Sundiego

27 minutes ago, NW Pacific said:

Curious how many passengers coming home with Covid after cruising in last 30 days or there abouts?  We did along with many others on Alaska Cruise, Bliss, departing Sept. 10th.  thankfully very mild.  Fully vaxed and boosted.

We were on the cruise with you and probably have posted together in "the other group". I tested positive the night before we disembarked. So that was Sept 16 and even though the symptoms were mild, I'm still REALLY TIRED. Since we all had to test negative to cruise in Canadian waters, it really was amazing how many of us tested positive!

Denise

My husband had a few Whistle Pigs on the Bliss and it's his new favorite. Headed out on the Escape transatlantic Nov 1st, might be expensive lol. My question, he paid a $25 upcharge for the Whistle Pig. Does anyone know which Whistle Pig that would have been? I went to their website and see it starts with the Piggy Back 6 year and goes up from there.

Thanks!

Denise

7 hours ago, steamboats said:

 

Denise,

 

Greece has dropped the tests for cruise ship passenger on September 24th, 2022. Therefore Celebrity does not require tests anymore for cruises having a Greek port. But Celebrity still requires a test for cruises longer than 9 nights (which a TA is).

 

NCL is dropping this requirement by tomorrow. But NCL still has a testing requirement for Greece.

 

steamboats

Thank you! Makes sense.

Denise

23 hours ago, HBDave said:

HI, I'll be going on a Transatlantic Sailing leaving from Rome at the end of October. The Cruise Line requires a Supervised Antigen COVID Test be done 48 hours before boarding. I'll be in Rome for 5 days prior to the cruise. Can I get the test completed at a local Pharmacy and will the results be printed in both English and Italian? Since l only speak English, will that be an issue at the Pharmacy? Thank You for any first-hand information you can provide. 

We are also on a transatlantic (NCL not Celebrity) November 1st with 5 days pre-cruise in Rome.  I am curious if Celebrity still has the antigen test rule in place for all cruises? I noticed that you are not going to Greece, so I am curious what about your particular cruise requires the test. Many thanks!

Denise

8 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Essentially yes, it covers the meal, but not drinks.

 

At restaurants with a cover charge (flat fee for dinner) (Teppanyaki, Moderno), the dining credit covers the cost of flat fee. Drinks are additional (unless you also have the drinks package whereby your drink cost are covered by that promotion). 

 

In a la carte restaurants, the dining credit will cover multiple appetizers, one entrée, multiple side dishes, and multiple desserts...

 

Bird, I would like to sincerely thank you for your many contributions to this forum. We're back to NCL after the long "covid break" and I can't tell you how helpful you've been, patiently sharing your knowledge again and again. This dining question gets asked in various forms over and over (by me included) and you always take the time to explain. You never get snarky or tell posters to search. Thank you for your kindness.

~Denise

2 hours ago, marazul said:

Try Rome Cabs. It was only 50 euros.

Thanks. I did check them and see $65 euros so curious how long ago you used their service. Thank you!

Denise

I love all these suggestions and am printing out this thread and taking it to Rome 🙂

About the airport pickup, I had emailed Albergo del Senato and they can arrange for a car. Price is 65 euro for 2 people. Is this the best solution or should I do something else? I'm not concerned about the 65 euro necessarily, just trying to opt for the path of least resistance.

Thanks to you all!

Denise

21 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

What time is your hotel check-in?  Keep in mind that it will likely take you an hour to get through passport control and claim your luggage at FCO, then another 40 minutes or so for the drive from the airport into Rome. That's already putting you close to 11:00 am.

 

Most hotels will hold your bags until check-in. I'd just go to the hotel, leave my bags, and walk around the center (I assume that's what you mean by "downtown").  Just being outside and walking around will help with the jet lag, even if you didn't sleep much. It's easy to find a pleasant piazza to sit in and have a coffee and cornetto, or maybe lunch. Depending on where your hotel is, you could walk by Trevi Fountain, visit the Pantheon (free), see the fountains in Piazza Navona, etc.  

 

By the time you're done, it will likely be check-in time.

 

Thanks Cruisemom!! We are staying by the Pantheon (Albergo del Senato). 

We are spending 5 days in Rome pre-cruise arriving October 27. I was going to book a private driver through our hotel from FCO to downtown Rome but the hotel is fully booked so I'm sure there is no chance of early check-in. I need suggestions for occupying 2 tired travelers for a 4 or 5 hours! I was thinking maybe Rome In Limo or Rome Cabs for a small tour? We've been to Rome before so I'm not interested in the "big sites". 

Appreciate any ideas, thanks!!

~Denise

Everything else being equal, we avoid connecting cabins. Had a guarantee balcony on RCL once and got assigned a connecting balcony. We could hear the neighbors arguing constantly through the "common door".  After that fiasco, I carefully handpick every cabin lol. I would never rely on a TA or PCC to choose for me. Choosing our cabin is half the fun of cruise planning 🙂

Denise

19 hours ago, GaryWT said:

All I know is they call your stateroom once or twice everyday bothering you while on vacation.  Pain in the butts.  

