BuckeyeMark

2 hours ago, cruz.n.carebear said:

We are a group of 12 (11 adults and 1 4-yr old) going to Flam in August.  I just checked the day that we will be there, and on Norways Best all time slots are sold out except for an 8:25am departure.  We are on the MSC Euribia, and our arrival time is 8am.  Do you think that's possible to make?  If not, are there any other suggestions for our group?

I'll be there in May and can give you a report but my guess is no. Keep checking - slots will open up. I don't know if they add more cars or people on the cruise excursions cancel when their final payment is due and they decide not to go on the cruise but keep trying.

Thanks everyone.

Trying to assess lunch options once we get on the Apex. Will one of the MDRs be open or is it head to the Ocean View and battle the crowds there?

11 minutes ago, Island2Dweller said:

Nothing new in this, it's been a rule for years.

You are unlikely to be stopped at customs - it is a "non event" for 99% of travellers.  The customs officers work on intelligence and are generally targetting certain travellers.  That said, there are occasional random stops and if you have controlled drugs (especially opiates) without the original containers and prescription then you can be in serious trouble.

That is what I figured.  Thanks.

Evidently you should bring a copy of your prescription and meds should be in original bottles to bring them into the UK? I have traveled into London's Heathrow airport and never encountered this before.  Anyone got a word on this? Is this something folks know not to be worried about or am I misreading something here?

See https://www.gov.uk/guidance/controlled-drugs-personal-licences

9 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

1) If you love coffee from big chains like Starbucks, order your CAB (Cafe Al Bacio) coffee with an extra shot

2) With coffee enjoyment, while overall taste is a huge factor, the caffeine content is also a huge factor right behind the taste; it can make even "battery acid" tasting coffee drinkable

3) Starbucks has the highest amount of caffeine of the major coffee chains which in part is why it's so addictive for many

4) Light-roast coffee usually has more caffeine than dark-roast coffee

5) The big difference between coffee and espresso is that espresso uses high pressure which creates a layer of fat called crema (many call it "froth") on the top

A couple of notes:
 

* Starbucks does not have the highest caffeine amount of major coffee chains (see https://www.timeout.com/uk/news/revealed-the-coffee-chains-with-the-most-and-least-caffeine-in-their-cups-020123 and https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/leticiamiranda/who-is-the-king-of-caffeine)

* Light roasts may or may not have more caffeine - https://www.kickinghorsecoffee.com/caffeine-myths-dark-vs-light
 

* Crema isn't a layer of fat but a layer of carbon dioxide bubbles, kinda like when you pour a can of soda over ice - https://www.nicolebattefeld.com/post/what-is-crema-and-why-is-it-important

Can you get a hole punched in your SeaPass or does that mess it up? Can we go to Guest Services and have it punched? That makes it a lot easier to carry on a lanyard!

It's not the greatest snorkeling I've ever had but worth it to bring some gear and go see the shipwreck and other fun stuff - we saw some good fish.

1 hour ago, DaKahuna said:

 

Nothing beats "midwatch coffee" on a Navy ship around 0400.  Large 25-cup pot put on at about 2300 the innards with the grounds removed and by 0400 it had re-boiled a few times.  You could almost stand a spoon up in a cup of it.  Talk about an eye opener.  
 

 

And thank you for your story. That sounds like some powerful coffee!  Thank you for your service too!

13 hours ago, SemperFi_Cruiser said:

Hey Mark, I think I can relate to your coffee tastes...

 

Started drinking coffee with my Mom around age 8...Well, there you have it!  Fast forward, 1 tour in Vietnam with USMC, coffee-making involved a gas burner, a 30-gallon pot, and when the water boiled a 5lb bag of ground military grade coffee was dumped in....After a few minutes you dipped your metal coffee cup in (not too deep to avoid grounds) and Viola!.  Needless to say all of us coffee afficionados loved it!  Still like it strong to this day, usually stock up on French Roast, grind my own beans and love, love, love it El Strongo!! (As I grew older and away from home for years, when I did visit my Mom - (the root of coffee evil in my life) I had so evolved in my strong coffee tastes that she would not allow me to contaminate her Bunn coffee machine, I always had to bring my own pot and brew my own whenever I visited. LOL!

 

We're taking our first cruise on Celebrity later this month, on the Apex.  Looking forward to sippin' what I call "ship's coffee," i.,e. whatever they brew in the big urn in the buffet area.  On past cruises I've always enjoyed "ship's coffee" more than the jazzed up overhyped stuff at the pseudo-Starbucks places.

GREAT STORY! Thank you for your service!!!

4 hours ago, Ellian said:

I second that - just got one and its great - Question: on the Celebrity Beyond (Concierge class if that makes a difference) can i request a kettle to boil water or should I bring my own? I make my wife a 'good' coffee every morning and would rather not have to leave the room to get hot water etc. 

You CANNOT bring any kind of kettle or water boiling device. Celebrity categorically prohibits any thing that generates heat like that. Ask a room steward for a kettle .... or go fetch hot water in the OVC.

3 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

 

We have asked for and received a kettle on every Celebrity cruise we have taken.  We enjoy Japanese and Chinese Green Tea and bring our own tea, even though Tea Forte that we like a lot is available, with us on every cruise so we can have the tea we enjoy in our room. 

 

 

 If this was a dangerous as you say I am surprised ship's still provide them and that I am not seeing coverage in the press of all these ships burning down. 

 

 

Little known fact: the Titanic did NOT hit an iceberg.  It was a kettle that started a fire that did her in! 😂

42 minutes ago, snohorules said:

 

I'm planning on asking for a kettle as well, but past CC searches give mixed signals on whether kettles are available on North America cruises. I found some people having success, and others being told there aren't any.

