RK-NC

Thank you all - such a relief to know. I read another thread about disembarkation in New York and we think it will be best to self-assist (that is what Celebrity calls it). We did that in Port Everglades and were on our way out of Ft. Lauderdale at 7:30am (drove to the port) Had to get moving early and have a quick breakfast but it was worth it!

Rebel moved over to Beyond after your sailing I guess! LOVED them - they did 2 shows and we were blown away!

Catching up on your live report - we were on Beyond 4/12-22 and saw this same thing. We would always count seats if we went into a row to make sure we left an even number. We also saw some seat saving. The majority of people we met were kind and considerate. I don't think we met a single crew member that was unkind or unfriendly which made a huge impression on us.

Will we disembark in Southampton after the eastbound crossing? Go through immigration? Thank you! We just returned from a Southern Caribbean cruise from Port Everglades where they use facial recognition and disembarkation was very easy.

Thank you for this question! We just talked about it and day 8 in St. Kitts is our #1 favorite memory. (see post #51 for a recap) St. Kitts is a beautiful island and we really enjoyed Mr. Thenford Grey of Grey's Island Tours. We left our hearts in St. Kitts and hope to return one day. #2 favorite was day 6 Barbados (post #34) We originally planned to stay on the ship and so glad we didn't! The walk into town was so nice and the rest of the day was relaxing.

We kept our ears open for info on Capt Kate's schedule but never heard anything. Yesterday was day 96 of The Captain's Log on YouTube. I'm wondering if she wanted to make it a full 100 days? That would mean this week's cruise would be the last one before her vacation. Thanks for following along with me @Arzeena

Just off Beyond on Monday April 22 in a sky suite. We booked it for the room design and extra space. Ended up not eating very often at Luminae and spent a limited amount of time on the Retreat sundeck and lounge. It was definitely a perk to eat lunch at Luminae on embarkation day plus priority embark/disembark but other than that, we would have been just fine in IV.

OK, here we go with the rest of the day. I pulled myself together, got a second iced coffee to-go and we headed over to the theater for the Beyond the Podium presentation on strange sea creatures. We went to every BTP talk by Caleb Crawford - he was awesome!! Following that was Captain Kate's Ocean's Ahead presentation with Q&A at the end. I originally planned to submit a question about the creaking and banging situation but ultimately decided that was better addressed through the survey that everyone receives after the cruise. (Already did it 😉) So, remember that note to the Captain I typed up at 3am? I quickly wrote it out and took it to the table where they were handing out paper/pencil and collecting questions. I was the first one in the "collection can" and I think I scared the activities staff when they saw how long it was! We really enjoyed Captain Kate's presentation and left just hoping they didn't throw away the unanswered questions/notes. Next up, packing. Let's just skip over that 🙁 In between packing sessions, we went to the Extravaganza Buffet for lunch. Wiwid had urged us to get there early because he said by 2pm it would all be a mess! Shrimp were great (though not very photogenic) Desserts were beautiful but I won't share a spoiler photo 😉 At 3pm we went to Caleb's last presentation on coral reefs where he showed video of his snorkeling "finds" while on our cruise! 😎 "Dinner" was at the Retreat Lounge afternoon bites - so relaxing and plenty to call a meal - then off to the last production show Arte (incredible!!) We returned to our stateroom to find this on the bed. We first thought it was a note from Butler Thad or Sheldon, room attendant until I opened it and found it was from the Captain! She thanked us for taking the time to write the note earlier. Her last words were "As my Mum would say, "no act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted."" And that is what I leave you with and what I will be thinking about for the rest of my life. It's cliche but this cruise was life changing for us.

OK, here we go! A little recap of our last day (day 10, sea day). We got up around 8am and did 8 laps on the track. Wonderful weather - I bet the pool deck was packed all day! First stop after that was OVC to pick up some yogurt which we carried over to The Spa Cafe. (There are smoothies at the cafe but no yogurt) I had a zucchini muffin with my yogurt and DH had an avocado toast which he really enjoyed! Next up, Cafe Al Bacio for coffee and pastries. DH took the photo of me above just before "the special story" began. We were sitting there enjoying the view and the coffee (I LOVED the iced Americano and the glass they served it in) I had a chocolate croissant which was flaking all over the floor and I remarked to DH that I felt bad about making a mess. A few minutes later, Francine from Guyana shows up with her broom and dustpan. I said to her "do these pastries drive you nuts?" She said "no, not at all" and proceeded to tell us about WAYS (World At Your Service) which is a Celebrity "philosophy/training series/marketing" (I found a cool video about it on the Celebrity Facebook page) I thanked her for cleaning up my mess and tears started streaming because I had been up at 3am typing a note to send to Captain Kate praising the crew of Beyond. I was just feeling very emotional. We chatted with Francine for a while and found out she is returning home to stay in May or June (I can't remember exactly now) because she had been away from her partner too long and they needed to nurture their relationship. I don't know if it's coming through, but the whole exchange was just so special to us. If you are on a future Beyond cruise, please look for Francine! Also, Constance (she was in the ladies room near the theater at show times helping "direct traffic" They are unsung heroes to me.

Crossing fingers and sending up a little prayer for you. Something we've been thinking about....wonder what kind of noise issues the crew quarters deal with?? I so hope it's not an issue for them - they are so hard working. They need every minute of sleep!

Yes, I thought so too! We got a photo with her - I look like a whale beside her 😳 Enjoy the rest of your cruise!!

Good morning from the Old North State, home sweet home! I'm laughing because I called this a "quick live report" and it has turned into a slow report and probably more long winded than you bargained for! Hang in there, as soon as I get some coffee, I'm going to finish up. DH said, well, I guess I have to make the coffee today. No Al Bacio 🙁

We've made it to North Carolina - should be home sweet home around 5pm! We stopped for lunch in Florence, SC at 1720 Burger Bar and highly recommend it 🍔🍔 I never had a burger on the cruise so I was craving one. DH had the Luminae signature burger for lunch one day - he said it was good but needed more onion jam and sauce. Look who was hanging out in the back at the restrooms! 😎

OH WOW, this is interesting! We just left Beyond yesterday morning in 9168 sky suite. It was a snap, crackle, popping, creaking, bowling ball rolling and jumping under the bed experience. We had it 5 out of 10 nights when we were in moderate seas (2-3 meters). The smooth sailing days, there was no noise. We had a great cruise (I'm still working on a live thread) but we will not sail Beyond again nor Ascent or Xcel.

On the road again, just can't wait to get...on the road again! Well, we've had another change of plan. After that delicious dinner and gorgeous sunset in St. Simons last night, we just decided we wanted to get home so we got up, packed up and hit the road about 8am. First stop - Chic-fil-A - our go-to fast food when traveling. We have rarely had a bad CFA experience but today we had an AMAZING service experience with the kindest, sweetest lady named Olga at the Brunswick, GA (Golden Isles Parkway) store. Remember how I said "people connection" on post #71? I'm going to get better at it - it's something we've forgotten how to do, I think. (the pandemic didn't help ☹️)