luv2trvl6

Thanks for all the information. Looks like we can just stick with our Classic Package. That makes it simple.

Classic (Alcoholic) Package for passengers 1 & 2 is part of the 123Go offer with our upcoming cruise. However, I don't drink and the other passenger is younger than 18.

We really want latte, mocha, virgin cocktails, and smoothies. Are those included in Classic (alcoholic) Package? Or is a downgrade to Premium Non-Alcoholic Package possible, because that package includes all the types that we want to drink? Or we will have to buy a la carte, or buy premium non-alcoholic package additionally, or upgrade to premium alcoholic package, in order to get those drinks?

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thank you for all the replies. We have decided to go with the June one, as June does seem to be more manageable heat-wise.

This is being cross-posted, as Istanbul is one major port along with the other Greece ones for our question.

We are contemplating which one to take next summer between the one on Celebrity Equinox in June and the one on Emerald Princess in July. Both will be 14-day Athens to Rome (by booking B2B).

For comparable price, we can get mini-suite on Emerald or Concierge on Equinox.

Pros for us for Equinox

- right at the beginning of the summer, so easier for scheduling and more manageable temperature, and hopefully cheaper flights

- repeat port of Athens on the second leg, so that no pre-cruise tour will need to be planned

Cons for Equinox

- repeat ports of Mykonos and Kusadasi, both of which we have been to before

- shorter port time in Istanbul (1pm arrival on day-1 and 5pm departure on day-2 – will this be enough time to visit the major sites without shopping anyway?)

- smaller bath room and cabin

Pros for us for Emerald

- laundry room

- bath tub means easier shower

- bigger cabin

- longer port time in Istanbul (4 hours extra on the morning of day-1 and 4 hours extra on the evening of day-2 for B2B hand-off, as compared to Equinox)

Cons for Emerald

- middle of the summer means hotter weather, more expensive plan tickets, and possible conflict with family’s summer activities or kids’ summer job

Neither of those will take us to the next level of the “frequent traveler” membership. So this does not really matter. It is possible when we actually look at airfare, the cost of airfare can be the deciding factor, as we don’t have enough miles for free tickets. Assuming food and service are comparable between the two ships, does one do Mediterranean better than the other? Or does the assumption hold in the first place?

Thanks in advance for any insights.

This is being cross-posted as Istanbul is not included for this sub-forum, and we have question on that port.

We are contemplating which one to take next summer between the one on Celebrity Equinox in June and the one on Emerald Princess in July. Both will be 14-day Athens to Rome (by booking B2B).

For comparable price, we can get mini-suite on Emerald or Concierge on Equinox.

Pros for us for Equinox

- right at the beginning of the summer, so easier for scheduling and more manageable temperature, and hopefully cheaper flights

- repeat port of Athens on the second leg, so that no pre-cruise tour will need to be planned

Cons for Equinox

- repeat ports of Mykonos and Kusadasi, both of which we have been to before

- shorter port time in Istanbul (1pm arrival on day-1 and 5pm departure on day-2 – will this be enough time to visit the major sites without shopping anyway?)

- smaller bath room and cabin

Pros for us for Emerald

- laundry room

- bath tub means easier shower

- bigger cabin

- longer port time in Istanbul (4 hours extra on the morning of day-1 and 4 hours extra on the evening of day-2 for B2B hand-off, as compared to Equinox)

Cons for Emerald

- middle of the summer means hotter weather, more expensive plan tickets, and possible conflict with family’s summer activities or kids’ summer job

Neither of those will take us to the next level of the “frequent traveler” membership. So this does not matter. It is possible when we actually look at airfare, the cost of airfare can be the deciding factor, as we don’t have enough miles for free tickets. Assuming food and service are comparable between the two ships, does one do Mediterranean better than the other? Or does the assumption hold in the first place?

Thanks in advance for any insights.

Thank you for the information. We will go ahead and inquire then.

Our upcoming cruise will arrive in Bora Bora at 8am on Christmas. Do stores/activities pretty much shut down on Christmas? Not sure if I should go ahead and reach out to the tour companies if they are not open. Thanks for any insights.

Thank you all for confirming that asking to get a better pricing is okay. Sorry for the original confusing post, as my head was spinning with the prices among the initial saving, updated pricing, and the complexity that comes with the latest Princess sale.

So I got in touch with my TA. They talked to Princess and now have gotten me just an incredible overall saving. My agent definitely is a keeper. Thanks again to you all as well.

I booked my Dec sailing in Jan with my TA when it was too far out for eZAir pricing. Saw lately that Princess is running a sale. Upon checking the price online and seeing the price drop, I contacted my TA about that. She dropped our total of 8K+ by 1800 (though losing my original 200OBC)!

Got home and was ready to book the eZAir. Well, it turns out that if I add eZAir to my existing booking, it costs another 1200 more than a new booking with the lower price (and 200OBC) along with eZAir booking at the same time. The stateroom next to mine is still available in the same category.

So basically, the total of cruise fare plus eZAir, booked through my TA saves me 400 compared to a new booking with Princess directly with air, 200 if counting the new booking will also include 200OBC.

I am not sure if I should ask my TA to cancel my current booking and rebook under the sale to include air? My take is that my TA is discounting a lot basing only on cruise fare, and if I rebook, I hope it can be a win-win. I am still saving money now, so I really don't want to make this cancel-rebook to ruin the relationship with my TA. Any insight is greatly appreciated.

scubagirrl - Thank you very much for such a quick response. Wow, not even lobby. We will look into some culture/food tours then. Thanks again.

We will be in Nassau on 12/2 (Sun) with Oasis during 7am-2pm. Given the vast information provided in this thread, we are deciding against the waterpark and beach tours/passes (short time in port, cooler water temp, limited beach access if not a hotel guest). Oh, we are also going through an aquarium burn-out. So if we just taxi over or ferry over to Atlantis, what can we see or experience both inside and outside on the resort grounds? Appreciate any insights.

Cassamanda and The_Big_M, Thank you both for the direction and recommendation. We will put the direction to good use.

My 10-year-old and I will arrive in Sydney on 12/23 (Sunday). We will have one suitcase and one carry-on. To go to Inter-Continental, would you recommend the train or taxi for us? Thank you for your advice.