DevilinaBluDress

I asked guest services onboard the Zaandam yesterday. No, it's not Starlink, yet.

I don't know. On the Zaandam right now with premium internet. Here are some speed tests from yesterday afternoon, night, and this morning.

Thank you for sharing the pictures and memories! Here's mine (no pics unfortunately):

My first cruise was on the Rotterdam V back in 1980.  My father had just gotten back from his first cruise solo on the Rotterdam V when I was on a summer visit.  He kept saying how much fun it was and that he wanted to go on it again.  Imagine my surprise when the next morning, he surprised me saying, "Let's go! I just booked us an inside cabin and it leaves tomorrow from NYC.  We lived about 100 miles away from the port in NYC. I was almost 17 years old and had just gotten my driver's license.  He threw me the keys to his 1958 Thunderbird and asked me to drive to the port! We arrived without incident (thankfully), parked the car and went onboard.  

I vividly remember this trip - how I spent most nights in the disco dancing until the wee hours, how I could just sign a slip of paper and was served any alcoholic drink I wanted to try and I tried many - believe me! Neither my father nor any of the staff seemed to care.  Our inside cabin with bunk beds, meeting lots of new people, having to buy a formal dress on board for formal nights, waterskiing in Nassau, moped riding in Bermuda, etc.  Learning to call it a "ship"and not a "boat."  

It was so much fun and I dreamed of going on a cruise again for 30 years before I went on my second cruise in 2010 on Princess. It took until last year to sail on another HAL ship (Koningsdam to Alaska). 

Again thanks for sharing and for those who went down memory lane with me!

-Molly

On 7/3/2022 at 3:24 PM, Treasure Hunter said:

It is a total rip off. You have to be desperate for entertainment. Only one person gets picked out of dozens who paid substantial money to play and end up, maybe getting a free photo. Just my opinion. I’d rather throw it in a slot machine.

Yup, the way it worked was by matching the amounts revealed to the corresponding numbered tab on the card. More matches = bigger prize. On our cruise, no one got more than 4 matches. I don't remember the payouts exactly but I think they were 1 match =0, 2 match=$5, 3 match =$10, 4 match=$25. 

We were on this cruise, too! I'm sorry to hear about so many folks with Covid. I hope you heal quickly! 

Luckily, we managed to avoid getting Covid (or anything else). Generally, we wore masks in crowded spaces like the elevators, indoors on excursions, in any show, and while we were on the Behind the Scenes tour. On that tour, we learned that there were 2100 guests on the sailing. On the bridge, the officers shared how amazing it was to get 3/10 mile from the Hubbard Glacier- 1/1000 trips get that close. They said that it was incredible because the flow age created a visible path to get so close. 

We avoided the buffet and we mostly ate in Lumine and hung out at the World Class Bar which was almost empty every day as was Michael's Club unless there was a special event.

Our embarkation was super smooth. By a real fluke, we were the first to board the ship!

Overall, the service was amazing! We met some really nice people, and Alaska was breathtaking.

Just now, DevilinaBluDress said:

It's totally worth it! Here are some pictures from the Eclipse June 19th  sailing. Sea lions in Juneau, Whale watching in Icy Straight Point 5 pm ship excursion, Hubbard Glacier (amazing day- the ship was 3/10 mile from the Glacier). 

 

 

I have no idea why some of my pictures are upside down!

It's totally worth it! Here are some pictures from the Eclipse June 19th  sailing. Sea lions in Juneau, Whale watching in Icy Straight Point 5 pm ship excursion, Hubbard Glacier (amazing day- the ship was 3/10 mile from the Glacier). 

We disembarked on the previous sailing to yours. We booked the hop on/hop off excursion and there was a couple in the terminal who had the exact same experience as you- given the #1 tags but they didn't book the excursion, either. I'm not sure what the resolution for them was. 

For us, our bags were at a baggage storage facility in the YVR domestic claim area near carosol 6. Maybe they have your bags? Here is the website : http://www.cdsbaggage.ca/

On 6/24/2022 at 11:54 AM, DevilinaBluDress said:

Captain Leo and his crew did it again! Weds this week we were within 3/10 of a mile. Saw a lot of calving. We also did the small boat tour that went a smidgen closer. 

 

We did the behind the scenes tour today and learned that it was the closest ever. The Assistant Captain said it was a 1 in 1000 sailing event to get that close.

Captain Leo and his crew did it again! Weds this week we were within 3/10 of a mile. Saw a lot of calving. We also did the small boat tour that went a smidgen closer. 

3 hours ago, Barwick Cruiser said:

Glad you are enjoying your cruise and thank you for taking the time to do this live posting. If you have a chance can you find out if there’s any NZ Sauvignon Blanc on the ship? Usually it’s Villa Maria they carry but there’s been supply issues. We’re on in Sept and it’s my go to wine. Thank you!

I'll ask but the sommelier will faint when she hears me inquire about a white wine! She already knows that I drink red only. 😉

One more tip I haven't seen anyone else share. The toilet paper holder has a movable bar that our room Steward puts against the roll which makes it hard to pull more than one teeny tiny 1-ply sheet off the roll. Raise the bar to free the roll!

In Juneau today and Verizon has a strong signal here. 

Here's a short video of me trying to use magnetic hooks in 1615:

3 hours ago, Peteymil said:

Is there only one lounger on the balcony?

Would it be big enough for 2 loungers if we asked for a second one?

Yes, 2 loungers could fit easily 

I just shared our experience this week so far as first time suite guests on the Eclipse including how we are communicating with our PRH and some special things he has done:

12 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

Thanks for your info and photos.

