crazyman3

Thanks everyone.

It is all so much clearer now.

Happy Hour mmm... guess I'll need to attend out of politeness...

6 minutes ago, PacnGoNow said:

😂  

I forgot to mention, in a full suite, you don’t make reservations in the MDR, because you will have Club Class dining.

 

You probably know that already.  Just SD is all you need to do or OB.

 

No idea about Club Class Dining. Please explain. Thanks.

Thank you.

Of course, now we will need to get into serious training to eat all of these meals!

Hi 

Sorry I'm being so stupid...

We're on the Regal out of Southampton 7th July.

Many years ago, we used Princess a fair bit but it has been ten years... (with Celebrity)

New technology and systems seem to be in place,

How do we book specialty restaurants? We are in a full suite and have elite loyalty status.

We have loved Sabatini and Crown Grill in the past. Recommendations appreciated.

Although the balance isn't due yet, we can pay soon as this cruise was a gift to us.

Thanks for your help on this.

Stephen and Eileenovertoofar

Hi

The Regal Princess berths at Southampton 19th July 2023. Can anyone help me with the address (including postcode) of the berth? A car will be picking us up and we need to know where abouts !

Thanks.

Stephen

18 hours ago, PeterGavin said:

Dunedin is at Port Chalmers - 13-14 km away; half hourly public bus [#14] will get you there, but recent reports are that it is getting crowded due to overpriced ship shuttle prices.

 

Wellington - about 1.5km walk; since earthquake in 2017, due to pier status, no longer allowed to walk to city; generally a free shuttle is provided.

 

Christchurch is at Lyttelton - 12.1km, including a tunnel; public bus #28, every 30 minutes, cash accepted [NZ dollars].

 

Napier - 2km from city; rail tracks within port; might still be possible to walk. Rarest of these ports visited, so not sure of current status.

 

Picton - working port - free shuttle provided if at jetty [massive lumber piles usually on port site pre export]; if tender operation, taken to Town wharf for markets and shops.

Many thanks for your quick response.

10 hours ago, PeterGavin said:

Dunedin is at Port Chalmers - 13-14 km away; half hourly public bus [#14] will get you there, but recent reports are that it is getting crowded due to overpriced ship shuttle prices.

 

Wellington - about 1.5km walk; since earthquake in 2017, due to pier status, no longer allowed to walk to city; generally a free shuttle is provided.

 

Christchurch is at Lyttelton - 12.1km, including a tunnel; public bus #28, every 30 minutes, cash accepted [NZ dollars].

 

Napier - 2km from city; rail tracks within port; might still be possible to walk. Rarest of these ports visited, so not sure of current status.

 

Picton - working port - free shuttle provided if at jetty [massive lumber piles usually on port site pre export]; if tender operation, taken to Town wharf for markets and shops.

Thanks for your help.

Stephen

1 minute ago, mahdnc said:

 

We are not allowed to make unsolicited recommendations for excursion companies, however you have asked which allows me to reveal the three companies that we used in my "Live" tour description which I would highly recommend:

 

1. Napier: we used Hawke's Bay Escapes for a tour of their farm as well as doing a trap shoot.  This tour was clearly the family favorite for this cruise.  The farm is located in a beautiful area.  The tour is unique and is run by a lovely family.

 

2. Wellington: we used uTours for a private tour of Wellington.  Suzee and Jo specialize in conducting private tours for small groups.

 

3.  Dunedin: we had an outstanding private wildlife tour of the Otago Peninsula by Elm Wildlife Tours.

 

 

Fabulous! I shall start viewing these tomorrow.

Muchos Ta.

23 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

I posted a "Live" thread during our cruise to New Zealand aboard Solstice.  We called on all of the ports that you listed except for Christchurch as Solstice anchored at nearby Akaroa instead.

 

Anyway I am sure that my "Live" thread has much of the information that you are seeking.  Here is the link:

 

 

Thanks so much! I read your posts with growing entrallment. Brilliant!

Hi

We are on the Eclipse in March. 

Obviously excursions are now on our minds and we need help!

How far away are these ports from the town/city? Walking distance? A short taxi ride?

Dunedin

Wellington

Christchurch

Napier

Picton

Also, can anyone recommend areliable excursion company?

Thanking you in advance.

Stephen and Eileenover

3 hours ago, jelayne said:

I think you may have mistakenly looked at Dec 23 and everything is booked.  I just checked Dec 24 and the Celebrity  website shows all but 1 CS open. Presumably the booked by 1 on Deck 7 is yours.

No error, Jelayne. I tried it more than once. Yes, the deck 7 one is now booked by your truly.

1 minute ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

It’s a good thing it informed you that suites were sold out since they are. Most people wouldn’t argue with that…

I contacted my TA and all of the Celebrity Suites were still available. Booked one now via my TA.

The website is awful.

Tried to book a suite on Millenium for Dec 24 and the website informed me that none was available.

