bigbenboys

Are last cruise in Sept 2013 on Solstice had Bingo, but it was on hard cards. I only play Bingo on machines or paper. So it saved me some money. Richard

Just a bit of wine info from a recent ( Dec 28-Jan 11) Eclipse cruise . On the 4th night we brought an opened bottle of wine to the main dining room (that we had brought on board) to have a glass with dinner. We already had a bottle of purchased red from the night before, but this was white. They immediately came over and informed us there would be a corkage fee if we wanted to drink from the opened bottle of wine. As we only wanted a small glass of it, we decided not to pay the corkage and just drink the red we had purchased from them the previous night. They held the wine during the meal and gave it back to us the end of the meal.

 

We also had a bottle that was gifted to us from Guest Services but we decided not to hassle trying to take it to the dining room.

 

However, there was nothing to keep us from carrying a glass of wine in, just not the bottle.

 

M

From what I understand there would not be a fee for the gifted Celebrity bottles. Richard

When it comes to dining attire I wear what is asked in the MDR. When we dine in Blu on formal night I might wear nice jeans. Formal attire is only required in the MDR. So yes I might change into shorts after dinner. Richard

I would say the norm is 1pm to 1:30pm. Richard

We did the Solstice Sept cruise Seattle to Ensenada. The transfer Ensenada to San Diego was not to bad. We just booked the Solstice Vancouver to Hawaii. As it is not doing the west coast this year. Yes I have heard that there is no money to be made on west coast Mexico runs. Richard

Yes they are great cities. I would also look at the Aug 26 Equinox cruise. Istanbul is one of my favorite cities, it would be hard to give that up. But on this cruise you get Ephesus and Santorini and Athens. The other reason is I like the warmer weather in Aug. The other thought is to do both on a b2b. You would go to Napes twice. 1st time go to Pompeii. 2nd time take the Hop on Hop off bus. Florence/Pisa. You can see 1 city each time. Civitavecchia you can see the county side. Richard

Not everyone considers Blu the best thing since sliced bread. Personally I do not see the attraction to AQ and could care less about a heated lounger in the Persian Gardens. I don't drink tea so delivering it to me daily would be a waste of it. I prefer celebrating sail away with friends and a good drink not all alone in an isolated area of the ship. Some couples are more social than others and a table for two every night would be boring.

 

I prefer the locations of CC cabins and have never had a problem with noise of any kind. I like the extra cruise credit and extra attention but as far as AQ: I don't ever see myself springing for it. Nothing attractive about it to me.

 

Each person is different and has different priorities on their vacation. There are cruisers who don't see the point of CC. Some can't imagine sailing in anything but a suite. I have one friend that doesn't see the point of a balcony and sails in an inside cabin.

 

What I don't understand is the AQ bunch that simply denigrate those cruisers who don't extol all the virtues of Blu that they believe in as if it is some sort of shock to the senses that the rest of the world doesn't think it is a five star restaurant in Manhattan.

I could not have said it better. For us we normally book AQ or CC. In May we booked AQ because it was less then CC. Our Sept cruise we are back in CC because CC cost less than AQ. Richard

Also not true on some cruises...and not the way celebrity wants this done. It may have worked for you but we tried on one cruise and select dining sent us to blu...they would not seat us unless blu set it up.

We were signed Blu and 1 night we went to Select Dining they seated the 4 of us right way. But I have seen on CC that you might need to talk to the Maitre D'. Also ordering in Blu from the MDR may work sometimes but not always. I'm thinking that on the M class ships they may use the same kitchen as MDR. The S class ship have their own Kitchen. Anyone done the kitchen tour on both ship to see where the kitchens are? Richard

Is there anyway of knowing the location of the bed in the cabin on the Eclipse ?

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/lv?key=0AtHczoNeooladEEyVmQwWmJhaGItbFZPUFNudTFZcEE&f=true&noheader=true&gid=0

This is not mine, it is here on CC somewhere. Richard

Perhaps what he meant is you would only get two bottles of water and tea each day. It might have been an English as a second language problem. I'd give housekeeping a buzz.

