mahdnc

You are correct that the sommelier will save the opened bottle for you if you have not finished it. However, I do not think that they do more than just re-cap/cork the bottle--that is my guess as I have never asked.

I agree--no variation in the ship's wine inventory attributable to the itinerary.

Although this was not the reason for the competition, I have beaten you in the pathetic department with 23 nights in 2019, the last full year before the pandemic. We usually only take 1 cruise a year--around the holidays--and the calendar alignment of these two cruises allowed me to claim 23 nights:

oh. Never mind.

You are quite right--assuming that they need to fly. OP is from the Seattle area and it will be occurring during the Alaska cruising season. So I am guessing not.

We have only missed port once. In 2005 we missed Grand Cayman because Horizon was forced to leave Tampa one day late because of fog. I do not recall getting any extra OBC to compensate for the taxes and fees. That's one data point for you, albeit an old one. On the flip side, our Carnival cruise ship decided in the middle of the trip to dock at Mazatlan twice in one day when she was only scheduled to dock once as part of her regularly scheduled 7 night Mexican Riviera run. That's because half the ship wanted to go out to sea to view a total solar eclipse while the other half wanted to go ashore to see it. The day before our stop at Mazatlan, the ship's Captain decided to dock twice to keep everyone happy (the second dock was to pick passengers back up that got off the ship). I am sure it cost Carnival extra cash for that stunt and us passengers were not charged for it. So between those two events, I am even.

I meant to add to the rules that in general free cruises are ok. I am especially thinking of Blue Chip Club cruisers. On the other hand if you were paid to cruise, that doesn't count. So officers (and their pets), crew, and spouses don't count.

That is amazing. Was she in the witness protection program? Shhhhhhh.

Wow. Imagine if you could file for a pro-rated rebate on the property taxes on you home. Or maybe Alabama property taxes are not as bad (I am from Chicago and it is bad).

.......most total nights spent on a Celebrity cruise in a single calendar year? I know it is not me, but I would appreciate it if you would entertain me. Even if you are not the record holder, go ahead and impress me. Rules: 1. Count nights, not days. A 7 night cruise has 8 days, so count only nights. 2. Nights spent on a Celebrity pre or post cruise tour do not count. So your tour to Machu Picchu doesn't count although I am jealous. 3. However you can include nights spent ashore during your cruise such as staying in a hotel on Aruba when the ship overnights there. 4. No escalators for staying in a suite, we are not counting Club Points here. 5. Nights lost due to a cruise being cancelled in the middle of a voyage do not count. You have my sympathy, but it doesn't count. 6. Celebrity Cruises only. Royal Caribbean, Azamara, etc do not count. 7. Cannot say stuff like, "I don't remember, but it's a lot". 8. No escalators for nights where you got laid either although maybe there should be especially if you are sailing solo. 9. Speaking of which, solo cruisers do not get to count extra nights because of the solo supplement.

This URL hack was introduced to me on this board by @NorthStarStateCruiser. The hack involved taking a specific URL string and substituting the name of the ship and sailing date in the right format. Since then NSSC has built a spreadsheet tool that will create the link for you once you specify cruise line (Royal or Celebrity), ship, and sail date through a series of drop down boxes. It is well done. Here is the link to this tool: link. It is vitally important to make sure you are logged out of your Celebrity or Royal Caribbean online account for this to work.

We've been to Bonaire only twice and both times were by cruise ship. During our second visit, we used Dive Friends and were very pleased with them. They have several locations throughout the island and one of them was right by the cruise pier. Each location had lodging.

Thank you for posting. What is the verdict on your first Celebrity cruise?

The lowest minimum table for blackjack on last Nov's Constellation cruise was $10. However a natural blackjack paid out only 6;5. You had to play at the $25 tables to get the traditional 3:2 payout.

When a sailing that was inundated with hundreds of Elite (and above) passengers such as a TA and the 14 night Caribbean sailings, Celebrity handed out paper vouchers for the Elite Happy Hour drinks. The idea was to alleviate the massive overcrowding of the Sky Lounge and allow people to get their drinks at any bar on the ship (there may have been a bar exclusion here and there). If I remember correctly there was a belief among some Cruise Critic members that the bartenders financially benefited with each voucher they collected in the form of calculated tips (from Celebrity and not from the passengers) and so those that believed it would turn in all of their unused vouchers to the bartenders.

The pandemic was an opportunity for the cruise lines, including Celebrity, to change how they operate.

@omeinv see post 5

Ship tours have been back for a while now at a more expensive price. They visit MDR, galley, laundry, crew public areas, Environmental, bridge, and engine control room. Constellation engine control room

Yes, the two hour window is not new and is something we always managed around because we always had early seating. To me, the downgrading with this is not having a portion of the Sky Lounge set aside for the Happy Hour anymore with the option for others that didn't want to be there to be able to get their drinks elsewhere. The hors d'oeuvres served there were a nice touch, too. It we also nice to talk to the Captain's Club Hostess there and meet other people. I know it wasn't for everyone, but I miss it. Elite Happy Hour, Solstice Sky Lounge, Jan 1 2020, Tasman Sea Solstice Captain's Club Hostess, Melissa

But the only TVs that could get the feed were in the suites and Retreat area.

Here is last year's deployment schedule (screenshot at the bottom) to give you some idea of what it could be next year. The transatlantics, transpacifics, and transcanals are not specifically identified in the schedule. Judging from the chart, I would have guessed that it would have come out with the Asia and Alaska/Australia sailings were released which would be the first half of Nov. Last year I know the eastward TPs (Spring 2025) were released on Nov 17th (link). But I have nothing that I can find explicitly about the westward TPs.

Bonaire is famous for its diving and snorkeling and is the best of the 3 islands. Curacao is good but not as good.

Can you me any recommendations for good dive shops near the cruise port at Colon? So far, I can only find dive shops clustered around an area 1 hour north and east of Colon by car.

We have a Transpacific cruise that will spend one day at Lahaina and then will terminate at Honolulu on the next day. We are likely to spend an additional couple of nights in Oahu with the specific location tbd. I would appreciate any dive shop recommendations for my wife and I. We enjoy shallow reef diving and are not into wreck diving. I would appreciate hearing from anyone with experience. @Mauidiver, @omeinv

I posted a review of our 2018 Great Barrier Reef cruise where we did diving on 4 different days including 2 days at Cairns where our ship overnighted. Here is a link to it: link. I hope you find it helpful. Most of what I want to say in response to your post is in that photo review. I don't know the specifics of your excursion. However my best guess is that you (snorkelers and divers alike) will be put on a single boat that will take you to one of the large (and impressive) pontoons that are anchored in the outer reef area. Those pontoons have capacity to handle a lot of people which is why I think you will be heading out there.