Peteymil

I have read through previous threads about Oslo, but I am a bit stuck.  It is our first time visiting, I am wondering if a walking tour would be the best way to spend my time.  Any suggestions welcome.

On 7/14/2023 at 9:48 AM, John Bull said:

 

We took this same tour - and it was excellent, one of the highlights of our cruise.

They start just outside the port gate, just yards from your ship.

 

Yes, they accept walk-ups - but our coach was full, so do book to be certain.

On the coach, for best views sit on the same side as the door (not the driver's side)

 

JB 🙂

Is May too early for this excursion.  I tried to book but it is not available until May 25th.

2 hours ago, princeton123211 said:

I tool an Uber last time I was in Rotterdam and needed to get back to Amsterdam. Was super easy and relatively cost effective. 

 

For something a little more put together I use an app called Blacklane extensively when traveling in Europe. It works with top local black car/livery services. More expensive than Uber but you get a Mercedes E or S Class (depending on what you choose) and can use them "as directed". All the billing is handled in the app and tax and gratuity are included so not worrying about that on the ride. Highly recommend for something more high end. Saves you from dealing directly with local services. 

Thank you, that is great information.

We would like to find a reliable company for transportation from the Rotterdam cruise port to our Amsterdam hotel. We would love to stop at a tulip field and see some windmills on the way. Any ideas. Thank you.

On 9/10/2023 at 7:20 AM, terrydtx said:

We board the Apex Thursday and we are using  private transportation to the ship, I would try that when you get off the ship. We are using Welcome Pickups.

Welcome - Making travel easy, friendly, personal (welcomepickups.com)

Are you coming to the ship from Rotterdam or Amsterdam. We are trying to find a private transportation company to go from Rotterdam to Amsterdam after our cruise.

Wondering if anyone on board can tell us if they are changing your current itinerary at all based on weather forecast for inclement weather due to hurricane Lee

If my husband and I are traveling together, and we are both elite plus, Do we each get two free bags or is it two bags of laundry per cabin?

On 8/22/2023 at 11:57 AM, gmbhardy said:

Do Retreat cruisers get priority disembarkation?

yes

2 hours ago, baggal said:

I guess I'm one of the few people here on cruise critic who are just happy to be able to cruise a few times a year, with or without pillow chocolates.  

I understand what you are saying, however I think the point is that people feel they are not getting what they paid for, even if it's a very small thing.  Where does Celebrity draw the line? No more free cookies and nighttime chocolates morphs into lounge chairs on the pool decks must be rented or seats in the theater must be reserved and paid for--who knows what will be next.

32 minutes ago, the penguins said:

Still curious how you missed the drinks coupons. Several possibilities spring to mind:

1) you weren't Elite until very recently 

2) you had a long break in cruising.

3) your cabin companion enjoyed extra drinks by using your coupons.🤣

4) your cabin companion swopped your coupons for casino credits.💲and kept the winnings

Other suggestions welcome 😂😀😂

I don't know either. But none of 1 - 4  apply for me and I highly doubt that the casino would trade free drink coupons for casino credits. We have cruised 30 times on Celebrity and six times in the last two years, so just saying I've never seen the coupons for drinks, not important, enjoy your cruises!

6 hours ago, the penguins said:

Sorry no "next time" the vouchers/coupons have all been stopped 😂😀. 

Fortunately, the benefits have not, just loaded onto your seapass now

55 minutes ago, the penguins said:

There were not only vouchers/coupons for drinks but also for laundry, dry cleaning, pressing, gelato etc. The coupons were on sheets and you had to cut out the individual vouchers. The ones for drinks were even dated.

 

I've seen all the coupons you've listed except for drink coupons--maybe next time!!

20 minutes ago, mahasamatman said:

 

You can only get the drinks they list specifically for HH, which are the cheapest grade of alcohol. None of them will be over $10 drinks. In other words, this perk is useless if you have a drink package.

 

 

We've often asked for other drinks, not top shelf, and they've been happy to accomodate.  We do not have a drink package.

On 3/9/2023 at 9:26 AM, Oxo said:

Maybe it depends on ship. When they had vouchers, I used them in the MDR to order a glass of wine. You got a vouchers.

There is no such thing as always. LOL

Funny, In over 20 years I've never been on a Celebrity cruise that had vouchers.  Must have missed that.

My husband wears jeans (no rips or tears), and a polo shirt or long sleeve shirt.

I would look at medical, evacuation, and also covering trip interruption

No formal nights. Hard to know if there will be one or 2 evening chic nights.

21 hours ago, ohiopops4 said:

I'm very interested in knowing if Celebrity is considering a change to allow vaping or smoking in the casinos.  The fact that the casino is non smoking is something we really enjoy.  

