mitz18

with an un-airconditioned room (as we both know)....

Your feeling is correct and that's how we felt. Answer - no. Others will tell you to close the dividers and you'll feel like your on a balcony. I disagree and have been in two IVs. You will feel like you have three walls around you (behind you & each side) and a open glass window in front of you. Don't take me wrong, you'll still hear the ocean, maybe feel the wind, & if like us you have rain on a sea day, you'll enjoy the extra space in the cabin. But IMHO it will NEVER feel like a standard balcony because it is not. Enjoy it for what it is - and infinity view room. And PS, regardless of what you read on CC, when the window is open the a/c in the room is off - even with the dividers closed.

took the words out of my keyboard 😀

Like Renee, we always compare distances from an elevator even going as far as using a ruler to compare deck from deck. Not an exact science of course, but so far for us has been close enough. We seem to notice more noise being below the pool than the cafe - at least the cafe has some carpeting.

In theory - and RCL can be rather theoretical from time to time - your GTY room is not firmly assigned until check-in. You are guaranteed the category (ie Jr Suite) but no a specific room. This was told to me by the agent in the Diamond Club. However, as Mommabear indicated, believe it is rare for them to change it once it is shown on the bar code. Enjoy

Chops is nice - hope you enjoy it. If you reserve it in advance, you can charge to a credit card or you can use OBC if you have any. If you reserve onboard, it will be charged to your room account. I believe the price will be + grats, but you can check on-line. But keep in mind if the service is really good, you can give more tip, either charged to your account or cash at the table. Amount of tip is purely an individual thing.

One thing to look at is how many days you'll be on board. If every day is a port day and you plan to go ashore every day, you'll drink less on board. If there are several sea days or you tend to stay onboard during port days, you may drink more on board. As said by others, the general breakeven is around 6-8 drinks per day. If you're not really a "drinker", just pay as you go.

and privacy is an issue when curtains are open.....

Was on the Dawn in January from San Juan and actually got to go to Montserrat. Everyone on board was great and she is now our favorite ship. Glad you had a good time

Thank you for the honest thoughts and I look forward to hearing about the next cruise. I hesitated to inquire as the sheer nature of the topic can be offensive, however one does not know if one does not utilize the experience of others. I'd be the first to admit that having been fortunate enough to travel the world also means I've been unfortunate enough to see the rude side of people everywhere. It's a part of life I guess, but would want to know what I am getting into before going as to be prepared. Thanks again for the thoughts and safe/enjoyable travels to you going forward.

Not sure - every time I call it goes directly to my "assigned" consultant so they have caller IDs routed. Might be able to try calling from a different phone but it all sounds like a hassle.

curious, how much (percentage wise) did you bid over the min to "win" the PH? Did you bid the min; 50% above; etc? Just curious w/out being too invasive 🙂 Hope you enjoy Ponant & are "welcomed"

I can see that - we decided for a deluxe veranda on deck 8 simply to avoid any deck noise and never had any issues (above or beside). Unless no choice, I'll always try to avoid being 1 lever below the pool deck on any vessel. Otherwise hope you enjoyed the Dawn - we really loved her layout and thought she was a beautiful lady.

Our original SS cruise consultant moved up/on and we were assigned a new one that seemed uninterested at best. Always hard to get a response, didn't seem to care about concerns and treated us like just another "booking" vs guests. Will never book direct w/SS again.

Sorry have been off the grid for a bit. Read & enjoyed your recap and looks like a great trip. There has been a lot of discussion regarding the feelings of “separation” between passengers & glad you did not experience that - I just wonder how much the fact yours was an “expedition” cruise and/or the small amount of passengers played into that. Not really a question; more of an out-loud thought. Again, thanks for the review & glad you enjoyed the trip.

Silversea has moved their smallest ships to expedition and have slowly moved to the 500-700 guest range. Loved the Wind (200+) when she came out & was unsure if we would like the “larger” ones. Was on the Dawn in January & although almost 100% sold out, never felt like there were 590 on board. Great layout, beautiful ship. Never been on Crystal, was in process of booking when it all went down, but do plan on trying. New SS ships such as Nova hopefully will be largest they build. It appears that Crystal ships are about same size & I presume they similarly don’t feel crowded.

VJT - not meaning to hijack a thread, but curious how your trip was. Same issues with treatment?

except the ships continue to be full or nearly full......think prices are here to stay unfo,.

Yep saw that interview as well. Basically said ships are full, demand is high, people paying the fares and there is room to increase. I don't see any fire sales anytime soon.

Sorry but is it possible she actually was on Celebrity website? If not, and she can remember what site she was on, I agree with the suggestion of calling that "agent" and seeing how they got the info. If your mom cannot remember, you can always check the "search history" on her computer to see where she has visited. Good luck

The CEO of the group (RCL) was on CNBC and discussed the prices and admitted that their pricing has increased. He also made it sound that even with the higher pricing the ships are full and he feels there is more room (& demand) to continue to increase prices. The profits are back up, demand is higher than pre-Covid levels so IMHO high prices are here to stay for a while. We booked a cruise in March and the current rate is 30% higher so in line with what you mentioned.

IMHO not Celebrity as it is not geared to young kids. Try Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, maybe Carnival. Disney would be the best - the cost might be offset by the fact there is a lot for kids to do. Look for lines whose ships have game areas, slides etc. Do an internet search for "best cruise lines for kids". Only 2 rooms if one adult and one kid in each - but would agree with "mom" above and suggest only one room

Thanks - that's what I was afraid of. Appreciate the info as my stupid app does not want to cooperate with the above mentioned suggestion 😬

I get it!!! We just normally re-hide them on same voy/ship for someone else to find - I'd forget to take it on the next voy LOL

I looked - it just says "menu subject to change" but no link to a menu. 🤔