Pilot70D

My 13 year old son is wanting to go on an discover scuba with his dad. The choices i have found would be Curacao with Atlantis Diving or Aruba through the cruise ship, I have no idea who their operator is in Aruba. Any comments on these options, any dive shops I should check out in Curacao? Thanks!

OK, we have been diving on both of these islands several times. Here is my opinion.

On Aruba most cruise lines do use Red Sail. RED SAIL IS THE WORST DIVE OPERATION WE HAVE EVER GONE DIVING WITH. Their dives were total waste and a rip off. Avoid them at all costs. Try J.A.D.S. on Aruba. They do a good job if they are still in business. If they aren't around anymore then you will be better off with any other dive operation rather than Red Sail.

On Curacao go with the Dive Bus by all means. Suzy & Mark, the owners, have THE BEST dive operation in the Caribbean IMHO. They used to be right on the beach but moved across the street several years ago to a larger (and better) compound. They are terrific and do a great job with all aspects of diving. They can be a little difficult to get in touch with. Their combined computer expertise would fill a thimble so continue to try and reach them.

Try the following email addresses for them:

reservations@the-dive-bus.com

thedivebus.reservations@gmail.com

One of those two email addresses should get a message to Suzy. You won't regret the extra effort getting in touch with them. Tell them that Don & Kathy from Atlanta said hi.

Hope this info helps and that your son enjoys the intro to SCUBA dives.

Have a safe and happy 4th of July.

:):):)

Hi Everyone,

 

I noticed this Celebrity post on Twitter, and wanted to share it with our Cruise Critic community :

 

Our Summer Beverage Package offer is here! Save 10% when you book your Classic or Premium Beverage Packages in advance.

 

Hope this saves you some $$$ :)

It did save us quiet a bit!!! Thank you for posting this because for some reason we are once again not getting any email messages from Celebrity.

I just got off the phone with the Captain's Club and they did their usual great job. We just got $204 in additional OBC on our upcoming TA on the Silhouette. We had already purchased the Premium Alcoholic Beverage Package for each of us (no 1-2-3 Go on a TA cruise).

Without Cruise Critics and this post we probably would not have been aware of the promo and consequently would not have the additional $024 OBC as the refund.

Thanks again!!!!

Everyone have a safe and a happy 4th of July.

We have seen so many negative articles on why not to take a cruise I was pleasantly surprised to see this segment on MSN this morning:

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/spendingandborrowing/how-to-save-big-on-your-next-cruise/vi-AAcsEYk

While it is a little superficial it does have relevance given Celebrity's soon to be announced bundled pricing strategy. Take a look at this segment and smile when thinking of your next cruise on Celebrity.

:):):)

You probably won't see much if anything published about the Chef's Table however =X= has offered a Chef's Table on every cruise we have been on.

Go see the Maitre D at Muranos or the Tuscan Grill and ask. Either should be able to make reservations for you. The Chef's Table has been held in different places depending on which class of ship we were on. On the Century and the Connie it was held on a table set up in a part of the galley itself. On the Eclipse it was held in the wine cellar alcove room in Muranos.

We have done four Chef Table dinners over the years. Three of the four were pinnacle experiences that were delightful in every way. The fourth one was so bad both with the service and the food that we vowed to never do another one. Bear in mind that the price has risen to over two hundred dollars per couple which made it a very expensive debacle for that last one we went to.

Hope this info is helpful you and that your Chef's Table experience is a delightful one if you decide to participate in one.

:)

This cruise is indeed sold out however there may be a couple of different opportunities to yet get a cabin on this sailing.

Travel agencies sometimes reserve blocks of cabins which they then resell. There very well may be some cabins available via this avenue.

As another poster wrote there will almost certainly be a cancellation or two before we sail. There are a couple of independent websites out there that track cabin availability and will then immediately notify a subscriber by email when the availability of a particular cabin class happens.

I do subscribe to one such website. For a very modest fee one can specify any number of different cabin types on a cruise which the subscriber wants monitored. When availability or pricing changes, the subscriber gets an email with information on the change.

The main reason I subscribe is to find out about and take advantage of any price reductions that might occur. Over the years we have saved hundreds of dollars on Celebrity cruises simply by finding out about price drops. Bear in mind that price reductions can come and go during the same afternoon.

You might want to do a search on the Internet for these websites and then subscribe. Once you get notification of a cabin becoming available you can then call Celebrity immediately and possibly get that cabin. Unfortunately we are forbidden from mentioning the specific names of websites like I described in this post.

