Kilroyshere

We sailed the Millennium in December 2022 for their Xmas and NYE Holiday cruise. The ship was full to capacity. Millennium is an end of the 20th Century generation design and activities driven cruise ship that are are disappearing in favor of bigger passenger loads, more family/child oriented with glitzy tech up-charge amenities and on-board experiences more akin to what you find in a mega Las Vegas property or massive all inclusive Caribbean resort. On our cruise we heard complaints of MDR 1/2 hour to 45 minute long seating wait times. Luminae seating was always available with no wait. Food and service there was excellent. Luminae has limited menu items, especially in regards to salads and soups. We supplemented our choices when we were gladly offered full MDR menu selections. Special order items made a day in advance were eagerly and professionally accommodated. The Retreat Lounge is nice, somewhat formal, with a very attentive staff and bar tender. It truly is a 'retreat' from a big cruise ship. Unfortunately, the Retreat Canapes and late afternoon hors d'oevres were same every day and not much more than Oscar Myer like 'Lunchables' of cold cuts, basic cheese, crackers and sometimes a few grapes. The ship handles big water as good as any cruise ship we've been on. The condition of the ship was spotless and pristine. The ship's crew were attentive, friendly and never far away if you want service. Entertainment every night was very good. Millennium is a ship more akin to the way cruising was 1980's to the turn of the century. If that's what you enjoy, sail now because this kind of cruise experience is becoming an experience of the past.

We loved the small cruise experience. Today they are not what they were in our opinion. We started with pre Carnival Cunard Sea Goddess, Radisson Song Of Flower and got hooked on SB's 208 passenger Spirit, Pride and Legend little sisters. Nearly flawless service, attention to detail and excellence were offered on all the above ships. Those were the days of small ship cruising and set a standard for us that has been lost forever... In 09 SB launched Odyssey class ships: 450 passengers, followed by Sojourn and Quest replacing the 3 little sisters. Then came Encore and Ovation which to us, are Odyssey ships with added suite floors and crowded with 150 more passengers in basically the same ship hull as Odyssey. These ever growing not so small ships were no longer the experience, service and excellence we came to love. So we returned to try Radisson that became Regent and Silversea in the 500 to 650 passenger ship range. Today we sail on SB and Regent. Each has their own strengths, pros and cons. SB is still our favorite. If you like caviar, SB's generous caviar service at no charge is huge and why so many Belgians in our cruise experience choose SB. Some don't like the SB house wines, but they get us there. Special request dining on both cruise lines are honored with advance notice. Regent fares include air fare and shore excursions. In our experiences, the Regent shore excursions are big bus, mass market tours similar to what you'd find on Carnival or HAL tours. On SB, the shore excursions were more often small group on a micro bus and better quality with a hefty charge. Regent's Concierge class suites in our experience wasn't a feature we cared for. Regent in our opinion and amongst many of our friends, finds the entertainment on Regent to be more professional big production shows akin to large ship cruising. SB tends to go for more single stage entertainers, more lecture/speakers and a lower key, but high quality entertainment venue. We found Silversea a lesser class than SB or Regent and won't return. They up-charged in one specialty restaurant, consistently slow and uncaring service, poor breakfast and lunch buffets (SB & Regent are excellent) and too many of our requests ignored. Recently we tried Celebrity Retreat Class Suite. Celebrity created several classes of service on their ships with: Retreat, Aqua, Concierge and Tin level. Retreat cuisine in their Luminae dining and other Retreat amenities are excellent and up to SB or Regent standards. But the rest of the ship is mass market, crowded, hawking art auctions, jewelry sales, constant photographer solicitations, mediocre buffets and what you might expect on a big ole crowded cruise ship. We believe there's a viable market for a super premium small ship cruise line that steps up to what SB, Radisson, Cunard et al used to offer. We are eyeing the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection. That's our opinion and worth every cent ya paid for it!

Upon further close inspection of the "Holiday Menus" sent us, we did find several "Holiday" offerings in addition to the regular Tuscan Cafe menu listed below that are marked with a small icon. Appetizers: Lobster & Asparagus Salad Game Terrine Pumpkin Soup Main Courses: Fennel Poached Turbot Pistachio Crusted Lamb While they sound just lovely, we will pass paying the extra $191.16 surcharge above and beyond the every day Tuscan Cafe menu and pricing for two people.

