Why this itinerary change?

[jealdaka]

Does anyone know why Celebrity has changed their Solstice itinerary and dropped Rhodes? Is there a problem there or just a scheduling?

[stuboat]

Where did you see this change? Did they replace it with another port?

[Denny01]

What Specific Cruise are you referring to? We were loking at a Solstice E Med cruise in Nov 09 and it has Rhodes as a port-of-call as of today.

 

Denny

[suec12]

Well I think when I booked this cruise that Rhodes was part of the itinerary and now it is not. Now there are 3 sea days - I really don't like that - a Med crusie is so pricey, it seems 3 sea days is a bit much (tho 1 or 2 are OK - its good to have time to rest up for the next port!) My travel partner has been iffy on the cruise as is - we may have to look for another option.

[tromvest]

We have booked the 10 night cruise leaving on June 5, 2009 and Rhodes is still there as one of the ports. It seems like they have taken Rhodes away on the 11 night cruises.

[lobster129]

Yes, we also rec'd an email last night from our travel agent that Rhodes is dropped in place of a day at sea...also staying in Turkey an additional 6 hours the night prior. It was also on Celebrity's web site last night for our cruise (departing Rome on 5/25/09)...several (but not all) itineraries were affected.

 

We do like our days at sea...but would have preferred they drop Athens...since have been there before. Oh well, we are still going. Plan to buy our air tomorrow when it becomes available.

 

Comparing to a same length Med cruise in 2006...this one is running us about 50% more pp. Part of it is the increased cruise & air prices...but also the strength of the USD against the Euro. Wonder how much longer folks will be able to travel at these prices!:confused:

 

Lobster129

[Stockjock]

I'm not happy about this one bit.

[mikkirm]

I personally don't have a problem with this; I was toying with the idea of staying on the ship at one of the "island" ports anyway, and I probably would have picked Rhodes after three intensive days in Istanbul and Kusadasi. The only downside is I'll now have to share the ship with everyone, instead of just those who also decided to skip Rhodes. ;) Since I've never cruised before, I'm looking forward to exploring all the "nooks and crannies" of the ship, in addition to being able to explore some ports I've never had a chance to visit.

 

I do, of course, understand those that are disappointed, especially since there were already two sea days on this cruise.

[hcat]

Thanks for the info--it is still listed on our 10 day itin. for 9/09. We will be on Solstice for a cruise in Jan 09 so an extra sea day is not needed to explore the ship for us...hope the itin stays the same but I guess we have a long time before things are finalized--still hoping we can afford the airfare!

[Eightydays]

I hope the itinerary for August 17th, which is 12 nights;) and still includes Rhodes, does not change because Rhodes and Istanbul are the only ports we haven't visited on that itinerary. My family and friends would have to consider cancelling.

[bububr]

Rhodes was one of our favorite stops on this past Galaxy Med cruise. There is SO MUCH To see and do. Personally if we hadn't been able to get to Delos I would have preferred to skip Mykonos....really nothing there except a labyrinth of streets over priced restaurants and a few windmills.

 

And I also have to agree with Athens, although Pireaus has some nice seaside restaurants to the right of the port. If it wasn't for the Acropolis...there wasn't much else to really see, or that was open to the public. BTW: You can take the train to the acropolis from the port and its really inexpensive.

 

I'm wondering if the dock space is not large enough, and tendering isn't possible..?

 

I'll be sending in my review shortly with my assessments of the ports and the ships excursions. Look for it on the Galaxy review page.

 

Dave:eek:

[elena7seas]

Rhodes was one of our favorite stops on this past Galaxy Med cruise. There is SO MUCH To see and do. Personally if we hadn't been able to get to Delos I would have preferred to skip Mykonos....really nothing there except a labyrinth of streets over priced restaurants and a few windmills.

 

And I also have to agree with Athens, although Pireaus has some nice seaside restaurants to the right of the port. If it wasn't for the Acropolis...there wasn't much else to really see, or that was open to the public. BTW: You can take the train to the acropolis from the port and its really inexpensive.

 

I'm wondering if the dock space is not large enough, and tendering isn't possible..?

 

I'll be sending in my review shortly with my assessments of the ports and the ships excursions. Look for it on the Galaxy review page.

 

Dave:eek:

 

I am really sorry to lose Rhodes, and actually am hoping that, by some miracle, it will be returned before we sail. I would rather they removed Mykonos.

 

I do appreciate the extra time in Ephesus, however.

 

I would really have liked this cruise to be 12 days long, with three sea days. The itinerary was great, and there wasn't any port, even Mykonos, that I didn't want to see, but I felt that more time was needed to enjoy this ship.

 

Dave, from reading other threads, I feel that we will be losing your presence from this board. I will be sorry if this happens, because I have always enjoyed your posts.

[KY Deb]

Could this be a fuel saving change? I was looking forward to the Rhodes stop as well, but thought to use it more as a beach day. Perhaps it will be a beside the pool day!

