jspirit

And was the trip on embarkation day to the Sea Life Center included as well?

I can reply to both of you at the same time regarding the last cruisetour day on the 5B:

Yes, the Sealife Centre was included and they gave us about 2 hours to wander around on our own there.

The people who wanted to purchase wine or water/ soft drinks did so during this time. They walked up the street to the store and made their purchases.

It seemed that most people by this point were very anxious just to embark on the ship! It was pouring rain . We did enjoy the Sealife Centre but also wanted to start the luxury part of this vacation onboard!

Any other questions?

I would appreciate if the Celebrity Rep who checks in on this board could let us know the proper answer.

I have had 2 Celebrity booking agents tell me I could use the promo - and then booked my excursions for me. Then today I have been told the opposite by one more.

Please clear up the confusion . Thank you.

Yes, that helps a lot. Do you have a list by any chance of what was offered at the Marriott meeting with your guide as far as optional land excursions for the pre cruise part? Also, where did you stay in Denali?

 

Did you like the cruisetour?

 

Thank you!

I do not have the excursions list but it was the same choices that I was able to see online on the Celebrity site prior to going on our vacation.

We did a rafting trip in Talkeetna which was fine - relaxing . Did not see too much but we thought we saw a black bear jump into the water right in front of us.. until we got closer and saw it was a black dog!:eek:

We were some of the lucky ones who got a full view of Mt. McKinley. Woke up to a sunny clear day and a 3D view of the great mountains!

The Alyeska Resort on the final tour night is a truly beautiful luxurious hotel!

In Denali we stayed at the Denali Park Lodge. We were told that our bus ( 1 of 3) was "upgraded" to the new cabins rather than the regular motel rooms. We did not enjoy that night(tiny, freezing ,dimly lit and noisy) and moved for the next night to the regular rooms. The grounds are lovely , right along the river .We were much more comfortable in the regular room.

We did enjoy being on a pre-cruise tour and met some wonderful new friends . It made the ship portion so much more fun because we already had bonded with so many people and we were all happy to see each other around the ship and in ports.

You will have a terrific time!

I was told by Captain's Club that this excursions offer is NOT combinable with any other offer. So many of us book on board or with the 123GO or PYP offer- so in any of these cases, this offer cannot be used. Has anyone else been told this?

We did the same 5B land tour pre-cruise in August. We could upgrade to the Denali TWT as soon as we met with our guide at the Marriott in Anchorage. No problem getting space.

Some people even let him know a few days into the trip .

I was concerned about that too, but there is no problem upgrading.

Hope that helps , and you have a great time!

From our own experience, my advice would be not to limit yourselves to just one whale watch tour!

We used the same company as the above poster,cruisin'mama, and missed out on what we looked forward to the most! Whale watch boat broke down during our trip out,, and bear search guide was sick, so tour was cancelled.

We kick ourselves now that we did not do another whale watch trip in Juneau , which we had done in the past and had very much enjoyed.Always have a back-up! So many things can change your best laid plans, like illness , weather, or just plain bad luck.

BTW we have done two different PSW tours in different years and have enjoyed them both , in addition to any glaciers we saw once on the cruise.

The day we were MOST looking forward to was in Icy Straight!

Arrived at correct meeting spot on time and was immediately told that bear search was cancelled due to the guide calling in sick.:(

Went on the whale watch with high expectations, but boat broke down and we had to turn back without ever reaching Pt Adolphus. Lucky we saw the same whale back in port that everyone did- just walking along the path or even from the ship!

:(

Sorry you were disappointed . We were, too!

Hope you did enjoy other parts of your trip!

Yes, there was a naturalist on board and his name is Dirk Younkerman. Here is what was posted in "Celebrity Today" -- the daily activity sheet:

 

"During our approach to Hubbard Glacier, guests will be able to enjoy the narration of our Celebrity Life Speaker Alaskan expert, Naturalist Dirk Younkerman throughout the PA System, in the open decks, Cosmos Navigational Lounge and also, on channel 16 of your TV. Dirk will be pointing out wildlie and local geographical features and interesting information about the history and condition of the glacier."

 

We had cabin 1140 (Aqua Class, aft balcony) but did not stay in it while at Hubbard. We have always done our glacier viewing from the open decks as it allows us more freedom of movement for taking pictures and viewing the full expanse of the glacier.

 

Dick did give a series of lectures throughout the cruise.

Thank you for that very helpful information!

How funny is it that we will be in the exact same cabin?

Did you love it? ( hope so!)

Is there anything in particular I can comment on just in case the review takes a little longer than I thought?

Appreciate your offer: was there a naturalist on board , and in order to hear the commentary through the glacier day , did you have to be out on an open deck , or was it broadcast on a tv channel? Wondering if we could watch from an aft balcony.

Did he give lectures on Alaska?

