PROCRUISE

Also booked 10/24 and 12/24 cruises with HAL last July of this year. Both have paid gratuities! That being said, I have to agree that stating now (October) all cruise lines will follow suit and drop paid gratuities from AL. Had to burst out laughing when the CEO and commentator both announced that all anyone needs is WiFi and a drink package! LOL

Perfectly rehearsed! Now let's see her go on an X ship and allow questions from the floor, in the theatre, with no time limits.

Meant to say, won't find gratuity added after October 2023. Additionally, HAL has been cruising to Alaska longer than another cruise line.

There is NO special onboard event just for those to have or purchased CO.

Am Elite with Celebrity BUT, have been to Alaska twice with HAL and the cruises and land trip were phenomenal and even now their prices are reasonable. Today, their Labor Day prices for 2024 Alaska cruises are really good and their "Have It All" INCLUDES crew gratuity! Won't find that with X.

Cancelled an excursion for an upcoming cruise having used shore excursion credit. It reappeared as shore excursion available funds in 24hrs!

Never had to wait for a table at CO on the NS or Rotterdam this past January/February although we do eat dinner early. Added it again for our 12/24 cruise back on the Rotterdam. Also appreciated the CO line at Guest Services the first day when the regular line for phone/internet help was extremely long and we only had a 5 minute wait.

I submitted the same question. However, you're then given a choice as to what areas you'd like discussed: itineraries, onboard activities etc. All the ares of interest listed are simply a way for the upcoming CC Seminar to simply be turned into a PR talk, with little substance!

Agree. We very much like the HAL Pinnacle Class of ships. We purchase Orange Club, only on these three vessels, because of the wonderful private dining area on these three vessels plus priority boarding and separate guest services line.

Neither of us is active or retired from the military. Simply U.S. Army Veterans - during the Korean War and Vietnam.

Received Military Veteran $100, per veteran discount, on both of our upcoming X cruises. I did have to remind our X cruise planner to apply it. X does have our DD-214's on file.

Because MOST people don't do they math, they just hit the Continue With All Included and think they got a "deal!"

Did receive a reply from Mathana Denose, Celebrity Cruises Executive Office: "Thank you for bringing this story from ABC News to our attention, We value your input. It is a test at this point, and all feedback is being taken into consideration. As a brand we will continue to keep our guests as the main focus and you taking the time to reach out is beneficial and appreciated."

Perhaps those in the "X ivory towers" might want to catch the ABC News item from today, July 30, 2023: DOCTORS INCREASINGLY DISCOURAGE VAPING AMID MOUNTING HEALTH CONCERNS."

Absolutely agree to check with other cruise lines too before making a decision. Also would always suggest to do the land tour first followed by the cruise.

Definitely also following. Have HAL just booked in October and December 2024. Oh, now I see it is just for new bookings. Missed by a week!!

I concur. Am Elite with X and did the Caribbean out of San Juan with Viking Ocean. Have also done Viking riverboat. Viking Ocean cabins are all balcony, staff immediately there to assist with any matter, meals were all outstanding, many fewer passengers so the ship never felt crowded. Cons: final payment due WAY before the cruise, less entertainment at night but good time to just socialize with fellow passengers. I had a good experience on Viking but, next two cruises are booked with X.

Eurodam - 6/12/09 - 6/22/09 - Baltic Sea with two day private tour in St. Petersburg!

Only 384 more points need for ... 2 bags of laundry - LOL. I won't live that long but do have two more 10 night cruises coming up!

Just booked back on the NS for 12/24. After previously paying for CO on both the NS and Rotterdam it was a given I wanted CO if for no there reason than the great CO dining area. CO was available for the 12/24 cruise and with the deck plans up on my PC, my HAL PCP listed what I could up grade to and I made my choice. For we "poor folk" who don't have the funds, nor do we need a suite, the priority boarding is also a nice addition.

Anything that is served actually hot and not just luke warm!

If you're referring to just this board, on vaping, then you're making an error if you think it is going to ruin your cruise. I am against vaping too and would actually be happy with no smoking of any kind. However, it isn't isn't going to ruin my December cruise on the Silhouette or February cruise on the Constellation. I have cruised with X a number of times (Elite Status) and I know what a relaxing pleasure it is to cruise with Celebrity, at least for me, plus the many pleasant and interesting fellow passengers who will be onboard.

I'm more inclined to agree with cruisemom42. I visited Egypt by land but the visa was acquired at the airport when landing in Cairo. I do remember, when doing the Baltic Sea cruise with HAL when you spent two days in St. Petersburg, HAL handled the required visa's and added the charge to our onboard accounts. I suspect you'll have to move up the chain, aside from just the representatives, who I've recently found give you different answers for the same question due to new staffing.

Absolutely concur!! The smaller, private dining area we had on the NS and Rotterdam was well worth the extra cost. The other nice thing, as mentioned, is the CO guest services line. On the first day when there is a huge line for help with using the WiFi, the CO service line staff will gladly help you with WiFi issues and any other cell phone help you might need.

Wow. 700 ideas, opinions etc was a lot to read through!! Up front, I have never smoked or vaped. However I did care for plenty of COPD, pulmonary fibrosis and lung cancer patients during my years of nursing, many of not most, who were smokers. I'm just curious what the percentage of smokers would be verses non smokers on any given Celebrity vessel and any itinerary. I'm guessing that if the vast major of cruisers on any cruise were American, the percentage might be 1 smoker to every 300 to 400 non smokers. Having started cruising in 2002, I've seen fewer and fewer smokers each year especially on X, HAL, and Princess. Perhaps a few more on CCL and NCL and actually none, that I saw, on Viking and Windstar. I am sure that Celebrity will go with smoking and vaping because, they need the money that apparently smokers produce in the casino maybe even more so than non smokers. I guess we'll have our answer fairly soon.