lisamarieh

16 minutes ago, Gordoncruickshank said:

Once you start in suites it is difficult to go back to a regular cabin.

You are so right! We were on a 5 night cruise last month on Carnival Paradise. We normally don’t like Carnival but due to the cancellations that resulted from Cuba being removed from the itinerary, Carnival offered the cruise for $50 per person plus taxes and port charges. We jumped on it but we had an ocean view room. It was ok but we certainly missed the suites we have booked in the past. For the price though, we couldn’t turn it down!

8 minutes ago, prim8keeper said:

 

There is not at the moment. A private sundeck area will be added when Reflection has its renovation in February 2023. Currently it just has Michael's Club (lounge) and Luminae (restaurant). Equinox, which is similar to Reflection has had its renovation and has a private sun deck but it only has a hot tub and no pool due to a lack of space.

 

If you want something more like what is on MSC or NCL I would suggest looking at the Celebrity Edge. Edge is the newest ship and was built with these areas. It has The Retreat (private lounge), The Retreat Pool Deck (includes a pool/hot tub/bar and lounging areas) in addition to Luminae. While the ship is not for everyone, we thought the overall suite experience was better on Edge than the other ships. It really just depends on what you are looking for.

Thank you for your info!! The reasons I looked at Reflection are it offers 11 nights instead of 7, the 12/9/19 sailing goes to the ABC islands and our anniversary is in December. We try to do an anniversary/ Christmas cruise every year. My hubby told me I could pick whatever cruise I wanted this year so I am considering several different lines, we have only been on Celebrity once (not in a suite) and we loved it! We just appreciate getting away from the crowds for some quiet, relaxing time.

Is there a private pool or sun deck?

My husband and I are comparing several cruise lines for a last minute cruise for this December. I know that MSC and NCL have private areas for guests that pay for the Yacht Club or the Haven. Are there any areas on the Reflection that are exclusive to Suite guests besides the private restaurant? We love mingling with people but it is also nice to have an area that is less crowded and much quieter. We are looking at an 11 night cruise and I am trying to justify the cost versus the other cruise lines. 

That is exactly the route we took to get our suite on the Divina last year. We were on an 11 day cruise and the extra room was wonderful, we had a separate living room and bedroom. Our suite also came with a very large closet (not a walk in though). Our suite was on the front of the ship #10008 so we had a balcony that almost wrapped around to the front of the ship and in the bedroom there was a floor to ceiling window looking out to the front and one looking out the side. It cost us an additional $360 to upgrade from the Aurea balcony to the suite. The balcony was 192 sq. feet and the suite was 355. We had priority boarding but I am not sure if it was because we had the Aurea experience or a suite. For the price, it was a no brained for us the upgrade!!! Best cruise ever!!!

My husband and I had a table for 2 every night. There was one or two nights that we had to wait 5 or 10 minutes for one to be available but there were plenty of them. Besides, there was a bar right outside of the dining room so it wasn’t much of a bother to have a short wait!

I have read on here about people that purchased drink packages in the Fantastica experience level, being able to receive a refund when they upgraded to Aurea. I never personally did it so just speaking from what I read about. If you cannot upgraded, yes, definitely buy the drink package no later than 4 days prior to sailing. After that, you will have to purchase on board and lose the prepaid savings which I believe is the 15% service charge. The servers and bartenders prefer cash tips, IMO.

Very disappointing. We booked our cabin 2 years ago. A lot of anticipation just to see that our Aurea suite on Divina last year was by far larger and so much more luxurious. Sleep, shower, get dressed and out the door to enjoy all the rest the Yacht Club has to offer!!!

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Last year, we had a Fantastica balcony booked (B2) on the Divina. About 3 months before our sailing an Aurea balcony (B3) became available and we upgraded. Then one month before our cruise an Aurea Suite (S3) opened up and we upgraded again so yes, you most certainly can upgrade. I was told both times that they “could” charge a cancellation fee since they were cancelling my original booking and making a new reservation but they waived it both times. Just make sure if you prepaid for anything, tell them to transfer everything to your new reservation or all your prepaid stuff will disappear. Happened to us and we spent hours in guest services, even with receipts and screenshots from my bank account showing I made the purchases.

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I'm pretty sure that the door sign in the video for the suite says 18033 which is a larger, square, handicapped suite.

We are booked in 18026, which is in the other side of 18033. It is a handicapped cabin as well. The size isn’t bad but it is not a suite by any stretch of the imagination.

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I just got off of the phone with MSC. I paid off my January 20, 2018 cruise on Seaside!! Woo Hoo!! Yacht Club, here we come!! While I was on the phone with the agent, he advised me that MSC put out an email at 4:30pm today stating that the port stop in San Juan was being changed to St. Thomas for this sailing. He did not tell me when cruises to San Juan would resume. I just wanted everyone to know if you are scheduled to go to San Juan, you may want to call and find out if your itinerary has been changed.

Just be careful if you upgrade your cabin and your reservation number changes. I had pre- purchased a wine package and about a week before our cruise a more desirable cabin became available and I jumped on it. I paid the upcharge and was given a different reservation number. Thankfully, I too print everything i purchase. When we arrived in the dining room, I was told they had no record of me pre- purchasing the wine package. I showed guest services the receipt with the old reservation number and I had a screen shot of my bank account on my phone showing the amount that had been charged. 3 days later I was still going back and forth with guest services, missing out on time on the ship or ports. Finally, they asked me to pay for another package and then dispute the charge with my bank. I told them I would not do that and in the end they gave it to me but what an ordeal!!

