simon stingray

If you're worried about carrying too much cash you could always get travellers cheques in $ from your bank.

They cash them onboard at guest relations or in the casino with no fee.

If Celebrity remains on the same release schedule as in past years, it should be in March or April. Hope this helps !

Do you think that when the Europe 2015 itineraries are released we will have some confirmation from X regarding plans/future for Century?

No, way off final payment date! I'll try it.

 

Stuart

Please come back and let us know how you get on.

I had no problem with this back in 2011 and would be interested to know if there has been a policy change since then.

If they are not willing to do this then it will be another reason to book with a US based agent.

I would also agree that the menu is not the most exciting.

Whilst we enjoyed Murano on Silhouette, we found our experience in Ocean Liners on Constellation and SS United States on Infinity far better. The Quality of both the food and service was fantastic on the M class ships.

On our last 10 night cruise we dined in SS United States on 2 evenings and would have booked additional nights if the menu was improved/changed.

We tried Qsine once on Silhouette and really didn't enjoy the experience. We felt that it was just poor quality food presented in a fancy way.

This is great-thanks for posting.

Having cruise withdrawal symptoms right now and watching this is not helping:)

Love the sunset bar with comfortable lounge furniture. It's the first place we head when boarding. Also a nice place for sail away.

Love the Molecular bar. I wish M class ships also had this.

There isn't much not to like on S class ships:)

You can upgrade when you get to the ship.

We did this at the desk where they were selling the drink packages in the port (after check in but before you actually board the ship). They just fill out a slip for the additional charge which is added to your onboard account and they place a premium sticker on your card.

I believe you can also do this at any bar onboard the ship.

We booked our Eclipse TA way back last August and our UK TA was offering the drinks package back then too.

 

Two very happy bunnies! :)

Have you confirmed with Celebrity that you have the drinks package?

It should show on your booking when you log in on the Celebrity website.

We were also looking at those offers last August and decided to wait a couple of weeks so we could book onboard Infinity and get the benefits of booking onboard.

The onboard sales guys did not seem to be aware of the classic beverage package offer on Transatlantic sailings at that time but told us that if it was being advertised then there would not be a problem, we should just call the UK office to have it added once we get home.

However when we called Celebrity UK they would not honour the promotion. Although their own promotional flyer listed the dates of the transatlantic cruises as qualifying sailings (and numerous cruise agents were advertising this) they were adamant that this was an error and pointed out that the small print in the T&C specifically excludes transatlantic cruises.

We escalated our complaint and even pointed out that this was advertised on their own website (celebrity.co.uk) but they would not budge and stated that they would not be honouring the drinks package. They then cancelled our booking and refunded our deposit.

The website was corrected shortly afterwards.

I pointed out to them at the time that there must be a lot of people who have already booked based on the advertised promotion who will be expecting the classic package and will not be aware that there is a problem.

I don't want to worry you but I would strongly advise you to confirm with Celebrity (not just your travel agent) that the promotion has been added to your reservation.

Thanks cubella59-thats a great help!

Could you not use the gift card to purchase some OBC for yourself prior to your cruise?

There is no guest bathroom in the royal suite on m-class.

The bathroom is one very nice sized one with double sinks, a jetted tub, and a separate shower stall.

Apologies if I got that wrong.

I wonder which suite I've seen which does have the guest bathroom.

Penthouse suite or am I thinking of something on one of the Solstice class ships?

Do you still get a glass of champagne when boarding?

Thanks to the Premium beverage package I always have 2:D

There are no Concierge Suites-they are balcony rooms which on Millennium class are very slightly larger than a standard balcony room.

They come with a few little perks such as a bottle of sparkling wine in your stateroom on embarkation day and extra cruise credits.

A royal suite is the second largest suite onboard with separate bedroom, guest bathroom and hot tub on the veranda.

A royal suite also comes with a butler.

I've just been reading a review of a Millennium Asia cruise where it was reported that their FV stateroom was "Infested" with bedbugs.

http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=247692

It seems the crew did their best to resolve the problem to the guests satisfaction (taking away all of thier clothing to be laundered and moving the family to 2 adjacent veranda staterooms).

I wondering how common this is and how the crew ensure the problem is delt with properly to ensure there are no reinfestations. Do the crew have the equipment onboard to fumigate the stateroom and are all the soft furnishings ripped out and replaced (mattress/carpets/curtains/sofa).

We are planning a cruise on Millennium which I why this review caught my attention.

Anyone else experienced this?

Latest check in at Changi is 90 mnutes for International flights. 30 - 45 minutes by taxi cruise terminal to changi Airport would be more realistic under normal traffic conditions, Taxis are cheap in Singapore and excellent . So suggest be off boat at latest 2 1/2 - 3 hours before your flight departs.

 

You will all go through Immigration when boat arrives in Singapore. So when you go to Airport the only Immigration will be the outgoing desk, then security screening etc .

We were wondering the same so I'm pleased to find this post.

So for a 7.00AM flight we would need to be leaving the ship at 4.00-4.30AM.

Would there be any problems finding a taxi at the cruise terminal at that time of the morning?

Why do UK people think our US TA's have magical powers to give perks and bonuses?

I don't know about magical powers but we certainly do not get the perks and bonuses offered by US based agents.

Our last cruise on Infinity was booked through a US based agent and in addition to the 123 Go package (Classic beverage package AND free gratuities) the agent also gave us $325 onboard credit and a complimentary shore excursion.

