Moonarino

Not for most US-based cruises, with one or two exceptions. I sailed Celebrity Nov 7, no pre-cruise testing required for our 10-day eastern Caribbean route. Grant Turk (not one of our ports) still required testing at the time I believe. Just one example of possible exceptions. Here's a good start on a more complete answer, which of course can change in the next year: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/will-i-have-to-take-a-test-before-i-cruise

Problem with avoiding is that people can be carriers without showing symptoms at all. But yeah . . . I seriously wish people with symptoms would do a lot better at self-isolation, because of course coughing/sneezing make it way easier to infect others. Testing is a crap-shoot IMO. It might reduce the odds to some degree, but it's nowhere close to a guarantee of anything. This past spring, 3 days after returning home I got slammed with something flu-like, not covid. Could have picked it up on the ship, on our last island stop or on the drive home.

Yep, they do. Aren't "sale days" just wonderful.

My experience too, never a problem connecting to WiFi (that I can remember) but then sometimes waiting minutes just to connect to email. That could just be a congestion problem somewhere in stream, as opposed to a total loss of Internet connectivity, but which could also affect app performance . . . . . I guess sometimes we just don't know/can't tell for sure.

Internet down, hope that doesn't happen often. Nice to read "paper schedules" because (while sympathetic with saving paper) I missed some things on my last cruise (not on X) because there were no paper schedules and a mystery as to where certain info could be found. Anyway, following with "baited breath" as we're one the Nov 7th out of Miami and can't wait to board and explore Silhouette-renovated. Thanks for taking the time!

Odd thing, I just noticed the following in a bon-voyage email from my TA -- for a Celebrity cruise, relating to booking a next cruise onboard: "Free Onboard Credit of $150 per person." My emphasis. Another mistake? The email also doesn't specify suite or any stateroom category at all. I have never seen or received "per person" OBC on any cruise, but now this is twice in a few days that I've heard it mentioned.

Add to conflicting documentation, even when cruiseline websites say no this or that, for years we've been able to bring them onboard. I've never had a power strip confiscated, but I do always make sure it's the most basic kind, very simple in appearance. Often the biggest issue (as I posted elsewhere) is that one security agent might let something by when another one will confiscate it. Cruise before last we practically got mauled by one guy over something seen in X-Ray, but it was nothing "illegal". First time in our 14 years of cruising that we didn't breeze through security. I'm not complaining, just saying the only way to guarantee "no problem" clearing security check-in is to just leave the questionable item home. I myself will risk a short-simple-basic power strip, and also a multi-plug.

ASAP yeah, because there are a limited number. In case some readers don't catch that.

Check this particular page of a lengthy topic on power strips etc. One big key is NO surge-protected strips or plugs or anything, because those can be fire hazards on a cruise ship. One problem is that all port security people don't necessarily know what is okay for cruise ships or not, so a legitimate power basic strip might be confiscated. That's the risk we all take trying to take power-outlet-helpers onboard. Click the title or image to go to the page.

I usually take one pair of sort-of "stylish" blue jeans for evening dining. Yes jeans can be hot, but some years ago, watching an outdoor movie one night, I learned all too well that a cruise ship can get very breezy, and cool at night, expecially before, during or after major rainfall. It can also chill indoor temperatures a bit. That movie night I had to run back to our stateroom, find some long pants and a long-sleeve t-shirt. On other cruises, as others have stated, at times the A/C can chill indoors to the point of goosebumps if I'm wearing shorts. I've never found the MDR or specialty dining to be overly cool, but of course one has to move around to get there and back, plus whatever we might want to do right after dinner. I also usually bring a pair of decent-looking khakis in addition to the jeans, plus a couple of polos, button-up linen and other collared shirts.

Likewise I don't know where that "3/4/5k" more comes from. I have honestly not noticed that X is notably more expensive than the other 2 lines I've sailed. I comparison-shop every time I want to book, and typically look at 4 cruise lines -- in alphabetical order Carnival, Celebrity, Princess and Royal. Never managed a Princess cruise, although we had one booked that got covid-cancelled (Nov 2020). I almost never spend a "small fortune" on cruises because we enjoy other vacation venues (love our road trips). I would never have sailed X or any other line if it was over-priced, comparatively speaking.

