Speedodeedo

We were on the Anthem this May. And I was with my 15 y/o teen, who enjoyed the activities on the ship, made several friends as well. The ship was beautiful and the amenities were fantastic. I would recommend the Anthem for a family cruise with your children everytime.

Haven't been on the Breakaway but would like to try sometime. Enjoy your cruise whichever you might choose.

Dinner tonight

 

 

Tuna seared tatayki roll

 

 

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Hello Bugsy,

I have been following your reviews and all are a great read.

Regarding Izumi, I understand the food is ala carte. What would u estimate a regular meal without drinks will cost lets say for dinner. We will be on Anthem this May and would like try out Izumi.

Jason

And another PS. :rolleyes:

Not as daft as it sounds........

 

On your full day, first go to Bovington.

Give yourselves 2.5 hrs there, then catch the 12.45 train from Wool, change at Southampton, arrive Portsmouth dockyard 2.54pm.

A rather meagre 2.5 hrs there before it closes.

But if that wasn't enough, back to the dockyard next morning for up to another 3 hours in there. Will cost you another day-return train ticket at about £11, but nothing extra for the dockyard - your admission ticket is good for unlimited return visits for up to a year.

Gives you decent time at both, and a safer return to Southampton than from Bovington for ship registration - shorter distance, more-frequent trains, no reliance on taxis but stax of them at Portsmouth harbour if there's a screw-up on trains. And the option to skip that second trip to Portsmouth if you're satiated or whacked-out.

 

If I were to fit in both, that's the way I'd do it. :)

 

JB :)

Thank you JB.

You are the best!

Bovington is a must for my son, so we will do it first, then on to Portsmouth to spend the rest of the afternoon and evening. If needed, we can travel back to the Dockyards on the morning of our embarkation.

Thanks again.

Hello again Bob and John Bull,

Just wanted to get ur opinion and suggestions on this.

My son and myself would like to visit the Tank Museum at Bovington, its about 2 hours via train from Southampton. Can we split our day between this and then travel on towards Portsmouth in the afternoon and still make the most of our visit in the dockyards? I figure we will be in Portsmouth around 3-4 pm, and i understand the exhibits are open only up to 530.

Another option is to just make a full day visit to Portsmouth on our one day before the cruise and then visit the Tank Museum in Bovington on the morning of our embarkation coming back to Souhampton for a late boarding at 230 pm. Our ship sails 430 pm. Or will this be too close for comfort.

Thanks.

Speedodeedo

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Hello Lloyd,

Is this video taken from deck 6? We are looking into getting an obstructed balcony on deck 6. Just wanted to get a view of this before booking.

Geeat pics and video!

Speedodeedo

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IMHO Windsor Castle has a lot more interest to offer than Stonehenge. Depending on your departure time, it is possible to do both.

Thanks again eveyone.

We will be spending four days in London post cruise, so we will hv the time to tour Windsor and stonehenge. Im just looking for a transfer/tour to these sites on our way to our hotel in London.

Will check internationalfrieends if Theey offer transfer to London areaa.

Thank you so much Bob and JB!

We will do as you suggest, Portsmouth for the day before our cruise and Salisburry on our half day before embarkation.

Will look into Stonehenge and other tours when we return from the cruise. We will travel to London on debarkation day, i will look into a transfer that will have some stops along the way. Any suggestions on what i can look for. I know there are some tour companies that offer this.

Thanks again so much for all the information.

Hello everyone,

Need some advise for our pre cruise stay in Southampton. We will be arriving 2 nights before our embarkation but our flight into LHR is at 3 pm, we plan to go to Southampton direct from the airport. My question is that we want to visit Salisbury and Stonehenge, as well as Portsmouth's Historic Docks. Can we do this in the time we have. I've read from other's posts, that Salisbury and Stonehenge as well as a visit to Portsmouth is a day each. Do I have to choose one of the two or can I go do it on our single day at Southampton, and somehow squeeze it in before boarding our cruise on the day of embarkation assuming boarding is at 1 pm.

Thanks again.

Not sure if anyone will know for sure, but I am booked for Anthem of the Seas on an OD cabin level 6. Will the cabins in both Quantum and Anthem more or less correspond with each other. I based my booking on schematics of Quantum.

I envy you that many days in the area. We only had 3 but even that was spectacular. I highly recommend a guide to take you to all the sites. There are so many in the Sacred Valley. There is one pass that you can pick up that gives you access to all or most of them in the area. We picked ours up at our first stop that was SAQSAYHUAMAN. The pass is good for 9 days. We saw Pisac, Q'enqo and Ollantaytambo. The latter being the most impressive outside of MP and a must see from my point of view.

 

As you will be there during rainy season you will not be able to take the train to and from Cuzco. If you buy a train ticket to/from Cuzco you will be bused to and from Ollantaytambo to catch the train there.

 

We took altitude medication and stayed outside of Cuzco all except the last night so we were always at a lower elevation than Cuzco. There were 6 of us and none of us got sick.

