GaNavy

Yeah, Carnival is really good for advancing your VIFP level at the beginning of the cruise where you hit the next level mid-cruise. The others that I know of don't do that until your next cruise - I'm looking at you, Royal and Celebrity. 😎

I agree with bury me at sea about the spa areas. The thermal suite is not free, but it's the nicest I've seen, better than newer Carnival ships and better than RCL or Celebrity, and worth the money. The thalasso pool is huge and has a nice skylight. There are also free separate saunas (but not steam rooms) in the gym's men/women locker rooms.

If you like hot tubs, the ones on the Lanai are often empty, and the atmosphere is much more relaxing that the lido area.

I'm not booked until January '25 - keep the place warm for me!

On 2/19/2023 at 6:14 AM, LXA350 said:

The cruiseline is achieving yields probably never seen before hence there are no excuses anymore to delay refurbishments. Eventually there is no point to do those large investments as even the Voyager Class will start to leave the fleet starting at around 2030.

The biggest reason to delay sinking $100+ million into an EOS refit (and whatever is needed for other ship upgrades) is the billions in debt that RCL took on to...stay afloat...during the lockdown.  And by the way those passenger "yields" have in the past been overstated by RCL (and others) - they are record bookings, which don't necessarily mean a record number of folks actually getting on the ship. Bodies on the boat are what will fund the debt service and what's left over will go for upgrades. Royal isn't going to want to be borrowing money right now at current interest rates, so I suggest we all manage our expectations for these refits.. 

On 2/19/2023 at 3:02 PM, VDawgAndVan said:

 

You're saying they eliminated showers and ability to change on a Cruise ship? That's shocking 🤷‍♂️

 

I can't speak to Navigator, but none of the Quantum class ships has a locker room - no showers, no changing area, no nothing. I'm thinking that you could never get away with that at any land-based gym. And I think this is a trend, I understand that the locker room facilities on Oasis class ships are also very limited.

So likely Perfect Storm is all. Fine with me - this class of ship doesn't need anything more than new soft goods and a general nip and tuck. I loved Navigator pre-AMP, in fact before they hacked up the jogging track to add new cabins on deck 12. If I wanted all the latest razzmatazz, I'd have to sail on a ship with 6000 of my closest friends....or more (Icon)...thanks but no thanks.

Royal does well to give the guests choices. I just got off an 8-day on Enchantment OTS, an older and smaller ship that was...well...enchanting. Sure, she could use a little sprucing up, but if ya think about it, so could a lot of us guests. 😀

Hi, everyone! I just booked this last week on my cruise on Enchantment OTS. I just love TAs, this will be my 4th and cruising solo.

Anyone coming along?

6 hours ago, Deano861 said:

its a good ship,alot of room to relax 

Agree completely. Could use a little sprucing up here and there, but you could probably say that about a lot of us guests too.😆

Cruise day is tomorrow - I hope I'm not the only family on the ship (jk, I know I won't be).

Hope to meet up for a chat!

I've done 3 TA's. There will be a show in the theater every night - a few production shows and a few guest entertainers - and live music in other locations. The entertainment staff really knocks themselves out on transatlantics.

No - my understanding is that it has both.

Hi, everyone! I don't see a single post about Enchantment OTS on this forum so what the heck, just decided to see whether any of our family will be on this cruise. I'm sailing solo again.

Just got home yesterday from a TA on Celebrity Reflection so it's definitely time to get ready for the next cruise. Loved loved loved Reflection but looking forward to a smaller ship next.

Not going on this cruise but a big OH YEAH to Havana Cabana - stayed in one of them out of NYC on Horizon, now spoiled for anything else (though a balcony is a pretty good substitute).

Hope you have a great cruise!

Hi, everyone! So glad we have more here on this board. I'm solo as well, will be in Barcelona for 3 nights, arriving Friday. 

The Martini Bar it is then, or wherever else we're meeting. There's a meet-and-greet for the other Cruise Critic board for sailaway at the Sunset Bar, which will probably also be fun - Mardi Gras beads if you have them. And if you don't, I think someone there will have extras.

Counting down the days! Started packing yet?

One more time! 😀

Hey, everyone! Bumping this one up again - we've had some newcomers over on the general Roll Call board, maybe some of them - or others just booking - will come over here, too.

