Travelling2Some

"Small Group Hiking in Paklenica National Park" is offered by Celebrity from the port of Zadar, Croatia. Has anyone done this excursion or heard comments about it from fellow passengers? I can't find anything definite about it. Specifically, how strenuous is it? Thanks for any info. I booked it but having second thoughts.

"Small Group Hiking in Paklenica National Park" is offered by Celebrity from the port of Zadar, Croatia. Has anyone done this excursion? I can't find anything definite about it. Specifically, how strenuous is it? Thanks for any info. I booked it but having second thoughts.

We had one of those last time and, unfortunately, they kept late hours. I think many new cruisers do not realize that cabin doors are heavy and naturally slam hard enough to shake the cabins next door if you don't hold back on them. Might be a good idea for the cruise lines to publish this in the dailies or make a few announcements about it in the first day or two of the cruise.

Someone posted recently that security took a small manicure scissors (part of a set) away from them at boarding. It was kind of funny since he pointed out that steak knives are readily available onboard. It is useful to have a knife or scissors in the cabin. We bring a small blunt tipped scissors and have never had that confiscated.

If there is an inexpensive (sometimes almost free with FAS/Latitudes discounts) shore excursion, we have booked it just to get priority tendering. Then we let the guide know that we are going off on our own so they know not to worry about their headcount being short.

There are frequent, direct regional (not high speed) trains from Bologna to Ravenna. You can book local transport from Ravenna to the ship here: https://www.visitravenna.it/en There is a monorail directly from the Bologna airport to Bologna Centralle train station. No need to book regional trains in advance. They are fixed price and do not sell out. In the past Celebrity has run shuttles to the ship from the Ravenna train station BTW, taxis are in short supply in Ravenna on the morning any ship embarks so don't count on being able to get one.

Agree that Cadiz required no shuttle. You are docked right in the heart of town and just walk off the ship. Spain Day Tours (spaindaytours.com) does shore excursions in both Spain and Portugal and is very reliable.

I think this is less about support and more about playing to a market that enjoys way more vacation time than workers in other employment sectors.

Good to know about MSC. One of my daughters is a bit of a high roller and I will pass the word to her. She says she has a system too and seems to do nicely in the casinos. Made enough on her honeymoon to cover the entire cost of the cruise (and they are big spenders, not like me!)

Hah again! You have a vivid imagination. I travel "carry-on only" and these days my fashion look is "clean and respectable". The "gorgeous" ship sailed quite a few years ago:)

Thanks so much. I have so enjoyed reading your very entertaining daily reports. Wish you safe home and many future adventures. We are doing Ravenna to Rome on Constellation in two weeks!

Hah! I don't gamble, buy drink packages or take ship-sponsored excursions. To add insult to injury, I book inside cabins and watch for price drops. I'm surprised they don't put me on some kind of a list of unprofitable passengers and hang up on me when I call to book!!!

Thanks, kwokpot. I suspected there was "no free lunch"!

We have an acquaintance who just returned from her first cruise ever (Apex - loved it) and tells us she spent a couple of hours in the casino every day and was then offered a Sky Suite FREE for booking another cruise. She's an honest person so doubt she is lying. Do you think she lost her shirt or what? Does Celebrity actually do this? Makes me wonder if the folks who work in the casino report passengers who are likely to loose large sums of money in the future? Maybe they make offers to unskilled gamblers who place large bets? We never use the casino and have no idea what to make of this but it seems so odd after just one cruise? What do you make of it?

The bus to Tarifa will take 2 hours (on a good day - (Spain public transport not known for efficiency) and then about an hour on the ferry (not counting loading/unloading/waiting for it to arrive). Realistically, you are probably looking at at least 8 hours in transit round trip. Does not sound like fun to me.

I've been trying to get into the website to cancel one of our shore excursions. I'm actually a bit apprehensive because I did that (by phone) a few years ago and instead of cancelling the excursion the cancelled the entire cruise!!! Luckily I caught the mistake right away. Looking back, I think it might have been an language barrier issue so I won't ever cancel or change anything on the phone again.

Yes, I can get in but if I click on anything it keeps asking me to log in again over and over.

Ha! Our two young-teen aged sons slept in the morning the rest of the family went to that beach, otherwise that would have been them. I told them that they really missed out and their father darn near got whiplash, lol.

That makes sense since they don't have to pack a lot of casual clothes.

The pool deck is scary enough on a regular cruise. As for the mirrors in the elevators, that big florescent lit bathroom mirror in the stateroom bathroom is a real buzz kill when getting out of the shower but at least there are no witnesses.

Yes. You know how the crew seems to quickly "pass the word" about those who tip extra? If the whole crew was being unfriendly towards me, I would think it might be negative word-of-mouth. I'm sure they also warn each other about difficult passengers and try to stay away from them?

Yes, I never wear a watch except for cruises so sometimes when I take it out of the back of a drawer for a cruise it has stopped and I just buy another one. I like the ones that light up. I leave it in the cabin's bathroom every night so I can see what time it is without turning the light on.

Yes, but there is a great deal more to trip insurance than just cancellation. I would have to purchase insurance anyway since my primary concern in medical, not cancellation. I think most of us can afford to loose the cost of a vacation, but uninsured medical and evacuation costs can bankrupt people! CFAR insurance costs almost double what regular comprehensive coverage costs and only covers a max of 75 per cent of the trip. And, as I mentioned, it cannot be sold in NY State.

We would really like to book with Celebrity again but these very high non-refundable deposits are a bit crazy. I like to book very early but having large sums at risk for long periods is too worrisome. I buy trip insurance right away, which mitigates some of the anxiety, but there is too much that can happen in a year and a half. Insurance does not cover all reasons for cancellation, especially since we live in NY, a state that does not allow CFAR (cancel for any reason) insurance to be sold. I have never used a travel agent and don't want to. Much as I would like to book another Celebrity cruise their deposit policy makes it a no-go.

In our experience one of the MDRs has always been open for lunch at embarkation. If you are automatically directed towards the buffet just smile, say you are exploring the ship and proceed to the MDR area. It is always uncrowded since few seem to know about it. Very nice start to the cruise.