Chasing Constellation from Rome to Arabian Nights November 2016

[Jim_Iain]

I guess it is better to know now that my plan for image posting is a total bust. I need to figure out an easy way to do this and have nice full size images. Any suggestions would be appreciated. TapTalk does work well, however I tent to make many typos from my Ipad/Phone and they end up too big sometimes. From my computer I have to upload them elsewhere then use a link to embed them so they're not tiny. The embded image hosting on Cruise Critic is horrible.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

 

Jenna - You might want to take a look at CruiseCritic App - Forums. You can post messages and photos direct from your Ipone (probably other smart phones also). You don't need to upload to a exterior site first and you select the quality (size) of photo on uploading.

 

When I had a photo to post from my stand alone camera I would send myself an e-mail with the picture and then save to my iPhone.

[Jim_Iain]

Jenna - Really enjoying your posts and fantastic photos.

 

I know this is a weird question but you might have knowledge of. During the passage thru the Gulf of Aden what if any accommodation have they made for smokers. The only regular smoking areas that come to mind would be deck 10 Port side of pool.

 

We will be taking Constellation from Singapore to Rome in April and would also be interested in what temperatures are like while at sea in that region.

 

Thanks,

Jim

[chemmo]

Sat at home watching the Grand Prix...looking out for you in the crowds! Should have asked Celebrity Constellation guests to wear hats with an X on the top!

 

Hope you have a great time, a real experience I hope.

 

Sincere thanks for letting us enjoy your adventure.

[h20cruzer]

Jenna any rumors or facts about the new Edge class ships yet? Dee looks like that new knee is really working out for her:):):)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Cotswold Eagle]

Jenna - Really enjoying your posts and fantastic photos.

 

I know this is a weird question but you might have knowledge of. During the passage thru the Gulf of Aden what if any accommodation have they made for smokers. The only regular smoking areas that come to mind would be deck 10 Port side of pool.

 

We will be taking Constellation from Singapore to Rome in April and would also be interested in what temperatures are like while at sea in that region.

 

Thanks,

Jim

 

I'm not Jenna, but just got off the cruise in Abu Dhabi. A (dark) smoking area was created in the centre of the pool deck, just forward of the little stage, so outside the doors near the Ocean View, for the times the ship was running with reduced lighting.

 

Warm overnight round these parts :)

[Jim_Iain]

I'm not Jenna, but just got off the cruise in Abu Dhabi. A (dark) smoking area was created in the centre of the pool deck, just forward of the little stage, so outside the doors near the Ocean View, for the times the ship was running with reduced lighting.

 

Warm overnight round these parts :)

 

Thanks for the information. I'm starting to get excited about our cruise. It is amazing how members on CC are always so helpful in answering questions.

 

Thanks again.

[thistledoo]

What an interesting review, thank you!

 

How busy was it in Abu Dhabi with the F1 on - was it hard to catch a taxi around the tourist sites, and what about getting to the airport? We're going next year and are wondering whether to fly from Abu Dhabi on disembarkation day (day after the race), or spend a few days in Dubai before our flight home.

[Cotswold Eagle]

What an interesting review, thank you!

 

How busy was it in Abu Dhabi with the F1 on - was it hard to catch a taxi around the tourist sites, and what about getting to the airport? We're going next year and are wondering whether to fly from Abu Dhabi on disembarkation day (day after the race), or spend a few days in Dubai before our flight home.

 

Without wanting to hijack this review (and I'll be doing my own when I get home), I can answer this one too. No problem getting taxis - like many large international cities, Abu Dhabi has thousands of them. A short queue built up at times this morning at the cruise terminal, but that was mostly actually loading cabs, rather than there not being any available. AIDA Aura was in port at the same time, so heavy demand with our disembarkation too.

 

A lot of the F1 'circus' probably flew out after the race - the track is close to the airport and there are flights at 2 or 3 am (and bear this in mind - booking a flight on Monday can more or less mean Sunday night, if you see what I mean, because you'd be heading for the airport before midnight). There are still fans in town but not enough to overload the tourist infrastructure. I am staying one night in Abu Dhabi and have a daytime flight home in the morning, because it was cheaper for me than flights today.

[villauk]

Without wanting to hijack this review (and I'll be doing my own when I get home), I can answer this one too. No problem getting taxis - like many large international cities, Abu Dhabi has thousands of them. A short queue built up at times this morning at the cruise terminal, but that was mostly actually loading cabs, rather than there not being any available. AIDA Aura was in port at the same time, so heavy demand with our disembarkation too.