They never called us! But when checking our onboard account via the TV screen, I did notice they left about 4 messages per day, all saying pretty much the same thing 🙄

10 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

The balcony in 17128/17728 is a bit wider than standard.

 

 

Thank you for the pic!!

~Denise

10 minutes ago, Karaboudjan said:

 

What public area are you thinking of?  You are separated from the stairwell/elevator area by a door, and from the Haven lounge by the corridor and another wall.  The only issue particular to that cabin that I can see might be hearing the door to the corridor opening and closing. 

I wasn't concerned about noise from within the Haven. From the deck plan, it looked like the public sundeck comes all the way to the balcony. And down from that is Waves Pool Bar, etc. But apparently that isn't a concern.

~Denise

Just off the Bliss and they did have two rows roped off for Sapphire and above for both Six and Jersey Boys. There was an NCL rep "standing guard" and she lifted the rope about 10 minutes before show time. It was on the right side of the theatre, maybe 15 rows from the front.

~Denise

Our cruise price has come way down after final payment so we decided to upgrade to Haven (not the bidding, just upgraded outright). It's category HF, the regular balcony inside the Haven area. There were only 2 cabins left. Our preferred deck would be 17 by the lounge and courtyard. But the only cabin left was 17128. It didn't appeal to us because it was adjacent to public areas. So we chose deck 18.

So my question - are we correct that 17128 is not that great of a cabin choice? Maybe it's good because it's only flanked by one other balcony. Opinions needed. Thanks!!

Thanks!

Denise

29 minutes ago, MsTabbyKats said:

I like to book directly because if there's an issue, I don't want to wait for the TA to get involved.  My obc is never that much...and it's worth it to me.  I've had TAs respond too slowly to get price reductions etc.

This. But, I admit we just got off the Bliss and I booked through a TA. And we're booked on the Escape Transatlantic through a TA (free gratuities and OBC). But I'm such a control freak so it is hard for me to go through a TA sometimes. I really have to weigh the pros and cons. Don't do it unless you really understand the pricing and are going through a TA you know and/or trust.

Denise

40 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

Everything you mention is part of their role in running the on-ship Latitudes frequent cruiser program.

 

Upper tier Latitudes members are entitled to onboard benefits which are administered by the Cruise Next department. For example, you would go to the Cruise Next desk on embarkation day to sign up for your free behind the scenes tour,  dinner with the officers, wine tasting, and mixology class. Cruise Next representatives actually run the behind the scenes tour to the galley, laundry, theater and sometimes provisions and environmental areas (depending on ship) versus ShoreEx who run the paid tours. Cruise Next is also the place you go if you have a problem with any of your Latitudes benefits like the ones you mentioned for upper tier members (free bottles of water, free specialty dining vouchers, free laundry vouchers, free choco strawberries) . 

Thank you Bird! We are platinum and I had no idea they are a resource.

1 hour ago, The Traveling Man said:

A major portion of their duties relate to serving as travel agents on board.  Future cruises booked by Cruise Next staff while you currently are on board have a distinct price advantage.  You can pay for the cheapest room in a category, Balcony for example, but be assigned the most costly stateroom in that category.  That advantage keeps the staff busy booking new cruises for passengers.  The staff also coordinates and facilitates many of the benefits afforded to Latitudes members who have reached certain levels of membership.  These include conducting Behind the Scenes tours, hosting the Latitudes cocktail party, arranging the wine tastings, etc.

Have you actually experienced this first hand? I am wondering how that would even work for Club Balcony or Haven which is what we typically book.

~Denise

We're also on this Escape transatlantic sailing Nov 1. I'm bumping this hoping to hear at least one positive experience lol. 

~Denise

This is one of those "unimportant, just because I'm curious" questions!

I've been reading different threads where posters have mentioned reaching out to the CruiseNext staff for help with specialty dining coupons, water for stateroom and other things not related to future cruises. I thought they only handled selling the CruiseNext deposits along with general info on future sailings. So are they responsible for things beyond future cruise sailings?

~Denise

8 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

If you want things to move quickly and avoid the potential of a wait or line I would just book another Carmel or Dial 7. If not saving $10 isn't a big deal they will be much more predictable than a taxi will be. 

Thank you! This is exactly the feedback I was looking for!!

~Denise

I have a question about transportation from Manhattan cruise ship terminal to JFK for our 1:20pm flight. Ship arrives on a Thursday morning.

Last time, we did Carmel Limo (but to LaGuardia). It was easy. This time around, I'm seeing one-price taxis for less money. Are taxis plentiful at the port? I'm not so much concerned about saving $10, it's more a matter of simply grabbing a taxi vs being on the lookout for a specific car service driver. The taxi feels easier to me. Any advice appreciated!

~Denise

Another tip, if you have any restaurant tweaking to do, call 050 as soon as you board for restaurant reservations.

Denise 

We are on the Bliss right now. We were surprised to learn that  reservations are not available for Six or Jersey Boys. We saw Six the other night and seating was plentiful ten minutes before show time and quickly filled to capacity. Comedy shows in the small venue do require reservations which you can book at Bliss theatre box office. I have the full entertainment schedule and will post it shortly.

Denise