TeachKinde

Thank you! I’ll do that. 
 

I have a loose understanding of cruise tipping, and I understand that everyone may have different takes on this topic. We have tips paid on our upcoming cruise. We also have a drink package. It appears that our cocktail people have a pretty good built in tip structure. I’m not sure how it all works out in the MDR. I feel like it would be a nice gesture to add something for the folks that took care of us in the MDR. How would that work? However, my main question is about our cabin steward. I know they are already included in the tips paid structure, but I want to give them a bit more. When I travel, I usually tip the housekeeper five dollars a day. It’s only 35 bucks for our seven day cruise. I just want to reward the person that does the most work and probably gets the least cut. Thoughts?

We will be doing some private tours on our next trip. Anyone have guidelines for tipping day guides and van drivers? Thank you all so much!

We have one ship excursion booked. With Elite status can we get priority tendering even if it's not a ship excursion? Thank you all for your wisdom! SO excited for our next trip!

This is a tough one for me, because my DH and I do not care for Blu. We are most definitely in the minority. Tables are very close together, the service is good, but not really any better than the MDR. The food is also fine, but not to our taste. We actually asked to be moved back to the MDR on our third night on Summit because it just did not work for us. The MDR was just perfect for us. The cabins are pretty much the same, a tad larger, upgraded amenities but not worth the extra money we paid. Location of these cabins is also quite good.

 

We've tried Aqua twice, once on Infinity and once on Summit and we would not bother again. We book Concierge cabins on S class because we like the cabins with the extra large balconies at the bump out. Nicer bedding and towels and a few amenities over the standard cabin's. We eat in the MDR and we are totally fine with that and an occasional specialty restaurant.

 

I think it strictly depends how much you're willing to pay extra to eat in Blu, because that's really the big draw to Aqua class.

I too, am not a fan of Blu, however, my dear husband is. I don't find the food at Blu to be exceptional. He likes the breakfast option. Service is outstanding! I asked if I could have the Waldorf salad that was being served in the MDR and was told that it wasn't possible. REALLY? Something about the two kitchens couldn't accomodate my request. HUH! Still booking Aqua, but.... Blu is nothing special.

I can't remember if it was 06 or 08, but this is typical of those cabins:

 

 

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Thanks for the picture! I'm looking forward to my aft cabin in September!

Thanks for all of the information! Umm..... we get match plays in the casino?!!!! Tell me more! ;-) Also, on another note.... we're on the Summit.... see they have an automatic poker table in the casino. Is there ever a game going? In the past, we've seen sign up sheets but not too much effort to actually get a game going. We would really appreciate wisdom about getting a real game going!

Sorry for all the uppercase words! I got a bit too enthusiastic!

On our first few cruises we did ship excursions. We spent a LOT of time hanging around shops that we would NEVER have spent time in. Obviously the tour guide got a kickback for bringing cruise passengers to these places. We now rely on reviews on Trip Avdisor, and other similar sites, to book our tours. We've had great success this way! When you are in a port, there are MANY guides that are looking for your business. They are VERY aware of the cruise ship's schedule, and will make sure you get back in time. Our BEST tour was with Vic's Tours in Costa Rico! He met us at the port, took just the two of us on the BEST birding tour (which is exactly what we wanted), and went out of his way to give us a great experience. I would suggest that you research tours that are not part of the ship excursions.

I seem to remember from my last few cruises that the fine dining restaurants were actually offering discounts to fill the rooms. I remember staff members coming around to encourage folks to take advantage of discounts. I have to say that we never investigated to see if it was a good deal or not. Maybe someone else has more wisdom.

I would love to do a walking tour with a great local guide. Does anyone have someone that they really thought was great?

While I agree with you that the aft facing cabins on the M class ships are some of the best because of the huge balconies, they can be somewhat rough in bad weather, especially the aquas above the Sunset Bar. We had 1130 a few years ago on the repo back to Bayonne. On Saturday, the day before arrival, it was pretty rough up there. We have also had the aft facing cabins on 7 a few times, and never felt anything. I guess my advice would be if you are prone to seasickness, to approach these cabins with a little caution if your itinerary has any days with areas prone to rough weather. Having said that, if you are thinking about the Caribbean, these cabins get my highest recommendation.

