Joker54

We moved up to a PH from a SS over a year ago and the perks/amenities were the same as if we had booked the PH originally. The only thing we didn’t get was the points for a PH. I can’t find the note now, but I recently received something indicating that “amenities may or may not be offered on move up”. I would call and ask but lately information given on the phone hasn’t been accurate. Anyway just brainstorming a little here. We are taking the money we would have used for a move up to try a Seabourne cruise. Thanks to all for providing the their thoughts. Cheers

Just received a moveup offer for a 13 night cruise from Singapore to Australia. With all the recent changes going on at X I decided to dive into the terms and conditions and there is one sentence indicates to me that you would get nothing extra other than the room in a move up. Here is a direct quote "Any promotions associated with the original booking will remain in effect. The Upgrade will not be eligible to receive any promotions or benefits that are applicable to the stateroom had it been originally booked at that stateroom category." Seems to me that if you don't receive any benefits related to the new room that you would not get unlimited free dining in pay restaurants etc..... The move up bid from a Sunset SS to the PH is reasonable, but we are not going to bid. Curious how others read this Cheers

Watches are like rooms on cruise ships. For some an inside room is perfect, for others the PH or IC is a must have. Same for watches, some like Rolex others like Invicta. I see some calling out Invicta as cheap….. not every one has 60k for an Iconic or 20k for a Rolex. The OP should get the watch that makes the OP happy. The only way to know if your getting a deal is to price what you like on board then go to Amazon or other online sites a get a price comparison at that moment in time. A few minutes online and you will know if it’s a deal or not. Cheers

Not defending the OP but your comparison isn’t remotely applicable. Definitely no where near apples to apples. Changes related to the safety and well being of the pax, crew and ship are not close to making changes to perks

I’m not sure this is 100% accurate. Posts I have read where those who didn’t use their butlers are typically the ones saying the change is not a big deal. Some have had great experiences. We do use our butler (not abuse) and our recent b2b in a SS failed to even remotely provide the service as advertised when booked and paid for in full. X also failed to come close to providing the service described by the executive office when we called pre-cruise inquiring about both the change and lack of notice. X did provide the DW and myself with a 1k FCC each. The FCC made the crew happier than it did for us. Compensation is great for some, it fails to address the real issue and we would prefer X improved communication to set proper expectations. The OP has a better chance of winning powerball tonight than even getting on a docket before any litigation is dismissed with prejudice. X getting the case dismissed doesn’t mean they are truly right, just means they have a great legal team good at fine print and the cruising industry has case history on their side. Legally right and being good to your customer is not the same. The offer of FCC was a good attempt, it would be better if X had sent a notices in advance describing the change and not gaslight us with the service we supposedly will receive. X has the infrastructure to send out notices so no excuse to keep it a secret. We are usually in higher end suites but do cruise in SS here and there, at least we used too. Cheers

Besides generating more revenue for X by changing the drink/price/package structure they may also be reducing their employee costs with the additional 20%.

We were in the PH last year on the Equinox. We didn’t realize that the maitre‘ d was saving a window table for us. We dine in both pay venues and Luminae. We also had the same wait staff every time we dined in Luminae. We never asked for a window table nor to have one reserved for us, it just happened. Once we figured out that they were saving a table for us we had our butler keep them informed as to our dining plans for each day. We didn’t want that table reserved if we were not dining there. Besides having our photos so they can address us by name, they also have access to our points level, status and I’m pretty sure annual spend. Yes some people in upper suites make a lot of demands, at the same time there are others like us that don’t ask for or demand a reserved table. Disclaimer: we do expect all of the perks advertised for that suite, reserved tables are not an advertised perk for any suite. cheers

Celebrity these days is simply RCL with different lipstick:)

Merry Christmas Jim and Lain. We really enjoyed the “ virtual cruise” thanks to your many wonderful photos and keeping the blog going, it was as close to being there as one can get. You took a lot of your vacation time sharing with us and as others have said- it is greatly appreciated. Cheers on a separate note the DW and I both prefer Michaels club and look forward to being on Solstice March and April.