Good luck!!!!

:):):)

We went on this excursion in January and it was a fabulous excursion. They also serve a really good lunch once you get to the beach. All in all we thought it was a really good time and it turned out to be our second most favorite excursion during the two week Christmas & New Year cruise on the Eclipse.

So avast ye sailors and set sail on this excursion. You won't regret it!!!!

:):D:)

Once you make a reservation directly with Celebrity, you have only a limited amount time to switch the reservation to a TA. Once that period has elapsed then transferring an existing reservation is not permitted except for some very limited or unusual circumstances.

I would suggest that you call Celebrity and find out from them how long you have (or had) from the time you made this reservation.

:):)

Yes. I am one is totally icked out by the anthropomorphization of rodents.

I suppose the Creator had her reasons, the dissemination of seeds, perhaps.

 

OP, there's no need to wonder. Where there be humans, there be rats.

 

Ew.

Well, it's not unreasonable to assume that =X= has rats aboard. After all, they had their own TV series several years ago - The Rat Patrol and we sometimes refer to the furniture as being a little ratty.

I have heard that Celebrity ships have a whole series of tiny little cabins just for them down somewhere on Deck 1. And that they booked under the 1-2-3 NO!!!!! package.

Everybody have a great day out there!!!!!

:D:D:D

I thought I read on here that Ultimate Dining package was not available on every cruise?

True, furthermore the number of Ultimate Dining packages is limited and varies.

On our most recent Christmas & New Years cruise on the Eclipse no Ultimate Dining Packages were available. Also, there were NO discounts in the upscale restaurants because they were so heavily booked.

On our previous cruise before that we boarded fairly early and immediately went to the sales table for the upscale restaurants. We purchased the Ultimate Package at that time. Friends of hours boarded about an hour later and found that no more Ultimate Dining Packages were being sold.

SO, the bottom line is that you probably need to buy the Ultimate Dining Package early in the over all boarding process if they are being offered on your cruise.

Bon voyage and bon appetite.

:):):)

Looking for your opinions. :)

 

I'm trying to decide between a S1 (aft corner sky suite) or a Celebrity Suite on the Eclipse. I know the CS is larger, but I really like that aft balcony... And I don't really like the bumped out balcony for the CS. Anyone stay in both and have a preference? Maybe some good pics?

We much prefer the S1 for it's open lay out and the terrific balcony. We were in 8345 for the 2013-2014 New Year's cruise. We liked this cabin enough that we booked it again for the 2014-2015 combined Christmas and New Year's cruise.

We have toured the CS but stayed in one. Our butler showed us one during the 2013-2014 cruise. We toured one again during the cabin crawl this year. Yes, the CS is bigger but the bedroom made us feel boxed in.

The S1's also have plentiful storage, more storage space than we could use. We didn't fill of the storage cabinet space on either cruise and Madam does not travel light. Think two semi's to haul her luggage to the cruise. We do bring eight heavy duty magnetic hooks and a multi-pocketed over the bathroom door shoe storage thing but really didn't need the additional storage. We used the magnetic hooks for things we wanted to grab in a hurry when leaving the cabin.

We are booked on the October TA cruise aboard the Silhouette. We thought about booking a CS but decided to once again book the S1. You guessed it - we have that same S1 relatively speaking but aboard the Silhouette. We simply liked the S1 enough better that we booked it instead of the CS.

I do have pictures around somewhere. When I locate them I'll post them here so you can see 8345. In the meantime enjoy that next cruise.

:):):)

Lots of things ladies wear don't do well in the ship's laundry.

Does this mean that we should no longer turn the Dragon Lady's (a.k.a. M.I.L.) combat boots in to the laundry??????

;):D;)

I have been doing RCCL the last few cruises and I can't remember if Celebrity gives you the 3 free drinks on your sea pass card.

I have a hard enough time balancing just one drink on my sea pass card. However, if you can do three at a time the bartender will probably give them to you free!!!!!!!

:D:p:D

And I find almost the entire sheet of elite coupons worthless. My last 2 cruses, I haven't used a singe coupon I still have the entire full sheets.

 

• I don't gamble
   
  

 

Should I go visit that Captain's Club Hostess and tell her these are nice and all, but I want something meaningful and not worthless?

