JaneAustenCruiser

Oh wow, this is timely! My husband and I are both Celebrity afficianados, but are looking for a bucket list trip with something new. Looking forward to your review and information!

We've been on two Celebrity cruises so far, none in suites, but the minute we mentioned to our wait staff in the MDR that my husband was vegetarian, they went out of their way to provide options for him, including providing a fully vegetarian menu. It was honestly amazing.

On 3/18/2022 at 11:30 AM, TeeRick said:

No tuxedo, ties, or sport coats.  No men's dress shoes.  Just smart casual.

No full lap top- but I do bring a tablet/iPad.

I do bring books - I do not like e-books.  But DW only reads e-books.

No walkie-talkies.

No Walkman or portable music players (cassettes, CD players), other than my smart phone.

No traveler's checks (remember American Express?).  No large wads of cash but instead some smaller amounts if needed.  I just rely on ATM's and pre-paid debit/visa cards.  Even in foreign ports so no foreign currency in advance - with some exceptions depending on the travel situations.

No paperback dictionaries for language translations.  Again just the smart phone and aps.

Likewise no paper maps.

 

 

It just blows my mind how much of this stuff can be replaced by a good cell phone. 😵 What an age to live in.

I much prefer a 'real' book, and usually still bring one or two, but my iPad is the back up. Being able to borrow up to 10 books from our local library on it - oh man, I love having the options of what to read.

"Lunch of shame" hahahaha - We have all been there! 😁😅

6 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

So, my husband went back to urgent care today with a rash that began appearing yesterday. He has shingles. The "pulled muscle" pain he was experiencing was actually nerve pain from the shingles. Apparently the rash shows up 2-4 days after the pain. He is only 42 years old! We aren't even eligible for the vaccine!

 

They are prescribing an anti-viral and and a steroid and say he should start feeling some relief in about two days. Since the earliest I can be home is Thursday evening, we have decided I should just stay for my B2B, since he should be feeling somewhat better by then.

OMG, I'm so glad it's something manageable at least. My mom had shingles and it's absolutely no fun. I'm so sorry he came down with it right during your cruise time. I hope he's on the mend soon!

I wonder also how they decide which rooms to put into the MoveUp queue. I wonder if some of it is related to distributing weight and passenger counts on the ship in combination with the extra $$. I would imagine it could be one way to ensure that no one steward is overwhelmed while another goes with half the work.

If you're speaking to the question could they will assign you to a partially obscured view, that did just happen to us. We got Moved Up from a regular veranda room on 7, to a Concierge C3 room (1002) that is partially obscured by the command deck. This won't/shouldn't be a big deal for us since we normally look out, not necessarily forward, but still....

I'm listening to this webinar right now and I think her English is actually amazing. As someone who is learning Spanish now, having to shift into a second language is incredibly difficult. I don't think her addition of the 'ummmm' is any worse than any other public speaker I've heard.

I've felt like the app is close to a countdown timer for me!😁 The closer our cruise gets, the more information shows up in the app!

We got notified that our MoveUp bid was accepted for the incredibly lowball offer we made on a Concierge room from Veranda. I think they took $340 for both of us. Moved us to 1002, which seems it will be able to be seen from the command deck, which could be weird.

Have always been mid-ship before so being forward will be interesting.

3 hours ago, bnurick said:

FINAL POST: Good morning from FLL airport.  Headed home on an 1145AM flight.  Hope everyone found the postings of information helpful.  We enjoyed the Equinox and look forward to the Edge at the end of March.  Cheers and plan well my friends! 😊 

Wonderfully helpful! Hope your travel was/is safe!

On 2/8/2022 at 1:15 PM, ohiolovescrusing said:

So it looks like currently Antigua must be a Celebrity tour, and no option for possibly a government approved tour from the pier area?  That’s a stop we do not have a tour purchased yet for our soon cruise, and wasn’t thrilled with the remaining open options. What tour did you do and what was good/bad about it?  Thanks!

@ohiolovescrusingOur upcoming Equinox cruise in April has a stop in Antigua as well and we don't have one either. I'm hoping there will be the 3rd party gov't approved tours we can find in the port. None of the Celebrity ones floated our boat (LOL).

19 hours ago, TMLAalum said:

My DH is a scrupulous Catholic. Our priest has told him that if there is no possibility of attending Mass, the obligation is moot. On Sunday sea days DH has requested a room for facilitating a Christian prayer service that includes the day’s readings and Celebrity has obliged. Pre-Covid, priests have been aboard at Christmas and during Lent through Easter on the several Celebrity cruises we’ve taken that occur at those times.

