Love PalmTrees

Thanks so much for your candid review and comparison to Carnival. We are going on Celebrity cruise soon, having gone on Celebrity only one other time about 20 yrs ago. In meantime we have cruised Carnival and have always been happy. I am anxious to make my own comparison. One reason we especially like cruising, in general, is the option to partake or not to partake in the on-board activities. Everyone can do what they like and be happy. From what I have read, I am sure to pack an extra book and crossword puzzles, just in case. I have never been on a cruise I didn't like. :)

Hi! Thanks so much for a wonderful and also positive review!! Do they still serve sushi in OV cafe in late afternoon? I realize it is just very basic sushi, but it still makes for a nice late afternoon snack. Thanks!

Lots of great ideas! Here are a few more:

1. Fair number of small bills, especially $1's and $5's for taxi's, small local purchases, tips at ports, etc. Sometimes they can't make change with bigger bills.

2. Extra pair of reading glasses (you know the $10 ones from the drug store).

3. Small travel flashlight (sorry, if that is a repeat).

4. Ginger teabags (helps with sea sickness).

5. Extra copies of passports.

6. Info sheet with flight info, port times, health insurance out-of-counrtry phone number, cruise company phone numbers, travel insurance phone number, etc. I carry this with me on shore, too. (Never know when I may miss that curb and break a leg. :eek:)

Also, a BIG THANK YOU to all the great ideas and quick responses! I feel like we all look out for one another here. Thanks! :)

stratixman - I just read about that on another thread recently. Well at least we will all be in the same boat (once again, pardon the pun), since bride and groom and other guests on same cruise. Do waters tend to be rougher in winter months? We are used to cruising during hurricane season months and know how quickly the seas and skies can change. I better bring along some more motion sickness med's.

At this point, I do not yet know the timing details of the van, wedding, etc. Still, a good thing to know about early times being less busy. Thanks!

Thanks! :)

Awesome!! Enjoy your cruise!

pete_coach: Good idea! Only one other ship in Grand Cayman that day. My bro-in-law has made transportation arrangements for everyone. I just didn't want to hold up the group. I probably will get tender tickets and have them available just in case. Maybe bro-in-law can ask as well. He is in a suite last I heard.

Thanks for all the good ideas! It sounds like I am worrying over nothing, but feel it is good to be prepared.

Thanks so much! Good advise - I will be sure to keep eyes open for info in the Daily. Turns out the bride and groom as well as the handful of other wedding guests on the ship too, but they are in suites or have elite status and would have priority tendering to my understanding. Thanks also for the heads up about rough seas. I just read a thread in last couple days mentioning just that. Oh well, at least the bride and groom will be in the same boat. (Sorry, could not restrain myself with the pun! :D )

Thanks for all the great info! Can you get off the ship without tender tickets? Other cruises we have been on, no need for tender tickets if you are not in the early rush to get off. Is this the same?

Hello! How long can we expect to get onto a tender boat in Grand Cayman, if we have no Celebrity-booked excursion or other special status/consideration for expedited tendering? Can we and would it help, if we request tender tickets as soon as we come on board the Reflection on embarkation day? If yes, where are tickets available? Thanks so much! We have an island wedding to attend and it would be nice to have a general time frame in mind.

Thanks for info about capris, and not the kind you drive. Haha. I love the humor on this website. :)

I saw someone mentioned "no capris". Does this mean nicer longer-length capris with dressy top and dressy sandals are not allowed for women? This would be for non-chic nights.

We are soon sailing on the Reflection and all the negative reviews and complaints started to cause me anxiety. I posted a couple threads asking about the positive things about Reflection and some kind Cruise Critic members helped to calm my nerves and give me some things to look forward to. Now granted, we have not cruised Celebrity in nearly 20 years, and won't necessarily see the cutbacks of recent cruisers. As a point of comparison, I looked up my cruise fare from 20 years ago and our inside cabin back then was actually more expensive than our current veranda cabin in front of the hump on deck 8!! Now over 20 years time, salaries have increased, food costs have increased, and so on. To me it appears that the cruise industry has now approached pricing more with an ala carte price structure. As a matter of fact, most of the most exclusive land restaurants here do just that. IMHO, I am thankful for this change. We probably would not be able to cruise otherwise. We are so excited for our upcoming cruise, enjoying the palm trees/ocean waves and to have someone to cook, clean, make the beds, etc. :)

Awesome photo video!! Enjoying a delicious piece of Christmas Stollen and cup of coffee as I watch your video! What could be better?! (My parents were from Germany.) Vielen Dank!!

Thanks to everyone for all your recommendations! We have never done Select Dining and you have all made me feel better. It sounds like longer wait times don't happen very often, and there are some great alternatives should there be longer wait times. :)

Sorry, for any confusion. I was talking about my Darling In-Laws, my hubby's parents. (I figured DH = Darling Husband. DIL would then be Darling In-Law's. I see how that could cause a mix up.) That would make me, what, say 100 or so???? How funny!! They are in their 80's, but still very active. Looking forward to spending time with them, especially on a cruise!! :)

The long string idea is definitely a possibility!! At least TSA won't stop me if I have string packed in my bag. I could also re-purpose it for fishing off our veranda for a midnight sushi snack. :D:D

I wasn't sure if they give out pagers or not. Do they also give pagers to people with reservations, but for whatever reason still a long wait? That would work out quite well. Thanks! :)

Thanks for the info! Our DIL's will be cruising with us, both in their 80's. Just a thought...Will the maitre d' seat just us and then they can meet up with us, coming directly to the table? I am not sure how we would communicate this to them, though. Hmmm... something for my techie DH to ponder on.

Hi! We have reservations for 7:30pm Select Dining each night on our upcoming Reflection cruise. Do you think there still could be a long wait time, and if so, are there seats in the waiting area? Thanks!

Cricketgal - Oops, sorry forgot to mention that DH an I usually take stairs as well on cruises. We figure it helps to run off some of those extra calories. This time I will be sure to slow down and appreciate the art on the way!! Thanks! :)

Enjoying an evening jazz concert and just plain relaxing sound absolutely wonderful!!! It has been a stressful year (way too many "life events" taking place at same time) and relaxing is all DH and I want to do. Carnival can get very busy, but it never bothered us because we always just did how much we wanted to do. This is the beauty of a cruise. IMHO, any cruise is a good cruise. :)