NMTraveller

12 hours ago, Kordy said:

Seafood is very premium and expensive and rare in a buffet (in the real world) and so to have it on a buffet is definitely a "worthwhile" opportunity, worth taking advantage of.  Plus seafood is something that many people don't get to try out as often as chicken/pork/meat/potatoes/pasta, so this is a good opportunity to try out various seafoods, that you don't normally have access to.

 

I'm not poor or anything, but I personally, would always want to check out a seafood buffet, more so than check out a standard buffet.

 

Come on down to Vegas.  We have zillions of seafood buffets ...

14 hours ago, billc23 said:

And it is still Celebrity. I am amazed at the OVC stampede for a buffet offering that is mostly shrimp.

We had something similar on the buffet on Millie.  And yes, there was a stampede.  People must not eat for a month or two before they get on the ship 🤣  The only thing that would be more entertaining is if they had it around 10 PM when they were tipsy and stampeding 🤣

This conversation could be applied to other areas of expertise.  My financial advisor is very good.  Others would say that theirs wasn't.

2 hours ago, Iamcruzin said:

I never had a TA call me once. They didn't even call back in the day when they mailed out the boarding pass package to see if I received it. I guess they were waiting to see if I called because I didn't receive it. 

You must be hiring the wrong TAs...

Perhaps ask on your next cruise.  

11 hours ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

 

 

Yes, they do exist, but there’s a cost involved. I do this for other types of travel, but not for cruises. For most, the commission earned from a cruise booking doesn’t justify spending so many hours of labor. The agencies that typically offer discounted group rates that people are mentioning are those with high booking volumes. They usually often don’t provide any personalized service after you book. 

 

 

I totally disagree again ...  My TA would call me before I board just to check in.  She also filed insurance paperwork for a cruise that we missed due to a medical issue.

12 hours ago, bikerunner said:

Ended up with AMA River Cruises.  Our TA knows what we like and what we were looking for.  I think we were on a call with her for over 1.5  hours discussing the different ones.  We discussed all from Emerald, Viking etc.  She knows food, and service are my top priorities. My travel partner is like that also but is a vegetarian so wanted to make sure they were flexible.  What sold me finally was this on AMA   La Chaîne des Rôtisseurs.   I researched a lot of them but there was such slight differences in them.  My TA has traveled on a few of the river cruises so first hand knowledge.  Its a bucket list trip overall, Christmas Markets.in Europe. 

We sailed AMA in May and we really really like them.  They were excellent.  No comparison to Celebrity.

20 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 Ok. Here’s the run down. 
 

 

 

So Oceania wins the alcohol pricing?

Do they have packages, wine included with dinner, etc.?

9 hours ago, goofysmom99 said:

That'd make specialties for every dinner a real bargain.  

That is the best way to go anyways.  The last time I was in Aqua I was in specialty most nights.  The two tops are too close in Blu ...

8 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

That is one of the things that wouldn't work for me.    I like the tracking of my sleep and most I've read of don't last overnight...

You might look at the Ultra 2 which has longer battery life.  Or wait for the Ultra 3  - release date TBD.

1 hour ago, Iamcruzin said:

Also those here who claim to save thousands of dollars are no doubt booking suites or very long itineraries and cruise frequently. The average 7 day in a standard veranda booking will only see a small OBC or Bottle of wine. I never even got that with the agents I used. I actually came out an asked one if they were offering any incentive to transfer my booking and I was told no. I did all the work and you won't even throw me a bone. No thanks. I tried to book my upcoming sailing with my warehouse club and I couldn't even book the category I wanted which was a Prime Concierge. They told me that they were sold out. Meanwhile I'm 10 days away from sailing and both Prime Concierge and Prime Aqua are still available.  

 

 

The group rates can save you thousands.  Not in a suite for my cruises.

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

I know this is a long-standing policy, but can anybody state a good reason why Cruise Critic will not allow the mention and discussion of good cruise TA's?  Maybe have a pinned topic that CC members can contribute to?  Who would that harm?  Hopefully this post will not get removed!

Because the TAs would advertise their services on this site by posting.  If you ask me quite a bit of this is going on with the cheerleaders.

