Algebralovr

If you stay a couple of times a year in a particular chain, it is also a good idea to check directly with that hotel chain for park and stay packages. I've got a couple of them booked for the next few months, and I booked them directly on the Hyatt and Hilton web sites. It is one of the options you can check on the side.

If you are a US citizen, you can do a closed loop cruise with your birth certificate and state issued ID, like a driver's licence. You can also order a passport card, since you might have time to get that by the time you leave. If your family name has changed from your birth certificate, you should take along a bridging document showing the name change. Do not take your SS card, it doesn't do any good and is best left at home where it cannot be stolen.

You might also contact the country you are needing the visa for and see if you can send along a pre-paid Fed-Ex envelope to expedite the return of your passport.

While on-board a Celebrity ship back in September 2013 we booked a specific ship and date. However, we had to change the ship and date due to business changes. When we and TA called Celebrity we were both told that we must book another cruise (specific ship and date of our choice.) We could not request an Open Booking (no specific ship and date.)

 

We have never had to do this before and we thought that we could just ask Celebrity to allow us to have this Future Cruise Credit (FCC) to be open just as if we had not booked a specific ship and date.

 

Celebrity said that an Open Booking cannot be done to retain the FCC. You must book a specific cruise. What difference would it make?

 

We then tried to book a specific ship and date, but then ran into another problem.

We could not get: 123 GO SALE: Free Beverage Package, Gratuities or $100-$300 OBC.

 

Celebrity said that since we booked (September 2013) before this promotion date (Nov 29, 2013) for our previous booking, we did not qualify. Below is a quote from our TA’s site offering the promo.

 

‘To Qualify for the 123go! Offer, the following requirements must be satisfied. Cruise must be booked between Nov. 29, 2013 Feb. 28, 2014 (the Offer Period) and must be a 3-night or longer cruise, that departs between Feb. 2014 Mar 2015.’

 

Has anyone else encountered this situation? Your opinions/experiences would be appreciated. Our TA has not had this happened before.

Have your TA call again and speak to a different representative. Mine was able to get me the 123GO! package for my Feb 2015 cruise that I booked in May of 2013. I did have to pay the current rate for the room, which increased the cost of the room by about $100 per person (which is less than the beverage package would have cost!)

If you really want the beverage package, can you cancel the cruise you booked and just book the cruise you want that includes the beverage package?

Last May, we struck up a conversation with a nice young woman while watching the ships tender back and forth from Santa Barbara. It turned out that she was the Concierge. She was thrilled to be interacting with passengers who were not complaining! Some of them passengers had demanded HUGE OBC. A few of the complaints were legit, many were things we simply ignored.

I asked for a comment card mid cruise and was told I would get one the night before disembarkation. It was to give credit to the Blu dining room waiters and wine steward. (which I mention to the staff that I would do) Should I have asked for something other than a comment card?

You can also ask for stationary and an envelope from Guest Services. If you do decide to write a note to a supervisor about an employee, it is best to write each individual on a separate paper. We've learned that they put the notes in the employee files, and when you put more than one on a paper, they make copies of the note for each file. If they work for different departments, it is even more of a mess for them!

I will be returning from a cruise on Reflection on Feb 15, and my flight out of Miami got changed to 11:25 am.

 

Is this doable? And if I have to change it, will the airline charge me. I don't fly enough to know this kind of stuff.

The best answer is probably you will make it with no problem. There are still times when the unexpected happens.

If your flight time changed by more than 30 minutes, they should change your flight without a charge.

That is good to know! I've stayed in a number of Hyatt Place locations, and always felt that the breakfast isn't bad, but had been a bit nervous about the other items. A number of places that used to cook have started going with many more pre-packed foods, so I assumed HP was the same.

Best place to find info for SAS is the Florida board. That said, I don't believe SAS will pick up at Port Everglades any longer. You'll probably need to catch a cab to the airport or an approved hotel, then ride with SAS to the Port of Miami.

You also need to speak to your service provider about the costs of using the data connection while roaming.

 

BTW, if you do go to the Bistro, there is a $5 fee to eat there. I was told from a very reliable source, if you get your bill after they swipe your card and write in additional tip for the server, that money does not go to the server -- it all goes to Celebrity. If you want to tip for exceptional service, leave them cash.

 

I was told the same for specialty restaurants. Any additional tip you write in on your slip goes to the Maitre'D, not your server who provided the exceptional service. Best to tip in cash.

