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photabitha

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  • Posts

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About Me

  • Location
    UK
  • Interests
    Travel
  • Favorite Cruise Line(s)
    Celebrity
  • Favorite Cruise Destination Or Port of Call
    Singapore

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Cool Cruiser (2/15)

  1. Hello We have done this cruise twice now around end January/February and both from Singapore on the Millennium and due to do it again in 2025. Most of the ports in Vietnam are a long way from any of the popular sites. An excursion is a must, either with the ship or private/with a group. Getting off the ship in Halong Bay (amazing sail in) is something you can do and this has developed a lot over the years. Hong Kong and Singapore also are ports you can hop off and easily transverse. However, these will be at the beginning or end of your cruise. As another person has mentioned, Bangkok is an overnight. We have a ship tour of Bangkok on your own, book a hotel on the river and you can either book tours, or see quite a lot from the water taxis on your own as many of the sites are near to the river. On our next visit, we will be leaving from Hong Kong and ending in Singapore and a couple of days at the end. Be aware the weather in Hong Kong and Halong Bay can be chilly so be prepared clothes wise. The rest of the ports were hot. We did get one beautiful day in Halong Bay on our last trip, but on the first visit it was raining and freezing cold.
  2. For a 12 night cruise, we purchased three wash, dry and press packages. We also had items pressed when we embarked that were creased in our case. Everything was pristine and ironed to perfection.
  3. Wow, what a view! The balconies come in different sizes in the aft cabins. You need to research your choice of room on S class as some are significantly wide, although shallower than M class. I would also be delighted with this!
  4. I do feel for the OP as we lost a bag on a flight from UK to Sydney (change in Singapore). We had two days in Sydney pre cruise, but the bag did not turn up in time! It was my husband's case and we had to shop in Sydney for everything! We also had most of our toiletries in the case and some shoes of mine. It was a nightmare and cost a small fortune. The checked case was found, but half way through the cruise when we were in Auckland. They said they would fly it out, but that could have been a bigger headache and we agreed to collect it at Sydney on our return. When we flew back, we collected the lost bag, but our luggage weight then exceeded the maximum weight due to the extra clothes and small case we had to buy, although the airline in question waived that fee. I kept all receipts for the purchased items and we had not been greedy, but purchased only the items to get my husband through the cruise and dressed in accordance with the guidelines of evening attire. At Sydney airport, we were told we would have to claim on our insurance. I informed the lady with whom I spoke that our insurance Company had not lost the case and why should they pay! I made the claim on my return and we were reimbursed every penny - they were absolutely marvellous and did not quibble. I would rather not have lost the bag however. I think we will go down the Air Tag route and we also cross pack!
  5. We have just returned from a cruise and pre purchased the laundry package (wash, dry and press). You can get a lot in that bag! There is an offer at the moment for pre cruise purchase. We also had further laundry during the cruise all washed and ironed to perfection. As we are elite plus, we get two bags of wash, dry fold which we took advantage of to come home. I would think the 3 bags of laundry would need to be put in at the same time, but not sure on that one.
  6. We have stayed in the S1 corner suites on deck 8 and 9 - these were pretty much the same size, although the pole was in a different place. I believe balcony on deck 6 may be significantly smaller however.
  7. Hello. I am not sure there is actually any set percentage in getting the upgrade. We had a similar situation when on a cruise last year. We made two bids for two different upgrades, one almost immediately expired, but the other remained pending. We found out, I think 3 days before sailing that we won the bid, cabin allocated and we checked in with the new cabin. Everything was in place for embarkation. We had booked a sky suite originally, and bid on a Celebrity suite and Royal suite - we were allocated the Royal. Good luck!
  8. Hi. Your ship will be tendered off Firá (Thira) and this is where you take the tender to and from the ship. If your dinner cruise ends here around sunset, you should be okay to take the tender back in time. There will be a queue however. If your trip ends elsewhere, you may be very short on time. You will need to get back to Firá and then either take either the cable car (massive queue after sunset) or walk down, the winding steps to the sea level. These steps are used by the donkeys (please don’t ride the donkeys!) and the lighting is poor and the surface uneven and slippery with donkey deposits! Where your trip ends I would say will give you a better idea as to whether or not the risk is worth taking.
  9. On two of our recent cruises (within the last year) Elite status had a voucher in the paperwork on embarkation day called Dress to Impress. It was a whole laundry bag of items pressed for $20. we could not believe it as my DH always has all of his shirts pressed after unpacking and I also have a great deal of linen garments. The bag was the fabric laundry bag and we got a lot in! Sadly on our last cruise we did could find the offer. It is worth looking for the voucher and pop it in the bag.
  10. We have sailed on Celebrity cruise in Europe on the 4th July and, as others have said, apart from some food in the buffet appropriately decorated there was nothing else celebratory. I remember because the 4th July is my birthday. We will also be on the cruise this 4th July out of Civitavecchia and I am looking at a Big '0' - our own small celebration may happen! 🤪
  11. Hello. We face a similar issue. It appears there is testing at the airport although I have not looked into this as we are in Rome for two days pre cruise. There are a number of Farmacia who have testing all over Rome and some are open on a Sunday. Thus far, it appears we can turn up without an appointment for an antigen test back in 30 minutes or so, although my search continues as I would prefer to have an appointment booked. I did email our hotel who gave us the nearest testing Farmacia to our hotel on a Sunday so very helpful. If you are staying in Rome try this. Have a great holiday!
  12. We sailed on the first two day pre inaugural cruise. The ship is seriously stunning and we have cruised on all classes of Celebrity ship. The changes made from the Edge and Apex are amazing. We were able to view all classes of cabins during the cruise and they are luxury all the way, whichever class you travel. We were blown away and we going to book a cruise for sure. The crew are so friendly and we found very efficient. There are a great deal of posts on Instagram. Give it a go - you will not be disappointed!
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