Excellent tips, thanks! Draft I'm sure will be fine, as any draft is likely much better than can (which I refuse to let touch my lips) or even bottle. Likewise, pub feel sounds great. It's been a while. Aussie rules FB, how long has it been since I've seen one of those games. Futbol is always on somewhere isn't it? NFL is restricted (usually) to Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays so it's a little harder to notice unless the radar is up for it. But this time of year I'm looking as much for college football (and basketball) as anything else. Yes it helps a great deal, especially that you also mentioned comfortable seating in the Casino bar. I hadn't actually seen any seating there in the pics I've found. Bad angles probably.

Does your app auto-update? If not, maybe you're using an older version that just doesn't look the same. I count a dozen or more updates in 2022 alone. (Most are probably small fixes or changes, but some can be fairly major.)

(Sidebar) I appreciate your perspective. I had a booking on Apex last fall that I ended up cancelling (under covid policy), in major part because I wasn't getting good vibes on E class.

With very limited experience on X and a few cruises on Royal (and more on Carnival), my take is that X is the only one of these three that doesn't try to "FORCE" me to "have a great time". It's been 11 years since I cruised Celebrity, so I certainly can't offer too much detail in that area. But . . . Pet peeve: In the past few years I've grown greatly annoyed by the fact that it's harder and harder to find even a semi-quiet space on Carnival or Royal ships. Music music music, blaring so loud it seems impossible to escape. I love music(!) but good grief gimme a break. The breaking point for Royal was our last cruise on Oasis 4-5 years ago (a big disappointment compared to two previous Oasis-class cruises) followed then Indy OTS in 2019 -- as annoyingly noisy as any Carnival cruise I've sailed in the past 7-8 years. Yes I'm venting. It's gotten ridiculous, and I think even hazardous to healthy ears. I am very much looking forward to our Nov 7 cruise on Silhouette, in part because I'm sure my ears will not be ringing (or roaring) for most of the cruise. If it lives up to expectations, my "return" to Celebrity might just be permanent. My two cents.

Thanks. It might've taken me a while to find that out, considering the name (old and new) and also that the Celebrity website's "bar" photos don't represent very well beyond drinks, and (for Craft Social) a close-up of people sitting around a table enjoying convo and drinks. I know what "bar" means (lol) but would be nice if I could find pics that show more features and ambience, and especially the differences from one to the next. Edit to add: I did find some decent pics of "Craft Social" via duckduckgo image search. The Celebrity pics barely show a tenth of what's actually there.

Glad you posted that because I share the sentiment. I'll add (to counter a later negative comment) that after our first cruise (years ago) on Royal and Celebrity, we were happy to get back to Carnival because the food just tasted better. But mind you this was years ago, and after the covid-induced universal meltdown, and post, I wonder how long dining venues of any sort will be able to sustain. @njsmom: As for age, as others alluded, I don't consider a 10-12 yo cruise ship as being "old", especially when that are 25-yo ships still sailing without incident. Perspective: Salt air can corrode the average metal, overnight, literally. Case in point, I lived in Florida for almost a decade (Air Force) and for 3 years within a quarter-mile of the beach. One night I left a fairly new pair of pliers outside in my screened-in deck, and the next afternoon I found it coated with rust. Any sea-sailing conveyance is highly prone to rust and I've seen my share of corrosion on cruise ships, but it was just surface rust which didn't affect much of anything beyond appearance. My points are (1) it's a constant job keeping a cruise ship looking pretty, but (2) even when it doesn't look perfect, it doesn't mean the ship is going to disintegrate in even the next 10 years. I sailed Eclipse in 2011 when she was just a year old and would not hesitate to book another cruise on any of the Summit class ships. In 16 days I'm boarding 11-yo Silhouette for a 10-day cruise and hugely looking forward to it. Book your best pick, relax, enjoy.

This is interesting (to say the least). My biggest dread about our upcoming 10-day on Silhouette (Nov 7) is either one of us testing positive -- if/when/for whatever reason we might actually get tested after boarding.

