absolutboy20

I've been lucky enough to get the suites in the past albeit waitlisted and waiting for a cancellation. To be honest, I thought there would be more CS class suites on this size of a ship so we'll see. It will be at least a month before I can probably make the reservation, but now I have better idea what to ask/look for when trying to secure the booking.

Agh! Having to relearn all of the acronyms for the ship classes and room designations since this is a new board for me! =)

Those additional perks that will be offered for RS perks sound pretty spectacular. It's correct that I am looking at an Atlantis charter. So the question becomes how much of those additional perks will translate over. Usually anything along the lines of services offered through the room categories is honored, with other additional items such as unlimited beverage packages being pulled, which I suspect is done at the request of the chartering company.

I also was looking at the layout of the ship and noticed some of the rooms that I am looking at appear to be right under the pool deck area. In the past, I've heard complaints on other cruise lines where it can get quite noisy from lounge chairs being dragged particularly in the morning when they are setting up. Is this an issue?

The cruise is going to be port intensive so I do need to keep that mind.

Hello all:

First time here posting in the Celebrity forum. We are looking at booking a Med cruise on the Equinox for next August and needed some advice on cabins from people who have cruised in these units.

I've looked at the ship layout on the Equinox, and both types of rooms are centrally located which is great. The Celebrity Suite from the diagram and pictures looks like a slightly smaller cabin than what we just had on Seabourn. The only negatives I see in the design of the one on Celebrity is that the separated bedroom area does not have a floor to ceiling clear window, but rather a half wall frosted window which does not appear to go down or slide away? It just seems like a waste to not be able to see the ocean from the bedroom in any way. The other downside was that the bathroom appears to only have one sink, which seems unusual for a suite.

The Royal Suite, looks FANTASTIC but there is a pretty significant price jump. I also don't see much more in added benefits in the service category?

As I'll be on a charter, the prices are not going to fluctuate with demand, and judging from my previous cruises the upper end and lower categories tend to sell out immediately, and sometimes requires us to be waitlisted.

So my questions are:

On the Celebrity Suite, I see some of them are physically angled rooms due to the hump on the balcony and entryway side. Does this make the room less desirable in terms of usable space?

A Royal Suite I can see why it's so much more with the amenities of the room, but am I missing anything anything in service compared with a Celebrity suite?

Thanks you all in advance.

This has also been a tricky one for me as well as my experience has been for the price point, it is difficult to beat the square footage, separate shower/jacuzzi tub, double sinks, and for me the perk of unlimited laundry service that HAL offers. I'm not so much so enthralled with the Neptune Lounge, as a really put together room service menu would easily beat what is offered there. I also have heard positive reviews on the Haven suites in the newer NCL ships.

I love Seabourn and would sail them again in a heartbeat if $$ were not a issue, but to put it into perspective even with having a comparable suite level to an SA category on Seabourn, laundry service was not included. The same laundry bag that one stuffs with their suite perk on HAL, is $50 a bag with no other unlimited option offered.

Wow if the elevator bank that's out of order is one of the two that is near the bow of the ship that goes all the way up to the Observation Bar and the penthouse levels, it's been inoperable since since at least our March 15th sailing.

If you're already planning to be in Australia/New Zealand for a few weeks, and you're hitting the same areas by yourself, I would do a med cruise rather than repeating the same ports. I'm hoping for another med cruise on Seabourn in 2015.

I definitely would recommend trying a gay cruise at least once to see it is something that you would enjoy. There really are a wide variety of people on board contrary to what the ads show from Atlantis, and you can participate as much or as little as you want in the events.

As far as flights, I would steer away from United as their entertainment systems on the 747's were not updated. I also give Virgin Australia a thumbs down. The service was not great, food terrible, and seats horribly uncomfortable. Having my carry-on bags weighed at check-in and having to reshuffle bags was also a turn off. Qantas I hear is very nice on the A380's if you're in premium economy and above.

Here's my opinion on the 2013 cruise.

The crowd is older than on the Caribbean cruises as it's an expensive cruise with flights and hotels. You'll still see your share of fit young guys. You're right in that the majority of the people are going to be US, Canadian, and Australian.

