Dreamcruise27

13 hours ago, DebInAntigua said:

Everyone thinks *their* children are talented, funny, darling and well-behaved. Of course you do. It's normal for a loving parent to think their children are exceptional, and that translates to a belief that the staff and other people must surely adore them too.

 

It's interesting how many parents are posting that on their last cruise, everyone loved their kids. But - we're not seeing many posts at all from fellow passengers who are sharing just how delightful other people's kids are on a cruise.

I'm sorry, I didn't realize I should have kept a list of names of all the passengers who came up to my husband and I to compliment us on our well behaved 2 year old. I guess all the smiles and waves we received from passengers and staff were not indicative of their feelings toward our son.

I find it interesting that a majority of families who have sailed on Celebrity have experienced nothing but positive feedback from passengers and staff, yet on CC, there are a lot of people who are proclaiming that they will leave Celebrity if they continue on with promotions that will encourage families to try out Celebrity ships. Clearly all the passengers who were delighted to see kids on a cruise are not on CC and those who don't want to see kids on future Celebrity cruises are going to find other lines. Guess it is a win-win for families who will be sailing on Celebrity!

17 minutes ago, Fogfog said:

Will be interesting with the reclassification of staterooms from 4 to 3 or 2.

Aqua is 2 per room but that doesn't mean families can't work that out between multiple staterooms.

 

Our kids are adults now though we have sailed with them since they were in kindergarten. I can say that many years ago on a southern caribbean holiday sailing... while we kept a tight rein on our kids--there were a bunch of kids running the halls and throwing ice cubes down the stairwells. They were not american kids... nor english speaking and there was no way for me to say something as I was almost pelted with ice...

 

On our Baltics sailing there were young kids (elementary school age) running and jumping from chair to chair in the far fwd lounge/bar while mom/dad were engrossed in the iphones. (asian)  It was more than aggravating and the servers didn't handle it.

 

Fast fwd and I find I am far less tolerant of parents not controlling their children whether it be in lounges or unsupervised ...

 

Am equally less  tolerant of smokers in non smoking places/smoking at the aft bar or on balconies. Or other bad behaviors 

 

So I am an equal opportunity "fun sucker".     🤣      If your fun encroaches on my fun/breaks the rules... I'm calling staff. JS

 

 

 

I'm sorry, but I don't understand your need to point out that the parents were "Asian"

I just want to counter balance the other post and let first time Celebrity cruisers with kids know that it is a very small group of cruisers who seem to not like children on the ships. Please remember that only a VERY small number of people who will be on your cruise are actually on Cruise Critic!

We have been on two Celebrity cruises with our toddler and he has been well loved by staff and other cruisers. We will continue sailing with Celebrity because we love the ships, food, and the amazing staff.

I hope other families who have traveled with their kids on Celebrity will post their positive experiences here so that new cruisers are not worried and stressed about their decision to book an amazing cruise vacation on a Celebrity ship!

My sister booked the lowest balcony category and got a sunset veranada assigned! Not sure exactly when it was assigned because she only found out when she logged in one day. It was roughly 50 days before sailing.

At that price, I think it would be worth it for the extra points and if it is in a better location

2 hours ago, MissAppleBear said:

Now Onto wondering if i should bring my own for going to the beach in Hawaii. We are going to Hilo, Kailua kona, Honolulu and Lahiana. (my spelling may be way off here) Does anyone know if there are beaches close to the ports that we could walk/shuttle or bus to?

We did the Hawaii cruise on the Solstice last April with our toddler! We brought our own life jacket for the beaches.

In Lahaina, we went to Baby Beach and Lahaina Beach. You can get directions on Google Maps. I suggest Baby Beach because it is  very shallow and no waves. It was about a 15-20 min walk, so I suggest you bring your stroller! There weren't any facilities on the beach. I think it was Lahaina Beach that we went to on the second day... it was rockier and lots of waves.

