Millie 6004, price drop, tour prices, accessible assignment

[bostom]

Some questions for the X-perts.

 

1: Booked this large (381 sq ft) cat 5 hc accessible outside this week for the Fall transat. Can anyone describe the layout, or that of its mirror, 6005? (As the layout seems the same on all the ships of this class, I presume experience with the same cabins on her sister ships would be helpful to us as well.) I know there's only one large round window facing forward but what else is in the room and where is it? How do they fill a space greater than two standard cabins? We had a Celebrity Suite on the Connie for a crosing in 2003 and it felt huge and it's just a few more sq. ft in size. That had a separate bedroom and dressing room, huge bath, room for a work station and a dining room table as well as the living room. What do they put in these cat 5 rooms for furniture? There's a pic link somewhere but it's never worked for me. Anyone have some photos? We have had a similar - albeit much smaller and not accessible-designated but still spacious - cabin on Galalxy last year and loved it.

 

2: The 6004/6005 cabins (and several others) are shown on the deckplan as handicapped/accessible yet ours was offered for sale without any requirement for medical documentation of disability as is, I'm told, usually the case with Celebrity. OTOH, I am sufficiently limited in terms of mobility as to have been issued a handicapped parking placard by my states' RMV and will bring it with me when we board on the TA's advice. Is this sufficient or do Celebrity evalute degrees of disability such that someone else could subsequently be assigned this cabin? Another category 5, even two category 5's, or category 4's would not be as desireable to us.

 

3: The price on this category has dropped by about $200 this week and - as we are members of Celebrity's past-passenger program - are also eligible for a one-category upgrade. At the time of booking no cat 6 cabins were on offer so no price reduction was given. As of today three are shown as available, and were one of these to become the basis of our fare, the savings would amount to $300. Will Celebrity adjust our fare to the lowest of the two lower prices? And can I request this directly of X on the phone Sunday or need I wait until Monday when the TA reopens - but also by which time these newly released category 6 cabins might be gone?

 

4: We have never done a European/Mediterranean cruise before and are shocked at the tour prices for Nice, Florence, Rome, and Naples offered through Celebrity - rates of $385 for an 8-hour tour; $1200/day for a car and driver, etc. Call me crazy or worse, cheap: in the Caribbean, Hawaii, South and Central America, Australia, Alaska, Mexico, etc. ship tours seemed to range from $40 or less to $125-$150 tops unless it meant something exotic like helicopter tours or hot-air ballooning. Rip-off? The high price of doing business in Europe? A truly deluxe experience? Worth looking at locally-based and -booked alternatives?

 

I'd be grateful for information from anyone with firsthand knowledge of these cabins and/or experience with how Celebrity handles price adjustments after the deposit's been made but before final payment is due. Any tips from recent Millie passengers on their onboard experiences would be more than welcome too.

 

My thanks in advance.

[cruisinfromcanada]

Some questions for the X-perts.

 

1: Booked this large (381 sq ft) cat 5 hc accessible outside this week for the Fall transat. ... How do they fill a space greater than two standard cabins? ... We have had a similar - albeit much smaller and not accessible-designated but still spacious - cabin on Galalxy last year and loved it.

 

2: The 6004/6005 cabins (and several others) are shown on the deckplan as handicapped/accessible yet ours was offered for sale without any requirement for medical documentation of disability as is, I'm told, usually the case with Celebrity. OTOH, I am sufficiently limited in terms of mobility as to have been issued a handicapped parking placard by my states' RMV and will bring it with me when we board on the TA's advice. Is this sufficient or do Celebrity evalute degrees of disability such that someone else could subsequently be assigned this cabin? Another category 5, even two category 5's, or category 4's would not be as desireable to us.

 

Sorry I can't answer all of your questions but I can explain the HC space. In a HC cabin, space is exactly that - space for a wheelchair to maneouver. I am surprised that Celebrity asked no questions. DH needs a HC cabin, he has a letter from his doctor and our TA explains this to X when booking. If you were in a non HC cabin before and "loved it" and you don't really need HC then I would recommend that you book a regular cabin. On rare occasions, X will bump people out of HC cabins for people who really need them. You may not have a great cabin choice at that point in time. Hope this helps.