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debsjc

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Everything posted by debsjc

  1. Driving in The Algarve area of Portugal is fairly easy, so maybe it's just the cities that were difficult.
  2. If you want to walk around a flat area of Lisbon I recommend Belem. We took an Uber there from the ship, which took about 15 mins. It's a lovely area with gardens, monuments, a monastery, and most importantly the best pastel de nata cafe! https://lisbonlisboaportugal.com/belem-lisbon/belem-district-lisbon.html
  3. I gave them £1 a bag, especially as they were kind enough to take then straight out of the boot of the car (AB parking)
  4. On my laptop nothing worked, except BBC weather and Gmail, and even they took about 3 minutes a page to load. On my phone it was better (as obviously phones use less data)
  5. It is shown as non premium, but it not shown as still. You have even mentioned that one needs to open the bottle and but it in the fridge to remove the metallic taste,...... not realistic in the OVC! As I mentioned before the brand is not the issue It's not that the basic internet wasn't what I expected, it was about it not being fit for purpose. Celebrity have to to be transparent with what they are providing,
  6. Our neighbours this cruise had 2 very noisy children, who were allowed to shout & scream on the balcony, slam the door about 30 times a day, and run around the corridors banging on other peoples doors!
  7. Regarding the internet, i wasn't expecting to able to stream videos, just look up google maps, and tourist info websites on my laptop. I think it's below basic, if it doesn't work on a laptop at all. I understand about the plastic, that's a good point. However you have to ensure it's a reasonable product. and that water tastes awful. I preferred the water from the dispensers in the cafe. Also in Europe particularly people drink sparkling water a lot, more than still with meals, so people expect there to be an option for that. (Soda water is not the same) One solution would be for the classic beverage package to specify 'Still Filtered Bottled Water' so it's less misleading.
  8. You are right about the standard balcony cabins being small on Oceania, but everything else was so good last time we sailed with them, we didn't mind. (it may have changed now) Your experience on Seabourn definitely sounds disappointing. The production shows were very good on the Silhouette, some of the best we have seen. Also, I can confirm you just pay the extra if you order a cocktail not on the classic package, for example $1 more for a mudslide. We only had 2 sea days, on the rainy one the solarium was full very early, on the sunny one the loungers by the main pool had all gone by about 10am
  9. They did have a cook to order pasta station in the OVC which was good. I don't think there was a stir fry station though. Unless maybe they would have done it, although it said pasta on the sign above.
  10. I am really surprised you didn't have a great experience on Seabourn, I would have expected them to be excellent, but we haven't cruised with them for years. Have you tried Oceania? I agree it's getting harder to get great service on any line. We did look at Aqua, but the Persian garden on the Silhouette is small, and we weren't over keen on the Blu menus. The Sky Lounge is lovely, but often even that was totally full, and it was used for a pub quiz every evening, so not very relaxing.
  11. Thank you. I think Princess is a little better overall, and also a slightly lower price. With Princess we did not have any issues finding seating in the evening, or getting bar service. Their Medallion net internet is excellent, and complimentary room service is very good. I also like the option of paying for The Sanctuary for the occasional luxurious sea day. I would say however their MDR isn't great either, and their hot food in the buffet was not as good as Celebrity's. I would book Celebrity again, but it would be dependent on the price and the routing, and recent reviews at that time
  12. Thank you, hopefully your transatlantic may be quieter, or Celebrity may have ironed out some of these issues by then. I hope you have a wonderful cruise. I would give them another chance, price and itinerary dependent.
