Celebrity Millennium Singapore to Hong Kong - March 3, 2013

[CruisersSFO]

Hello Everyone

 

Well, from what I've seen about the first run of Millennium from Singapore to Hong Kong, I hope things get ironed out for our cruise! That said:

 

We have booked two private tours and if anyone would like to join us, please let us know:

 

1) Bangkok (with overnight in Bangkok - hotel not included):

 

Day 1 - Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha temple + Reclining Buddha temple + Canal tour by long tail boat with view of Dawn Temple + Flower/fruit/vegetable market.

 

Day 2 - Vimanmeak Mansion and Jim Thompson house.

 

The tour company (AbsoluteBangkok) will pick us up at the port, pay all port and entrance fees and drop us at our hotels the first night. The second day starts at 10:00 am and they will have us back at the ship by 5:00 pm.

 

Price: 4 people - $176/pp, 6 people - $140/pp

 

2) Saigon (NO overnight)

 

Day 1 - Cu Chi Tunnels and Black Virgin Mountain

Day 2 - Custom motor scooter tour of Saigon - each person drives their own Vespa and a guide leads the tour!

 

The company - TIGER Tours - will pick us up and return us to the ship each day.

 

Price: 4 people - $265/pp, 6 people - $242/pp, 8 people - $230/pp. 10 people - $223/pp (the Vietnamese authorities charge a port fee of $30/pp to enter the port and pick up passengers, and this fee is charged BOTH days!)

 

Let us know if you would like to be included, or if you have any feedback on these tours. Thom has already been to both cities previously, so has a pretty good feel for both of these places.

 

Salty food, huh? Celebrity is usually known for the quality of their food....!

 

Cheers, Thom and Adrian

[CruisersSFO]

One more addition: We've used VisaExpress in Houston for visas for other journeys, plus to get business visas and have ALWAYS had an excellent experience with them. They deliver EXACTLY as promised and you can FedEx your passports to them (and get them FedEx'd back) within a few days. They do Vietnamese tourists visas, and hearing what I am hearing I think we will send our passports to them in advance of the cruise...

 

You can find them at:

 

http://www.visaexpress.net

 

Happy New Year to one and all. 2013 promises to be an exciting year!

 

Thom & Adrian

[CruisersSFO]

"Day 2 - Custom motor scooter tour of Saigon - each person drives their own Vespa and a guide leads the tour!"

 

OOPS - Meant to say that each person has their own scooter with a driver!

[kwokpot]

Happy holidays to all! I hope everyone is well and enjoying the holidays safely with family and friends.

After much, much review of the information I have at hand, I have decided to use a tour company that provides pier pickup for our two day tour at Hanoi port stop. This IS NOT the tour company that I posted here on Dec. 17th: THAT tour company had a lower price but DID NOT pickup at the pier, so you have to walk out and to a hotel down the road for them to pick you up, coming back would be the same. This tour by Smile Tours, which from initial reports from the Dec.9th Millennium Cruise has gotten good remarks and has very good reviews on Trip Advisor AND CC. Here is the NEW tour information:

Day 1 – 13 Mar: Halong tour

13:30 Pick-up from the pier and transfer to the harbour for a private cruise in the beautiful bay

14:00 Start the cruise around the bay. Visit Thien Cung grotto, a fishing village, admiring the gorgeous scenery, enjoy taking nice pictures and relaxation.

18: 00 Return to the harbor and transfer back to the pier

18:30 Drop off at the pier

Day 2 – 14 Mar: Hanoi tour

07:00 Pick-up from inside Cai Lan port in Halong and transfer to Hanoi the old capital city of Vietnam

08:30 Stop to visit the famous Dong Trieu ceramic village on the way, then continue to Hanoi

10:00 Enjoy city tour covering Ba Dinh Square,Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum (outside only), the Presidential

Palace & HCM’s residence, the Colonial buildings square, the One Pillar Pagoda

11:00 Visit the Temple of Literature (The 1stUniversity of Vietnam)

12:00 Enjoy lunch with local noodle soup(excluded)

13:00 Enjoy a fantastic trishaw ride through the hustle and bustle of Hanoi for 60 minutes

14:00 Enjoy walking and shopping in the hustle and bustle of Hanoi Old Quarter

16:00 Transfer back to Halong Habour (3 – 4 hours). Stop at the Hong Ngoc handicraft center. Then continue the transfer back to Halong

20:00 Drop off at the pier

End of service

These itineraries are subject to changes due to time permitting and clients’ interests

PRICE: USD /PERSON (in private tours)

 

