Shorex

No reason to take a passport ashore in Mexico. I never wear nice jewelry ashore -- jewelry and passports stay locked in the stateroom safe. Pickpockets and thieves target tourists and try as I may, I look like a tourist. Over the two decades of cruising, I've heard plenty of stories about tourists (and cruise passengers are tourists) being ripped off - especially the ones wearing expensive jewelry and watches.

Some people always do - others never do (unless required by law), and never the twain shall meet. We are in the "never do" camp, but it's an individual decision.

Everyone on this board should get this trivia question right. It came up on a trivia app for my Ipad.

No. It would only alienate someone who FAILED to do due diligence and who FAILED to actually READ and UNDERSTAND the terms and conditions.

Sure. The devil is in the details, aka the terms and conditions as specified on the Crystal website. IF someone has only "activated" three of their five EI AND they receive a settlement from Moecker BEFORE activating the remaining two of their five EI from Crystal, they lose the remaining two EI. YOU have activated five EI so YOU will not lose those EI not matter what Moecker pays you, but others may not be so locked in. Keith and others have explained this numerous times. IF your five EI have been activated then whatever you may receive from Moecker becomes irrelevant to your booked Crystal cruises.

Being on Explora now I wish for a time machine. Had we assurance of a renewed Crystal by this time period, we'd be on Serenity now. I don't like to nitpick a business, it's enough to say they won't have our patronage again.

On the occasion that I recommend a particular cruise line I attempt to tailor the recommendation to the questioner. Some people always recommend the same line without fail. Given your description of preferences, I recommend Viking. No casino, no kids. Here's a youtube video to check out: All the various cruise have lots of youtube videos. Keep in mind most of them are promotional -- that's just marketing. And every cruise line has its cheer squad. And I never worry about unsolicited comments. I would just say, "because I choose to, ta ta."

Yes, count us among those. We do however, have three confirmed Crystal cruises booked for next year. Actually four considering one is B2B. We waved to the Serenity in Reykjavik the day before we boarded Explora. 🙂

Actually, Moecker does not control or influence Crystal policies in any way. Crystal management set the terms and conditions for distribution of and eligibility for the EI program. Moecker could care less about what Crystal does re the EI program. Per the Crystal website: "Will the credits I receive impact my ability to be refunded through the Insolvency process, my insurance, my credit card company or others? No, Crystal has found a solution which will run in parallel with these proceedings. The Exceptional Initiative is purely a commercial gesture from Crystal." What I didn't find on the Crystal website was clarification of the impact on one's EI after Moecker distributes whatever funds are applicable to each claimant. My TA was informed about the consequences, as was Keith's and likely other TA's who read and understood the information provided to them. The only reliable source on this subject of dissemination of the EI benefit is Crystal management. Crystal management WROTE and CONTROLS the EI policies in their entirety. And Keith got his information directly from Crystal management. Good enough for me.

Well, time will tell. However, couple of months ago, our TA explained the process to us exactly as Keith explained above and she had documentation. The debate will be moot soon. Hopefully, very soon.

Welcome to Cruise Critic. Perhaps you are unaware that it is common on Cruise Critic for someone who knows an answer to simply provide a correct answer. You may even find that multiple people will respond to the same question. It takes a while to become accustomed to the give and take that makes Cruise Critic so helpful. Happy cruising.

Once upon a time long long ago the directional sign on the promenade deck was reversed each day. Then the sign got secured so that it was always the same direction. I suspect (but do not know) that the change was based on guest comments. Since "everything" is explained on the world wide web I went sleuthing. And found this rational: https://www.runnersworld.com/training/a20786308/why-are-track-races-run-counterclockwise/ Blame it all on Rome's Circus Maximus!

