Wineart

Thank you all for the input. I usually do private tours, but was looking at the Oceania excursions because of the OBC offer.

I'd like to make sure I understand how the special offers work before booking a cruise. I have a choice of 8 shore excursions, beverage package, or $800 shipboard credit. My husband and I don't drink, so that eliminates the beverage package. We're really only interested in 3 shore excursions, but two out of the 3 have OC as part of the description, so my understanding is that they cannot be included as part of the 8 free shore excursions. That leaves the shipboard credit. However, if we prebook shore excursions before embarkation, then my understanding is that we have to pay for them in advance, so under that scenario it doesn't appear that we can use the shipboard credit for the shore excursions. So it seems to me that the only thing we can probably use the shipboard credit for is gratuities, which would leave a lot of unused shipboard credit. Is there any other way to do this other than waiting to book shore excursions on board?

Does anyone have any later information on Harvest Caye? All I can find is an opening date of November, but it's already been delayed since January. The reason I'm asking is that I read somewhere that if Harvest Caye is delayed again, then Belize City will be substituted. I'm looking at either a January or February 2017 cruise (primary interest is Mayan ruins). The January date is better for me, but the port is Harvest Caye. The February date specifically has Belize City, but the dates are an issue for me. I'm not much of a gambler, so would probably go with February even though the dates aren't as good, unless there is news that Harvest Caye has been delayed again.

Since we are still in the working class, shorter itineraries get our vote also. On my wish list, I would love a cruise that includes Easter Island (although I'm sure the last thing the islanders would want is a cruise ship pulling into port):)

According to posts on the Bermuda board, Bermuda has changed its mind on the new transportation policy. You may want to check the Bermuda board for more information.

We've sailed in Aqua several times, but were not as happy with the food in Blu the past 2 trips. We've decided if we sail Celebrity again, we would do a veranda and eat in the specialty restaurants.

I used Sandy Kuttler for a full week in Israel last year, and he was excellent. He's a licensed tour guide, and was born in Teaneck, NJ so his English is excellent. His website is http://www.israelwithsandy.com and his email is sandy_k@sarid.org.il.

You may want to post this on the river cruise board.

We disembarked the Silhouette on Jan 24 also, and it was the worst disembarkation we've ever experienced in Port Everglades. Our group was called about 40 minutes late, we waited about an hour outside in the cold, and once inside, the line moved very slowly. Thankfully we have Global Entry, which cut down our inside wait time tremendously because once we had our luggage, we were able to bypass the regular line.

We were on Silhouette in January, and paid $30-$35 for Qsine, Murano, and the Lawn Club when we asked if they were doing any specials. I would not have paid full price.

I personally will not shop at any of the stores recommended by the cruiseline because I've found their pricing to be high. There is a store at the far end of Front St called Shiva. I have been buying from them for at least 20 years, and have always been pleased with the quality and price. I've made many purchases from them, and it's the only jewelry store in the Caribbean that I will buy from. They have a second location in Aruba, but I have only shopped at the St. Maarten store.

We've sailed in AQ about 4-5 times, and just got back a week ago from another trip on Slhouette. We really didn't enjoy the menus in Blu this time, and ended up eating at specialty restaurants 3 nights out of 7. I think that for future cruises, we'll do a regular balcony.

We have taken many cruises on both Celebrity and Princess. We did the partial Panama Canal transit on Princess a couple of years ago, and enjoyed it very much. We selected Princess because we couldn't take 2 weeks off from work for a Panama Canal cruise, and Princess was the only line with a shorter itinerary. I wouldn't hesitate to book Princess for the partial Panama Canal itinerary, we had a great trip.

My husband and I will be in Aqua class in 3 weeks, and I am definitely not happy about this change. We do not have a beverage package because we do not drink soda or alcohol, and I cannot fathom what Celebrity was thinking when they removed a perk that was in place when the reservation was made.

The AmEx offer for Celebrity was available on one of our 2 gold cards. The accounts are linked, so I suspect that may be why it's only available on one card. Thanks for the tip! Our final cruise payment is due the beginning of November, so the timing is perfect.....

We previously travelled on small ships (Azamara & Oceania), and book aqua class specifically to get the small ship feel.

You can also try Sandy Kuttler. His website is www.israelwithsandy.com. I used him for an entire week and was very pleased. He was born in New Jersey, so you won't have any problems with his English!

Have you looked at Emerald Waterways? I've been looking at Danube cruises and also suffered sticker shock. I came across an ad for Emerald Waterways yesterday, and started doing some research. Their pricing is much more competitive than the other lines, and they seem to be getting very good reviews.

DH & I just returned from a week in Israel, and we used a private guide for the entire week. I've taken many cruises, and my recommendation is that if there is any way you can afford it, use a private guide for Israel. You'll have a limited time in Israel, and using a private guide will be the most efficient use of your time because there are so many incredible sights to see. We used Sandy Kuttler, who was born in NJ but emigrated to Israel about 30 years ago. I highly recommend him, and he also specializes in tours for people with disabilities. His website is www.israelwithsandy.com, and his email address is sandy_k@sarid.org.il. I've travelled extensively and have done a lot of self-touring, but have also used private guides. I really think using a private guide in Israel is worth every penny. Unlike other countries, guides in Israel must be licensed, and go through a rigorous training program.

I just returned from a trip to Israel, and used a private guide by the name of Sandy Kuttler. Sandy specializes in tours for people with physical disabilities. His company name is Israel with Sandy, his website is www.israelwithsandy.com, and his email address is sandy_k@sarid.org.il. I highly recommend him.

We are elite on Celebrity, but tried Princess for the first time this year because they had a Panama Canal itinerary that was better for us than Celebrity's. We had not been on Princess in about 20 years, and enjoyed the Panama Canal cruise very much. I had a January 2015 cruise booked on Celebrity, but got concerned because of all the negative Celebrity comments being posted on the Celebrity board, and decided to cancel the Celebrity cruise and booked with Princess instead.

We've done the Baltic itinerary twice, once in May and once in July. The July trip had very rough seas (even DH, who normally has a cast iron stomach, was looking a little green). However, we were on one of the Oceania R-ships, which are relatively small and therefore more likely to feel the effects of rough seas. The May trip was on one of Celebrity's M-class ships, and we felt no effects at all. As long as you're on a larger ship, I wouldn't be concerned with rough seas.

I would save the specialty restaurant for a non-formal night. I agree on not wanting to take up valuable luggage space with formal wear, but sport jacket and tie is totally acceptable for formal night and doesn't take up much packing space.

The sinus rinse works wonders, but requires about 8oz of water, which will make it difficult to take on the plane. I would start the sinus rinse ASAP (I like the NeilMed squeeze bottle, which you can buy at any pharmacy as well as Costco), and plan on buying a bottle of distilled water at a grocery store before you board. I would not use the water on board.

Currently on Coral Princess, and the captain announced a few days ago that there were confirmed cases of noro on board. No further information has been given since then, but ship is under noro precautions such as no bread baskets or salt/pepper shakers on tables, passengers cannot serve themselves on buffet lines, etc.