St. Maarten cruise booked!

[loge23]

2 hours ago, Covepointcruiser said:

How many hours is a flight from Miami to St. Martin?   Is Business or First Class really needed?   I understand if it is an overnight flight or if you have money to burn.   We recently took a flight from Hawaii to Chicago.   We were in Business and it was packed, every seat taken.   The tourist cabin had so few passengers that each passenger had at least one row to themselves.    I would look carefully at the seat selection before I would pay for Business Class especially for a 5 hour or less flight when you don’t need a lie flat seat.

Jet Blue flies direct to St. Maartan from Fort Lauderdale - it's about a 3 hour flight. Both coming and going are day flights.

[wesport]

Can you fly in the day before if you have proof of vaccination.

[shipshape sam]

11 hours ago, Fouremco said:

I haven't looked at the other islands to be visited, but for St. Maarten, if you are going to arrive a day or more early pre-cruise or stay a day or more post-cruise, you must purchase insurance directly from them when you apply for your health authorization to enter the country.  https://stmaartenehas.com/travel-requirements/ So even if your normal travel insurance covers you for COVID-19, you still need to buy St. Maarten's if you will be overnighting.

 

 

 

Great info!  Thanks!

[sn2792]

33 minutes ago, wesport said:

Can you fly in the day before if you have proof of vaccination.

We have to. I booked flights through Celebrity and they offered me flights the day before.

[tallyho8]

I just booked June 5, because I am having severe no cruising complications after having 17 cruises cancelled and I need a cruise fix NOW. The original email I got from Celebrity said cruises would start at $1999 with air but mine was booked at $1499 plus air. I fly from New Orleans on Southwest to Fort Lauderdale which I booked very cheap with points then I booked Celebrity flights from Fort Lauderdale to St Martin for $551 on Jet Blue.

 

I checked Jet Blue web site and the price was the same but booking with Celebrity gives you options to cancel that you don't get if you book direct with Jet Blue and Celebrity helps you out with problems with the flight.

 

United wanted to take us hours out of our way with a one stop flight and I much prefer a 2 1/2 hour flight on Jet Blue than a 7 hour flight on United.

 

I still think you have to book all excursions with Celebrity, even the unique Private Journeys but we will see if anything changes as time goes by. We upgraded to premium drinks for $30 a day which is $210 but we get $150 per person to use on shore excursions so the package is really only $60 more for those who prefer the premium package.

 

Flights are filling fast and if you miss the cheap ones some of the next flights are over $1400 just from Fort Lauderdale which is the cheapest place to fly from.

[volk904]

I would love to take one of these but the air fare is crazy. It appears that even if you use celebrity air they just use the airlines.   I don’t see how they are going to find enough seats to fill whatever capacity they are using.   Seems like Celebrity should set up a charter flight out of Orlando day of the cruise and then bring back those coming back.  

[LibraryLaura]

12 hours ago, loge23 said:

We didn't attempt any trickery as we had no idea, based on everything we read from Celebrity, that b2b wasn't being allowed. Frankly, we're still don't. We have spoken with a Celebrity agent regarding flights and some other details - they obviously seen our reservation - and still no pushback. As far as we know, the 7 day limit is a CDC rule and this cruise is outside of their jurisdiction. 

Our TA did book the cruise(s) this AM - she didn't mention any restrictions either and she booked the two legs - with Celebrity  - with us on the phone. We use a cruise-centric company and the agent is well experienced. 

We have no reason to think that our reservation will change and if it did, we would probably cancel the whole thing. I'm not paying the airfare to fly to St. Martaan for a one week cruise. 

Like for everyone else, the air fares and trip insurance will have to be finalized and paid for very soon.

If there's a one cruise restriction, I certainly hope we're notified pronto. 

Same here. We booked b2b legs yesterday morning (nothing on the website said we couldn't), then called Celebrity yesterday afternoon who said, as of now, there were no problems. 

[wesport]

9 hours ago, shipshape sam said:

Great info!  Thanks!

$30 seems reasonable for the insurance. Worth it to fly in early. 

[CoG72crewz]

8 hours ago, tallyho8 said:

 

Flights are filling fast and if you miss the cheap ones some of the next flights are over $1400 just from Fort Lauderdale which is the cheapest place to fly from.

I think the flights vary quite a bit depending on the dates.  We're sailing on the July 3 cruise and nonstop from Atlanta was around $700 when we first looked at them. I believe it's slightly higher today.  We're blessed to have an abundance of Skymiles so we usually fly Delta. 

[Fouremco]

12 hours ago, wesport said:

Can you fly in the day before if you have proof of vaccination.

For entry to St. Maarten, you are required to provide a negative result for an rt-PCR test taken within 72 hours prior to the departure of your flight to the island. There is NO requirement for proof of vaccination, and the negative PCR result is good for arrival the day before the cruise or whenever you choose to fly in. You can't provide proof of vaccination instead of proof of a negative PCR test. 

 

You will, of course, have to have that proof of vaccination for Celebrity in order to embark, if 18 or older.

Edited March 26, 2021 by Fouremco

[Longboysfan]

I booked - through my great agent - yesterday.

July 17th cruise.

Got the secret cabin - 6143.  😀🙂👍

 

They are offering Celebrity Air through selected gateway cities.

New York, Charlotte, Dallas Fort Worth and maybe LAX.

 

[Longboysfan]

Oh.  The air carrier is American.

 

Anything to do after the ship docks and we have to leave - before the plane ride home?

