CalTexCruiser

Thanks for the video showing the collision!! Reminds me of when I was learning how to dock a power boat in the SF Bay and the winds (20+ mph) would blow the boat right up against the dock even when I tried to apply power to move away from the dock. Although one would hope an experienced pilot/captain would do better than a novice.

@CelebrityBrownWater may start a trend...may not be long before we see the following screen names: NoLobsterInMDR HorribleBuffetFood PoorExperienceInLuminae G*d*mnChairHogs SlowWifiSpeeds

If that is the case then Celebrity has done a great disservice to pigs feet. Why try to transform it into some blob in an attempt to hide the origin of the food item? Just serve it in its original form (cooked of course). Same thing with chicken feet, an ox's tail, pig's ear, beef tongue, and other variations of food from an animal's extremities.

Anyone have a picture of the Pigs Feet Carpaccio. Pigs feet if cooked right can be quite tasty—the thick skin and tendons if tenderized are quite succulent

Thank you! This was very helpful to us...will be boarding in 4 days.

SF's unhoused population will take issue with your insensitive remarks. Where else can they go to the bathroom?

This is what our shoreside concierge told us for our Sydney departure: "Please note, boarding will begin at 1:15 pm and ends promptly at 5:15 pm. Please arrive early to avoid delays." "... as a suite guest you can arrive anytime during the boarding process."

BCC's advertised system of assigning points to theoretical loss seems to be different, but at the end of the day, it's just a variation of what a land-based casino does. Land-based casino also assign comps based on theoretical loss, except that they usually have a system of giving back to the player Y% of the theoretical loss as comps, where Y differs by casino (some are more generous than others). As to using microchips in casino chips, I have not heard that BCC does that. I often see a pit boss with a clip board, and as they walk around the pit observing the games, they would make notes on it. I have always assumed that's how they track play.

It's 8 points for every dollar of theoretical loss, which varies by the table game you play. For example, if blackjack has a 2% theoretical loss, than if you play $1,000, you have a $20 theoretical loss, and the 8 points is based on that $20, not $1,000.

Our shoreside concierge informed us that boarding begins at 1:15pm for the 6:45pm departure in Sydney.

My daughter played 10 minutes on a slot machine in 2019, and in the second half of 2022 was getting nonstop BCC comp offers. However, that was a waste of time for them since even comped rooms are not enough to lure her back to cruising. Her offers have since stopped (at least so far in 2023) so it appears that the geniuses at BCC may have come up with a more refined strategy.

Got the same offer. I did a trial booking and was charged $ 1 pp for the entire 7-day sailing (plus port fees and taxes). FINALLY Celebrity has enabled the booking of comp sailings directly online as opposed to having to contact the BCC over the phone or filling out a form and waiting for a call. Hope this is a sign of things to come from BCC. Definitely one change that I like.

I'm posting this to warn others with waitlisted airline upgrades that Flights by Celebrity may cancel your waitlist if they have to touch the reservation for any reason. Using FBC, we booked travel on United Airlines in Premium Economy between the US and Sydney. We used airline miles (directly through United's website) to request an upgrade to Business Class, which was waitlisted. Recently, there was a schedule change of the flight that moved it about 40 minutes earlier. No problem. However, when FBC touched this reservation as a result of the schedule change to email us about the change, they inexplicably cancelled the waitlist. Fortunately, I just happened to look at my reservation on United and saw that the waitlist disappeared...we did not receive any notification from FBC. I called United, which told me that FBC cancelled the waitlist, and I had to contact FBC to reinstate the waitlist. I called FBC, and the rep said he will escalate to the ticketing department. Fortunately, the waitlist was reinstated a few hours later, but we likely lost priority relative to others on the waitlist.

Thanks for heads up If I ever have Stewart as my steward I will ask Stewart to change out my minibar, and if done well I will give my steward Stewart a 10* rating

you can google the Celebrity tour descriptions and often similar or the same tours offered by third parties (e.g., Viator) will pop up and you can read more detailed descriptions and more importantly customer reviews. That's helped me pass on many Celebrity tours, which are more expensive anyway. One tour that appears to be Celebrity exclusive is the Taieri Gorge Train in Dunedin which we booked when Celebrity offered it at 35% off on their recent sale.

We also took advantage of a BCC comp for an April sailing...wouldn't have gone otherwise as the Mexican Riviera is generally meh, but LA is close and it was "free". I will note that a Princess sailing on the Discovery on the same itinerary that we took last October was packed full. Apparently Princess has more loyal customers on the West coast than Celebrity.

@RedkingThere has been quite an uproar on CC recently regarding drastic cutbacks on the Oceanview Cafe buffet, including a report that the buffet on the Apex had shut down 75% of its stations for DINNER (no cutbacks for breakfast or lunch). Have you seen such buffet cutbacks for dinner on your cruise? We are curious as we will be sailing the Eclipse AU/NZ on Feb 16.

If one is used to the Celebrity Suite experience, then the Princess Suite experience will likely be disappointing. Following compares Celebrity's Sky Suite to the lowest suite on Princess: 1) Physical space: Princess wins here because their lowest level suite will be larger than SS (separate living room and bedroom, although the separation is a curtain). 2) Luminae wins hands down, in terms of ambiance, service level, and food. The Club Class restaurant is an extension of the MDR--food is meh in our experience, typical main dining room fare. Service in Club Class is better than MDR, but not to Luminae's level. But Princess' breakfast in Sabatini's for suite passengers is a good benefit. 3) Retreat lounge/sundeck on Edge class is the big winner here. No dedicated sundeck on Princess, and the lounge for suites on the Royal class ships is small and a bit claustrophobic (no window to the sea). 4) Celebrity's butlers if used are wonderful. No butlers on Princess. There is a concierge in the lounge, but the service is nothing like the over-the-top pampering that some butlers can provide. 5) Amenities offered by Princess not available with SS: Princess suites have first night specialty dining, one-time bar setup with mini liquor bottles and beers, unlimited laundry

Yes you are correct. That is why I wear mine when traveling. Now it would appear I'm allowed to also wear it to dinner.

Then that is a truly good deal. My deals are room only.

Definitely true. In fact, we are trying this out on our April Solstice cruise to the Mexican Riviera, where we only pay for: 1. port fees/taxes, 2. grats, 3. 1 streaming Wifi package. We'll be relying on our Elite status to grab as many drinks as we can during HH. This Solstice cruise will follow our Feb Eclipse AU/NZ cruise when we'll be in a Royal Suite, so we'll have a chance to contrast and compare ... LOL

So these free rooms are not so free after all, it would appear.

I believe you would have been processed using code SOL should you have changed your mind

LOL, that's a change I actually like. Too often I tend not to order the pastries because of how large they are and how bloated I know I would feel if I ate the whole thing.

I received free offer for sailings in the Med earlier this year, including on Beyond if one has flexibility on dates and want to sail in Europe they can probably wait and see what shakes out