djc4410

you were not on the bow (front), that is a marine deck and off limits to everyone but deck hands. You were aft, on the deck behind Boleros.

You're right, it was aft behind Boleros.

I didn't see a Diamond Lounge in the deck plans on the Empress but does anyone know if they use part of the Viking Crown lounge for the nightly Diamond Event. Thanks everyone! :)

We were just on the Empress of the Seas in late September. No, there is no Diamond Lounge nor is there a nightly Diamond Event. On our five night cruise out of Miami, we had a Diamond Event during sail away as we left the Miami port. It was held out on deck on the bow of the ship in an area that could be cordoned off to permit a private event. Beyond that, each Diamond member had three drink credits applied to his or her account on a daily basis for drinks anywhere on the ship. This is the oldest and smallest ship in the RCCL fleet and the design does not permit Diamond events to take place in lounges, as explained to us at the sail away event.

There is an unconfirmed report posted on the roll call for the April 27 cruise that the ship is out of drydock and should be arriving in Miami on Sunday evening.

I have learned that to board very smoothly and quickly, if boarding begins at say 11 am, arrive at 1 or 1:30. Easy. And really, who cares about boarding early? Everyone is leaving at the same time.

I agree. We generally try to arrive around 1:30pm, and by then the "herd" has already been marshaled aboard and things are a bit less hectic.

Will be watching these repairs closely over the weekend. We're part of the group boarding on Monday in Miami for Dover and Copenhagen.

Celebrity may keep denying the pending removal of the Century from their fleet, but a review of the 2015 schedule would indicate otherwise:

22 March 2015 - Singapore to Dubai

05 April 2015 - Dubai to Rome

Arrives Rome in April, 2015. Just a coincidence?

New program looks quite good. Was concerned that "lower level" Elites might lose some perks in the conversion, but it appears current benefits will remain. We made Elite last year and sailed in Elite status for the first time last month from Hawaii to Sydney on the Solstice. Quite an upgrade from Select! The free laundry really came in handy on this 19 night cruise, and the daily Elite afternoon gatherings became a highlight of the trip. We're in no hurry to go up another rung on the ladder. "Basic" Elite is fine for us.

For those in the lower brackets, just take a few short cruises over to the Bahamas in Concierge or higher and the points will add up quickly.

Guam had a huge rodent and insect problem so they introduced a snake. The snake then killed all the birds and ate everything else as well. They slither all around the streets, in peoples houses, they couldn't get rid of them. When an airplane came in from Guam, our airline had to take special care making sure we didn't find snakes. Yuk!!!:eek:

Actually, the snakes arrived on the island as stowaways on crates and boxes being offloaded from ships arriving from the Philippines in the 1950s. They were not intentionally introduced by authorities. The snake problem is sensationalized by the media, but you don't see them slithering all over the streets, beaches, etc. Guam has a thriving tourism industry fueled mainly by travelers from Japan and Korea, and snakes aren't a deterrent. I worked for Continental Airlines and used to fly out to Guam for short vacation trips and never encountered any snakes anywhere on the island. They are out there, but not seen everywhere you go. Airliners and military aircraft arriving in Hawaii from Guam are checked for snakes, mainly in the landing gear compartments as they are very good stowaways.

 

What Celebrity REALLY needs are new itineraries!!!!!!!!! The race to book the recently announced Century cruises proved that beyond a doubt. :D

You're right. The Celebrity would be perfect for a new set of itineraries. As one example, Micronesia is a vast area of the Pacific virtually ignored by most cruise lines. One route might be an extension of the Century's current Hawaii loops by adding a segment westbound out to Micronesia and Guam and then returning to Hawaii through a different set of islands further to the south. The area is rich in World War II history and literally has thousands of islands hardly ever visited by tourists.

We agree - Keep the Century !!

We have sailed on both classes of Celebrity's newer ships, including the brand new Reflection and have noticed the trend toward making cruises into Las Vegas type vacations with more and more glitz and glamor but less style. It seems like the newer ships are catering to the masses, particularly the Type "A" personality types who have to be constantly engaged and entertained, 24-7.

