JFontaine

I'm not sure if anyone wrote this, but you can't rent a car in Bermuda. Cabs are fairly expensive, and sometimes hard to find when away from the port, so don't cut that last day short.  Check out the Bermuda port of call page. Bermuda is a gorgeous island, and it is somewhat shocking to me that more people from the east coast don't visit it.  

Blue Chip Club booked or upgraded into suites do not include perks, but do include amenities of the cabin.  Charter cruises might or might not include perks, and might or might not include amenities of the cabin. 

I loved the S3 for the midship location, the quiet, and the price savings. Wouldn't spend $1 more for another SS. 

Anyone see any reviews?  Thanks. 

Can you upgrade your Blue Chip room to one Sky Suite and put the kids on a pullout? Everyone would eat in Luminae. 

20 minutes ago, natshala said:

With respect, I would dispute your “average fare per night is $200.” Fuzzy math. Please identify your source.

Cruise Critic rules prohibit me from naming the travel agency website that lists cruises by price per night per person by cabin category. I went with a balcony cabin in the Caribbean for a 7 night cruise.  Sure, Europe will be more, inside will be far less. 

2 hours ago, TopoChico said:

We all knew what quality is, we paid for it and we all felt we got rolled.  

Isn't that the problem in a nutshell?  I don't know what you paid, but the average Celebrity fare per night is about $200 per person.  Take out the hotel cost, fuel, entertainment, port charges, etc. and the amount of money that you paid for your three meals a day is in Outback territory, if not less. I get that Specialty restaurants costs you more, but a good steak in Ruth's Chris is $60, plus sides, salad, dessert, tip and tax. Nowhere near what you paid on Celebrity.   Bottom line - you didn't pay for quality,  even if Celebrity tried to sell you the illusion that you did. Of course, for those paying $1000 or more per person per night on Celebrity the equation is different.   But those cruisers already know that and they aren't on Celebrity for the food. 

My condolences to you and your family. I'm glad you have many sweet memories that I hope one day bring you comfort. 

30 minutes ago, DVDmedic said:

This whole thing is very frustrating.  I’m a first responder living on disability. It takes a lot of saving and planning to go on a cruise.  And the generosity of friends and family.  And my disability payments certain having been going up.  Same as they were 3 years ago.

Maybe you will be OK sticking with the Classic package?  

I'm sure someone here will know this: whats the last day someone can upgrade on board (assuming it is prorated)?  Can a cruiser pay the difference if they want a more expensive drink? And a third alternative, if you can't upgrade per drink: just buy yourself a more expensive drink a couple of days. You might end up saving a few hundred dollars. Have a great cruise.  

5 minutes ago, drakes2 said:

Never knew that. Those decorative pillows are pretty dirty; would never put my head on them.  How would they even launder them?

They could be dry cleaned.  But they probably aren't unless they are visibly awful. I agree with you. In the very old days Celebrity used bedspreads. Yuk. 

5 minutes ago, LGW59 said:

Rather than hide them, just ask the steward to not place them back on the bed, he/she will gladly leave them where you ask them to.

Not my experience.   Supervisors do spot checks of  cabins, and anything not according to plan requires an explanation,  which attendants try to avoid. More senior attendants might have more confidence to do something not according to plan. 

I second that. Also, there are different ways to experience the Canal, and you should try as many of them as you can. Not sure if there's any public space at the front of the ship - maybe they open the helipad? I'd go there entering the Canal, you should see lots of traffic, and then the sides while in a lock, going up and down, and then aft for that view. I would camp out on the deck above the  pool while going between locks for the land view. 

2 hours ago, islabahia said:

No one cares about your Elite status.  Do you have any idea how many Elite pax there are across the Fleet?  Seems pretentious to me to mention CC status.  Those at the highest level (Zenith) rarely mention their status at all, on forums or in the ship.  CC members might want to rethink commenting on their status….JMHO.

Did you miss the part that Elites previously had priority boarding? And I can name most Zeniths on here, and that's not a bad thing. Zenith have spent years on Celebrity ships, and they know what they're talking about.  Just my humble opinion. 