There were a lot of complaints on board during our cruise that people were disappointed in the cruise ship (same ship being used in 2015) and that there wasn't the party atmosphere that the Caribbean and European cruises tend to have. I knew going in what the cruise ship offered/didn't offer so it met my expectations. The people who were disappointed were thinking it was going to be a Solstice class ship with multiple restaurants and venues, and comparable to the new ships that Atlantis tends to charter for their February Caribbean and August Med cruises.

The Celebrity Solstice has been cruising Australia/New Zealand but my opinion it's not the ideal ship for that area. The weather was much colder than what I was expecting. Out of the four sea days we had, only one of the days between Auckland and Wellington was the weather warm enough to lay out by the pool. The Oosterdam has a retractable roof for the mid-ship pool. This is also the area where the night time parties occurred. As it's an enclosed pool without much height, the lighting systems just didn't have the reach that they do on venues that are open to the outdoors. But, without the retractable roof, it would have been too cold to be dancing at night.

The weather I believe played a big role in the energy on board as people just weren't congregating in the rear outdoor pool which has a large deck space. I think that warm atmosphere invites people to socialize, drink, etc.

I think if you're considering this cruise, you want to be going for the destination first rather than for the ship or a party atmosphere. You can get your fix for a party once you get to Sydney at Mardigrasland.

One more item. The cruise is really over the day you arrive in Sydney. You'll see a large number of people disembarking that day to transfer to nearby hotels or head home.

Looks like they finally got the cruise set for RSVP 2015 Caribbean.

02/08 to 02/15 on Regal Princess.

Ports:

02/08 Fort Lauderdale

02/09 Princess Cay

02/10 At sea

02/11 Cozumel

02/12 At sea

02/13 Georgetown, Grand Cayman

02/14 at sea

02/15 Fort Lauderdale

Here's the link

http://www.rsvpvacations.com/rsvp-30th-anniversary-cruise/7

After thinking about it, if the RSVP 2015 cruise in the Caribbean is indeed those ports, it would be odd as I believe that was the exact same itinerary they did this year?

I'm pulling up the info that rodraad is on the RSVP 2015 cruise as well with the dates of February 15-22nd on the Regal Princess. The only thing I can't see is what the ports are, so kudos to roadrad for having your source =)

Pricing from what I see is pretty comparable to Divina with a huge amount of categories. The ship seems to get great reviews, but the tiny/narrow balconies are disappointing.

From what I'm seeing, looks like the contract is a done deal, it's just a matter of getting promotional materials together to send out and list. It's a possibility for unless Atlantis offers another tempting cruise.

I'm assuming your using a smartphone and when you state using your phone you mean text, phone, and data.

You'll have a couple of choices, but I highly recommend if you are planning on using your phone on board and not connecting through the ship's wifi, to purchase a international data/phone package. Paying as you go is going to be particularly expensive. For example, pay as you go for data on board using cellular-at-sea on AT&T is $19.97 per mb. To put that into perspective, if you happened to download one three minute song that costs $1.29, the data charge for that download would be about $120.00.

You'll want to check with your wireless phone provider as they would be the one that ultimately bills for the charges of on-board phone/data use if you're connecting through the cellular service directly and not through the ship's wifi.

I purchase international global roaming data/text package with AT&T when I travel abroad for a one month period. Unfortunately, AT&T only contracts with RCL, Azamara, and Celebrity for on board data/cell coverage as part of the data package you can purchase in advance. However, Verizon's coverage on board lists Seabourn as an included line as part of their data package if purchased as part of the "global data" package in advance. I would definitely double check if this is your provider.

I would highly recommend purchasing an international data roaming package. It's so much easier than trying to find wifi locations in port. Also, if you are sailing near land, most of the time you can still get the cell service from the local carrier that your provider contracts with overseas.

Jenidallas, you bring up a great point. I love my nieces and nephews and like to be with them, but a cruise with kids running around left and right doesn't sound like a R&R vacation. Maybe I'll get to meet you in person if they sign a Seabourn cruise in 2015 for the Med =)

Wripro, thanks for the specifics on the dress code. A jacket/dress shirt sound much more in line with what we would be wanting to do on vacation than a tux.

The only place that I found it a little too warm to eat outside was in Benoa which was our embarkation port. But we still did it. I just felt bad for the crew members who were in full black suits welcoming up on board.

Here are some pictures of the Legend while we pulled in. Hoya68 if you were in a common area outside, I may have a picture of you.

