Converters for outlets

First-time cruiser here!

My husband and I will be traveling with friends on Celebrity Solstice in August to Alaska. We're staying in a Sky Suite (although there might be an upgrade to a Celebrity Suite in the works, we'll see what happens), and I've been reading about the electrical outlets (or the lack thereof) in the room. One thing that stood out is the fact that they are 110 volt, and people have talked about converters. My husband has a C-PAP machine he uses to sleep, and I'm wondering if we need some sort of outlet converter to make sure he gets the right amount of electricity to run his C-PAP while sleeping. Otherwise it's going to be a LONG trip for me.

I had assumed that it would be the right outlet for his machine, but now I'm not so sure. We've used a converter in Europe, do we need to have it on the ship? Also, are there enough plugs to charge our numerous electronics (two cell phones and an Apple Watch)? Any suggestions would be helpful. I'll be honest, I don't know enough about volts and wattage to be completely sure that we'll be able to run everything that we need for the evening. Thank you for the help!

There will be both US and European plugs in the cabin. The US plug will run his machine without any problem. You might want to bring an extension cord, not a power strip or surge protector (which is not needed on a ship and is dangerous) in case the plug is not near the bed.

The only other issue you might have is having to swap things in and out of the plug to get them charged during the trip, inconvenient but not an issue.

(This assumes that you are from the US.)

First-time cruiser here!

 

My husband and I will be traveling with friends on Celebrity Solstice in August to Alaska. We're staying in a Sky Suite (although there might be an upgrade to a Celebrity Suite in the works, we'll see what happens), and I've been reading about the electrical outlets (or the lack thereof) in the room. One thing that stood out is the fact that they are 110 volt, and people have talked about converters. My husband has a C-PAP machine he uses to sleep, and I'm wondering if we need some sort of outlet converter to make sure he gets the right amount of electricity to run his C-PAP while sleeping. Otherwise it's going to be a LONG trip for me.

 

I had assumed that it would be the right outlet for his machine, but now I'm not so sure. We've used a converter in Europe, do we need to have it on the ship? Also, are there enough plugs to charge our numerous electronics (two cell phones and an Apple Watch)? Any suggestions would be helpful. I'll be honest, I don't know enough about volts and wattage to be completely sure that we'll be able to run everything that we need for the evening. Thank you for the help!

First, there's a difference between "converters" and "adapters." Adapters are inexpensive items that accept your plug prongs from wherever at the female side and have male prongs at the other side to fit the local outlet. There's no voltage conversion. For adapters, it is best to have chargers and small appliances that are dual voltage (110-120 US AND 220-240 EURO et al). Your iPhone, laptop, etc probably have dual voltage chargers (marked on the side). If your appliance/electronic item is single voltage, 110-120 will only work in a US outlet while a 220-240 only item will only work in a Euro outlet.

A "converter" in the other hand actually will change the outlet's voltage to something else.

Most cruise ships' cabins have both US and Euro outlets. If your husband needs an extension cord for CPAP, arrange this with the cruise line's special needs folks beforehand. Don't bring your own and don't bring power strips -especially those with surge protection (if it's got three prongs, it's probably surge protected and will be confiscated).

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It would have helped a lot if you'd said whether you are American, British, or European.

As stated, there are 2 outlets : a North American and European. Look at all of your appliances. There will be a label stating the model and watttage/voltage limits . If it's North American it will say 110-120. If European 220-240. Dual voltage (can accept either) will show something like 110-240 and 50-60 Hz.

A North American single voltage appliance can only be used in a North American outlet, unless you use a converter and adaptor . You do not want to lug converters around with you. They're big, and very, very heavy.

A European single voltage appliance can only be used in a European outlet.

A dual voltage appliance can be used in either outlet. You just need an adaptor to allow it to fit properly.

None of the outlets are near the bed. Contact the cruise lines special needs department and they will supply the proper extention cord (and a gallon of distilled water). Check the machine, because some CPAPs are dual voltage, some aren't.

And check all the other electrical appliances you want to bring. All of your electronics should be dual voltage, so you can use an adaptor and plug those into the European outlet (assuming you're American).

