Go-Bucks!

That is absolutely crazy! In that case, I'd much rather have a balcony than a suite!!!!

 

 

Well, that's your choice. Some people can't afford a balcony suite but can still have the suite perks for what they can afford. And in cool weather when a balcony isn't utilized as much, it's a wonderful room.

 

Except for the time we had the Window Suite, we always book minisuites which offer much more room and a big tub compared to a balcony room.

We did that tour. The tram is round trip, about 1/2 hour, then a tour of the grounds, lunch afterwards in same location. Bu takes you to Tarcoles river and you are on a small boat, narrated. See all kinds of birds and very up close to hundreds of Crocs. Then bus ride back to ship. A really nice day.

 

 

 

We also did this and it was fantastic! There are tons of crocs and really close up. Tram ride was nice, meal was great, boat ride into the mangrove forest was amazing. Don't forget the camera. :)

We took a cool weather cruise and booked a Window Suite - really loved it! Great layout, 2 huge windows, fabulous bathroom, tons of storage and those sweet suite perks! These are considered full suites, but because they don't have a balcony they are much, much cheaper than the other suites. We paid $200pp less than a minisuite. It was a great deal and we booked one again for next October. Only 3 or 4 ships have these cabins though.

Not really a big laundry person while on vacation rather be at the pool or any where for that matter then wasting time at the laundry.

 

Well, who wouldn't rather relax rather than do work?! But wearing fresh, clean, nice smelling clothing is a priority for most people and laundry is a fact of life, even on vacation.

 

I plan & pack so I don't need do laundry on a 7 day cruise.

 

So do I - when I just do a 7 day trip! But many of us travel for alot longer, like 2-3 weeks or more. Packing enough clothing so you don't have to do laundry on a long vacation is expensive, cumbersome, and just plain ridiculous.

 

I pack for 7 days no matter how long my vacation, then wash clothes each week. Last July I was gone for 3 weeks; had 7 days worth of clothes and did laundry twice. Much smarter and easier than packing for 21 days!! Yikes! :eek:

I have built my status already with a cruise line who really knows how to treat his most loyal customers...

 

 

To each his own. I love Princess loyalty perks!

The days they served the huge shrimp cocktails and the made to order guacamole were divine.

 

 

We love these too. We probably attend this event about 1/2 the time, especially for sailaway from ports. It's fun to experience the view from Skywalkers during sailaway while eating some yummy appetizers. We enjoy this relaxing time of day, then go to dinner.

A month ago I had no trouble booking an excursion, but today both my friend and I couldn't get the website to let us book another one. I called Celebrity and a human got it booked for us. Guess their website needs alot of work! :rolleyes:

After we disembark in POM, we'd like to catch a taxi to South Beach to spend part of the day then get a shuttle up to FLL. Our flight leaves at 6:30pm.

 

I booked MJS transportation to take us from our Ft. Laud hotel to POM to start the cruise and they're charging just $13pp one way. But they wanted $60pp (:eek:) for taking us back from South Beach to FLL! So, needless to say, I'm trying to find another company for the return trip.

 

Any good suggestions? I did check SAS, but they won't pick up at Miami hotels.

Really glad to hear the good reports!! I just booked them to take us from the Renaissance Hotel in Ft. Laud to POM, then from the South Beach area to FLL. Price sure is right so hope the service will be too. Thanks for all the recommendations. :)

Looks like the Peregrine Falcon that was perched on a tree limb outside of my office window a couple years ago. He/she was eating a squirrel (yuck - but I guess everyone needs breakfast). They have a nest on top of a downtown building but it was quite a shock to see it right by my desk when I arrived at work. I took lots of pics because it was so beautiful.

[quote name='cruisetrail']The Reflection itself is a huge cutback by design in comparison with the original Solstice class ships: more passengers, less public space, more commercialization, Solstice class "key features" went overboard.[/quote]


So, which S-class ship do you think is the best?

Also, someone asked, [COLOR=red]"And I am assuming you stay away from the yummy poached fruits in AQ Cafe, since those are self-serve?"[/COLOR]. Earlier in this thread someone said the AQ Cafe doesn't serve the poached fruits anymore. Is that true?

[quote name='~Cruisenut~']There are also many of us who love the Celebrity product and return because there is always something to love.[/quote]


I always try to take negative comments with a grain of salt, but there were 4 pages of them and from long-time Celebrity cruisers who seemed to agree on most of the issues. Makes a person stop and think.

Wow . . . . . this thread is making me wonder if we should have chosen another cruiseline to try. My friend and I [I]love[/I] Princess and will be Elite in October. But we decided to take a short Caribbean cruise this March and wanted to try a new cruiseline. We thought about HAL and RCCL, but ended up picking Celebrity Reflection. Reading about so many "cutbacks", especially in food, makes me nervous about what type of experience we'll have.

Princess has always made us very happy so hearing all about the bad food and service on Celebrity may make this next cruise a once-in-a-lifetime happening. :(

Nope, haven't ever done that. I put them all in my nightstand drawer and take them home for the grandchildren. They love their treat when Grandma gets back from vacation. :)

Perks, discounts, upgrades, and no loss of deposit. You must be in the USA:D

 

Yep, sure am.

