Bugsy1966

Another option would perhaps be 'n' number of points per $500 (or whatever) paid for the cruise fare across all lines? Sail Silversea with their more expensive rates and you get more points, sail in a Sky suite = more points, sail in a last minute deal inside cabin on RCL or Celebrity and get not too many etc etc.

Yes, they changed it a while back because that's "what their loyal customers wanted" (without materially changing the pricing). I'm sure they think we all have single figure IQs. 😉

That is also my understanding. I hope cruiser7011 reads your post and investigates further.

Without knowing the country of your passport I can't comment on VOA other than to say that it is available for some countries so it's worth a google. I'm on the middle leg of your trip and recently applied for e-visas for us - for Sri Lanka as well as India. Neither were difficult (albeit the Indian one had more questions/stringent photo requirements) and both were approved quickly.

You can use as many devices as you like just so long as only one is logged in at a time.

I can take or leave lobster but a friend recommended the lobster risotto. He was not wrong. Outstanding. We shared one as an appetiser but next time I'll have it as a main course.

Sounds like an excellent plan. 😂

We were on the Beyond in Feb and requested a lounger - no problem. Same ship in July - sorry no can do for safety reasons. Clearly a line that the cabin steward had been given to parrot. I asked him to ask his supervisor but he returned with a hard no. I then went to guest services who gave me the same spiel whereupon I asked to speak to the hotel manager. Eventually his/her deputy trotted up and delivered the same speech. I asked him to explain how a sun lounger on the balcony of an SV was a safety hazard but not one on the balcony of an Edge Villa or various other cabins. He said he couldn't explain but 'Miami' had told them to remove them - no exceptions. I'd got a bee in my bonnet by now so made it quite clear that I was more than a little unhappy and asked him to convey that to Miami. He said he would contact Miami as soon as the office opened, convey my disappointment and see what, if anything, they could/would do. He promised me he would call me the next morning (it being around 6pm EU time). I never did hear back from him but around 10.30 the next morning our cabin steward arrived with a sun lounger! It took a lot of persistence and, frankly, it was so much hassle I'm not sure I would bother again. Onboard for enjoyment not aggravation. Sad, because it does remove one of the advantages of an SV and is yet another nail in the Celebrity coffin.

It's part of any purchased dining packages so it's hard to believe it wouldn't be part of the 'all speciality included' for upper end suites.

I think this earlier point of yours summed things up perfectly....... 'And what kind of guarantee is that when they can just call something an "Exciting Deal" & the guarantee goes out the window?' For me, that is the nub of the matter. If they wish to advertise a best price 'guarantee' that is not bulletproof then they need to add an asterisk or two i.e. guarantee**. Then, lower down, list the exceptions where the guarantee does not apply e.g. Exciting Deals. I rather think you'd win in a UK small claims court (especially as they'd be unlikely to defend, deeming it too much cost/effort for the sums involved) but it's aggro you could probably do without.

That's strange. I don't know if you were misinformed, they have since changed the policy or we just got lucky. We had a 4 night package in February and 2 of those nights were in Le Voyage.

They have now introduced a Wash and Press option and, as mentioned above, it can be reserved in the pre-cruise planner under 'Gifts and Gear'. Currently 63.99 vs 48.99 for Wash and Fold.

It was as of February and nothing I've read/heard suggests that has changed.

In general, we're no fans of ship's tours either. Even if one overlooks the price there is the hanging around to consider - not least of which is at the meeting point on board. Where we do sometimes use them is in tender ports. We prefer to be off the ship early and queueing for tenders (if not in the Retreat) can often result in a greater delay than is ideal. Booking a ship's tour can get round that problem.