sasejm

I really never expected anything let alone being made whole, so the amount we received was a huge surprise and no complaints from me.

Thanks for the update.

Keith, We each received $2225.00 and that did not make us whole by any means. However, I’m not complaining we didn’t get $2250.00, which seems like the majority on this thread. We did book a 16 day Crystal Cruise for January 2025. We have Explora 1 and RSSC Splendor cruises to complete before going back to Crystal. Ed

USPS Informed delivery for today shows an envelope from MM&A for me and one for my wife.

About ten years ago, we sailed on Crystal Symphony from San Pedro, California, to Melbourne, Australia. It was around a 40-day cruise, and we visited Hawaii, Tahiti, New Zealand, Sydney & Melbourne, Australia. We were fortunate enough to be in Sydney on New Year's Eve. Crystal rented two large catamarans, included in the price of the cruise, for the passengers to see the fireworks display on the Harbour Bridge. We really enjoyed our cruise and highly recommend a cruise to New Zealand and Australia.

When I booked an EJ cruise over a year ago, the deposit receipt showed the TA was getting an 18% commission on the cruise fare. I think there was an IT issue at the time because I never saw the commission amount on the subsequent receipts, and I'm sure they didn't want me to see it on the first receipt. Maybe your TA will provide you with more OBC, or maybe not. It doesn't hurt to ask.

Observer - See post # 44.

Ivi, I called Crystal last week to book a cruise on the Symphony. The reason why I called Crystal directly rather than contacting my travel agent, is that I had many questions my agent would have had to get from Crystal to get the answers. One of the topics we discussed was booking solo cabins. If I recall correctly, he said if you are interested in a particular cruise and want to book a double cabin as a solo within six months (could have been 90 or 60 days) of the cruise, the solo supplemental could be a lot lower than the posted 100%. So, if you are interested in a particular cruise and you want a double cabin, as a solo, not the big suites, I would check with Crystal directly or your travel agent. After I got all my questions answered, I booked directly with Crystal, not as a solo, and he transferred the reservation to my travel agent for their commission. I hope this makes sense and helps you.

Hi Patty, Your description is exactly what I need. I can visualize it perfectly. Thank you! Ed

Does anyone know where the TV is located in the Aquamarine Veranda Suite, 2017 version, on deck 9 of Crystal Symphony?

I've had better luck with upgrades than I've had playing the lotto.

2025 Crystal itineraries are posted on Crystal's website.

On the old Crystal Cruises, we were upgraded from a windowed cabin to a cabin with a veranda on several occasions. The first upgrade was the first cruise right after the fire in the engine room on the Crystal Harmony in October 1990. I thought we had been upgraded because we had to be rebooked because of the fire. Then, to my surprise, we were upgraded several times, maybe 3 or 4, on the Serenity. The last upgrade on the Serenty was from a windowed cabin to a PH for each of us since we had booked as solos in April 2019. The remainder of the upgrades were from a windowed cabin to a cabin with a veranda. We were never upgraded on the Symphony.

I read your review and I'm glad to see you at least liked the potatoes with caviar. I'll be sure to look for the potatoes on our November cruise.

Good point.

That's good to hear since my cruise has been canceled and I will probably pass on rebooking. My last experience with cruise lines was with the Crystal bankruptcy and I seem to be sticking out with my choices.

Well, if that is what they are offering, that's not for me.

We are having our two-week Explora II booked cruise canceled by Explora. I looked at the available Explora 1 cruises, excluding the upcoming Caribbean cruises that we are currently booked on one of them, and there is absolutely nothing that appeals to me. If I don't see anything on Explora II's upcoming itineraries, I'll be looking at Silversea, Regent, and Seabourn, rather than rebook another Explora cruise.

Appreciate it, Roland!

Thank you, Nancy!

Thanks, Keith!

Does anyone know if the new Crystal has a once-a-cruise buffet near the Crystal Cove like the old Crystal Cruises had prior to bankruptcy?

Yeah, I didn't check the 9-day segments for passenger load. I would imagine it's not split down the middle. Explora has canceled one of my two booked cruises. I would probably cancel the other cruise except we are paid in full and would pay a penalty for the November 2023 cruise.

Wheelhouse - I just checked the current passenger load for the 18-day Hawaii cruise and here is what I got from a travel company that allows you to see what rooms are available, supposedly in real-time. I will put everything in approximations since I can't confirm the exact number, but I will assume this is correct. Explora 1 has approximately 461 cabins (suites, residences, etc.) There are currently approximately 172 booked cabins and 289 available cabins. If each booked cabin has 2 persons, the current passenger load would be approximately 344. That should leave about 289 bookable cabins left and around 578 passengers. I hope this helps.

Thank you for the update on Explora 2. The Explora 2 itineraries have changed dramatically.