ISHMAEL

For what it's worth. we were on Celebrity Eclipse to Alaska in June and did not get hit for any extra gratuities. We often give our cabin steward extra if we are happy (almost) always) and the dining room staff were fantastic (special anniversary cake) so we gave them extra. Looking forward to this cruise and maybe meeting you there.

Thanks for the bus number correction. Warning about the $5 round trip card is it has to be used for the two legs of the trip, or maybe at least on the same day.. A few years ago we had a friend with us who had two cards and used one to go to Arashi and the other to come back. The next day he found he now had two useless cards.

We go to Aruba quite often, so I thought I would toss in a few ideas. If you want to snorkel, go to Boca Catalina up at the north end of the island. That is where most of the snorkel trips take you, but you can access the good spots from shore, There are three beaches in that area and there is a large area of sea grass which the turtles love. We were there in March and saw lots of turtles. There are not many Palapas and no guys renting umbrellas there. There are also no washrooms (On Shore) and no bars. Arashi beach up farther is a nice beach with umbrellas and chairs to rent and it now has a bar and washroom. Closer to your port, Eagle Beach is constantly ranked as one of the beat in the world. There are several resorts there and they are very protective of their chairs, but the beach is public. They have a bar there, and there are washrooms at La Cabana. To access these beaches you can get a bus at the central bus station across the road from the cruise port. A number 1 bus heads to the High Rise hotels (bus stop at the Amsterdam Manor for Eagle Beach, Holiday Inn area for Palm Beach) and some of them go up to Arashi. Just check with the driver. The bus up to Arashi runs every half hour. The bus fare is $3 US each way. The beaches are more crowded than when we first started going to Arubi 13 years ago, but then what vacation spot isn't?

Just putting in my two cents worth. As a retired teacher (30+ years) I taught lots of kids whose parents took them out of school. I also taught even more kids who were never taken out of school for any reason and many of those kids did less of their assignments than kids who were pulled out for a vacation. I always figured that if, by the end of the year, the student has learned enough to be promoted, that is all that mattered. As far as no kids in the Solarium goes, there is another pool. Are the people who take kids to the Solarium trying to get a less crowded spot for themselves and their kids? What percent of the passengers are kids? If it is an adults only area, and people have bought their cruise tickets based on that, perhaps a few lawsuits for false advertising would change things, Common sense and courtesy helps. Obeying the spirit of the law is also a good idea,