I love hearing "there are no kettles." You KNOW there are coffee makers/kettles/Keurigs in the suites. These beasts do exist. And I know a guy who once liberally tipped his cabin steward to find and capture such a beast out in the wilds and guess what? A KETTLE APPEARED IN HIS ROOM!🤣

2 minutes ago, StopTheWorld said:

I’m sure you can ask for a kettle for your cabin. They have them onboard for the UK departures where kettles and tea/coffee are automatically placed in every cabin. 

You are correct.  However, if you say anything about kettles here on CC you end up in a roaring debate about them because many are sure that they are a conflagration just waiting to happen. They're dangerous. They burn ships down (apparently every day). Asking for one shows you don't know anything about ship's wiring and the danger you are inflicting upon everyone.

They also have them on every UK departure and a lot of Far East trips ... (rolls eyes).

I can get hot water and my handy travel grinder will make short work of what I need for my AeroPress. There will be good coffee on this cruise! 🙂

4 hours ago, bundtkate said:

I haven't tried Celebrity yet, but the only cruise line I've found to make acceptable coffee outside the suite areas is MSC and even then it depends on who makes it. Haven coffee on NCL was acceptable, but their cappuccinos were far too hot and had more milk that I'd choose. Even Viking River's coffee was mid at best. I've also never seen a proper tamp on a cruise ship. They have those tampers attached to the machine which is just wrong. You can't possibly tamp with adequate pressure if you're pushing up onto a fixed place tamper. You gotta put it on the counter and put your shoulder into it a bit. But, hey, Celebrity may well be the one that breaks the mold. As a fellow snob going on Apex next year, I'll be keenly interested in your thoughts if you try it out.
 

At home, I have a Breville Barista Express which is actually doing me dirty right now and hasn't pulled a decent shot in a few weeks, but we're working on getting our groove back. I also worked as a barista at an indie coffee shop in the midwest throughout college and law school so after 7 years of free espressos made from beans roasted on site that day, there's simply no hope for me on a cruise. I've found I do best either bringing along an Aeropress with some pre-ground (desperate times ...) vacuum sealed beans or embracing my inner basic millennial and drinking lattes that taste less like coffee and more like dessert.

Absolutely tremendous post ... and you are so right about tamping!
Try a Timemore Chestnut C3 the next time you travel. It fits IN the AeroPress and does a fine job. Fresh ground coffee beans and an AP is the ticket!

Really helpful information. Thanks everyone.  I will report back with the results of my "research" after our cruise in May.

29 minutes ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

I was think of getting an Aeropress for travel , but I decided to give coffee for tea 🤣

way easier for traveling 

Oh no - now you'll have the tea nerds on here talking about how they travel only with fresh tea leaves, what the best immersion brewer is, how to purify the water and more! LOL

This information is tremendously helpful. Thank you so much. If I didn't know this I might choose to sleep in and get up around 7:45 and "go into town" instead of being on deck early to SEE WHAT WE CAME TO SEE: NORWAY!

The information here is exactly what I'm looking for. Props for "travel french press" and "La Marzocco" (envy!). 

We haven't sailed Celebrity in years but this is exactly what I feared. So many cruise ships have fabulous equipment and absolutely untrained baristas. I've seen steam wands with so much dried and crusty milk on them I wonder if they'd ever been cleaned. I've seen espresso shots "pulled" that ran in under five seconds.
Sigh. Guess we'll be packing the trusty AeroPress...

12 hours ago, GORDONCHICK said:

We did 9 days post cruise on our own and it was very easy and much less expensive.  We had several favorite things we did/visited.  One of my faves was white water rafting around Denali.

Please post details on how you managed the DIY - did you use a guide, book your own hotels (which one), who you used to go rafting, etc. This sounds very hopeful and we'd like to try do the same thing. Any and all info on that would be much appreciated!

We don't want to miss these fabulous fjords but the cruise line doesn't necessarily tell you when they are entering the fjord. So I'm looking for information here. If we are in Flam at 8 AM when will the ship start the fjord? If we are in Geiranger at 8 AM when will the ship enter the fjord? Are there notable sights not to miss - like the Seven Sisters waterfall and how about how far are these into the fjord?

Kinda worried this thread could get sideways ... not meaning to offend anyone who loves drinking day-old diner coffee that is reheated in a rusty microwave with a dash of stagnant pond water added for flavor (hey, if you like it, enjoy it! no judgment!) but I'm looking for folks who enjoy a pour-over, a V60, an Americano, an AeroPress and especially people who grind beans fresh before they make a coffee (Coffee Nerds Unite!) ... how's the coffee on the Apex? 
If they can make good coffee then I don't have to schlep a lot of gear on my cruise. Who's had good coffee on the Apex and how do you normally make coffee at home? Please: no comments or judgment on us coffee geeks. Let's keep it centered, folks: coffee nerds, how's the coffee on the Apex?

How important is it to get the time exactly right? Our group is stopping by Stonehenge on the way down and is scheduled to be at the port at 1:30. So we put 1:30 for wellness check, right? What if we're late? I figure that it won't be a big deal but need a more definitive answer.  What should we put as our wellness check in time if we are sked to be at the port at 1:30?

The thread below covers this question but am interested in anyone who has gone out of Southampton recently to see if we can still do the wellness check on the app before we arrive at the port or if there is a "real" appointment?
 

Looking for May-June 2026 Mediterranean. So ... May June 2024?

53 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

On boarding day?  Wouldn't a sea day be easier.

Everyone is trying to get settled in and luggage is filling the hallways.

Just a thought.

We have sea day activities for our group too... really important to spend a few minutes (it's a short hunt) getting everyone up and around the ship, finding the key venues, etc. We make sure it doesn't interfere w/anything.