Reflection - Review - Ultimate Caribbean - April 2, 2018 - April 13, 2018

I know you will enjoy the summit. I urge you to reconsider a sky suite. Michaels club and luminae plus other suite perks. Yes it is nice to spend a few hours flying first class, but a week on the summit first class is great!

Planning to book for March 2019. Thanks for sharing:)

I know you will enjoy the summit. I urge you to reconsider a sky suite. Michaels club and luminae plus other suite perks. Yes it is nice to spend a few hours flying first class, but a week on the summit first class is great!

Hi

We were treated fantastic on Celebrity. The suite perks were wonderful.

Whatever cabin you choose, have a great trip

Noreen

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Planning to book for March 2019. Thanks for sharing:)

Thank you

Have a great trip

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Hi!

I found your reviews looking for Anthem of the Seas Cruise Compasses. I have read quite a few and really enjoy the pictures and your storytelling.

We just came back from our 10 day Disney trip June 2018, so I was smiling when I also read that you did Disney reviews. That took a lot of planning on my part (over a year's worth). We don't go very often.

For me I am sailing Oasis solo in October and family trip on Anthem July 2019 (9 night with DH and 2 DD- 14 and 12.) Your reviews have helped me start to plan those cruises.

Keep on writing!

Angela

Hi!

 

I found your reviews looking for Anthem of the Seas Cruise Compasses. I have read quite a few and really enjoy the pictures and your storytelling.

 

 

 

We just came back from our 10 day Disney trip June 2018, so I was smiling when I also read that you did Disney reviews. That took a lot of planning on my part (over a year's worth). We don't go very often.

 

 

 

For me I am sailing Oasis solo in October and family trip on Anthem July 2019 (9 night with DH and 2 DD- 14 and 12.) Your reviews have helped me start to plan those cruises.

 

 

 

Keep on writing!

 

Angela

Hi

Glad you enjoyed the reviews - I love writing them. I do them mainly for myself so I have something to look back on and remember my trips. But I’m even happier when I hear that others are enjoying them and getting some helpful tips too.

Any reviews of your Disney Trip? I am always looking to read those as well as cruise reviews. Did you have a great time at Disney? I always feel like it’s such a magical place that you can forget the real world and just enjoy having fun.

I was on Oasis in 2010 and loved it. Great ship. Back then it was the newest/biggest ship out there. I can’t wait to get back on that class of ship. That’s awesome to go solo. Have you chatted with/made plans with anyone on your roll call? I met a great group of people that I’m still friends with in 2011 that I met on a roll call for Explorer of the Seas.

Anthem is great too. We cruise on Anthem pretty frequently since it’s so convenient to cruise right out of Bayonne NJ since we live in NJ.

Have a great time on both of you upcoming cruises. If you have any questions just ask. I love thinking about and talking about vacations.

Thank you

Noreen

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. . . .

I write these reports kind of like a journal for myself to look back on. It will have a lot of details, maybe too much detail in some cases. Just wanted to put this caveat out there.

 

 

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Hi Noreen,

Have certainly enjoyed reading your journal of this voyage [emoji568] We’ll be keeping it as a reference since we’re taking the same cruise on April 1 next year. BTW, your photos were just phenomenal too and they’re making me consider getting a DSLR camera before our trip instead of relying on the iPhone.

I might have missed it, but do you recall whether a ship time was set for use in all of the ports, or did you just use the local time in each? If you used ship time, was it set once for the entire trip? I’m trying to set up a calendar of our activities as I book them and the program sets them by local time zone as the default. I would appreciate you clarifying this. Thanks!

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Hi Noreen,

Have certainly enjoyed reading your journal of this voyage [emoji568] We’ll be keeping it as a reference since we’re taking the same cruise on April 1 next year. BTW, your photos were just phenomenal too and they’re making me consider getting a DSLR camera before our trip instead of relying on the iPhone.

