Question on Flight time, Beverage plans and Bags

[Dams]

We are (family of 5) going an a 7 day Alaska cruise from Seattle in Juy on Celebrity. I have a few questions, as a 1st time cruiser.

 

1). Our flight from Seattle (not booked yet) after disembarkation is at 11.40am. Is it too short of a time to make it in time for the Flight (time for disembarkation, baggage claim, transport from pier to airport and checkin there). There are no later flights till night.

 

2). How does the beverage plans work? I got an email marketing some 10% discount. Is the quoted price (ranging from $7 to $50 or above per day) per person, per cabin or whole group?

None of us not drink alcohol but 3 of us (adults) consume coffee (2-3 cups a day at home/work). I am debating if it is worth it? I assume it is probably worth it if we are going to be on the ship all day or part of the day.

 

3). Number of bags : We are planning to pack 1 big bag per person and 2 or 3 small carryon type bags (for all 5 people) for essentials.

How do most cruisers do with regards to the number of bags, sizes?

[Keith1010]

We are (family of 5) going an a 7 day Alaska cruise from Seattle in Juy on Celebrity. I have a few questions, as a 1st time cruiser.

 

1). Our flight from Seattle (not booked yet) after disembarkation is at 11.40am. Is it too short of a time to make it in time for the Flight (time for disembarkation, baggage claim, transport from pier to airport and checkin there). There are no later flights till night.

 

2). How does the beverage plans work? I got an email marketing some 10% discount. Is the quoted price (ranging from $7 to $50 or above per day) per person, per cabin or whole group?

None of us not drink alcohol but 3 of us (adults) consume coffee (2-3 cups a day at home/work). I am debating if it is worth it? I assume it is probably worth it if we are going to be on the ship all day or part of the day.

 

3). Number of bags : We are planning to pack 1 big bag per person and 2 or 3 small carryon type bags (for all 5 people) for essentials.

How do most cruisers do with regards to the number of bags, sizes?

 

I would have said book the flight after Noon but 11:40 is at least close to that. I would arrange for private transportation.

 

People tend to overpack on cruises. Alaska the challenge is to layer clothing. The number of bags you plan to pack sound good.

 

I would post the question about drink package on the Celebrity cruise board.

 

Keith

[CruiserBruce]

For question one, your flights are very tight. VERY tight. Good luck.

 

On question two, best asked on the Celebrity board.

 

On question 3, the cruise line doesn't care about your luggage, as long as it goes thru the metal scanners, and is tagged for your room. However airlines care a lot about your bags. Weights, sizes, numbers. Carry ons are limited to one plus a large purse or small backpack type item. You will be forced to check any items over that limit, and you are taking space from others who are within the standard limits.

[cb at sea]

If you don't drink alcohol, there's no need to worry with beverage packages, unless you drink alot of soda....there is a soda package, if you drink more than the equivilent of 3+ cans of soda per day.

 

Regular coffee is included in your fare...it's only the specialty coffees that have a charge, and you can buy them "a la carte"... same with soda...you can buy by the can.

[kitty9]

There are different drink packages on Celebrity, but unless you drink lots of soft drinks, or drink a lot of alcohol, they may not be worth it for you. Coffee is free, unless you want fancy coffees that contain alcohol, or Starbucks kinds of coffee. But regular coffee is included in your cruise fare. The drinks packages are for those who drink more than 5 or so soft drinks per day, or have more than four alcohol drinks per day. If you have just one or two if either, the packages aren't worth the money.

[Dams]

There are different drink packages on Celebrity, but unless you drink lots of soft drinks, or drink a lot of alcohol, they may not be worth it for you. Coffee is free, unless you want fancy coffees that contain alcohol, or Starbucks kinds of coffee. But regular coffee is included in your cruise fare. The drinks packages are for those who drink more than 5 or so soft drinks per day, or have more than four alcohol drinks per day. If you have just one or two if either, the packages aren't worth the money.

 

Thank you. That makes it not worthwhile for us. I cannot imagine any one of us drinking that many soft drinks daily.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Dams

Your 11:40 flight will be fine.

You might consider doing self-disembarkation just to be safe -- if you are able to lug ALL your own luggage of the ship.

Since we fly across country -- we have to stay at a hotel very near the airport. Thus we are not among the first off the ship. And we dock at Pier 91 -- a little futher from the airport. We use a limo service -- AlreadyThereTownCar. We usually leave the ship between 8:30 and 9 and we are at our hotel by 9:30 - 10.

[Deamagoli]

We found that we used every penny of our Premium Non-liquor package both times we used them. We would have at least 2 specialty coffees daily with a couple soda's by the pool. We also liked to take a couple of gator aid type drinks & a large bottle of water with us on shore excursions so we didn't have to drink local water. I also liked the fact that we pre-paid the drink package so it didn't end up on the end of cruise bill & we had no unwanted surprises on that bill. You can also check your daily charges from the TV in your room so you know exactly what you are spending.

[Andee]

We no longer use our big bags when we fly domestically--packed full, they weigh over 50#, which would result in an overcharge. We each take a medium bag and a roller bag carry-on.

[tangerinebunny]

Most box stores sell plastic compression bags that will help with your clothes. You can use them for the bulkier warm stuff, although we take and use long johns/cuddle duds and fleece vests in Alaska - warmth and little packing space.