13 minutes ago, Want2Cruise 701 said:

I would go with the Suite.  The FV is just basically just a bigger cabin with a separate bedroom.  Nothing more.  The suite is alot larger than a regular cabin with alot of storage but not as large as the FV.  You also get access to Luminae, Michaels Club and possibly the new retreat area depending on what ship and when you sail.  A tub to bathe your son in.  The butler will come in handy for any special requests/needs for your son as well.

 

We've sailed in a SS under the OVC, and while a little noticeable, it wasn't anything that kept me awake or would prevent me from booking that cabin again.  Extra CC points too.  A FV only gets you veranda points.  

 

Are the 4 perks being included with the SS or are they an additional upcharge for the sailing you're considering?

The 4 perks are included with the SS, which makes it a better deal than the FV when looking at it from a financial perspective. Only downside is the fact that we won't have separate rooms. I'm glad to hear that the suite is a lot larger than a regular cabin because we will be traveling with a car seat and a stroller and I know it will be VERY tight in a regular size cabin!

Here is my dilemma: we are cruising with our DS who is 3 years old and currently booked in a concierge cabin. A family veranda and a sky suite came available for a reasonable price, so I'm trying to decide which room to change to! Family veranda is ideal because of the two separate bedrooms but I don't know when we will be cruising again so I would LOVE to experience the "suite life"...

For those of you who have traveled with children or with 3 or more people in a sky suite: is it noticeably bigger than a regular balcony room? I'm wondering how much of the extra square footage is taken up by the bathtub/bigger bathroom. Because our DS still naps, we spend at least 2 hours during the day and retire early in the evenings to our stateroom. We have 5 sea days, so I feel like we will be spending a lot of time in the stateroom. Is there any way to put up a partition so we can separate the bed and the living area?? I wonder if they would let me hang a curtain wall to wall somehow...

The Sky Suite that is available is 2128, which is located below the Oceanview Cafe. I've done my research and the complaints about the noise from above seems to range from not too bad to so disturbing that the occupants did not enjoy their cruise at all! Should I not take the risk of booking this suite in case the noise is unbearable? Any way to dull the noise in the stateroom??

Please share your wisdom and experience with me!!

Thank you 🙂

Can someone who was on a recent sailing advise on the price they were offered? I think last year I paid $30 or $35... just trying to estimate how much OBC to purchase beforehand to cover specialty dining costs. Thanks!

I was wondering if you can order multigrain rice or brown rice on board? If yes, which restaurants?

Also, please share your favorite gluten free dishes on Celebrity!

Thanks in advance.

It is absolutely amazing!! We were lucky enough to book one on the Solstice last year 7 days before sailing for $900 more than a regular balcony. In my opinion, it was worth every penny.

It was for DH, our 2 year old son and myself for a 12 nights Hawai’i cruise. Our son was still napping and going to bed early on some nights, so the ability to close the door to one of the bedrooms and still have a HUGE living room to hang out in was amazing. I believe it is bigger than a lot of the suites. The pictures did not do justice on how large the room actually was! 

Like a previous poster said, it is loud when docking, but like you, we were either up or getting ready to get up so it was not a huge inconvenience.

We were crossing the Pacific, so when there were huge waves, we definitely felt it! But I think that would be the case in any of the FWD cabins.

It is quite the walk to get to the cabin. But on a 12 night cruise, the exercise is probably a good thing 😉

One rule we had was that all of our curtains had to be closed and lights off on the balcony in the evenings. 

4 hours ago, laslomas said:

 

Sorry, not offering information but just interested in the discount you mention for booking B2B.  Do you have to ask for a discount when booking or is it automatically offered? and how much is it? I didn't know about this 'perk'. 

I booked directly with Celebrity and asked what discounts are offered for B2B and that's when they told me. I assume you would receive the same discount with a travel agent as well?

