drakes2

31 minutes ago, 1Virgo said:

Have found left hand doesnt know what right hand is doing type of thing

I recently booked the wine tour for the Ascent. When I inquired once onboard I was told it was never offered on E class ships and they would switch me to the food and wine pairing at no extra cost. Questioned it the next day and another guest relations person said it was cancelled due to lack of interest. Finally saw it in the planner and there were over 200 guests in attendance.  😆  yep. They sure don't know what they're doing. 

10 hours ago, cruisetonowhere10 said:

I had Fine Cut on Edge booked with some OBC and canceled it and am thinking I’ll do sea day lunch at Raw on 5 instead should the opportunity present itself. I just wasn’t getting the vibe it was a guaranteed win and since I’ve already paid for food in the MDRs I’m sticking with that.

I had sushi for lunch at raw on 5 when I was on the beyond in March. Not impressed so skipped it on my Ascent cruise a couple weeks ago. I get better tasting sushi from my local grocery store with better presentation. Also, service was slow. 

3 hours ago, asctony said:

So, with all these opinions and experiences, who do you agree with? 

What will you do? 

I personally believe Celebrity is totally overpriced for their SRs.

Service & food is good. Not 4 star like it used to be. JMHO!

HAPPY CRUISING!

I happened to be walking past the Mast Grill last week on the Ascent 13 night TA. They were preparing all the veggies for the Magic Carpet dinner which I heard was overpriced at $129 per person. Seems you're paying more for the experience than the food. I could have done a better job at home of those grilled veggies which would be cold upon serving. 

4 hours ago, redjetz said:

Fine Cut just didn’t cut it with us on our recent Ascent cruise, so we will skip it going forward. The beef simply wasn’t good enough to warrant the cost. ditto the steak I ordered in Eden.

 

In fact, the beef in Lumiere was not good either. Celebrity must have a new beef supplier or new cooking methods or something. The food in general was good, just not the beef.

The prime rib in the MDR wasn't good either. I sent it back and ordered pasta. 

14 hours ago, dazey said:

I did the Wine Tour once(paid for) but because it had so many choices and not a lot of information I would not do it again.

I would not do the wine tour again but for different reasons. It was offered on my very recent Ascent cruise in Eden right out in the open with others not on the tour sitting at the bar. Appeared to be a couple hundred in attendance. Very poor quality wines I tried 5 out of the 12 they had. I spent the hour eating some snacks and chatting with another couple. Most people cleared out within 40 minutes. Another money grab for Celebrity. 

1 hour ago, mahasamatman said:

 

No cash back for foreign transactions.

You are correct just read disclosure statement and it says foreign  currency transactions not eligible for cash back. 

7 hours ago, Rabblefish said:

Do you have the Roger's World Elite Mastercard? They charge a 2.5% conversion fee, but the card offers 3% cashback on USD purchases, so you end up with a bit extra in your pocket after all is said and done. 

No I use TD Canada trust and now have the US visa card but in order to avoid monthly fees and waive annual fee you must keep 3K in a borderless account at all times.  It used to be 5K so obviously they've lowered it.  

6 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

Get a Home trust card for traveling, no 2.5% conversion fee and 1% cash back , no annual fee

https://www.hometrust.ca/credit-cards/compare-cards/

I also have the home trust visa which I am considering canceling now. Just returned from a TA on the Ascent on Saturday. Last week tried to put a rather large purchase on it and it wouldn't go through. Called several different numbers and finally reached a foreign country who said it would take 10 business days get an increase in line of credit approved so put balance on my TD first class visa. 

I'm wondering if I registered a US visa card from my Canadian bank for onboard purchases would it be converted to Canadian $ then back to USD. Not sure if the system would recognize it as a US card since its registered in Canada. Trying to avoid the foreign FX fee. Hoping someone who has been in this situation would know. 

On 12/6/2023 at 1:07 PM, Bejay219 said:

On the Ascent, not sure about the Martini Bar, but World Class prices have gone up. Several that were on the Premium Pkg. are now 2 to 5 dollars more. 

