IslaSarah

No menus in mine. Cruise isn't until March, but previously I'd been able to see menus.

42 minutes ago, Cruise Gopher said:

Did you make any changes to your booking such as re-pricing a reservation?

Nope, no changes at all! 

For my next cruise in March 2024, I had cruise line OBC in my planner that I used to buy specialty dining and a shore excursion when there was a recent sale. I just got an email from Celebrity that says "Balance due for cruise purchases. Due to a recent change to your cruise reservation, some purchases made with onboard credit are no longer paid in full. Please pay by the due date to avoid cancellation of balance-due purchases. Pay by phone by October 22, 2023." 
 

It totally smells of phishing scam, but the phone number is the Celebrity reservations line, and the price listed in the email matches one of the purchases, so it seems legit in that it is actually from Celebrity. They can't just change prices on me after I've purchased, can they? I hate the phone but will suck it up and call them, but want to be prepared to argue my case. 

Anybody else had this happen? 

I was on the Reflection for the Dec 26th 2021 New Year's and the Dec 23rd 2022 Christmas sailings (married to a teacher so that's when we can travel). The 2021 cruise was ~70% full, which was amazing, but also short-staffed due to many crew in Covid isolation. This past Christmas I believe the passenger count was 3750ish (so at 123% capacity based on the Celebrity website saying occupancy is 3046), with over 400 kids on board. It was packed and the crew were clearly working really hard. The fact that there were lots of kids was evident, but I think I felt that more because there was a very loud family with multiple kids in the cabin next door (seriously, who lets their kid blow a whistle at all hours of the night in a shared-wall situation??). I might think twice before booking another holiday cruise, but really am more likely to just be careful picking my cabin to try to avoid having a 4-5 person cabin next door.
 

The ship was nicely decorated, there was holiday music playing instead of generic muzak in the buffet and other spaces, the captain and officers led a carol sing in the atrium Christmas Eve night, and one of the theater shows was holiday-themed. On the NYE cruise, they did a big pool-deck party to ring in the new year twice, since we changed clocks that night!

Have a great cruise! I sailed on the Reflection over the holidays the last two years and greatly enjoyed the ship!

I disembarked the Ruby today in Galveston. 

Water and soda: yes. The guy ahead of me ran two 12-packs of soda through the the security scanner and carried one in each hand as his carry-ons.

Embarkation lunch: Yes, I think it was the DiVinci restaurant but not 100% sure about this. They were open until 1:30 and I think continued seating people a bit later.

Disembarkation was on both 6 and 7, I think we came in on 7 too.

Shows/activities: These are relative. I'm a big fan of the "game shows" that they held in the Explorers Lounge at 8:30 each night. I wasn't enamored with the production shows, but your tastes may vary. One night there was a guest singer, Dana Monique, who was excellent!

I'm glad to hear it's not all doom and gloom! I was on the Reflection 12/23-31 just before some of the cuts and it's been making me sad to think that quality was decreasing.

Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

On Reflection December 23rd sailing, completely full capacity ship:

1.Are any of the cruise staff ie cabin stewards restaurant staff wearing masks? 

A handful, maybe 15%. I wondered, but didn't ask anyone, if it was personal choice or a requirement if they'd had a close contact or had just joined the ship.

2. Approximate percentage of guests who may be wearing masks.

Maybe 20% in certain crowded settings. My husband and I did, and I did not feel that we were treated any differently. There were some elevator rides with people packed in and we were the only ones with masks, others where everyone was wearing one. And there were crew who remembered me by name even when I had a mask on whenever I saw them!

3.If you have been on a cruise and there was a covid outbreak in the last month was the ship transparent about it? 

There were no notifications about covid numbers or other info. This compared to the same ship over New Years the previous 2021/2022 when the captain gave updates about numbers during daily announcements.

I tested positive for Covid 7 days after disembarkation and flying home. I'll never know if I picked it up on the ship or at work once I was home. It's so prevalent, along with flu and RSV, that it's safe to assume that if you're in a group of people, some of them are carrying viruses.

The newer procedure is that you drop your checked luggage with porter (they also have blank luggage tags if you can't print your own in advance), then go through a quick security line with x-ray scanner, then get in a short (1-2 parties of people) line to check in. The worker scans your Xpress Pass from the app on your phone or that you printed out, scans your passport, and takes your photo if you didn't already upload it. Then you're good to board. On 12/23, 11:30-12:00 boarding time, with a full sailing on the Reflection it was maybe 15 minutes from dropping bags to on board.

As soon as you're aboard, you go to your stateroom. Your seapass cards will be waiting in an envelope in the mail slot by the cabin number. Boarding after 1:00, your room will most likely be ready, but some may still have magnets on the door indicating that they are still preparing. Either way you can drop off carryon items and are on your cruise!

