caroak

40 minutes ago, vtcruising said:

It may be too early .... They added one to our cruise - ours was 10-12 - there was another one from 9-11 added later. I booked ours a few months in advance and it is showing up on our January cruise.

That's something DH would enjoy so I'll keep checking so I can book it for him while I'm enjoying my massage and spa time.  

Just want to thank you for all your efforts and all the time you've spent on behalf of all us Edgies.  You've provided a wealth of information, photos and all kinds of useful tips.  Hope you're now warm and snuggly in Vermont and healing from your injury.  I remember those cold winters when I skied at Killington especially those early morning first runs before the mountain was mostly ice.    Now in sunny CA and a cold weather wimp with the skis being hung up for good although I do miss it but getting too old to risk an injury.

We've in a Concierge IV - 11173 - and in checking the deck plan it looks like the bed is by the balcony (ug!) but when I've called several times to ask they tell me it's by the bathroom (yeah!).  When you can a change could you check the deck plan.  I defer to your Edge expertise.  Thanks.

Carole

Can't find an option for booking the Behind the Scenes Tour for our May 25 cruise.  Maybe it's too early or do they only make it available once on board?

Carole

If my recollection is correct Crystal and Oceania had some small side tables but those ships are a lot smaller and a lot less passengers.

Carole

1 hour ago, vtcruising said:

Solarium is gorgeous too! I could live there. The loungers are comfy and a beautiful color. My bed is pretty hard - maybe I’ll sneak down to the solarium.

No small tables next to lounge chairs so where do you put a drink, book, etc.?  Noticed the same thing at the pool deck. The second photo looks like double loungers.

3 hours ago, hcat said:

Maybe it is  numbers control   or as you suggest they are holding spots for those who book sea day treatments 

Sounds like that might be right.  I tried to call Celebrity but was on hold too long so I'll have to try again and ask not that I'll get the correct answer.

Carole

I want to book a spa day pass for one of our two sea days but the sea days are not coming up as an option but all the other days are listed.  I wonder if it means the sea day passes are all booked which I doubt since we don't sail until May 25.  Maybe they won't be offering a one day pass for sea days.  I have a massage booked for the first sea day but would like something for the second so I might have to book another treatment.

Carole

It doesn't look like the cabana area would be shaded or at least as an option.   We like lounging at the pool but no direct sun, please.

Assuming you can bring your wine bottles to dinner what is Celebrity's corkage charge?

Carole

6 hours ago, broberts said:

 

At the far right of the tool bar is a page with a magnifying glass in the bottom right corner. That is the preview button. It may take a few seconds for the preview to appear. If you are using a desktop, you will see three buttons at the top left to preview for Desktop, Tablet, and Phone. The buttons are not present when working on a mobile.

Found it!  Thanks.

Has anyone else noticed there is no option to preview a reply?

The Solarium pool is open to adults. Children may, under certain circumstances, be allowed entrance by the Master of the ship.

I like adults only!!:D Thanks.

Carole

Plus, we can buy day passes for $49 (or likely a bit more since everything else went up), if one or the other of us wanted to do another day. I really don't think we will have that much time to spend in the spa on the first cruises anyway because there will be so many new things to explore and do. I do have my Thai Herbal Massage booked for Dec 2. That's a port day so maybe I'll get a Thermal Suite pass for that day and give it a whirl. :D

I was told yesterday by Celebrity that the day passes will be $59. We only have two sea days on our May cruise and DH doesn't do spas so a day pass would be best for me and we will be spending time at the pool so maybe a cabana instead of a Thermal Suite pass. BTW, is the Solarium Pool open to all or is it limited?

Carole

They are Co-ed ....swimsuit attire. Have always been co ed on X and Royal...and also QM 2

 

The saunas in the women's and men's dressing room areas on M Class are NOT coed (.drawing a blank on S Class.)

That's disappointing!! I find wearing a bathing suit in a spa, especially in a steam room, to be too hot and annoying when a towel will suffice for modesty sake. Unfortunately, my bikini days are long gone so a one piece it is although European women only wear two piece bathing suits no matter the age or body shape.

Carole

There is a steam room in the thermal suite. These are the features of the Thermal Suite listed. Absolutely no mention of a T-Pool.

 

 

 

This is the full spa reveal. 40 minutes long and probably more than you want to know! LOL

 

Just watched the video so thanks for the link. Wow, that's a lot to awesomeness to absorb!! There is no mention if the Thermal Suites are co-ed which would not be to my liking.

Carole

I asked the agent if there is a T-pool and the info he gave me was for Thermal Suites and no mention of a T-pool and not sure if he knew what I was referring to. Since this will be our first Celebrity cruise I'm not familiar with the different spa/relaxation options especially with all the cabin class distinctions. We've previously cruised with Crystal, Oceania and Silverseas where all cabin categories have equal access with regard to spa facilities, MDR and speciality restaurants.

Carole

I spoke to a Celebrity agent who couldn't tell me if there would be a relaxation area for those booking a treatment.:confused: I asked about the Thermal Suites and according to his info you can book a day pass for $59. Since there is no mention of day passes on the Edge site I wonder if that will actually be an option and what about a steam room?

Carole

Does anyone know if you book a spa treatment will you have access to any of the spa lounge areas before or after the treatment? Also, if there is a T-pool would day passes be available for that or any other spa area w/o a treatment? I have a massage booked but would like to know what, if any, privileges that would include.