 

Also, I don't recall ever getting ice with the tea.

 

Please let us know what happens. Thanks

Yes your right we did not get a ice bucket in Aqua until I asked for one on day 6. Richard

Yes our last cruise in Sept 2013 in Aqua and not have a ice bucket the 1st 5 days. I just asked for it and it showed up. Richard

We normally book AQ or CC cabins. We do like the cabin location one deck below the pool and food. Sometime the AQ cabins are less than CC. I will say that I'm not that fond of Blu, but that tables for 2 in Blu near the windows are so close together that it like a table of 4 or 6 depending where you sit. You just cant not talk to people so close. As you 2 are in your 20's I would spend the money saved on drink packages or/and excursions. It is a great part of the world. Have fun. Richard

I have not tried this. But I have heard that you might be able to get round this by booking with a different credit card. Richard

We did the British Isles - Celebrity Infinity cruise June 2013. As it is a port intense cruise I would not worry about. Richard

Before Christmas, I did however ring Azamara to check on our Azamazing Evening booking and to book another excursion. I waited an eternity for the call to be answered. (Fortunately I rang from work). When it was answered, the agent handled my queries and booking very quickly and efficiently.

 

Thanks for the Say-No-to-0870 reminder. I'd forgotten about that!

Can you use Skype via wi-fi from your mobile phone to call 0870 numbers? Richard

I believe Celebrity's marketing tactic is actually working. It seems as if they are targeting the upper-middle class 30-and 40-something's with disposable income who stay at W Hotels or other modern upscale hotels. My partner and I fit this description and we have primarily converted over to Celebrity exclusively. We have sailed Crystal and HAL and were bored out of our minds. I don't think I've ever heard loud techno music blaring anywhere on an X ship. In fact on our most recent cruise, I heard a lot of uptempo music around the ship, a 1970s night, etc. I think cruise lines like X and Crystal realize that the clientele who have been their bread-and-butter in the past, are getting too old to travel, and they have started targeting a younger demographic - X with it's "Modern Luxury" tag and Crystal with it's shorter cruises and more port-intensive itineraries. I'm I not here to debate what "Modern Luxury" consists of, but I can say that those who are part of my demographic would not find Acapella groups a big draw, nor do we find loud, abrasive music appealing - and we are the up and coming demo with the money and desire to travel that the cruise lines know will keep them in business for many years. We have been very happy with Celebrity and only stray now for itinerary.

 

 

Michael

I'm have to agree with Michael that it is working. The Acapella singer are nice to walk by. I'm not going to stop and listen. They could bring the music up to the 1980-2010 period. We tend to do cruises that are 12 to 14 days. On our last Southern Caribbean on Connie. I dont know the average age. IMO some of the people by the pool in the under cover area were sleeping: 1) Because they were partying all night? 2) Or they dont remember where their rooms are? We are taking the same cruise again, but this time on Eclipse in March. We will see what is in store for us. Richard

We really enjoyed our Solstice Class cruise in the Eastern Mediterranean. The new Solstice ship with the Elite event held in Michaels Club. Karen from England in Michaels Club was a great bartender and person. The sun and new deck 16 lounge beds. Ice Sorbet served poolside. This is what sold us on Celebrity and we stopped crusing on HAL and started crusing more on Celebrity and RCL. Richard

good evening

This has probably been asked before, but can you help us

we are both platinum members with royal caribbean

I understand points can be swapped over to celebrity

how does this work?

What level would we be?

cheers

 

mick

This is from Royal Caribean website.

Q: How do I receive equivalent recognition in Celebrity Cruises' Captain's Club or Azamara Club Cruises' Le Club Voyage?