GROUP HANOI TOUR HALONG TOUR

2 – 3 pp 150 110

4 – 7 pp 120 80

8 – 14 pp 110 70

15 – 24 pp 100 60

 

Tour inclusions:

Private modern transport (from 2005 up), boat in Halong, trishaw ride in Hanoi, English speaking guides, entrance fees for tourist sites , refreshment of water and wet tissues, and permit to pick up inside the ports

Tour exclusions:

Drinks and food

Hotel accommodation in Hanoi

Tips

Costs not included above

This is additional information from the tour company:

I would like to offer you the prices for bigger groups. If you can get me 1 group of 20 or more people for each tour, I will give you 1 FOC (free of charge) for each tour. If there are many people joining the tours, we can split them into more groups, each group has about 24 people which is a good size to manage.

To confirm the tours, please send us the following information of each person to apply for the port permit:

- Full name

- Birthday

- Gender

- Nationality

- Passport number

We will keep you information in high security.

Please feel free to contact us for any further information and help from here.

FYI, the website for the company is:

http://www.smiletoursvietnam.com

 

Please contact me if you're interested in this tour; the more people I signup, the lower the price for everyone!

 

My email is:

 

k w o k p o t at a o l dot c o m

 

Just leave out the spaces and substitute @ for 'at' and . for 'dot'

 

 

Anthony Wong

[CruisinMaterial]

Eek! Hopefully they get most of the immigration mess worked out before our cruise. (And that review cemented my decision to get our visas for Vietnam directly from the Embassy in Ottawa rather than trying to get them on the ship. While they ultimately will be more expensive this way, it sounds like it will save hours of aggravation and worry while on board, which means money well spent!)

 

Sounds like a great plan to have in place! My Vietnam visa will be obtained through Cambodia on the overland tour so I'm not going to be worried about the wait either at Ho Chi Minh City as I will not be on the ship until that first night in port! I so can't wait for this trip! I fly out in exactly 2 MONTHS!:D

[CruisinMaterial]

I'm answering my own post.....

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1756397

 

Actually I was looking at two other places but the thoughts said in this thread seem to be echoed by what was stated earlier in two other places. It seems like the Thai authorities might have boarded too late to handle all the guests who planned on overnighting. I'm sure Celebrity must have learned from this with the Thai government and will get them onboard earlier. :)

 

More disheartening was the date goof on the Cambodia overland tour! :eek:

[tiggerman101]

Where did everyone go? It is the New Year and less then two months before we embark on this awesome journey. All I have is a three day NYC trip in about 10 days and then it is full steam ahead on this one. I have everything in order, just watching the clock.....

[CruisinMaterial]

Where did everyone go? It is the New Year and less then two months before we embark on this awesome journey. All I have is a three day NYC trip in about 10 days and then it is full steam ahead on this one. I have everything in order, just watching the clock.....

 

No idea but I'm still floating around here every few days... :)

 

We are in final countdown mode and it feels great to be in it! I guess all we're going to get in the mail are luggage tags and the rest is in an online brochure. I can't wait to do the luggage tag dance! :D

 

I miss my January cruise but waiting for this one and going on it will be WELL worth the wait! I just wish it'd get here already!!

[CruisersSFO]

Hello Travelers!

 

We've reserved and paid deposits on the private tours we posted in Bangkok and Saigon. We can add more people up until a week prior to departure. If anyone would like to join, please let us know!

 

Also - we went ahead and booked a CCL tour in Hue - Imperial Hue - as we just don't have the energy or time to set up another private tour! :p If anybody is doing anything interesting in Hue/Da Nang please let us know!

 

ALSO - We're staying in Bangkok (Renaissance) overnight - if anyone wants to meet in BKK for dinner and/or the Patpong & Night Market (One Night In Bangkok!), let us know!

 

Cheers,

Thom & Adrian

 

PS - Does anyone know what time the FOD are usually meeting on this cruise? We're thinking it will be around 7:00 pm in the Martini Bar...?

[CruisersSFO]

Hi there, we thank you for your rounded and attitude that's what we would usually expect. It would be good to catch with other gay guys once on board. We do respect that we will not be part of PP on board activities but that should not stop guys from meeting up for non PP parties, dinners etc. We are both such lovely guys from down under both with impectable manners

Paolo-Andrea and Ashley

Deck 7

 

Hello from San Francisco, gentlepersons -

 

Thom & Adrian here. The non-PP group will have the opportunity to meet every evening at the Friends of Dorothy cocktail hour (referred to as FOD), which will most likely take place at the Martini Bar (hope you like martinis!) at around 7:00. The Cruise Director will post the time and location on the community messages board. My spouse and I are doing the Celebrity Select dining (always!), so we eat when we want and with whom we want! Look forward to meeting you on board!

