Random Cruizer

Thanks for this review! I'm on board her in late June!

On 4/28/2024 at 12:22 PM, NMTraveller said:

Does Princess have you sign the numerous $2 upcharge slips for a glass of wine?

 

On Celebrity this was getting a bit tiresome ...

No lie, that! When I cruised in 2022, all the drinks I ordered were part of my package, then on my cruise in 2023, I was signing those darn slips left and right! Very annoying! I'm going on a Princess cruise this summer primarily to get Glacier Bay in Alaska, so I'll get my chance to actually compare.

The most important thing is that you can get the good berries (blueberries, raspberries, strawberries) at the MDR--it's all melons at the buffet.

Well, a meal with beloved family members might be. 🙂 

Yes, I ate there a few times with my aunt and uncle. They arranged it ahead of time and paid a fee.

16 minutes ago, Houli58 said:

If you purchase the classic drink package and order a drink $1. over the limit.  Do you just pay $1 & the drink is counted toward your 15 per day?

I don't know about 15 per day. You pay $1 plus a gratuity (20 cents?), $1.20 I believe.

That drove me crazy last summer on the Beyond--half of the drinks I wanted were $1 over the classic drink package limit and I was constantly signing for stuff. Not relaxing at all.

If they can fill all the cabins, I would guess that they couldn't care less even about bad publicity. All that matters is the bottom line--if they are filling the cabins, bad press is forgotten in time.

On 1/15/2024 at 1:01 PM, truckswain said:

 

 

We are on the Ascent in a couple of weeks and I am hoping the outside space in and around the sunset bar is a little quieter than what you described.  

 

 

The only quiet space I found on Beyond was outside of Eden where there are seats for the Eden cafe which isn't usually open anyway (off hours for eating, on other words). Off to the side on deck, nice chairs, and no music--opposite side from the smoking area on the other side of the ship.

On 1/15/2024 at 12:53 PM, kmhkmb said:

  We also couldn't find anywhere outside on the Ascent where they weren't blasting music - might be good for creating a party atmosphere but not really conducive to relaxing with a good book and listening to the ocean IMO.  

 

This is one of my real issues with Edge-class ships.

I'm still not clear on what you mean--do you both have a 1-device plan?  If so--the answer is yes.  Can two people share one plan? I'm not sure.

Ah--I didn't mean to confuse the issue:  we both had a 1-device package.

I thought it was like drink packages--both people in a cabin have to have the same package?

My sister just did this on Summit--back and forth between her phone and ipad, it was easy. I was just on my phone all the time.

Went to Mexico on Summit last weekend.

Pool Grill French Fries--perfect, best I've had in years, crunchy on outside, soft inside, actually tasted like potatoes.  My sister and I stood in line for them and ignored all the burgers etc. and just walked away with a plate of fries--totally worth it. Actually the MDR hash browns were excellent, too.  Celebrity seems to have a way with fried potatoes.

Rendezvous Bar--"one more...for the road" was an amazing cocktail, one of the best I've ever had, it actually seemed to have layers somehow--one taste going in that became something else by the time it slid down your throat and something else again when it lingered on your tongue. Wish I had discovered it before the last day. Great cocktails in that bar.

I priced the latest sale for March/April, solo travel prices were 3X the per person for a pair--I know I got the 75% off last year for a couple cruises as a solo traveler (paid 125% instead of 200%), but that's apparently in the past.

Just went through a few of the Caribbean cruises on sale right now in March and April, and a number of them in the $400 range ($800) for the room, gave me a price of $1200-$1300 for just me.

49 minutes ago, mahasamatman said:

The misconception comes from the "sales" which only apply to the second person in the cabin. They word the offer as 75% the second person and not 37.5% off cruise fares specifically to exclude singles from the "discount".

Last year, they did give singles that discount, though--I know, I got it for a cruise.

On 1/10/2024 at 9:44 AM, RHudson1825 said:

I get the hotel room price. In the US rooms are booked by the room, not the number of people. As a solo I am fine paying what the room cost would be for two. Not more as they want. I enjoy cruises with other solos on it to meet new people and have fun. I usually go in Jan/Feb and book my next year's on board. Will not do that this year. 

This is my point of view, as well, paying double isn't fun, but understandable.  I won't pay over that. On my first two cruises, I think I also got "75% off second guess" discount for the one cabin, which I understand they are also taking away.  Seems like it's going to be goodbye to Celebrity for me.

Thanks so much for all the info! I have a lot to learn about cruising, clearly. 🙂 

My first Celebrity cruise was on the Equinox in the summer of '22, then Apex, then the Beyond in the summer of '23, and I just finished a cruise to Mexico on the Summit last weekend.  The Equinox hadn't been fully revolutionized, so you could walk all the way around the top deck--I didn't really notice the Retreat cutting into my enjoyment.  On the Edge-class ships, I had family in Sky Suites while I was not.  The ships were beautiful, but it really bugged me to have the whole front of the ship closed off on the upper decks.  It bugged me on the Summit, too, and it's fully revolutionized, so the Retreat intruded on my fun more than it had on the Equinox.

The whole concept bugged me more than I thought it would.  Suites don't bother me and special restaurants for different classes don't bother me--let folks who can pay more buy bigger cabins and their own restaurants.  But it really bothered me that whole parts of the ship weren't open to all.

How widespread is this in the cruising industry?  I've only been on Celebrity so far, but I think I'll be looking elsewhere.  Even BEING in the Retreat wouldn't help--it would still bug me that others were being excluded.  Are other lines going in this direction, or just Celebrity so far?

I was in one on Apex that actually didn't have any obstructions at all that I could see, maybe something off to the side?

I LOVED this cabin--an actual balcony, hard to come by on e-class!  Go for it!

3 hours ago, C4HCG said:

Which cruise were you on when you saw teens running the halls? We have done 3 post covid, 28 nights in all, not seen this happen once.

Celebrity Beyond, Italy/Greek Islands/Turkey, last July. Little kids, too, leaving empty plates on stairs and dropping bowls down the stairwells.

6 hours ago, wahooker said:

A public apology, and a promise to ensure that the staff (Whether Celebrity or contractors employed by the port) is properly trained to avoid this in the future would be a great starting point.

I support you 100%! This shouldn't have happened!

Great reviews! Next July in Alaska will be my first Princess cruise, and this thread makes me feel like I have the right ship!

2 hours ago, lv2cruisgrl said:

We are walkers also and if the weather is crummy we walk inside decks 4 and 5.  I get to window shop along the way!  

I also enjoy starting at the top and walking down through each deck of cabins and seeing the art along the way--a nice indoor walk when needed.