[lhsail]

Just booked 8/7 with my TA and have flights on hold with AA. Nothing about this is cheap, but we spent no money on travel last year so we are treating ourselves. I did notice this morning that the flights are about $100 more than they were when I put them on hold yesterday. Spending three nights in St. Maarten pre-cruise. Queue the steel drums. 

[ipeeinthepool]

2 hours ago, LibraryLaura said:

Same here. We booked b2b legs yesterday morning (nothing on the website said we couldn't), then called Celebrity yesterday afternoon who said, as of now, there were no problems. 

 When are you sailing?  During the TA webinar on Tuesday, the SVP said they would not be permitting B2Bs at least for the first few cruises.  Perhaps things have changed, but I would certainly double check.  The issue was if you needed a PCR test to board the second cruise.

[Longboysfan]

On 3/25/2021 at 7:38 AM, wrk2cruise said:

I've been looking at them on the website for about 1/2 hour.   Were you able to get any details regarding safety protocols?   Was air included in the pricing?  

 

You can book the Celebrity air through selected gateway cities.

We're flying direct from Dallas Fort Worth.

[Longboysfan]

23 hours ago, Seany527 said:

I’m new to Celebrity so I just wanted to confirm a few things. 

 

I thought gratuities were included and yet they are showing as a booking charge. 

 

I thought drinks were included but when I go to packages and deals in my account it says to buy the classic drink package for $59 a day. 
 

During the booking process I upgraded to the Elevate package which covered drinks up to $15. It was at a cost of $30 per day and included $300 in credit for sure excursions. How come they on my bill it says $30 total instead of the $210?

 

Thanks everyone 🙂

You may still have to say what three perks you want.

 

[Ken the cruiser]

31 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

For entry to St. Maarten, you are required to provide a negative result for an rt-PCR test taken within 72 hours prior to the departure of your flight to the island. There is NO requirement for proof of vaccination, and the negative PCR result is good for arrival the day before the cruise or whenever you choose to fly in. You can't provide proof of vaccination instead of proof of a negative PCR test. 

 

You will, of course, have to have that proof of vaccination for Celebrity in order to embark, if 18 or older.

For what it's worth, here's what Celebrity has posted on their web site where they state "A negative rt-PCR test is required within 120 hours prior to boarding in St. Maarten."

 

Meet Our Team of Health & Safety Experts | Celebrity Cruises

[nocl]

14 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Thanks! Maybe our X PVP got it wrong. We'll have to contact him tomorrow to see if the guidance has changed.

Have you had a chance to check it out?

[Longboysfan]

18 hours ago, loge23 said:

We're booked for the b-2-b's for 7/10-24, although it's booked as two separate reservations, in one cabin thankfully.

Suites were already sold out for those dates by 9am - we're going concierge level. 

Great - I'll se you on the second leg.

We're on 7/17

[Longboysfan]

17 hours ago, silkismom said:

Well, I fired my TA since "$200 commission isn't worth her time", my Azamara Nov xing and 2 Silversea cruises for 2022 are her loss. I've put up with her bad attitude for too many years, finally today was the final straw. I booked Aug 14, our first sky suite. Hopefully all restrictions will be gone by then.

I have a sweetheart TA.

Sorry about yours.

[Tiggertastic]

Sadly too expensive for us as the flights from the U.K. add another £2k. Keeping my fingers crossed for the med in August 

[Knolmom]

You have to remember that not only must you have your PCR test done in accordance with their protocol, YOU MUST UPLOAD IT TO A SPECIAL ST MARTIN WEBITE and receive permission IN ADVANCE to enter the country. This is a requirement to get your AIRLINE BOARDING PASS, regardless of whether you are cruising or doing a land based vacation..

[Ken the cruiser]

12 minutes ago, ipeeinthepool said:

 When are you sailing?  During the TA webinar on Tuesday, the SVP said they would not be permitting B2Bs at least for the first few cruises.  Perhaps things have changed, but I would certainly double check.  The issue was if you needed a PCR test to board the second cruise.

I know you didn't ask me, but our B2B2B that was initially denied starts July 17th, well past the first few cruises. Good point regarding the PCR test. But, what about those folks that disembark after the first leg and want to stay in St Maarten for a few extra days? Where do they get their PCR test? Maybe once you initially arrive in St Maarten and show your negative PCR test, you're good to go until the next time you fly into St Maarten.

 

21 minutes ago, nocl said:

Have you had a chance to check it out?

Not yet. Left him a VM last night, but I'll definitely update you once we hear from him later on today.

[Knolmom]

Another interesting tidbit regarding masks and the ship. Although I understand that the mask mandate for each cruise will be determined 30 days out, I saw yesterday that although the seaports on island of Tortola are still closed to sailing vessels and day trips, the Prime Ministernm announced to his government that the island would begin having limited cruise ship stops by Celebrity. HE ASSURED HIS VERSION OF PARLEMENT that ALL CRUISERS WILL BE REQUIRED TO BE MASKED AND VACCINATED!!! So does he mean on the ship or on land in Tortola? 

[Ken the cruiser]

4 minutes ago, Knolmom said:

Another interesting tidbit regarding masks and the ship. Although I understand that the mask mandate for each cruise will be determined 30 days out, I saw yesterday that although the seaports on island of Tortola are still closed to sailing vessels and day trips, the Prime Ministernm announced to his government that the island would begin having limited cruise ship stops by Celebrity. HE ASSURED HIS VERSION OF PARLEMENT that ALL CRUISERS WILL BE REQUIRED TO BE MASKED AND VACCINATED!!! So does he mean on the ship or on land in Tortola? 

IMHO I would imagine that would mean when someone sets foot on land on the island of Tortola. But to be honest, we personally will be wearing a mask when we disembark the ship at ANY location.