 

We were on a recent Holland America cruise and they had a designated smoking area in their casino.  Our clothes reeked and the air smelled.  After one visit, we didn't go back.

 

 

Yes, they are considering vaping and testing it on two ships

On 7/5/2023 at 10:50 AM, Georgia_Peaches said:

I felt like it was easier to start a separate thread so as not to get lost in the shuffle of the current threads on the subject of the new vaping policy. 
 

The Marketing & Revenue director took time to sit down with me and hear my concerns about the new policy. She was extremely engaging and took notes to pass along to corporate. While she maintained that this is only a test and no final decision has been made, she admitted that A LOT of feedback has been received and based on this, corporate has instructed that the signage be removed in favor of word of mouth instead. 
 

I raised several concerns including:

 

1. Enforcement of the “while actively playing” rule and mentioned the vapers who were vaping while watching the slot tournament. 
2. The awkward position it puts the crew in who have to enforce the policy. 
3. The health concerns for everyone. 
4.  The changing of the Celebrity brand and what attracted me to Celebrity in the first place

5.  What changes will this open the door to if this is implemented permanently?

 

Our conversation concluded with assurances that the feedback was valuable and would continue to be collected and analyzed. 
 

My take away from this is that they are already walking back on this little experiment by removing the signs. Experienced Celebrity cruisers already know the policy and those who are new will not know the difference as long as the signs remain hidden….hence, making word of mouth more difficult. 
 

She is also aware of the threads here on CC as well as other social media platforms. 
 

Don’t let up on the feedback…it’s working!

This sounds like a good discussion however, I am still concerned about. "word of mouth" caveat. I think we would've miles will spread very quickly I'm on vapers and I think it's still gonna be a problem.

On 7/3/2023 at 2:34 PM, kasowell2 said:

If anybody has a link or email to voice our opinion on this, please post and I will gladly give them my thoughts

Executiveoffice@celebrity.com

On 4/17/2023 at 6:05 PM, klfrodo said:

Steve works with about 9 companies that he feels comfortable working with. He does work with GeoBlue, however, Washington State doesn't allow them to sell in Washington for some reason.

I usually go with TravelSafe Classic for my travel needs.

Yes, I've had claims. Yes, they were successful. Yes, Steve will help if needed with the claim. Actually he has assisted some people on here who didn't purchase thru him but the people they did buy from refused to help.

He does not have an annual plan, I wonder why he is not comfortable with Allianz, so many people are very pleased with it.

On 6/20/2023 at 2:40 PM, klfrodo said:

Could be a business practice that IMT has decided that some companies they no longer choose to do business with. I know Steve at TIS has said so for his business model.

I imagine there could be many factors weighing in on a decision like this. From lowering commission rates to making the Terms and Conditions of a covered claim so onerous as to never pay a valid claim and the business no long wish to associate themselves or their clients to bad faith practices.

I know Steve does not offer the Allianz annual policy.  Do you know why?

On 5/19/2023 at 8:21 AM, genealogyfan said:

In the United States, we have Labor day too and most touristy areas and places with alot of tourists open retail stores and restaurants, etc to attract  tourists and their money on Labor Day. As I said I think it was extremely poor planning on the city of Sydney, as they lost so much potential money lrom the ship passengers and crew that day. Also poor planning on Norwegian too.

Remember, this is not the United states, and money may not be the priority on a national holiday.

On 6/10/2023 at 7:41 PM, kiterp said:

My recent cruise caused me to wonder about the direction Celebrity is headed. The Summit is a well maintained vessel with staff that is very friendly. The quality of the food was good.

There were, however, several areas of major concern. One, the dress code has become a total joke. Celebrity promotes itself as a "luxury" line but allows its passengers to dress inappropriately in various dining venues. Shorts, which are banned at dinner, were often noticed in the main dining room. Although tank tops and baseball caps are prohibited in the speciality dining rooms, patrons were wearing both when I ate in the Sushi on Five dining venue. Why have codes if they are never enforced? Two,they continue to downgrade the benefits offered to the Captain's Club higher tier members. They have a limited drink menu from 5 - 7 PM at the bars. This means you have about a 30 minute window to enjoy your benefit if you have the 5:30 PM seating. Wow, you spend tens of thousands of dollars for cruises and are given a 30 minute window! Three, they are beginning to recycle headliner entertainment. Three of the acts were the exact same ones we saw on the Constellation in February. Can't Celebrity offer a more diverse selection? Four, the entree selection number has been reduced as well as the serving sizes. Several nights saw only four selections for entrees when there used to be six or seven.

I am an Elite Plus CC member and this was my twentieth Celebrity cruise. I wonder if it is time to switch to Princess or other similar lines?

It sounds to me that for you, it is time to switch.

1 hour ago, davekathy said:

That would have been at the CC Elite Senior Officers Party. 

Yes