Miaminice

Check this for the best S-Class balcony and stateroom description I have ever seen...

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1751328

We always liked the MDR! Had Aqua-Class in December (Connie) and absulutely fell in love with BLU...

First I didn´t even want to go there but gave it a try - went to BLU every night after...and even for breakfast. Great personal service, no noise, no rush and great food.

Booked two more cruises with Celebrity - both in AQ.

... Cab not necessary if you are not overloaded w. bags. $2.35 bus every 1/2 hour ...

I don´t think saving on a cab (flat rate MIA to SoBe 30$) is necessary when hotels are chosen in the price range of the Mondrian etc.

Flying in from Australia, the OP will have some luggage - taking a cab is just a comfortable / reasonable choice.

I you want to be in the hip and sometimes loud "middle of it all", South Beach sure is the right place to be. It is just about the only area you can really explore by walking.

For all other "sight seeing" you´d either need a car or join a tour.

A good way to see a bit of Miami and the Beaches is to join the BigBus-HoHo-Tour - starting in South Beach or at Bayside Marketplace.

Take the 300 $ OBC, buy the Soda Package on board (embarkation day) and use the rest for other things bought on board....

We just had 9046 on the xmas cruise.

It was quiet. Some moving of the loungers could be heard but never bothered us.

What I really didn't like was the huge overhanging roof and the support beams. They were in my way all the time....

Only AC-balconies without are on deck 11

We had a different experience in December on Connie...

After many cruises on various RC-ships, which we absolutely loved, we tried Connie and Celebrity on a short Xmas-cruise in December.

What should I say... The only reason why we don´t say that we liked Celebrity better is because we have the feeling we would betray our beloved RC ;)

"Solsticized" Connie is absolutely beautiful. Food was good and service great - just as good, maybe even better than Royal.

After a price-drop we made the mistake to upgrade to Aqua-Class for not even 10$ more than originally booked. I call it a mistake because we are hooked now.

Especially because of the (Aqua-Class) BLU-restaurant. Beautiful setting, great quiet service, no rush and close to gourmet food.

We booked TWO more Celebrity cruises while on board - Holy Land/Silhouette and South America/Infinity. And of course it unfortunately had to be Aqua-class again :rolleyes:

So my advise - don´t book Aqua :)

For many many pics of solticized Connie check our review below. Don´t mind the German text (I posted it in a German forum) - the pics will tell the story.

http://www.kreuzfahrtinfos.at/kfi-forum/board3-kreuzfahrt-reedereien/board55-celebrity-cruises/board88-reisebericht-celebrity-cruises/4656-reisebericht-weihnachten-2013-an-bord-der-celebrity-constellation/

Hi,

here are the details of the 123go!-promo.

You get one offer of your choice for regular cruises and two offers of your choice for Europe cruises.

The included beverage package is the Classic package - limiting the choice of drinks to certain maximum prices per glass/bottle - Wine 8$, beer 6$ and so on.

If you prefer the more expensive wines you can upgrade to a Premium package which includes more expensive drinks.

With both packages you can have as many drinks as you want - only the choice of drinks is limited with the Classic.

Regardless of the side, you should be aware of the roof on top of the staterooms in the middle section. 1605 is right on the edge of that section. It might not be covered by the roof that much but the view forward will be partially blocked by the steel supports of the roof.

However 1605 has a slightly larger balcony (because of the angle).

I changed 1604 which we booked at first to a stateroom more forward - just because the large overhanging roof really bothered me.

The staterooms in the forward or aft (Cat A2) of the middle section (Cat A1) which is set back a little don´t have that roof.

Here´s an example of what I mean. Taken on the Connie, which has the same overhang on the Aqua-Class staterooms.

We seldom heard the Loungers on the sun deck beeing moved. But never to a point that it bothered us.

Here ares some S-Class pics on which you can see the balconies of the S-Class. IMHO the forward or middle hump cabins are much nicer because they do not have the roof and the support beams.

As I said, the roof really bothered me. Whenever I wanted to take a picture off the balcony, I had the roof or a metal beam on it...

There is a steam room in Persian Garden (extra cost). But there is a spacious Sauna in the changing rooms at the Spa which is fee.

Hi,

found some pics on which you can see the balconies of the S-Class.

IMHO the forward or middle hump cabins are much nicer because they do not have the roof and the support beams.

As I said, the roof really bothered me. Whenever I wanted to take a picture off the balcony, I had the roof or a metal beam on it...

Regardless of the side, you should be aware of the roof on top of the staterooms in the middle section. 1605 is right on the edge of that section. It might not be covered by the roof that much but the view forward will be partially blocked by the steel supports of the roof.

However 1605 has a slightly larger balcony (because of the angle).

