FloridaGirlLovesToCruise

Yes, those are the dates I was originally told I could lift & shift my Nov. 13, 20 cruise to, but when my TA called Celebrity they said I had a fare code of CUG (whatever that means) and even a supervisor wouldn't approve the switch.  I know I got an awesome rate for my 10 day cruise on the Reflection with all four perks in an OV room, but they won't L & S. I'm willing to go from the Reflection to the Millennium (which is not as nice a ship) and it doesn't matter.  

On 7/17/2020 at 9:15 PM, Spif Barwunkel said:

We were booked on a January 17, 2021 12 night Southern Caribbean cruise on Equinox. If that does go the itinerary will probably not look at all like the initial offering. Contacted our TA yesterday for a "lift-and-shift" to January 9, 2022 cruise with same ship and itinerary. We were Aqua Class with three perks and even though the 2022 price is three thousand dollars more for the same category, we were given the switch at no additional cost. Our new cabin is right next door. Very pleased with how that turned out.

Did you book direct with Celebrity? I tried to lift and switch my 10 day cruise on the Reflection from November 13, 2020 to the Millennium on November 29, 2021 and they told my TA they couldn’t do it. My TA even talked to a supervisor. We got a great deal on an OV cabin including all four perks to the S. Caribbean and the switch was the E. Caribbean so it shouldn’t matter. Yes, the new cruise is double the price, but I thought that was the purpose of lift & shift so you keep the same price and perks. The Millennium isn’t even as nice a ship as the Reflection (I’ve been on both). Not happy with Celebrity right now...I didn’t have any trouble switching my RC cruise. 

I was hoping it would be replaced.  Hasn't it been playing for a long time?  

Does anyone know if the show "Cats" will be replaced with a new show after the refurbishment of the Oasis?  

Can someone please tell me what time do they have the shows in the main showroom?

We are sailing on the Ovation of the Seas on May 2, 2019.  I was wondering if they have a Diamond Lounge with drinks and appetizers from 5:00-8:30 PM?  We were on the Empress a few months ago and they didn't have a Diamond Lounge and we only got three drinks per person per day loaded on our sea pass cards.  A year ago when we were on the Harmony they had a Diamond Lounge and we also got three drinks loaded on our cards.  Can anyone who has sailed on her recently please let me know...thanks.

Does anyone know if the Ovation of the Seas has a Diamond Lounge with drinks and appetizers available from 5:00-8:30 PM or have they changed to loading three drinks per person per night on your sail and sign cards?

Is there a Diamond Lounge on the Ovation of the Seas?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Thanks

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Is there a Diamond Lounge on the Ovation of the Seas?

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Don't worry, you are not alone. What I suggest is to check the board down at Guest Relations and they will have the day, location, and time of the Meet and Greet event. It is usually the first sea day at 10:15 am at the Cellar Masters. Don't bother calling Celebrity as they did not forward the numbers to the ship. Enjoy your cruise.

Thanks!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

On the April 8 cruise, so will be following closely. I can’t believe the diminishing importance of the safety drill. At first, the passengers weren’t paying attention, then the station leaders weren’t doing their jobs and now the senior officers aren’t taking the drill seriously. :o

We will be on the April 8th cruise also. I still haven't been able to sign up for the Meet & Mingle event...Bob & Ronnie

Best deal I’ve gotten this year is a five day cruise on the Empress. It goes to Cozumel & Costa Maya with two sea days leaving from Miami on Dec. 9, 2017 for $238 + tax for a total of $683 for both of us. It includes $25 OBC and we have an OV cabin on deck 8.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Has anyone done a snorkeling trip with this company?

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

We are one cabin from the back on Allure soon. Those aft boardwalk cabins get generally good reviews here as they have a somewhat decent view of the sea and a view of the aqua show:) We also have the very back one booked on Oasis in December 17:D

Hope you enjoyed your cruise on the Oasis. How did you like your cabin being in the very back? What deck were you on?

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

I will also make note that if you let your dining staff know that you have a show reservation, they will get your food to you pretty quickly. We did that one night when there was a show that we wanted to see. This particular show was one that you didn't need reservations for, but we knew we wanted to see. They got us through dinner rather quickly. Of course we opted to not have dessert that night in the dining room.

Thanks so much for all your help. Ronnie

I did read your review, but I don't remember when you said you could book the shows. You mentioned something about not being able to book a show if it was under two hours from the time you were booked for dinner. Did that ever get fixed? I was looking at some of the daily schedules you posted and Grease was at 8:00 both days I looked. If there is only an 8:00 PM show, how do we get to see it if late dining is at 8:30? Thanks, Ronnie

Sent from my iPad using Forums

No. it's for anyone booked in those neighborhood balconies. Doesn't matter who you booked with! We booked with a TA.

 

 

Lynn & Ken

Thanks. We enjoyed Johnny Rockets on the Oasis and went there for breakfast a few times. Should I see this on my cruise docs as a perk? I remember going to Johnny Rockets anytime and it was free on the Explorer of the Seas back in 2000!

Sent from my iPad using Forums

I just wanted to thank you for your excellent review of the Harmony. We will be sailing on her June 24, 2017 with our 15 year granddaughter. Our cabin will be close to the one you had and is #11713. I'm pretty sure we had your cabin #11719 when we were on the Oasis five years ago. I like this deck and location, but was wondering if I could move closer to the back of the ship should I do it? I was thinking that the new slide (the Abyss) would be too close. Do you think it matters since all the cabins can see it anyway? It looks like it takes away from the view somewhat.