Likewise if you're still following here . . . First, I'm envious of your experience and happy to hear the crew kept you informed on "sightings". I spent 3 years in Alaska eons ago and a couple of times saw Northern Lights displays that made my knees a little weak. I'm scouring the boards for info on the best sports bar (TV) on Silhouette. Football and basketball freak here, trying to make sure I don't miss anything "important". You got word on that kind of venue?

I'm pretty much the same, only one Celebrity cruise before my upcoming Nov 7 on Silhouette but numerous others on CCL and RCI. First, Silhouette has been renovated (beautifully it seems!) so you may not get many (if any) postings regarding this particular ship. As for dining, don't expect nearly as many dining or snack options on Celebrity as on Oasis Class for example, but probably a little more or better(?) than the average Carnival ship. Probably more venues with cover charges on Celebrity. As for Silhouette, this is probably as informative as you can find: https://www.celebritycruises.com/cruise-ships/celebrity-silhouette/eat-and-drink As @TMLAalumstated, your 4-night cruise will probably not be typical as compared to longer cruises on X. But yes, I definitely think you could expect a mellower crowd on any Celebrity cruise longer that 3-4 days. Short cruises are often "party" cruises. I've done two 5-day cruises that weren't bad at all, but maybe I was just lucky. I do expect my 10-day Silhouette cruise to be very laid back in comparison to most cruises I've done. But if it doesn't work out that way, I'll be sure to let you know! 😬🙃

This has been my experience too, and I often escape to the "lower" (usually deck 4 or 5) area to escape other ship noise. (I tend toward "noise-induced vertigo" or something close to that.) @McGarrett5oh, for the past several cruises I've grabbed balcony staterooms exactly 2 decks above smoking and other potential "crowd" areas (fairly near the MDR but notably above outside areas) and have done exceedingly well with that every time. Never a problem with noise or smoke or anything.

Back when so many were yelling "mask up or die!" (or at least "or stay out!") the availability of N95s had quickly dropped to zero, and people had to wear whatever they could get their hands on. This of course led to a general regression in knowledge (please forgive the harshness, call it tongue-in-cheek) to the extent that any mask was better than nothing. That thinking still pervades. In this topic especially, one shouldn't take much of anything personally because this subject (and everything close to it) was so badly misinformed from the outset of covid and ongoing for 2 years. It piled up and piled up and piled up. (I remember when people generally knew what a natural vaccine was, and that it brought us an equivalent of "natural immunity" which was a very good thing to have.) These days a lot of compassion toward our fellow humanity is called for, because for too long it's been so dee-ay-em hard to know what the real truth is.

Depends on who you ask. Seniors were and are advised by some to wear masks to protect themselves. I used to wear N95 masks when mowing the lawn because I'm mildly allergic to grass molds, pollens, etc. That was until 2020 when (as you mentioned) it got to be so hard to find any masks at all. It didn't take long to use up my lawn-mowing stash of N95s, but then my lady found cloth masks (which I refused to wear) on Amazon and in some local stores I think. I'm sure this was another reason cloth masks got to be so "popular" for a long while, because those could be bought (or made) when paper masks couldn't.

Not just the news media though.

Agree 100%, FL lives and breathes (hugely) on tourist money. I left there (see below) in the early 90s, and returning 15+ years later I was amazed at how the I-95 corridor had been improved, facelifted, nothing like that long drive had been throughout the 80s. Gorgeous where it used to be desolate in many parts for many long miles. WE enjoy that now thanks to all the money Florida makes from tourism. (I applaud this knowing how so many other places do not use public funds well at all.) I was pretty sure the east coast hadn't been spared, contrary to another post somewhere in here. I've stopped off in Ormond Beach a few times, nice area, hope the town (and everwhere) can fully recover soon. @odysee, I spend almost a decade in Florida, nearly half of my Air Force career, and rode out a hurricane or two. (By that I mean we were evacuated for 2-3 days here and there, never actually "rode one out".) In every case that I saw and heard of, getting roads cleared and power restored was essentially 80% of the commercial effort (as opposed to residents etc), so when that was accomplished we could expect that everything would soon be near normal -- again commercially speaking, not regarding the condition/livability of residential areas and such. Florida does hurricane recovery as well as it can be done (generally at least). 5 weeks? I daresay as a tourist, for the most part (and depending on where you go) you likely won't even notice there was a hurricane.