canderson

Actually, I set up the example poorly, but I think your explanation has finally resolved a longstanding question. See if I (finally) have this right: So what you see on the public X site as available cabins in a particular category includes any non-cabin-specific TA group space in that category. The cabins in a given category shown as open on the X website could be part of available category group space still allotted to one or more TA's groups .. or still held by Celebrity. If inventory starts to get tight in a category, Celebrity will begin to pull back any previously allotted group space in that category from TAs so as to provide some inventory for Celebrity to sell 'retail'. I suspect I don't want to know how they decide who gets hit first ... Only unless X had some reason of their own (whatever that might be) to show cabins blocked out as unavailable that are really unbooked by real pax would it appear that way online. Now for the confusion: The first reason that I may have had my head incorrectly? wrapped around this for some years is because there was group of us using the same TA to book a dozen or more cabins in one of the M class ships for a westbound TA every year. This TA would acquire group space in the old M class C1 and FV cabins for these Transatlantic cruises, and we'd all become part of that particular group. Nothing unusual about that so far, I know, but ... ... this TA would somehow always be able to accommodate our group every year with a dozen or more cabins in the back (and I mean stern) of the ship. At the time, these were VERY popular cabins (especially the FV, which my wife and I always booked for just the two of us, the TA using a bit of slight of hand at which X always winked). Granted, this was some years back, but worked year in and year out. It seemed at that time that this particular TA was actually holding specific cabins for the group. This was prior to the time that the public had any access to X's inventory. I can also say that even with ZERO inventory showing at X's public online site in a given category, there are TAs out there who will most definitely sell you a cabin in that category. I just recently experienced this with a WB TA for Fall 2025 where X shows zero Retreat cabins available, but a well known and reputable TA was prepared to sell me a Sky Suite on that cruise. So was this part of a group, or ??? We also wonder if the inventory we see online differs significantly from that which your TAs see as available. That doesn't seem to fit the model we agreed to, above.

I recall you saying this before. So if all but 100 cabins in a category are already filled with real contracted bodies, you see all 100 of them on Celebrity's site as available individual cabins -- even though there are TAs holding x number of cabins in that category? How the heck does THAT work? What if 100 customers called Celebrity (or went online) and booked those 100 cabins? Where did the TA's group booking cabins just go if they weren't already blocked out in another way?

YES! Thank you very much. He was a delight, always here and there around the ship, and very approachable. Really enjoyed his job. He also managed to avoid the dreaded mid-cruise azipod thrust bearing failures of his three sister ships by treating Connie nicely. 😉

Could be a while coming. There must be a lot of large contracts remaining to be fulfilled. I think it was @markeb that referred to the RCG "monster". In an effort to assure inventory, you can bet RCG has some multi-year megadeals cut with suppliers.

Yes. Only one name on the reservation must remain fixed. A second may be changed, though the manifest must be fixed a day or two prior to the cruise (I forget the precise timing), so don't show up with someone "new" on the day of the cruise!

Depends upon your itinerary. It might make a difference to port/starboard, but that's not a 'suite' thing. Other than that, they're all pretty well clustered. The two closer to the aft elevator have never seemed any noisier than the others, so can't even distinguish it that way. For no particular reason, we seem to prefer the left side entrance (33/38/39/42).

Once in a great while (maybe 1 cruise in 5) we'll order "dinner in" at "our place" for a special occasion, but with maximum possible advanced notice. May do this on our next TA for our SIL's birthday as the 'kids' will be joining us again on this cruise. On port days with early excursions, we'll ask for breakfast in the room to speed things up a bit. Other than that, we usually just let the butler do what the butler does.

I remember when my go-to was Silver Oak from Alexander (I liked it better than the Napa), but then around the turn of the century, they lost their vintner, and to my mind, the character of the wine changed dramatically. Never looked back. I wonder if it's changed since then?

Attempt at a spot cleaning? Seems to be where a lot of dry cleaners get into trouble. You'll be glad to know that the days of actually doing the cleaning in 'solvents' that would eat fabric are a thing of the past in this 'green' era in which we live. I gave up on various synthetic blends a long time back, and stick with wool. Summer-weight is actually very comfortable.

Not easily done. Color issues, or separation of the interfacing, or ???

Not sure I'd like it if they did make one. I like the character it adds to many blends, but in abundance, it grabs me mid rear palette and speaks loudly to me. I'm a fair bit more sensitive to bitter flavors than most (cannot cope with most IPA or other hoppy beers). Some say you can bury Cab Franc's inherent bitterness with more fruit, but my palette ain't being fooled that easily if I'm trying to drink it unblended. Not a huge fan of tannic monsters or new oak for the same reason. It's all too bad, because Cab Franc has a lot to say for itself otherwise. Good food wine.

Sounds like you have Dr. Banner beat, but my money is still on the Green guy in a street fight! I found that a new one was quite heavy - literally - and would have been more comfortable in a walk-in cooler than a sauna. Pretty sure they must weigh close to 10# (that's 0.714 stone to you xmetricx types! 😄) Some pretty impressive fabric.