  13. We just returned back from the Silhouette on Saturday, on a 7 days Spain & Portugal cruise from Southampton. This was our first trip with Celebrity, and before this our current 'favourite' line was Princess (or Oceania when we want to splash out!) Our cabin was a concierge class balcony, aft on deck 11. I am going to give some hopefully constructive criticism, but I would like to say we didn't let any of the issues spoil our vacation, and we still had a good time made the most of the cruise. Good Points 1- The appearance of the ship throughout was stunning, stylish decor and spotlessly clean 2- We were very happy with our balcony stateroom, and our stateroom attendant was great. The isn't a lot we ask for, but we were very happy to have ice refreshed twice a day. 3- Oceanview cafe - We ate here for every breakfast and lunch, and 5 x dinners. The food is excellent, mostly a good choice, and the hot items are actually kept hot which we appreciated. Enjoyed the themed evenings, such as Italian and Spanish... but would just have a liked a little more choice for evening meal, maybe a made to order stir fry station. Having the ice cream station was great. 4- Embarkation and Disembarkation were very smooth and well organised. 5- The majority of the crew were very friendly. 6- Entertainment - Great production shows, and a lot of good singers and musicians playing around the ship. Disappointing 1 - The bar service was awful in some areas. Trying to get a drink by the pool was the worst, we sat by the pool for 3 hours without seeing 1 waiter, and there was only 1 barman on duty at the pool bar with long lines. In the evening, if you could get a table in a bar the service was fine, but going up to a bar usually involved a long wait again. It seemed like with so many people on packages, they did not have the crew to cope with the demand. We are not big drinkers, about 3 drinks a day, but it was such a battle it became annoying. I did try and address this on board, as I was contacted after I wrote on the comments form, however nothing actually changed. 2- Evening seating in the bars - there is just no where near enough seats, several times we walked from bar to bar just trying to find a table with no luck at all. Every bar had people standing around looking for seats. There was space for a lot more tables, not sure why this wasn't been utilised, if we could see there was a problem the crew should be able to. We spoke to several people who were going back to their cabins as they gave up trying to find a spot. 3- Dining room - Long lines to get in, even if you had a reservation on anytime dining. Once inside the service was slow, with no checkbacks from the wait staff. The first night the food was cold, which did improve the second night. But due to slow service we gave up and ate in the cafe. If you don't mind spending 2 hours over a mediocre meal then you will be fine. 4- Classic drinks package - If you say the package includes 'bottled water' then it needs to do that. A brand of still mineral water, and a brand of sparkling mineral water (any brand) Filtered metallic tasting water is not acceptable. 5- WiFi - Basic package just about works on a phone to load emails, but if you want to use a laptop it's terrible. I'm sure I have probably upset some Celebrity regulars, but I can only report it as we found it. This sailing was full, and the facilities seemed stretched. For me Celebrity is at a medium-high price point, and this should be reflected in the service. I felt the crew spent a lot of time on board telling everyone how amazing Celebrity are, but weren't actually prepared to make any changes to achieve that level
  14. The ship was full, and there was always lines for dinner, so unless it was allow more time for people to finish dinner before the late show. Or maybe it was adjusted for the European market, but to be honest we would have much preferred 9pm. This daily was a Illusion show, but the production shows were all the same time, 7pm and 9.30pm
  15. Good point! I just got back yesterday, so i've edited my signature now. I'll write a mini review when I get time.
  16. I don't know Bar, but we stayed in Budva last year, and I would recommend visiting the city. It's really beautiful, with lots of history.
  17. The shows on the Silhouette were 7pm and 9.30pm, lasting about 50-55 mins, no reservations required.
  18. We are just off the Silhouette at Southampton, and there was a slight priority for Concierge. I had managed to select 11.30 boarding on the app, but actually we arrived at the terminal at 11.00am and were checked straight in and placed in a separate boarding area for Concierge Class. All Concierge class were then invited to board about 11.10am, after suites but before Aqua. Our cabin was also ready straight away. Disembarkation today, we had group 19, However once they got to group 16, we were told all Concierge passengers could disembark if they wished, as our baggage was all out. We were impressed with the ease of embarkation and disembarkation.
  19. Not sure about Royal, because I haven't cruised with them for a while..... but I can tell you Celebrity isn't better than Princess!
  20. Thanks so much for the info
  21. We both have the basic Wi-fi as part of our 'All Included' Package (sharing a Concierge cabin) Can I just check that means we will each be able to use a device at the same time? Also will I be able to sign out of my phone, and sign into wifi on my laptop? Thanks
  22. Is Go Green 1 point per night of the cruise? We are in Concierge if it makes any difference
  23. Are there bathrooms available for people to use? never been to this terminal, the Princess one has plenty of indoor seating & facilities.
  24. Split is probably my favourite European city, and i've been to a few! To be honest I'm not a huge history buff, but I love the atmosphere of Split. The way the palace ruins actually form part of the old town, the waterfront area with the gelato cafes, and the views from Marjan hill. It seems even more magical after dark, where often there is free musical entertainment outside around the palace area. I was lucky enough to stay a night in the old town, before taking a small boat (36 people) cruise for a week from Split to Dubrovnik, stopping at many beautiful Croatian islands.
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