joeholiday2

Thanks Tizzy-Jo and Thomsons, what a lovely idea, and a perfect message.

We normally start to get hungry, so get back 2 or 3pm, then like to lounge by the pool. Or go back to the port after lunch, staying within walking distance of the ship.

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Hi All.

This is the link to my port review from the Dream last year, some of the ports will be the same:

http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1807050

We can recommend the Cosol trip on St Lucia, a great day out.

Yes the price difference is extortionate, we have been tracking the 22nd Dec cruise and the P&O Christmas ones, at least the Dream one has come down from £3000 each. We know the Christmas prices for any holiday attracts a premium, but the cruise prices are ridiculous.

You can expect to pay more in a normal Hotel as they will be paying the staff extra for working the bank holidays, but on a cruise the staff are away from family anyway so I bet they don't get this premium passed onto them, it's just part of the contract. They should do.... they work so dammed hard.

We flew back from Montego Bay and it was a horrible airport. Very rude staff who made us wait in line in stifling heat, then barked at people to "Get back and come through the security scanner when I say":D:D

Totally Agree Linda, horrible airport, the security staff tried to steal my camera....

We did the Rome on your own and enjoyed it, a lot of walking to see the sights but if you are good with a map it's a good way of getting a full day there without the worry of missing the train back.

My friend did the bike tour a couple of years ago, he is a confident rider and loved it, his Wife however....:eek: The traffic was mad....

Cabin Number:3055

Cruise Ship:Majesty

Date of Cruise:05/7/13

Bed Formation: 2 singles, 2 bunks

Bath/Shower?: Shower only

Adjoining Cabin?: No

Balcony?: No

Comment on the Size of the Cabin: Big enough for 2 weeks stay.

Comment on any Noise Issues: No vibration, very little engine noise, quieter than Dream and Celebration cabins. Quiet considering it is towards the aft of midships.

Comment on Storage Space: Very good, Ok for 2 weeks worth of stuff.

Comment on the Bathroom: Grouting a little grubby at bottom of shower, but nothing too bad.

Any Other Comments?: Inside Plus

Would You Recommend this Cabin?: Yes

Link to any Images:No

Score out of 10:9

I don't have the same knowledge of the 4 berths as Jules, but as long as you keep away from the aft of the ship you will escape the engine noise.

We have done deck 2 three times now in the vicinity of cabin 634 and have had no problems with the noise or the motion.

We have never felt claustrophobic down there and you will notice that when there is movement it's felt more on the higher decks, don't think i would like to be up on 8 or 9.

Those cabins that Jules mentions on deck 4 look a good position, right behind reception and handy for everywhere onboard. Might be worth spending a little extra on? Especially if they are bigger.

Just testing it works from shutterfly....

They do have a forward facing camera feed on the TV's Geo.

Great for those of us that slum it in the insides....

Andre Payne, yep that's him (just googled him) they didn't advertise his second name

This is him:

Gavin went on around the 20th May, first week he was assessing the ents then he started as CD, he said he was on for 2 months. AFAICR he is going back to head office for a month then on Majesty for 2 months, Don't hold me to it though.....

Mab and Lewis are both doing ACD.

Midnight Buffet... well around 11ish, was good, they had the veg carver doing a live demonstration. This wasn't on the same night as the comedian's late night show, which is good as you don't miss out on one or the other as we have done in the past.

Something else that has come back to me:

The Comedian was called Andre (no second name given), he was brilliant, probably the best we have seen on a Thomson ship. he mixed comedy and magic, it was really good, no "where are you from" spiel to fill the act out, no songs to fill the act out, just laughs and magic.

Egypt & Holy Land Cruise 27th May 13

Yep the refurb is similar, I can't put my finger on it but it just seems better on the Celebration. The new bathrooms are better.

For those that can't wait.....