I changed 1604 which we booked at first to a stateroom more forward - just because the large overhanging roof really bothered me.

The staterooms in the forward or aft (Cat A2) of the middle section (Cat A1) which is set back a little don´t have that roof.

Here´s an example of what I mean. Taken on the Connie, which has the same overhang on the Aqua-Class staterooms.

We seldom heard the Loungers on the sun deck beeing moved. But never to a point that it bothered us.

@TomBeckCruise

:) :) :)

No, I was not refering to your post - and I didn't really need a translation of it.

I was refering to scubamommy's answer to my post (see quote below) x

But I am glad to read that "people from outside of the US" lighten up your forum-life ;) :)

WOW! I wish I could read German because those pictures are FABULOUS! I am sure your review is so interesting. Thank you for sharing!

Oh, sure I don't mind the links to the translation tool. I will have to check though, what comes out of the translation - sometimes funny things happen, using these tools :)

We have been on board the Constellation for xmas and absolutely loved it. After many many cruises with Royal Caribbean we tried X for the first time and - what should I say - booked two more cruises (Holy Land and South America) while on board. Aqua-Class got us hooked - mainly because of BLU.

Anyway, while I can´t give you any advice towards S-Class - which we will try in October - I can tell you that sailing on Connie would not be a mistake either.

I posted a review on a Austrian/German cruise-forum. Dont mind the German text. The review, however, is definately laden with pics of Connie. So maybe this links is of some interest for you:

http://www.kreuzfahrtinfos.at/kfi-forum/board3-kreuzfahrt-reedereien/board55-celebrity-cruises/board88-reisebericht-celebrity-cruises/4656-reisebericht-weihnachten-2013-an-bord-der-celebrity-constellation/

Yes, she did. After being unable to see an accurate Track on Marine Traffiic, I looked for a web cam of Nassau's cruise port... There she was :-)

I also noticed that and wondered about the slow speed. However I also saw the pilot vessel on the tracker - so I assume she turned into the wind to offload the pilot !?

Anyway, she is on her way with more than 10 Knots. She will not need to go any faster for the distance to Nassau.

Keeping my fingers crossed!!!

We are booked for the holiday cruise on Dec. 23rd.

There are free shuttles to the rental car center at the airport which is about 5 minutes away. All the major rental companies are located there.

Dollar has a station right at the exit of the port. But it will probably take you just as long to get there as it would take you to take a shuttle to the RCC.

We can highly recommend the Pan Pacific Hotel in Vancouver, which is part of the port complex and the Holiday Inn Express in Seward which is right at the pier and very close to restaurants and tour operators in Seward.

Here´s a link to a review I posted on a German cruise-forum about our trip northbound in August. Never mind the German text... but you will like the pics.

http://www.shipedia.eu/forum/219-reiseberichte-royal-caribbean/31680-alaska-the-last-frontier-reisebericht-radiance-of-the-seas-22-08-07-09-2013.html

Can´t go wrong with either one...

Radiance-class is great but so is the Millenium-class.

I wouldn´t say the crowd is older on Celebrity - especially on cruises in the Caribbean.

Royal is a bit more mainstream - Celebrity a tat more luxurious.

Service is great on both lines - food on celebrity might be an inch above Royal.

If I remember correctly, the WJ has a "Deli Corner" plus theres is a section in the middle were they offer various deli style sandwiches - different breads, differents meats etc.

Unfortunately cruising has become a mass market. And cruising will reach more and more customers. If more customers can be reached by lowering the prices for a still above average quality, and if the masses create more revenue than the seasoned and "royal" customers, any company company will cater to the masses. Royal Caribbean is no exeption here.

I am NOT saying I like it - but that´s just the way it is. I am a loyal RCCL customer for many years and I still think Royal is above average - even if the average isn´t what it used to be.

As an individual I have to decide if my favoured cruiseline is still better than the others or if I have to try a line that caters to a more luxurious market... and pay more for it.

Royal Caribbean also has a sharholder benefit program:

Any shareholder holding a minimum of 100 RCL shares (today´s value 3,000.00 USD) at time of sailing is eligible for

$250 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 14 or more nights.

$200 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 10 to 13 nights.

$100 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 6 to 9 nights.

$50 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 5 nights or less.

Applicable on any Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises or Azamara Club Cruises Sailings. (excludes Celebrity Xpeditions)

You may request this benefit multiple times-as often as you sail on Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises or Azamara Club Cruises (excludes Celebrity Xpedition).

Now, for an investment of about 3,000 $, that is a pretty good interest rate :)

Especially considering that the 3 grand are not gone, but provide a pretty conservative, “safe” investment. (That is, of course, unless Royal Caribbean starts hiring Italian captains :))

I requested the benefit for a cruise and received a 200 $ Onboard Credit within 24 hours.

Oliver