Is there any benefit to purchasing vouchers before boarding vs. onboard?

If you pre- purchase the drink vouchers or a drink package, you save the 15% service charge that you will pay if you purchase these things onboard.

We were on the Divina in December. We went to the M&G, same friendly staff and Captain. We saw him many times over the course of our 10 days cruise. He was always talking to the guests or walking around the ship with staff. We even caught him at the bar drinking coffee or tea. Great guy!! Hope he comes over to Seaside.

Oh my gosh. I just booked last night and *assumed* that by free delivery the FOOD was free. I thought that they might be waving a delivery charge that was used to discourage ordering by folks who then leave and go to the buffet (which happens often on other lines). Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine PAYING for food service items. VERY disappointed if this is the case. :mad:

I have been on the Divina twice, once in a Fantastica balcony and once in an Aurea suite. I never paid for delivery or food. I was on the Divina in December so unless anything changed, all room service cost me was a tip.

If you are only upgrading to the premium package for the free pastries, don't bother. I had the mini cannoli. They cost 86 cents each. Very reasonable prices on all of the pastries!

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Just tried again. It says my booking number is not found. My sailing is on SEASIDE and right now MERAVIGLIA is the only ship with this capability, so perhaps your booking has to be on her for it to work.

 

 

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eroller, I believe we are on the same sailing on Seaside. I have tried and received the same messages you have.

The cannelloni on the lunch menu was my favorite!! One night at dinner, nothing was really appetizing to me so I asked the waiter if I could have the cannelloni as my dinner entree. He asked and sure enough, they made it for me!! The fried calamari and shrimp was amazing too!!

We just booked an excursion with Lamanai Belize Tours to go to the Lamanai ruins when we are in Belize in January. I found out about them from a review I read here. They are highly rated on Trip Advisor also. The cost is about $40 less per person than going through the cruiseline. Their website is lamanaibelizetours.com. I contacted them and they responded within a few hours. You pay for the tour when you arrive in the port. Hope this helps!!

Absolutely!! Also included in the Aurea experience is the spa perks. Each guest is entitled to a massage and access to the thermal spa. You also get anytime dining for dinner which is in a dedicated area on deck 5 in the Black Crab dining room. I loved anytime dining because we never waited for water or wine. Our waiter and his assistant had our wine chilling before we even arrived and kept our water glasses full at all times. You get access to the sundeck. We didn't use it much since there is only a hot tub, no pool, but it was nice that it was adult only. The unlimited drinks were great too because you don't have to worry about having a high bar bill at the end of the cruise. There are other little perks but those were my favorites!! You will enjoy no matter which you decide on!

for me, given a choice between deck one/riviera or deck two/main, I will usually choose deck one/riviera.

 

reason for that is, some times in those deck two, main deck port hole rooms you will hear noise over head in the evening during showtime and theater above. this is not a big deal for me because I am rarely back in the room before 11pm to midnight.

 

but just saying riviera deck is always my first choice. another great thing about that deck is when you reboard the ship in ports of call, you dont have to wait for an elevator, and just go up one flight of stairs and be on your deck to drop off purchases, or go back to the room to change.

Great points!! I didn't realize the theater was just above a few decks!! I need to start "exploring" this ship more!! How is the food onboard in the MDR? My husband and I have been on Royal Caribbean and weren't impressed but found the food OK. We love the food on MSC. We aren't extremely picky and I am looking forward to having a burger at Guy's and tacos at the Blue Iguana!!!

This is cabin 1216 on Glory (Riviera deck, 1):

 

 

 

 

Yes, there is a little more motion there, and an early wakeup call on port days... But they are great cabins. EM

I don't know why I thought room 1216 was on deck 2 but how crazy is it that you posted the exact room we booked!!! I guess we are on deck 1, not 2!!! That is actually a lot bigger than I thought it would be. We stayed in an inside on RC and it felt like wall to wall bed, for a 3 day booze cruise we didn't mind. This should be adequate for us for a week!! Thank you so much for the pictures!!

We just booked a porthole room on deck 2 a couple of days ago. We are trying to keep costs down since we are coming off of another cruise ship that morning and would like to save a little money. We usually do balconies for 7 day cruises. We had an inside cabin on RC once and it was so tiny. My question is has anyone ever sailed in a porthole room on deck 2 and are the rooms "roomy" feeling or do you feel confined? I have never sailed on Carnival or on such a low deck. Also, I read about the FTTF pass, it is worth the extra money for the benefits you get? I like the thought of priority boarding and the room being ready when you get on the ship, as I said we are getting off of one boat and on another so that would be convenient. What other perks do you get if you purchase the pass? Carnival virgin here so any feedback is greatly appreciated!!

You will love that suite!!! We loved sitting in the front part of the balcony when we were in ports or leaving out of ports. It is so private that it feels like you are on your own private yacht. There are 2 TV's but the channel line up is pretty limited. We rarely had time to turn them on except when we would lay down to go to bed or in the mornings before we would pull into ports to see where we were. Have a great cruise!!!

I prepaid for the massage package. There are days where they offer discounts on massages but on our cruise, the 50% off was on the last day when we were in port at Nassau. The rest of the time you will see specials of 30% off plus they add a 15% service fee because you are paying on the ship. If you are looking to save money, buy a prepaid package.