Susie B.

A friend of mine is looking for a Ft. Lauderdale hotel that offers free (or low cost) parking during a cruise. Thanks for any information. 🙂

A friend of mine is looking for a Ft. Lauderdale hotel that offers free (or low cost) parking during a cruise. Thanks for any information. 🙂

Looking for reviews of the RIB Boat & Jost van Dyke excursion offered through Celebrity Cruises. Curious how long you get to spend at White Bay (home of the Soggy Dollar Bar). 

The excursion lasts 3 1/2 hours and includes a cruise by Sandy Cay and passes under the bridge at Beef Island and a stop at the mangroves. 

We're hoping Captain Kate will still be on the edge for the sailing over Valentine's Day this year. The cruise departs 2/9/19. 

Does anybody happen to know how long her current contract extends? We love her and hope to sail with her again soon. 

We'll be in St. Croix for the day on a Monday late in November. Thinking of spending the day at the Buccaneer or the Sand Castle. 

For those familiar with both hotels do you recommend one over the other? 

Thanks for your help. 

😃

Thanks posters for your info. Much appreciated.

Our trip has been delayed a day and Smith’s is now unavailable to take us to our hotel in London from Heathrow. I’ve had no luck checking with others (due to demand) Any recommendations? Is taxi service a viable alternative?

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Hi there. We have first hand experience with this ... kind of. Short story long, we were on the May 28 Eclipse sailing and booked directly with Air Iceland Connect for flights and a tour of Grimsey. Please be aware that there is VERY limited taxi service in Akureyri, one company. By the time we got off the ship to get to the airport, there were literally NO taxis available to take us. It was cold and windy, so walking was out of the question. Distance from cruise port to airport is about 4 miles. The dispatcher at BSO taxi gave her keys to a local and he gave us a ride to the airport for our flight in her private car (very nice gesture!)

 

 

 

We checked in, waited in the very cozy terminal until our flight was called and boarded the plane. As soon as we got settled in the very small aircraft, the pilot told us cross winds on Grimsey were too strong for landing. We were instructed to deplane and wait until weather conditions improved. An hour later with NO update, we (along with others in our predicament) determined we could not make it to Grimsey, tour and back prior to ship departure. Air Iceland told us we'd be issued a refund as time was not on our side. We did receive a prompt refund in about one week. I should mention that the flight never went, and the second group of Celebrity shore excursions folks didn't go, either.

 

 

 

At this point, we picked up the phone to the one and only taxi company and were told it would be a substantial wait (no time estimate given) for taxi availability back to the port. Meanwhile, the first group of Celebrity shore excursion folks returned and we were able to get a ride back to the port with the shore excursion bus.

 

 

 

It is doable and when we booked, it was a substantial savings over the Celebrity shore excursion price. However, logistics in this particular port are not amenable to independent arrangements. I did try to reach out to BSO taxi by email prior to our trip, but never got an answer.

 

 

 

Here is the link to Air Iceland Connect if you wish to peruse the option:

 

https://www.airicelandconnect.com/tours/iceland/beyond-the-arctic-aey

 

 

 

Also, please feel free to email me at beach61 (at) cox (dot) net if I can answer any other questions.

 

Sharon

DogLover, Thank you so much for sharing all your information. I’m sorry you were not able to make it there after all your efforts. We will book the excursion through Celebrity. I hope the weather cooperates. Thanks again!

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We'll be in Akureyri (Iceland) from aprox 7:30am-4pm on a Sunday in August. Celebrity offers an excursion but we're wondering if we can book the air on our own. I can't seem to find an online resource to book the air ourselves. Anybody with experience know more?

We're ready for new luggage (large size for checking). Last purchase was High Sierra A.T. 6 and we were fairly happy with them (aprox 31x18x12 - 2 wheels, not spinners). It seems most people now prefer the spinner luggage. If you recently purchased a bag that you really like what kind is it? Thanks for any info.

So while on a cruise ship that departs from Southampton England if you want to leave additional gratuities for your cabin steward, waiter or favorite bar tender should you leave British Pounds? I guess it wouldn’t make much sense to leave USD but I’m sure they wouldn’t turn it down.

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Great info from everyone! Thank you! CruiseCritic members are the best for sharing valuable info.

We're cruising on 8/18 out of Southampton. Prior to the cruise we'll be in London a few nights and staying near Victoria Station. Should I purchase our train tickets now online? Just wondering if there's a benefit to doing it this far in advance. Thanks for sharing any info. We're newbies to traveling in the UK.

Since it's a Saturday you'll have no problem getting to Heathrow by 10.30 :)

What time is your flight?

 

The cost of a private transfer with www.smithsforairports.com (or several other car services) is likely to be about the same as two seats on Celebrity's coach, and significantly cheaper for 3 or more pax.

But I've seen a number of posts from folk unable to book with Smiths because they left it too late - if a transfer with Smiths is your preference, best to book soonest.

 

Or for just £12 per person + 50pence booking fee you can book a regular service coach with https://www.nationalexpress.com/en

Nat Express coaches are similar vehicles to ships' transfer coaches but with the guarantee of a bathroom and at-seat wifi on all coaches.

But the only suitable coach for you is at 8am (arrives Heathrow 10.15am - or earlier, depending which airport terminal) and you'll need a £6 / 3 minute taxi hop to Southampton coach station. So to be sure of making it you'd need to disembark unassisted (from about 7am).

 

JB :)

Great info, thank you JB

How much is the transfer with Celebrity? Thanks

The Celebrity transfer from Southampton to London Heathrow is $101 per passenger.

We're disembarking our cruise in Southampton and flying out of Heathrow on a Saturday (9/1). We've booked the motor coach transfer through Celebrity but wondering if it would be worth it to pay the extra and reserve Smiths for Airports or a similar private transfer service. We need to arrive at Heathrow by about 10:30am.

Thanks for any info.

Thanks to all who responded! Cruisecritic members are the best!

We're staying a few nights before a cruise and this is our first time in London. Hoping to find a smaller hotel with convenient walking access to sights and restaurants in a mid to a little higher price range. Thanks for any information.

Many thanks to all who answered above!

Cheers!

For those experienced London travelers, do you have a favorite London hotel? We're staying four nights in August pre cruise.

We were supposed to be in Punta Cana on the Equinox last week but weather didn’t permit :-(

Just returned from an overnight stay in St. Maarten on the Celebrity Reflection, I went on the Golden Eagle Sail Away on March 9th. This was the 2nd time on the Golden Eagle catamaran. It was a fun afternoon. It included a snorkeling stop, and a beach stop at Simpson Bay. The visibility at the snorkeling spot was low. Captain and crew were great. Most everyone on the excursion seemed to have a really good time.

Thanks for sharing your info. Was the Golden Eagle a Celebrity Excursion or did you book it independently?

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Here's a photo from the web

Here's a photo from the web -

How is the abs class? Is it one of the free ones? I generally do the gym solo or jog the track but this year I'd like to try the classes.

 

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Yes, stretch and abs classes are both free. I enjoy both.

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