SteveGT3

Unless the policy has changed, you can upgrade to the premium package at any time during the cruise.

My wife and I, when sailing on an Azamara ship, always upgrade the free, standard drink package to the premium package. I do not remember the exact cost per person, but it is very reasonable. The premium package includes all but the ultra-premium labels.

You can upgrade your drink package on board ship. It is done by the same staff that is taking reservations for the speciality restaurants. If you do not want to upgrade on day 1, you can upgrade on any other day at a prorated amount.

Easy way to remember:

Butler - takes care of guest(s)

Attendant - takes care of suite

I have never asked a Butler for anything that he was unable to do or take care of. They are great. Treat the butler and attendant(s) accordingly.

I think it is very unfair to single out any one person. There are so many that do an outstanding job, work inordinate hours, are away from their families, etc.. To name one would not be something I prefer to do.

As Shyla100 said, the answer depends on the city. Seabourn will almost always provide shuttle buses if the town/city center is 10-15 minutes or more walk from the pier. No matter the distance, there are almost always taxis waiting at the gate to take you into town or to any place you prefer. My wife & I often will take the shuttle into own and if it did not seem too far away, we will walk back to the ship, which can often be enjoyable.

One more thing, since you are right on the beach at Le Petit Hotel, they offer lounge chairs, beach towels and beach umbrellas at no charge and there are more than enough to for all guests. There is even an toilet and outdoor shower to use that is steps away.

My wife and I and another couple completed a transatlantic sailing on the Odyssey that ended in St Martin in mid-Nov.. We stayed at Le Petit Hotel on the French side for 3 nights and it was outstanding. It is steps from the water and has only about 10 rooms. They provide a free continental breakfast in your room or on your private balcony that overlooks the water, and the pastries are some of the best I have had in years. St Martin's famous Restaurant Row is a 5-minute ride away and the hotel provides a free (except tip) shuttle service that will take you there and take you back to the hotel. TripAdvisor rates Le Petit Hotel very highly so you may or may not be able to get a reservation.

This hotel is owned b the same woman that owns L'Esplanade Hotel which is on a hill overlooking the water and is very close to Le Petit. It, too, is outstanding and and much larger than Le Petit. We used their pool and other services while we were in St Martin as they are available to guests staying at Le Petit Hotel. They also offer the free shuttle service to Restaurant Row. The free shuttle service does not extend to picking you up at the pier or taking you to the airport, but the hotel can arrange a cab easily at the end of your stay and you can easily find a taxi at the ship terminal when you dock.

Since we were there for 3 days, we rented a car and the car rental company picked us up at the pier and took us to the hotel where our car was waiting. When our stay was over, the car rental company picked us up at the hotel and took us to the airport. We simply left the rental car at the hotel where the rental company picked it up later in the day. The car rental was done thru the hotel and worked perfectly, if you are thinking about a car.

Hope this info helps.....

A decent rule of thumb:

The butler will take care of anything you want/need.

The suite attendant will take care of the room.

We almost always use ATMs in whichever countries we visit to get local currency. The rates are decent and much more convenient. I have yet to use an overseas ATM which did not offer English as one of the languages to use for transactions.

My wife & I are booked in Jan on Seabourn Ovation for a Singapore to Hong Kong cruise. We will be staying in Hong Kong a few days after the cruise ends. Can anyone recommend a tour guide that can give us a private (i.e. no bus tours) tour in Hong Kong? Thanks....

My wife & I are booked in Jan on Seabourn Ovation for a Singapore to Hong Kong cruise. We will be arriving in Singapore a few days before the cruise departs. Can anyone recommend a tour guide that can give us a private (i.e. no bus tours) tour in Singapore? Thanks....

Thanks for updating/correcting me on Casa Camper in Barcelona. With or without free drinks it is a great choice for a stay. In fact, based on our stay there, my wife and I will be staying at the Casa Camper in Berlin next month when we travel thru Germany prior to taking a transatlantic cruise from Lisbon to St Martin on Seabourn Odyssey. 

We stayed 2-3 years ago, and there was beer & wine available in the area where you order breakfast and where much of the food was laid out. Perhaps that has changed.

Casa Camper Hotel. A two minute walk from Las Ramblas so it is quiet but close to the action. Free drinks and a full free breakfast is included.

As SLSD mentioned, laundry detergent is free. We always pack a few sheets of Bounce fabric softener sheets for the dryer. 

If you get any OBC from your travel agent, chances are very good that you can redeem it for cash on the last full day of you cruise. Lots of times that’s a better option than buying something you din’t really need. Plus, the cost of an iPad will not always be cheaper than what you would pay at home.

To see if you have any refundable OBC, go to your online folio on your cabin’s TV.  Any OBC that you receive from Celebrity, which is always non-refundable, will be lsted as one line item and will be identified with a code. If you have gotten any OBC from your travel agent or elsewhere that is refundable, that amount will also be listed as a separate line item, but the code used to identify it will have a “-R” at the end of the identifying code. For years, I have always tried to use up all of my OBC buying things just to use up my OBC.

Once I found out that some OBC might be refundable, rather than buying unneeded things, I started going to Guest Services to get my refundable OBC in cash. You simply go to Guest Services on the last day and tell the agent that you would like your refundable OBC in cash. On our last cruise in May (Seward to Vancouver on Millennium), I was given $895, which was what my TA gave us (10% of our cruise cost) as an OBC. 

Like cruzzzinma, we also ask our butler to swap out the gift bottle of sparkling wine for a bottle of either white or red. We have never been refused.

Looking for the same thing....!

The airport is just across the harbor from where the ship docks. Barring any traffic issues, it is a 10-minute ride through a tunnel, You shouldn't have any problem. 

You should both join. As you start accumulating points and advancing to higher levels you will each get the benefits. Be sure both your and her CC membership #s are included in all your bookings.

Googling Tropicana Havana will give you all the info you need. I suggest that you also look at the earlier postings on this thread. It contains advice on the best ticket choices to purchase.

Tropicana has a website where you can order tickets and pay with your (US-issued) credit card. No problem at all. 

Taxis are plentiful outside the ship terminal to take you there. Our driver waited outside the theater with many other drivers, and we easily met him after the show  to take us back to the ship. We paid him for the round trip when we got back to the ship terminal.

Have a great time. My wife & I loved visiting Cuba. Hope that you enjoy it as well.

No need to buy bottled water on the ship. Bottled water is readily available all over Havana and other cities we visited (Cienfuegos, Trinidad & Santiago de Cuba). Drank bottled water and tap water served in restaurants without any problems. 

We are sailing on Millennium at the end of the month - Seward to Vancouver. We are in an aft corner Sky Suite and try booking that location on all ships whenever possible. Love the view and it’s a nice, quiet area of the ship.