coaster

Carnival just announced cancellation of Colon stop. https://cruiseradio.net/carnival-conquest-skips-cruise-port-due-to-local-protests/

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Agree. Bizarre to sail from Panama to the ABC islands. Airfare from the States to Panama is not worth it for this common itinerary from FL. No advantage unless you live in Panama and want to go on a cruise. Very limited market for these sailings.

Booked again on Constellation out of Tampa for early 2025. Like Tampa as we are 30 minutes away, but drive to Port Canaveral is much better than Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Like the lack of congestion at Port Canaveral and Tampa also. 7 night cruise on Equinox versus a 10 night on Constellation is only around $100 cheaper pp. Is Solstice class worth the premium? Booked refundable on Constellation, so a switch would not be painful.

The refundable rate option used to be shown at the beginning of the booking process. Takes more work now as you have to get to one of the final steps to see it. Liked the old format better.

Hopefully they updated the poster artwork in the cabin corridors. They were really faded back in 2020 and depressing to look at. Cabin drawers also broken and nothing done when reported to guest services. Nothing major, but just a sign of neglect that should be addressed if Royal plans on keeping their Vision class ships around for a few more years.

Family member from Panama tipped me off over the weekend. He travels to South America often and is very travel savvy. Everything he relayed to me was backed up by news articles I have read. Basically told us don't get off the ship on our Celebrity Constellation cruise next month to Colon.

Seeing lots of news stories about roadblocks protesters are setting up over a mine. There have been a few deaths so far. Wonder if Rhapsody Colon departures will be affected. https://www.counterpunch.org/2023/11/13/panama-explodes-with-protests-against-canadian-copper-mine/

Why did you not cancel and move on after the extreme change in ports? Royal offered the option to cancel without penalty once the change was announced. Just curious.... Colon is the most dismal town we have been to in over 30 cruises.

Maybe the new owner will scrap the former Costa Classica and just move forward with the newer Costa Atlantica as it would be somewhat questionable to sink more money into a ship as old as and with the negative reputation of the current Classica/MAS. We will see....

Hopefully the new owner has deeper pockets than the Sheehan's who did not spend the money needed to properly refurbish a ship over 30 years old. New wallpaper in cabins, wall pictures and stickers with Buffet song phrases did not hide the need for cabins to have a total gut and refurbishment. Hopefully the new ownership will read all the negative feedback and will start fresh. There is a market for older ships, but you have to spend real money on them especially charging for a daily fuel surcharge that does not exist anywhere else in the cruise line industry.

I like cheap, but the lower prices on Rhapsody has to offset higher airfare into Colon instead of Florida departures that go to the same places without the shock of Colon's decrepit condition. Ok if you factor all of this and it works in your favor.

I can't figure out why anyone from Canada or the US would of kept their booking after the change to Southern Caribbean. Colon is a port that looks like it has been bombed. Structures are literally just jagged concrete shells of their former self. Not surprised these sailings are underbooked. Panama government is encouraging residents to move from Colon so they can redevelop the area. Might be good if you want to sail a ship that is not close to capacity, but not worth the added airfare to sail from Colon for this perk. Picture of Colon from our March cruise on Celebrity Constellation on a bus to our Panama Canal cruise excursion. Rhapsody deserves a better port to depart from. It is a convenient port to visit for a Panama Canal tour, but is not a place I would fly into to take a cruise.

MAS getting new ownership now according to a Sun Sentinel article behind a paywall. Wonder if the Margaritaville brand sticks.

Lots of negative YouTube videos out there. This is one I saw recently from a channel I subscribe to that does not focus just on cruises. Pretty fair and detailed. Most of the ones I have seen show cabins that have had some type of water damage.

Placing out the door hanger works for breakfast the next day. Just asking for last minute room service during the day when needed. Royal ships we have gone on have had the option to order on the TV and it was quick and easy.

Thanks. Worth sending an email there to check.

I give Celebrity corporate credit. Sent them emails a couple of times in the past and they responded via email and phone calls. Celebrity's sister line Royal Caribbean is terrible in responding from recent experience. I give credit where it is do.

Sailed Connie back in March. Menu button on remote did nothing. Blamed the remote, but room steward said it is not active. Celebrity's website currently states the amenities include an Interactive TV System for our upcoming sailing. Hope it is true, but kind of doubt it. Calling on the phone and waiting for room service to answer is so old fashioned. Details seem to get lost in a voice conversation also. Has Connie been upgraded with the feature for those who have sailed more recently?

We upgraded after final payment a few weeks ago. MoveUp offer still shows the lower category that we upgraded from. Should the MoveUp pricing be lower as we are in a higher category now? Apparently, the third party vendor that Celebrity uses for MoveUp is not in sync with our current booking status. Don't want to bid if the upgrade pricing is not what is should be.

MSC gave them an opening for Tampa cruises. MSC was suppose to bring Armonia to Tampa, but plans changed with the start of Covid and the plan was scrapped. Don't think they would of taken on that much competition, but the players are fewer now than what was originally planned.

Atlantica’s interiors are gaudy as heck compared to the older Royal ships that sail from Tampa. You can’t have it all I guess. Still a smart move if the speculation is true..

Seen some ramblings today online about Costa Atlantica. Expanding sailings from Tampa to Cozumel would be nice. We are used to older ships here. Less competition from newer ships here also.

Their first comment about the ship being old would make me question any other comments they have. Ship is only 20 years old. We go on Royal's Vision and Radiance class of ships often that are older and close to the same age and prefer the smaller design. Going on the 20 year old Constellation for the second time this year in December and she is older and that is not a negative.

Open. Enjoy Grandeur. Did b2b on her from Miami for 14 nights in November and loved it! Sail the older and smaller ships while they are still around is my motivation!