 

I might have missed it, but do you recall whether a ship time was set for use in all of the ports, or did you just use the local time in each? If you used ship time, was it set once for the entire trip? I’m trying to set up a calendar of our activities as I book them and the program sets them by local time zone as the default. I would appreciate you clarifying this. Thanks!

 

 

 

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Hi

I’m glad you enjoyed the journal. It was a great trip.

My photos were mainly from my IPhone and the underwater camera (for the few underwater pictures). I’m sure with a fancy DSLR the pictures would have been much better. But the IPhone is easy to carry around.

We changed time twice on the sailing. We turned the clocks back one hour the night before getting to Grand Cayman. Then we turned them ahead one hour the night of Cartagena Columbia (before getting to Aruba). What was nice was it was all listed in the first day’s Celebrity Today. I posted them and this one is on post #60. Unfortunately, I didn’t pay that much attention to it when I was on the ship so I was thrown off a bit. I’m assuming it was to match local time, but am not 100% sure.

Have a great time and if you have any questions I’m happy to answer. I know many others have a lot more Celebrity experience than I do, but I’m happy to share what I do know

Thank you

Noreen

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Hi Noreen,

I was late to the table and just came across your review. Not necessarily a bad thing as I got to read it mostly straight through. I'm new to posting here, but have read tons of reviews and yours is excellent. I really appreciate the time you dedicated and your attention to detail. Thank you!

I'm not sure if you've decided on Scott's Birthday destination yet, and after reading your review know he's not thrilled with the idea of flying to the west coast. You both seem so open to alternative options of travel so wondered if you'd ever considered trying Amtrak long distance sleepers? You could travel from NY or Boston on the Lakeshore Limited, arrive in Chicago the next morning, spend a few hours in Chicago and take the Empire Builder through the Dakotas and Glacier National Part to Seattle for an Alaskan cruise.

It adds some days to your vacation, but is exciting and relaxing at the same time. An added adventure - on the front and\or end of your cruise. The sleepers don't compare to cruise suites, but they're a heck of a lot better than any seat in the air (except maybe the pilot's), and end up part of your vacation, rather than travel to or from! The travel aspect itself is pretty easy in a sleeper, and the first class (sleeper) lounge at Union Station isn't a painful place to spend a layover. Most of Amtrak's long distance trains have sleeper class specific lounges and scenic viewing spaces in addition to the rest of the train's amenities, and include breakfast, lunch and dinner reservations in the dining car.

Not Epic like a Pullman would be, but maybe an interesting alternative to some future, appealing cruise option you would otherwise hesitate considering?

Just a thought.

Thanks again for the awesome review.

Margaret

Hi Noreen,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was late to the table and just came across your review. Not necessarily a bad thing as I got to read it mostly straight through. I'm new to posting here, but have read tons of reviews and yours is excellent. I really appreciate the time you dedicated and your attention to detail. Thank you!

 

 

 

 

 

I'm not sure if you've decided on Scott's Birthday destination yet, and after reading your review know he's not thrilled with the idea of flying to the west coast. You both seem so open to alternative options of travel so wondered if you'd ever considered trying Amtrak long distance sleepers? You could travel from NY or Boston on the Lakeshore Limited, arrive in Chicago the next morning, spend a few hours in Chicago and take the Empire Builder through the Dakotas and Glacier National Part to Seattle for an Alaskan cruise.

 

 

 

 

 

It adds some days to your vacation, but is exciting and relaxing at the same time. An added adventure - on the front and\or end of your cruise. The sleepers don't compare to cruise suites, but they're a heck of a lot better than any seat in the air (except maybe the pilot's), and end up part of your vacation, rather than travel to or from! The travel aspect itself is pretty easy in a sleeper, and the first class (sleeper) lounge at Union Station isn't a painful place to spend a layover. Most of Amtrak's long distance trains have sleeper class specific lounges and scenic viewing spaces in addition to the rest of the train's amenities, and include breakfast, lunch and dinner reservations in the dining car.

