harbourxie

3 hours ago, cublet said:

Hello,

 

Agreed - Diamond Priority Disembarkation is only at the end of the cruise.

 

If the ship arrives at 08:00 I very much doubt if Yacht Club priority disembarkation will do you much good either.

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

Why do you think so?thanks

1 hour ago, Morgsmom said:

@harbourxie  I Was in Flam last week on this itinerary.  Yes, the train station is only a few minutes away but the train starts to board a good 10 minutes before it leaves.  You will NOT make it.  You can cancel your tickets and get a full refund -- they will NOT be honored later in the day. (I asked because I was in the same predicament).

 

What happened to me is that the middle of the day slots were all booked up with the exception of the 8am or 3pm.  About 14 days before the cruise the "mid day" slots opened up -- basically MSC puts a huge reserve on the 10am/12noon times which they reserve for excursions (at a 150% markup).  They then release them to the public. 

 

Look daily and I bet (fingers crossed) that you can snag a later train.

Thanks for the great information. If I can upgrade to Yacht Club or match to Diamond membership to get the priority disembarkation, do you think I can make it for the 8:25am train, assuming MSC Euribia arrives on time at 8am. Thanks a lot!

First time MSC cruiser here. I have booked 8:25AM Flaam Railway ticket (all the other time sold out). MSC Euribia will arrive Flaam at 8AM. Do I have enough time to take the train? 

Based on my research, the port is very close to the train station. Is it right? 

Thanks,

Eden was so good on Apex during our November 2021 sailing, but we don't think Eden is as good on Beyond during our December 2023 sailing. 

We will probably not do any specialty dining going forward unless the MDR is getting even worse to an unacceptable level. 

Would you please talk more about how the table game points are earned on MSC for Blackjack? Thanks,

On 12/16/2023 at 4:06 PM, yvr49 said:

We want to do a family cruise in August 2024.  I had been looking at RCI and Princess (with which I'm very familiar) but literally the only dates and itinerary that will work for all of us are on Celebrity Solstice.  Celebrity is new to us and I am wondering if they have kids' programs which would work for our 3 littles aged 5, 7 and 9.  I would appreciate any and all comments or advice.  Thanks!

My daughter age 8 thinks that the kids club on Solstice (4th July sailing to Alaska 20223) is the best so far, even better than Disney Magic, Royal Harmony of the Seas! She has been on 2 Princess, 1 RCL, 1 Disney, and 2 Celebrity. 

I would say S class ship is great for my daughter. However, she doesn't like the kids club on E class (Apex), which is small and dark and is like located In a basement! (On deck 3).

If you take a S class, your kids should have a great time based on my daughter's experience.

Pre-cruise discount only about 8% for Beyond and I have not seen any pre cruise buying options for the first night. 

On other S or M class ships, I remember the 1st night discount is 33% to 40%.

Any first night discount for Specialty restaurants? Thanks

On 10/11/2023 at 12:15 PM, harbourxie said:

I currently have Classic Wifi package for my Aqua class stateroom. My question is if I can upgrade to the Premium wi-fi onboard for 1 person only and 1 day only. I only need the Premium connection for 1 day 1 device to work remotely from the cruise. 

 

BTW - What would be the onboard cost for the upgrade? Thanks, 

 

Let me provided an answer -

I am currently on Summit and the price for upgrade from classic to premium is $40 (should be $10 per day). On top of that, Captain Club member get additional discount. I ended up paying $36 for my upgrade for one device. 

Yes - we can only upgrade for one device. 

No - we cannot upgrade for only one day. 

On 10/21/2023 at 6:05 AM, Smellytoes said:

I only have the basic Wi-Fi and this site doesn’t always load. If you really need to stay connected upgrade to the premium. That works great. My daughter upgraded

Can you share how much is the cost for upgrade from Classic to Premium onboard? Can you purchase the upgrade for the days you need it? 

I only need Premium for 1 day of my 4 days on Summit so would like to upgrade for only 1 day instead of paying for the full duration. Thanks,

I currently have Classic Wifi package for my Aqua class stateroom. My question is if I can upgrade to the Premium wi-fi onboard for 1 person only and 1 day only. I only need the Premium connection for 1 day 1 device to work remotely from the cruise. 

