PartyAllDaTyme

What happens if you miss the ship, and you don't have your passport? Isn't that going to make it a tad difficult to travel?

I have managed many ships for several different cruise lines. Occasionally in the past we experimented with confiscating alcohol one crusie and then allowing it onboard the next cruise...The directive to confiscate alcohol did not come from our Revenue Department, but from our Legal Department.

Great info, many thanks, Bruce. Fascinating that it's not revenue-driven, but it best answers the OP's question on why water and soda and not alcohol-- I've wondered that myself. Nothing like getting the story straight from the horse's mouth. I'm going to bookmark this post so I have ready reference to it during the myriad booze-smuggling threads when some self-proclaimed expert claims to have the inside dope.

For years; he's had a number of disabled cruisers book through him, but now they're finding it nearly impossible to get a cabin. the change? Well in the past you had to get the TA to phone the cruise line to get into an HA cabin, but some disabled people challenged that saying it was too difficult to book cabins, and this was an unnecessary hindrance under ADA. ADA then forced the cruise lines are forced to put a 'I need an HA cabin' as a check box, and lots of people who don't need it, select it thinking (erroneously or not) that this will get them a bigger cabin and/or bathroom.

You can't simply click the box that you need an accessible cabin and book one. Clicking the box brings up a live chat screen. Presumably, they will get back to you with the requirement that a form must be completed detailing their need. Of course, this won't stop some from lying or at least exaggerating, and cruise lines are prohibited by law from requiring proof. At least the intermediary step will give most people pause that are attempting to simply get a bigger room without needing an accessible one.

What I have issue with is that the form is not required to be submitted until 30 days before sailing. I'm unaware if this is part of the ADA laws, but if the period were reduced to 30 days after booking, this would help. If the cabin is not released until 30 days before sailing, they may have already decided to remove the HC designation from any remaining cabins, so they become fair game for anyone to book.

One thing to note is that the special needs form does not need to be turned in until 30 days before the sail date. All that's required for someone to book and hold the cabin until then is the claim to need one. If they fail to submit the form (assuming they're honest and don't lie and submit it anyway), that denies a disabled person from booking that cabin. After the deadline, X may have decided to make unbooked HC cabins available to the general public, so it's too late for someone who needs it to book it.

...the Celebrity board is your home page.:eek::rolleyes::D

I wasn't disagreeing with you, just adding that some people have no clue what is allowed because they can't be bothered to read any of the information provided to them. I have a co-worker who is just that way - they'd book a cruise, pay the price, then wonder why they are singled out upon embarkation to remove banned items from their suitcase, or didn't bother to bring anything other than jeans, shorts, T-shirts and sneakers and wonder why they aren't allowed in the MDR on formal nights. Of course, it's always the cruise line who was to blame.

Gotcha. Sorry if I took it the wrong way!:o

And then there are the people who never bother to read the information provided by the cruise line as to what to expect, even after spending thousands on a cruise: "I didn't know I couldn't bring my iron", "I didn't know smoking wasn't allowed on my balcony", "I didn't know T-shirts weren't allowed on formal night", "I didn't know I couldn't bring several bottles of scotch", "I didn't know the ship wouldn't wait for me", etc.

 

I wonder what it's like to go through life blissfully unaware of what is going on?

But the information provided by the cruise line, in the case of the list of Certain Items That Are Not Allowed On Board, does not include steamers. It does not say that there are more items prohibited than those on the list, so it would seem reasonable to assume that the list is comprehensive. You can't fault someone for not knowing that steamers are verboten if they came across this list. If someone took the trouble to get the information, found that list, and came to the conclusion that steamers apparently are allowed since they're not prohibited, that could hardly be called blissfully unaware. That's all I'm saying.

Stitch:

 

I agree the website needs some checks for consistency. I would however point out to those who wish to argue about the steamers that once boarding the ship they will face reality. Past RECENT passengers have reported that if found the irons and steamers are turned in to a special area where you will be directed BEFORE your luggage is delivered. They will explain the policy, take the item, give you a receipt and return it at the end of the cruise. If you wish to go through this because its not in one portion of the web site but is in another so be it, its your choice.

This was addressed to cruisestitch, but in response to his agreeing with my post, so--

I wasn't trying to say that since the website does not prohibit steamers in one area and does in another that this would be justification for being allowed to bring on a steamer or trying to make an issue of it. As I had said on the other thread, ultimately X can decide what's safe and what's not, regardless of what is or is not on the website. I was just attempting to point out how someone could, with good intentions to follow policy, be led to the wrong conclusion, based on steamers being omitted from the list of banned items.

