Sea2011

I don't know how true this is but I read somewhere that its because Nicaragua is only open to people who are vaccinated but cruise ships are allowing non-vaccinated passengers so they are not opening to cruise ship passengers in general.

I am in the same "boat" different cruise though.  I have read several posts and news article that reported that no cruise ships have stopped at San Juan Del Sur thus far.  So I am hesitant in booking any shore excursion.  Not meant to alarm anyone but its good to be at least mentally prepared rather than a last minute rude shock.

My March cruise still has it listed as a port but my SIL's April cruise has that cancelled as well as the Punta Arenas port cancelled.  Searching through the cruises in the next few months and beyond, Punta Arenas seems to have disappeared too.

Sad but we will still be going and making the most of it.

Thanks Teresa for such a detail report.  Really enjoyed reading it and getting very useful information for our cruise in March on the Jewel.

We will be sailing from Colon to San Diego so just wondering if an Aft facing cabin will not be getting the sun like yours did? 

Or anyone else have this experience?

Thanks both for your replies!

Oh I wasn't aware that downgrading has a penalty.  We are not into final payment yet - so wouldn't I be able to cancel and rebook without penalty?

We are booked on an Ocean View stateroom and considering downgrading to Obstructed Ocean View.  At the same time, we have received invitation to bid.  So question is if we downgraded (saving $400), are we still eligible to bid for a balcony?  And does it make a difference bidding from an OV or Obstructed OV or an inside (in terms of chances to succeed or do they just look at the amount you bid?). Appreciate any advice or sharing of experience.  Thanks!

Thank you so much for answering my questions.  Exactly what I was looking for.  We were originally thinking of getting a balcony but the price keep going up so difference between OV and Balcony became pretty substantial.

We are thinking of booking a family OV on NCL Jewel Deck 8.  Understand that AFT is less noisy so looking at Rooms 8110 or 8116.  It appears to be above the Tradewinds Tax & Duty Free - is it likely to have a lot of noise from that big white space on Deck 7 (not sure if all of it is occupied by Tradewinds Tax & Duty Free)?

Also what is the difference between Ocean View and Family Ocean View?  Slight bigger I guess?

Will be great if someone can share their experience with similar cabins and what are pros and cons of those cabins.  Thanks!

1 hour ago, Hoosierpop said:

But every person on that ship knew this could happen. And everyone who gets on any future cruises knows this could happen.

I agree with this.  And it should no longer be a personal choice or decision because it is not just risking quarantine/getting the virus/missing ports/facing protests - it is also risking another episode like this that can cost a lot of money, people and resources to manage.  And this is costly not just to the host countries where the ship is but also other nations that need to send in planes, etc for evacuation.  If they can lock down cities to contain the virus, there should be hard decisions made on cruises to contain the spread in order not to further strain limited resources to handle outbreaks and save lives.

Thank you very much for both your replies.

Yes I realised that its a tender port and there could be delays to getting on shore.  Also worked out that the shore excursions indicate departure times when I go further into the booking.  Not possible to book 2 tours based on the departure times & duration.  Maybe able to fit in a water taxi ride either before or after the land tour depending on when we get to land.

Our ship will stop here from 11am to 6pm (Nov 2020).  We plan to take a 3 hour shore excursion (on land) with the ship.  Would we still have time to take a water taxi to Land's end before or after the land tour?  We can even consider booking both tours with Celebrity but not sure of the timing and if that is possible.  (I remembered on Royal Carribean, we were able to do so and they have estimated timings of departure/arrival and we were able to see if we can fit in 2 tours at the same port.)

Appreciate any advice please.  Thanks.

What about Celebrity Summit?  Will be sailing in November 2020.