We only have 27 days till we sail!

On 9/12/2022 at 9:34 PM, kanadakid said:

Id tend to pick the one with complementary access to the spa/fitness center, as a great way to buff up between meals and meet like minded men. Not sure which of these three might meet your needs as Ive just sailed Carnival and NCL

This has gotten tricky. Royal's Quantum class ships not only don't have complimentary sauna/steam, they don't even have a locker room for the gym.

I've cruised solo many times, always fun, easy to meet people, and you don't have to negotiate or wait around on anyone else.

Bumping this back to the top for anyone just booking.

Only 34 days to go!

Welcome, Bas! Looking forward to our cruise and to meeting you. It can be difficult to find these LGBT roll calls, they're all over the place - glad you found this one!

On 9/7/2022 at 5:27 PM, tartantiara said:

Does this mean we won’t need any testing before we sail  ? or is it too early to know  ?

You will need a test to board the ship - see the Celebrity website - but as I understand, it can be self-proctored. There are also requirements for entry into Spain.You may also need vax and a test to get into Spain, depending on your itinerary. Check the Spain health site Spain Travel Health (spth.gob.es) and info from the US Embassy in Spain, COVID-19 Information - U.S. Embassy & Consulate in Spain and Andorra (usembassy.gov).

13 hours ago, orijdtva said:

Hey Gordon, I contacted Pied Piper Travel but because i booked through a local travel agency they said I wouldn't be able to join the group. No problem :-), we'll have fun anyway.

 

Sorry to hear that, Olaf, but yes, we'll have fun anyway and I'm sure you'll run into many in the group as it is. We always seem to find each other at some point. 👍

Olaf, if you're interested in joining the Pied Piper group, you might be able to transfer your booking from your current travel agent (or Celebrity if you booked with them) to Pied Piper. You can contact them through Pied Piper dot com. The fellow who helped me is named Derek.

25 minutes ago, orijdtva said:

Hey Gordon, how many people are joining in the Pied Piper group?

I don't know - when I asked, they told me that they wouldn't know until close to sailing date. They did say that there are enough for the group to be hosted. 

Bumping up in the queue. Come join us, folks!

On 8/19/2022 at 3:08 PM, orijdtva said:

Hey Gordon, my name is Olaf, I´m from Amsterdam and I´m on the Reflection as well, oktober 31th. It´s my first TA cruise and my first solo cruise so I am excited! 
It will be my 6th cruise with Celebrity which is my favourite cruise line and second time on the Reflection so can´t wait to board and start crossing the Atlantic.

I´m looking forward meeting new people, having fun and creating some great memories. I just booked this trip a few days ago so am in the process now of exploring everything there is to read and to get ready. 

On 8/19/2022 at 4:43 PM, elen1 said:

Hi, I will be joining you on this cruise. I am also “solo”; looking forward to joining you on this TA. from Barcelona. I love the longer cruises with several sea days to enjoy the vessel and interact with people.

 

 I booked the flight from New York to Barcelona through the cruise line, which I have never done before, for the additional insurance they will‘get me to the boat’ Anybody have an idea why the return flight on the 13th are higher than usual?

Hi, Olaf and elen1! I'm looking forward to meeting you both. This is only my second cruise with Celebrity (other was Equinox), I loved the ship and the food. Olaf, I think you'll enjoy solo cruising. It's a great way to meet new friends and on your own schedule, and TA cruises are the best. elen, not sure about airfares, I've looked at prices a little and thought Celebrity had a good price for both flights as a package, at least from where I live.

It's going to be a great time!

Greetings, everyone - Who's coming along for this one? There's a pretty active roll call on the general Celebrity forum for this cruise and a Pied Piper group on this sailing - I'm in it - so I wanted to start a roll call on our forum so that we might start getting in touch with each other.

I'm Gordon, living in Washington, DC, and traveling solo this time. I've taken lots of cruises but only one on Celebrity before now. This will be my third transatlantic - I love TA cruises, love Barcelona, and love solo cruising, too, as I can set the schedule myself - decide to do something at the drop of a hat or just hang out reading all day. I'm also looking forward to making new friends on board, these long cruises are great for that.

Whoever reads this, I hope you're doing well - really looking forward to this cruise and to hearing from others.