Interesting that you say that, since we were told that was not the case. We were told that all additional tips were collected by Celebrity, since they do the billing, but them were shared among the speciality restaurant staff, including the Maitre'D. The servers DO get the extra tips, just not necessarily the way you expect. The Maitre'D gets part because he is supposed to float and provide additional service as needed.

While Hyatt Place hotels do not have a traditional sit-down restaurant on site, they do have 24-hour food available. They have a small menu and staff to prepare the requested foods. I haven't tried any if those offerings, and suspect they are pre-packed and microwaved, but I am unsure.

It may be more comfortable to book a five person family veranda and an additional room next door if it is within your budget.

The last two times I've taken a cruise that left from Miami and stopped in San Juan first, we have arrived early. Not sure if that is normal or not. I would expect to make the 4pm time slot, though.

We like the Bistro on 5 as our first stop while waiting for our room to be ready.

If you do end up with a winter storm, chances are you'll be able to meet up with the ship on the first port in San Juan. That happened to a number of northeastern people last February when I sailed on the Reflection, and it happened a couple of weeks back to someone flying out of Dallas as well. Again, be sure you have the schedule so that you can propose alternates to the agent.

It is recommended that you keep an eye on the weather, and be able to travel early rather than late, and also have the schedules for the airlines in the same network available that the airline might code share with.

N410NP, if your insurance company is OK with the longer fill, are you able to fill your RX at another pharmacy, outside of the state borders? Perhaps your Dr can send the Rx to the port you leave from and you can pick it up before you go, or if you use a mail order pharmacy, you can have it sent to your pre-cruise hotel?

I recommend you pre-pay your service charges (gratuities) so that less on board is needed. Then, call and ask the cruise line you have chosen how much the minimum cash deposit is for your cruise and party size. Bring that amount in cash. If you don't spend it, you'll get it back at the end of the cruise.

If you go over, you can go down the last night and put the remainder on your debit card (they can run it as a credit card) so that all is well when it leave the ship.

Also, you can pre-pay for shore excursions if you book them through the cruise line. If you book private ones, you can bring cash to pay for them.

If you can, it is recommended that you do get a credit card to take with you. Many problems can be solved by using a credit card on vacation. For example, if you miss a flight, even if you have insurance, you'll likely need to pre-pay for the new air ticket and be reimbursed by your travel insurance. If you fall down the steps and break a leg, MasterCard to the rescue while you wait for travel insurance to reimburse you.

Thanks for the response. If they have multiple entry US visas, will they need visas for Nassau?

Yes, they will. See http://www.bahamas.co.uk/about-the-bahamas-bahamas-visa-customs-immigration

It looks like it may be a bit of a hassle.

When are you cruising?

We all recommend that your GF get a passport if at all possible. Too many of the individuals at check-in don't k ow how to handle anything other than a traditional birth certificate and passport.

Good luck?

I wouldn't count on paying less. The excursions that offer the pay less for observer option are usually the 'swim with dolphins' excursions where only a few people get in the special water area.

St Thomas has a number if nice snorkeling places, particularly near St John (the little island that is mostly park). I recommend it.

Check the daily program. On my last celebrity cruise, there were some mixers for the 18-25 crowd.

You should check with Celebrity. I think there might be a PVSA issue boarding in San Juan since it's a US Territory.

There should be a waiver due to weather. It happened last February to a whole bunch of people when we sailed on Reflection. The Captain made a point of telling everyone when we docked that a number of passengers had been stranded due to weather and were joining the ship in San Juan. They may or may not be charged the PVSA fine, but I don't think it was imposed.

The Feds have discretion to waive it in this kind of instance.

How about Amtrak? Your post says you are from Indiana, so it may a long ride, but might be better than driving.

It is also a good idea to clear your history and cookies in your web browser.

FWIW, a lot of web sites do not work well with either IE 10 or 11. In fact, Microsoft put out a bunch of materials on making web sites compatible with the new versions of IE!

I would go down late Friday rather than Saturday, but I see no problem with your plan. Flying into either FLL or PBI, then looking for cruises out of POM, Port Everglades or Canaveral gives you plenty of options.

I would start looking at the 75 day window, however, rather than waiting until only a couple of weeks out. I've seen a number of prices nice and low about 4-6 weeks out, then start to creep up again as the sail date gets close.