 

On port Sundays, we enjoy attending a local church for Mass even if we don’t speak the language!

@TMLAalum, I did this in Aruba when we stopped there on a cruise and it was the most lovely experience!

Wow, this is so cool! I hope they do this on the Equinox when we sail in April. I'll keep my eyes open just in case. So glad you mentioned it.

We eat primarily vegetarian at home since my husband is totally vegetarian. We have some wonderful Indian friends who kindly gave me cooking lessons and I've got an amazing Indian cookbook so much of our home food is Indian. (660 Curries by Rahgvan Iyer is the book; worth every penny!).

6 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Actually, 7263 is nowhere near where we were. We were a forward-facing angled balcony on the mid-ship bump out on the starboard side. 7253 looks to be a normal balcony, further aft, on the port side.

Oh lordy, I misread your cabin number! 😅🥸

@JamieLogical, also OMG. We are LITERALLY going to be in the cabin right next door to the one you were in!! I double checked our reservation - we're 7263! 🤣

Now I need to go back and review your post again so I can get all the deets on the room!

We'll be on the Equinox in April and we're really really REALLY hoping that Omicron drops off precipitously and the need for indoor masks goes away. I know that's a long shot, but there you.

So glad you had a great time. I've only ever cruised on Celebrity (we're only on our 3rd one coming up) and I don't see any reason to change. 😍

50 minutes ago, edeneyes said:

If you have a coffee or a drink or food no masks required.  I have seen ship personel ask unmasked people in Solarium to put on masks.

Oh man, the Solarium is my favorite spot. 😞 Ah well. Thank you!! 😍

On 1/30/2022 at 1:24 PM, RetroSister said:

Thanks for sharing this! We are booked on the 12 night Ultimate Southern Caribbean departed April 2, and I'm looking forward to reading all of your experiences on board! It's been so difficult to find accurate information on which ports we'll be able to see on our own and which will require excursions through Celebrity. I'm sure they'd prefer that we book 100% through them, but I'd rather get to do our own thing as much as possible!

BTW, that martini looks fabulous!!

@retrosister, yes! I agree 100% with this. I've been on the Celebrity site almost every day it seems to see what the excursion landscape looks like. I feel like we'll be held up on the real story until about two weeks out - the Covid situation changes so much! We did book a few excursion, but I'm really hoping stuff dies down quickly (a gal can hope) so that third-party operators and "go on your own" options are available. The one I really wanted in Granada got cancelled for whatever reason, although others are available.

On 1/30/2022 at 12:37 PM, Rayhorn said:

I’ll be following the topic and look forward to your continued posting. We are on 12 night on Equinox Feb 20. In particular I’d love to hear about any port substitutions or updates in their excursion requirements. Have an awesome trip!

And we're on her for the April 12 night! Looking forward to hearing all about it! How has it been wearing masks? For instance, do you have to wear them if you're sitting in Cafe El Bacio with a coffee or only if you're walking around inside?

On 1/27/2022 at 9:15 PM, GenerationX said:

Hello! Pre-Covid I did use a TA but unfortunately the agent I liked working with didn’t return to the agency after the COVID shut downs and layoffs. So my post-shutdown cruises I’ve booked myself.

 

Finding a good new TA is on my list of things to do. Especially since my husband and I plan to do a Galapagos cruise in 2023.  I want to find an agent that really has experience with that itinerary.  Something I’ll focus on during my “cruising break” between my March sailing on Millennium and my Alaska cruise in July. 😁

Never mind! I thought I could recommend, but I can't. My apologies to all.

On 1/26/2022 at 10:46 AM, Jim_Iain said:

Oh Boy!   I've been waiting for the next chapter of your adventures at sea.   I love hearing about all the pre-cruise planning as I am also a big planner.  

 

Have a wonderful cruise and enjoy the warm weather.

Planning is half the fun, isn't it?! People think I'm crazy....🤡

On 1/25/2022 at 5:45 PM, GenerationX said:

Hello Again CC!

 

So remember back in November when I did a live review from the Equinox and I was desperately trying to resist buying a vintage Louis Vuitton bag in the luxury shop in case I needed that money to book a last minute winter cruise?

 

Well, it turned out to be a wise decision!  It only took about 6 days of single digit temperatures and 2 instances of our garage door freezing shut for me to decide that hopping on a ship and sailing away to warmer weather could NOT wait till my next cruise booked in March.

 

As an added bonus, this time I’ll be trying Edge class for the first time!  After spending years reading the many mixed reviews and looking at sky suite prices that were about as budget friendly as a Birkin bag, I’ll finally get to experience the first of the line of ships designed with my generation in mind (allegedly).