Thanks and welcome back!

Hi and thanks for the report. Glad it seems like you enjoyed your Alaska cruise on Millennium!

Was there a speaker on board lecturing about the Alaskan ports? Did he speak as you went thru the glacier day? Could you hear him on a tv channel in your room , or did you have to be out on a specific open deck?

How was your weather?

Thanks.

Is it also the $24 flat rate to an airport hotel in the Blue Lagoon area, or on the meter?

Thanks.

On April 8, a number of hotels in the Marriott system will require more points to be redeemed for a "free" night. There are 25 hotels in the Miami and Ft Lauderdale area that are negatively impacted.

 

If the award reservation is booked before April 8, the old award schedule is used even if the stay occurs after April 8. So if you are thinking of booking an award stay this year, you should get it done very soon.

Thanks for the heads up! Just in time, too!

I tried it and yes you can :)

Did you do this by phone?

They insist that I would pay the currency of the existing reservation. You were able to get the $25 for $25.90?

I haven't been in a position to try it, but it shouldn't be a problem. Remember, you don't need to be signed into your account, and as long as they have your booking number, anyone can buy OBC as a gift for you.

 

Just make sure that when you go to the Celebrity homepage that you select Canada as your country. Then the prices will be quoted in Canadian dollars.

It seems that once you give the reservation #, the site automatically switches to US and the credit card will be charged in US dollars.

Only seems to work if it will be applied to a booking that was booked in Canadian dollars.

If anyone has had this work differently, please let us know.

Thanks!

Has anyone had this work if their reservation is booked in US dollars?

The best tour by far I have ever taken on or off a cruise ship. We booked it ourselves and saved a few dollars. Do it early before they are all booked up.

 

Sue

Is the Bering Sea Crab Tour as enjoyable if we have never watched the show on tv?

I hired a shuttle to go there for $8/pp from the airport.

Did you pre-book this or just walk outside and find a shuttle ready to go?

Any company you recommend?

Knowing the prices in advance helps. Glad it all worked out so well for you!

We had planned to take the boat but there was a 40 minute wait and a short line for the cable car so we did that and a cab to Oia. The ride along the coast was beautiful. Also, the boat was not going to be going back that day.

Good to be able to decide when you arrive.

Flexible planning- you are right. It is funny, Holly, how after so much research on the speedboat to Oia, you lucked out with a short line for cable car . Do you recall how much the taxi was to or from Oia, and was it easy to find one ?

We booked online with Santorini Planet one week before our cruise and had very good service from Loukas.

 

He confirmed my reservation by email but noted that he thought I had booked for the wrong date. When I got on board the ship I confirmed that a change had been made in our itinerary. When I emailed Loukas at Santorini Planet to make the correction he assured me that he had already taken care of it!

 

When we arrived at the dock Loukas was there with signs advertising his service. He had our prepaid voucher that we brought with us exchanged at a desk there and we boarded a boat which took us and a few other people to the dock below Oia where a small, new bus was waiting to take us to the area in Oia where the tour buses wait for the cruise ship tours. From there we were on our own.

 

When we were ready to return to Fira we walked back to the drop-off spot where another small, new bus was running every hour on the hour. The driver would drop us off either near the end of the street to go to the cable car or down the hill near all the scenic restaurants.

 

The tickets were 20euros for the boat and bus transfer, either prepaid reservations or purchased on the dock. I would think as the season heats up having a reservation would be the way to go but was not necessary the day we were there. The cable car ticket was not included.

Thanks for the report and glad it all worked out well for you.

Wasn't the cable car ticket for the return supposed to be included in his 20 euro package?

I meant to say we paid $2.30 , or $5.00 return for both, not each. Driver gave us a ticket for the return trip .

Thanks for your reply so we know how much to expect to pay.

Last year we paid $2.30 round trip per person. Actually just used a 5 dollar bill each.

Can someone please confirm the present rate... is it $2.30 per person for one way or return to Palm Beach?

Our ship arrives on a Sunday. Is this market open on Sundays, and is it an easy walk from the ship dock?

Thank you.

Hi Gonzo,

 

On my last few cruises, I was told this perk was no longer offered. Of course, it could vary from ship to ship.

 

Has anyone seen the first day of sailing, internet bonus lately ?

Last month sailing on the Connie, they did not allow the CC coupon to be combined with the extra bonus minutes offered on Day 1.

This thread reminded me of another gem...

 

Has anyone you know bought a Celebrity Sostice Diamond? (I think that's what they were calling them.,,, a special cut for the new class of ships???)

 

They were the big deal awhile ago but way beyond our budget..have not seen one in awhile on board????

I asked about them while on one of the S-class ships. I was told they were expensive and did not sell well. They did still have some small sizes in stock on display.

At least they were genuine diamonds! Not being sold as clear emeralds!!!:D