hillbilly73

Just Read there have been 19 Murders this year in St Lucia already. Anyone have any safety issues with St Lucia.

 

The actual number is 9 not 19 while it is tragic it is appears to be the correct number. We stopped there in November and hired a driver at the port they will only take you to relatively safe areas and know the island. We felt safe with our driver.

 

https://www.stlucianewsonline.com/police-update-on-9th-homicide-of-2017/

I think Celebrity got what they wanted out of it. I didn't see New Year's Rockin eve live but sure millions did. Check out the youtube video from the show.

 

We are booked through Celebrity on a excursion to St. John. When they docked at Havensight it was my understanding that they departed right by the port. Now that they are docking at Crown Bay where is the boat to St. John for their excursions leaving from?

 

Al

Thanks al. If you could just let me know if the hotel is in good shape. Are there restaurants near by. Was the pool nice. Just the basics. Have a great cruise

 

 

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Will do.

We will be there 2 weeks from today short stay pre cruise but if you have any specific questions I can follow up.

 

Al

Casablanca and Monastery Arts are both excellent if you like to try something different and unique.

I googled smooth Jazz Cruise and found a website for a organization who says they have doing these themed cruise for 15 years. They are showing 2 cruises on the Summit Feb 10,2018 and March 10, 2018.

 

There is no indication of whether this is a charter but they have a very large line-up of entertainers. It looks like lots of jazz day & night including late night shows.

 

For A Sixth? and the others if it is full charter isn't relevant although it appears to be. They are booked on a 11 day that disembarks in San Juan on the 10th. The Jazz cruise is advertising embarking from Fort Lauderdale the same day. The Summit may be a fast ship but she is not that fast.

 

http://www.thesmoothjazzcruise.com/

Take a taxi from the port (if at the Pan American pier) to Barrachina's they will store your luggage and then you'll have the rest of your time to wonder around Old San Juan or take the free trolly to the forts...this is so easy to do on your own...no need to pay for a tour...then taxi to SJU.

 

That is our plan for a 3:35 PM flight.

Cozumel is wonderful so wonderful that often passengers will just decide to stay and not come back to the ship. The Captain gets to announce the winners of the "please contact customer service" contest just before we leave each time. The lowest number we have had is 4 the highest is 8 winners. The trouble is most have to wait until we return to home port to claim their prize.;)

 

Actually the snorkeling and diving is tremendous . The locals are very friendly and the people watching by late afternoon is the best.

 

Al

We were on the same cruise as the OP and we are simple in our wine tastes so can't comment on the knowledge of the sommelier but I will say they were always there within a minute or two of setting down inquiring about our needs and our glasses were never empty before someone was asking if we needed another glass. Yes we had the drink package so our service was always by the glass. We did bring a local wine we always toast or anniversary with and they were very good explaining the corkage fee and the cost. Which is on the high side in my opinion.

 

Shore excursions we did three from the ship which is out of character for us. One was a big disappointment due to a change by the vender that really changed the feel of the day trip. My wife went down and brought it to the shore excursion desk she did not request any refund just wanted to make sure they knew. Within a few hours we had a message from them thanking us for bringing it to their attention and a unsolicited 25% refund. Our other 2 were last minute and great including a Catamaran trip on St. Kitts. Also a short afternoon trip on St. Thomas to join friends and eat some OBC that turned out great.

 

Al

Anyone looking at this excursion beware it has changed they no longer drop you off at White bay they stop at a small pier unload and wait on open air taxis and take you across the island to Whites bay. Then you have to wait on the open air taxis again to take you back to the small pier load up on the boat again to take you back . This is not the way we were told it would be and cut your time on JVD by at least a hour in loading unloading and travel. Since Royal uses even the same coding number it probably is the same for their ships. This is not worth the money until they change it back to a beach drop off in Whites bay.

 

Al

Anyone know what bar they drop you off in front of on the Celebrity excursion to JVD?

The reality is if someone is onboard with a service dog and you are allergic that in effect doesn't matter. Allergies are not a disability and if allergic you can leave the area to avoid the dog.