I don't gamble either - I merely subsidize the casino. Would it be possible for the Captain's Club Hostess to convert part of these subsidies to OBC even if I don't do B2B cruises???????;):D:D;)

Immediately after you board there usually is a table set up for purchasing nights in the up scale restaurants. At this table you can purchase the Ultimate Dining Package.

YOU are correct about only a small number of these packages being available and the number varies from cruise to cruise so board early and immediately go to the sales table. Cruise before last we boarded relatively early and immediately purchased this package. An hour later friends of ours boarded and wanted to buy this package but by then they had stopped selling them.

We think that the Ultimate Dining Package is a really great bargain. Hope that you get it and enjoy it as much as we did.

:)

A Celebrity "best buy" is the Ultimate Dining Package. This package is sold ONLY aboard the ship and in very limited numbers.

Don't quote me but I think the charge is $29 per person per day. This allows you to eat in any of the specialty restaurants as often as you choose. We purchased this package on the next to our last cruise which was aboard the Eclipse. We immediately went to the specialty restaurant sales table which is usually set up right where you board the ship. We bought the package then and there. An hour and a half later they were no longer offering the Ultimate Dining Package. This cruise was the New Year's cruise that ushered in 2014.

We were once again on the Eclipse this year for the combined Christmas and New Year's cruise. On this cruise the Ultimate Dining Package was not offered. We tried and we were the third and fourth persons to board. Furthermore on this cruise NO discounts were offered. SO, it does vary widely according to the time of the cruise and how full the ship is.

:):):)

Does anyone know if Delta participates in the Luggage Valet program for cruises out of Fort Lauderdale?

THX

I spoke to the Captains Club yesterday about this very subject. Yes, both Delta and Southwest participate in the luggage valet program out of Ft. Liquordale. There possibly are other airlines participating as well but I was interested in only these two.

We used the luggage valet the last time we sailed from and then back to Port Everglades and it worked perfectly. Our luggage vanished the night before we left the ship and we didn't see it again until we arrived back in Atlanta.

Fly safe and enjoy!!!!

:):):)

Our last two cruises have been on the Eclipse and the most recent was the Christmas & New Year's cruise. We were one of the first couples to board and both The Bistro on 5 and Café Al Bacio were open by the time we got to deck 5.

Unfortunately the Bistro on 5 remained one of the most unused facilities on both of these cruises. Hope this info helps.

:):):)

OK, I just wanted everyone to know that we are now the official world record holders. We hold the world record for the most Celebrity promotions for which we did not qualify.

It took some doing but after many years of hard work we seem to avoided virtually all promotions put out by =X=. But we need to realize that this is a good thing. If Celebrity ever instituted a promotion with no restrictions the shock of that would probably be too much for my heart.

Everyone stay safe out there and enjoy that next cruise.

:D;):D

We have had the Premium Alcoholic Beverage Package on each of our last three cruises. I do not recall any excessive boozing on any of these cruises. For some reason though I cannot recall the afternoons nor the evenings.

:D:D:D

Finally talked to her today and I think she realizes I am not very happy with her

She corrected the double charges for hotel, finally sent me confirmation from cruise line. Upon reviewing, one deposit is missing!!! Guess we are back to emailing again. Definitely will be booking thru cruise line in future. .

At this point we agree with you. We intend to leave our bookings with Celebrity direct and by so doing we retain ownership.

This whole experience I wrote about was such a bad experience for us that we never want to be in that position again. I know that this episode was probably a once in a lifetime occurrence but once was enough. So from now on all of our bookings with Celebrity will be direct bookings.

We want to be in control of those things which we purchase and pay for. Frankly we think it's insane that the cruise line has to ask the very same person or business entity who has been underperforming or possibly not performing at all to please turn the cruise back over to the cruise line.

Like I wrote in that previous post , all's well that ends well. The $4,000 discrepancy in our case was resolved within minutes and we breathed a huge sigh of relief. We are thankful that Celebrity does have a group of polite, efficient and knowledgeable people manning the phones at the Captains Club.

We hope that everyone's problems are small ones from now on and that everyone enjoys that next cruise as much as we are going to enjoy ours.

:):):)

Has anyone been so upset with their TA that they have transferred their booking from them and given it to Celebrity Cruises. Can this be done. I have read that you can transfer it from Celebrity to a TA.

Yes, you can get your cruise transferred back to Celebrity. We just did that a little over a week ago. We too had a VERY bad experience with our TA. Like you our TA did not answer repeated emails or phone calls.

