purrlinda

We agree with this poster who is apparently a TA . We also agree with others who have seen the difference & the cost to Celebrity of just $8 per day for the classic drink package .:)

 

There is no doubt in my mind that the prices can & do increase ;however ,it also depends on how well that particular cruise is filling the cabins ;).

 

Since we are retired we tend to look at the cruise prices after final payment ;however ,we do exclude the trans Atlantic prices because4 they are low to start out being repositioning cruises .;)

 

The bottom line imo is in the eyes of the purchaser of their cruise . all situations are different :)

Yes, I am a TA. I feel like I should have gotten a degree in Super Advanced Marketing Strategies with a minor in fine print analyzing these days. I feel really bad for consumers who see the lowest rate, then all of these perks, and find out they are not able to be combined. Well traveled and savvy consumers understand the game and know how to use it to their advantage, which is great. These strategies, of course, are not only used by cruise lines but all forms of business. Which sucks, because while they can claim these great deals, there are always get-out clauses in the fine print. I've made it a habit when buying anything or before signing everything to read the fine print to avoid nasty surprises later. I wish that wasn't the case and that businesses were more up front about restrictions, etc...

The client I was speaking of originally had a rate of $1749 and then the Give Thanks promo came out, giving her a pretty substantial price drop (15%). Then, when 123GO came out, we had to go back up to the $1749 rate to get the bev package (which she still came out ahead on). Then a few weeks ago I was checking fares again and saw the fare go from $1749 to $1549 and this was not a restricted rate so she got to keep 123GO. Then this past week they added senior and resident rates to this sailing and the price drop on her A2 went to $1299. When I look at the booking history, it makes me realize that this sailing must not be doing so swell because of the $200 initial price drop, being able to keep 123GO, and then releasing senior and resident fares.

Whereas the cruise I'm going on never dropped in price once.

It's weird. I sort of wish it were simpler, but pricing is becoming a lot more like air travel pricing. I can't imagine it costs any more to host a passenger on a 7 day cruise at Christmas than it does in February, but because the demand is so high, they can charge more.

Cruise lines have pretty clear guidelines about latest arrivals and earliest flight departures that should be followed. The earliest recommended flight from FLL is 11:30AM. Granted, these guidelines are for guests with cruise transfers, but I think they should be followed.

I am going on Silhouette in 2 weeks. 11 family members are flying in and out of Buffalo on Southwest and they chose the 5PM non stop. It was just less of a risk. They'll do a post cruise excursion.

Since Southwest lets you make changes for free, I'd recommend trying to move to the later flight to have an easier disembarkation.

I did the self disembarkation once on another line and it left a lot to be desired.

My picks, in this order, would be:

Riviera

X Eclipse

Regatta

If you are really foodies, Oceania is going to be the best choice for foodies. I personally struggle with the cost of Oceania because so much of it comes from the cost of food. For me, I'm a very simple eater, so things like Caviar, Lobster Risotto, and really fancy things are completely lost on me. I don't get the most value for my dollar with Oceania. However, the Riviera looks like an amazing ship. I've seen the Regatta, I wouldn't hesitate to choose the Eclipse over that ship.

Bang for buck, the Eclipse is going to give you that in spades. (14 nights, AQ, bev package) I'd compare that to a very high end dining experience and see what is most important.

I paid $1199 per person for my C3 on the 2/23 Silhouette sailing. I booked in March of last year, and they had 123GO.

Through the entire year, with that particular sailing, the price on the C3 did not waver until the 123GO began again on Black Friday. It then went up to $1399.

Is that because of the special or was it because the ship was selling very well? (It's been sold out for about a month now.) I don't know. What I do know is that I feel that I got really good value for my money.

I recently had a client get some nice price drops on her cruise that were eligible for 123GO. The other day, the cabin she is in went from 1549 to 1299. The 1299 is a new CA resident rate. She would have lost 123GO. That is worth $308. They are still ahead of the game by about $58. To them, the bev package is a much better value, so they kept it.

At this point, it's all about finding what works for you. I do wish that the programs were not so confusing. Most people do not read the fine print. I certainly wish that the print in this case was large. Sometimes those resident rates and senior rates can be SUPERB.

Last year on my Silhouette cruise, I was booked under a resident rate so when 123GO became available, I wasn't eligible. However, the resident discount was only $50 less than the prevailing 5 Star rate so it made sense to lose the resident rate and gain the drinks.

Every sailing will be different as pricing always depends on yield management.

We are cruising 2/23 on Silhouette as well, time is standing still!

Me and a party of 16 are also on this cruise! :)

What I enjoy most about the Alcove concept is SHADE. I like to be outside but I become a crispy critter very quickly. However, the placement of the Alcoves (facing inward instead of out at the sea) is what keeps me from renting one. I wish they had an alcove like option near to the pool so I can swim, then have somewhere to chill near by that's covered and then swim some more.

Instead, I spend all of my pool time in the Solarium.

Question about etiquette though - I will often swim for an hour or more at a time. I typically leave my towel and odds and ends on my chair. I get out, lay for a bit, read, then hop back in for a swim. I don't think there's anything wrong with this.

Honestly, if they removed Bistro on 5, I would probably stop cruising Celebrity. This might sound petty, but it's my favorite place to dine on the ship. It's quiet, the food is simple, and it's a lovely space. I hope this doesn't happen.

When my husband and I were planning to go on the Serenade out of Dubai, we wanted more time in Abu Dhabi. We got approved to "downline" which meant getting off in Abu Dhabi, and meeting the ship again in Dubai. (Accommodations and transportation on our own dime of course.)