 

If only it were that simple. The real problem can occur after the animal has left the ship. Well trained service animals shouldn't be a issue. People that just bring their pet on board usually let them on the bed the couches chairs whatever is in the cabin. That is a lot of pressure on the steward on turn around. Trust me even if it isn't easily visible leftover pet dander is still a allergen if it contacts an allergic person. To many people think it is just a simple sneeze or two and that is it in my case casual contact in a open area that is usually the case but if it is lingering in the room and contacts my person lets just say it can be a ugly site.

 

Al

I booked the March 6th sailing in Mid-March 2015 and definitely got the 1,2,3 Promo. That being said, is it possible the deal your TA got you was a group rate that didn't include teh 1,2,3?

 

Also, since you dealt with a TA it's next to impossible to get anything out of Celebrity... just in case the TA is wrong, call Celebrity and ask how much to upgrade your drink package to the premium package. On the off chance you have it they can definitely quote you on that.

 

Funny we have a group booking with a online agency that the contract with the TA shows similar perks just little less OBC. When final payment came up they didn't charge my credit card. I called the TA and they said I hadn't paid gratuities and has select dining told them it was included according to the invoice from them. " Oh yea it does" was the response credit card was charged that day. I knew they wouldn't talk to me at X so I called and upgraded successfully the wife to premium package which I was going to do anyway. Sort of a back door confirmation I hope. Dealt with this online agency 5 other cruises with no issues but after the confusion figured better safe than sorry.

 

AL

Agree with the posts above in today's world a week is to long for web site problems. Especially with the overall feeling about their website. Hopefully the management team understands the importance of a functioning web page and will make the necessary changes including personnel changes if needed to fix the issues.

 

Al

I would guess the decision to stop will be made at a higher level than the captain by corporate before a ship sails. It looks like Princess has a ship stopping on October 5th with just under a month, looking to them to possibly be the first to announce if stops are cancelled. Hoping all stops go as planned.

 

Al

RBLK thanks for the post we are on the Summit this itinerary in February we are going to dive Dominica and St. Kitts. Let me echo thanks to all that posted replies. Please come back and report after your cruise.

 

Al

The situation cruise wizard describes if that person is not actually a veteran is illegal under the federal "Stolen Valor" law.

https://www.southwest.com/flight/request-schedule.html?clk=GFOOTER-FLY-FLTSCHEDULES

 

Link and yes the release date can and often does change so check back a couple of times between now and then. Also there is sticky at the top of the page that follows all the airlines that have the defined release dates that don't follow the 330 day system.

fbgd- Online options were down so resorting to actually talking to someone had to be done.

 

Zach- Probably no savings at all just normal business. I didn't have the courage to ask but she books a lot of groups and always adding and subtracting travellers. One reason they book so many flights with Southwest.

All right now this sale is getting out of hand. I am not getting my dinner prepared they went too far. Called my wonderful business Travel Agent wife on the way home and the response I got when I asked if " should I grab a sandwich or something" you would of thought there was a volcano in Greenland or something.

 

 

Seriously she said she had a almost 6 hour on hold time once today so if you are trying to book bring some patience.

Why do some of you feel the need to trash Southwest on a simple thread pointing out a sale? No really don't want an answer just trying to direct us back to the point of the thread. Yes I realize my reply below is very briefly explaining why Southwest is a factor at least at one airport.

 

Southwest is the dominant airline for a lot of locations at KCI they are around 45% of all flights so that number alone means for the majority of us that fly economy anyway they are going to be one of our options, often offering nonstops to locations that require a connection on other airlines. This sale is saving a lot of folks at least some money. I would like to hear more from folks that got the sale price or from those that didn't and why their flights didn't qualify.

Didn't save any on cruise airfare yet but saved almost $250 dollars from our September vacation flights. Now thats a start when we book our February cruise fares on the 30th.

 

Al

[quote name='sparks1093']Good, but the whole thing still leaves a bad taste in the mouth.[/QUOTE]

Agree the timing to coincide with the $7.95 room service charge cancels out the NCL stated explanation of keeping hallways clear as the reason for the ban in my book. I hope they learned a valuable lesson that an informed and knowledgeable customer will and can see through a smoke screen.

Yes I'm afraid so, but there are places less busy than Soggy $

 

 

Thanks