We're booked in 1130 in the Fall. Thanks for the heads up about the potential motion issue. I don't usually have an issue with seasickness but I'll be sure to research good prevention measures before we go!

Thank you all for your wisdom! I think I will be packing MUCH lighter on our next cruise! I SO appreciate everyone's comments! It helps me make better decisions! You are all the best!

They are only separate lines, sometimes the lines for regular cabins are shorter. The only real advantage to boarding is if you are in a suite of if there is a delay in boarding.

Good to know! I guess my real concern is embarkation! We had a really knarly situation in San Francisco when we thought we had allowed for plenty of time. Long story short.... we only made our flight because it was delayed. Hope that we never get in that situation again!

Thanks! I think I might be better off using the Aqua status rather than Elite! Thank you for your input!

By chance, do you visit any MGM/Mirage casinos while gambling on land. Celebrity has some benefits offered to you based on your play with M-life casino corp. They recently just signed their 2018 contract and sent out an email on what you receive for the different tier status you've achieved based on casino play at these casinos.

If not, you may want to look into the Blue Chip Club once onboard. Even if it doesn't help you on the current cruise, it will help you on your subsequent cruises throughout the year.

And, while some say the casinos are tight, we've been lucky on cruises nearly as many times as we've been lucky in Vegas. No, it's not equal but still fun and still a game of chance.

In the casinos on the ship, they do have some fun and sometimes free raffles / tournaments you can join in on. A couple of times, I won a chance for a tournament with the officers (one slot and one blackjack). Both times were a blast....one time, I even took first place.

Could you tell me more about the Blue Chip Club?

Hello all! We are new to Elite status and are able to see the updated perks but I'm a bit confused about embarkation and debarkation. We're trying to put together our pre and post cruise travel. Any wisdom about when Elite members can board and depart? Thank you all so much!

I'm new to the Luggage Valet. Is it a service offered by Celebrity? Are the bags transported to the airport without me physically recovering them and taking them with me? Sorry to sound like a dunce but I'm picturing that if I use Luggage Valet, my bags will be checked in for my flight without me handling them. I have the (can't remember the official name,) TSA pre-screened flyer number. Thanks for any wisdom!

This is news to me! We have some TA OBC on our upcoming cruise that we will use for tips. If we don't use it for anything else, it will be refunded to us? That would be great and could offset some of our local excursion expenses! Any wisdom is appreciated!

Is this a walking tour? I went to the TA website and wasn't clear about what exactly the tour was. Thanks all for your help!

Last time we disembarked in San Francisco (a little over a year ago) it was a cluster.....

We had a LOT of time planned into our departure and BARELY made our flight. (Actually, we only made it because the flight was delayed!) I felt that we spent a lot of time getting off the ship and getting our luggage at the port. Question: Does anyone opt out of putting bags outside of their cabin and just deal with them on their own? Seems like it would save time if you are concerned about connections. Wisdom anyone?

Hmm.... I've arrived in Vancouver BC from Seattle and then departed for Hawaii. We did Canadian customs and then right away US customs.

Our next trip departs Vancouver BC, goes to Victoria then Seattle. We ultimately depart in San Francisco. Where do we have to go through US customs?

Any wisdom is appreciated!

Thanks all for the information. I totally forgot that I had to do my hair in the room. Always that way. Old lady brain strikes again! The photo of the nightlight was helpful. It's the same as on the Summit and worked quite well. Not too bright!

People using the outlet in the bathroom for high power devices such as dryers might be the reason that they took them out. The outlet in the bathroom was designed for low power devices such as an electric razor and not for a blow dryer.

 

DON

Dearie me! I didn't realize that actually plugging an appliance into an outlet was such a big deal. Glad you men can shave!

Guess I need to dry and style my hair in the room. Guess it's OK but kinda disappointed if that's the case.