 

 

 

 

 

Not Epic like a Pullman would be, but maybe an interesting alternative to some future, appealing cruise option you would otherwise hesitate considering?

 

 

 

 

 

Just a thought.

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks again for the awesome review.

 

 

 

 

 

Margaret

Hi Margaret

I’m glad you enjoyed the review.

I mentioned train travel to Scott and he isn’t a fan. As a child he did a train trip to Disney World with his family and was sick on the train. Then as an adult he did a train trip with his ex-wife where he got a concussion and the train was late (not due to his concussion just happened) and they missed whatever they were supposed to be doing.

While he isn’t a fan of flying, for going to Alaska, whenever we get there, he’ll deal with the flight.

Thank you

Noreen

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Hi

 

Glad you enjoyed the reviews - I love writing them. I do them mainly for myself so I have something to look back on and remember my trips. But I’m even happier when I hear that others are enjoying them and getting some helpful tips too.

 

Any reviews of your Disney Trip? I am always looking to read those as well as cruise reviews. Did you have a great time at Disney? I always feel like it’s such a magical place that you can forget the real world and just enjoy having fun.

 

I was on Oasis in 2010 and loved it. Great ship. Back then it was the newest/biggest ship out there. I can’t wait to get back on that class of ship. That’s awesome to go solo. Have you chatted with/made plans with anyone on your roll call? I met a great group of people that I’m still friends with in 2011 that I met on a roll call for Explorer of the Seas.

 

Anthem is great too. We cruise on Anthem pretty frequently since it’s so convenient to cruise right out of Bayonne NJ since we live in NJ.

 

Have a great time on both of you upcoming cruises. If you have any questions just ask. I love thinking about and talking about vacations.

 

Thank you

Noreen

 

 

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Hi Noreen,

I wrote my "book" and it got lost! Augh. Let's see if this posts and then I will try again.

Angela

:(Ok... that worked.....

You had asked if I submitted any Disney reviews? And this is one of the reasons I don't. 1) I'm not a decent writer (what I am thinking in my head doesn't translate to paper very well) and 2) when I actually take the time to formulate a long story-like response, my computer screws me over!!

Anyway, let's try this again.

Some of our highlights from Disney

1) Flight of passage. Had Fastpass and went back a second time -90 minute stand by. 13 yo DD wanted to do that rather than do rope drop at Magic Kingdom.

2) Magic Kingdom evening fireworks- we watched them in front of Gaston's Tavern. Looking right you could see the castle fireworks and looking left you could see the high fireworks. Plus, there's a professional photographer right there. Hubby and I got out picture with a firework in the background.

3) Went to Hollywood Brown Derby at HS for the first time with hubby (kids left with grandparents). The Cobb salad was fabulous!

I also enjoyed the Frozen ride and Soarin over the world.

Hubby and I (on same day as Hollywood Brown Derby) got to ride Toy Story Mania. It was closed for a week right before Toy Storyland opened. The kids missed it. We of course missed Toy Storyland's opening, but we'll be back.

Husband excited for Star Wars land, but not for the crowds and chaos. So we probably won't go back until near the crowds and chaos of the 50th anniversary party.

We also went to Typhoon Lagoon and rented an umbrella and 2 loungers and 2 chairs. Even with the umbrella we all got cooked! I know you can find chairs in the shade without shelling out the $$ , but we were in line for the tube slides while others were looking for spots in the shade.

I also loved our 2 lunches at Be Our Guest. No wait, seats in AC, good food. Also ate at Columbia Harbor House. But the 1 day we ate quick service in Tomorrowland, the lunch line was INSANE! Plus when we got our food we had to eat outside standing up. No seats. Then the rain came. We has raincoats, but had to toss DDs (13, 11) fries since they got soggy before they could eat them. Tommorrowland was insane in general. Worse than Fantasyland. I guess because of the Incredibles show that was mid June?

Finally, we previously went to Disney in Octobers and Novembers. While expected, the summer rains were not welcomed.