[elena7seas]

I suppose it could be. A stop at Rhodes certainly does stray from the shortest route between Ephesus and Athens.

 

However, if they are going to start making fuel-saving decisions to itineraries that are booked 12-18 months out, that is going to leave travellers with a lot of uncertainty.

 

I have cruised enough to know that a change to the itinerary is always possible. It would help if Celebrity let us know why the change was made.

[tom_uk]

That is really annoying (28 September 2009). We called at Rhodes last year on Galaxy and loved it, and one of the reasons we booked the 2009 cruise was because it included the Rhodes call. I already had our day planned - hire a car early and do a 'Lindos on our own' trip, get the car back in the afternoon, and finish off with a wander around Rhodes Old Town for an hour.

 

Rats!

 

Like others, I have a feeling this is a fuel-saving measure. I also see that the call at Kusadasi has been extended to midnight.

[KY Deb]

What is there to do in Kusadasi until midnight? Anyone have any ideas?

[tom_uk]

What is there to do in Kusadasi until midnight? Anyone have any ideas?

 

Kusadasi is quite a lively resort, very westernised; it's been a staple Turkish destination for holidaying Brits for a long time. Have a look at this website for a flavour:

 

http://www.kusadasifans.com/

 

There are quite a few other websites; just google 'Kusadasi'.

[terrydtx]

I know the Celebrity's "official" policy is that you can only bring 2 bottles of wine aboard at embarkation, but what has been your experiences with bringing wine aboard at other ports on past cruises in the Mediterranean? With so many great wine ports in France and Italy on our upcoming Century cruise it is almost criminal not being able to bring local wine aboard for consumption in the privacy of our cabin and veranda.:eek:

[tom_uk]

I know the Celebrity's "official" policy is that you can only bring 2 bottles of wine aboard at embarkation, but what has been your experiences with bringing wine aboard at other ports on past cruises in the Mediterranean? With so many great wine ports in France and Italy on our upcoming Century cruise it is almost criminal not being able to bring local wine aboard for consumption in the privacy of our cabin and veranda.:eek:

 

I'm pretty sure you won't be able to bring wine on board at Rhodes on 11-night Solstice cruises next year :)

[Stockjock]

I really think that Celebrity should offer some onboard credit to those of us who booked with the understanding that the ship would visit Rhodes. Sure, they can change the itinerary, but in this case it's apparenty not being replaced with another stop.

 

Certainly, most would rather visit a new island, possibly one they'd never visit again in their lifetime, to an extra sea day and adding a couple of hours in Turkey around midnight certainly doesn't make up for it, in my opinion.

 

I doubt that many have booked this cruise at this early date, so I think it would be a good idea for Celebrity to extend some accomodation to those of us who have been impacted by the itinerary change.

[Karynanne]

I really think that Celebrity should offer some onboard credit to those of us who booked with the understanding that the ship would visit Rhodes. Sure, they can change the itinerary, but in this case it's apparenty not being replaced with another stop.

 

Certainly, most would rather visit a new island, possibly one they'd never visit again in their lifetime, to an extra sea day and adding a couple of hours in Turkey around midnight certainly doesn't make up for it, in my opinion.

 

I doubt that many have booked this cruise at this early date, so I think it would be a good idea for Celebrity to extend some accomodation to those of us who have been impacted by the itinerary change.

 

How has this impacted you this far in advance? I'm not saying that you don't have a right to be dissapointed...but this does happen. I've been on cruises where a listed port has been cancelled in advance, and did not receive any compensation, and you go with the decision.

[Stockjock]

How has this impacted you this far in advance? I'm not saying that you don't have a right to be dissapointed...but this does happen. I've been on cruises where a listed port has been cancelled in advance, and did not receive any compensation, and you go with the decision.

 

I think it's quite obvious how anyone has been impacted and I'm surprised that you asked the question. But the short answer is that I wanted to visit Rhodes and would greatly prefer that to a sea day.

 

I don't know if I'll ever visit the Greek Isles again and missing an island in exchange for nothing is unacceptable, in my opinion. If your opinion differs, that's fine for you.

 

I don't deny that they have the *right* to do this, but if they do it, I think that they should either offer another port instead or some reasonable level of compensation. Obviously, the key here is "reasonable" as I think that most of us are reasonable people.

[tom_uk]

How has this impacted you this far in advance? I'm not saying that you don't have a right to be dissapointed...but this does happen. I've been on cruises where a listed port has been cancelled in advance, and did not receive any compensation, and you go with the decision.

 

If this had been the published itinerary, I might well not have booked this cruise. And being in the UK, we don't get our deposits back if we cancel....

[HollyK]

I'm also disappointed as I was looking forward to seeing Rhodes. If, as has been speculated, this is a fuel saving measure, I don't think that's quite cricket. They add a fuel surcharge then cancel a port to save fuel? Think I might look at what else is out there. :(

[Karynanne]

I completely understand your points of view, especially a non-refundable deposit. It's unfortunate that this port has been cancelled for so many of you.