Do they still have an area at the back/end of deck 11 to go out and see the aqua theater show? When we were on the Oasis, we went out there and could see the show perfectly. I have some amazing pictures of the divers. It looks like they have made most of that area into suites on all the decks now.

We also have late dining and was wondering if it is really hard to see some of the shows? Unless you sit at a small table, it looks like we could have a hard time making it...especially if you need to get there at least 30-45 minutes early. Can you make some of the shows before dinner? Do you recommend doing it that way? Also, how far in advance can you make reservations for the shows?

Thanks again for your review, Ronnie

Sent from my iPad using Forums

This is straight from the Royal Website for the Eat, Drink, Play promo. You can use at Jaime's or Sabor too which is weird because the letters I saw and the people I spoke to said the letter specifically said Jaime's.

 

 

Lynn & Ken

Is this perk only for people who book directly with RC? I am booked on the Harmony for June 24, 2017 in a boardwalk cabin and I don't remember hearing about this. Thanks, Ronnie

Sent from my iPad using Forums

I recently booked cabin # 11713 on the Harmony for June. It is one cabin closer to the back of the ship than the # 11311 you had on the opposite side. I saw where a cabin was open on deck 10 that was the third one from the back of the ship. Is that a better cabin? I wondered about being so close to the Aqua Theater. I also saw that you had a connecting cabin. Was there any problem with noise from the other cabin. Thanks, Ronnie

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Our cabin was 11311. We were on the Oasis in January, 2015 and were also in a Boardwalk balcony - 12329.

 

I believe these balconies to be a good value. I understand the concerns that some express about the "neighbors" being just across the boardwalk and the additional noise from the broadwalk area and the aqua theater but neither were an issue for my DW or myself.

 

Our last cabin was exactly halfway of the boardwalk balconies. The first time we had the very end balcony. The closer to the back you can get the better your view will be. If we sail on another oasis class ship we would only get a balcony that was on the back half of the boardwalk and avoid the top or bottom decks overlooking the boardwalk (the top b/c of the Sports Deck immediately above and bottom b/c of being so close to the boardwalk and also losing more of the already limited ocean view.

 

These are just my opinions for what they are worth.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Thanks for the review of the Harmony. We will be taking our 15 year old granddaughter on it in June 2017. I know you mentioned that you don't eat in the dining room much, but I was wondering what is a good time to go to dinner to be able to see all the shows. We have late dining, but when I looked at the schedule of shows you posted, late dining didn't seem to work very well. Also, when can you book the shows? Is it after final payment? RC's web site says they aren't available now. We were on the Oasis about five years ago and I don't remember having any trouble making reservations. Thanks, Ronnie

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Disembarking was a piece of cake. We went up to the suite lounge, ate breakfast, and Raj took us down around 8am or so. We cleared customs and were in our car by 8:30am and home in West Palm Beach by 9:30am. The hardest part was pulling my wife and son off the ship.

 

 

 

In summary, we had another excellent cruise and met some wonderful people. The ship is amazing. Well, maybe it is not so amazing for those of you who have travelled on an Oasis class ship before, but for first-timers like us – WOW. We loved Freedom last year, but this was really an eye opening experience. The food was good to outstanding, and the service was, for the most part, excellent. There were times when we felt that the staff was mailing it in, or that there was not that same enthusiasm that we experienced on Grandeur and Freedom. But, it was not enough to ruin our cruise or even make it a bad experience. My wife and I are huge Top Chef fans, and there are times when the judges need to nitpick over tiny details in order to pick a winner and a loser. I feel like that is the case with this cruise. When I compare it to previous cruises, Harmony exceed expectations in almost every category – but yet, there were just these tiny things that would keep me from making it better than the other cruises we have been on – if that makes any sense?

 

 

 

The one thing that we did learn was that you really need to do some pre-cruise planning for this ship. Most of the restaurants and shows book up quickly. We did not need to worry about the shows as we were traveling in a suite, but we had a tough time getting into some of the specialty restaurants on the days we wanted. So, a little pre-cruise planning may have fixed this issue. My wife had been following Harmony on the “social site that must not be named” and told me that people were saying that the restaurants were booking up fast, but I did not believe her. I figured that they were holding back tables, and we would be fine.

 

 

 

Let me know if you have any questions. I have all the Cruise Compasses and AO Daily Planners. I believe that most of these have already been posted in the LIVE reviews, but if anyone wants them, I can scan and upload these in the next few days.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Menus... Johnny Rockets

 

 

Lynn & Ken

Is Johnny Rockets free for breakfast?

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Don't get me started on "value for money" with cruiseline-booked hotels ;)

 

Or air, or airport transfers. :rolleyes:

 

 

 

But is it co-incidence that it's the same hotel as Celebrity, or did you trust that if its good enough for Celebrity it's good enough for you?

 

As a general rule cruise lines pick excellent and reputable hotels - but sometimes they're not in locations convenient for tourists.

 

Have you checked out that HK hotel location, & are you happy with it?

 

If for instance it's in Tsim Sha Tsui or Wan Chai, some of the sights will be on your doorstep. But if it's Sha Tin, that's a suburb & every day will start & end with a ride on the mass-transit train.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our one-and-only experience with Viator may or may not not have been typical, but the tour group was a mix of direct & agency bookings.

 

 

JB :)

Our hotel seems to be in a great location in the Kowloon area of Hong Kong. Close to the ferry, shopping and 20 minutes to the cruise terminal. We are only there two nights and have a full day tour booked our second day. It looks very nice and if Viator provides the tour as described, we should be fine.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums