huskerc

When you say early--how early? We self-disembarked the Equinox after a very crowded Thanksgiving cruise last year and were at FLL by 8AM. This was even after the walk-off was delayed by about 15 minutes.

I got the message (US) as well.

My bad, you are correct here.

 

Strange the letter talks about Select diners being affected, even though the space being worked on is in the assigned dining sections.

 

Definitely deck 3 starboard side on the S class.

 

I agree. And it was definitely mentioned as being part of deck 4 earlier, but (perhaps in this thread) there was a clarification that engineering concerns moved it to deck 3 (on S-class at least).

 

I wonder if they are doing some fixed seating on the upper level now?

The other thread where Arno is chronicling the installation in pictures, it's clear to see the install is going on on the upper (select) dining section of the MDR.

From those pictures it seems clear to me that the lower section is what has been cleared out.

7 nights? I wouldn't pay $600 for Aqua. However would you be going from 1 perk from 1-2-3 to all three perks? That basically pays for itself. Otherwise, you're probably still coming out ahead buying one persian gardens pass and the ultimate dining package.

We've enjoyed NCL and for a strong enough difference in itinerary (Alaska/Glacier Bay or Hawaii) will still choose it, but definitely prefer X.

Our very large 29" luggage fits under the S-class beds with no issue.

Assuming they're being above the board about the fact that this is a gratuity (i.e. going to staff), it's probably an adjustment in response to staff not making as much with drink packages being very widespread. I think most people are pretty amenable to paying 3% more for the staff to get an increase.

 

As for people coming from cultures where tipping isn't the custom--so what. In the US, this is the custom.

We ate there twice on our recent sailing. The first time it was so-so. A few dishes were very nice. The second time was with friends who knew a bit more than we did--that you could order the dishes to be spicier based on your preference. We liked the second time much better and would definitely go back again.

 

Best advice is to try a lot of dishes and let the staff know what you like.

Thanks!

PS I notice you are huskerc, but in Indianapolis--formerly from Nebraska??!!

 

Yep! Born there and lived half my life before coming here. GBR!

Yes. The 1-2-3 offer is available whether you take the OBC on the future cruise or the current cruise.

Venice has implemented some restrictions on larger ships. Did you look at the Constellation?

Does everyone else show the "added" price of the Bev Package and then the reduction showing it's free? It's not that way on my guest copy, just the reduction - hence that price shows as $686 less to pay than it does online

My guest copy shows both the gratuities (SWF4-123GOPROMO3) and the drink package (SUL9-CHARGE) being added and then subtracted for a net of 0. Then $300 OBC is shown in the next section.

Still no for the M-class ships.

For reference, I have a March cruise on the reflection that we originally booked in concierge without 1-2-3 because it was a special deal. We're after final payment, but prices dropped to the point that it made sense to pay the full fare as long as we could get the 1-2-3 all-in promo.

 

Working through my TA, Celebrity OK'd this without an issue. For $125 we went from C2 to A1 and added all 1-2-3 promo perks.

 

I suspect you could get this even without having used a TA--it's just a matter of calling back enough times to get the right person at X.

My current reservation was booked by TA. We received all 3 promotions.

My booking confirmation was not showing the OBC. I know from past post

Celebrity is slow to post. My question is, its now 6 weeks later and when

I view order history I only show Beverage. Should I be seeing gratuities

and OBC in order history.

I don't usually book with a TA so I miss having full access to my reservation.

Elaine

 

I have booked every Celebrity cruise through a TA and have never seen any form of OBC (from Celebrity or otherwise) show up online. I do not see it for any of my current reservations, but they all do have OBC attached.

 

I do see these reflected on my TA's invoice.

 

Generally I book onboard so I have that booking as confirmation. In the case of our upcoming March cruise I have a copy of our "Booking Confirmation - Guest Copy" from Celebrity (by way of TA) that clearly shows my Celebrity OBC (but of course does not show my TA OBC).

Go for a few days without and see what you think. You can buy it pro-rated until (I believe) the last three days.

I was a little disappointed in our most recent cruise. Upon boarding I discovered one of us had the 1-2-3 beverage package and the other did not. Of course this is impossible--the 1-2-3 perk choice is per reservation, not per person. It was straightened out, but it did increase my resolve to make sure this is all verified pre-boarding.

I was planning on upgrading from classic to premium, if I ordered a glass of wine which was .50 over the $13 will they just charge the difference or full $13.50?

 

Yes with the premium package. You cannot do this with the classic package.

So many benefits because so much money. Not sure what's hard to understand about that, but more to the point, I'm not sure what's bothersome about that.

 

If you go to a restaurant and order a burger, and the guy at the next table orders a steak, are you mad that he got something better than you? Even if he paid more?

Thank you HuskerC. I see it listed there! Now I can sleep. Thanks for your quick reply.

 

 

Glad to be of help! Another thing to know--this is one of the things celebrity will talk to you about directly without requiring you to go through your TA. If you call enhancements and inquire about upgrading to the premium package, they will first verify that your reservation has the classic package.

It's not always obvious online if you have booked through a TA. You can ask your TA for a copy of Celebrity's guest copy of the booking confirmation.

 

Currently I have three upcoming reservations which all qualify for 1-2-3. Under each one, if I go to "View Reservation" then "Order History" I see the classic beverage package for two with a cost of $0.

I guess big eater is a matter of perspective. I don't find the portions in Blu to be particularly small and I have certainly never left dinner there hungry. Never could I imagine hitting the buffet right after dinner.

 

I also think it's probably rare that anyone who paid for Aqua decides to switch to the MDR. I'm sure it happens though.

 

In any case--Blu is like any other dining venue on the ship. They will aim to please you, so if there is something you want more of, just ask.

[quote name='wallysdtr']We also booked in March onboard. I just made a change yesterday and it worked out great. I did have to call back because the first rep I talked to was not so helpful. We changed from Concierge to Aqua Spa guaranteed cabin and also got the 1-2-3 Go. We did pay the difference and actually financially came out ahead by paying the difference because of the additional onboard credit. The young lady I worked with yesterday was awesome. I wish you luck and remember to call back if the first rep doesn't want to help. they might be able to do something today! give it a try.[/QUOTE]

Thanks. We were successful as well. In the end we paid $125 to go from C3 with no perks to A1 with full perks, so I'm going to declare that a success.

And as mentioned--call back if you get the wrong answer. Lots of people have success with this. Celebrity isn't going to refund you any money if prices drop, but they will work with you to upgrade based on the price you paid vs. the new pricing.

At the same price, all things considered, Celebrity is a no-brainer choice over NCL.

 

Celebrity is a bit quieter and definitely more formal than NCL. However you can find some bar (Martini or nightclub) open at least past midnight, and there are always buffet options.

 

NCL's specialty restaurants are OK but do not compare to Celebrity's.