 

Cheers!

[CruisinMaterial]

Also - we went ahead and booked a CCL tour in Hue - Imperial Hue - as we just don't have the energy or time to set up another private tour! :p If anybody is doing anything interesting in Hue/Da Nang please let us know!

 

PS - Does anyone know what time the FOD are usually meeting on this cruise? We're thinking it will be around 7:00 pm in the Martini Bar...?

 

I will see you on the tour if you don't find something else to do between now and then. I'm booked on Imperial Hue as well through Celebrity. FODs tend to be at 7PM no matter the cruise line. NCL tends to stick with that time frame as well. I wonder what the show schedule is like. NCL is 730P and 930PM. This allocates one hours for eating during the fixed dining times. I hope to swing by the FOD. I'm still not sure besides dining together what PP brings to the guests booked through them. :cool:

[CruisersSFO]

In case you were looking for something else to do on the Sunday before we sail from Singapore...

 

http://www.raffles.com/singapore/restaurants-and-bars/sunday-carving-brunch/

 

Drink up! Thom & Adrian

[lemursf]

What Pied Piper brings to the table is the following:

1. You are guaranteed that there will be other gay guys on the boat with you.

2. Pied Piper offers a significant discount off of the posted rates.

3. First and last nite, PP hosts a cocktail party (and they pay!)

 

On this particular sailing, there are obviously other gay men who are not sailing with PP, but that is not always the case. We have been on large ships in the past, with no obvious gay guys. We have always had a good time and meets lots of nice straight people, but you do feel a bit isolated in some ways.

[hinterlandboyz2@gmail.com]

There certainly will be a number of gay guys on board ship who have not booked through PP so see you ALL on board:D

[tiggerman101]

I got excited and did our online check in today. Still 45 days till we fly out. Sigh.

 

Oh well, I head to NYC for three nights on Monday. I am just doing a solo jaunt up there to see a show and concert. I guess I will bum around in a couple neighborhoods. having only been to NYC once, I still have a lot to check out.

[CruisinMaterial]

What Pied Piper brings to the table is the following:

1. You are guaranteed that there will be other gay guys on the boat with you.

2. Pied Piper offers a significant discount off of the posted rates.

3. First and last nite, PP hosts a cocktail party (and they pay!)

 

On this particular sailing, there are obviously other gay men who are not sailing with PP, but that is not always the case. We have been on large ships in the past, with no obvious gay guys. We have always had a good time and meets lots of nice straight people, but you do feel a bit isolated in some ways.

 

Option 2 would be the reason why I booked through PP. I couldn't believe the price in comparison to AquaFest and well anyone could beat Atlantis' prices. He's always over priced and not to mention I wouldn't get any benefits out of the extra features of an Atlantis cruise because I'm not flying halfway around the world to party all night. When Atlantis dragged their feet on tour options for pre-cruise and post-cruise I switched but was unable to find anything for China on my own which was reasonably priced. My hopes for finding a person to travel with me also came up short by the deadline I had for airfare so it's just the cruise now! :)

 

Option 3 is a nice gesture and libations always help to get over any nerves a person may have about meeting new people! ;) The first night I will be off the ship and on an evening tour of Singapore though so chances are besides missing dinner I will also miss this party. :(

 

I guess I'll figure the whole thing out as I go along! Just found out someone I knew going on this cruise (straight) is now not able to make it! BUMMER!!

 

Would have been nice to have a reunion overseas as I met her the first time in 2007 for the Egypt cruise!

[kwokpot]

I just wanted to repost that I still have space available on the private day tours to Halong Bay and Hanoi. They are separate tours and you are welcome to take one or both. The information about the tours are listed below. The groups are currently at 11, so any additional participants will be priced according to the chart. PLEASE email me at:

 

k w o k p o t at a o l dot c o m

 

Just leave out the spaces and substitute @ for 'at' and . for 'dot'

 

TOUR INFORMATION

 

Day 1 – 13 Mar: Halong tour

13:30 Pick-up from the pier and transfer to the harbour for a private cruise in the beautiful bay

14:00 Start the cruise around the bay. Visit Thien Cung grotto, a fishing village, admiring the gorgeous scenery, enjoy taking nice pictures and relaxation.

