scrabble6

We have cruised in an adjoining cabin on Apex.  We were in a regular IV stateroom on deck 9. The connecting door was just inside the cabin opposite the bathroom door.  We never opened the door and did not know the occupants of the adjoining cabin.  I don't recall hearing more sound from the adjoining cabin than I might hear from any adjacent, non-adjoining cabin on other ships.

We were reluctant to book an adjoining cabin, but in the end we didn't find it to be a detractor at all.  Obviously that might change if your neighbors are extra rowdy....

On 2/21/2024 at 7:17 PM, Coolcruise02 said:

Does anyone have up to date experience with boarding here? Did it go smoothly?

We boarded the Apex in Piraeus last October 2023.  I believe we were in terminal B.  We had hired a George's Taxi to drive us from our Athens hotel to the port.  The huge parking lot seemed a bit chaotic, but our driver knew exactly where to go.  Porters came out to receive our luggage and they pointed us to the correct entrance.  After check-in we were seated for 10-15 minutes in an area with rows of seats.  Boarding after that went systematically row by row, no skipping line allowed.  We arrived at the port close to our assigned boarding time of 11:30 AM, and it was 30 minutes give or take before we were on board.  There were no language barriers or confusion; it was orderly and easy.

Just off Equinox in an aft concierge cabin.  Footstools were under the bed.  

I got an identical email yesterday.  Wanted me to review a phone call from July 2023.   I think I remember the call, but not planning to respond.  Seemed a little phishy to me

On 12/22/2023 at 2:48 PM, Blue12 said:

We went to the Avila Beach Hotel - walked there from the port (about a 35 minute walk) and took a taxi back to the ship ($20).  It was $15 each for the day which included wifi as well as lounges/umbrellas around the pool and on the beach. You could buy food and drinks if needed. Nice small resort with a refreshing pool and two small beaches as well as wifi to catch up at home - just what we were looking for!  🏝️ 

This sounds perfect!  May I ask if you reserved day passes ahead of your visit, or did you just show up?  Also did you bring your own towels?  Were lounges and umbrellas included?  What hours is the day pass available?

The beach area looks lovely but small--any concerns that we wouldn't be able to find a shaded spot for 4 adults?

We'll be in Curacao in early February and looking for a nice day pass hotel.  Thanks!

1 hour ago, SbbquilterUT said:

Which port?

Barcelona

Thanks everyone for this great info!

We're already checked in for the first leg of our upcoming B2B cruise.  Check-in for the 2nd leg is soon.  Do we do just check in online as usual?  We'll be getting off the ship and touring just as if it is a port day.  Do I choose a boarding time during check-in?  What does re-boarding look like?

We have a 10:00 AM meet-up time for our tour and need to be off the ship around 0900 to get a taxi.  Is there any reason we wouldn't be able to make that?  We're in the same cabin for both cruises btw.

Thanks--this is our first B2B.  We're looking forward to it!

Thanks so much you guys!  We're really looking forward to our Bermuda adventure!

Wow!  Thanks so much for this great information--SO very helpful!  We'll be there on a Wednesday mid November.

I have one other quick question if you have any thoughts on this:  do the afternoon ferries from Hamiton to the Dockyard reach capacity, causing people to be turned away?  There are 2 large ships in port that day leaving at 3pm and 4pm.  So I'm wondering if we need to plan for long queues or even possibly being turned away from the 1:30 ferry?  According to the schedule the next ferry isn't until 3:15.

On 5/30/2023 at 11:34 AM, Charles4515 said:

 you could also do a taxi tour. 

Apologies for jumping in on someone else's thread--but can you give more info on how to find taxi tours from Royal Navy Dockyard please?  We'll be in port on a TA in November '23.  I'd like to hire a taxi to drive the two of us, making a few stops along the way, to St. George's.  (Gibbs Hill lighthouse, a pink beach--maybe Horseshoe, The Swizzle Inn for a rum swizzle).  After spending some time in St. George's, figure out how to get to Hamiton (suggestions?) for a short time, then ferry over to the Dockyard.  We'll be in port from 8am - 4pm.

Is this do-able?

THANKS!!!

Thanks MeHeartCruising--the taxi info was just what I was looking for!  

I do have an address where we meet to begin the tour at Parc Guell--so we're all good on that.

On 4/17/2023 at 8:22 PM, MeHeartCruising said:

I would not waste your time walking like you suggest.  I would get a cab between sites and allow more time at the sites themselves.  Or add another site.  Cabs are safe and reasonably priced in Barcelona. 

We're doing a group tour of PG and SF in November.  The tour starts at PG.  I've never been to Barcelona and I'm unfamiliar with the port.  We're planning to take a taxi to PG-- can anyone give me some specific and descriptive how-to instructions on how and where to get a taxi at the port, and any other wise tips?