Ship Pictures

http://joeholiday2.shutterfly.com/pictures/1649

Cruise Pictures

http://joeholiday2.shutterfly.com/pictures/1675

Review as posted on main site:

Egypt & Holy Land Cruise 27th May 13

The whole cruise was just what we needed, a lovely break with great weather. We only really went for the sun and the itinerary was not one that particularly inspired us, so it was a chance to relax. We only did Jerusalem and Bethlehem as a tour and just walked off at the other ports (with the exception of Port Said). Alexandria is the biggest dump I have seen, a horrible, smelly place where they pester you non stop. The Jerusalem and Bethlehem trip was really good, and one we have both said we are glad to have done it whilst we have the chance. On this day there were 900 passengers going out on trips, so anyone left behind would have had the ship almost to themselves.

Having been on the ship exactly 12 months previously (half term...) we didn’t notice much change in the hotel operation, food was just as good, and very similar to what is served on Dream. The shows provided by the wonderful entertainment team have changed, a great thing for the regulars but we missed the Africa show, we could watch that most nights..... On the whole the ents were great, Top Men were regulars in Liberties and 2Intense in Horizons, the classical Duo plays in Hemingways now instead of Explorers, all were fantastic. We also got to meet up with our old friend Gavin Carroll who is CD for 2 months this summer. A lot of the entertainment team have changed, they really are professional and look like they are loving the job. It’s not just the performers that do a good job on Celebration, the backroom production team are excellent, they really make the most of the smaller Show-lounge than on Dream, the sound levels are just right, not too loud, and the sets are far better and more imaginative than Dream, making good use of the limited room they have.

We did notice that there seemed to be a lot fewer sunbeds up on the sundeck, I asked the question to a staff member and they assured me there was the same number. I don’t agree, they were not as crammed in on the main sundeck and the forward one only had 2 piles of beds early morning, not 4 like last year. Even though there were a lot more Children on than last year the sports court hardly seems to get used, I think they should change this to sundeck space as by 10am on sea-day not a bed could be found.

Having been on both Celebration and Dream pre and post Platinum refurb I think they have done a better job on the Celebration, it smartens the ship up more than on Dream. Like on Dream it’s mainly carpets and upholstery that have been improved, although the cabin bathrooms have had a makeover on Celebration with large tiles instead of the small mosaic type, the old brushed aluminium cabinet remains but there is a new sink unit. This is made of what I would call good quality MDF so I wonder how it will wear over the years?

To sum up, it was a good cruise, up to usual Thomson standard, with the great staff once again being the stars of the show.

(edit)

Just remembered, they charge £5 each for a shuttle bus into Larnaca, we walked it in less than 30 minutes...

Pleased that you are Well and back in the fold Sailaway.

We should keep up our attempts to get CC to make this a sticky and keep adding to it, even though the google spreadsheet won't be updated this is a good resource.

Cabin Number: 638

Cruise Ship: Celebration

Date of Cruise: May 13

Bed Formation: A proper Double, not 2 singles pushed together

Bath/Shower?: shower

Adjoining Cabin?: no

Balcony?: no

Comment on the Size of the Cabin: good size

Comment on any Noise Issues: none

Comment on Storage Space: good, usual Celebration inside

Comment on the Bathroom: Improved from 12 months ago, large tiles, not the old Mosaic type

Any Other Comments?: nice midships not affected by noise from engines

Would You Recommend this Cabin?: yes

Link to any Images: Will add later...

Score out of 10: 10

Cabin Number: 634

Cruise Ship: Celebration

Date of Cruise: Feb 12 and May 12

Bed Formation: Twin will convert to double

Bath/Shower?: shower

Adjoining Cabin?: no

Balcony?: no

Comment on the Size of the Cabin: good size

Comment on any Noise Issues: none

Comment on Storage Space: good, usual Celebration inside

Comment on the Bathroom: well presented and clean

Any Other Comments?: nice midships not affected by noise from engines

Would You Recommend this Cabin?: yes

Link to any Images:

Score out of 10:

 

Then, I transfer it over to the spreadsheet. I could do it as a public edit spreadsheet, but I thought if I did that then, as anyone can edit it, we'd probably end up with people messing about with it, deleting reviews, so I thought it was best to make it read only.

 

Good idea Sailaway, it makes more work for you but otherwise there would always be someone messing it up for devilment.