I think this is a weak area for HAL. I experienced terrible connections on both the Oosterdam and Nieuw Amsterdam. Although the wifi signal showed good strength, I spent more time trying to establish the connection than online checking e-mail.

On my recent experience on Seabourn, the connection was very stable and pretty fast for ship speed. As with any satellite service, the download was much faster than uploads.

I don't think anyone receives compensation for a Noro outbreak unless the cruise is physically cut short. I've seen this happen on other cruise lines where a thorough cleaning is needed and the cruise ship needs to be taken offline for a couple of days.

I also don't think the cruise line would necessarily be at fault for anyone getting noro in my opinion. I think it's going to be difficult to prove who brought on the virus, and unfortunately I believe it's the people who are sick who do not take the proper precautions of quarantining themselves to their room when they know they are sick that causes these outbreaks.

Sorry if you experienced this during your cruise though.

Joe - I asked my partner as to who his masseuse was but he couldn't recall the name unfortunately. Special entertainer was not anyone "big" like Adele Dazeem as they had on the larger Caribbean cruises. We had pop singer Zoe Badwi, comedienne Jackie Hoffman, Rhonda Burchmore a Jazz singer from Australia, and Trevor Ashley.

Jenidallas - How was the Getaway and the Haven?! If the Haven experience is anything close to Seabourn, I would be pretty happy. =)

I wouldn't have any issues with doing a traditional cruise. It would first be less expensive which is a bonus. The two items would be be the dress code as it is much more relaxed on Atlantis with no formal nights (I just can't imagine wearing/taking formal wear to a hot/humid region), and Atlantis normally offers more night time entertainment.

But if none of their offerings line with with our vacation schedule, we may just book directly through Seabourn.

I'm finally getting settled back into the normal routine of WORK but thought I would give my thoughts on my time on the Odyssey.

We were on the Bali to Singapore cruise on Atlantis. Overall, it was a great experience.

ROOM: We had cabin 1019. I liked the separation between the living area and bedroom with the glass wall, my partner felt that it made the room feel smaller. I thought the veranda was a tad small compared to other ships we had been on. The room attendant Galina was fast and tidy, getting in and out of the room as soon as we left for breakfast or dinner. She was also very thoughtful in looking through the manifest to decorate rooms for passenger's birthdays. I believe they were four people with birthdays just in our little area. The only downside to the room I can think of is the proximity to the Observation bar. They do have double doors that they close for night-time entertainment, but you can hear the sound through the door into the bedroom.

DINING:It was very difficult for us to eat anywhere but the outdoor dining at the Colonnade. With the balmy weather in the area, the atmosphere, great service, and food quality made it hard for us to go anywhere else. We ate in the main dining room about three times, with one of them during the open galley brunch buffet. We simply ran out of time to get in for Restaurant 2, and we only had room service for breakfast twice which was prompt and accurate. The one snafu happened while we were in Phuket in the main dining room for dinner. 95% of the passengers were venturing out to town so the dining room was empty besides three tables being occupied with all staff present. One of the menu items consisted of prime rib, but when horseradish was requested they scrambled looking for it on board, then we were told they unfortunately they were out, and about halfway through dinner the horseradish appeared. We had a similar situation with a sour cream for a baked potato on another night, again in the main dining room.

SPA: My partner enjoyed the spa for a deep tissue massage very much, stating it was one of the best he had had. The gym itself was ok. It was great in the sense that it was never crowded, but I felt with the high ceilings they have in the weight room, they could have installed some type of pull up/chin up/dip bar and removed some of the traditional gym equipment.

DESTINATION:The experience of going from Bali (beautiful beaches but crowded and impoverished) to Singapore was quite a contrast and made for some interesting excursions. Although I was expecting some ports to be busy, the number of ships in Surabaya and the through the Strait of Malacca was simply unbelievable. The highlights for me were the snorkeling at Menjangan Island and the sea canoes in Phang Na Bay. Borobudur the police escort and the bus convoy driving on the wrong side of the road was an excursion in itself.

SUGGESTION: I don't know if this is simply just on the Odyssey, but I found it odd that they do not sell sunscreen or aloe vera in the ship store. Although they state that sunscreen is readily available on the pool deck, it really was not the case and seemed like they were using half empty bottles left over from what passengers had left behind. Every bottle they brought out was a different brand/size from different countries, and none of them were ever half full.

