Daily information

[CinWay]

I'm wondering what kind of information you get from the ship as to what is going on, more specifically, what kind of information (if any) do they give you on the ports? Thanks!

[cruisestitch]

You get a daily newsletter that lists all the activities on the ship, what times the restaurants and bars are open, and so forth. On some cruises, such as Alaska, there is a naturalist or historian who gives talks about the area. There is also a "port and shopping guide" on board who is there to sell the excursions and to point you to the "recommended" stores, but he/she is not a Celebrity employee, but is hired by the marketing firm associated with the stores. That person may or may not know much about the ports other than the stores and the ship's excursions. There will be an abbreviated map of each port you can take to shore, pointing out the main attractions (and the recommended stores), and there will be some brief description of each port stop with that map.

[Lsimon]

Here is a link to a list of cruise info I have available online:

http://lfsimon.home.comcast.net/~lfsimon/cruiselinks.htm

 

There are several of the daily bulletins from Celebrity cruises listed which you can view. Unfortunately I didn't bother scanning the port guides that they give, as cruisestich mentioned, as I consider them mostly advertising. But they do have a little useful info on the ports in them in addition to advertisements and maps of the 'recommended' stores. Keep in mind the 'recommended' stores get that status by buying into the advertising program so don't think that the fact they are recommended has anything to do with reputation or trustworthiness or anything that makes them a better option than the stores that don't buy into the cruise line advertising program.

 

Sometimes the ship's concierge or front desk will have local tourist maps and brochures from the ports if you ask on board for them - but I haven't checked these out for a long time so I'm not sure if they still collect those. If you want to get such information you're better off getting it off the internet, or by emailing the tourist board at the port ahead of time with a request. Or just stop off at one of the tourist information booths which are inevitably somewhere near the pier at almost every cruise port.

[rafinmd]

How many public address announcements are there on a typical day?

 

Roy

[bjtomko]

When is the daily newsletter provided? Is it the night before or first thing in the am?

[reedprincess]

When is the daily newsletter provided? Is it the night before or first thing in the am?

 

the newsletter is delivered the night before, generally when the stateroom steward makes up your room in the evening. That way, you can peruse before you head to sleep and make your plans for the early morning. Ususally, their "port guides" also include a little local history and info on the front page, with the inside being filled with the "recommended shops" and also a small map of the immediate port area - with the "recommended shops" prominently marked.

The daily programs are printed with a creas down the middle for easy folding to carry with you.

As for announcements during the day - their are very, very few on Celebrity. The noon update from the Captain, followed by brief highlights of the day from the Cruise Director is the only that you can count on. There may be one or 2 more, depending on circumstances (usually the last Bingo is announced once or twice) but Celebrity prides itself on being basically announcement free for guests enjoyment and expects their passengers to be able to read their daily programs to find out what is happening. If something major changes fromt he schedule, they will announce it.

[Lois R]

How many public address announcements are there on a typical day?

 

Roy

 

Hi Roy, one of the things I love about Celebrity is the lack of

announcements during the day.:) The Captain usually makes one

around noontime and then the Cruise Director may or may not

have a few addtional comments. But that is about it!

(Unless of course there is something out of the ordinary). But the

usual for Celebrity is only 1.

[Lsimon]

How many public address announcements are there on a typical day?

 

Roy

 

1 on a sea day (noon announcement).

 

2 or 3 on a port day: one to announce when the ship has been cleared for disembarkation, the noon announcement and I can't remember if there is a sail away announcement or not.

 

Celebrity doesn't have the constant advertising announcements for things like bingo or art auctions like some cruise ships do.

 

You can only hear the announcements in the hallways and public areas of the ship, they are not broadcast into staterooms over the PA. So the normal announcements won't wake you up from your nap! On some of the ships they pipe the announcements into one of the TV channels so you can hear them in your cabin if you'd like (either the channel that always shows the bridge view or the one which has navigation information) but they don't do this on every cruise.

[CinWay]

Thanks!! Guess I'll continue my research on the net.

[jdvmd]

The daily newspaper is always what I read before going to bed. Take the port guide/daily newspaper with you when you go into the ports. It contains the port agent's name and phone number in case you don't get back to the ship in time.

[rafinmd]

Thank you Lois and Lsimon. Cindy, good luck with your research.

 

Roy