vulcan1971

Bingo! Wealth cannot buy you class or manners.

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ghstudio - thanks so much for posting a new thread to talk about this! :)

This was offered on my 12-night Silhouette itinerary (Dec 2017). It was only one night of the cruise. At the time, it was held in Qsine. There were two seatings offered (I think 6:30 pm and 8:30 pm). I had a 4-night dining package for that cruise and was told that it could not be used for the TajX Indian dinner (It was offered at $45/pp). I didn't ask to see if a discount would be offered as I was still miffed about not being able to use the dining package to cover it. I may consider it for my Oct 2018 cruise on Infinity if the special meal is offered.

We have always made reservations (dining times) for our SD in our cruise planner and those reservations have always been honored. Without exception!

My next cruise is in October (Infinity - Panama Canal Eastbound) and this will be my first time trying "Select" dining. I was able to schedule our reservation time in our cruise planner back in April (4 months ago). My partner and I have traditionally enjoyed dining late and so we picked 8:30 PM. I suspect we won't have any issue with being seated upon arrival given what I have read in other threads over the years. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to trying out this flex dining option.

If booked through travel agent, anyone get a move up offer to bid on? Thanks.

Yes. See my other posts (#46 & #47).

I booked through a TA. I got the Move UP offer and it came DIRECTLY from Celebrity Move Up.

I even called my TA assuming I'd have to do it through them and though they were completely aware of what it was, they said I would be able to do it on my own and would walk me through it if needed (it wasn't needed).

This was exactly my experience when I spoke to my travel agent yesterday. The email I received was from Celebrity and sent directly to me and copied my agencies general email inbox.

I embark the Infinity on 09 October 2018 and received my first MoveUp email on Monday (27 August 2018). I'm currently in a C2. The minimum bid (x2 for double occupancy) is listed below with each category:

Aqua - $150 / per person

Sky Suite - $900 / per person

Celebrity Suite - $1400 / per person

Royal Suite - $1900 / per person

If I were booking today (after final payment) with a NY state residency rate, I could have an A1 category room for less than I am paying on my C2 that was booked 1.5 years ago. Given the wide selection of available rooms, I would have been very happy to have gotten Aqua accommodations and a very desirable room to boot.

I am choosing not to attempt a MoveUP bid as I don't want to be disappointed about getting an Aqua room number that I would not be happy with.

EDIT: Just to be clear, if you look at the Celebrity website, look up my itinerary, and see what stateroom types are available, it currently lists all Suites as "sold out".

My experience was that the fee for lunch in specialty dining was around $20 or $25 for Tuscan Grille and Murano. In my opinion, very affordable to pay out of pocket (or with extra OBC). As other posters have commented, I would not use my dining package to cover a meal at lunch time.

The article talks about an “enhanced offering”, but I didn’t see anything about it being complimentary. Was it that way in the past?

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ghstudio - did you mention what deck / category stateroom you booked for this cruise?

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What is LPC dining??????

 

 

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LPC = Le Petit Chef

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A couple of additional comments:

 

We had a private tour in St Petersburg and the company couldn’t get tickets for Catherine’s palace - apparently large tours get priority if numbers are high.

 

We got invited to the helipad for the sail in to Stockholm - we are first time cruisers in a veranda cabin so it looks like a random choice.

 

 

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Ian21 - thanks for sharing your experiences. [emoji3]

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As somebody particularly interested in this special and unique dining experience, I look forward to your thoughts... looking forward to your description and how you enjoyed it. And, if you are open to taking a few photos, I'd be ecstatic. :)

ghstudio - I apologize for not being clear in my last post. I think I had intended to highlight a portion of your post I quoted. Specifically, I am eager to hear about your special TajX Indian dinner being held in Sushi on Five if I recall correctly. When I board the Infinity in October, I plan to inquire about this early on and hope to book it if offered and available. Thanks!

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Host Anne - I'm wondering about your pre-cruise activities booked through Celebrity if you thought that was worth the value? I've been thinking about this type of cruise in the future and have no problems research / booking on my own, but wondered if you could share any thoughts you have as you reflect back.

By the way, thanks so much for taking the time to tell us about your experience and the trip as a whole. Very much enjoyed it.

My favorites Goat Cheese Souffle for starters, Chateaubriand for two or Lobster, dessert either Dark Chocolate Souffle or Grand Marnier Souffle.

A perfect meal... Oh how I will miss the Murano equivalent on M-Class ships. :(

Just off the Equinox, with the Premium beverage, where a bartender tried to make me a pina colada using the well brand of rum, it was Skol. I have heard of it, seen it in locals bars and have probably had it in a drink or two.

When I wouldn’t accept Skol, he suggested Bacardi (Classic pkg) brands) I responded Barcardi 8. He smiled and gave me Premium package liquors from then on.

jelayne - thanks for posting. :)

I will be on the Equinox in October, first Celebrity cruise (have done Carnival, RCCL, Princess, NCL previously). I have looked at the website, reviewed the "what not to bring" list, but still have a question. May we bring bottled water and/or bottled or canned soda (can only drink caffeine-free) on board the ship? I may have missed it in doing my research, if this subject was covered. Thanks all!!

Yes. Treat it like luggage when you arrive at the port and have a luggage tag affixed and it will be delivered to your stateroom.

Wine has a "two bottler per stateroom" limit and no hard liquor.