18: 00 Return to the harbor and transfer back to the pier

18:30 Drop off at the pier

Day 2 – 14 Mar: Hanoi tour

07:00 Pick-up from inside Cai Lan port in Halong and transfer to Hanoi the old capital city of Vietnam

08:30 Stop to visit the famous Dong Trieu ceramic village on the way, then continue to Hanoi

10:00 Enjoy city tour covering Ba Dinh Square,Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum (outside only), the Presidential

Palace & HCM’s residence, the Colonial buildings square, the One Pillar Pagoda

11:00 Visit the Temple of Literature (The 1stUniversity of Vietnam)

12:00 Enjoy lunch with local noodle soup(excluded)

13:00 Enjoy a fantastic trishaw ride through the hustle and bustle of Hanoi for 60 minutes

14:00 Enjoy walking and shopping in the hustle and bustle of Hanoi Old Quarter

16:00 Transfer back to Halong Habour (3 – 4 hours). Stop at the Hong Ngoc handicraft center. Then continue the transfer back to Halong

20:00 Drop off at the pier

End of service

These itineraries are subject to changes due to time permitting and clients’ interests

PRICE: USD /PERSON (in private tours)

GROUP/HANOI TOUR/HALONG TOUR

8 – 14 pp/110/70

 

15 – 24 pp/100/60

 

Tour inclusions:

Private modern transport (from 2005 up), boat in Halong, trishaw ride in Hanoi, English speaking guides, entrance fees for tourist sites , refreshment of water and wet tissues, and permit to pick up inside the ports

Tour exclusions:

Drinks and food

Hotel accommodation in Hanoi

Tips

Costs not included above

This is additional information from the tour company:

 

To confirm the tours, please send us the following information of each person to apply for the port permit:

- Full name

- Birthday

- Gender

- Nationality

- Passport number

We will keep you information in high security.

Please feel free to contact us for any further information and help from here.

FYI, the website for the company is:

http://www.smiletoursvietnam.com

[CruisersSFO]

Hi Cruisers!

 

I've been trying to get on Celebrity's website for the past four days and it's "Under Construction" - how unusual!

 

I also want to remind people on this thread that we have spaces available on the tours we've booked in Bangkok and Saigon. Please refer back to the earlier posts for more information. If you'd like to be included, you can email me at:

 

ThomasACross3@gmail.com

 

That's all for now...the countdown continues!

 

Thom & Adrian

[kwokpot]

Hi Cruisers!

 

I've been trying to get on Celebrity's website for the past four days and it's "Under Construction" - how unusual!

 

I also want to remind people on this thread that we have spaces available on the tours we've booked in Bangkok and Saigon. Please refer back to the earlier posts for more information. If you'd like to be included, you can email me at:

 

ThomasACross3@gmail.com

 

That's all for now...the countdown continues!

 

Thom & Adrian

IF you still have problems you will need to clear out your web browser cache and then it won't be an issue.

[CruisersSFO]

Hi Cruisers -

 

Trying to finalize our private tours in Saigon, and the tour operator - TIGER Tours - is asking for a 50% deposit - in cash - wired directly to his private bank account in Vietnam. This is raising a red flag (I've been to Vietnam before and have had some "negative" experiences) as there would be no way to receive a refund if somehow he didn't show up...

 

Has anyone else booked with a private tour operator in Saigon that they could recommend? If not, it looks like we'll be booking the CCL excursions ("and we are walking...walking...") in Saigon.

 

Thanks - Can't believe it's only a little over a month until we leave!

 

Thom & Adrain

[tiggerman101]

Hi Cruisers -

 

Trying to finalize our private tours in Saigon, and the tour operator - TIGER Tours - is asking for a 50% deposit - in cash - wired directly to his private bank account in Vietnam. This is raising a red flag (I've been to Vietnam before and have had some "negative" experiences) as there would be no way to receive a refund if somehow he didn't show up...

 

Has anyone else booked with a private tour operator in Saigon that they could recommend? If not, it looks like we'll be booking the CCL excursions ("and we are walking...walking...") in Saigon.

 

Thanks - Can't believe it's only a little over a month until we leave!

 

Thom & Adrain

 

I am running two private tours in Vietnam and both required a deposit. Plus we are staying in a hotel in HCMC as part of the two day tour and we had to pre-pay that. We also had to give all our Passport, etc infor to them in order to book the hotel and allow them to pick us up at the port. It is my understanding that this is not unusal at all. We are using Zoom for HCMC/Mekong Delta trip and his travel agency set up a junk sail of Halong Bay. From everything i have read, this is all common practice.

