rjrpar

Hold-times have been out of control! Just another example of the downgrading of the Celebrity experience. I guess "modern luxury" has taken on a whole new meaning.

Mass market cruising is no longer luxurious. If you want a true luxury experience, go on a high end cruise lines. Why can't some people get this basic concept.

Hi!

I read your section on balconies (thanks for that, BTW!), and still can't make up my mind on which cabins for June 2015. I'm planning to surprise my mom with an Alaskan cruise for her birthday, so I will need to get 2 rooms for four of us: Me, hubby, my mom, and my 8-year-old. I'm torn between 2 aft balconies or 2 "bowling alley" balconies on the Carnival Miracle. Which would be our best bet?

 

Pros of aft balconies:

- Better view (correct?)

- Quieter hallway

- Partial covering on deck 4

- No lifeboats below

 

Cons of aft balconies:

- The dividers between the balconies do not open.

- The Carnival Miracle layout has only 2-person and 3-person cabins adjacent. I would be booking my mom and daughter in one cabin and me and hubby in another to avoid the "singles' penalty."

- More expensive: about $400 per person more!

- Farther from the elevators. (My mom has mobility issues and can't walk long distances.)

 

Pros of "bowling alley balcony"

- HUGE balcony!

- One is handicap accessible (so my mom doesn't have to deal with a heavy balcony door)

- Less expensive than an aft balcony

- Divider between the 2 balconies can be opened

- More seating

- Closer to elevators

 

Cons of "bowling alley balcony"

- Located only on the port side of the ship

- Recessed area of the ship

- They hold a max of 2 people each, so if by some chance, my mom refuses to go, we will have to scramble for a "good" cabin for three 2-3 months after our initial booking.

- Noisier than aft balcony cabins

- Lifeboats below

 

Thoughts?

Have never been to Alaska but question the better view from an aft. We had our first, and last, aft last year in the Caribbean. You can see your wake but we really missed the side view, especially arriving in port. Felt frustrated with the very limited view. Also, second the comment on long walks. Just our opinion.

Has anyone taken a tour from the pier to the cave? Just wondering about prices since the taxi prices seem high. We have often negotiated some good deals from the tours being hawked at the end of the dock.

Thanks for any info.

Full is defined as 2 persons in every room. In the summer, holidays, and on shorter cruises, a ship can have an additional 700-1000 children (as 3rd and 4th passengers). That is really crowded.

Great, enjoy your last 5 days

Good advice to check the Roll Call.

We did RomeinLimo for Rome and Naples and they did a great job. Don"t, don't miss Pompeii

I was reading another thread where much of the discussion was about HAL having the "bad" reputation of appealing only to those "of a certain age." I like that term!

 

Well, I can tell you that (now in my mid 50s), I have been a HAL customer since my early 40s and I happen to like having middle and advanced-aged people as my shipmates! They're by and large civilized, gracious, courteous, friendly; many are spritely, energetic, obviously like having a good time, and God Bless them.

 

I have faith to know when I have booked my next HAL cruise that most all of my shipmates will be good and decent people of all ages who are doing exactly what I am doing, making it the kind of vacation that I will remember for the rest of my life.

Very nice post. We have never cruised HAL but are looking to do Alaska in 2015. Are considering HAL since we like to see the Yukon.

We jumped on the qos when the booking first came out and have been checking pricing ever since and appears that we have paid 75% of what they are selling for now. I for one would like to see completed deck plans we are in our 60s so bumper cars isn't our gig

 

 

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Agree, we booked 5. Months ago and prices are up 15%. I would like more info but why not book and watch for price drops, plus you can always cancel.

Its been 27 hrs and 28 posts/replies since the original & Only acknowledge from someone on the Eclipse.

 

An Update / status is needed

 

Let's hope for the Best; we are on the next sailing Feb 22nd and I am confident that, as previously stated, it will be One CLEAN & beautiful ship.

 

LEFTY

Yes, we could use some more info on the problem but we don't need another sermon on hygiene, we understand.

Dress codes(and actual dress) on X and RCCL are the same. Just have fun!

Any update from the original post of 300 cases?

Do Elites get the benefits of Selects, specifically the free pressing of garments?

Thanks

It is always supply and demand. Demand later in the summer is probably a little higher than June, for many different reasons

We've used SAS Transportation. $15.00 P/P each way. Excellent service.

SAS was great for us both ways. On-time, inexpensive, decent vans, lots of experience.

Eclipse has gone to an alert as nearly 300 have been reported to be ill!

 

 

Hal

Stay well, hope you thoroughly enjoy your cruise. We leave on 3/8.

Most cruise ships are fantastic. The Silhouette is very nice but so are many others. Don't forget, you are on a Celebrity forum and most here are partial. Check other boards for varying opinions

Looks good but surely not like a top steakhouse.

We are hoping for vouchers because on 14 day cruises, the lounge will be very crowded and we don't find that relaxing.

If you could provide any more itinerary details here I can post some links to some websites that I found useful.

Would like to visit Dawson City, Whitehorse, Yukon Pass, etc. Also, want to see some glaciers.

A TA can do anything you can. We always transfer, you can always use $350 and it will be refunded to you if not spent. A no-brainer

We are on the Eclipse on 3/8. I know they used vouchers on the cruise before the current one and the lounge on the one prior to that.

Please help if you can.

After reading these boards I think most people take the drinks package as part of their deal but we are not really alcohol drinks so therefore are interested in the on board credit given. Is the $300 on offer for the cabin or per person? I ask because an email I have had today has states ( for the British ) this is about £187 which can be spent on board...per person. However the lady at Celebrity today whilst I was booking said it was per cabin. She has agreed to give me until tomorrow to decide which two of the 123go I wish to choose.

Has anyone chosen the gratuities? And if so how much did you get?

Thank you.

We chose gratuities since we don't drink much. Gratuities, if my memory is right, came to $312, vs $300 OBC. The OBC is per cabin.

My parents last night booked a 7 day balcony cruise on Carnival Breeze for mid March for $300.78 TOTAL. That is for both, all in, port fees and taxes inclusive. They aren't huge CCL fans but they will pay more for gas + parking for their cruise so it was a no brainier.

 

To say they make money w/ onboard spending is an understatement! Too bad they'll not make any off them ...

There has to be more to that story. Doesn't make sense!

The boxes are around rooms designed to be booked together. It isshown on the left side of the deck plans in the descriptions of room types.

Good post, we think Carnival is cutting on service in the MDR. However, you're right about the "fine dining comment", but do you really believe HAL is fine dining? Dining on all mass market cruises is following the same trend.