Has anyone here been on X during Xmas and NYE and been to the Specialty Restaurant offerings for Holidays to give us an idea of what we might enjoy? We're booked for a Xmas and NYE cruise and pre-booked dining at the Tuscan Grill for the advertised "Holiday Menus" at Xmas and New Years Eve. The website Holiday links show the menu as "Italian" and links to the every day Tuscan menu. We would like to know what we're getting for the 165% price increase on those 2 nights plus 18% tip? Pre cruise price per person at Tuscan is $49 pp plus 18% tip. The holiday packages are $130 pp plus 18% tip. I spoke to the Retreat Concierge person who said she'd email me the Holiday menus. What she sent was the regular Tuscan every day menu labeled on pdf files as Xmas Holiday Menu and New Years Holiday Menu. I suspect and would think there will be different Holiday menus in these 2 venues. We've been charged for these Holiday dining packages costing over $300 per couple, but have no idea what is different on these nights for that additional up-charge? Does anyone here know what we might expect? Or is it just the regular Tuscan Grill menu at a high price for those 2 Holiday nights? Perhaps ought we cancel and save the $ and go to MDR or Luminae instead? Wishing you all Happy Holidays and well in the coming New Year.

George Milton from Steinbeck's 'Of Mice and Men.' (with brevity)

Lest you think today's 'fiduciary' fee based model is better, safer or more legit for investors than yesteryear's transaction based commission model, it's not IMO. It sounds and looks more legit and sells better that way for a myriad of reasons. All conjured up behind Wall Street Wizard's curtain. The fee based model reduced BD Corporate employee body counts converting many Stockbrokers into Independent Contractor Financial Consultants and putting the employee overhead costs on the FC. CRYPTO: An intangible souvenir some bought/buy with hopes they'll sell it at a higher price to someone more stupid than they are and with greater hope it doesn't disappear ala FTX. It's not a Registered Security. It's not a legal currency. It's presently unregulated. Buying Crypto is less than buying a collectable vintage baseball card that you can hold and view. "What? We don't tax this (OBC) stockholder benefit???:" - DirtyDawg Credit Card ca$h rebates and airline credit card point programs are in the cross-hairs of the current IRS and their overlords. The current regime wants to hire 87,000 new IRS field agents to go after...tell me again bout that George?

DirtyDog; There was an old stockbroker saying: "I made $ and so did my Brokerage firm. 2 outta 3 ain't bad. Heck, nobody in the majors bats .666!" As you might well know, stockbrokers were Broker-Dealer commission based for a very long time. More trades = more commissions with a myriad of conflicts of interest. Around the late 80's, the model changed from Commission Based to Fee Based. Instead of Stockbrokers and BD's charging commissions for trades, in fee based accounts investors are commonly charged percentage fees based on assets under 'management.' If assets grow, so do fees and vice versa. Stockbrokers became 'Investment Advisors' (RIA's) expected to act in a Fiduciary capacity to satisfy the standard of suitability. NASD as former governing body was replaced by FINRA. Coke or Pepsi? Many retail customers don't realize their fee based account with funds parked in managed accounts often have further fees the retail investor may pay beyond those paid to their RIA advisor e.g.; mutual fund internal expenses, funds may have front/back end loads, 12B-1's, soft dollars, 3rd party or internal money management firms who also take management fees. If ya think big makes investment firms safe, let's recall the subprime mortgage backed securities debacle taking down or requiring govt. bailouts among the biggest e.g.; Lehman, Merrill, WaMu, PNC, Bear Stearns, etc., costing taxpayers billions. If you think bond rating services are a good indicator of safety as was mentioned earlier herein, the biggest rating firms improperly rated subprime mortgage backed securities as the junk they were. I'm not mesmerized nor sold on commonly offered Securities industry Asset Allocation modeling, Diversification, Suitability, Research, Due Diligence, Dollar Cost Averaging (the ultimate device of mediocrity IMO) claims. Those all sound good and could be to some extent. But as they are sold and used in so many managed accounts I've seen, they put customers in a diversified basket of pooled funds with total returns that too often barely equal simple, low cost, efficient, index funds. Which gets me back to this thread OP and earlier discussion if the big 3 cruise lines were in trouble after the Crystal debacle. I can't find any Street research who in September had a short term 'Buy' opinion for cruise lines reaching all time stock price lows at that time. One wire house claimed bankruptcy was coming to one line...and one day it may sooner or later. Meanwhile, back in late September a few speculators saw a contrarian gem to pick off as a high risk/reward short-term play on the cruise lines. In late September news was widely reporting Covid cases were on the decline. Cruise lines were reportring future bookings were at all time record highs or equal to 2019 pre-Covid bookings. The cruise lines were returning their fleets back to sea. And all while so many on the Street research side were screaming 'stay away from cruise stocks.' Wow, what were they thinking? It was the perfect winter coat on super-sale in summer. It was a dream contrarian, short-term, spec play indeed and not a play for your nest-egg dollars. To date for 2022, Q4 cruise stocks are among the best performing sectors. What happens from here with cruise stocks? I don't have a clue. Huge risks hang over the industry. This isn't advice to anyone. It's just my opinion and worth every cent ya paid for it, just as it was my opinion in late September that cruise stocks then, looked very juicy.