I just got off the Ascent on Saturday following a 13 night TA. Passed by the WCB many times; very few people sitting there.  I also took the World wine tasting held in Eden. Not at all impressed as it was very crowded and it was near the bar area. Terrible wines IMO and over 200 guests in attendance, figure they netted close to 10K on that. 

1 hour ago, PKCruiser66 said:

After this last webinar, I will need 4 more PUP to reach Zenith on 1/2/25. Hopefully between now and then there will be 4 points worth of surveys, webinars, etc. offered to post by 12/14/24.  🤞

You will get there. No problem

2 hours ago, Cathygh said:

OMG gratuity is added? Not sure I'll bother

Gratuities are added on the services at 20%. I once saw a man ask for a bottle of water at casino bar he didn't have a package. Waiter handed him the water charged his card plus 20%. Just for picking up bottle of water in front of his eyes.  Oh well, rules are rules. I remember one of the times I did get beverage package I was at casino bar and wanted a glass of villa maria SB. He said we normally don't stock that here and offered me one from classic package. Nope. Paid for premium.  Well he found a bottle for me. 

11 hours ago, zitsky said:

Can I go with you?

You sure can. 🍷

41 minutes ago, zitsky said:

Does that include all fees, taxes, gratuities etc?

That works out to just over $31 per person plus 20% gratuity. I haven't seen it at such a low price for many years. 

19 hours ago, zitsky said:

I see with gratuity it’s almost $50 pp.  Not sure if I’ll do it again.

If that's in USD not worth it. I bought mine on the leap day special at 29% off

On 3/17/2024 at 4:48 PM, Cathygh said:

I would like to do this but I can't see what day it is on. How do I find out please? I'm going to be in Millenium soon

It's always on a sea day in the afternoon most times around 2 pm

28 minutes ago, patty1955 said:

Same here. I get 2 or 3 ad emails a day but no PUP or Captains Club

I get them but the emails go to my promotions email they should go to primary. Unfortunately I only know about the PUP'S from these boards.  

19 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

I like flying out of Toronto , never have a problem , and only 1-1/2 hr drive to get there 

I have a flight to FLL with porter this Thursday morning from Pearson which is a 20 minute drive.  Paid $170 CAD one way. My AC return on April 1st was a bit more take the 11:20 am flight. Hopefully Porter is a good airline as never flown with them.  Hey, they serve free wine onboard. 😆 🍷

3 minutes ago, pedirn said:

We have decided to opt out of buying the drink package.  Our cruise is only a 5 day cruise.   Normally we book longer cruises but this time traveling with our family which consists of our 4 year old autistic grandson and his moms aren’t sure how he will do.  We have decided to pay as we go since we get complimentary drinks in the evening.   We will be taking diet coke with us for in cabin use.

I'm finding more people opting out of drinks packages. Maybe cruise lines will come up with another option or lower the prices of package. Its obviously a huge money maker especially on port intensive itineraries.  

1 hour ago, reterm said:

thnx so much! you've saved us a bundle! NCL won't let you bring on anything; and we spend upwards of $150/ week on coke!

I should have said 12 of each. 

1 minute ago, reterm said:

really ? you've done this? just double checking because NCL and other lines won't let you bring them...

Just got off a Princess cruise last month and my sister brought on a case of coke plus case ginger ale. In carry on. No issues 

8 minutes ago, Hawkstar33 said:

Bottled water was over $4 plus gratuity,

Is that regular water or sparkling water?

15 minutes ago, MAGSMFC said:

Does anyone know the cost of a bottle of Jack Daniels and a bottle of Baileys in the shops on Celebrity Ascent.  I can then decide whether to purchase them at the airport or wait until we board the ship.

 

Many thanks 

I wouldn't buy either at the airport much better prices onboard the ship or in ports of call. Even better pricing if you buy 2 usually additional 20% off. 

3 minutes ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

we are going to stop by Publix before the cruise and carry on a couple of 12-packs of sodas.

I think a small bottle water 2 or 3 bucks plus gratuities. I stock up on water during HH. 

7 minutes ago, Overlandandsea said:

It depends what you're used to .. many European cities are charging that kind of rate for cocktails.

Yeah you may be right. Last year I had a glass of Kim Crawford SB in a restaurant that was $17 but I still think $19 is too high.  Is that with gratuities?