10 hours ago, davekathy said:

Not really benefits. You get to have the welcome aboard sparkling wine again for the second leg. If you see shows on the first leg you didn't care for you'll know you won't need to go to them again on the second leg. If you saw something on the menu on the first leg you wish you would have ordered now you have that option of ordering it on the second leg. On our B2B cruises the staff always seems to get a kick out of seeing us on the second leg. Make sure if you have any OBC you know whether it's a refundable OBC or a non-refundable OBC. Also no matter the type of OBC they will not carry over to the second leg of your cruise. 

Thanks! We have more OBC on the first leg than the second, so I will definitely make sure we use it all

11 hours ago, Algebralovr said:

Last year, at a meeting the day before turnaround day, they told all the B2B guests that they would sell discounted speciality packages even though the pre-cruise online sales had sold all the available packages.  One year, they gave every B2B guest a bag of laundry for free.  

 

Best part, walking up to the counter at the Cafe Al Bacio to order a drink, being told the computers are closed, and responding that we were Back to Back guests.   The waitress smiled, got out an order slip, wrote down what I wanted and my name and stateroom.  I enjoyed my tea and watched departing passengers do the slow trudge off the ship.

Can't wait to grab a latte, sit back, and know that we don't have to get off the ship and start cooking, cleaning, and fending for ourselves in the real world ;)

12 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

 

 

We almost always do B2B or B2B2B series with the occasional B2B2B2B, and have done so for several years.  My perception is that having a turnaround day meeting is becoming more common, and to encourage participation gifts are frequently raffled.  In addition to those you mentioned I've also seen ship models and robes.  One time we won a free bag of laundry coupon (which we gave to someone else as we get free unlimited laundry due to loyalty status) but we have also won bottles of wine.

Thank you for the info! B2B2B2B... sounds AMAZING!!

13 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

It may be unique to our last B2B2B.   We were on Millennium for 3 cruises.   At the B2B meeting they had a raffle and gave away free dinners at Specialty, bottles of wine, free bags of laundry and free internet packages for the next cruise.   We won the dinner for 2 at any specialty.  

I hope they offer the same prizes on our cruise!

1 hour ago, Hlitner said:

Unless Celebrity has recently changed their policies, they make back to backs more complicated (and a pain) when compared to other lines such as HAL or Princess.  On Celebrity they use an accounting system based on each segment.  This means that your cruise card (and related account) is only good for one segment and you must get another cruise card (and a new account) for the subsequent segments.  On our Celebrity back to backs it has meant reporting to a specific place at a specific time (usually on the morning of the turn-around day) to get new cruise cards (including photo).  If you have on board credits they are not carried-over to the next cruise :(.  On other lines we are issued a single cruise card for the entire cruise (no matter how many segments) and the accounting is handled for a longer single cruise.  So if you have OBCs they are good for the entire voyage (not just one segment) and there are fewer hassles on the turn around day.  The onboard staff does try to ease the hassles with some decent written instructions (sent to the cabin) but it is still an annoyance compared to most of the competition.

 

Things do become a lot more complicated if you must change cabins (an issue with any cruise line).  The stewards are usually very helpful, but are also busy because of turn-around day responsibilities.  They will bring a luggage cart that can handle stuff on hangers, but it is still necessary to pack up all the other items and deal with moving valuables from one cabin safe to another.  

 

Hank

Thank you for the info!

12 minutes ago, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

It’s intangible but so much fun to be on the last day of the first cruise and know it’s not over, know you have more fun to come...to pass the suitcases in the hall that night and smile because it’s not you!  

Of course, all good things end, but we loved the second cruise only being the midpoint.

Yes, I think the intangible benefit will be a highlight!! We always commented that near the end of the cruise, you finally feel like you are all settled in to a routine and then it is time to get off. 

