leaveitallbehind

As D+ you will likely have reserved seating in the main theater and ice show. Show up 15 - 20 minutes ahead of the show as at 10 minutes prior they open the remaining seats in the reserved sections to anyone.

You can call 800.533.7803.

Also just be aware from a timing point of view, for her the trip would likely be around 21 days on the ship as most trans-Atlantic cruises are about 14 days and the Caribbean portion would be at least 7. Then she has to get back.

Deleted - repeat information.

However, the benefits of booking through them are: No money is conveyed with the booking until cruise final payment date as the airfare becomes part of your cruise booking. You are provided an airline booking confirmation with your booking. Domestic prices are typically equal to, but not higher than, booking direct. International flights are often lower, but not higher than booking direct. Once booked, the price is locked against increase. However if the price decreased prior to final payment the booking can be reissued to reflect the lower price without charge or penalty. You can change or cancel the booking prior to final payment without penalty. It is airline dependent, but with some you can make seat selection with the booking. Should your flights result in an interruption or delay to your departure port, they will work on providing alternative flights to the ship. For these reasons we typically book through Celebrity (and RCCL - same service) and have have good success and satisfaction.

Al that was missing on our Oasis NYE this year, which was also well done in the RP, was the free champagne. Cutbacks, I guess - LOL.

Perhaps you missed that I indicated just that in my response: "Choosing a cruise based on one or maybe two ports of call in an itinerary can lead to disappointment" Your statement of "I think it is foolish to book a cruise purely on itinerary" didn't indicate that, which I why I responded as I did. I agree completely with your most recent comments.

We are partial to Celebrity as well. Cruised RCCL extensively when our kids were young but those days are long past and Celebrity has, in the last 10 years or so, more often fit the bill with us than not. But the RCCL C&A program is significantly stronger IMO and what I would like to see, along with your comment of a true status match, is the Celebrity program adopt more of those benefits by tier level. We don't cruise for loyalty benefits, but after earning them over the years, they are a welcome perk and it would be nice, as example, if Celebrity would offer the balcony discount and beverage coupons.

Given the tier level benefits by comparison IMO it would be far more advantageous for Celebrity loyalists to switch to RCCL. C&A benefits are measurably better than CC.

Just to clarify how the two programs work together, there is reciprocity between the two programs when sailing on each other in terms of benefits. They match benefits on board as follows: When on Celebrity, RCCL Platinum and Emerald are equivalent to Celebrity Select, and RCCL Diamond, Diamond Plus, and Pinnacle are equal to Celebrity Elite. RCCL C&A members will receive Celebrity CC benefits at those levels. When on RCCL, Celebrity Select is equivalent to RCCl Platinum, and Celebrity Elite, Elite Plus, and Zenith are equivalent to RCCL Diamond. Celebrity CC members will receive RCCL C&A benefits at those levels. Points earned while sailing on either remain with the loyalty program with each cruise line sailed and are not combinable. In other words sailing on RCCL gives you Crown & Anchor points, and visa versa. Although the aforementioned levels benefits are shared, you will only advance to the next tier level by earning the full points required by each cruise line for that next tier level by sailing on each respective cruise line to earn them separately.

If it is a ship sponsored tour then transportation to and from the destination is included. Independantly booked excursions may or may not include transportation and would need to be confirmed by the provider.

You should be able to book times ahead of sailing through the on line cruise planner. That is the best way to assure desired times. You can also book times on board with the Maître 'D as available, or just show up and wait in the non-reservation line for an available table, which typically is not too long.

Albeit these were earlier times just after covid but we paid $65pp the first time and $160pp the second (basically as a walk up) - which we thought was high - for CBC access and at the time the Cabanas were under $1,000. (Did NOT buy those - our last cabana purchase was over the water at Barefoot Beach in Labadee for $475!) The $173 for CBC isn't too bad as when we were there in January for our NYE cruise they wanted $360 - which we did not pay as well as it was way too high. But we walked by the area and it was quite well sold. The lunch there is IMO excellent and - based on specialty restaurant charges - probably worth about $50 pp. Something to consider. All subjective as you indicate.

A minor oversight on my part regarding Playmakers - thanks for correcting. Spent time on Oasis there watching our Birds self destruct on our NYE cruise this year. As to questioning my loyalty, I am a 27 year season ticket holder who well remembers the days when winning the coin toss was considered a victory, and our tailgate "preparation" was the way to get through it! 🤪

As CocoCay is essentially an extension of the ship, there would be no issues with drink packages while there. The only problem we ever had was one time the computer system was down for a while and during that time the bartenders had us sign slips with each drink so they could coordinate things back on board. More of an issue for them than us and it all worked out fine.

Hard to predict what the final "best" price will be for any given itinerary but that price seems quite high. Just continue to watch the planner to see if it improves. Once purchased you can cancel and repurchase without penalty should the price decrease up to 3 days prior to departure.

CocoCay in its current form was designed to handle up to 12,000 guests per day. It will be rare to have a day there without another ship docked as well. We were fortunate on two early RCCL return to cruising itineraries after covid that included CocoCay to be there as the only ship docked, which was very nice. Those days are long past.

On our NYE cruises NYE was always a couple of days or so into the cruise and often with a day at sea to follow. Coincidence or good planning it aways worked well for the celebration on board.

There is no designated separate suite area on CocoCay such as Barefoot Beach is on Labadee, and RCCL suite guests do not have an area designated for them so it is not likely that Celebrity will. Hypothetically, the only area that maybe could be used would be the CocoCay Beach Club, but I wouldn't expect that as suite guests on RCCL pay, along with other guests, for that area currently. Keep in mind that RCI typically docks two ships at CocoCay simultaneously. On your May 3rd sailing you will be docked with RCCL Freedom of the Seas as well when you are there. It would be very unlikely to have an area that is typically open to everyone open only to Celebrity guests when another RCCL ship is docked there.

This link might help in describing what to expect at CocoCay. There are things that available at no charge but many of the activities and venues are for a charge. Many of the paid venues should be able to be reserved in advance by way of your cruise planner. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/guides/everything-you-need-to-plan-a-perfect-day-at-cococay

That would be the location.

When we drive to the departure port we often bring home extras as well. 10 coupons per day can travel far.....

They operate in the same manner.

I understand that the ship and cruise line play an important part in this decision, but what other than where the ship is going would one normally consider? Choosing a cruise based on one or maybe two ports of call in an itinerary can lead to disappointment, but IMO the overall itinerary is certainly a primary reason to choose a given cruise.

Yes. The account will be in one name but is neutral to the devices using it as long as there are not more than any two signed in at once. In other words multiple devices can be used as long as only two are signed in at a time. We do something similar by purchasing one plan for a single device for the two of us and just switch back and forth with whichever device is being used at the time.