Contrary to what previous posters stated the TA does not have to relinquish anything. You will need to write a letter to Celebrity's sales administration department stating your case about why you want your cruise transferred back to Celebrity. Celebrity may or may not attempt to contact your TA. It is their option.

We called the Captains Club on late on the Friday of Labor Day weekend. We wrote our letter and faxed it in to the sales administration department very late on that same Friday. Our cruise was transferred back to Celebrity by Tuesday morning.

We felt compelled to take this drastic action because our final payment date was fast approaching and there was $4,000 discrepancy between our original invoice and the amount showed as being owed on My Celebrity. Celebrity of course will not discuss ANY financial aspect of a cruise with you the customer if the cruise has been turned over to a TA.

We tried all week until Friday to contact our TA with no success. Furthermore this was but one of many times when this TA has dropped of the face of the earth sometimes for weeks at a time. We sent three email messages and called as well over the week leading up to Friday.

KUDOS to Celebrity's Customer Service Reps who knew exactly what needed to be done in this instance and who helped us during the entire process. When I called on Tuesday morning it took approximately fifteen minutes to get the pricing discrepancy resolved. The Captains Club person with whom I spoke on Tuesday had my original invoice on her screen. By the time this cruise was transferred to a TA the price had gone up by $2,000 per person for our cabin. This increased price is what got entered in Celebrity's record for our cruise. Sales admin should have noticed the original invoice and manually intervened to keep our original pricing. All's well that ends well.

I would like to complement the knowledge and the professionalism displayed by both of the customer service reps with whom I dealt during this process.:)

Anyone done it? Did you get a deal? Hubs is interested

I agree with the previous poster in that it's highly unlikely that you will be able to ever upgrade to a suite at the pier.

First, most of =X='s ships are sailing full or very nearly so. Second, the suites are usually one of the first category of cabins to sell out. The limited number of suites plus an economy (at least here in the U.S.) that is doing OK makes for a very high level of demand for this very limited number of cabins. What happens is that TA's often have a waiting list for those who would like to book a suite if one opens up.

If a suite does open up at the last minute Celebrity will often offer that suite to someone already booked in the next smallest type of cabin. Almost never does a Celebrity ship set sail with an empty suite. Good luck in your quest for that last minute suite opportunity.

:):):)

Purely a question of observed behaviours ....

 

Lots of boozing? Or restrained drinking?

Bad behaviour or generally the usual refined and civilised ambience?

QUOTE]

 

We were on the most recent New Year's cruise aboard the Eclipse. Both of us had the premium alcoholic beverage package. I can assure you with utter certainty that it was all civilized ambiance in the mornings. For some reason I cannot recall anything about the afternoons so your guess is as good as mine.

:p:D:p

These are a little more than bumps in the road and have been going on for months and months.

You are correct - these ARE A LOT MORE THAN BUMPS IN THE ROAD. However, they have been going on for years and years and more years now. It is incomprehensible to me how any large corporation can have a website with as many problems as that of Celebrity's website and with the problems persisting over a PERIOD OF YEARS, not just months.

See the following. This is a post which I wrote four years ago. The thread was started September 1, 2010 and my post is dated on that same day. Four years ago and I haven't seen any marked improvement in the Celebrity website over this period.

No, wait - leave the wesite alone Celebrity, please, please, please.

I just love being miserable and frustrated each and every time I need to visit your website.

:confused::(:confused:

Could you elaborate on the balcony sizes for concierge class cabins on M ships. When you say aft, I assume you mean along the back of the ship. But from the diagrams, it appears that some of the C3 balconies starboard side aft look larger than the port side balconies. Can anyone say whether this is true? I have a CC guarantee on Connie and was curious. It has not been assigned yet but there are alot of cabins available.

We have had all the different types of aft facing on the M Class ships. The port side balconies are the same size as the starboard side ones on the same deck that is. These balconies are huge and in our opinion is the only reason to book a concierge class cabin.

Now THE REALLY GREAT CABINS on the M Class ships are the corner FV cabins. They have very large cabin spaces plus they have one of the biggest balconies anywhere on the ship with the exception of the Penthouse Suites. We had a corner FV on the Connie two or three years ago. These corner FV's on the M Class ships are some of the most highly sought after cabins in the Celebrity fleet. If you ever get the chance book the corner FV in a heartbeat. It won't be available for long.

I have a picture taken during the cabin crawl we did on that cruise. The picture is out on the balcony where we had 20-30 people and they occupied only 25% of the balcony and weren't crowded.

:):):)