Jeremiah On a Cruise

8 hours ago, dalemon42 said:

The e-mail only mentions PCR and antigen tests. The ID Now is a NAAT test, so it wouldn’t appear to apply, but in practice who knows what Celebrity might accept if someone showed up with one. I was told the PCR from Walgreens had a 48 hour turn around currently from a local pharmacist.

 I don't know the science here, but my read of the Walgreen website is that their "PCR" test is also a NAAT test.  Under the Hawaii FAQ:  The Rapid Diagnostic Test (ID NOW) and Diagnostic Lab Test (PCR) provided by Walgreens are nucleic acid amplification tests (NAAT). 

https://www.walgreens.com/findcare/covid19/testing#!

6 minutes ago, Covepointcruiser said:

Seven are now positive on the Edge.  For the poster worried about her children having 4 tests, testing is better than having them exposed to a potentially deadly virus.   If you are taking children on this type of vacation during a pandemic testing should be the least of your concerns.   The test is just a swab in the nose and is not anything to get your children upset.  However, if it was me, I would not be taking my children on a cruise with the Delta variant as it is highly contagious.

 

Respectfully, these comments are not helpful.

I know that my kids get upset over the test because they have been tested twice in the last couple of months.  Each was an ordeal.  They hated it.  And as a result, we may choose to not do our trip.  It's a bummer, but it's life.

Regarding the risks.  In the last 18 months, per CDC, 282 kids ages 5-18 have died due to COVID.  That's tragic, and I can't imagine going through it.  I am, and encourage others to get vaccinated.  But empirically, my kids have a greater risk of death on our drive to the pier than from COVID.  We have, and continue to do a ton to protect them for COVID - so please don't take my response as nonchalant.   I'm trying to do right my by kids. 

Sources, are listed here: https://data.cdc.gov/NCHS/Provisional-COVID-19-Deaths-Focus-on-Ages-0-18-Yea/nr4s-juj3/data   https://www.aamc.org/news-insights/children-covid-19-and-vaccines  https://www.cdc.gov/transportationsafety/child_passenger_safety/cps-factsheet.html#:~:text=In the United States%2C motor,more than 97%2C000 were injured. 

For us, the issue is with the 4 tests that our kids would need to take.  Per our letter: 

Unvaccinated guests and children, under 12 years of age, will be required to take an additional antigen test at the terminal prior to embarkation, mid-cruise and on the day before disembarkation. 

I respect Celebrity's right to make this decision and fully believe that it's made in good faith.  And, my kids had agreed to getting the one test at the pier.  However, these tests are a huge source of anxiety for my boys, and getting 4 tests in 8 days is likely a show stopper.

I'm incredibly heart broken, but there's a good chance that we'll simply cancel due to this change.

You've got good advice above.  Here are my two cents:

To see glaciers:  Glacier Bay is typically talked about as the best choice for glaciers, and you can't really go wrong here.  It's a day long event with a park rangers walking you through everything.  You get great viewing of multiple glaciers, and it's truly amazing.  With that said, I do prefer Hubbard glacier over Glacier Bay. Hubbard is a single, larger glacier.  But, you can't go wrong with either.  Note that there are many others ways to view glaciers, but any of these are tier below Glacier Bay and Hubbard in glacier viewing.

For wildlife?  Whale Watching is amazing out of Icy Straight Point (also called Hoonah) or Juneau.  If you spend time outside, you are all-but guaranteed to view a whale from the cruise ship - but these are from afar.  If you want to get close and see some great whale behavior, a whale watching tour from one of these ports is a great option. 

While both Juneau and Icy Straight point are both amazing for whale watching, I find Juneau slightly less convenient as it requires a 20 minute bus ride, and a bit of time on the boat to get to the good grounds.  However, you often get more companies that do tours our of Juneau (Harv and Harvs are forum favorites).  The company that serves Icy Straight Point is fine.  Minor points, but points.

For Cruise Line:  Holland America is a great great option for Alaska.  The ships are well designed for the area with the best observation decks in the business (IMO) and a great promenade.  I've also had good experiences with their naturalists and itineraries.

I slightly prefer Celebrity to Holland America, but that's personal preference - and largely mood dependent (Celebrity is considered more lively).  For relaxing and watching the beauty of Alaska go by, you can't go wrong with Holland.

11 hours ago, Hlitner said:

How on earth can you say that live shows are about the same when HAL completely eliminated their major Production Shows prior to the COVID shutdown.  HAL's idea of evening entertainment was sometimes showing a documentary movie while Princess was continuing Production Shows, piano bars (also gone from most HAL vessels), party bands. etc.

 

... 

 

 

Hank

I hadn't heard that HAL stopped their production shows.  I haven't cruised on HAL since summer 2019 (?, NA), but they were still doing the shows at that time.

When did production shows stop?  And, is HAL still doing guest entertainers?

My view:

Food in the buffet and MDR have been better on HAL (obviously personal and variable).

Specialty restaurant gets a slight benefit for HAL with Pinnacle Grill being, by far, the best from either line - though that tends to be the only specialty option on HAL that we like.  On Princess, specialty options are all fine-to-good, and tend to be more varied.