11 minutes ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

True, those are probably harder to find. They usually hone in on one product or cruise line and stick with it. I know a great Virgin and Atlas Ocean contact who probably couldn't tell you the name of a Celebrity ship. If you are low maintenance and book pretty standard cruises, a high volume TA that secures group rates early cannot be beat from a $$$ perspective. 

Nope.  Not hard to find.  And they do cover all of the cruise lines.

My worst experience was with the Big Box TA.  So I fired them.

The one that I have now is very good.

If you run into a bad mechanic do you not service your car?  No,  you find a good mechanic.  The same for TAs.

On my DWs IWatch she tripped and fell during a hike and it asked if she want to call for assistance.

2 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

I’ve looked at them -  what I like about my Fitbit is it charges in 20 minutes and last 72 hours.  That goes for quite a premium for the Ultra 2. 
 

The Series 9 might be an option.   How long does your wife’s take to charge. 
 

 

I would look at the IWatch Series 10.  It should be released in several days.  It has a bigger screen and better speaker.  My DW charges hers overnight.  Your can charge the Series 10 for 15 minutes and it will last 8 hours.  She uses her Series 9 mostly for streaming music at the gym to her Airpods.  

1 hour ago, Jim_Iain said:

Having said that I broke my Fitbit on the way to the airport.   The front came off.... maybe I can fix it but will have to wait until I get home.    I really miss it....

Perhaps consider an IWatch?  A bit bulkier, but they do a lot more...  I will likely upgrade my DWs with the latest one coming out.

You can pay the upcharge over the premium max price.

16 minutes ago, chemmo said:

I guess the reason why so many of us have regularly cruised Celebrity is that they are very good (generally) at getting that balance of relaxed and stylish without being stuffy or too casual. It is a hard balance.

I think that lately Celebrity falls into the too casual group...  They have changed.

5 hours ago, chemmo said:

I don’t know how well I have expressed what I mean but two separate sets of my friends tried Cunard earlier this year. One couple got off enthused about the cruise and the attention to detail the experience had offered. The other couple got off and described the experience as ‘too stuffy’….Jim’s narrative skills will hopefully empower us to have a ‘feel’ for what the full O experience is like….

 

 

I would stay away from the "too stuffy" crowd myself.  I like the ambience and don't want the extra noise.  I prefer a relaxed quiet vacation,  quiet MDRs, etc.  So far O is showing that.

3 hours ago, catspaw1 said:

Is that included in premium pkg?

It is an upcharge with the premium pkg.

Following along...  Oceania is looking very good so far.

1 minute ago, zitsky said:

 

I like desert wine.  Dessert wine is too sweet.

It can be, but does not have to be.  The best dessert wine I have ever tasted was the Far Niete Dolce wine.

14 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

They produce wine in all fifty states

We have a winery in Pahrump.  V Sattui was going to take it over, but they could not get their people to move ...  🙂 

21 minutes ago, zitsky said:

 

Why are you laughing?  They DO make wine in New Mexico.  I swear!

I am very familiar with it.  I have even been to their winery.  While it is a good bang for the buck wine, other regions have better grapes. In NM it was around $10 a bottle at Costco.  Gruet has the technique down, but they would do better to grow their grapes in a different region other than the desert 🙂 

Don't get dessert confused with desert 🙂 

On 9/9/2024 at 11:33 AM, sanger727 said:

A celebrity sailing will be a totally different experience than a smaller ship.  If you want the VIP treatment and are willing to accept the downsides of a smaller ship - fewer dining options, less entertainment - then that is probably the way to go.  If you want the VIP treatment and the amenities that come with a larger ship are important to you, then you would have to pay for the Celebrity suite. 

I feel that I get more of the VIP treatment on a smaller ship.  You know all of the staff by the end of the cruise.  More and better attention.  It is easier to cater to less than a thousand than to thousands of cruisers.  The food is much better on the smaller ships.  The amenities of C grade Celebrity entertainment I can do without.

22 minutes ago, zitsky said:

 

Do you know if they have Veuve Clicquot by the glass at the Sunset Bar?  Or Gruet?  🙂

They had Veuve Cliquot by the glass at the Sunset Bar as well as 4 or 5 other champagnes.  Gruet LOL.