Most new machines are dual voltage, if yours is you will only need an adapter.

As mom says indicates, If you contact Celebrity and talk with their special needs department they will advise you and arrange anything needed in the stateroom to assure the use of the C-PAP machine. They deal with this all the time and you likely will not need to arrange anything on your own if you talk with them first.

As mom says indicates, If you contact Celebrity and talk with their special needs department they will advise you and arrange anything needed in the stateroom to assure the use of the C-PAP machine. They deal with this all the time and you likely will not need to arrange anything on your own if you talk with them first.

An email to the special needs department at Celebrity will get everything you need - distilled water for the machine and an extension cord. Our room steward even used duck tape on the cord/floor so we would not tip over it.

special_needs@celebrity.com

However, you may want to bring an adapter or two just to give you flexibility in using both the outlets at the desk.

We will comment on another post about power strips. They are not an issue on ships as long as THEY DO NOT HAVE A SURGE PROTECTOR! Surge protectors are a true fire hazard on cruise ships because of the design of a ship's electrical system (their ground works differently then on land). But a basic power strip is OK with most cruise lines. Lately some lines have simply seized all power strips (if they spot them at embarkation) but will often return those that have no surge protector circuits. We have been on far more than 100 cruises (with 14 lines) and usually take a basic 4 outlet power strip. To date, it has never been an issue.

Hank

It would have helped a lot if you'd said whether you are American, British, or European.

 

As stated, there are 2 outlets : a North American and European. Look at all of your appliances. There will be a label stating the model and watttage/voltage limits . If it's North American it will say 110-120. If European 220-240. Dual voltage (can accept either) will show something like 110-240 and 50-60 Hz.

 

A North American single voltage appliance can only be used in a North American outlet, unless you use a converter and adaptor . You do not want to lug converters around with you. They're big, and very, very heavy.

A European single voltage appliance can only be used in a European outlet.

A dual voltage appliance can be used in either outlet. You just need an adaptor to allow it to fit properly.

 

None of the outlets are near the bed. Contact the cruise lines special needs department and they will supply the proper extention cord (and a gallon of distilled water). Check the machine, because some CPAPs are dual voltage, some aren't.

 

And check all the other electrical appliances you want to bring. All of your electronics should be dual voltage, so you can use an adaptor and plug those into the European outlet (assuming you're American).

I apologize for not specifying - I'm from the United States, so want to make sure that my husband's CPAP machine will be useable. It sounds like I can ask the cruise line for the necessary accessories to make it work, then? All the other electronics are dual voltage (I've now checked), but I'm not sure about the CPAP - I'll do a little more research. Thank you!!

You will have the same kind of 110-120 volt power (and outlets) in your Celebrity cabin as you have at home. So plugging in your CPAP machine will not be an issue although you might want an extension cord.

Hank

Hi,

My husband and I both use C-PAP machines; we advise Celebrity of our needs about two months before we sail. On some trips, the appropriate cords are already in our cabin when we board, along with a gallon of distilled water. On other trips, one request made to our butler and the cords and water are in the cabin when we return from dinner. We have never needed a converter for the C-PAPs. The ship has always taken care of everything.

Enjoy your cruise.

Susan

First-time cruiser here!

 

My husband and I will be traveling with friends on Celebrity Solstice in August to Alaska. We're staying in a Sky Suite (although there might be an upgrade to a Celebrity Suite in the works, we'll see what happens), and I've been reading about the electrical outlets (or the lack thereof) in the room. One thing that stood out is the fact that they are 110 volt, and people have talked about converters. My husband has a C-PAP machine he uses to sleep, and I'm wondering if we need some sort of outlet converter to make sure he gets the right amount of electricity to run his C-PAP while sleeping. Otherwise it's going to be a LONG trip for me.

 

I had assumed that it would be the right outlet for his machine, but now I'm not so sure. We've used a converter in Europe, do we need to have it on the ship? Also, are there enough plugs to charge our numerous electronics (two cell phones and an Apple Watch)? Any suggestions would be helpful. I'll be honest, I don't know enough about volts and wattage to be completely sure that we'll be able to run everything that we need for the evening. Thank you for the help!