Miaminice

Perfect start for the day! a Cappuccino at Campo dei Fiori…

Celebrity Ascent - June 2024 - Greece, Turkey & Italy - 1 - Rome After our short 1 1/2 hour flight to Rome we took a taxi into town. There’s a € 50 flat rate for a ride into the city center. As usual, we like to stay around Torre Argentina in Rome. We think it’s the best location for exploring as it‘s basically right in the middle of everything you want to see. This time we chose the Argentina Relais as our base. The entrance is just a small door on the square. The gate to a very inviting place with a view of the ruins. Our first go to was Rosciola just around the corner. There is always room for a small Pizza snack. We passed the time to dinner with a drink at Campo dei Fiori and then walked across the bridge to Trastevere. When we walked past the church on the main square, there was a wedding ceremony taking place. IMG_0132.mov The picturesque alleys of the area are lined with countless little restaurants, one more inviting than the other. Since we discovered the La Scala Trastevere restaurant 12 years ago, we have visited it whenever we are in Rome. Today was no exception. However, tbh unfortunately it has seen better times. After dinner we walked over to the Pantheon and the small distance to Piazza Navona. Unfortunately Bernini’s beautiful Fontana di Fiumi was fenced in and is undergoing renovations. On the way back to the hotel we incidentally walked past a small place a friend had just told us about on FB an hour before. A cafe for 100 different kinds of Tiramisu. A good way to end the day. Buona Notte!

No! Definitely not. We just did the cruise over the holidays. Celebrity advised everyone that - contrary to some years ago - you had to arrange your own visa. We didn’t need one because we have German passports, but our friends from the US did. Easy to apply for E-visas online. BTW: here’s our review:

No, it’s just for them to know where to bring your bags.

How to print them has been explained above. However, you are not required to print them. They have blanks and will attach tags at the port when you drop your luggage.

I heard that they bring you a kettle - especially on cruises from the UK. Coffee maker… no!

If the $28 were for the whole cruise - sure, a no brainer. If they were per day… no thanks. CC doesn’t offer anything special unless you are chasing the points. So don’t expect too much.

hi there! Along with David - aka mahdnc - we did the same cruise in December. Fantastic! Maybe you are interested in a teaser and some info. The private guides we picked were OUTSTANDING!

Unfortunately an international problem 😞

Correct, but unfortunately you´ll meet this kind of behavior by guest on board Celebrity ships - like anywhere else 😉

the only way to wear them 👍

yes you could! And no, you don’t have to buy them… we actually received lapel pins when we cruised with Royal many years ago. Want some? Ours are still in mint condition. We never wore them 🤣

yes

“Kneel, we are Elite Plus!“ 🤣🤣🤣 Looking for our masters, the Zenith… Ridiculous… 🙈

Exactly! On S class we decline the upgrade to A1 and choose A2 - however, under the spa or salon.

As mentioned… common sense! Quote Celebrity: The Solarium offers a perfectly serene atmosphere where you can restore both your tan and your sanity. Definition of serenity: The meaning of SERENITY is a state of utter calm and unruffled repose or quietude. And you think they keep the kids out so the adults are able to make noise 🤔 Btw: I think it is posted in the Solarium rules.

People without the slightest trace of common sense or respect but with a giant feeling of entitlement - that’s what’s happening to Celebrity 🤷🏻

Try the Santo Winery for something special

It does match my description... 🙂 To clarify: There are two ports, both belong to Fira # 1 Old Port = Stairs and Cable Car, NO street # 2 New Port = Street for buses etc. There two types of booked excursions which involve buses 1. Tender to NEW port in the morning, drive up and around in a bus. Return to Fira Town and then take the Cable car down to the OLD port. Tender back to the ship from the OLD port 2. Tender to NEW port in the morning, drive up and around in a bus. Eventually return to the NEW port by bus and tender back to the ship from the NEW port. So no cable car. Now if you are looking for a tour without cable car it would be a tour like the second one. However, TBH if the tour description does not explicitly mention "No cable car" it could be either one. The tour described by the OP specifically mentions the return to Athinios port and direct access to tenders - so he or she will not have to take the cable car for sure.

of course you can make reservations. However, there are no fixed dining times as on other ships. Early – late – anytime doesn’t exist. It’s only select on E class.

Please don´t confuse the OP! Despite of booking Aqua their IT system needs the enty of a time just like any other booking. So it can read early/late/select - but you can simply ignore it. Second, there´s no need to speak to the Maitre to dine anywhere else. Especially since we are talking about Beyond here. There are no dining times on E class.

The answer is simple: Ignore the time 🙂 1. Although Aqua and Blu is always anytime dining, their IT system still shows a time (early/late/select) 2. On E class like Beyound there are no fixed dining times. Just go to Blu or any of the MDRs any time you like.

Yes, all the tours visiting Oia will bring you back to Fira. Both tender ports are in Fira - the old port and the new (Athinios) port. The old port is the port with the stairs and cable car. It´s the port that the tender boats for passengers without excursions use. The excursions including a bus tender to the new Athinios port. Is the ferry port and it can be reached by car and bus. Most excursions actually involve a mix - bus in the morning and cable car in the afternoon. However, the message you received clearly reads that you are given a choice #1 to be taken back down to Athinios by bus or #2 to stay in Fira for longer - in which case you´ll have to make your way down to the old port on your own. By cable car or walking down the stairs. BTW: if you want to do Oia (and Fira) on your own, why do you book a tour with the cruise line? You can also book the boat to Oia at the pier for much less. Granted, you´ll have to make your way down to the port in Fira on your own - which we never saw as a problem. We´ll be in Fira again in June on Ascent - for the 10th time or so 🙂 Looking at post #18 might also help you. I tried to give an overview there.

You are welcome! I just checked the time on the photos we took. We took a train to Kamakura around 9 - 9:30am and returned to the hotel at 3:30pm. We did all we did in a very relaxed pace and lingered here and there... so yes, I think 7 hours is enough time.

IMHO reservations are not necessary. If they should be, Koichi would surely recommend it. If your phone supports an eSim, try Ubigi. Worked great for us.