Just to clarify a few things about Oceania (why not? others are), we cruised on two segments of the Oceania world cruise. Personal note: I never think of anything on any cruise line to be "free", it's either included in the fare or not. Oceania is OK for us when the itinerary, timing, and fare is acceptable for the value. We agree that there is no "nickel and diming" on Oceania. I reserve the term for the cruise lines that sell "gold" by the inch. I think we would agree that the term "all-inclusive" is just a marketing term. "The Finest Cuisine at Sea" is also just a marketing term. Note that the term is a registered trademark by Oceania with the US government. You and I know different people -- no particular reason we should know the same people. Our friends and acquaintances who cruise do not consider the ship to be merely a floating hotel. They expect more and are willing to pay for more. In addition to the charge for alcohol, Oceania does charge $18 per day per guest for gratuities, $23 per guest per day for the suites with butler service. Additionally (quoted from the Oceania website) a 20% service gratuity is automatically added to all beverage purchases, spa services and dinner at La Reserve. Naturally, guests may adjust gratuities while on board the vessel at their sole discretion. End quote. In slightly over two decades of cruising we have never reduced the expected gratuity anywhere. Wifi is included in the Oceania fare with the stipulation that only one device per stateroom can be on-line at a time. A second login can be purchased for $24.99 per day, or $34.98 per day for Wavenet Prime. Different strokes, different expectations, different analysis of value. In the end we all follow our individual preferences, we all find our own joy in cruising.

Sorry, should have edited out your username from my post. I was speaking generally, not to a specific poster. I hope and expect you will have a WONDERFUL world cruise. 🙂

Keith expresses very well what draws experienced Crystal cruisers to return. Everyone does their own cost/value analysis. The tangibles are simple: X number of dollars for a certain square footage of room, variety and number of restaurants, presence of dance hosts, bridge directors, speakers, et cetera. The intangibles are more intricate to express. Sometimes it takes more than one Crystal cruise to sense the intangibles: the welcoming and warmth of the crew, the camaraderie of the crew, the "personality" of the ship. We've cruised on Regent, Silversea, Seabourn, Viking, Azamara, Oceania, Paul Gauguin, Windstar, Explora (in several weeks) and a few others when the itinerary was right. Mostly very good experiences, but nothing matched the combination of tangibles and intangibles that Crystal provides. If Crystal isn't for you, we get it. Go cruise happily elsewhere.

There has not been a "beverage package", if there ever was one, for many years. Alcohol beverages, specialty coffees, etc. are included in the fare. Except for the very high end stuff.

And we have been on Silversea in the past year, and I also concur with Keith.

The dimensions of every stateroom are readily available on the website. We make our cruising decisions based on the whole picture. If parsing the value of a cruise by square footage results in a deal breaker for some, so be it. To each his own.

Great review! Thanks for posting. Can't wait to get back onboard.

Probably. The cruise lines I've been on do not require passport information until much later. However, if your new passport is held up until too late to cruise you will be subject to cancellation penalties. You are dependent upon government efficiency. Good luck.

I'm sorry you had that bad experience. Trust me, it was a "one-off." Nothing like that has every occurred on our many Crystal cruises. And IF it had, I'd be speaking with the Hotel Director post haste. And it would be stopped.

CELEBRATE GOOD TIMES! HERE'S TO THE FUTURE!

Of course there will be guesses and speculation. Before the Serenity was officially named, most of the guesses were related to music. After all... Harmony...then Symphony. So how about Aria, Allegro, Overture, etc. Then came "Serenity", and oh!, it all makes sense. Let the speculation commence, it's just fun to do.

Ever tried Don Julio 1942? I may bring my own to celebrate our first Crystal cruise. 😀

The airlines use Timatic, a system to verify documents at check-in. https://www.iata.org/en/services/compliance/timatic/ The agent verifies your passport, visa if necessary, and any other required document for arriving at your final destination. All docs must be in place or they won't let you board the flight. One of the posts in the other thread mentioned that it's smart to apply for the ETIAS well in advance, don't know how "well" is defined in this context. A poster also from the other thread wrote: "It will be valid for all Schengen area entries/countries. It will be valid for three years- no matter which Schengen countries and when. You’ll not be asked to provide a ‘travel plan’ when register for the ETIAS." That's second hand information, but when ETIAS rolls out, I except a flood of publicity, and all the TA's should be brought up to speed.