 

I know I’m starting this live report a bit early (I don’t fly out for 3 days, 13 hours and 5 minutes, but hey who’s counting), but I must admit that I am particularly excited for this cruise!

 

When I started eyeing this sailing shortly after Christmas, the plan was for hubby and I to go together.  But then came late December, when omicron really reared its ugly head and with it the “horror stories” of onboard outbreaks and significant numbers of passengers quarantined.  My better half decided he wasn’t comfortable cruising this winter.  

 

I fully respect my husband’s risk tolerance and the decisions of all those who decide not to sail right now. But for me, I’m in my late 30’s, relatively healthy and at the peak period for the immunity from my COVID booster (according to the early studies anyway).  For me personally, the opportunity to try E-class for the first time on a low passenger count sailing at a price that was half what Celebrity was asking pre-shutdown was well worth taking a risk with a few extra precautions taken onboard.

 

In that spirit, one evening after working an 18 hour day then slipping on ice on our driveway, I let my husband know that I intended to sail on the Edge with or without him.  My dear husband, being used to my adamant temperament and well aware of my utter disdain for all temperatures below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, responded with: “very well my love, just let me know when I have to take you to the airport”.

 

Like others who are choosing to sail right now, I’m heading out knowing that this cruise may be somewhat different from my other 2 post-shutdown Celebrity sailings.

 

I’m a pretty outgoing person and one of my favorite parts of solo cruising is having the opportunity to meet and get to know so many new people.  But this cruise I’ll probably keep to myself more the first few days.  I want to minimize the risk of being contact traced early on and having to spend one of my first days onboard locked in my stateroom awaiting test results. 

 

That being said if you’re going to be onboard with me and are up for having a social distanced chat from across the barbthe fist few days, please don't be shy and do come say hello! I’d love to test my ability to make new friends at a 6 foot distance.

 

Also, while I’ll be sailing in a sky suite, I’ll only be having a couple of dinners in my usual favorite, Luminae.  I got generous OBC with this booking and Edge comes with a whole new world of restaurants to explore.  

 

Plus I looked over the Luminae dinner menus for our sailing and most nights they just didn’t look that exciting to me.
 

Pro tip:  if you’re a hyper planner like me and like to book your specialty dinning in advance, usually the dining room menus for your sailing will pop up in the Celebrity app a few weeks before your cruise.  I look through them and find the nights where I’m not crazy about the menu and book my specialty restaurants for those nights.

 

I also won’t be spending a ton of time in ports on this cruise. Our scheduled ports of call are Nassau, Costa Maya, Cozumel and Roatan.  I’ve never been overly thrilled with Nassau or Costa Maya, so will spend those days exploring an even more empty ship.  

 

I have half day excursions booked through Celebrity in Cozumel and Roatan, but if for some reason we don’t make those ports, I won’t be too disappointed. Edge is really the destination for me on this cruise (and I would probably rethink sailing right now if visiting the scheduled ports had been REALLY important to me).

 

I plan to try all of the specialty restaurants except La Petit Chef (according to the app, this sailing it’s a show I’ve seen before) and I also made a reservation one night to try the Cyprus main dining room.

 

As I decided on whether to book this cruise I spent a lot of time on CC and social media following the info being reported from onboard. (BTW, a big thank you to all those cruisers for taking the time to share!).

 

One common theme I saw in comments from current Edge cruisers was that while the ship has been fairly low occupancy, suites have been sold out, so Luminae and Retreat areas have been more crowded than the common areas so I’ll be sure to report on my experiences with that.

 

I’ll also definitely spend some time checking out the casino and onboard shopping scene.  I’ve also reserved a cabana with bottle service for the first sea day and will likely partake in any and all wine-related events that are offered. (My husband enjoys joking that my annual spending on wine, cigars, slot machines and wardrobe could economically stabilize a small third world country.  Really, the man is so dramatic.)

 

If there’s anything else in particular folks want to know about please feel free to ask.  Now I’m off to tackle a few more things on my pre-cruise checklist. Saturday morning it’s wheels up for Florida!

 

I wish I was going to be on this cruise because you sound like a blast!

Our cards here in Michigan actually have stickers that show the batch number of our vaccines.

9 minutes ago, colliercruiser said:

So I think you're saying that if a country changes its protocol to require PCR testing within 72 hours of arrival, that Celebrity would likely cancel that port since they can no longer meet those new requirements.

 

This could get reeeallllly interesting in a longer cruise like our 12 day one in April. Lots of stops. Wonder how that'll look!?