BTW - What would be the onboard cost for the upgrade? Thanks, 

My family of 4 is travelling with Celebrity. When I check the MoveUp offer page, the Aqua Class is also listed as an option. Is it correct? If my bid got accepted, will Celebrity allows all 4 of us stay in an Aqua cabin? 

We don't really care about the stateroom location, but if we can stay in our same Veranda room and get access to Blu & Thermal Suite, we will be happy with the MoveUp. 
Thanks, 

10 hours ago, OysterD said:

To the OP, I see you've booked Silhouette and hope you have a great cruise! We all value different things on a cruise and to you the kids club is important. I'll be on Beyond in a couple months which will be my first time in an IV cabin, and I reserve the right to change my mind after that! However, I've also been looking at Apex/Silhouette for a Norway cruise and my thinking is an IV might be a better option for a cool weather cruise, especially such a scenic one as through the Norwegian Fjords. In cabin views are somewhat limited with a traditional balcony/sliding door and then the overhang from the balcony above. I think it would be nice to wake up and open the blind to have comparatively unobstructed views out. I probably wouldn't spend much time sat out on a traditional balcony with the typical weather in Norway (it's mid July and currently 13c in Alesund). Also if there are 4 of you in the cabin does an IV cabin provide you with much more valuable inside space? 

Thanks for your inputs. 

See my experiences and thoughts  process below-

1. Space. We sailed in 2 aqua class rooms next to each other for our alaska on Solstice. It was nice to have more space, but we will definitely miss the access to Blu restaurant in the future, not the extra space. For my family of 4, the space is not a high priority. Kids are in the kids club, wife in gym and spa, and I am in casino. The room is just a place to sleep. I only took one shower in the stateroom since I can do it daily in the spa. 

2. IV or real balcony. For me, I didn't have any expectations for my alaska cruise. I watched many cruise youtube videos, and felt the scenes are just okay. However, I thought the views were incredible when I watched on the real balcony. The smell, the sounds, the breezes, and the view! Just beautiful and breathtaking! I don't think I can smell the breezes if I am in an IV without turning it to a real balcony. Another point about IV- I think it is totally fine as long as the weather is not too hot or cold. It would be inconvenient to adjust the room temperature after turning IV to balcony. 

3. Kids club is not as important as destination. I want to show my kids the world as much as i can before they get too mature and not wanting to travel with me. Actually, I will be on Beyond this December to Panama Canal. I know we will be in an IV and kids club sucks! But they will see the amazing canal and hopefully enjoy it. Btw. Beyond is the only celebrity ship sailing to panama canal during holiday.

4. Price and other considerations- the Apex would cost $1k more than Solstice. With the extra $1k, I can get spa access, 3 nights specialty restaurants and probably have some $ left. The air fares are similarly priced. Rotterdam is 60km from airport but Southampton is 65miles from LHR. But those are not important factors. 

Thanks 

Let me put in this way - the kids will have a good time anyway. However, Beyond would not be their favorite. My kids 13 and 8 were on Apex and Solstice. They had a great time on both, but definitely prefer Solstice kids club to Apex. If they can choose, S class is all the way pick. They had a much better time on Solstice. One downside is that there might be more youth on the S class since the E class is not kid friendly at all - maybe the worst kid club location among all cruise lines. The more kids on board, the more problematic  kids possible. My son told me that one of the kids on Solstice brought weeds on board!!!!!

As parents, we feel bad for dropping our kids on deck 3 and deck 2 [the Basement on E class] because these places look depressing - small, no windows and in the basement! 

With that being said, we will be on Beyond for the Panama Canal later 2023 and then Silhouette for Norway summer 2024. This way, the kids can have a break from the E class kids club.

Btw. I don't think the MDR on S class is as good as E class, so I recommend getting some specialty restaurant package on S class. 

Compared to Princess (Regal Princess) and RCL (Harmony of the seas), Solstice kids club is my kids favorite. My daughter even told me she rates Solstice kid club the same as Disney Magic....

