WrittenOnYourHeart

I'll just say one big advantage to the train vs. driving... There is ONE road between Anchorage and Seward, and if there is a bad accident - which can happen - everything on the road stops. My second AK cruise was on Royal and was the southbound. The group I was with split between the train and the bus (I opted for the bus so I can't comment on the train). The train people got on a lot later than expected. We then learned from them that the road had been shut down due to an accident involving 1 or 2 helicopter extractions. They stopped the train and got as many people on the busses already on the road on as they could while holding all the other busses. The captain went ahead and held muster drill for those of us on board, and then once the road opened and things started moving again, everyone on those busses was directed to the theater for their muster (they were all back to back at that time, so it's not like the first was waiting forever). But (this from a couple who had opted for a private car and only made it because their driver managed to get in between the next to last and the last bus) as soon as the last bus entered the lot, the gates were closed. Anyone behind that last bus had to find their way to the next port or just deal with a cancelled by no-show cruise. So using either the train or a bus is definitely worth it in knowing you'll get on the ship in the event there is another bad wreck.

Oh, he was on the Summit this past summer.

Aqua!!! I was in Aqua on the Summit this past summer and absolutely loved it!! I was spoiled rotten by the team in Blu.

Except, of course, from the people who "are only loyal to Celebrity, never cruised any other line, etc." and are never picked for the free upgrade and want to know why. BINGO! This is the philosophy I use with all my bookings - cruise, airline, Walt Disney World. That last one especially - the number of people who book one category and then try to figure out how to request a higher category without the room assigner catches on...or how to get upgraded at check-in (even to the point at the monorail resorts of using their kids by training them to go up to Mommy or Daddy at the check in counter and say they are so excited to see the castle and can they see it from their room knowing full well that they booked a standard view but hoping the cast member at check in will move them into a Theme Park View room to make the kid happy).

Ah. Not having the : in it (or using military time) made me think it was some kind of code next to the food somewhere. Thanks.

Maybe I missed it, but what are the numbers next to the food names in your dinner reports?

I was on the Summit in Aqua in July and LOVED it!!!! Serkan was my maitre'd, my servers were Nuralita (primary) and Nila (assistant), and the hostess was Mariana and they were all WONDERFUL!!!! If you bump into them, please tell them Beth from last summer says hello! I rarely get so attached to my serving team that I cry on the last morning, but I did this time. I really fell in love with the Summit and am sad she's not out of NYC again this summer!!

I honestly now feel extra bad for the people in the Penthouse Suites who are potentially going to be facing people skulking around to see who they are and perhaps even asked who they are and when they booked their suite.

Deck 13 (or 17) by any other name is still the 13th deck (or the 17th...or even 18th if both 13 and 17 were skipped in numbering). It's all silly superstition that means NOTHING.

Gotcha. Thanks! I'm not yet, but should be in August!

Sounds like when I was in Aqua on Summit this past summer. I went to the Fitness Center to sign up for my included classes, and the guy actually walked away from me when I said - after his increasing pressure - that I did not want to sign up for more than that at that time. (What made that even worse for them is that had I liked the experience in the classes I was interested in, I might well have signed up for more. As it was I stuck to the ellipticals and walking on the walking track for exercise.)

This brings up something I've been wondering. For my first Celebrity cruise, I matched with my Royal status of Platinum making me Select on Celebrity. Since then between cruises on X and Power Ups, I'll be Elite on Celebrity after my July solo cruise in Aqua (8 night cruise with double Aqua points plus the 5 for Go Green). I don't know that I'll cruise Royal again...or at least not before they make the points merge, but if I did, would I qualify for Diamond on Royal?

This. The fact that there are far fewer people on river cruises and that often the food is sourced in each city where the ship stops automatically makes it an unfair comparison. Honestly ditto service - naturally when there are fewer people to take care of service is likely to be above. Even my TA says she would never compare a river cruise to a sea cruise as they are two completely different experiences.

While yes, they should probably give that information, people could also take the initiative to go and ask if it's broken and say why they think it is rather than just assuming and blocking the door with towels and such. My guess since they reportedly don't have any signs up, they have no clue that people aren't understanding how to use it. (I have not been there yet...I have Aqua booked for the Beyond in July.)