Troll often?

Well thinking we will look at Silver Sea that looks amazing

Sixpackeddie the EV is an amazing suite, which ship were you on? We had an EV on the Apex last April on a TA and the service was as expected. since you posted a pick of the cheese and cracker plate the DW and I felt the need to share a pic of the cheese and cracker plate we got while in an SS on the Equinox this past October. Huge difference and somehow LBH thinks the Retreat Team concept is working well……. At least that is what she told me via email not long ago.

We were on b2b in SS on the Equinox last Oct. Never met or heard from the head butler. They had his picture in the Retreat lounge…. I did ask if he was real or if it was just some photo to make us think there was a head butler…..they just ignored that comment.

If you can get to Rotorua you could try Zorbing, I did it about 12 years ago and it was wild. https://zorb.com/

Extremely outrageous. $60.00 for a bottle of Grant Burge Shiraz when you can get a case of 6 from the winery for $119. The DW says she will enjoy more beer when we are there next year. Thinking I will just enjoy more scotch I expect they will find a reason to increase prices by the time we get there in April

Thanks, let’s hope they continue to be grand experiences

Glad your cruise went well and your expectations were met. just curious if this was your first time in a SS Cheerx

We normally have 12 cruises booked, we are down to 5 at the moment and all of those booked over a year ago. We booked most of them before prices went crazy and a bean counter became CEO. We also always book future cruises when on a cruise. We haven't visited the future cruise desk since these changes have come to be. We also down graded a SS to a Sunset Veranda room on our Transatlantic on the Ascent next Oct saving around 10K. We were happy to the lose the $200 OBC to save 10K on that cruise. The last suite manager that I spoke with about the topic indicated that it will be a few more years before anything goes back to the way it was. I agree, it will take more than a few quarters of reduced revenue before changes happen. Cheers

Curious what transportation you are referring too? We love EV's and the IC, but have no plans to book either or any other suite on X until prices come down. My expectations for our Jan/Feb cruise in an IC are pretty low given that S class ships now only have 2 dedicated butlers for all PH, RS and CS suites. If the butler RIF on Edge class ships is similar then I don't see the ability to provide the service that they have in the past. Time will tell and we will post our experiences. Hoping I am wrong We prefer the S and M class ships. Don't care much for the layout on E ships, the IC and EV are about the only things we enjoy on E ships. For the money X spent on furniture for the Retreat Lounge on E class ships I would have expected all 4 legs on the couches to be the same length 🙂 (joke for those who may not get it)........Seriously though the recline on the couches is not comfortable at all. Cheers

I found this picture of 12100 on the Edge here on CC. It's clearly the starboard side of the ship which would be 12101 and there is a hot tub in this pic. I hope its an accurate photo as I'm sure you would enjoy the suite a lot more if it is there Hopefully someone will chime in that has actually been in that suite Cheers

Greetings, I wish there was. The passageway ends at 12101. To get to Luminae you have to walk aft quite a ways. The entrance to the Retreat is adjacent to Luminae. Lots of folks assumed that the passageway continued around and were surprised to find the "dead end". There may have been a service door for crew, not 100% sure. 12100 should have a 4 person hot tub. Both of the iconic's are identical other than one being a mirror image of the other. Cheers

The DW and I will already be on the Solstice as we board in Singapore and will be on board all the way to Vancouver. Should be plenty of time to get to meet you and Iain. Cheers

We downgraded our transatlantic on the Ascent next year from a SS to a Concierge room. Will miss the extra space. With the current price points and reduction in service, we no longer see the value in booking into the retreat Cheers

I know I am chiming in a little late here. Ships speed whether max designed or current speed, is speed through the water. Not speed over ground. So depending on the water currents, the ship could actually be traveling a bit faster or slower "over the ground speed" than the displayed or planned speed through the water. Cheers

Jim your reviews are amazing!! We are flying from LA X to Singapore non-stop on Singapore Airlines in March. We are curious how those new fold down seats are. And like everyone else here, we are so happy that you and Iain found each other. Cheers