Carole

Sorry, the link didn't work in the last post - here's the link for the IV video with closet.

 

Thanks for posting the link. I noticed the top of the IV table doesn't have the two handles that we saw in other cabin photos. I wonder which one it will be. I prefer it w/o the handles so a room service tray might fit on top.

Carole

It looks like the balcony table top is a lift off tray. And why a lamp taking up precious space on the dresser instead of wall lighting?

The pics of the IV are disappointing since it looks like the final product is true to the renderings with no cubbies over the dresser area, no coffee table (where do you put a breakfast tray for two? - maybe need to remove everything from the dresser/desk area?), very small side table next to the couch, small balcony table and uncomfortable looking balcony chairs.:confused: Wish there were some pics of the closet.

Carole

We've just returned from Connie and tendered for an excursion in Santorini. Your tickets will tell you exactly what time you are to meet and where before you tender. They tend to use the theatre. You get a sticker for your trip and they call the sticker numbers. You then go to your tender boat and meet your coach once you've docked. It is really well organised. Like all cruise lines they are well used to organising the excursions so don't worry. you'll be in good hands. :-)

We will also be in Santorini and booked a ship's transfer to Oia which has an 8:00 am start time. What time would we likely have to be in the theater or meeting point? Not a morning person so 8:00 am is as early as I would want to be anywhere.

Carole

We have not been to GC in awhile and last time there we stayed on the ship...Happy for that because the last tender numbers on Reflection...were called well after lunch.

 

Prior to that trip were always on ship's tenders. Sometimes the water was too rough to get in to the port.. Once they moved the tender operation to the opposite side of the ship after a passenger got hurt trying to get on a tender.

 

I was looking forward to using X tenders in this port...we booked an excursion to get an early start. This is our only tender port for 2 EDGE cruises and wanted to check out the process. Maybe X will use their own...

This will be our first Celebrity cruise and first on a large ship so I'm confused as to how the tender lineup works. You mention getting tender numbers. How are they assigned and what if you have a private tour and need to get off early? Do the ship's excursion people get off first and then the others lineup but need an assigned number?

Also, if an excursion starts at a tender port at say 8:00 am does that mean you tender at 8:00 am or is that the time you meet the tour guide or bus on land?

Carole

That singer/music was very annoying:eek: and not really into Cirque type entertainment so not planning on booking until there are at least some early passenger reviews. Also the picture with the snake crawling on a woman's back was enough to make me shudder considering my fear of snakes.

Carole

Carole, thank you for this awesome information and a review of your claim. I guess I could try and Google the information, but I wonder if your claim experience is the norm? That sounds excruciating. My son worked briefly for a life insurance company and they purposely made it difficult in many situations for people to receive their money. Hence why he left.

Mike, glad you found it helpful and wish I had some of this info beforehand so I knew what to expect. According to Chase, the delay in settling the claim was because it was over $10,000, and only by $100, hence the further review requirement. Initially, they paid me $350 to reinstate airline points and their e-mail said my claim was paid and that was after I sent them many pages claiming the cruise fare and hotel costs that were past the refundable time frame. They just ignored the remainder of the claim and left it at that never bothering to tell me what else they required. It really was a fight to the finish and if I hadn't persisted I never would have gotten paid.

Since I now have a pre-existing condition we can no longer rely on the Chase Reserve card benefit and have to purchase the insurance. I've read a lot reviews for different companies and all of them have many complaints. Some of the issues were because people didn't read the fine print especially with regard to pre-exisitng. I ended up purchasing through USAA with Travel Insured who I used before I had the Chase card but never had a claim. A friend of mine used them and had no issues with her claim although it was not large.

Carole

I have the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and it is well worth the $450 a year and less than the AmEx Platinum which I think is up to $550. You get $300 annual travel credit; Global Entry or TSA Pre reimbursement (I believe GE is $100 and good for 5 years); and 3x points for travel and dining. With just the travel credit it brings the cost of the card down to $150 so considering you would pay around $95 a year for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, and many others, the card would only cost an extra $55 per year. Add to that the Reserve's trip cancellation benefit which is $10,000 per person up to $20,000 per trip but not sure what the yearly cap might be. It doesn't cover pre-existing conditions but only has a 60 day look back period.

As a word of caution if you have a trip cancellation claim, I can relate my recent experience with Chase which was frustrating but was ultimately paid. We had to cancel a cruise in May due to health issues I was having. This was not a pre-existing condition so I was covered. The claim was handled by Chase Benefits and Allianz Insurance was also involved but never could get a straight answer as to what part they had although they did issue the check even though Chubb is the Underwriter. My claim was not denied but it took three months of constant phone calls and over 30 pages of documentation to settle. The claim was slightly over $10,000 and they kept telling me because it was over that amount it required further reviews by management. What was also frustrating is they initially paid a small amount for reinstating points for airfare and never let me know they needed further documentation even after I sent them at that point over 20 pages. I really had to persist to even find out what they wanted/needed. Finally, after three months of blowing me off I threatened to file a complaint with the CA Superintendent of Insurance since there are regulations they must adhere to. That threat got me and my claim to the right person and within one hour I got a call back and an e-mail confirmation that my claim was being paid. They even sent the check next day delivery. My only consolation through all of this was the fact that we didn't have to buy travel insurance which would have cost around $1,000 so the Chase Reserve card has more than paid for itself at least for a few more years.

Carole