 

As we had such limited time on MP we stayed at the Sanctuary Lodge that is right outside the gates. We thus could stay until closing and be there first thing in the morning without having to deal with the bus up and back. They were also the quieter times on the mountain. It is extremely expensive and you have more time so you can find many places to stay in Aguas Calientes.

 

We bought our entrance tickets online as well but if you are spending time in Aguas Calientes you can pick them up there I believe. If you want to climb either of the extra mountains you have to buy tickets to do so. The entrance ticket to MP doesn't include climbing either of the mountains just the main site. The one mountain allows only limited number of people and at specific times.

 

If you want the name of a great guide let me know.

 

Hope this wasn't too much and if you want anything else let me know.

Hello,

Trying to do some research on MP side trip from a cruise of SA. Just wanted to ask where did u get off from your cruise to go to Cusco. Im assuming u disembarked in lima or the port closest to the city, then flew by plane to cusco. After your trip to MP, where did u catch your cruise? Im looking at a cruise on HAL where there is a 2 day stay in Callao, Peru (Lima) and a 1 day stay in Salaverry, Peru. Is it possible to disembak from Callao and catch the ship in Salaverry? Finally is there a shore excursion for this or can i do it with an independent tour company.

Hope you can share your thoughts on this.

Speedodeedo

Celebrity Today cont'd

 

 

Also include in the Celebrity Today package is the Laundry bag Challenge which is a pretty good deal especially when you are doing a B2B. Last year during our B2B we used this coupon at the end of first week. You will be amazed how much you can actually fit in that paper laundry bag. It comes back all nice and folded for a very reasonable price. Laundry is probably the biggest perk that we are looking forward to when we travel the next time as Elite.

 

Regards,

Kevin Reid

Hello Kevin,

I am enjoying your post so very much, the pics, the write ups are great.

Just a quick question on the Laundry Special. Is this offered on all or most Celebrity cruises? Not sure if you can answer this. We are going on a 12 day cruise on the Constellation in May. And we will be out almost 20 days, so planning our trip and luggage.

Jason

Hi,

Without knowing exactly which ticket you have bought I cannot be sure of the answer to the first question. If it is a Europa-Spezial for nominated trains then it probably can be changed or refunded at a ticket office but within a time limit and at a cost.

 

The journey from Berlin to Amsterdam via Munster is very complicated. Total journey time is around 10 hours involving 4-6 changes! I would not want to try it with luggage.

 

From Berlin direct to Munster the journey time is around 3 hours with 2 changes. Trains depart Berlin every 2 hours.

The museum is about a 15min walk from the station and is closed Mondays.

 

Happy cruising, :)

Anni

www.travelanni.webs.com

Thank you so much for your input. The best choice will be a trip from Berlin on the days we are there.

Hi,

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but the tank museum to which I presume you are referring - Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster -is in a small town halfway between Hannover and Hamburg and very difficult to reach by train from Amsterdam. The travel time is over 6 hours and involves at least 2 changes. The cheapest fare is 78 euros pp each way.

The driving distance is approx. 445K.

 

When researching it is very easy to confuse Munster and Münster, the better known city which is within easy reach of Amsterdam. The umlaut (ü) is all important here.

 

Sorry if this spoils your plans :(.

 

Happy cruising, :)

Anni

www.travelanni.webs.com

 

PS. General information.

When using a standard English keyboard, if the name of a German town has an umlaut (ü, ö, ä), it is important to use the form ue, oe, ae. Otherwise, if there is also a town spelled the same but without an umlaut you can get some very strange results, especially on railway timetables. :confused:

Hello Anni,

Yes i realized this after posting on your thread. We are actually spending 3 days pre cruise in Berlin and have bought tickets from Berlin to Amsterdam the day before our embarkation. The Bahn db ticket is from Berlin to Amsterdam and its non refundable, im looking to change our route to pass through Munster and spend a few hours at the museum before continuing on to Amsterdam. Can this be done, or do i hv to get new tockets for this?

Another option is to use one day of our stay in Berlin to visit Munster but i would rather use our travel day to do this. Thanks for all your help.

Speedodeedo

Hello Travellani,

We are taking a Baltic cruise this May and will embark and disembark from Amsterdam. We would like to visit Munster for the Tank Museum there, I am thinking of taking the train from Amsterdam Central to Munster is this doable on the 1 day we are in Amsterdam?

Thanks,

Speedodeedo

No matter which company you are going to choose, even your ship excursions, the Jerusalem an Bethlehem tour is totsly unsuitable or doable with a wheelchair!

The only way you can do it is to do it privately with a guide/driver and with a lot of modifications from the regular tour. You can get to the Holy Sepulchre in the heart of the Old City but you won't be able to do the Via Dolorosa. You won't be able to get there through either Jaffa or the Dung Gate, only from Zion Gate.

You can visit the Wailing Wall but you need to arrange that the car will take you all the way up and will be permitted to wait for you.

All in all, if you don't want your friend to be stuck in the car for 3hrs while the group is walking in the Old City, arrange it with a private guide with a car big enough to carry to wheelchair.

