terrydtx

I am following as we will be on the Edge next January on a B2B NZ/ Great Barrier Reef cruises. We are booked in Sky Suites for both cruises and since this will probably be our one and only trip down under, we are going to do 11 days post cruise driving from Melbourne to Adelaid and back.

Your flight should be no problem, it is only about 40 minutes from Rotterdam to the airport.

Last year on the Oosterdam at sea in the Mediterranean, I made Wi-Fi calls over the ships Wi-Fi to both Venice and back to the USA and was never charged for any of the calls, with my ATT account.

The closest IMO is NCL Haven and MSC Yacht Club class cabins.

From reports on the Westerdam, the Canaletto is being converted for a couple of nights each cruise for a paired down Tamarind menu. From what I read this is being tried out this year to see if HAL wants to go fleetwide in the future. I hope they make that decision as Tamarind is one of our favorite specialty restaurants on any cruise line.

I do not remember, I just recall CC threads about the changes with many upset customers. Celebrity made the change for all summer season cruises this year in January. Changes can be happen at any time which is why I discourage any hotel bookings pre cruise that are non refundable.

HAL did this last year for many of the Amsterdam departures.

Not a problem, we do it all the time. Also HAL does not charge for room service (yet) and you can order from the MDR menu for dinner in your cabin,

Here is a link for visiting Rotterdam Things to do in Rotterdam: day trip to 3 day break - Helen on her Holidays

We have 4 of us traveling together and we used VIP Travel Services and they pick us up in a minivan at the hotel and drop us off at the Rotterdam cruise port for 209 Euros total. We also booked them to take us to the hotel from the airport. If they are booked try using Trip Advisor or Viator which is how we found this company. https://viptravelservices.com/rates/

Last year on the Oosterdam in the Mediterranean our ATT Wi-Fi calling worked fine, but we had upgraded to the premium Wi-Fi as the standard service would not allow us to Wi-Fi call, It worked great for outgoing calls but incoming calling was spotty at best. Because of Covid issues and post cruise quarantine in Venice, I spent a lot of time talking with our TA for the last 5 days of our cruise with Wi-Fi calling.

In 2019 on an Alaska cruise on the Noordam we used only our phone cell service which worked very well at all ports. Unless you need the Wi-Fi while out of cell service areas on sea days, I would not buy any Wi-Fi.

I know this is a HAL forum but here is our experience with the Amsterdam cruise port. Our September Celebrity Apex cruise has moved from departing in Amsterdam to Rotterdam because of water issues in Amsterdam. If anyone books a hotel in Amsterdam, make sure it is cancelable in the event this cruise is moved to Rotterdam. Several in our Roll Call made this mistake and are stuck in hotels near the Amsterdam cruise port and will have to take a private transport to Rotterdam on the morning of departure. We are staying in Amsterdam for 3 days prior to our cruise and taking a private transport to the Rotterdam cruise port.

I have seen nights where the Blu menu looked more inviting than the Luminae. We have never done it but have been tempted.

I agree 100%

Here is a link to a website that has fairly accurate information on which cruise ships are in a port on a particular day. You can check out the day you will be in Santorini to see how many ships are scheduled that day. If only a few you are probably safe. I believe the limitation is now 9 ships per day. Your cruise guide to 1200 cruise ports (whatsinport.com)

A sea day

And the first time a passenger is denied entry to Blu who is in an Aq SS there will be demands for restitution or refunds.

On our January 2024 Australia cruise on the Edge the Aq Sky Suite is currently $8400pp and the Celebrity Suite is $8900pp so for about $400pp more you can have a much much bigger cabin and balcony in the Celebrity Suite. BTW the standard SS is currently $7250pp or $1150pp less than the Aq SS. Is an AQ SS going to have $2300 more in amenities per cabin than a standard SS? That is the question anyone booking a Aq SS needs to answer. In January 2022 we booked our SS on this cruise for $5200pp so currently Celebrity wants $2000pp more than what we booked at,

IMO the new Aqua Sky Suite designation is just another way for Celebrity to get more revenue from the entry level Sky Suites. They just took a number of the old Sky Suites and redesignated them and added some spa, fitness and thermal suites amenities, plus the ability to walk into Blu without prior approval. The pricing for an Aqua SS approaches Celebrity suites in cost. Unless you really want or will use the added amenities above, I would 100% pay a little more for a Celebrity Suite. If you look at future bookings, you will see the standard SS sell out first before the AQSS really start booking.

You get Blu dining and Luminae in Aq SS.

A credit card dispute is the easiest way to handle this, at least for me just a couple of online clicks and it is done.

Last year we lost our Santorini stop a month from sailing because of new limitations on the number of ships now allowed to visit per day. We were extremely disappointed, but this year when we get off the Apex in Athens we are flying to Santorini for 5 days. I hope your wedding plans there are not interrupted.

I love following your cruises, we will be on the Equinox in June with our 12 year-old Granddaughter in a Sky Suite. I would never criticize anyone for bringing their kids or grandkids on a cruise. BTW your Gen Z looks like she is having an amazing time.

Oh wonderful another of the never-ending dress code threads, I am getting my bucket of popcorn and watching it play out. 🤣