My Beyond in July is showing 25% off beverage packages only.

Can’t speak for the costumes, but part of the reason for the clothes and/or fuzzy pouch is because of Bug’s breed. (Ditto the baths.) Due to being hairless they get colder than furry cats. As for the stroller, have you tried to train a cat to walk on a leash? It’s a safer way for Bug to get around the halls than walking free or being carried.

Were there announcements for 2 people to report immediately to Guest Services prior to sailing? If so they may not have. If not they likely did.

Why would they be charging the guide? I could see the guide only getting a portion of your fee, but I don't understand why they would charge someone to work for them.

This was not on Celebrity - and it did not happen to me, but I was told it directly from a HAL shore excursions crew member on a whale watching tour I was on and THEN heard a podcast (I think it was RadioLab) where the exact situation was recounted by someone who worked on the excursion, so it was not just cruise crew-member speak. It involved one of the helicopter trips for dog sledding on a glacier in Alaska. There were 2 HAL ships in port with people on excursions as well as people from both ships who had booked privately. Well, as can happen in Alaska, weather moved in and the helicopters were not able to get back up to them. All the guests had to sleep in the mushers' camp overnight and the ships had to sail. When the helicopters were able to get back to them, those on the HAL excursions were either put on a train or a boat to catch up with their respective ships - and HAL fully covered paying the mushers' camp for the food and lodging as well as the transportation back to the ships. Those on independent excursions were stuck dealing with the company to cover payment and figuring out how to get back to their ship - especially the one on the boat since HAL specifically chartered the boat for those on their excursions (I suspect the ones needing the train could have used that...it just would depend on how long settling things with the independent company took). I was also on a Southbound Alaska cruise on RCCL the following summer. I was with a running group, and about half opted for the train from Anchorage while the rest of us were on a bus. The bus got there no issues. I didn't know until dinner that the train had just gotten there. Turns out there was an accident on the one road between Anchorage and Seward that was life-flight extraction bad and shut the road down for several hours. RCCL held all busses that had not yet left. They were able to stop the train near an exit and got as many passengers from busses already on the road onto the train as they could. The captain announced that we would be departing once the final bus arrived and thus missing Hubbard Glacier (I'd have rather we skipped Icy Strait Point). He went ahead and did Muster with those of us on board and all who arrived once the road reopened were directed to the theater after dropping their things in their cabin and he did a Muster minus the ship-wide alarm for them. (We were very grateful for that as he would have been within his rights to require all of us to do a traditional Muster.) Well, in ISP I was taking the shuttle into Houna and met a couple who had done private transportation to Seward and were stuck in the mess. Their driver figured out they were behind the final bus and worked to get them in front of it. They pulled in just before the final bus and said that the gates closed immediately as that bus pulled in. They both said they had learned especially with things far from the port to stick with the ship-based things.

Ghirardelli dark chocolate sea salt caramel mini-bunnies for my webinar treat! Since my July cruise is a solo one in Aqua and I am doing Go Green, I will be Elite after that cruise!!

Blu is a space-available basis for Suite guests as your assigned dining room would be Luminae. I've seen a report or two on here recently that when Aqua is 100% full Suite guests have only been allowed in Blu very early or late. I can't speak to going to the MDR as when I was in Aqua I only did Blu for breakfast and dinner.

Mine's there! I just need one more PUP opportunity and I should be Elite after my July cruise!!!

The room is not supposed to be overly hot. "Unlike a traditional sauna, infrared saunas don’t heat the air around you. Instead, they use infrared lamps (that use electromagnetic radiation) to warm your body directly. “These saunas use infrared panels instead of conventional heat to easily penetrate human tissue, heating up your body before heating up the air,” explains physical therapist, Vivian Eisenstadt, MAPT, CPT, MASP. An infrared sauna can operate at a lower temperature (usually between 120˚F and 140˚F) than a traditional sauna, which is typically between 150˚F and 180˚F. Manufacturers claim that in an infrared sauna, only about 20 percent of the heat goes to heat the air and the other 80 percent directly heats your body."

Multiple threads on the RCCL boards. They are subbing Perfect Day for all Labadee stops for the next bit of time.

Thank you!