Thank you for the feeback. A tour operator did suggest that we should get a private tour of Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

We are planning on going on a shore excursion with Israel Cruise Excursion, for Jerusalem and Bethlehem. I am with a 70 year old who has mobility issues and who needs a wheelchair from time to time. Will the 9 hour tour be too much for my friend or is there access to wheelchair enough that she can see and visit as much as she can on the excursion.

Thanks.

You will never know unless you try. People can tell you many things but it is your family and only you may know what they like.

 

 

When I was 16 I would have been thrilled if my parents could have afforded take

me anywhere.

 

⛄💨🌴

I agree! Kids today has more to do and enjoy than ever before. All we had was a ball and our bikes.

Enjoy your trip with your kids.

Hello Everyone!

Need advice. We will be staying in Berlin pre cruise and our embarkation port is in Amsterdam. Im deciding on the best way, to get to Amsterdam the day before our cruise. I would like to come in the day before so as to have a short tour of the city. Im looking at either taking the train or going by budget air lines. What do you think?

Just a question on select dining?

Is there a charge for choosing select dining on X? When can avail of select dining, before the cruise or on the cruise itself?

This will be our first with Celebrity and Im used to Freestyle dining in NCL.

My husband, brother, his wife and I are taking the Celebrity Constellation to the Baltics in May. The cruise leaves out of Amsterdam. We are excited about the pre-cruise leg of our trip, which we will start in Germany. Our German friends will join us in Berlin for 2 days/nights. This will be so much better than trying to see it from the ships stop in Warnemunde. We will be able to relax there and take a leisurely tour of the local area, which we have booked for the day though Friends of Dave's.

 

After Berlin, we will travel back to our friends hometown of Bocholt where we will stay in a hotel owned by their friends. We will meet family/friends for a cookout at their home. On the 20th, we will travel over to AMS (1.5 hours from them) early in the morning and tour along the way. Amsterdam will be seen that afternoon, evening and a half day before we board the Connie. Since are friends are very familiar with Amsterdam, we feel that they can give us an excellent tour in 24 hours. We will get to see most of the main sites. We already have tickets to the Anne Frank Museum and plan to see at least one other. A canal boat ride will give us a sightseeing tour along the water.

 

Enjoy your voyage! :)

Thanks! Enjoy your vacation as well. We will be on the Constellation before you, and yes we will surely enjoy our voyage and post cruise trip to Berlin.

Tnx.

We plan to stay in Berlin post cruise.

Jason

You can't go wrong with either. Amsterdam has a bit more ambiance and great art museums. Berlin has the Pergamon (an awesome museum), a cool vibe, WW2 and cold war history. Amsterdam is compact and walkable. Berlin is sprawling and needs public transportation to see the all sites.

 

If Delta is an airline that you frequently use to get to Europe (because you collect sky pesos for instance), I'd go to Berlin. Amsterdam is a Delta hub, we fly them a lot, so we have the opportunity to stay over in Amsterdam just about every time we fly to Europe.

 

Most Baltic cruises do a stop in Warnemunde. Have you decided that the trip there and back is too long for the short time you'd have?

 

They really are equal, so you might base your decision on which one you think you're more likely see on a return visit to Europe and pick the other for this trip. Or, if you think this is your last shot at Europe for a while, pick the easier one to get to for this particular trip.

Hello,

Thanks for the advice. We are doing a port stop in Wamemunde, and contemplating a 12 hour tour of Berlin thru a tour operator, but this might be to hectic and short for us to take in the city specialy if as you mentioned that berlin is sprawling. We are embarking/disembarking the ship from Amsterdam and i am just thinking of taking a train to Berlin post cruise before flying home.

My plan was to fly in to Amsterdam 2 days pre cruise and then take the train to Berlin post cruise, great advice about Delta, i didnt know Amsterdam was a hub, will chk out the flights on Delta then. It will make my chioce of flights out easier.

Jason

Hello All,

We are planning on booking a cruise of the Baltics this year. I am deciding on whether to spend extra days in either Amsterdam or Berlin. If I were to choose, which will be better to stay at for an extra 2-3 days, Amsterdam or Berlin. This will be the first visit in both cities for me and my family.

Jason

Hello,

Has anyone tried the 5 city Baltic tour offered by TJ Travel? I understand its not a private tour, but a group tour, but the price offered is very good.

Any feedback is appreciated.

Jason

We used Smartcruise tours for a private tour of Rome just last month. We also joined their Shared tours of both Livorno and Naples, wherein there were about 15 of us in a mini bus. We were very satisfied with the tours and with the services the people of Smartcruise tours offered us, from setting up the tours and for coordinating with me and the other cruisers for the tours.

I feel bad for the group of cruisers who had a terrible experience on their tour, i think it is their right to express their disappointment and complaints about the company which for them failed to deliver on their promise. Its also within their rights to demand a refund, if it happened to me, i would do so as well. I hope they will have a better experience the next time out.