At the time the 123 Go promotion was not available to passengers booking with Celebrity's UK website or through a UK based agent (US promotion only) and there was no OBC offered by any of the UK agents which I checked (free OBC is rarely offered here).

After our stateroom was assigned (we booked an Oceanview Guarantee) our US based agent called X and switched our stateroom for a better one in the same category. With a UK based agent this would not have been possible.

A couple of weeks later (after price drops) our US based agent got us upgraded to a Concierge Guarantee (from our Oceanview) for only $50 each. With a UK agent this would have been a major problem maybe even not possible. There is actually a current thread regarding this.

If we book through a UK based agent and wish to pay with a credit card we are charged an extra 3% for the trouble. Here the agent takes the money from our credit card and then (hopefully) transfers the funds to X.

And finally I have yet to find a UK based agent who really has knowledge of X and the different ships.

I think UK based agents could learn a lot from our friends across the pond:rolleyes:

We are about to book this for next Christmas/New Year (2014) on Millennium.

I've also been reading about staying overnight in Bangkok. Hotels are not at all expensive-5* hotels at £70/night. Definitely makes sense to stay overnight and experience the nightlife.

There is so much to read and take in as this will be our first ever experience of Asia.

I thought that they had appointed a new (lady) executive who was going to be responsible for fixing the website/IT issues.

I think there was a question & answer session on here where she introduced herself and outlined her plans to make it all better.

Anyone know what happened?

Is she still with X?

Southampton is much closer to Heathrow-aprox 65 miles.

Harwich to Heathrow is aprox 112 miles.

When I asked him to leave it outside in the mail slot he insisted it had to be put inside the cabin and proceeded to come in all the way to the vanity.

 

This is the real issue IMO.

The second he realised that the cabin was occupied and before he even got through the door he should have stepped back out into the corridor and quickly closed the door.

That would be the professional way to deal with the situation.

The fact that he continued into the cabin even after he was asked to leave is unacceptable and unprofessional and the appropriate steps should have been taken by his manager to ensure this does not happen again.

Is there a link with the details?

If the passenger was travelling alone, then it could well have been for her own safety as well as everyone else onboard.

My Mom suffers from this terrible condition and whilst she is fine when accompanied and supervised by my father or other family members, there is no way she would be able to travel anywhere alone.

One of the many effects of this condition is the inability to recognise danger and could result in putting the sufferer or others at risk.

On our past cruises I cannot recall ever seeing young children in any of the bars in the evenings. I guess most parents ensure that they are in their stateroom after dinner.

Older kids (teens) always seem to congregate in large groups in either the Ocean View Cafe (near the pizza counter) or on the pool deck (near the smoking area).

I get why they congregate near the pizza but don't understand why they always seem to be near the smoking area:confused::rolleyes::D

In our experience even the large groups of teens are never any trouble hanging out with their friends.

That sign on their web site that says hurry offer ends 30th November must be a mirage.............

How funny, I'm not seeing it. Tried specials and it wasn't there either.

Maybe it has only been extended for UK/European passengers.

You may thing you are getting a great deal, however if you look further it's not so great.

I was interested in booking the April 6th 2014 Transatlantic sailing on Nieuw Amsterdam.

The price quoted for a VF Cat Veranda stateroom to US/Canadian guests is $1195.29 including taxes.

The price for the same cat stateroom on the same sailing for UK guests is £1198.48 ($1930.00 approx.)

At the time both these deals included the explore 4 promotion.

So you are not really getting the drinks package for free as they would have you believe.

As Holland America will not allow me to book through my US travel agent and are expecting me to pay more that the majority of other guests I am no longer considering booking with them.

I posted a similar thread on the HAL board a few weeks ago asking why HAL did not want my business but I was flamed by a HAL cheerleader who thought I was whining:rolleyes:

Equinox is going into to dry dock for maintenance immediately after this transatlantic sailing. Someone posted on another thread that this could cause a small amount of disruption during this sailing as they may close off some public areas whilst they start preparation work.

Perry grant will be onboard the Eclipse which may be a positive or a negative depending on your personal opinion.

Although I enjoy Perry, I would choose Equinox for the itinerary.

If this is the case, it may be worth asking the agent with whom you have previously booked, is he able to book for you as an existing client. I believe this is the case now for Princess.

Thanks for this-definitely worth a try.

Hi,

 

Why don't you try a UK based agent then? We used to do US but with the exchange rate UK works out better now.

 

We use a UK discount cruise store called love it book it dot com. They work out best and call them maybe?

 

Good Luck!

We have used UK agents in the past but really don't feel that we get a good deal or service.

Onboard credit or other incentives are almost unheard of when booking in the UK.

One of the big UK agents charge a "booking fee"of £39.00 for the privilege of booking with them.

US agents take your credit card details and pass this on to Celebrity who debit your payments directly. UK agents debit your credit card themselves and then transfer the funds to Celebrity. The problem that I have with this is some of them will not accept Amex which I always use and others want to charge an additional 3.5% fee for accepting payment by credit card.

The UK agents which I have delt with seem to have little knowledge of Celebrity's ships and policies. One agent knew nothing of Celebrity's price drop policy (before final payment) informing me that once I had booked they would not adjust the price and another agent continually insisted that Constellation had A Molecular bar AND that Both passengers in the stateroom would have to book the Premium alcohol package as this was Celebrity's policy:rolleyes:

Being forced to use UK agents will not stop us cruising but I find it frustrating when the so called travel professionals really do not seem to know the product which they are trying to sell.