Now onto Oasis... My roll call is very slow. Only people posting "I'm X and going with Y". I did go on another solo cruise in 2016 on Indy of the Seas. Met a few nice ladies at a solo lunch. According to app, the solo meet and greets in October will be at 10pm at Rising Tide bar. So don't know how that will go?

I think I will love Oasis and kind of wish the family was coming. Hibachi, more DreamWorks characters (Gloria specifically. 11 DD has a stuffed Gloria and wanted to meet her.) , more pools, carousel, ice skating.

But I am just touting the positives that Anthem has and will pre book as much as I can.

You may not be able to answer this question, but I will ask.

Are you familiar with this hotel? Thinking of staying there the night before our cruise. Driving from Western PA.

Fairfield Inn & Suites Newark Liberty International Airport

618 US Highway 1 & 9 South Newark, NJ 07114 USA

Thanks very much!

And I hope this one posts!!Angela

:(Ok... that worked.....

 

 

 

You had asked if I submitted any Disney reviews? And this is one of the reasons I don't. 1) I'm not a decent writer (what I am thinking in my head doesn't translate to paper very well) and 2) when I actually take the time to formulate a long story-like response, my computer screws me over!!

 

 

 

Anyway, let's try this again.

 

Some of our highlights from Disney

 

1) Flight of passage. Had Fastpass and went back a second time -90 minute stand by. 13 yo DD wanted to do that rather than do rope drop at Magic Kingdom.

 

2) Magic Kingdom evening fireworks- we watched them in front of Gaston's Tavern. Looking right you could see the castle fireworks and looking left you could see the high fireworks. Plus, there's a professional photographer right there. Hubby and I got out picture with a firework in the background.

 

3) Went to Hollywood Brown Derby at HS for the first time with hubby (kids left with grandparents). The Cobb salad was fabulous!

 

 

 

I also enjoyed the Frozen ride and Soarin over the world.

 

Hubby and I (on same day as Hollywood Brown Derby) got to ride Toy Story Mania. It was closed for a week right before Toy Storyland opened. The kids missed it. We of course missed Toy Storyland's opening, but we'll be back.

 

Husband excited for Star Wars land, but not for the crowds and chaos. So we probably won't go back until near the crowds and chaos of the 50th anniversary party.

 

 

 

We also went to Typhoon Lagoon and rented an umbrella and 2 loungers and 2 chairs. Even with the umbrella we all got cooked! I know you can find chairs in the shade without shelling out the $$ , but we were in line for the tube slides while others were looking for spots in the shade.

 

 

 

I also loved our 2 lunches at Be Our Guest. No wait, seats in AC, good food. Also ate at Columbia Harbor House. But the 1 day we ate quick service in Tomorrowland, the lunch line was INSANE! Plus when we got our food we had to eat outside standing up. No seats. Then the rain came. We has raincoats, but had to toss DDs (13, 11) fries since they got soggy before they could eat them. Tommorrowland was insane in general. Worse than Fantasyland. I guess because of the Incredibles show that was mid June?

 

 

 

Finally, we previously went to Disney in Octobers and Novembers. While expected, the summer rains were not welcomed.

 

 

 

Now onto Oasis... My roll call is very slow. Only people posting "I'm X and going with Y". I did go on another solo cruise in 2016 on Indy of the Seas. Met a few nice ladies at a solo lunch. According to app, the solo meet and greets in October will be at 10pm at Rising Tide bar. So don't know how that will go?

 

 

 

I think I will love Oasis and kind of wish the family was coming. Hibachi, more DreamWorks characters (Gloria specifically. 11 DD has a stuffed Gloria and wanted to meet her.) , more pools, carousel, ice skating.

 

 

 

But I am just touting the positives that Anthem has and will pre book as much as I can.

 

 

 

You may not be able to answer this question, but I will ask.

 

 

 

Are you familiar with this hotel? Thinking of staying there the night before our cruise. Driving from Western PA.