The OP wasn't the YE price. It was September 30, 2022. At that date and week, one major wire house said one of the big 3 would go bankrupt. Most analysts had their strongest sell opinions. I posted that as a contrarian, I saw an opportunity that would be opposite of conventional street wisdom. Can't argue with 60% versus the indexes. I'm not saying cruise stocks are the end all investment as a piece of ones assets. The time of the OP was a snapshot opportunity and it worked. That in and of itself can be for some, one component of investing, speculating or call it what ever name you care to.

At some point, almost every equity, debt and venture has it's day as pickers deemed them speculations at times and investments at other times.

I was referring to GrandGeezer who claimed my 'old school math' was wrong in the original post I made about the gain on RCL, NCLH and CCL shares.

Them were a lotta words to say...I'm not sure what you tried to say, but you said it in fine Wall St. fashion lacking brevity! As for the winter coat analogy, I stole that line from old Warren Buffet himself, the king of Graham & Dodd Value investing. It's a very operative and simple investment theory that requires no Wall St. middleman.

Hmmm... I'm older school math. Buy a share of RCL for $37.59. Sell a share of RCL for $60.51 Realize a profit of $22.92. That $22.91 profit on a $37.59 investment = 61% on my abacus.

BUMP This thread was posted September 30, 2022. Looking back on that thread discussion which invoked the Big 3 stock prices, had one invested (speculated) on the Big 3 Cruise line stocks since, you outperformed the S&P500 by over 400% (RCCL), as low as outperforming the S&P500 by approximately 150% (NCLH) and CCL outperformed the S&P500 by approximately 300%. Closing Stock prices on 9/30/22: RCL - $37.90 NCLH - $13.86 CCL - $7.03 S&P500: - 3,585 Closing Stock prices on Friday 12/2/22: RCL - $60.51 NCLH - $16.54 CCL - $10.00 S&P500: - 3,585 61 Day Returns: RCL - + 59.66% NCLH - + 19.34% CCL - +42.25% S&P500: - +13.56% I'm not in the Securities biz. I'm not giving advice. And my opinion posted back then that the Big 3 looked like winter coat bargains in the summer was pure luck I'm sure. Now that winter is here, that nice coat must feel mighty fine...

This thread revealed to us that despite the Retreat Amenities page stating tips are included, that is not so as we understood it advertised when we booked our X cruise. It's all part of a cruise experience that will determine if we become Retreat repeaters or not.

I named 2 premium cruise lines in the post you responded to where tipping is not a mandatory automatic fee. In fact, they state: 'Tipping is neither required nor expected.' It's the same non-mandatory tipping policy at my local health club, masseur, barber, nearly all restaurants I frequent (unless party is of 6 to 8 or more which is disclosed on the menu) and most other service venues where tipping is customary, but not required. I tip generously for good to excellent service. I will tip lower when service is IMO not satisfactory nor up to par. I dislike mandatory tipping. It IMO does not incentivize Premium service when the operator knows it's a guaranteed revenue stream regardless of service quality delivered.

From the Retreat Amenities Website page verbatim: The best amenities, all included. As a guest of The Retreat, you’ll also enjoy a long list of thoughtfully curated amenities that start with four newly added perks*—premium drinks, premium Wi-Fi, tips, and an onboard credit to spend almost any way you like. Tips If you’re wondering when and how much to tip your dedicated service team — don’t. We’ve got it covered. As a guest of The Retreat, all your gratuities are prepaid.