Princess offers really great dining experiences with chef's table, UBD, etc. HAL has nothing close.

Princess ships tend to be gold/silver and shiny, and tend to have a more wow factor. HAL more reds/blues - still elegant, but not as opulent.

I've found HAL ships intended to relaxing - with an quiet observation lounge and promenade.  

I've found the live music on HAL to be exceptional.  

My personal view is that Princess has more going on in the day, and their events are a bit more high energy. 

Princess is probably ahead on tech.  From the website to their wifi to their interactive systems onboard - they do well here.  HAL is functional, but not flashy.

Live shows are about the same.

Service is good on both.

Overall, we strongly prefer HAL - but that's because we are looking for the environment that HAL puts forward.

Great - thank you all!  My (discount) TA was unsure if they just removed the divider (doesn't work) or had an interior door (will work).  It sounds like connecting cabins in HAL have the interior door feature.

Time to book :)

We are booking an Alaskan cruise for 2021 for two adults and two kids (8 and 10), using two/connected staterooms, and wanted to ask how the HAL ships in Alaska (Koningsdam,  Oosterdam, Volendam, Eurodam) set up connecting rooms.  I

Does anyone know how these HAL ships set up connecting rooms?  Is it only removing the balcony divider?  Is it by an interior door between the two rooms like you might see in a hotel?  It is by a custom/shared entryway like Celebrity S-Class ships?

Interested in your thoughts on all of these ships - though I'll confess that Koningsdam is probably our preferred ship.

On 3/4/2020 at 5:46 PM, richwmn said:

The only times I have seen people mention that they didn't receive the Stockholder Credit was when they had basically free cruises, such as the free cruise lottery, some familiarization cruises for travel agents, and the like. That is what the fine print covers.

 

Sorry for being dense, but does this mean that we would get the Shareholder Credit if we purchased through a travel agent that gives us a rate lower than what is publicly posted?  

Do we know for sure if Chef's table is offered multiple nights?  Like the OP, I'm happy to pay the fee, but I'm not open to doing it night one (which is the only option listed online).

If there's a risk of not being able to pick a different night, we may opt to risk it, and just book on board.

Seems like a valid, but minor and fixable issue.  Glad you caught it.  I'm sure that it will get resolved.  I encourage you to not fret about it too much.

For a seven day cruise, the amount I tip (and how I tip) vary based on the service provided.  But:

We never have gotten close to removing the automatic gratuity, but would do so in an extreeme case.  We view this as part of the fare, and not part of the tipping.

We set aside around $100 for extra tips.  We have been close to $300 on some cruises and been close to $0 on other cruises.  This is based exclusivley on service provided.

Even though tips may be pooled, we always tip individuals based on service received in that area.  Some cruises we leave $5 at the buffet table when we leave.  Some cruises we tip at speciality resteraunts.  Some cruises, we don't tip our room stewart or wait staff.  It all varies based on service provided.

When we tip, we always tip with money.  I have no issues with people tipping using gifts, but have never felt drawn to do so.

Tipping (beyond automatic gratuities) should never be a status symbol or stressor or source of judgement for us as guests.  I don't think you should view tipping as an obligation or expectation.  Tipping is a way that I get to show gratutitde and appreciation for how the service treated us, and as such, is something we always try and view as a positive rather than a negative.  Once I start to view tips as something that I'm obligated to do, it is no longer an expression of my gratitude, but rather an act to avoid feeling negative - and that defeats the prupose for us.

Ship Crown Princess

Class  Grand

Deck Dolphin

Stateroom # D417

Category M1

Port/Starboard/Bow/Stern  

Connects With Cabin #

Accessible  Right next to mid-ship elevators.  

Quiet Minor noise due to elevators dinging.  It was never disruptive, but was noticeable if you listen for it.  Thin walls also means that sound from neighboring cabins could occasionally be heard (things like coughing).  

Balcony Size Large.  I don't know if the size is standard on the Crown, but it was one of the bigger balconies I've ever had.

View  Unobstructed.  

Privacy Issues  The balcony is not at all private.  The balcony sticks out relative to the decks above, meaning when we were sitting on the balcony, we could be viewed by around 100 other cabins. 

Wind

Soot

Problems 

Comments  A very large cabin with plenty of storage and space.  The room was fully functional without real issue, but was also a bit dated with lots of marks, carpet needing to be stretched, stained tiles/grout, etc (as of August '19).  Bed was amazingly comfortable.

You're on a cruise.  Every hour is happy hour!

On 7/8/2019 at 4:47 AM, cubfan63 said:

 

Also, the Italian specialty restaurant (which was an area of the buffet - unlike a different room for Sabatini’ss) served food that was inedible when I was on it.  At the time, they were still not charging for it.   Apparently they have changed the menu and are charging but they still have it in the buffet area.

 

I really enjoyed HAL, but specialty dining is the one area (for me) where Princess wipes the floor with HAL.  The Pinnacle Grill (HAL steakhouse) was outstanding, but was also the only viable fee option in my opinion, and didn't have great revisitability due to the nature of their menu.

