as much food and drink (then again do we need this if we're eating at 8pm ish?).

Your thoughts / experiences on either would be much appreciated!!!

Also does anyone know of any that do include an escort from the airport? It would be good to draw a comparison and decide if the difference in price is worth the extra convenience.

Thank you @helpthejuggler

I had been looking at this company. Are the boats the nice wooden ones that have a relatively luxurious feel? Or are they the cheaper alternative? Did it go through the grand canal?

We aren't actually getting the cruise from Venice, as we are flying from Venice to Athens for the cruise, but thank you for the advice regarding sharing. The water taxi will just be between two of us.

Hello everyone,

We're are going on the Celebrity Constellation on November 14th (Athens to Abu Dhabi). We're not fussed by Athens so decided to pop to Venice for a few days before.

We land in Venice at 12:15pm and would like to get a private water taxi straight to our hotel, Hotel Ai Cavalieri di Venezia (we chose because of its trip advisor rating and location).

I'm aware that there are several options, some of which include a meet and greet at the airport, and some where you have to walk to the docks (we don't mind either).

Does anyone have any suggestions that are reasonably priced? The hotel has offered a meet and greet at at the airport and water taxi ride for 180 Euros but I know we can do much better than this. Many thanks in advance.

Thanks for the responses. We ended up booking two aqua cabins. I would never think of having my MIL sleep on the couch. It would have been me. :)

Only just saw this. You'll love Blu and in sure MIL will appreciate having a separate room. Have a fantastic time!!

It appears you're all focusing on the comment I made about remembering ones names rather than the overall message behind it that I elaborated on ;). Forget the name comment, as I tried to explain, it's the level of service, and primarily it's the perks such as Michael's club and Luminae. Luminae is leaps and bounds above the main dining room, and I'd say that dining is a significant part of your experience.

Of course I agree with the comments regarding the advantages of a separate bathroom and a proper bed. There are pros and cons to both and bringing a question to a forum is bound to reveal different opinions. Personally, I believe the sofa beds are perfectly comfortable, and I don't really see anyone having to "queue" for a bathroom on a regular basis for anything more than 10 minutes but I suppose we al have different bathroom habits.

I'm not trying to convince anyone of anything and you all have perfectly valid points. I'm just saying that if I had the choice, I'd rather those I travelled with got to experience the whole lot, including all the lovely perks that I'd be prepared to wait a few minutes for the bathroom for. Either way, whichever set up you choose, you'll be very happy! :)

And this is really important because......:confused:?

 

 

 

OP,

 

Your MIL needs a proper bed and you'll definitely appreciate having 2 toilets - go for the two CCs :confused:.

It's important because with that extra effort comes a SIGNIFICANT better level of service from all over the ship. Before we sailed in the higher suites we thought we were getting top service on Celebrity because their customer service is brilliant regardless. When you are in one of the top suites, a note is flagged up on the system wherever you go - be it guest relations, a restaurant, Michael's club etc. The level of service is incredibly different. Anything you request is taken as absolute priority and if something goes wrong you can be sure they'll sort it. I used the example of learning your name just because this is indicative of the attentative service you get - albeit a small part of it.

The service is great whatever room you stay in, but if we compare the times we stayed in other rooms to times in a Royal Suite it is undeniably different and worth it on so many levels.

Without a doubt, Royal Suite. We just did the Royal Suite on the Celebrity Reflection and whilst I know it's a little bigger than the one on Constellation, if it's anything to go by you'll have plenty of space. The wardrobes are usually at least twice the size of a normal one so that's not a problem. I don't know if the Royal Suites on the Constellation also have a second guest bathroom like they did on the Reflection but if they do then that's really helpful too - especially if you ever have a small party.

If they're coming up at the same price, the perks you get massively outweigh getting two connecting cabins. Michael's club and Luminae are both brilliant, and the butler service feels very personal in a RS, plus all the concierge staff learn your name whereas they don't if you're in a Sky Suite. Really really worth it!!!!

We always prefer to get a suite where possible because as a suite guest you are entitled to eat in Luminae AND Blu, based on availability (although we were never turned down).

Personally for us, Luminae has a much nicer ambiance, whereas ironically we found Blu to be quite cold and stark with an unpleasant light due to the light coming through the blue tinted windows. Luminae is much warmer and cosier, and the food is a noticeable step up.

That said, Blu is probably still a significant upgrade to the main dining room, and the breakfasts in Blu are actually better than Luminae!

Luminae is just brilliant, and on each ship it taken out of some of the Main Dining Room space, usually to one side - so you only have one entrance to the MDR now on the lower level rather than two. The other serves Luminae.

We were in a Royal Suite on our last two week cruise round the Med. We found the room to be spectacular (it had two bathrooms, an enormous lounge, bedroom, huge walk in wardrobe and quadruple length balcony with hot tub). It is definitely much better than the Royal Suites on the Millennium Class ships.

To be honest though the appeal of Suite Class for us isn't the extra room size. Others are right in highlighting that the whole cruise is actually a very different experience, right from embarkation. It's the more personalised service with Michael's club concierge and the butler, through to a dining room where they'll do anything you ask, that make it feel like a whole different cruise all together. If you can swing even just a Sky Suite, go for it, because you won't go back!