 

A lot of the F1 'circus' probably flew out after the race - the track is close to the airport and there are flights at 2 or 3 am (and bear this in mind - booking a flight on Monday can more or less mean Sunday night, if you see what I mean, because you'd be heading for the airport before midnight). There are still fans in town but not enough to overload the tourist infrastructure. I am staying one night in Abu Dhabi and have a daytime flight home in the morning, because it was cheaper for me than flights today.

 

Hi,

 

Long time no speak :D. Do you happen to know far Ferrari World is from the port? We've booked a cruise for next year and wondered if we'd have time for a visit before we boarded later in the day. TIA :).

[Cotswold Eagle]

Hi,

 

Long time no speak :D. Do you happen to know far Ferrari World is from the port? We've booked a cruise for next year and wondered if we'd have time for a visit before we boarded later in the day. TIA :).

 

Hi! Yes, I do - I went there before the race on Sunday (free entry included with Grand Prix tickets). It's about 30 minutes in a cab, which cost around 80 dirham. Note that Ferrari World doesn't open until 11am.

[need2bespoiled]

Just a quick note. I'll be back to finish Oman, Abu Dhabi, F1 races and Dubai.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[villauk]

Hi! Yes, I do - I went there before the race on Sunday (free entry included with Grand Prix tickets). It's about 30 minutes in a cab, which cost around 80 dirham. Note that Ferrari World doesn't open until 11am.

 

Thank you :).

[vickykay]

Hi Villack,

 

I see from your signature that you will be cruising the western Med on the Reflection this summer. We did the same cruise a year ago May and was one of the best cruises we have been on! Enjoy.

 

Vicky

[villauk]

Hi Villack,

 

I see from your signature that you will be cruising the western Med on the Reflection this summer. We did the same cruise a year ago May and was one of the best cruises we have been on! Enjoy.

 

Vicky

 

Hi Vicky,

 

Thanks for that - hope you are well :)? We have Asia to look forward to first in a few weeks and then we've booked a sailing from Abu Dhabi to India and Dubai next year. Believe it or not, we cruised with David (Cotswold Eagle) a good few years ago on Brilliance to Norway. That was another adventure as our itinerary was not confirmed until we actually set foot on the ship :eek: :D. Always an experience with us :p.

 

Jenny

 

 

Sorry for interrupting your thread, Jenna :o.

[caribill]

Just a quick note. I'll be back to finish Oman, Abu Dhabi, F1 races and Dubai.

 

 

 

 

Looking forward to reading about them.

 

Please include the contact information for the tour guides you used in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

[vickykay]

Really enjoyed your entire review.

[need2bespoiled]

Hi Jenna,

 

Thanks for your wonderful review. I'm now even more excited to board the Constellation in 6 weeks. Even more excited to be residing in one of your favorite aft suites.

 

So where is your next adventure going to take you?

 

Anita

 

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Forums mobile app

 

Bon Voyage Anita, Savanah and Steve, have a great trip!

 

Jenna - You might want to take a look at CruiseCritic App - Forums. You can post messages and photos direct from your Ipone (probably other smart phones also). You don't need to upload to a exterior site first and you select the quality (size) of photo on uploading.

 

When I had a photo to post from my stand alone camera I would send myself an e-mail with the picture and then save to my iPhone.

 

I have used TapTalk but the typos I make are plentiful. I need a place I can upload to from my phone and easily get static links that can also keep the photos "private". I've found flickr works best but doesn't allow me to easily upload JUST the photos I want to. I'll keep trying but do appreciate the advice.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[need2bespoiled]

What an interesting review, thank you!

 

How busy was it in Abu Dhabi with the F1 on - was it hard to catch a taxi around the tourist sites, and what about getting to the airport? We're going next year and are wondering whether to fly from Abu Dhabi on disembarkation day (day after the race), or spend a few days in Dubai before our flight home.

 

Without wanting to hijack this review (and I'll be doing my own when I get home), I can answer this one too. No problem getting taxis - like many large international cities, Abu Dhabi has thousands of them. A short queue built up at times this morning at the cruise terminal, but that was mostly actually loading cabs, rather than there not being any available. AIDA Aura was in port at the same time, so heavy demand with our disembarkation too.

 

A lot of the F1 'circus' probably flew out after the race - the track is close to the airport and there are flights at 2 or 3 am (and bear this in mind - booking a flight on Monday can more or less mean Sunday night, if you see what I mean, because you'd be heading for the airport before midnight). There are still fans in town but not enough to overload the tourist infrastructure. I am staying one night in Abu Dhabi and have a daytime flight home in the morning, because it was cheaper for me than flights today.

 

They actually brought a lot of taxis in from Dubai for the race weekend. I saw a lot at the F1 Grand Priz with THOUSANDS of taxis. There were always taxis at the port taxi stand until at least 2am.