33 minutes ago, spitfire13 said:

Why don't people do what they are supposed to instead of just seeing what they can get away with?  You might be able to eat an extra cupcake since you got on board earlier?

Maybe they are coming from an overnight flight. Maybe a relative is dropping them off early, because of unavoidable circumstances. Maybe a hundred other good reasons.  A little kindness is the Celebrity way. 

If you don't get a Move Up for the second leg, let the Retreat Manager know your interest in staying in a suite.  The Move Up process closes 48 hours before the cruise.  People do cancel last minute so you might get lucky through the ship. Have a great trip. 

56 minutes ago, momofmab said:

Thanks for responding!  I am used to the insane practice on other lines of people getting up before sunrise to put their stuff out on chairs (and then go back to sleep). I only need one chair because my husband doesn't sunbathe, and I don't need to be right next to the pool.  It sounds like I will be fine 🙂

If you don't need to be near the pool, head to the upper deck where you will have plenty of chairs and much more breathing room and peace.  Walk around up there  for lots of nooks that are quiet and lovely. Bring your own drink because bar staff might not come around, but that's why it's so pleasant.  There's also a large section offering shade if your husband feels like it.  

27 minutes ago, Cajuntraveler said:

DH and I will be on Soltice next month.  This will be our first experience in a Sky Suite on X. (We usually cruise in SSon HAL-no butler) We always have coffee and a lite breakfast delivered to our cabin each morning. I tip the room service waiter $3-$5 every morning.  After searching through the CC threads, it appears that our butler will deliver our morning coffee and fruit plate.  Is it appropriate to tip him/her each morning or should we only tip at the end of the 7 day cruise?  

I think most people would tip their butler on the last evening, not with each small delivery.  Have a great time. 

I think the casino does a lousy job of tracking table players. If you play an hour of craps and lose $500, chances are you will get no "credit" if you don't ask. Much different story with a slot machine which is computer recorded. I'm sure there are exceptions to this - if you have a great pit boss who gets to know you - but I haven't had this. 

3 hours ago, ggo85 said:

  As an aside, I really don't understand why the higher level suites can't get more than 2 bottles of wine (for those who only drink wine) in their cabins.  But now I'll just pay for it with OBC. 

I think experiences on this vary with the butler, but we had 4 bottles of wine (not expensive) and three bottles of Veuve Clicquot (but no liquor) on one week cruises this year.  

I always call Room Service to place the order, and it is up to them who delivers it. I wouldn't call the butler with my order for a few reasons: possibility of a mistake as it goes through multiple people, I often have special requests and I dont have to worry that its an inconvenient time. In dozens of high level suite cruises I've never had a butler say I should've placed the order with him/her. 

There's a huge difference between Luminae on Reflection and an E Class ship. On Reflection (and non-E class ships) you can order from the Main Dining Room menu with ease. On E Class you can't. I prefer the smallet and quieter Luminae on non-E class ships. 

Friday is an administrative holiday in most, if not all, Federal courts. You can look it up by googling your circuit. Does your subpoena say Grand Jury?  Unless you have gotten multiple recent deferments, I think that there is no chance this one won't be granted. I'd stop worrying. 

In my last Penthouse experience I had a lousy pre-cruise experience. I sent my usual list of 2 things: a couple of specialty restaurant reservations and a small snack for sailaway (routine, nothing fancy).  When I had no confirmation I followed up 3 days prior to the cruise and she said she was very busy,  can't confirm "yet", and then I never heard from her again. Food not delivered for sailaway and the reservations that I did get were not what I asked for. I didn't have a great experience on board either. Keep sailing in these expensive suites?  I do it for the real estate (space).  

With respect to the Lawn Club Grill, this is a prix fix lunch and there was no desserts on the menu? Or there were desserts but not the desserts you wanted? Thanks

Very observant on the bathroom.  Stalls should not be hard to get out of. Interesting what made an impression on her. Thanks to you both.