For the safety of our guests and crew there are certain items that are not allowed onboard. If these are found they will be confiscated. Alcoholic beverages, illegal drugs, flammable liquids, explosives, and dangerous chemicals will not be returned.

 

•Firearms & Ammunition, including realistic replicas

•Sharp Objects, including knives and scissors*

•Illegal Drugs & Substances

•Candles & Incense

•Coffee Makers, Clothes Irons, & Hot Plates

•Baseball Bats, Hockey Sticks, Cricket Bats, Bows and Arrows

•Skateboards & Surfboards

•Martial Arts Gear

•Self-Defense Gear, including handcuffs, pepper spray and night sticks

•Flammable Liquids and Explosives, including lighter fluid and fireworks

•HAM Radios

•Dangerous Chemicals, including bleach and paint

•Alcoholic Beverages**

 

*Personal grooming items such as safety razors are allowed. Scissors with blade length less than 4 inches are allowed.

 

**Two bottles wine per stateroom are allowed on embarkation day, subject to corkage fees.

 

THIS IS WHAT IS ON THE CELEBRITY SITE UNDER WHAT NOT TO PACK

Yelling won't help. This is the FAQ page:

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/beforeyourcruise/faq/subject.do?faqSubjectName=Ship+and+Stateroom+Details&pagename=faq_questions

 

And this is the statement there:

 

 

 

Are steamers allowed onboard?

Subject: Ship and Stateroom Details

 

Steamers or irons are not allowed onboard. However, there is a full laundry and dry-cleaning service available onboard for a reasonable rate.

I addressed this on the other thread, may as well repeat myself here for the benefit of those who haven't seen it--

If one wants to know if they can take a steamer and first comes across the section on What Not To Pack, they would conclude that a steamer is permitted. Since it's not headed "Some of What Not To Pack," it can be inferred that if it's not on the list, it's okay. Only if they happen to search by perusing the FAQ would they find out it's not. One should not be obligated to search the entire website to see if they missed anything-- the What Not To Pack section is not completely accurate.

I hereby nominate NBO for New Bookings Only. Seeing as how specials so designated seem to be so much more prevalent these days, it would be handy to have an acronym for these.

I'm not aware of a comprehensive list anywhere. You could always go to the deck plans on the X website, but you'd have to scrutinize each deck. Besides, categories get reassigned from time to time, so lists could become outdated.

this is my first cruise who is going on july 2nd to bahammas

ok do yall hear me on here

Gajaheck, click this link to see my post for more info on how to use Cruise Critic--

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=29562516&postcount=15

We've brought two twelve-packs each, no problem. What we didn't finish, we left for the cabin steward. Have the cabin steward empty the honor bar fridge so you can keep your soda cool. Four twelve-packs won't fit, but we stored the excess under the bed with the luggage until they were needed. You can even put a luggage tag on your soda, but some have reported a missing can when they were delivered to the cabin.;)

We had this cabin in April. I love aft cabins but honestly not this one. Yes it us very large and yes it holds a lot if people BUT to me it is too cave like and dark. Not much sun. You do overlook the cabins below and one evening they had a party on deck and it was loud. I will also say our balcony floor was filthy and bubbled from the water dripping on it. The furniture was old and needed to be replaced. I hope they clean it up in dry dock. We usually only get aft cabins but I would not have one again in the M class ships. Donna

We noticed some bubbling in February, maybe it's gotten worse since then. We just moved a table over it. The floor was reasonably clean. We also found it more balcony than what we needed, but loved the location. It would have been a great location for a sailaway party (our neighbors in 7212 had one), but we were always too busy with shore excursions to think about throwing one together.

Steve, you were above that couple? I remember talking to the Hotel

Director about it. When the wife disembarked the PH stayed empty

the rest of the cruise. I felt so bad for her:(

Me, too. All I could say was, "My gosh, I'm so, so sorry to hear that." Kathy said she thought the wife was still aboard, since she could tell that there were sometimes lights on in the suite at night, but I figured it was the staff doing whatever they had to do to make it ready for the next cruise. I couldn't picture someone continuing on-- maybe if there's only a day left, to make return travel arrangements easier. I understand they have a morgue for just such a contingency.

Only problems (?) that I had while overlooking the Penthouse verandas from 7208 was topless sunbathing and persistent smoking by people in both suites. The one certainly was a problem, the other not so much.

I don't know how anyone can refer to persistent smoking as a "not so much" problem. This is of great concern to those of us who rely on enforcement of the smoking policy for... uh...