 

 

 

Fairfield Inn & Suites Newark Liberty International Airport

 

618 US Highway 1 & 9 South Newark, NJ 07114 USA

 

Thanks very much!

 

And I hope this one posts!!Angela

Hi.

Writing reviews isn’t for everyone. It’s definitely a lot of work and you have to enjoy it or it’s too much like homework. As much as I love doing them I’ll admit there are times I’m stopping to text myself something so I won’t forget it.

Sounds like you had a nice time at Disney. I’m hoping we’re able to get fast passes to flight of passage and the new attractions in Toy Story Land.

I was able to make dinner reservations at Cinderella’s Castle and Be Our Guest. I made others but those are notoriously hard to get. They aren’t at the ideal times but we’ll manage.

Oasis is great - I was on it in 2010. Surprisingly for such a large ship it never seemed crowded. Roll calls are tricky. Sometimes you get a great group of people chatting and other times it’s quiet. I’ve made some great friends that I met through roll calls.

I’m sorry I’m not familiar with the hotel. Living in NJ I haven’t paid much attention to hotels nearby since it’s only about an hours drive for us to get to Bayonne. If you check the east coast departures board people have given a lot of feedback on different hotels they recommend or don’t recommend. I think you may want to get closer to the port rather than be closer to the airport. If your cruise is the 9 night that leaves on a Thursday you don’t want to get stuck in rush hour traffic if you can avoid it.

Any other questions, just ask. I’m always happy to talk about cruises or Disney.

Thank you

Noreen

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Hi.

 

Writing reviews isn’t for everyone. It’s definitely a lot of work and you have to enjoy it or it’s too much like homework. As much as I love doing them I’ll admit there are times I’m stopping to text myself something so I won’t forget it rather than just living in the moment.

 

Sounds like you had a nice time at Disney. I’m hoping we’re able to get fast passes to flight of passage and the new attractions in Toy Story Land.

 

I was able to make dinner reservations at Cinderella’s Castle and Be Our Guest. I made others but those are notoriously hard to get. They aren’t at the ideal times but we’ll manage.

 

Oasis is great - I was on it in 2010. Surprisingly for such a large ship it never seemed crowded. Roll calls are tricky. Sometimes you get a great group of people chatting and other times it’s quiet. I’ve made some great friends that I met through roll calls.

 

I’m sorry I’m not familiar with the hotel. Living in NJ I haven’t paid much attention to hotels nearby since it’s only about an hours drive for us to get to Bayonne. If you check the east coast departures board people have given a lot of feedback on different hotels they recommend or don’t recommend. I think you may want to get closer to the port rather than be closer to the airport. If your cruise is the 9 night that leaves on a Thursday you don’t want to get stuck in rush hour traffic if you can avoid it.

 

Any other questions, just ask. I’m always happy to talk about cruises or Disney.

 

Thank you

Noreen

 

 

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I’m having some technical difficulties and my response is posting twice

Sorry

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Thanks for the idea about the hotel! Yes, we are a Thursday departure next July.

Enjoy Be our Guest. Will you be there before the new Prix Fixe menu or after?

Angela

Thanks for the idea about the hotel! Yes, we are a Thursday departure next July.

 

Enjoy Be our Guest. Will you be there before the new Prix Fixe menu or after?

Angela

Hi

I think the new prix fixe menu has started already at Be Our Guest so we’ll get to try it.

Noreen

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Hi

 

I think the new prix fixe menu has started already at Be Our Guest so we’ll get to try it.

 

Noreen

 

 

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Like! [emoji4]

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Your reviews are fantastic, if you ever sail from Miami or Ft Lauderdale 

have a look at the Diplomat Resort in Hollywood Beach. 
You can arrange parking and get a cab to the cruise port 

it is a fantastic hotel 

Glad someone revived this old review. Gives me something new to look at!  Reflection was our last cruise back in Feb. this year.