Hello everyone,

We are on a cruise that gets into Abu Dhabi and stays there for a few days. Instead of then going straight home to London, we want to get a taxi to Dubai and stay near the Burj Khalifa for two nights. I wondered how easy it was to simply flag a taxi at the cruise terminal and go to Dubai? I've head it's about 40 - 50 pounds, so almost half the cost of arranging a transfer in advance, but I'm worried about all the other passengers getting off the ship taking taxis and thus having a long wait.

Many thanks,

Adam

PS - Dubai hotel recommendations welcome!

Hello everyone,

I'm staying in a RS on the Reflection in just under a week. I wondered what the hairdryer(s) were like that were provided. Are they those terrible ones that you can't move about or is it one that can plug in anywhere including the dressing table?

Thanks,

Adam

Hi there,

Celebrity has a more "up-market" feel and is significantly more luxurious in most ways. It is designed more to cater for a relaxed tasteful holiday rather than a party cruise.

You may find the average age onboard to be slightly older than Carnival (this is also perhaps partly a result of Celebrity carrying a slightly higher price tag). This does not, however, mean Celebrity compares to the likes of Cunard and Fred Olsen which typically have a high mean age onboard. It seems to attract families too, so you get most ages apart from the 20 somethings (I'm an exception to this being 25 myself!).

I don't know anyone who has changed their regular line to Celebrity and then gone back. I'm sure some do, just no one that I know.

This is all very useful thanks guys

Thanks for all that information. I don't suppose you know what the gratuities are out of the $16.50 or something like that per person per day for the Steward and Butler?

Hi guys,

It's our first time staying in a RS (1241) on the Reflection and I have a couple of questions. We're off on 25th April for 11 nights round the med.

1) We like to allocate all our tip money at the start and I wondered if you have both a room steward and butler for the suite or just the butler who also cleans? I know the butler's gratuity is $3.50 per person per day but I wondered what the steward gets from the prepaid gratuities? Also typically what would be an average additional tip at the end for both these members of staff? I'm aware there could be a higher expectation given the room.

2) I have heard differing views as to the laundry. Some state it's a service you can use twice as a perk of the room. I assume this is an unlimited amount of items though? it would be good to know I can get there and get all my jackets sorted on day 1 / day 2 and it saves me getting them dry cleaned here. Others have reported it is simply unlimited for the duration.

3) How easy is it to organise a little party / gathering? Can the butler bring mixers / snacks for free? Can they send out invitations? I'm aware alcohol served to the room is not included but i think we start with a fair bit in the room already as a perk.

4) Do you have any other tips regarding the RS? What can you use the butler for in general beyond the obvious reservations and serving etc?

5) Has anyone tried the in suite dining where it is served course by course? We'd love some info on this.

6) How does the minibar work and what can you have in it?

7) Where is the reserved theatre seating?

8) Can you eat in the specialty restaurants for lunch? On port days or just sea days?

Thanks so much in advance!

Thanks so much for all this info guys!

Hi Everyone,

I'm considering buying a new iPad. I live in the UK where we pay a hefty premium compared to the prices in dollars in America.

I wondered if the products onboard would be the same as in American Stores, and what sort of prices these would be? Also do you think they would sell the iPad Pro yet?

If the dollar to pound conversion rate works in our favour it might be worth me buying one on the ship.

Many thanks,

Adam Gibbs

Click on the underlined hyperlink in this post and you will see the location.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=47654632&postcount=7

Thank you! :)

Coming from the train station, the walk to the port entrance would now be about twice as long as it previously was. It appears this new entrance may be a permanent change (initially it was thought to be temporary).

 

You have the option of walking or taking a local bus that runs a loop from the train station to the new port entrance. Cost for the bus is 80 euro cents per person and there is luggage storage space, I think. (Haven't done it yet.)

 

At the new entrance (the location listed above), there are free port shuttles to take passengers through the port and to their ship.

Hi, so sorry but I'm still struggling here. When I search for Euro Car or the other place, both are really recessed from the waterfront so I don't understand how the port entrance can be near them. Google maps are showing them as being in the middle of town. Could anyone who knows do a huge favour and plot a point on Google maps and take a screen shot?

Thank you!

Adam

Yes, the port entrance has moved & the walk is longer. The shuttle will drop you off at a parking lot across from Eurocar/Scafuro Bruno (you can see it on Google maps).

Hi there, thanks for the reply.

This confuses me a little as the only shuttle we would be getting is from the port entrance to the ship (we are coming FROM Rome rather than going to Rome)?

Is the Eurocar the place I need to go to to get the shuttle to the ship?

Hi Everyone,

I have read that the port entrance has moved along from the fort due to construction work and it means the walk from the train station is a fair bit longer.

Does anyone know anything about this, and where the entrance is now located?

Also we have booked a first class ticket on the Regionale Veloce train from Roma Termini to Civitavecchia for 10:12, arriving 11:13. Does anyone know if it's likely to be really busy?

Thanks in advance.