We were on Equinox and Silhouette in the last couple of weeks.  We're low maintenence cruisers and had a wonderful time!!

Check out Sushi on Five.  It's not a complementary restaurant but it is a la carte and reasonably priced.  I don't care for sushi and most seafood, but love to eat there--they have nice dumplings, a great shrimp tempura udon, and also a pork ramen that I have not tried.  They serve lunch and dinner.

We had some good meals in the MDR and also ate in the OVC several times.  We absolutely love sunset seating for dinner on the rear balcony of the OVC--and we found plenty of variety for great dinners there.  But again: low maintenence cruisers.  🙂  YMMV

The Passport Bar in the mid afternoon is not crowded.  We like to stop there on the way in from an excursion and pick up yummy margaritas.  

Craft Social usually had seating.  They have bar food there, but it's an extra charge.  We made a dinner out of the bar bites one evening on Apex last year, but did not try them on our recent cruise.  We did enjoy the bar atmosphere there though!

Enjoy your cruise!  What's not to love?  

Hi Countess5!

I'm excited for your cruise to begin, mostly because DH and I will be boarding the EQ along with you next Monday!  😄  Hopefully our paths will cross on board.

Looking forward to extending our vacay virtually by following along for the rest of your 47 days.  What an amazing voyage you're on!

Enjoy!  

Yes, tell them you wish to reprice the cruise under the current promotion.  And one more suggestion, ask them to email you the new booking confirmations while you are still on the phone.   Since you are repricing a B2B2B, there will be 3 seperate booking confirmations.  You can visually confirm that everything is exactly the same as your previous booking before you end the call--it only takes a minute or two. It should still be the same booking date and reservation ID number.  Don't forget to check your stateroom number.

Looking at doing a B2B in Feb 2023 which involves changing Celebrity ships and moving from Fort Lauderdale to Port of Miami for the second leg.  Can anyone with experience with this scenario offer some tips or information on how best to accomplish this transition?  I'm wondering if there would be an opportunity to board early on the second leg.  We would not be in a suite BTW.

In the Elevate package, it specifies that you receive [x]$ "per person shore excursion credit"

We had this for our January 2022 Apex cruise and are considering the Elevate pkg add-on for a winter 2023 cruise.

In January 2022, ours was $150 pp (total $300).  We were allowed to use it for reasons other than shore excursions--for example we dined at Eden, dined at Raw on 5, and partially upgraded our internet using OBC.  We did not have any other OBC besides the Elevate pkg. so it definitely came from the Elevate pkg.  We did not purchase any shore excursions at all.  We didn't have to request this, it just automatically happened.  And we were delighted!

Does anyone have any knowledge about this specification going forward?  We ownder if it may have been an exception due to Covid, maybe?  Honestly, I'm not a huge fan of these funds being dedicated to Shore Excursions only, and might not elect it as an add-on if Celebrity will stick with the stated purpose.  Obviously it's their right to do so and I would have zero problem if that's the case--but we might not choose to pay for the Elevate pkg add-on.  (That is, unless we identify some Celebrity shore excursions that interest us.  We tend to arrange our own excursions privately....)

Thoughts?

If this has already been discussed elsewhere, please forgive me for being redundant and kindly direct me to other thread(s).  THANKS!

There was silent disco 2 nights on our recent Apex cruise.  We love it too!  

Following, I'm also on Apex currently.  In the theater last night the cruise director announced there are 1140 pax on board,  and around 1100 crew.  

Thanks all for your replies!   Neeters, enjoy the Apex this week!  We'll be right behind you  🙂

We're sailing on Apex this weekend, January 29th.  Does anyone know if they're doing the Concierge lunch on embarkation day?  Thank you! 

Hi Paul, just a couple of questions:

Did they have the Concierge Class lunch on embarkation day?  If so, where?

Also, are there itinerary changes?

We're booked on Apex with this itinerary in 2 weeks, so following with interest!  Thanks for taking time to do this!

45 minutes ago, cnkgirl said:

I am checked in for B2B cruises on Silhouette January 24 and February 4 at 11:30, I just checked again and they have 10:30 so I changed it, I just want to be on board 😎

Where can I find available arrival times and make a change?  I checked in about a week ago and have an 11:30 arrival time--I'd love to arrive earlier if possible.  

Thanks Jim for your helpful information.  I enjoy reading your live reviews!

Good info.  If have a couple of questions:

1. Does checking in earlier give you an earlier boarding time?
2. Check in for my cruise opens Dec. 15th.  Does it open at any particular time?  Should I check in at 12:01 AM?

Thanks!