The specialty restaurant that you're referring to on HAL is Canaletto where they barricade off a section of the buffet seating.  In my view, Canaletto missed the mark on many levels.  The ambiance is virtually non-existent, as you're just sitting in a section at the buffet. The service was attentive to the point of hovering, but that's probably because it's a fairly small space, with very few guests, and is not designed with server-flow in mind.  Overall, in a word, I would describe eating there as awkward.

We found the food in Canaletto to be fine, but nothing special... maybe slightly better than the MDR, but not in the same class as Sabatini's (or any other fee dining).  We plan to cruise with HAL again, but even if it were offered for free, we would skip Canaletto.

Great info - thanks all!!!!

We have done a handful of cruises, but our first cruise with our kids (six and eight) is coming up in a few weeks for an Alaskan Cruise on the Eclipse - and we are running into a lot of questions but not a lot of information about cruising with kids.  We plan to strongly encourage the Fun Factory early in the cruise, and then let them dictate where to go after that.

I welcome any thoughts you have on these questions:

1 - What do we need to do in advance to get the kids enrolled in Fun Factory?  Is that automatically done based on age? 

2 - I'm pretty confused on Kids VIP pass.  Is that basically a pass that lets you use the kids club without worrying about the hourly rate?  Does it cover things like the slumber party?  Is that purchased on board?

3 - Will the kids club facilitate the kids 6 and 8 going to the basketball court?  The arcade?  Shows?  Pools?

4 - The X website cites "family events" such as archery tournaments, cupcake decorating, etc.  Are these family events included in the patter?  If so, does the patter call them out as a family event?   Does the Fun Factory have their own schedule that is available?

5 - With the VIP pass and signing up in advance (or with additional charges), my read is that the Kids club is open 9:00 AM to 1:00 AM and is only closed 12-2 on sea days.  Is this correct?

6- Our kids are social, but occasionally need some quiet time to draw or watch TV.  Does the Fun Factory facilitate this, or should we pack drawing supplies/movies/etc?

7- Does the kids space have access to a balcony or railing? 

8- Do you find any of the production shows inappropriate for young kids (6-8)? 

9- What's the etiquette in the MDR?  Our kids are normally good in restaurants, but we also pick kid-friendly restaurants at home.  I don't think of MDRs as especially kid-friendly and it's very important to me that we not disrupt other passengers.  If they start to get riled up, is leaving early and having the ordered food delivered to our room an option?  

10 - Does the ship offer pool toys such as kick boards or anything like that?  If not, is it common or accepted for us to bring them?  On a related note, does Celebrity offer lifeguards at any of the pools?

11 - What else should I know, or can I do to help our kids have an awesome time?  I've heard the first night is vital as an icebreaker, but anything else that we can do to help our kids have the time of their lives?

Thanks in advance,

Min?  Odds?

1 hour ago, Kingofcool1947 said:

 

And what change to a different option might that be?

Well, I meant swapping to a different Princess AK cruise that either did go E of Vancouver Island, but looking at the options, the Royal itinerary is 14 days meaning there aren't a ton of options to switch to.  

While expecting a lot of compensation for the re-routing is probably not reasonable, I think the OP has a legit gripe.  The E side of Vancouver Island is one of the highlights of the cruise for us.  It's incredibly scenic, calm, and probably the best chances to see orca anywhere on the cruise.  

I know that Princess is within their rights to take a route that is different from what was posted, and the info in the links/threads above makes me think it's not entirely their call and based largely on safety.  But if I were booked on a Royal AK cruise this year (and I'm not), I'd be a bit grumpy - and would probably be asking to change to different option.

The first few hours out of Seattle are actually pretty cool, and pretty underrated.  But, by late that evening, you'll be in the open sea, and will remain there until early Monday.  I expect for Sunday to be open ocean.

The standard reply is that it doesn't really matter all that much.  Because so much of this cruise is on the inside passage, you will get great views from either side.

Once you're in open ocean heading into Whittier, I remember being far enough away from land that you could barely see it, and not really appreciate it.

I do have a slight preference for the right side - just because we've had such great whale watching experience heading into Juneau on this itinerary.  Logic would tell you that you would get similar viewing from the left side, but I'm not a fan of logic, so I stick with the right side.

As a counter point to this, the land-side of the trip into/out of Skagway is one of my favorite (and probably the most underrated parts) of the cruise.  Because you will be there so early, being on the left side would mean that you get some great views coming out of Skagway in the evening.

I just booked through them a few days ago.  All of the material provided, including the reviews and confirmations, make them seem legit.

We have used them once, and will use them as our preferred option in the future.

First - price is often better than prices booking directly.

Second - the fact that it is refundable or editable (without added costs) is amazing!

I'll always compare EZair to other options to ensure that my price and flight options are comparable.  But so far, EZair is the winner.

Now I'm confused:  Can both refundable and nonrefundable OBC be used, and subsequently cashed out from the Casino?  And, does the answer differ by ship/staff?