Happy Cruiser 6143

It's certainly worth checking out. I agree, $1500 for both of you is cheap if it's round trip. I haven't flown coach to Europe for over 20 years, so I'm not a good one to opine on this. Can you do nonstop from Charlotte to Barcelona and from Venice to Charlotte? Nonstop is always better if you can get it as it gives the airlines fewer chances to lose your luggage.

I would say that the Borghese Gallery is a must when in Rome.

Definitely 3112. 9001 is way too far forward. You'll get cable noise when anchoring and lots more motion.

The fact that your current itinerary only allows two days pre- and post-cruise is a major problem. The way to leverage the time and money invested in overseas flights is to stay in Europe longer. Although I will tell you that those Adriatic ports on that cruise are spectacular. Maybe do some comparison shopping with Celebrity Air. They will generally have better deals than booking directly with the airlines, but it is important to comparison shop. Where you get the real bargains is on the open-jaw tickets--flying into one airport and returning from another. On a couple of cruises I took starting in Barcelona and ending in Venice, I saved over $4,000 on the return trip from Venice (used miles for the trip to Barcelona).

As others have said, there are so many places to see, you'll want to make more than one trip. Just pick one area and concentrate on that. If Italy has always been on your bucket list, then start there. You can do pre- and post-cruise excursions.

Nope, absolutely no noise. Great cabin!

Best whale watch I've ever been on was out of Cabo. Lots of whales up close.

What a surprise.

Once upon a time I had a stateroom attendant who figured this out right away. Not since then. Maybe I need to kidnap Pramod!

I've sailed on Celebrity with a passport having an expiration date two months after the return. Not a problem and we went a lot farther afield than Mexico. I get that they "encourage" an expiration date of six months, but it is not a requirement unless countries you visit require it. And I did verify this with Celebrity prior to the cruise.

When you get home, order a bottle of Monday and give it a try. It's been over forty years since I drank real gin, but I think Monday makes a very nice gin & tonic.

She apprenticed under a pro on our fall Summit cruise!

Imagine that--functional cupboards. What a concept. My Hoppenized RS on the Summit had upper things that were made to look like cabinets in the living room. On closer inspection, they were just blocks of wood attached to the wall. There were tiny cupboards at floor level. As if they weren't already too small to hold anything, they had a shelf in the middle, thus rendering them totally useless.

I suspect you could bring on your own bottle of Monday alcohol-free gin since it's not booze. Tonic for a mixer is widely available on the ship.

All the areas you mention are free to you with the possible exception of whatever small pool you saw on an upper deck--not sure what you are referring to. If it's the main pool (which is not large), it is free to you. As far as I'm aware, there is not a pool in the Aqua Class area. Anything connected with the spa will have a fee involved. Be sure to check out the thalassotherapy pool--it will be great for your recovery.

Thanks for checking, Jim.

Jim, do you frequent the Martini Bar or other bars? Someone is asking elsewhere on Cruise Critic whether or not Celebrity has alcohol-free gin. I'd be interested to know as well. Monday is an excellent brand.

I've no experience with the Martini Bar and alcohol-free gin, but there are non-alcoholic drinks and wine available onboard. Monday makes an excellent alcohol-free gin and it would be interesting if they stocked it on board. I'll ask the next time I'm onboard.

I call BS. If they can't make these decisions on board, what's the point of having these people on board?

Thanks for the clarification.

duplicate question

What in the world is a UV? Why do they keep changing the nomenclature???

I found it an easy way to ease into European time.

You might find yourself being put off the ship if you try to open a divider that is not designed to be opened.

Y'all are looking very spiffy as per usual!