calgal729

Just wanted to circle back on this topic and thank everyone for their reviews and input.  We went to the Turtle Center last week on our Caribbean cruise last week and enjoyed it very much.  My daughters and granddaughter (age 2 1/2) swam with the turtles and loved it.  The water was a little murky but not bad.  I would skip the aviary and butterfly exhibits, not much there, but swimming with the turtles was the highlight of our visit.  Keep in mind this is a bit of a drive from the pier, so the taxi bus ride took a while (and stopped at the beaches first to let off other passengers.) Would be best to go as early in the day as possible.  We did not need to buy tickets in advance, although there is a small discount if you buy online.  

We were thinking of going to the Cayman Turtle Centre when we’re in this port in January and noticed you can buy tickets in advance on their website.  Is it really necessary to buy tickets in advance or can we just take a taxi to the Centre and buy tickets the day we visit?  I don’t know what the risk is that they might sell out. I hate to buy tickets in advance and then not be able to use them due to bad weather, a change in itinerary, etc.   TIA.  

How did you all handle taking babies and toddlers on excursions?  If its a ship excursion, does the ship have car seats or booster seats it provides, or did you bring your own from home?  How about private excursions?  I am especially concerned because we'll be in the Caribbean and Mexico, and they may not have the same car seat regulations we have in the U.S.

Thanks blue_water, I appreciate your input, I'll give this another look.

3 hours ago, jean87510 said:

We did in November 2021 and weren't fans.  I am actually headed to Buccanos tomorrow as well as a couple of other spots and will answer any questions.  

 

We also have reservations in January at the Cabanas at Chankanaab which may be an idea as well.

Can you explain why you weren’t fans?  Was it the beach, pool area not up to par, or were you not happy with the food or service? Thanks.   

On 6/30/2023 at 7:47 AM, blue_water said:

We stay at the Ibero Tucan near PDC and have visited the Ibero Coz property. We wouldn’t go there for the beach, or for the food and drinks, actually.

 

What are your port times? Have you looked at Buccanos? Not technically AI but the same nonetheless…

https://www.buccanos.com/en/activities

Yes, thanks, we looked at Buccanos and it does look really nice, but since we’re traveling with lots of family, we were hoping to find an all inclusive

Has anyone done the all inclusive day pass at this beach resort?  It looks beautiful and tropical online, but not finding much in the way of reviews.  We're looking for a really nice beach that's all-inclusive, with good food and drinks, good friendly service, and no loud music (no Mr. Sancho's!)  Not looking for kids activities like water slides and day camp, and hopefully, a place that's not too crowded and not more than 20 minutes from the port.

If anyone's been to this resort, I'd be interested to hear your experience. Thanks!

On 9/17/2022 at 8:16 AM, Jotravels said:

2 couples hoping to go on a canal cruise in early Feb/23. One member of the group has struggled with sea sickness in the past. Our two options are the Emerald Princess,15 day, or the Zaandam,14 day. Would there be any advantage to being on the Emerald Princess for increased stability? We’ve sailed neither cruise lines so don't necessarily have loyalty to either. Any advice ,regarding either ship, and motion related issue would be greatly appreciated!

I have struggled with motion sickness my whole life.  After one especially horrible flight, I discovered Bonine and it was life changing.  I’ve gone on 14 cruises, all sizes and types of ships, and never had a problem with sea sickness.  Strongly recommend! 

Cruising Freedom next month, will definitely report back :)

On 4/13/2019 at 10:18 AM, stevetod said:

Just recently back from 11 night cruise on Reflection and found an excellent tour with great value. Its from #1 tours and the operator Paul stopped us on our way off the ship at the pier. He has a few open air buses and for $20 a person he takes you to the rock formation, the chapel and then the lighthouse. You stop for around 15 minutes at each stop. During the trip to each he provides great info about Aruba, housing, education, languages etc. Then for those that want to, he will drop you off at Eagle beach and return two hours later to pick you up and drop you back at the ship. For $20 a person its a great deal.

Steve

Thanks Steve for the recommendation, will definitely watch for this tour when we’re in Aruba next month.  

Jeanette,

Don't be discouraged by the cruise planning process and the crazy price fluctuations the cruise lines subject us to, I promise it will be worth it!  I can see why a first timer would get frustrated, but I predict you will have a fantastic time on your cruise, and you'll be back on these boards planning your next cruise and giving us lots of good tips and advice -- that's why I love these CC boards :)   Over the years, I have gained so much valuable info and advice from fellow cruisers.

BTW, I have been on 14 cruises, and yes, this happens on every single cruise line, except the one river cruise I took on AmaWaterways.     

Just a heads up, RC is currently running a promotion on its shore excursions.  If you previously booked an excursion for your upcoming cruise, you might want to check and see if yours is now on sale.  If the price dropped, you can call and rebook it at the new rate; its a pain to have to cancel and rebook, but it saved us 23%.

6 minutes ago, mfs2k said:

 

Thank you..

