On the beautiful Apex now - only 300+ Guests!

[Jackson2B]

3 hours ago, Jonbiloh said:

Just posted the following in the roll call for the Apex TA. Cross posting here to make sure anyone who is following whether this trip is going to be canceled or not is informed of new (potential) developments:

 

FYI

 

Tonight I attempted to book this trip and the celebrity website three separate times refused to charge my credit card (tried two different cards). After submitting payment the page refreshed with what appeared to be some sort of order completed that said a confirmation would be emailed. If I hit the down arrow for more information I could see that the system didn't charge my card. 

 

Intentional? A sign that they aren't accepting more reservations right now? TA to be canceled? 

We had a similar issue which was due to a fraud default on our CC. The card issuer blocked the payment until we called them to confirm the large payment and then the card was unblocked and the payment went through. Hope this helps. 

[downsmead]

16 minutes ago, Jackson2B said:

We had a similar issue which was due to a fraud default on our CC. The card issuer blocked the payment until we called them to confirm the large payment and then the card was unblocked and the payment went through. Hope this helps. 

I had issues making final payment with my card and when I called MasterCard they said that some companies had not updated their system to meet the card companies new requirements 🤷‍♀️. I cannot really believe this with a company the size of Celebrity!

[Antropos]

1 hour ago, fridge said:

I did not see anyone beeing denied Boarding because of a positive test.

That's good to hear! We always hear the number of people who tested positive the day before debarkation, but I have never seen numbers on the embarkation test outcomes

[kabmab]

We're on the 28th sailing, curious what number of pax will be.  Our airfare (from FL) to Athens was lower than previous Greece cruises, even though we had to cancel our first tkts through CA due to flt changes and rebook on Delta a week ago.  Hope everyone enjoys their "private" yacht vacation and looking forward to ours!

[s8222]

The retreat bartender is Oleksandr. 

[Miaminice]

15 hours ago, Antropos said:

300+ is substantially less than all previous Apex sailings which were reportedly 500 - 800... is this because so many people canceled last minute? Or is the number of people who are denied embarkation because of a positive COVID test at the terminal rising?

Probably more related to Greece being determined a Level 4 by the CDC now. I also heard a lot of people were/are afraid of the fires - which had no effect on the cruise so far.

 

We’ll enjoy he emptiness on Apex in a few weeks.

Edited August 15, 2021 by Miaminice

[Miaminice]

5 hours ago, Jonbiloh said:

Just posted the following in the roll call for the Apex TA. Cross posting here to make sure anyone who is following whether this trip is going to be canceled or not is informed of new (potential) developments:

 

FYI

 

Tonight I attempted to book this trip and the celebrity website three separate times refused to charge my credit card (tried two different cards). After submitting payment the page refreshed with what appeared to be some sort of order completed that said a confirmation would be emailed. If I hit the down arrow for more information I could see that the system didn't charge my card. 

 

Intentional? A sign that they aren't accepting more reservations right now? TA to be canceled? 

🙄 perfect example how rumors start and people get worried.

Extremely likely it’s just a typical system glitch. Our TA had problems charging final payment last week. Turns out that the card provider declined the charge because Celebrity’s system did not provide certain security authentications required in Europe.

[Miaminice]

1 hour ago, Antropos said:

That's good to hear! We always hear the number of people who tested positive the day before debarkation, but I have never seen numbers on the embarkation test outcomes

Remember the numbers reported on debarkation are mostly on ships with no mask mandates and no distancing. Testing before the cruise was only implemented in August.
 

Apex has always had mask mandate, distancing, testing… and had virtually no infections vs. Edge etc.

I think on one cruise only.

 

Edited August 15, 2021 by Miaminice

[vickykay]

Just booked the Apex for next January so looking forward to following along.  Would love to hear your impressions of the four dining rooms.

Thanks.

[Miaminice]

Just now, vickykay said:

Just booked the Apex for next January so looking forward to following along.  Would love to hear your impressions of the four dining rooms.

Thanks.

 

They are fabulous! So good that we don´t book Aqua on E class.

Here´s a summary...

 

 

[TeeRick]

18 hours ago, BigAl94 said:

This must be really adding to the vast losses of RCL and Celebrity, totally uneconomic.

Yes agree.  Even at 50-60% capacity they not making much money if any.  But 300 guests?  Not sustainable. 

[fridge]

19 hours ago, Jackson2B said:

Hi @fridge could you post any Eden menus please?  Both from lunch and evening if possible. 

@Jackson2Bhere is the evening menu 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 15, 2021 by fridge

[Jonbiloh]

4 hours ago, Miaminice said:

🙄 perfect example how rumors start and people get worried.

Extremely likely it’s just a typical system glitch. Our TA had problems charging final payment last week. Turns out that the card provider declined the charge because Celebrity’s system did not provide certain security authentications required in Europe.

 

One of the cards I attempted to use to process payment upon booking was the same card I successfully used, on a larger transaction, for the July 9th sailing on apex. It's also the same card I used on a smaller transaction for the October 3rd sailing. So I don't think it has anything to do with European authentication (something, which, pardon the remark but makes little sense having worked with global payment processors for almost 20 years - celebrity does not use the verified by Visa program). 

