RTShaker

After not having done something for a long time, whether cruising, dining at a fine restaurant, or staying at a resort, we rely on memories of "the good old days". Because we haven't done them in a long while we remember them in a glorified way, and when then when we do those things again they don't meet the expectations we artificially set, I'm not saying that there aren't some negative changes, but the perception is skewed by what we want to remember.

Realistically, most reviews are either high praise or condemnation. Very few write a review if the experience is not either exceptional or horrendous. Combine that with the "rose coloured glasses" from not having cruised for a few years and you get a lot of not glowing reviews.

Generally speaking if the port side sees something outbound, starboard will see it inbound. When cruising in Glacier Bay, etc you will see both sides. It really doesn't matter which side you are on.

The lack of choice pre-cruise is a normal occurance. Once on board go and make reservations for the time you want, or just go at your desired time.

That would be correct.

Yes, the Millennium has Starlink. We had a full load though, 2200+.

On our Panama crossing I could log in to CC with basic, but couldn't see images nor could I reply. No issue when I used my streaming minutes.

At $7 per day that would be a no-brainer for me.

The upper bed is completely retracted into the ceiling. You will only know it's there but the shape of the panel.

Probably the porthole verandas far forward and aft.

I did this 3 weeks ago. One of the reasons for the length is the drive from Colon to Miraflores, to see the old locks in operation, and back. Then you add in the obligatory "shopping" stop at a small strip mall where you get a sticker to wear so that the vendors can see who is guiding money their way. The stop at the new visitor center is about an hour, and then there is about an hour at the observation building in MiraFlores. Once the new new observation area at the historic locks in Gatun is complete the excursion should be about 2 hours less. It was interesting enough, but the long drive with no guarantee of seeing a ship in the locks (which we didn't) didn't make it worthwhile for me.

Correct. Ship and/or sail date.

Other than the deposit on the new sail date will still only be $100 with a change, and you still keep your extra OBC for booking on board.

Last month the basic was so-so, and the streaming wasn't too bad with the exception of one day due to ship location. It wasn't super fast, but certainly usable for my needs. what "fast" is, is very subjective.

Celebrity....computer problems?? Tell me it isn't so🤣

On our Apr 21 cruise (15 days) we had prime rib 3 times and lobster twice, although the lobster could have been a rubber ball. On the next 6 day leg we had prime rib again.

The problem with that is the way they throttle available bandwidth you will be sharing the bandwidth allocated to your connection amongst all the devices on your hotspot. Might work with stream, but basic is just passable with one device.

You are correct in your interpretation. As a note, to lose only $100 you must keep your original booking number, so do not cancel and then book a new cruise. You must transfer the booking to the new ship/sail date to keep the booking number.

If you cancel on a cruise booked today, you will lose the whole deposit with the NRD. That's as simple as it gets. Previously booked cruises will be grandfathered in according to the terms on your guest invoice.

Maybe this group... This cruise?? Abraham-Hicks Vortex of Attraction Hawaii Cruise Nine-Night Cruise: September 22, – October 1, 2023 Abraham Hicks is the name of a non-physical entity that is channelled by Esther Hicks. Their teachings are said to be about the law of attraction. Esther describes them as “a group of non-physical entities who present themselves as Abraham, and who speaks through a process known as channelling.” Abraham-Hicks Law of Attraction workshops are offered in around 25 cities each year as well as two or three cruises or international cities. These workshops are the ideal way to learn from Abraham and are the basis of all the recordings offered by Abraham-Hicks Publications.

Sorry, just one of my pet peeves. A ship can only have one maiden voyage, the first one. Hard to have a one before the first one. The pre-maiden voyage is really the maiden voyage. Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.😎

I think the way it is laid out on the M class, diners come up, see nothing and head back to the MDR. The buffet says we have fewer diners so we have to cut back. Diners finally find the very scaled down offerings and don't come back, furthering the downward spiral. "Build it and they will come". The only constant is the 10 daily Indian selections. There was no difference in the dinner buffet when the ship had 2200 passengers, and the next leg with 1200. When they had the stirfry station open, it was best to have a snack before heading there as the turn-around time was quite long. 20+ people in line, 1 stirfry chef with 2 pans.

I just spent three weeks on the Millennium. The variety varied greatly day to day. On embarkation day and day two the variety was far superior to the balance of the cruise. Food quality was definitely far below pre-pandemic levels. If you like Indian/Asian food you will be in your glory. The selection at the grill to order was limited to one protein daily. Soups seemed to have no substance, no matter which was available. Unfortunately on the M class the grill area is at the back, so when you arrive at the Oceanview it looks like an abandoned food court.

Your homemade one doesn't look fully cooked. 😁

I understand, but it irks me that on the S class I can't get a bed by bath cabin. Realistically how many of those cabins are actually occupied by more than two?