Thanks for all the inputs and information. Just booked Silhouette. Better kid club, better balcony, less expensive for the ship but might be more expensive to fly to Amsterdam, and might need to splurge on the specialty restaurant since the MDR is not as good as on Apex. 

Please help me decide on which Norway Fjords cruise to take. 

1. Apex June 8, 2024, Southampton => Bruges (Zeebrugge) Belgium => Flam Norway => Olden Norway => Bergen Norway => Southampton

2. Silhouette June 17, 2024, Rotterdam => Molde Norway => Olden Norway => Alesund Norway => Stavanger Norway => Rotterdam

We, a family of 4 (kids 14 & 9) have never been to Norway and have no ideas about which port is better. We have been on Apex to the Caribbean last year and Solstice to Alaska last month. Kids love Solstice because the kids clubs on the E Class ships are very small and in the depressing basements (deck 3 and deck 2)... Wife and I love Apex but like S Class as well for the design and real grassland. 

Thanks a lot, 

31 minutes ago, NRWPA said:

I think Club Royale would be your best bet (pun intended). They offer free drinks in the casino as soon as you get to 2500 points - that is for the casino year 4/1 to 3/31. You do not have to be playing to drink there. Once you're at 2500, drinks are free for all your future cruises through 3/31. With the amount you play you most likely would qualify within a single cruise. As soon as you get to 2500, go to the casino host and they will put a "Prime" sticker on your card that entitles you to free drinks. My last cruise, I had slightly over 9000 points and my offer was for a balcony cabin and $1000 free play with a list of cruises I could take. I booked an 8 day on Odyssey for Jan 2024. If you get an offer on board, ask the casino host for the FULL list of cruises you can take. The list that comes on the offer is limited - maybe 20 cruises, but the FULL list (for me) was about 12 pages double sided.

 

In order to book whatever offer you receive on board, you have to place a Next Cruise rez - you must book NC while on your [current] cruise (but NC is like a placeholder - you can book the future cruise after you get home), pay $200 to NC but the $200 is used to pay your port charges and taxes on the future cruise. Next Cruise gives you $100 OBC in addition to the casino offer.

 

I've found Club Royale to be much better than Princess player's club and NCL Casinos at Sea as far as future offers go and I've done all 3 (haven't done Blue Chip). I hope this info helps

This is great info. Thanks a lot!

Thanks for thebinput!

3 hours ago, sgvcruiser said:

I assumed when you mean Program, you mean cruise line? 

Yes - cruise line casino programs - like Blue Chip Club for Celebrity, Club Royale for RCL, CAS for NCL, Princess Player Club for Princess. 

Thanks a lot,

55 minutes ago, Baynanno1 said:

I guess there are comparatively so few of us "down under" that we don't rate a response from Celebrity.

 

I sent emails to three different addresses 5 days ago. While I had no expectation of receiving a phone call - that would cost money 🙄 no response, canned or otherwise has been forthcoming.

Maybe I'll write again. 🤔

 

We have a final payment date soon and several more cruises booked for 2024 and 2025, fortunately booked before the introduction of the new hefty non-refundable deposits.

 

If this harebrained, health threatening trial is put in place throughout their ships, we will also be voting with our feet and moving to a healthier cruise line.

Which one is healthier? Thanks 

Hi fellow cruise gamblers,

Would you please let me know which programs is the best one for my plays? 

If my play is about $30k coin-in per 7 nights cruise and I typically take 2 to 3 cruises every year, which program will be most rewarding one for my casino activities? Thanks 

I have two upcoming celebrity cruises, but none of them offers the discounted Casino free plays in the "Plan my cruise" section. 

Anyone still gets that offer recently?

Thanks,

Anyone knows if there are any newer slot machines on Celebrity Solstice? I will on it June 30th to Alaska and worry about if there are any newer machines after watching some youtube videos of casinos of other Solstice class ships such as Silhouette and Equinox.

Anyone knows if I can get the Amex Platinum cruise privilege Onboard Credits for my booked Celebrity cruise using the 60% off casino NET 60 rate??

How about the shareholder OBC? 

Thanks, 

It seems that unless the assigned Concierge class under the pool deck or OceanView cafe, the room should be quiet. I will probably go ahead and upgrade for free.