retired dude

lack of "yutes" onboard....

wc

difference between TA, trivia, and watching latex paint dry-none....

we are back on "connie" this fall for 12 days and after sailing on her several times hope for another nice cruise. Does she need a refurbishment--yes but i cant see celebrity spending the $ to do it..The ship is popular and for those of us that live near the tampa port, it is sure alot easier than getting on a plane for any other cruise..With the price increases we might not be able to do too many more cruises with this company, but with our elite benefits and booking the NON AI plan we can better afford sailings with them We have no use for wi-fi and with the the huge amounts of obc that we get, it pays for grats and a few shore excursions and several trips to the tuscan grill....We go into the cruise with an open mind and will enjoy it......we are just blessed to be able to cruise at all. wish everyone well...clearwater.

yeah if you could just get a seat!

i was blessed to have a father that opened for mr. sinatra back in the day and i hope that i kinda know good music when i hear it...that said, we have seen some good entertainment over the years on cruise ships,,, back in the day, the drifters, the platters, the coasters, charo, and the list went on...Now days the acrobats, hatchet throwers and second rate magicians are taking up way to much time in the theaters....we like the groups that they have in the lounges on rccl and celebrity and some of the production shows, but we only sail on the older ships and not the "disney-land" monster ships with 5 or 6 thousand of our closest friends....the whole thing is subjective but with the cutbacks by the companies, you know that the amount that they spend on entertainment has also suffered...just have to make the best of it. We could have to sail hal who has dropped live musicians in their production shows to save $.......we are just blessed to be able to cruise period and make the best of it....just sayin'

celebrity just announced that as of oct 4, 2023 that their AI plan will not longer include prepaid gratuities....just keeps getting better with them, less for more....nice plan if you can get away with it....now if they could put a jeff ruby restaurant onboard life would improve.

we have four cruises currently booked, two on celebrity and two on rccl...On all four we have mid-ship balcony cabins..the average fee per day for the cabin including port charges etc. was $307 for celebrity and $277 for rccl so at least for us celebrity is more expensive..Not sure that it is currently any better than rccl based on recent cuts, but we are savvy shoppers and know when and how to get bargains on cruises..still cheaper than all inclusive land based vacas...wish everyone well. just sayin'

go big blue!

when i was attending travel school the director strongly advised us to advice caribbean cruise clients to only cruise in aug, sept, and oct if they had no other options..I guess she was spot on and my neighbors here in florida for the most part have learned that lesson...just sayin,' wish everyone well.

highlight shore excursion in san juan------walgreens.

selling overpriced cruises to first time cruisers is way too easy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

thanks to those that responded...good to hear that this nice pour is still available.

tried that, did not specify,,,,,,,,thanks anyway

We will be sailing on the "connie" again this fall and have been fortunate to have seeker chardonnay as a mainstay in the bars. It is a very nice pour and in the $10-$15 a bottle retail price it is a great buy. hoping celebrity has not done away with it as their entry level chard and hope that recent celebrity passengers could let us know if it is still available. thanks much

whats that about a fool being born------------------

we have found that 6:45 reservations work(booked ahead of time on the rccl app that she keeps on her phone), without a wait most nights. only problem nights are the first night and what used to be lobster night if they still will do it in the future...

chops has amazing filets, medium rare, the goat cheese salad is superb....food in md room has dropped off just like everyone is saying and i dont look for any improvement any time soon...We love this ship as we are close to the tampa terminal, but sailing on her during the summer is a mistake..four and five day cruises are a mess..

nothing

so i am guessing that our friend jeff ruby has nothing to worry about in the way of competition from rccl.

true story of why not to wear expensive jewelry when going to the beach...We had a friend that was a flight attendant years ago and she went to party at a very famous bar in jamaica one night. She went to use the rest room and when she exited a man with a large knife explained to her that the ring she was wearing was coming off even if he had to cut the finger off to get it. It was a two carat diamond solitaire and very high end quality.....Needless to say she gave up the ring and the case was never solved nor did she get the ring back.....proof that you have to be vigilant all of the time when traveling and wearing high end jewelry when off of the ship is just foolish, you make yourself an easy target..i have a friend that owns a couple of jewelry stores in the caribbean and he too advises clients to not wear the high end stuff until you get back to the ship...just sayin'

saw it on the connie the last time we sailed on her, but i think that the "seeker" brand chardonnay helped magnify the image....life is good

we take a hard sided 12 can cooler with us and have it filled up with ice every morning. That works all day long for assorted adult beverages. As far as cleanliness, we are neat freaks and once a day is fine..life is good.

we have enjoyed sailing on this ship several times out of tampa and have found that their specialty restaurant called "chops" has the best filet mignon we have ever been blessed to eat..Main dining room, just ok, but chops is worth the $ especially if you can book a package deal for at least three night. just sayin'....B&B in clearwater.

I have often wondered why they cannot honor the elite benefit on the first night of the cruise by doing the 5-7 happy hour in the lounges...just a thought...Surely they have the necessary info from the sail pass in their bar computer system by then, as the passenger has been onboard for hours prior...Hope it is not another cost cutting thing.