 

Coming home an extra compression bag or two work fine for laundry.

 

On a normal day your flight time is doabe. But do you want to spend most of your cruise wondering if you'll make it in time? SeaTac is a busy place on cruise days. Is there a penalty for a new flight if you're late arriving? If you can rebook without penalty, then it sounds good. But if you're on Delta, forget it.

[Steviewonder1]

We always go a day ahead on all of our cruises. Less tension worrying about airline delays, equipment problems ect. We love to travel around the city before the cruise, Seattle 3 times, Montreal, Quebec City, Miami, Co-Co Beach. Your time is going to be tight as it will take a good hour to get out of Seattle airport, get your luggage and travel to the pier. We take 1 large bag each and one carry-on. Our last cruise they started boarding 1 hour early. We went straight on and dumped our carry-on's and left the ship. The other thing on our 10 day cruise the first night was on the ship at the dock in Quebec City, so another day of walking around that wonderful city.

Good Luck on your cruise.

[0bnxshs]

If you are much of a coffee drinker, you'll find Celebrity's free coffee is not very satisfactory, I expect intentionally so. It's not as bad as the free coffee on Princess, but it's not particularly good. I tolerated it as I generally only drink 2 cups a day, and sometimes I couldn't manage that. DW enjoys specialty coffees and couldn't stomach the free stuff.

 

The cruise terminals are about an hour's drive from the airport. Traffic in Seattle is heavy on weekdays and if there are any tie-ups at all, the trip time can easily double. You should take that into consideration.

[spookwife]

We are (family of 5) going an a 7 day Alaska cruise from Seattle in Juy on Celebrity. I have a few questions, as a 1st time cruiser.

 

1). Our flight from Seattle (not booked yet) after disembarkation is at 11.40am. Is it too short of a time to make it in time for the Flight (time for disembarkation, baggage claim, transport from pier to airport and checkin there). There are no later flights till night.

 

2). How does the beverage plans work? I got an email marketing some 10% discount. Is the quoted price (ranging from $7 to $50 or above per day) per person, per cabin or whole group?

None of us not drink alcohol but 3 of us (adults) consume coffee (2-3 cups a day at home/work). I am debating if it is worth it? I assume it is probably worth it if we are going to be on the ship all day or part of the day.

 

3). Number of bags : We are planning to pack 1 big bag per person and 2 or 3 small carryon type bags (for all 5 people) for essentials.

How do most cruisers do with regards to the number of bags, sizes?

 

 

1: as long as you are one of the first people off you SHOULD be fine. you can either do self disembarkation, or request to be in the first group thereafter

 

 

2: most beverage cards are PER PERSON and no you may not share. coffee is not part of any package.. plain coffee is available in all dining venues for meals but specialty coffees are a surcharge. some cabins have a coffee maker in them and it is not a big deal if you ask the cabin steward for extras

 

 

3: there will NOT be a lot of storage space so unless you can stuff all the smaller bags inside the larger ones, you may want to rethink that plan. also.. you will be dragging around all your carry ons until they release the cabins and that can be mid afternoon.

[Dams]

We decided to forego the beverage package. Ala carte is better for us.

Spookwife, you misunderstood my question. I meant 2 or 3 carryon bags for all 5 of us together (2 of the 5 are children), not 2 or 3 carryons for each person.

[cmbcmb]

There are different drink packages on Celebrity, but unless you drink lots of soft drinks, or drink a lot of alcohol, they may not be worth it for you. Coffee is free, unless you want fancy coffees that contain alcohol, or Starbucks kinds of coffee. But regular coffee is included in your cruise fare. The drinks packages are for those who drink more than 5 or so soft drinks per day, or have more than four alcohol drinks per day. If you have just one or two if either, the packages aren't worth the money.

 

What about water? Can you buy bottled water? If so, is it expensive? Don't need premium water (?) just plain bottled water, but have heard tap water on board is not good.

[emo]

What about water? Can you buy bottled water? If so, is it expensive? Don't need premium water (?) just plain bottled water, but have heard tap water on board is not good.

 

Yes, you can buy bottled water on board. Can't remember prices for all sizes/brands, I think it's about $4 for a 1L evian. But Celebrity allows you to bring on board as much water, soda, or other bottled beverages as you want. Just put a luggage tag on it when you drop off your bags, and it will be delivered to your stateroom. The tap water on board is fine to drink as well, but it's handy to have the bottles to take with you on shore excursions, etc. Also, you are allowed to bring on 2 bottles of wine per stateroom at embarkation :)

[cmbcmb]

Yes, you can buy bottled water on board. Can't remember prices for all sizes/brands, I think it's about $4 for a 1L evian. But Celebrity allows you to bring on board as much water, soda, or other bottled beverages as you want. Just put a luggage tag on it when you drop off your bags, and it will be delivered to your stateroom. The tap water on board is fine to drink as well, but it's handy to have the bottles to take with you on shore excursions, etc. Also, you are allowed to bring on 2 bottles of wine per stateroom at embarkation :)

 

Thank You! I had heard Celebrity doesn't allow water to be brought on board but if that is possible, that would be the solution. :)

[erinmarie424]

In regard to Question #3 - you may want to consider each member of the family having a carry-on and reduce the number of large bags that need to be checked. It would cut down on baggage fees and less chance of bags getting lost on the way to the embarkation port.