We got almost exactly the same email on both previous cruises - no PJs mentioned. This one was from late 2022 (we defected to SS for 2023): The Celebrity Cruises family is delighted you have chosen to sail with us. We look forward to welcoming you onboard the Celebrity Reflection soon. As your vacation is just around the corner, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Terrikka, and I will serve as your dedicated Shoreside Retreat Concierge. I work hand in hand with the Concierges onboard to make your Celebrity experience as carefree as possible, and I am happy to assist you in any way I can. Please feel free to call or email me with any questions or concerns regarding your upcoming sailing. In preparing for your arrival there are a few items that I would like to notate in your file. Please provide the following information so we can make sure all your needs are planned for: Are you celebrating any special occasions? Do you have any allergies we need to be made aware of? Would you like any extra hangers, pillows, blankets, etc..? Expected arrival time on embarkation day Preferred departure time (this will run until 9:00-9:30 am) Day of sailing contact number Number of bags As guests in one of our top suites, I am delighted to let you know that you will receive unlimited complimentary Specialty Dining. Arranging for your dining plans before sailing will give you more time to relax and enjoy the Celebrity Reflection. Please find the attached sample menus for our Specialty Restaurants aboard the Celebrity Reflection to give you an idea of what each of them offer, and please note menu items may be slightly different. Please note, for Le Petit Chef we offer two dining times each evening, 6:00 pm and 8:30 pm. There are three different menus for Le Petit Chef which I have attached to this email. Additionally, we are pleased to offer a complimentary minibar that is stocked daily, as well two complimentary bottles to enjoy during your time with us. As I would love the opportunity to have these Suite Class Amenities available to you upon your arrival, kindly choose from the attached liquor list. In case the liquor is not your preferred option we can substitute with a bottle of wine, we carry a variety of Merlot, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir, Riesling, and Sauvignon Blanc. For your minibar we offer Coca Cola products, Premium bottled water, Evian, San Pellegrino, Red Bull, Juices, Iced Teas, Vitamin Water, and a variety of beer. On a separate note, we now offer our Online Check-In through our Celebrity Cruises App. This will truly take your check-in experience to the next level. We highly recommend that you complete your Online Check-In through the App as this will help expedite you at the pier. If you need any assistance, do not hesitate to reach out to me. To Check-In: - Download the Celebrity Cruises app to your mobile device, which is available for Android or iOS - Create or Sign In to your Celebrity Cruises Guest Account - Check in to your cruise right on the app! There you will scan your passport and add your photo to ensure that you have an expedited arrival For the most updated travel requirements you may visit: https://www.celebritycruises.com/healthy-at-sea/travel Kindly indicate your preferences by e-mail or calling me directly. My office hours are Monday through Friday 6:00 am to 2:30 pm CST. If you have an urgent matter and I am unavailable, feel free to call our Retreat Desk at 1-877-738-7328 option 3 seven days a week between 6:00 am and 9:00 pm CST. One of my colleagues will be happy to assist you. We look forward to welcoming you onboard the Celebrity Reflection! Sincerely,

Your butler will still 'wink, wink' on the bathrobes, but who has the extra suitcase space (or weight allowance) to take a pair of THOSE home? One size fits all - including the Incredible Hulk. 😵

Yeah, supposedly. On our two most recent Celebrity cruises (2021, 2022) for 29 nights in a RS, we got nada. Not that we needed or wanted any PJs, but they weren't even offered, much less monogrammed. Will see this Fall when we make another X RS run whether the shoreside concierge mentions it. Figure we'll hear from them in another 60 days or so (30 days out seems to trigger the email).

The original captain of Constellation (2002) stayed on until he retired in ?2011? Going nuts trying to remember his name this morning! Crew really appreciated having him at the helm.

We've had that on S class, but really don't miss it that much on M class, though under 'certain' circumstances, it can be 'convenient' to have the separate area (TMI). The M class bath is very large, and we certainly don't run into each other in there!

For those that remember back far enough - the CS balconies were an 'afterthought'. @20165 You definitely want to consider what you may normally want to do for specialty dining. Though you say it will cost you $1000 more, remember that you get specialty dining as a perk - no cost, so you can subtract that from the total. Don't know the length of your cruise, but in a Royal suite, you also get free laundry and 'dry cleaning', so you can subtract any of that from the price as well. Persian Garden is now free to Royal+ (a recent change). You get free gelato at the gelato bar. Keep subtracting. Besides a much nicer use of space and more of it, give the above items a thought or two when computing how much of that $1,000 you would have already spent on things that come with the Royal suite.

QED

There are plenty of bags and inventory slips made available. The slips are universal (cover both types of articles) but I'd never mix the two. No reason to do so, and why take the risk?

That's interesting. In the thread about swapping well stock for call brand, it was noted by some that on E-Class, you had to be especially careful since you didn't see what was being used. Perhaps that was only because they tend to bring them around. Again, we've chosen not to do E-Class. Thinking your approach of ordering direct might be safer? We've got point #5 totally clear now in any case.

Interesting. Ours is always waiting, and we rarely want to open it upon arrival. What your butlers have been doing actually makes more sense. By the time we get around to opening the Champagne sometime in the evening, the bottle is on its 2nd round of ice, and the label is usually soaked off!

Excellent. So @Cruisegirl6 #5 would be a "Yes" across the fleet.

Could be your 'frequent flyer' status with Celebrity made a difference, too, Randy. 😉 I certainly wouldn't ever expect one to be delivered to an Aqua Sky Suite, but as you say, might as well ask!

Isn't the "bar" on those ships somewhere in the back from whence drinks just magically appear? What I was attempting (poorly) to describe is that I've not seen a picture of a bar in E-Class that showed a coffee/espresso machine (since there's no real bar in that sense), and haven't sailed one, so can't say what they do there. So while they make espresso drinks, hard to say if they can steam milk, etc., unless you've actually had it there.