phoenix_dream

Thanks much to CHEZMARYLOU and thebutlerdidit. Finally a confirmed answer to my actual question!

Not disagreeing with your information, but can you share how you know this? I don't want to assume it just because the tips are higher, as they might be higher to include Retreat lounge staff, more Luminae staff, etc..

That's because the Catholic religion makes mass mandatory in most circumstances. Non-denominational is open to anyone of any religion of course. I'm not a religious expert but I think if there is not a priest onboard saying mass then a Catholic can probably meet their requirements by streaming a service online.

Someone in a place I am not allowed to name here. They also said they heard this information directly from butlers. I'm not trying to argue with them - just want to know for sure one way or another so I can tip accordingly.

I think this is just standard wording they use until they can get all the daily schedules planned.

One independent tour you can consider on Cozumel is the Bar Hop. I'm not a big drinker at all, but it was very relaxing and a lot of fun. And as has been said, Cozumel is a very large port so even if there are lots of ships in port that day you should be fine.

I appreciate the polite responses. But can anyone tell me for sure if the butler tips are included in the all included tip pool or not? I always thought they were because the tip amounts are higher for suites, but as I'm being told something else I want to try to find out for sure.

I was under the impression that the butler would share in the all included tip amounts when sailing in suites. I've been told recently that they may not be. Can anyone confirm one way or another whether they are included in the all included tip pool? And can you advise where you got your information (not doubting anyone - just want to know where that information is as I have never seen it in writing unless I missed it). Please - let's not get into tip extra or not - just want to know for sure if they are included or not so I can plan accordingly. Thank you!

I guess we'll see. Or better yet, hope the test fails and it is not implemented. I just am not sure there will be a noticeable impact if it stays. I think the younger people who are sailing more and more with Celebrity may just balance out the older and perhaps more loyal people who are deciding to go elsewhere. Unfortunately, Celebrity is not alone in allowing smoking (or in this case vaping) of some type onboard. I know there are some lines that still don't allow it in the casino, but many do. And I've heard some people talk about going to the more premium lines (which often don't allow smoking, or even have a casino) but there really is a pretty significant price difference, as well as overall experience difference so who knows how that will work.

Same here. Even when we get the emails 90% of the time or more the requests aren't handled. That said, with one recent exception we've always had great luck meeting with the butler upon embarkation who handles it all nicely.

I would sincerely hope that you are correct. I really hate the idea of vaping. But I have to tell you that the younger demo is already happening quite a bit. On all of our recent cruises (and there have been many) we have seen way more people of a younger age, and way more kids than we ever have before in our 30 years and 75+ cruises on Celebrity, in particular on the Edge class ships. I also am skeptical of how many people will actually be cancelling a cruise because of this change. There will be some of course. But its easy to say something like that on Facebook and harder to get hit with the cancellation fees of doing that. Once again, I very much hope you are right but I am skeptical.

Definitely agree. Suites are the most in demand cabins on the ships these days. If there are any open they will give them to the highest bidder on move-up, and that is almost always someone who bid considerably over minimum. Is there a tiny chance that someone cancels literally at the last minute and they might let someone pay for the suite? Yes, but agree that it will probably be higher than the upgrade bid, as well as probably considerably higher than had the person booked a suite in the first place. That's how popular they are right now. I've tried bidding several times from Aqua Class and have yet to be successful.

Just wanted to add my two cents about dates. We have sailed to Alaska multiple times both in early May at the start of cruise season as well as mid to late September, at the end. We have never had an issue getting close to the Glaciers and never saw any haze in the air in September. Maybe we just got lucky, but these were over several trips. I will confess we had more rain on our last September sailing, but haven't had that on previous trips at that time. I'll leave it to the Alaska residents to let us know if I just got lucky.

IMHO that's exactly the point. Vaping is very popular with the younger crowd. Celebrity is trying to attract a younger crowd. So do the math. Some believe (and Celebrity claims) this trial is due to requests from casino players, with no information to back that up, even on sites or posts from Blue Chip cruisers. I think it is to try to attract a younger crowd.

Summit is an old worn ship?? She was revolutionized and she is in great shape. Old, yes. Worn. Not in my opinion

Wow some of the rudest or snarky answers I’ve seen on any question lately. What’s with some people?! Please don’t think most Celebrity cruisers are like that! Basically, Celebrity tends to be a bit more quiet and relaxing and laid back than Royal. Fewer kids. Good entertainment but not quite up to the same quality overall. Excellent service. Very good food. No amusement park stuff for kids but a nice kids program.

Sailed to Alaska on Celebrity many times. IMHO Hubbard Glacier provides an excellent glacier experience. I also 100% would recommend cruising one way out of Vancouver. More ports and longer times in port. Definitely add a trip to Denali after if possible. Take the Alaska railroad. Amazing. Consider booking the land trip on your own or via an Alaska based TA. We did that on our first trip and it saved us $300 pp for 3 days post cruise. As to timing, not much difference between July and August. Our preferred times are actually September or May. Just as scenic and less crowded.

It has been my experience over multiple Alaska sailings, including one last summer with premium internet, that at times Alaska reception can be poor. I don’t think they had Starlink back then. But even in port, reception could be pretty bad.

Don't fret. I have sailed in suites a number of times and with a few exceptions (like if they have an Officer's gathering or music) I have never had an issue getting seats. During the exception times I mention it would be crowded with or without extra guests - one only has to do the math to see why. But trust me when I tell you, the Retreat experience overall is really, really nice. You'll have a great time.

I can also recommend renting a car and driving up to the Yukon - awesome experience. But do it early as there are not many cars in town to rent.

With kids, I would pack swimsuits and sunscreen in my carry-on. Drop off your bags, go have some lunch, give yourself a short tour of the ship including the children's club, and then hit the pool.

Celebrity customer service is notorious for giving incorrect answers. You can call one person and get answer A and call again to another person and get answer B. That's one reason people post questions here - to see the actual experiences.

Honestly, I don't think it's a matter of becoming less tolerant, although as I age I am less shy about speaking up for myself - I think it's more that than necessarily being less tolerant. I think there has been a significant drop in common courtesy and manners. This was happening before, but for whatever reason I think the Covid shutdown has resulted in a definite change in human behavior and often not in a good way. It's like - I had to suffer through Covid and it's consequences so now I deserve to do what I want, when I want, and the heck with everyone else. All one has to do is drive around the neighborhood to see this evidenced in driving behavior. Never in my (long) life have I seen so many careless, reckless, aggressive, inconsiderate, illegal driving behavior as I see since Covid. I see it also virtually everywhere I go - in my home area or when traveling. People are more rude, act more entitled, and on and on. It's disheartening.

I also hate when people do that on their balconies, especially when they know we are sitting on ours right next to them. Loud phone calls and video chats, loud music. Sometimes it's a family with children who let their kids make all kinds of noise - but it certainly can be anyone of any age!

Part of me agrees with that thought (cynic as I am) but the other part of me thinks that won't happen. Why? It is my belief (perhaps wrong; perhaps right) that this is not necessarily about casino revenue per se. I think this is more about attracting a younger crowd, whose vice of choice these days is vaping. Just about every 20-30 year old I know (and I confess that number is fairly small) vapes. Statistically, younger people are not smoking regular cigarettes as much as before, particularly if you look at the demographics of who they might care to attract on their ships. Therefore, according to my personal logic, adding smoking would be counterproductive as it would not entice them, and would, even more so than vaping, result in a number of people leaving the fleet.