13 minutes ago, Orator said:

You can wavy bye bye to the passengers who are leaving and you continue on your cruise. Sometimes you are allowed to go to the Concierge Lunch in the MDR on the second embarkation day. If you are in the same cabin you already know your attendant and he/she knows your preferences. If you need to switch cabins you usually don't need to pack your clothes. If you are in a nice port you can spend time exploring. Did this in San Diego , Barcelona, Civitavecchia, Istanbul, Abu Dhabi and many other ports. Felt like I had an extra port of call. Sometimes Celebrity offers tours for B2Bers.

Thanks! Do they let you know if they are offering a tour befor the cruise or during? Don’t want to miss it if it is offered!

Hello!

I was wondering if there are any additional benefits I should know about for back to back sailings. I received the discount on both cruises but want to ask all of you seasoned cruisers if there are any other benefits or information I should be aware of 🙂

Thanks in advance!

One thing I would like to add: the photographers also walk around the ships in bars and common areas, so make sure you to look for them! That way you also get candid photos and not just traditional backdrop “pose” photos. 

10 hours ago, SweetLorraine said:

I took a 7-day cruise with my husband and kids as he was dealing with stage 4 cancer. It offered us a great opportunity to make memories as a family. 

 

However our experience was very difficult in ways totally unrelated to the cruise itself. He began having very severe headaches that we later discovered were symptoms of metastases to the brain. As well meaning as the infirmary staff were, they were totally unequipped to deal with a medical situation that severe. The fact that we were visiting relatively undeveloped ports (Cozumel, Cayman) meant we couldn't address the issue until we returned to Miami. If I had to do it again, I'd request that he be airlifted back to the US from one of the ports. (You'll want excellent travel insurance to cover things like that airlift.) 

 

The chances of that happening are slim. But I wish we'd had a memory-making vacation at a resort with better access to a health care center. It would have spared my husband days of terrible pain. 

 

Sorry to be a downer. But it's worth weighing all the possibilities. I hope you have a wonderful vacation together wherever it is. 

Thank you for sharing your experience. I posted here to gather as much information as possible so it is greatly appreciated! I will definitely do some research on the type of travel insurance available.

12 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

A friend of mine had cancer was told she was in the advanced stages of cancer with metastasis.   When she was advised of her prognosis, her physician told her to get her affairs in order and go have fun in the last weeks of her life.  She and her family took a cruise and they were all glad she did.   There were things that were hard for her as far as keeping every meal down or even having an appetite.  She was week so she didn't go out on shore but, she said she enjoyed spending those last few weeks of her life feeling pampered and having invaluable family time.  

I hope your family member is able to go if she feels up to it and even more importantly, I hope that immunotherapy gives her a fighting chance over that horrible disease.  

 

Thank you for your kind words! With so many advancements in new methods to treat cancer, we are hopeful that she will continue to fight and beat it 🙂

29 minutes ago, cruisefam38 said:

BTW, since you asked this question on the Celebrity board, I would like to address Celebrity cruising while coping with cancer.

Because of the quality of onboard service and consistently good food, we tend to cruise with Celebrity.  I have not had to make use of the infirmary, however we are well aware of were it is on each ship.  Celebrity is aware of my cancer, however unless I am not feeling well and need to skip a meal or some such, they don't need to take care of me.  On those few occasions when I'm not well, we have felt my relatively simple needs are addressed quietly and quickly.  No promises or guarantees for your friend's needs, but we always try to acknowledge Celebrity crew and staff for making our cruises so comfortable.

Yes, I was going to suggest booking Aqua class so that she can dine in Blu as a "healthier" option.

We always receive the best service sailing Celebrity so I feel that it is the best option for her.

57 minutes ago, Trainer said:

I did a transatlantic between chemo and having surgery.  Flew to Europe and took ship back.  I did wear hair piece and scarves but I don't think anyone really noticed.  If they id they were too polite to mention it.  It was a wonderful way to travel while "sick."

BTW, I am 5 years clear.

Congratulations! Thank you for your response.