The Retreat "Amenities Page" lists "Tips" included. It does not have a disclaimer saying there are some X venues with mandatory tips not included in this advertised amenity. As to your statement that all cruise lines add gratuities, that's not true nor reality. Premium lines Regent and Seabourn for instance, have no up-charges in specialty restaurants nor is tipping mandatory in any venue or service offered (spa, tours, fitness, etc). The Retreat is marketed as a Premium level of cruising service. While Retreat Suites are priced comparably with Premium cruise line cabins that don't have mandatory tipping charges, the mandatory tipping in Retreat contradicts the "Tips Included" on the Retreat Amenities website page.

So it seems there are Retreat suites that include specialty dining with no up-charge nor tips and, Retreat suites that don't include specialty dining included. How many cabin classes does X have? Retreat with specialty dining no charge Retreat without specialty dining with up-charge and 18% "tip" Aqua Concierge Basic Tipping is IMO a non-mandatory service that ought be earned, appreciated and gratefully given, such as tipping your tour guide as you mention. A mandatory "tip" charge is not a tip. It's another fee IMO.

We're booked and trying X in a Retreat Suite. This tip issue is one factor that will decide if we'll become repeat Retreaters. We understood there would be no mandatory tip charges paying a premium price for a Retreat Suite as advertised on the X website that states Retreat Suite Featured Amenities Included "Tips" with a check mark by it There's no notice on that Retreat feature page that the amenity of Tips Included does NOT apply to some Specialty or other Venues. Am I wrong? Retreaters being charged 18% in some up-charge venue is a confusing and opaque contradiction from the X Amenities page stating Tips are included.

All Peloton consumer bikes come with Look Delta pedals installed, compatible only with 3-bolt Look Delta Cleats or reversed to old school rat-trap cages. That doesn't mean X Peletons are configured with Look pedals/cleats. Shimpano MTB cleats are more commonly used on other brand exercise spin bikes used in fitness centers and Shimano pedals are only compatible with Shimano cleats. If anyone knows with certainty what cleats work on X Peletons, that would be very helpful to me.

You invoke a question we're asking ourselves regarding 5-Star upscale, small ship, premium service we know is delivered versus Premium X Suites. We get all 6 of the amenities you mention and much more, in a regular veranda room on upscale premium cruise lines for similar cost per day of a large Celebrity Upper Suite cost. We're long-time frequent cruisers on Regent and Seabourn cruise lines. We've sailed Seadream and Silversea (A Royal Caribbean property), but in our opinion they're not close to the superior service and amenities afforded on upscale Regent and Seabourn. The multi-class service on a single ship (e.g.; Retreat, Aqua, Concierge, Tourist) with various up-charges and restricted venues is not a cruise direction we like. Ocean liners of years past had different classes and they went away. Cunard (Carnival) may still do that. The multi-class cruise ships seem to be returning as on-board revenue generators beyond cabin fares for the cruise line, more than a feature for cruisers. Just our opinion and worth every cent ya paid for it. Begs the question if the

These Covid cruise stories are not encouraging and are of concern to us with a December X cruise booked. Question: Does X provide masks if requested and if so, are they common paper/poly/cloth masks or NIOSH certified N95's? In crowded ship interior spaces e.g.; elevators, tour buses, theaters, etc., it seems to us, prudent to mask up. A small effort and price to pay that might avoid a Covid infection...

That's a heavy dose of reality.

25+ years cruising and none since Covid. We're booked for a December X holiday cruise. Pre-cruise communications, information, customer service lines, marketing, reservations, the website/app and the entire booking experience has imposed a lot of stress and uncertainty to what cruising used to be. Yeah, the luster has been diminished pre-cruise planning and we're hoping the cruise itself is not affected so.

We've not been on X for a long time. Decided to try Retreat Class service and booked the Celebrity Suite, one grade down from a Royal Suite for a holiday cruise. Will we get similar amenities, service and contact from a Retreat rep as described herein this thread by RS cruisers? Or is the Retreat Celebrity Suite not entitled to the same level of service, reservations, etc as a Retreat Royal Suite?