Texas Tillie

Crystal is a small luxury line now owned by the man who used to own Silversea before he sold it to Royal Caribbean. The 2 ships are 720 passengers and 606 passengers. Do I like them? The answer must be yes as I just completed my 51st cruise with them over 18 years.😍

And the same applies to area around HOU.

Crystal has designated rooms, one for children and one for teens, on each ship. With a certain number of children and teens on a sailing (don't know exactly what), they will have Junior Activity Directors. You'll often find them on certain summer cruises and those at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

And how does what has happened here differ than 90% of the threads on cruise critic? The way I look at it, this a a free site, you get what you pay for!!

Heard that they are actually happier with Euros as they are much stronger vs the dollar recently. Not to say they aren't greatful for dollars. Patty

Perhaps Silversea is no longer a luxury line!

Wouldn't hold my breath. The total menu at Osteria is being changed before then. Beefbar is brand new. By the way, I love Beefbar as do many I've heard from who have been there. Not every venue can please every cruiser.

The IAH area isn't the best. All the places in the area are midlevel chains - Holiday Inn, Comfort Inn, Hampton Inn, etc. Most have shuttles between the hotel and the airport. You could shuttle to the hotel and back to the airport in the morning and take the Royal Caribbean coach to Galveston. Be aware that food in the airport area is basically fast food.

Why would an all inclusive cruiseline care if you brought and consumed your own alcohol? Seems like that would save them money. Agree that this is boiler plate from Royal Caribbean.

I'm doing this cruise but staying on until Vancouver. This is similar to the last segment of the 2016 World Cruise, Tokyo to San Francisco. That cruise was earlier in the year, mostly April. Remember we were in Ketchikan, Alaska on May 1. I don't recall that the seas were all that rough, but I generally don't have an issue with that. Before I used Crystal's hotel in Tokyo and that included the transfer from the airport to the hotel. They are no longer including that transfer with their hotel, but do include the transfer from the hotel to the ship. Since this is still a full year away, I haven't made plans yet. Patty

For most of the history of Crystal The Bistro has closed at 6PM. There was a period during the later 20teens where they tried opening it after 6PM. There was a staffing issue and it was very lightly used by the passengers.

Good idea. Life is too short to spend every day of your cruise posting on a website about everything that's unacceptable with the cruise line.

Based on everything you find negative about Crystal, why have you booked another cruise?

Do want to comment on the excursions and accessibility. I am limited as to mobility and on the day I boarded recently I went to the excursion desk with my prebooked tickets. I was told 3 of the 5 I'd booked were too strenuous for me and that there was nothing at those ports that I could do. They were removed from my bill I was told to keep 2 excursions. One was easy enough but the other one was not. There were several of us who had a rough time. I was disappointed since I had inquired. The Crystal rep on that excursion was someone from the Monaco office. I spoke with her about the availability of at least one excursion in each port that was "minimal". I don't understand why they can't do one that's basically an overview with mostly viewing from the coach and a few short stops. If I were a conspiracy person, I'd think they were trying to get those with mobility issues to book the expensive private tours. 😉 Patty

There will be a Crystal rep at the hotel the day before embarkation. If you paid Crystal for the transfer (without the hotel) to the ship, the rep should have your name on a list. They will be able to tell you when and where to meet for the transfer. The transfer from the ship to the airport at the end of the cruise is arranged on board as Keith reported above. Patty

I "think" what tg75219 was trying to say isn't the actual cost differences but the ratio between the cost, at the time, between regular cabins and the suites. I don't think that number is especially valid now as there are so many more suites than regular cabins versus the past. Almost everyone would agree that the current cost of any cabin on Crystal is higher than on old Crystal, even adjusting for inflation. The important question to answer, is it worth it? Some will say yes and others will say no. Patty

You need to book a Symphony cruise. They are always easier to find there.

From my experience with Crystal since 2007, most of the time the Bistro was closed at 6 PM. There were times when there were experiments with its being open in the evening, but those were the exception, not the rule. The company explaination for not having it open was a crew scheduling issue. Patty

For people not aware of the current exchange rate, $17.50 Canadian is about $12.75 US today. ☺️ Patty

As it has always been. I ate at the sushi bar less then 2 weeks ago sitting with a friend and was able to order from the regular menu while sitting there. Why shouldn't that count as a visit? Patty

Will everything offered be from the gelato brand? Patty

Do any other luxury lines ever start a world cruise anywhere other than the USA? If so, how successful have they been? Patty

Tipping is so personal and also depends on where you are from. I'd consider an up front tip a bribe and very tacky, but others feel differently. Patty

He moved from Symphony to Serenity!

Yes, the 1/2 liter bottles at the gangway. In the cabins it's water they purify on the ship and the butler will continue to replenish. The containers with the cabin water has a sticker with a pull by date that is broken when you unscrew the cap. I think it's about a week from when the water is bottled but not sure. Patty