[JoePDX]

Hi Cruisers -

 

Trying to finalize our private tours in Saigon, and the tour operator - TIGER Tours - is asking for a 50% deposit - in cash - wired directly to his private bank account in Vietnam. This is raising a red flag (I've been to Vietnam before and have had some "negative" experiences) as there would be no way to receive a refund if somehow he didn't show up...

 

Has anyone else booked with a private tour operator in Saigon that they could recommend? If not, it looks like we'll be booking the CCL excursions ("and we are walking...walking...") in Saigon.

 

Thanks - Can't believe it's only a little over a month until we leave!

 

Thom & Adrain

 

Highly recommend Ann Tours. http://anntours.com/ We used them in 2006 for two days in Saigon and the Delta.

 

Be sure and read their history!

 

Good luck!

Joe

[CruisinMaterial]

Hi Cruisers!

 

I've been trying to get on Celebrity's website for the past four days and it's "Under Construction" - how unusual!

 

Thom & Adrian

 

Celebrity's mobile website has not been working but their traditional (through the PC) has been working without issue. I'm not sure if they just decided to stop supporting a more mobile friendly website or what? :cool:

[kwokpot]

I just wanted to repost that I have organized a Private tour to Bangkok AND the city of Ayutthaya (It's an UNESCO World Heritage Site) withspace available. We would visit the city of Ayutthaya the first day, be dropped off in Bangkok for an overnight, then tour Bangkok the next day before returning to the ship. The cost would be around $200/pp for both Days NOT including the Bangkok hotel and dinner that night. Here is the itinerary:

 

Day 1 Departs: 09:00

 

09:00 Pick up dockside Laem Chabang Port

We'll be waiting for you when you get off the ship. Your guide will have a sign with your name on it. The sooner you get off the sooner we can leave.

11:30 Arrive at Sacred City of Ayutthaya

It's about two and a half hours from Laem Chabang to Ayutthaya. Once you arrive you can explore some of the ancient ruins within the main city.

12:15 Lunch in a Thai Restaurant

Lunch will be served in a local Thai restaurant

13:00 Wat Mahathat & Wat Lokayasutharam

These are the two best temples in Ayutthaya and each one has its own unique characteristics.

15:00 Long-tail Boat Trip

Mid afternoon you can take a long-tail boat trip around the island of Ayutthaya stopping at the elephant kraal along the way.

16:30 Depart for Bangkok

You can relax in air conditioned comfort while the driver takes you to your hotel in Bangkok.

18:30 Arrive at your hotel in Bangkok

You can expect to be in your hotel around 6:00pm depending on the traffic. Please remember that your overnight accommodation and dinner are not included in the tour cost.

 

 

Day 2 Departs: 08:00

 

08:00 Pick up from your hotel

You'll need to check-out early and then meet us in the lobby at 8:00am. Today is a full day with lots to see so please don't be late.

08:45 Wat Pho Reclining Buddha Temple

Wat Po is considered Thailand's first university and houses the famous Reclining Buddha.

10:00 Grand Palace Wat Phra Kaeo

The Grand Palace incorporates Wat Phra Kaeo or the Temple of the Emerald Buddha which is Thailand's most revered temple. Please dress accordingly.

12:45 Lunch in Thai Restaurant

Lunch will be in a Thai restaurant beside the Chao Phraya River

13:30 Depart for Laem Chabang

You can relax in air conditioned comfort while the driver returns you to your ship at Laem Chabang.

15:30 Arrive back at your ship

You can expect to be back on board by 3:30pm depending on the traffic.

 

 

 

If you're interested, please email me at:

 

k w o k p o t at a o l dot c o m

 

Just leave out the spaces and substitute @ for 'at' and . for 'dot'

[CruisersSFO]

Hi Everyone -

 

I just spoke with a representative at Celebrity who informed me that they will obtain Vietnamese visas for passengers for a charge of $50 pp. She recommended for those (like ourselves) who will be spending the night off of the ship and will need to take our passports with us (all hotels require a passport WITH a valid visa to check in) to inform Hotel Services in advance of our arrival in Saigon so that we can get our passports as soon as possible. She DID recommend that if we were able to obtain a tourist visa IN ADVANCE of our departure on the cruise that it might be the best option!

 

Also - for anyone who lives in the Bay Area: There is a Vietnamese Consulate at 1700 California Street in San Francisco and you can obtain a Vietnamese tourist visa in 1-3 days, which is what we are going to do (seeing is how it's about 10 blocks from where we live!)

 

Tomorrow marks four weeks until we fly off to Tokyo and on to Singapore! Yee-HAW!

 

Thom & Adrian