Let's say you wanted to vacation in Barbados, for instance... Would you be able to downline and get off the ship in Barbados, stay for a week, then pick the ship up when it returned there in a week? Interesting. Would be a nice 3 weeker, I tell ya!

What are these "check" things, of which you speak? :D

In 2007 I was in Long Beach, CA for a ship inspection of a Carnival ship. We were due to board at 11AM but there were a group of people who were still on board so it could not clear customs. They were found up on the pool deck lounging. The ship didn't end up clearing until after 12:30PM. It wasn't such a big deal for us viewing the ship but the angry mob of people who line up at 9AM hoping to get on board early were furious. Kind of scary, actually.

That experience is why I NEVER get to a port until 1:30 or so. The lines of people whose flights got in early or who just want to get on the ship as early as possible are scary. Last year, we left our FLL hotel at about 12:30, made a stop at a drug store for supplies, and ended up getting in line at about 1:30. We walked up to the empty VIP check in area and were on the ship in less than 15 minutes.

I have the sorry disposition of being the least patient person on earth so I've had to learn tricks to keep me out of those situations.

Customs, on the other hand, that's an inconvenience that I simply have to endure. I have Global Entry but since it only works at select airports and not cruise ports, there's just no way around it.

Though, I will say, when I got off the Silhouette last year (I'd read horry stories before cruising) we got off at around 9AM and were in our taxi by about 920AM. Things moved along quickly, even though there were about 5 customs people working.

I'm hoping for the same thing this cruise.

I have clients (mid 80's) who won't even consider a cruise unless there will be duplicate bridge on the ship. They frequent Holland America for this reason. I have made numerous phone calls to other cruise lines (mostly higher end, Oceania, Regent) and they don't seem to have a lot of answers when I ask about sailings with bridge. Transatlantic and Transpacific cruises seem to be the ones that have them the most but I've gotten very non committal answers from most cruise lines I've asked.

The hamsters in that website really hate us, methinks.

Painter's Filet and Slider Party for sure. (I don't eat seafood so can't comment on the many offered seafood-y type dishes.)

I got the cupcakes and while the decorating was fun, the cupcakes had the consistency of nerf balls so I will not get that on my next cruise.

All in all, I think Qsine is a blast to dine in. I like the quirks!

For me, the site is only half functional with my usual browser. Celebrity really should do something about it.

 

However, when I use Google Chrome, everything works. If you don't have Chrome installed, it's easy to install, so easy that even I did it. In my experience, using Google Chrome for this site is great. Anything else is choosing to beat your head against the wall.

 

Jim

I use chrome on my laptop and desktop. I also have a Chromebook for travels because it's lightweight. Anytime I try to look up shore excursions on my chromebook, they REFUSE to load. It sucks because I have that open a lot these days.

The site works very poorly on IE at my office.

To answer your question....(I'm going to hear it for saying this but...)

 

No, not due to the specailty restaurants as they are also not as good as they once were... the quality of the MDR started going downhill when Celebrity sold to RCCL.

Ah, I hadn't thought about that. How long ago did that take place?

Between drinks there is a wait of 10 minutes. My spouse gets thirsty especially on hot days by the pool. Often drinks a quart at one time. The best option for thirsty people is the bottle of water. If you do not have a drink package, you can buy anything anytime.

I had one evening at the Martini Bar where I discovered the joys of Sweet Tea Vodka and lemonade. I will say that there were numerous times where my drink orders were less than 10 minutes apart with no problem. (Admittedly, I don't normally drink like that, but I was having a great time!)

As a line, I find Celebrity superior to Carnival. However, I will say, I prefered the MDR food on Carnival to Celebrity. Now, I am a super simple eater so a lot of the fancy pants (gourmet) items on the MDR menu in Celebrity is too much for me.

However, the specialty dining I've done on Celebrity has been AMAZING. I loved Qsine, the Lawn Club Grill and Bistro on 5.

A question I should post to long time X cruisers - do you think the quality of the MDR has gone down some since the introduction of so many specialty restaurants with a surcharge? My first cruise with X was last year.

It showed PALL as the package type on my SeaPass. I had pyrchased the premium package prior to going on the cruise.

I had 4 pages of drinks "charges" at 0.00 per charge. What a relief!

I would easily pick the Silhouette w/ beverage package instead of going to the DR. I have heard more negative reports on travels to the DR than I have any other Caribbean destination.

The southern caribbean is always my favorite. I have only been able to do 7 day cruises so I leave from San Juan. I have twice done this part of the Caribbean and saw St.Thomas, Barbados, Antigua, Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and St. Maarten. A 14 night that includes the ABC Islands and maybe Grenada would be amazing (I just don't have the time to cruise 2 weeks).

I am going on the Silhouette Western Caribbean for the 2nd time in February. The would rather have done the SC, but I wanted a Solstice class ship. A 14 night southern on the Eclipse would be the dream!

That's a big family travel week because it's spring break so I'm not surprised about the dining being waitlisted.

Most travel agents do not know where people want to stay or what is important to them in hotels, so I always do it myself.

If you have a travel agent who takes the time to get to know you, your preferences, and your needs, they certainly can make recommendations for you and make your life easier.

To some people, this kind of service is still really valuable.

It'd dependent upon the number of days. Cruises longer than 7 days typically require a $450 pp deposit.

I went on the Sandbar Island Adult Getaway last February. Tide was high that day so we didn't get to the sandbar but they took us off of a small island instead. Great experience! I highly recommend it.

If you decide to submit to your travel insurance, you first have to submit it through your normal medical insurance before travel insurance will consider it. At least, that is how it worked for us.

It depends on the travel insurance. The one I get is considered PRIMARY which means I do not have to submit it to my insurance, get declined, and then send it in. I always look for that.