We were looking forward to Century's 2014 San Francisco to Sydney cruise as an opportunity to experience the charms of an earlier era of sailing, much like we experienced on the QE2 in the 1990s. Hopefully, Century will remain a part of the Celebrity fleet.

With either package, how quickly/frequently can you order drinks? For example, can you order a glass of wine to go with each course if dining in the MDR?

 

Or at the pool bar, could I order a drink and then order another one a minute later? I'm not a heavy drinker, but might want to take a couple back to my cabin to enjoy on my veranda. :D

 

The staff will be watching for "piggy backing" in which a couple or group only have the drink package on one member's sea pass card and use it to order drinks for everybody. Each drink order requires one sea pass card. Two drinks at one time require two valid sea pass cards to be presented to the server. I would say if you order a few minutes apart and it does not appear you have companions waiting to receive your additional drinks, you should be OK in ordering again.

I have a question on the Classic package if you can order beer up to $5.00 if Bud light is $5.00 plus the tip then makes it $5.75?? so would you be able to order a bud light??

on the classic package???

The tip is not included when computing the price of beverages available on the various packages. Bud Lite definitely is available on the Classic package. Trust me... we drank Bud Lites all the way from Ft. Lauderdale to Amsterdam last May on the Classic package with no problem. Same thing for Heinekins.

A big Aussie welcome to everyone and we hope your stay in Australia before the big float, regardless of how long, is fun and enjoyable.

 

For all coming to Australia for the first time who enjoy a nice drop of rum may I suggest a shot of our famous Bundaberg Rum. There are several strengths and flavours so just go for it. We look forward to meeting as many of you as we can and share some stories.

 

Sydney and surrounds is a lovely area for you to adventure. The greater Sydney area consist of 656 suburbs all of which have their own unique culture and historic areas. Public and private transport is easily accessible so we encourage you to get out and see as much as you can.

 

Margaret and David

Thanks for the tips! We're sailing from Honolulu to Sydney this coming October on the Solstice and plan to take several days exploring Sydney beyond the harbour area and Opera House, which we saw briefly some years ago. Will be looking for your Bundaberg Rum.

Cheers,

Don & Prue in sunny Delray Beach, FL

Does anyone know if it will work to buy one drinks package and use it for the two of us? I drink coke and my husband beer or wine otherwise we will never drink for the kind of money the drinks package cost!

If you use your single seapass to provide drinks to two people at your table, it probably will be noticed and you could have consequences, such as termination of your seapass ordering privileges for the duration of the cruise. The staff does watch for such things. It would be obvious that the soft drink you ordered ten minutes ago is being drunk by your spouse if you then order a beer for yourself and the spouse still has the soft drink sitting in front of her. Soft drinks are only $2 per serving, so don't play games with them over that sort of money.

Greetings

 

If you purchase the package ahead of the cruise then your seapass is imprinted with package code. If you purchase on board then a sticker is added to your seapass.

 

Good Sailing

Tom

Also, when you order a drink, you give the server your seapass for registering the sale, even though the cost is zero. You can only order one drink at a time per seapass. That prevents cheating by one person buying the pass and ordering drinks for two (or more) people. If you want two drinks, you give the server two valid seapasses.

Does anyone with experience with a Solstice class ship or a 'solsticized' Millennium class ship know if the Premium or Classic beverage packages can be used in the CellarMasters with the wine tasting machines?

Not a deal breaker, but it may help me decide about purchasing a package on the newly refurbished Millie.

Les

We're leaving on the Constellation on May 5 for a two week TA to Amsterdam and have the Classic alcohol beverage package booked. We'll check out the CellarMasters deal and let you know if it is included, or not.

Whoops - I meant to say "cash bar" rather than open bar. Thanks for the update on this subject. Looking forward to meeting everyone onboard.

Don & Prue

Regarding the drink packages, are they valid for all drink orders aboard ship within the selection lists for your package, or are there exceptions where you may order a drink from your list and still be charged for it? Am thinking of shipboard parties with open bars, as an example.