 

I want the TA to sail as much as anyone, and I'm not providing these updates for the purpose of causing anxiety but rather to give people information of the current state of the booking engine related to this trip. 

 

I plan to call celebrity today and see what they tell me. I'll let folks know what I learn. 

Edited August 15, 2021 by Jonbiloh

[verizon]

16 minutes ago, Jonbiloh said:

 

One of the cards I attempted to use to process payment upon booking was the same card I successfully used, on a larger transaction, for the July 9th sailing on apex. It's also the same card I used on a smaller transaction for the October 3rd sailing. So I don't think it has anything to do with European authentication (something, which, pardon the remark but makes little sense having working with global payment processors for almost 20 years - celebrity does not use the verified by Visa program). 

 

I want the TA to sail as much as anyone, and I'm not providing these updates for the purpose of causing anxiety but rather to give people information of the current state of the booking engine related to this trip. 

 

I plan to call celebrity today and see what they tell me. I'll let folks know what I learn. 

You are posting on the 10th October transatlantic sailing of refusing to accept your credit card payment and here you are posting the October 3rd credit card payment.

you really got me confused.

[Jonbiloh]

1 hour ago, verizon said:

You are posting on the 10th October transatlantic sailing of refusing to accept your credit card payment and here you are posting the October 3rd credit card payment.

you really got me confused.

I have an existing booking on October 3rd. 

 

I also traveled on apex on July 9th. 

 

On both of the above trips I used the same credit card which is now resulting in celebrity not charging the card for the October 10th TA. I mentioned the July 9th drip and October 3rd trip because it speaks to the suggestion that celebrity is not accepting the booking request on the basis of a european credit card transaction security issue on their website (which is unlikely given the above data). 

 

As per my original post I've tried multiple cards over 4 attempts and across a few different days. So it seems that the celebrity booking engine on their website is set to not accept additional October 10th bookings at this time. Bug? Maybe. Intentional? Maybe. 

 

I'll be calling celebrity shortly to see what the story is (but then again many of their agents are clueless too). 

Edited August 15, 2021 by Jonbiloh

[Miaminice]

@Jonbiloh

I am not saying that my particular (European) credit card problem is the same as yours.

I am saying that a payment problem is little indication of the TA being cancelled. 

Cancellations never kept Celebrity from accepting final payments 😉 Usually they cancel after final payment :-)

BTW: in our case Master Card didn´t work because here they use a different kind of authentication since February. Visa worked...  

Edited August 15, 2021 by Miaminice

[grandgeezer]

11 hours ago, fridge said:

I did not see anyone beeing denied Boarding because of a positive test.

How do you know that they tested positive? How do you know that they didn't test positive and then was retested and tested negative?

[fridge]

26 minutes ago, grandgeezer said:

How do you know that they tested positive? How do you know that they didn't test positive and then was retested and tested negative?

I dont understand your questions. Everyone with a negative test got a Sticker and was directed to the Ship. I did not see anyone not get an embarkation Sticker...

Edited August 15, 2021 by fridge

[davekathy]

On 8/14/2021 at 9:19 AM, fridge said:

Where is everybody? 😄 Kind of weird with only 10% Capacity but we enjoy every second of it. Embarkation was a breeze and so far we love the Apex.

 

We usually book Sky Suites because of Luminae and the Retreat, but the 4 MDR look gorgeous and Lunch at Ocean View was great!

 

Happy to answer questions... 

Sounds great. 

[fridge]

6 hours ago, vickykay said:

Just booked the Apex for next January so looking forward to following along.  Would love to hear your impressions of the four dining rooms.

Thanks.

We are spoiled with Luminae from our previous Cruises, but our experiences in the MDR on Apex are outstanding. Service is top notch, feels like our first Cruise on Celebrity. Dinner tonight in Normandie was superb and matches Luminae... Maybe it is due to the current numbers of Guests, but anyway, i just enjoy this so much..

[Miaminice]

25 minutes ago, fridge said:

I dont understand your questions. Everyone with a negative test got a Sticker and was directed to the Ship. I did not see anyone not get an embarkation Sticker...

To be fair, they wouldn’t really advertise it… would they?!

[Jordanyaya1]

Would love to hear your comments on the Sunset Veranda. We are booked in one for next a June. Always enjoyed the SV but never been on Edge or Apex. 

[nesheiml]

Did you have to show proof of a negative covid test before boarding or did you do a covid test there while checking in?

[Germancruiser]

I loved the SV  on Apex on her Maiden Voyage in June. One of the best cabins I have ever had. Stunning view- nice large balcony. The bathroom- really really great.

I would only book a voyage on either Edgel Class ship when a SV will be availlable.

There may be some soot on the balcony furniture sometimes- but the cabin steward takes good care of that- so it has never been a big problem.

[fridge]

11 hours ago, Miaminice said:

To be fair, they wouldn’t really advertise it… would they?!

The Stickers were attached in the middle of the waiting area. So you could actually see if someone doesnt get a Sticker