Don't use TA's. I have the time to research and take care of details myself, so I stopped using TA's several years ago.

 

I do all my own research too but let them book it and I get all the perks and discounts!

Not sure if you have a TA, but this is a case where a good one comes in very handy! :D

do you sleep all night now without waking up?

 

 

Yes!! :D

I always take my own extension cord - not going to trust that the ship will have one.

 

As far as water, on my last cruise I just asked my steward for the distilled water and he brought a gallon right away. When I'm traveling by land I use bottled water. My medical equipment company said it's better to use bottled water than tap water, but even the bottled water shouldn't be used for very long.

 

USC Traveler: Hang in there! I had a very hard time getting used to it too. Sometimes I just had to take it off - felt very claustrophobic. But I was determined to use it every night for at least 30 days and after a few weeks it got easier. I've had it now for almost 2 years and it doesn't bother me at all. Just takes some getting used to. I feel so much better now and I'm sure you will too.

Sounds like you want some variety. Have you looked into doing a Bernards tour? just do a google search and it will come up. We have used him twice and have had great days and they dropped us off in Phillipsburg at the end of the tour so we could shop. Went to Orient Beach, both sides of the island, Marigot for shopping and lunch, saw the planes at Maho Beach, just an all around good time!

 

 

I did check Bernards tours, but we don't want to drive around the island. Just want to relax on the beach, see the big planes come in and shop a bit in Philipsburg. He didn't offer that itinerary, plus just hopping in a taxi to and from the beaches will surely be cheaper and easier than a tour. We usually just use taxis on the islands, as well as many other places, and DIY.

Lots of official taxis at the port. We took one ($20 for 2) over to West Bay Beach. Rented 2 cheap chairs and had a wonderful beach day. The taxi driver even waited for us (all day!) to take back to ship. There were places to eat, so maybe they rent snorkle gear. Or you can take your own. I wouldn't do an "excursion" unless I was touring, but that's just me. Easy to get taxis to beaches in Caribbean.

Totally agree! West Bay Beach is one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever visited. We were there, though, in 2003 before the island started getting commercialized. I'm going there again in 2015 and sure hope West Bay Beach will be as lovely as it used to be. The water was warm and clear green/blue and sand was silky and white. Hardly anyone was on the beach and we got 2 chairs for $5. Our taxi driver waited for us so he could get the round trip fare, even though we stayed most of the day.

 

Before heading to the beach, we walked into Coxen Hole and the people were so friendly. Went to an Internet cafe and shopped around. My daughter and I felt very safe, but not sure how it is now.

 

Also meant to add:

 

Carnival Corp ships (Carnival, Princess, HAL, Costa, etc) dock at the new pier (Mahogany Bay Cruise Center) which has a beach, shopping, and a chairlift between the pier and beach (for $12 all day pass, but also there's a flat walkway which is just as easy and free); all other cruiselines dock at the old pier nearer the town of Coxen Hole.

Coxen Hole, no real nice beaches nearby. Bite the bullet and hire a taxi or a private driver (Bodden or others) and head to West Bay Beach.

 

 

Totally agree! West Bay Beach is one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever visited. We were there, though, in 2003 before the island started getting commercialized. I'm going there again in 2015 and sure hope West Bay Beach will be as lovely as it used to be. The water was warm and clear green/blue and sand was silky and white. Hardly anyone was on the beach and we got 2 chairs for $5. Our taxi driver waited for us so he could get the round trip fare, even though we stayed most of the day.

 

Before heading to the beach, we walked into Coxen Hole and the people were so friendly. Went to an Internet cafe and shopped around. My daughter and I felt very safe, but not sure how it is now.

Grand Turk.....(Beach) is directly at the end of the pier so easy access and it has chairs,soft sand, and some shade. Water is rocky in areas. The entrance to the island has duty free shopping. There are also some other shops. As mentioned earlier, Margaritaville is very popular...huge free form pool, music, lots of fun.

 

 

I agree. I loved Grand Turk because I just wanted a relaxing beach day. Margaritaville, and it's pool, were very nice and right by the beach. All of this is right at the end of the pier, across from your ship! We walked back onboard for lunch and then out again to the beach. There were many chairs and not hard to get one. Lots of palm trees for shade too. So much easier than islands where you have to get a taxi and worry about getting back to the ship on time. Maybe the scenery (the ship) isn't the greatest, but we still really enjoyed our restful day.

I found Laura's post a good refresher. Especially about those who post "do a search." Sometimes it's very hard to find an answer to a question (and very time consuming) by using the search feature so I understand why people ask - even if it's been dealt with many times. We just need to give them the answer and not make them feel badly for asking, as Laura said.

 

In regards to the name "Cruise Critic", I think a different name would have been better and caused less confusion about the mission/purpose of this website. Something more positive would have been nice, but that's a moot point now. :)