We considered Asia however, my DW would like to see Europe first.  She's never been there, and I've only been to France and Spain.  We really want to see Italy.

We've done two Mediterranean cruises on Celebrity and loved them both, you might want to try the shoulder season (May and September) instead of June, July and August, it will be less crowded, a little less expensive and slightly cooler.

6 minutes ago, Bee Guy said:

They are automatically added to your sea pass card.

 

Edit to add:  You can get them at any bar, but only during Happy Hour.  

Works for me!  Thanks so much for the info!!

Related question - are the three free drinks you get every evening as a Diamond cruiser automatically added to your sea pass card, or do you have to attend the Diamond Lounge happy hour to receive them?  Thanks.

On ‎2‎/‎3‎/‎2019 at 11:17 AM, hkto said:

Look at Bilbao Greeters, it's a non profit that coordinate local volunteers who are willing to do 2hr walking tour. No fee and no tips but can donate to the organization later on. Need to book in advance. We took it a while ago, was good. As far as pintxos are concerned there are some bars in old town. IMHO pintxos bars in San Sebastian are way better.

 

Thank you!

Can anyone recommend a walking tour in Bilbao, or a pintox and tapas walking tour, where you walk and learn about the main sites in Bilbao, then stop at various restaurants for a sampling of local cuisine?  The Best of Basque has a wonderful tour that fit the bill but they are all booked up for the date we wanted.   Any suggestions would be appreciated.  Thanks!  

I used to book my cruises online, but not anymore, the process is too cumbersome and frustrating.  Call our Celebrity vacation planner, Trent, at ext. 13375.   He found us the best deal, answered all our questions, and made the reservation process so easy -- I will never go back to online booking again!

I was on the 11-25th Nov sailing from Auckland to Sydney and didn't hear of any reported cases.

 

The impact on our sailing included -

- Delayed check-in time which actually did create a bit of chaos on the first day. Celebrity provided a $25 onboard credit for each passenger as compensation

- Buffet stations were covered up for the first few days and food had to be dished out by staff. This changed back to self service during the cruise.

- Hand sanitizer was handed out everywhere

- Items such as menus and salt and pepper shakers were initially removed but were introduced back

- Books from the library were removed

 

I think they have got it under control otherwise they wouldn't have change the buffet back to self-service.

Thanks for the update, I'll be sailing on the same cruise next month, and am so glad to hear its under control.

I can't say I have exp with any day tours in Sydney myself and I imagine there are heaps on google which you may have already seen. However I have travelled to Sydney many times. I would just wait until you get to Sydney to decide. Once there if you make your way down to Circular Quay or darling harbour you will see many vendors selling all sorts of sightseeing and harbour cruise packages. My tips of things to see in a day would be circular quay -opera house, a harbour cruise, The rocks, Old Queen Vic building, anything extra would be a bonus.

Thanks, I'll look into your suggestions...if they're all fairly close together, we might just do a walking tour, then a harbor cruise later in the day.

We're looking for a small group excursion to see the sights of the Sydney, we're not necessarily interested in wine tasting or seeing the Blue Mountain regions, and these are the only day tours in Sydney we seem to be finding. We would like an in-depth tour of the city and surrounding neighborhoods. We'd prefer a full day tour so we could see as much as possible in the short time we're in Sydney, but 4 to 6 hours would be fine too. Does anyone have any suggestions for a tour group you enjoyed when touring Sydney? Thanks for any suggestions.

I get severe sea sickness, but since discovering Bonine, its been a game changer. Looking forward to my 8th Celebrity cruise next month, and never had a problem with any cabin on the S Class ships.

We're going on 14 day Celebrity Solstice cruise of New Zealand and Australia. We got back home from a Baltic Cruise a few months ago, and had used a highly recommended excursion company, SPB, instead of the excursions arranged through the cruise line. They were terrific, organized, great tour guides, efficient, and we saved about 50%. Is anyone familiar with alternate excursion companies for our upcoming cruise? I'd love to hear about your great experiences, as well as any excursions that were less than great. Any recommendations of tour companies and tours would be really appreciated.

I loved SPB too, wish they were worldwide! While my cruise to New Zealand isn't for a few months so I cant speak from personal experience, several people on my roll call have signed up for excursions with Shore Trips and Tours. They have gotten really good reviews on Trip Advisor and Cruise Critic, and so far, have been very responsive to my emails and they definitely are less expensive than the ship excursions. I have signed up for their Tauranga (TRG-16) and Akaroa (AKA-1) excursions.

I also prefer the "S" class. However, the best cruise we ever took was a Vietnam/Asia cruise several years ago on the Millie. So if it's an itinerary you're really excited about, go for it, but if you find a similar cruise on an "S" class ship, that would be a better option.

I know this is subjective, but what was your favorite port/excursion?

Also, how was the weather (especially at night)? I heard that especially in Switzerland, it gets pretty cold, even this time of year. Did you need a heavy jacket?

Thanks!