 

We’ll be in our first CS soon, on an S-class ship, and it’s a surprise about the electrical outlet situation in the bedroom. 
 

Please let us know what your PRH says about the outlets. 
 

In a recent thread about a CS on a different S-class ship, someone said there’s an electrical outlet in the bedroom behind each nightstand, where the lamps are plugged in. They use a CPAP machine, and did not understand why their PRH had rigged up an extension cord from the machine to an outlet in the living room rather than using the outlet behind nightstand.  (Among other things, this prevented them from closing the bedroom door.)
 

If you have a chance, could you please check behind your nightstands and see if there’s a usable outlet and let us know?  Maybe there’s just one for each lamp?  (In which case, perhaps one of those little adapter plugs with two receptacles would work.)

 

Thanks and enjoy your suite and your cruise!

It doesn't look like they are usable. I accidentally broke the shade. Shhh

5 minutes ago, travlr21 said:

We were in Celebrity Suite 1618 on the June 5 sailing. For what it's worth, there are additional outlets under the little corner desk. I used that one with the hair dryer as we plugged our electronics in the one over that desk. The only way we could consistently get strong enough wifi was to stand at the door of our suite. 

Yes! Thank you!

Currently on the Eclipse in a Celebrity Suite- some observations and tips: 

1. Walls are not metal, so magnetic hooks and clips won't stick.

2. Write a list for your needs and amazingly your PRH will likely make it happen. We asked for a tea kettle, a makeup mirror, a swap for the sparkling wine, etc. All fulfilled! 

3. It's day 3 and I'm not used to the 3 hour time shift from home yet. The first morning, I went to the Oceanview Cafe for tea at 4:30 am ship time in my pj's, robe, and slippers. Funny how many people were already up and about. No one else in their robe and slippers though, hence the tea kettle request which came along with tea, water bottles, tea cups, etc. At 4 am this morning, I made tea in our cabin still in my pj's, robe, and slippers. 😏

4. If you are celebrating a special day, let your PRH know. We came back to our cabin after breakfast to find it all decorated for my DH's bday yesterday. 

5. The only US outlets I could find was one low powered one in the bathroom (the hairdryer didn't work with it) and one at the desk. 

6. The afternoon tea at Michael's club was delightful.

7. The officers meet and greet at Michael's club was very crowded (we didn't stick around to meet anyone.)

8. Internet is wonky. Some pictures aren't uploading with this post. I have no idea why some are upside down either!

It was a highlight of our trip in May! Glaciers, fjords, and wildlife galore. A pod of orcas were playing all around the boat which was incredible. Saw brown and black bears, eagles, seals, sea lions, mountain goats, an otter, and humpback whales. 

It was a VERY long excursion. The snack was donut holes and one Ritz cracker with a tiny piece of smoked salmon. Food and drinks for sale on board. I was glad we brought clif bars with us. 

Thinking about my upcoming Alaska cruise and considering the unlimited digital photos option from Celebrity.  I understand that they take photos of you around the ship, and at each port.  I wonder if the package also includes photos of the beautiful scenery, wildlife, without us in the pictures?  

That's a great list of meds to bring along. I'd add to bring your own thermometer and Oximeter plus lots of soft tissues.  

A couple of weeks ago, I was on a HAL trip to Alaska, had symptoms but not Covid (many, many tests that week were all negative). I was finally diagnosed with pneumonia the day before we disembarked.  My nose was so sore from the rough tissues and paper towels offered by medical staff that  I resorted to putting chapstick on my nose for relief.  Another challenge was cough drops.  In Skagway, I tried to find ANY.  The ones I found and bought officially expired pre-pandemic.  So, be sure to bring those along, too.

Believe it or not, I'm going back to Alaska on the 19th Eclipse sailing (a barnacle reschedule) and I may need to bring a little sign - "cough is from pneumonia, not covid", if it is still present.  

-Molly

I just confirmed this with Celebrity Redeployment desk agent:

1. Celebrity just added a new option today that is similar to a "lift and shift": if you find an exact match cabin (i.e. Sky Suite S1 or Celebrity Suite, etc) on a 2022 Alaska sailing on Eclipse, Solstice, or Millenium, they will transfer your booking with no extra change from your May 22 sailing

1. 25% discount is only for 2022 Alaska sailings on either the Eclipse, Solstice, or Millennium ships
2. if your FCC used to pay for the 5/22 sailing is from a March 2020 cancelation (like mine), it expires December 31, 2022 to use on any sailing
3. to get the 25% discount, you need to redeploy (rebook) onto a different sailing by May 17th
4. the redeployment process can be done very quickly. Basically, they are using the same reservation number and moving it to another sailing.
5. If you booked through a travel agent, you need to work through the travel agent to get this all straightened out. My TA is on vacation which complicates things for me. You can ask your TA to call Celebrity and authorize you to work directly with Celebrity if that's what you want to do.
6. If you'd rather cancel, any refunds and/or FCCs may take up to 30 days to show up on your account.
7. If you do not redeploy to another 2022 Alaskan sailing by May 17th, your cruise is canceled and refunds/FCC may take up to 30 days to show up on your account to be used again (in my case by the end of 2022).
8. If the new sailing is less expensive than your 5/22 sailing, the rest will be refunded or put into a FCC within 30 days, etc.
9. If you need to cancel and get the FCC quicker than 30 days (perhaps to use on a non-Alaskan sailing?), it can be expedited in 2-3 days.

12 minutes ago, rickip said:

I think the May 22nd sailing has been cancelled so that they can deal with this (and save the rest of the season)...

 

Yes, unlucky for some of us (like me) but better for most