What on earth are you talking about? These liquor brands are neither unknown or "3rd tier"!

 

https://www.celebritycruises.com/things-to-do-onboard/onboard-packages/beverage-packages/premium-classic-and-standard

Don't be so quick to question if you are not clear on what was being said....

Thank you for the link to the post. For the benefit of the thread, I have lifted the text and pasted here.

As you can see, only beers are listed by name; however, the brand of liquor is not. Probably that is what ghstudio was referring to. And for the record, there are 3 tiers (Premium, Classic, & Standard). My use of the phrase 3rd tier to describe the standard package was only that there were literally 3 tiers... and not that it was a 3rd world type of classification. I think you implied that with your own post. Please don't project onto the conversation what was not said.

You have been given excellent tips. In addition, it is important to make your reservations early if you have a specific date and time to dine. On our recent cruise, all of the Specialty restaurants were closed for one night to accommodate a large group on the ship. There was limited availability on sea days at specific times i.e. 7 pm.

 

You can have more than one appetizer in the cover charge. But you will get plenty of delicious food. Save room for dessert. The price you pay has already included an 18% tip. We always add more as service has been exceptional. But this is optional.

 

Enjoy this special experience!

Agree with this. My biggest failing is not making a decision on day and time as early in the cruise as possible. Really try to do this on the first or second day, especially on shorter cruises.

Enjoy!

I am Onboard the eclipse and I was asked by someone on CC what liquors were used if you have the standard drink package. I asked the bartender in the sky lounge and I was surprised...and not in a positive way. The ship bars have house/well brands..none of which I recognized...vodka, gin, tequila, whiskey and rum...for those with the standard drink package.

 

Now that I know those “unknown to me” brands are there, I’m going to watch my classic package drinks being made a little more closely.

 

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So, I always wondered if a 3rd tier would come into play one day to help those concerned about cost to have an option. When it arrived, I never gave it much thought, but thank you for your post and looking forward to hearing what you have to say when you come back to post.

They are inviting various people to the helipad in and out of Stockholm. We are invited to the pad when we are leaving....not sure if it’s because we are in a C2 or elite + or random. Weather is cool and some clouds but I’ll go...my DW will be smart and just stY inside and be warm. Tonight is our TajX Indian dinner....should be interesting. So far, I have failed to find any place to try different types of herring in Finland or Sweden....my hope is finding herring in Copenhagen. Most wouldn’t care, but I like herring.

 

The buffet food on this cruise is really very good....very much improved from our last celebrity cruise. So far, mdr food has also been good, but last night he beef brochettes was inedible..replaced quickly with shrimp/pasta entree. Mast grill hamburgers still the best on the ship...excellent. Elite breakfast is prepared plates..no buffet.

 

 

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As somebody particularly interested in this special and unique dining experience, I look forward to your thoughts... looking forward to your description and how you enjoyed it. And, if you are open to taking a few photos, I'd be ecstatic. :)

November 1st is a holiday and you may find things closed on that day. The "low" season starts in November so the cost of hotels drop, there are fewer people, and the weather is still quite nice. I've spent several day in Rome in early November prior to a west bound transatlantic and really enjoy that time of year.

It doesn't appear that a roll call thread has been started for this cruise.

Hi All,

I'm looking to book a cruise for my upcoming birthday. I've narrowed down the list of options to two different options, one on Celebrity Summit and one on RCL Freedom OTS. My question is...which one is better suited for me?

I'm looking to do the Southern Caribbean (as I've never been to any of those islands before). I'll be traveling with my BF (gay couple in our mid-30's)...we're both fairly active and enjoy being around folks around our same age/with similar interests. I've been on 3 previous cruises...one on HAL and two on Carnival.

Here's the dates/itineraries for each:

Celebrity Summit: 10/27-11/3, R/T San Juan, PR

Ports: St. Croix, St. Maarten, Dominica, Barbados, Grenada

RCL Freedom OTS: 10/28-11/4, R/T San Juan, PR

Ports: ABC Islands, St. Maarten, St. Thomas

Any recommendations would be much appreciated!

Hello,

Both itineraries are attractive for different reasons... however, I am not the one on the cruise. Do you cruise a lot? In the Caribbean? If the answer is "yes", then the Summit itinerary is quite standard and maybe boring if you have been to those ports. Seems as though cruises going to the ABC islands is less and less common, especially to visit all 3 in one cruise. If you have never been to Aruba, Bonaire, & Curacao... AND, you don't do cruises often, I would probably suggest / recommend going on the RCCL itinerary.

These are all "assumptions" so please forgive in advance... however, based on your age and travel companion, I might also suggest the RCCL ship. The ship is bigger and has a lot more to do on the ship, including many things targeted to an active and younger audience.

With all of this said, I tend to prefer a smaller ship, a calmer (not sedate) environment to relax on my cruise and I am easy going with the entertainment options. When it comes to food, hands down... I would pick Celebrity. Sure, you can eat in specialty restaurants on Freedom, but I don't feel the need to do that when I am in the Celebrity MDR. Also, things like service is comparable, but I give a nod to Celebrity.

Either cruise itinerary and ship will be a fabulous post-Thanksgiving escape and at a time of year when the cruises are more affordable. Enjoy whichever cruise you select.

What not to pack: roughly, one half of what you think you need to pack.

Agreed! ;)

However, I think this was an attempt to state what you cannot take with you by regulation. I wanted to set the record straight with current information.