A: As a benefit of Platinum, Emerald, Diamond, Diamond Plus and Pinnacle Club membership in Royal Caribbean's Crown & Anchor Society, you will receive equivalent recognition in Celebrity Cruises' Captain's Club and Azamara Club Cruises’ Le Club Voyage. If you are currently a member of each loyalty program, you will automatically receive benefits based on your membership level between each. For instance, if you are a Crown & Anchor Platinum or Emerald member and a Captain's Club Classic member, you will be automatically be entitled to the Select level in the Captain's Club and Explorer in Le Club Voyage . If you are a Diamond or Diamond Plus member; you will automatically receive equivalent recognition as a Captain's Club Elite member and Discoverer in Le Club Voyage. The benefits of the programs will stay independent, and the number of sailings a member accrues on each brand will not be combined. You will earn the Cruise Credit or Cruise Point for the brand you are sailing as long as you are a member of that brand's loyalty program.

If you are a Captain’s Club Select or Le Club Voyage Explorer member, then you will receive Platinum benefits if you sail on a Royal Caribbean ship. If you are a Captain’s Club Elite or Discoverer in Le Club Voyage, then you will receive Diamond benefits for the Crown & Anchor Society.

If you are a Platinum, Diamond or Diamond Plus member in the Crown & Anchor Society but not a member of the Captain's Club or Le Club Voyage and plan on sailing on Celebrity Cruises or Azamara Club Cruises, respectively, call the Loyalty Service Center at (800) 526-9723 to enroll for equivalent recognition. And please remember to provide your Membership Number whenever you reserve a cruise vacation to receive all the benefits you deserve.

My favorites are Escargot, Prime Rib, Crème brûlée and East Indian food at the Sea Side Cafe. Richard

As you have 49 days booked on Azamara. I would think hard about keeping my other sailings. Booking and paying for cruises should be easy. Might they have a auto payment system? There must be some form of a cruise agent in the UK. I just dont understand why Azamara has things so difficult. On my moblie phone I can buy a Starbucks with a app. I can take a picture of a check and depostit in to my bank account. I just shake my head in wonder at Azamara. Are these just growing pains? They only have 2 ships. Richard

But has Michael's Club been opened to the public before 7:00 previously? Hasn't it been used in the past few years as the Elite Happy Hour from 5:00-7:00?

Yes it has, but only when Elite members have been low. As you know Michael's Club is small. Most of the time it is held in sky observation lounge. Richard

Hey folks, we've never sailed in AQ; some of the posts above seem to treat it as a given that people in AQ who decide not to have dinner in Blu can readily eat in the MDR. Is this true, or do you need permission each time (if so, from whom), and might that be denied (e.g., for space issues)? I'm just trying to get a sense of how easy it is or isn't for AQ pax to eat in the MDR.

 

Thanks!

We were assigned Blu Dining on our last cruise as we were in AQ. I have heard on CC that different ship do it differently. Others have said they had to get with the Maitre d' in Blu 1st to setup eating in Select Dining. My group of 4 just went down to Select dining about 6:30 pm gave them our room numbers and they gave us a table of 4. I'm not sure if it made any difference that we are Elite Plus. Our next cruise we are back in Concierge. In May we are trying AQ again as it was cheaper than Concierge. Richard

I guess I would take it for free, but every time I look at the Deck Plans I think they created AquaClass to move these badly located cabins.

We got Aqua room for less that a Concierge. They might be asking you to take Aqua room so they can sell your room for a higher price. Ceck online for prices.

For us the locations does not seem that bad. We like the A2 locations better than A1. The food in Blu for me is not that great. Breakfast is nice, but the tables for 2 are so close. You almost have to talk to the people next to you. Blu seems to have more fowl, duck, pheasant. Just not my type of food. One night it was so bad we went to Select Dining. I had the meat loaf another night it looked like cat food. In the end I'm planning on giving Aqua another chance.

We got Aqua room for less that a Concierge. They might be asking you to take Aqua room so they can sell your room for a higher price. Richard

Are not most of the beers only available in Michaels Club. Now with Michaels Club is the new place where the Zenith level will be meeting. I'm thinking it will be closed from atleast 5 -7pm for their Capitains Club Event if not more. Richard