You need to complete the safety info by watching a couple of quick videos in the app, and stop by your muster station within the first few hours. They just scan your card and repeat the points about going there if there is an emergency signal. Much easier than the old-school muster drill approach.

1 hour ago, Tigerfnan23 said:

 

I understand Aqua class guests are carried about in palanquins so that their feet never have to touch any areas frequented by the common class.  Can you please confirm this upon your return? 

I beg to differ. I believe if you're Aqua Class you walk on water.

2 hours ago, mahdnc said:

Celebrity will need to add an onboard therapist(s).  I am going to need it.

That will be $900 an hour, plus 20% gratuity. If you're lucky you can get 15% off on port days. 

I had lobster on Thursday on the Reflection and had to decline a second plate multiple times!

We had 3600 pax last week! Last year we were on the Dec 26th sailing on Reflection and still in Covid recovery mode, and it was only about 65% full; I could definitely feel the difference. There were a LOT of kids this time!

I'm also curious what cabin in you're in, since your view looks awfully familiar. I was in 1044 last week (and a similar angled balcony 7026 a year ago). 🙂

They aren't going to kick you out of the cabin you booked and paid for.

AFAIK the only cabins with an occupancy requirement are the Family Veranda cabins that aren't open to be booked by parties of fewer than 5 until close to the sailing date. 

On 12/31/2022 at 4:46 PM, CaroleSS said:

Just to give you a clue, our 8 night cruise has 9 nights worth of menus!

And my 8 night cruise Dec 23-31 only showed 7 days of menus until the day I boarded! I didn't notice changes after the first night. I think what you see correlates to the current sailing of that ship rather than what the menus will be during your specific sailing. 

You can look up other ships and sailings. I have a friend who loves to read menus and I gave her instructions to follow along so I didn't need to send her screenshots about what I was eating every day! LOL

I disembarked yesterday as you were boarding. I'm glad to be home, but sure am missing the food and service here at home! 

Hope you're having a great vacation!

Any suggestions for a restaurant for lunch, preferably with fresh seafood? Walkable or an easy taxi from the cruise port. Our tour got canceled so we’re winging it tomorrow. 
Thanks, and happy holidays!

2 hours ago, gold1953 said:

Do you have insurance that will pay the laundry charges?

I do have insurance and am hoping they’ll cover it. Also made a report with the airline but doubt they’ll do anything. 

Boarding the Reflection tomorrow. Just arrived in FLL, 14 hours into travel due to trying less than optimal flights that got us out before the big storm in the Midwest. Our luggage made it and AirTags were great to know where it was along the way. However, I’m pretty sure it spent 4 hours in the pouring rain at DCA. Some clothes are soaked, most are damp, and everything already smells musty. 
 

I know Celebrity doesn’t have self-serve laundry options, and I’ve never sent anything out for cleaning. Do they offer any package options since we need 8 days of two people's clothes washed? On a previous HAL cruise we paid up front for an all-the-laundry-you-want package that was great. 
 

Also, this is my first time in Concierge, can they help handle getting this dealt with tomorrow?

Not a great start to the trip, but clothes can wash and we’re on vacation so it could be worse!

2 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

My understanding the lines you are speaking of RCL and Carnival are testing new menus.   Neither charger for Lobster.   RCL is testing extra up charges for a second entree of Steak and or Lobster.   Carnival implemented a surcharge on 3rd or 4th entree.

 

Celebrity still serves Lobster an usually asks if you want a second.  

1 hour ago, bjahil47 said:

Referring to two main courses.  We were on Equinox in November and we were not charged.  Good to know for the future!

As Jim_Iain said, this seems to be something RCL is testing, but has not been reported on Celebrity at all. 

27 minutes ago, HSBC said:

(1)  Can I use OBC to pre-book shore excursion (my cruise is about one year later) ?

 

(2)  I booked my cruise through big warehouse agency, can I book shore excursion by myself through Celebrity website? 

 

Thanks!

1) It depends on the source of the credit and whether it's showing up in your cruise planner. Usually if it's from Celebrity it is available in advance. You can log in to see if it's listed. OBC from your travel agent may not be available until you board the ship.

2) Yes, you can book your own shore excursions on the Celebrity site even if you booked through an agent. 

Thanks so much for sharing all the photos! I board on the 23rd, after having been on last year's New Year's sailing, and can't wait!

Besides locking my wallet with passport, credit cards, and cash in the safe, I don't really worry about my phone, ipad, or camera being out charging in the cabin.

I've sometimes wondered if I should be more careful, when walking down the hallway where multiple room doors are propped open for cleaning. It would be pretty easy for someone to pop in for just a second to grab what's out in the open on the desk. 

OBC from Celebrity will show up in your Cruise Planner on the website. OBC from your travel agent usually isn't available until you're on board.

I swear they're doing this so all of us non-gamblers think "maybe I should throw some money in a slot machine and hope to win a free cruise even if I lose my money"!