Tried to look at excursions for our March 23 Sydney --  NZ -- Sydney cruise pon the Eclipse and it kicks back at me with 'Bad Error'. Ouch!

Any advice appreciated.

Thanks.

Extra deck on the Reflection, what's the story?

Surely, what's the storey?

What sort of stateroom are you considering?

Another option is to just go to a bar, order what you wish and take it back to your room!

We toast fairwell to every port! To do this I go to the bar, order a couple of glasses of bubbles and whizz them to our room. Romantic photo on the balcony time!

On 10/22/2021 at 11:31 PM, Jim_Iain said:

We have almost exclusively sailed in Suites in our 20 years of sailing.    We do not tip anyone incrementally during the cruise.    At the end of each cruise or segment of a B2B we hand out and envelope with a Thank You card and an additional gratuity to those that have provided more than what we consider service above what would be considered standard. 

 

When in CS and above with 2 rooms we always eat breakfast in our room, delivered by the Butler (I can't get use to Personal Retreat whatever).   We also leave him a nice additional gratuity.     If he provided additional services like setting up parties etc than the tip is increased.   

 

Tipping is a personal decision and we take into consideration that we are already paying $38 a day in tips for all included staff under the tipping program.  We like to strike a even balance of fairness and over tipping. 

With you 100% on this.

During the cruise, I try to find out what the butler and Michael's Club/Retreat concierge are into. At the end of the cruise we usually give them preferred alcohol, perfume etc.

On 8/15/2021 at 3:49 PM, Locobill49 said:

We are booked into a sky suite on Millenium. I understand that there are robes and slippers in the rooms. Are the slippers reused or can you take them with you? 

The slippers are all new and of one size, as far as my experience goes. Reasonable quality. We usually take them home with us and they last another few weeks. However, if you're on a 3-week cruise...

The dressing gowns are not new. There seem to be two or more sizes. If it doesn't fit, ask for a larger one. 

You may notice that during your cruise, someone comes into your stateroom and shrinks most of your clothes! Nothing to do with the fine food and drink, ha-ha!

48 minutes ago, Scottishclover said:

Thanks everyone for all the reassurance. I think we will book traditional dining so we are with the same servers each night. 

Hopefully I can help you.

I have a severe nut allergy. All nuts + peanuts as far as I know. I cary medication.

Cruising with Celebrity has worked well for me... generally!

a) I completed my special needs/request form and submitted it to the office in Weybridge, Surrey.

b) Upon embarkation, I found the maitre'd for my default restaurant i.e. Luminae

c) I reminded the concierge for Suite class

d) I reminded the waiter at the start of each meal

e) I reminded my stateroom butler and attendant

f) If I ate at other restaurants on board, I spoke to the maitre'd  and waiting staff

g) I avoided most food on excursions and requested a packed lunch etc through my butler

Did it all work? Yes, apart from two desserts in Luminae! Luckily, I spotted part of a nut before I took a bite! I took this up with the Head Chef of the ship and received many apologies and a bottle of seriously good red. Frankly, I would have prefered nut-free food!

So, enjoy a cruise but do be proactive! And if there is an issue, complain because there a huge health issues!

Stephen 

Two. You can use them to look at your account, plan your day, find out about excursions etc etc ---- and watch programmes, of course!

On 10/18/2021 at 1:05 AM, mahdnc said:

We were on Reflection back in Jan 2019.  The balcony divider had a hinged door which is very obvious in the photo.  You can even see the steel clip that holds the open door in place on the left side of the picture above the left most fin.  It's possible the that aft balconies are designed differently, but I doubt it.

 

.

Yes, the balconies all interconnect.

Wow! Those are huge bugs on your balcony!

Reminds me of the time when we were at the stern of a Princess ship and the huge number of enormous midges that decided they liked our set-up; it took days for our steward to get rid of them!

If I recall correctly, some suites have interconnecting doors with adjacent staterooms. Have a look at the deckplans.

On 10/3/2021 at 1:34 PM, paulh84 said:

You can't go wrong with black tie on NYE. 

It would have to be the largest black tie ever!

I do think that the poster needs to wear other clothes too...

On 9/16/2021 at 9:22 PM, TravelBluebird said:

 

Made it! No picture cause we are aisle and middle WAY back in the plane; got here during boarding. YAY! Thanks for all your encouragement  — its already been a LONG day.   

 

Planning for dinner at The Indian Harbor; we are a WEE bit hangry; were planning to have brunch/lunch at the airport!

 

 

Phew! Wow!

I have just started following your thread and already I need to have a stiff drink!

Of course, the stress of such a drive to your airport was so high that nearly anything now will be a chill.

3 minutes ago, hasentreelake said:

S1 is a Sky Suite.   
I believe there are two categories of Sky Suite (S1 and S2)
S1 typically is a better location or slightly larger balcony.
S2 has the same amenities as an S1, and is a little less expensive.

Thanks. I live and learn.