I brought four cans of sunscreen for the trip, but ended up running out by the end of the trip. I went to purchase sunscreen at the ship store, but was directed to the spa. Unfortunately they only carry Skinceuticals in a 1.7 ounce bottle for $35 and then another brand which was even more expensive. BTW, the Skinceuticals was terrible and left it on board after trying it once. Another friend of ours got sunburned and went looking for aloe vera, and was told they do not sell any on board.

INTERNET: The speed/access/stability was probably the best I've experienced on a ship. I never had the dreaded experience of wasting minutes just to try and establish a connection. I do wish they offered an unlimited package for the total duration of the cruise, rather than one unlimited package for seven days.

OVERALL: The cruise was very different than the other cruises we have done in the past and I can say I came back more relaxed. I can't say it's one thing that made the experience really stand out, but it's all of the small things in terms of service that made it a great experience. We're looking at a possible Med cruise on Seabourn again if it is offered next summer.

Lastly, was fun to sail into Phuket to see the Legend docked at the pier. We shared the location for about an hour before they pulled out.

Thank you again to the people who gave first timer pointers on this board!

Safe travels and calm seas for all.

Ruth, glad to see you're making it down to OZ as last year you weren't sure when you would be down there again and here you off a year later on your way =)

I hope you didn't take my comment as a negative as I was curious just to see if you guys had happened to meet on board like a Cruise Critic meet and greet. It's been interesting to read the last few days how different people spend their time on board.

Thanks Kazu for doing this and maintaining the list even though I read that you're under the weather! I hope that you're feeling better and truly appreciate all you do.

I'm very excited for this as we leave on Wednesday morning five minutes past midnight. A lot of firsts for us on this journey, first time on this cruise line, first time in experiencing first class on an international flight (I'm an airline/airplane junkie before becoming a cruise addict) after calling American Airlines for months trying to actually use our points, and of course a first for us in the area.

I'm thinking of doing a blog again, but there's quite a few of them going on right now that are quite interesting reads in the area, and with it not being on HAL this year feel a little awkward posting here.

Working through the weekend trying to tie up everything before we leave. Thanks again all!

My apologies for asking this question if this has already been answered as I just started reading these blogs but have the three groups who are doing the live reviews met as you all are on the same ship? Its been very interesting to read to see how the different groups spend their time on board and about the ports. Also see that you're from my old college town!

Mark, there was never a question as to why we don't receive Seabourn credit, just a statement that we do not receive credit. I have a feeling that you have never been on a charter, and regardless of whether the cruise is a charter or not, most other cruise lines give credit towards the sailing as they do want to try an entice the customer to book another cruise, charter or not.

I am trying to book excursions online as well and had some questions particularly in the private car tour offered by Seabourn, only to have been left on hold.

The Seabourn club points are handled by Seabourn and not the charter company. The earning of reward points is pretty much the same rules as on Holland America where they always credit points on the Mariners Club regardless of it being a charter, but for some reason Seabourn does not.

The OP was asking the customer service reprensative about excursions, and except for maybe two of the excursions on the entire itinerary, they are identical to those listed on the Seabourn website. Unless he was asking about those customized excursions, the customer service rep should have been able to answer his basic questions in my opinion.

I have a feeling that Tumi and I are on the same charter. If that is the case, this charter company is known for being slow in releasing information, and many people end up calling the cruise line directly. This is especially the case on this sailing, we have not even received our booking numbers yet this close to boarding. The charter company currently has three back to back sailings and this cruise is at last of the group. I have a feeling Seabourn is getting a larger volume of calls than their normal sailing, and it appears that their system is limiting the information that they can pull up when it is a charter. But its no excuse for poor customer service even if they are not allowed to release the information. Another surprise on this sailing is that we do not receive any cruise credit towards the Seabourn program, when we have received them on past sailings with other cruise lines. Its unfortunate as the cruise isn't discounted by any means, rather its sold at a premium for it being a charter.

I think you're going to find it difficult to find a cruise from the US to Australia with arrival in June as it would be their winter. Most of those itineraries that go from Australia/US or vice versa are repositioning cruises. The major cruise ships who are not based all year in Australia will be pulling out of the country come April to reposition them for the summer Alaska cruise or the Caribbean season.