Oh, you mean the other problem was "not so much.":rolleyes:;):D

Absolutely take 7208. We were in it in February. IMO the only non-suite cabin that's better is 7212, but that's the accessible cabin. You're on the aft, as close to center as possible, three decks removed from the aft bar. I'd be more concerned about noise from above staying on deck 8 than from below staying on deck 7. That said, you could end up with a bunch of party animals in the PH below, but these tend to be older, more sedate cruisers-- they're typically the ones who can afford it. Besides, you might get friendly with the folks below in the PH (either one), and maybe they'll invite you down to see it.

Like you, I was a bit concerned about what our neighbors would be like. We boarded late, so didn't get much of a chance to hang out on the balcony the first night, what with getting some dinner, going to the separate muster drill for those that missed the regular one, and meeting some of our roll call members. The next morning, we were docked in St. Croix, and I strolled out to the glorious balcony to soak it all in. Below were several people, including ship's staff, clustered around a table with a sunshade covering it. I could not make out conversation, but figured that X goes all out in welcoming their VIP guests. None of my business, anyway. Before long, a man joined them wearing a shirt that identified him as a member of the St. Croix police department. Did they have a robbery?

I went back inside and came out again after we returned from breakfast. There was an older woman standing at the rail of the PH, gazing out over the ocean. Looking to strike up a conversation and possibly find out what all the hubbub was about, I called out, "Good morning! Are you enjoying the cruise so far?" "Not so much," she replied. "My husband died last night."

:eek::eek::eek:

It was very quiet for the rest of the cruise.

Oops, Dislexia setting in again! Yours is the right number. And I looked at those numbers over and over, and typed it into a documnet and pasted it in to not make errors.

Thanks for posting the list!

FYI, and you might already be aware of this, dyslexia is the condition where an affected individual transposes numbers and letters, so it would have been dyslexic if you had typed 670 instead of 760. DW has it.

The real reason I mention this is so I can tell one of my favorite jokes--

Did you hear about the dyslexic agnostic insomniac?

He lies awake in bed all night, wondering if there really is a Dog.

:D:D:D

My feedback-- did we really have to dredge this chestnut up again?:eek:

IMO, it's all been said, but if anyone has anything new to add, go for it.

BTW, welcome to Cruise Critic!

Kelby08, sorry that my comments above came off as a little harsh. This topic was very contentious back in August, and my first reaction was, "Do we really want to go there again?" I didn't realize this was your first post.

Anything is a legitimate topic for discussion, I just don't think I want to get back into this one for a while.

We kept seeing one particular couple throughout our cruise that always had their table filled with just desserts.

 

I don't believe they ever ate an entree, just dessert.

They probably put on thirty pounds each. Talk about getting your just desserts...:rolleyes::D

There's a whole 'nother thread devoted to this. I think OP was just looking for some hard numbers here, not intending to start the discussion all over again.

Thanks for the poll. I'm active on that "other thread", and I was able to quote poll results (so far) to help bolster my position.

Priceline

Courtyard By Marriott San Juan Miramar

$79, $95.67 with tax

3 star, area 2

2/5/11

This was going for $99 on 7/28.

Regular rates starting at $209-- that's 62% off!

I figure if we can afford to take a cruise, I can afford to buy a suit (or get a new one if my waistline says to:D) and, if necessary, pay the extra baggage fee for another suitcase if it comes to that (hasn't so far). My work dress is jeans and a t-shirt, usually a souvenier shirt from a cruise, so I do like to dress the part and actually look forward to formal nights. Knowing about formal night going in, I buy into it as part of the overall cruise experience. I keep it as light as possible-- skip the undershirt, light cotton dress shirt (I take two different colors to change the look), collar wide enough to comfortably button the top button, I don't even notice the tie. If DW can go through the effort of dolling up for formal night, I figure I can easily do my part as well.

To me, not much difference between a suit coat and a sports jacket, so why not dress to the nines? However, I can appreciate those that have to wear a suit and tie to work wanting to skip it. When we get to the point financially that we can cruise so often that it becomes onerous to dress up for formal night, I'll gladly go the buffet or room service route.

On Solstice in January, there was an older crewman helping hand out towels and asking returning cruisers if they were enjoying themseles. He was in uniform, but it was more of a duty uniform than dress whites-- just one of many Celebrity underlings going about his assigned duties for the day. It wasn't until I was reading a post about Captain Demetrios Kafetzis that I realized that the "crewman" was in fact most likely the good Captain himself:cool:!