 

It took a bit more for us, sometimes as much as 45 min to get to the track, you get to Ferrari world first. If it is not F1 weekend it will be easier. Speeds are strictly limited on a few parts of the drive.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[4774Papa]

Jenna - Really enjoying your posts and fantastic photos.

 

I know this is a weird question but you might have knowledge of. During the passage thru the Gulf of Aden what if any accommodation have they made for smokers. The only regular smoking areas that come to mind would be deck 10 Port side of pool.

 

We will be taking Constellation from Singapore to Rome in April and would also be interested in what temperatures are like while at sea in that region.

 

Thanks,

Jim

 

Jim,

We did the Century's Singapore to Dubai in late March, early April 2015. Temps were hot, hot, hot. We made the mistake of booking an aft balcony with full exposure to the sun and could not use the balcony during our cruise.

 

Temps in Singapore, Malaysia and India were in the high 90s and humid. Temps exceeding 100 in Oman and UAE.

 

One problem with such high temps and this itinerary is that in most of these places, conservative dress is a must, so wearing shorts is out. It is ironic that one of the hottest cruises we have ever taken we had to cover more of our bodies.

 

Still, it was a great cruise.

[need2bespoiled]

Jenna - Really enjoying your posts and fantastic photos.

 

I know this is a weird question but you might have knowledge of. During the passage thru the Gulf of Aden what if any accommodation have they made for smokers. The only regular smoking areas that come to mind would be deck 10 Port side of pool.

 

We will be taking Constellation from Singapore to Rome in April and would also be interested in what temperatures are like while at sea in that region.

 

Thanks,

Jim

 

The smokig question was answered well, so just a bit more on temperatures. It was nice, maybe a bit unseasonably warm until the day before / evening we reaced the Med end of the Suez Canal. It was hot but not overly so from there the rest of the way. I would expect the same in reverse but I know the cruise before us was cooler and had quite a bit of rain. I am not sure how the different time of year would reverse that.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[need2bespoiled]

Jenna any rumors or facts about the new Edge class ships yet? Dee looks like that new knee is really working out for her:):):)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Hey Norma, NOTHING new on the Edge, very tighted lipped. Dee's knee is good, better every day but only a week until she gets the other one done!

 

Sat at home watching the Grand Prix...looking out for you in the crowds! Should have asked Celebrity Constellation guests to wear hats with an X on the top!

 

Hope you have a great time, a real experience I hope.

 

Sincere thanks for letting us enjoy your adventure.

 

We couldn't even find other cruisers in the stands nearby, lol, huge crowds and very fun even for someone who has never been to a race! Very much a real experience!

 

 

Happy saiing,

Jenna

Edited December 1, 2016 by need2bespoiled

[need2bespoiled]

Jim,

We did the Century's Singapore to Dubai in late March, early April 2015. Temps were hot, hot, hot. We made the mistake of booking an aft balcony with full exposure to the sun and could not use the balcony during our cruise.

 

Temps in Singapore, Malaysia and India were in the high 90s and humid. Temps exceeding 100 in Oman and UAE.

 

One problem with such high temps and this itinerary is that in most of these places, conservative dress is a must, so wearing shorts is out. It is ironic that one of the hottest cruises we have ever taken we had to cover more of our bodies.

 

Still, it was a great cruise.

 

We found, with the exception of the Mosque's the UAE, Oman and even Jordan pretty accepting of western dress. We had scarves with us just in case but that was far from enough for the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi where everything had to be covered from wrists to ankles but they do provide the coverage (with a long walk), and more on this later today when I find time to do the reviews on Oman, Abu Dhabi and F1, Dubai and the flights home.

 

Happy sailing

Jenna

[need2bespoiled]

Looking forward to reading about them.

 

Please include the contact information for the tour guides you used in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

 

We toured with a Taxi in Abu Dhabi.

 

In Dubai, we actually used Abdullah (from Petra, who actually lives in Dubai). He was great in Dubai too, more on that later.

 

His facebook is @TourInJordanPetra

 

His email is amra37@yahoo.com

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[need2bespoiled]

One more quick post before I get some work done. The Celebrity Today's from the Athens to Abu Dhabi cruise:

 

Click here to download the LARGE document (over 60 meg) with all Celebrity Todays and additinoal postings

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[caribill]

We toured with a Taxi in Abu Dhabi.

 

In Dubai, we actually used Abdullah (from Petra, who actually lives in Dubai). He was great in Dubai too, more on that later.

 

His facebook is @TourInJordanPetra

 

His email is amra37@yahoo.com

 

 

Thanks.

 

And thanks for the Celebrity Today upload you did.