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Looking for Apex updates ?

little britain

By little britain,
in Celebrity Cruises

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megr1125

megr1125

Posted
Posted

From Celebrity's consumer site just now, revised as of today:

 

While Ashore

  • On-Your-Own Tours are permitted in Athens, Santorini, Rhodes and Dubrovnik. Celebrity Cruises curated tours will be required in Mykonos.

Nothing updated for my sailing as of yet.  I guess that will happen later today.

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agslc5

agslc5

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Posted
On 7/18/2021 at 5:22 AM, hnm2234 said:

Hello! We’re on board this week, having a fantastic time! 
 

Correct, Cyprus was swapped with Dubrovnik on our itinerary (I think yesterday?). We received a paper notifying us of the change at check in. Two of the other port days (Santorini and Rhodes) changed dates as well causing some logistical issues for anyone with plans booked through third parties. I suppose we were lucky that both of ours were willing to move the date for us no problem! 
 

Last night at dinner (maybe 8:00ish) the Captain announced we would only be allowed off in Mykonos the next day with a ship excursion. We were bummed as all of the original excursions were very expensive ($150+ pp) and not really anything we were interested in. Luckily they did add a beach transfer option late last night for $45pp (one to Paradise Beach and one to a family beach). At Paradise Beach we have a section of chairs roped off for cruise passengers only as to create a “bubble” of sorts. 
 

The timing of Celebrity’s announcement last night is consistent with the government’s public communications so I do believe they told us when they knew and weren’t trying to withhold information or anything. Keeping our fingers crossed for the other ports! 
 

The ship is absolutely beautiful and the staff has been nothing but friendly and helpful. Having a great time!! 

Hi, I am glad you are having a wonderful time The ship looks amazing. I am going to be on Apex next week and I was wondering if you can confirm they added the beach option in Mykonos for $45? With all the changes I am trying to figure out what we should do there and that might be a good option. Thanks for your help. - Steph

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megr1125

megr1125

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Posted

Got an email for August 7th as well!

 

Dear Guest,

 

We look forward to welcoming you aboard the Celebrity ApexSM for your 7-night Greek Islands cruise vacation. Before we set sail, we have some important information to share regarding our itinerary. Celebrity Cruises has been working closely with health and government authorities, in each country we sail from, to outline a clear path for cruising with new health and safety measures. As we return to service, we are continuously evaluating all itineraries and the status of travel conditions around the world. At this time, out of an abundance of caution, we will be replacing our scheduled call to Limassol, Cyprus on Monday, August 9, with a visit to Dubrovnik, Croatia as well as modifying our call dates for Mykonos, Rhodes and Santorini, Greece.

 

For your convenience, we’ve included our revised itinerary below.
 

Image did not load.

 

 

While visiting the Greek Islands, on-your-own tours will be permitted in Athens, Santorini and Rhodes along with Dubrovnik, Croatia. However, Celebrity Cruises curated tours will be required in Mykonos, Greece. Please note, unvaccinated guests and families with unvaccinated children may only go ashore on curated tours provided by Celebrity Cruises. Guests with Shore Excursions in Limassol, Cyprus, booked through Celebrity Cruise Planner, will automatically receive a refund to their original form of payment. Additionally, all Celebrity Shore Excursions in Mykonos, Rhodes and Santorini, Greece will automatically be adjusted to our new arrival dates. New excursion opportunities for Dubrovnik, Croatia will be available to book onboard. Guests with independent arrangements should contact their tour operators as soon as possible.

 

 

 

Celebrity Apex will sail with a vaccinated crew and at least 95% of guests fully vaccinated. Guests 12 years and older must be fully vaccinated with all COVID-19 vaccine doses administered at least 14 days prior to sailing. For details on our current health and safety protocols please visit  https://www.healthyatsea.com. Face masks must be worn onboard, both indoors and outdoors, except while eating, drinking or in your stateroom. Masks will also be required ashore based on local regulations. We’re sailing with fewer guests for more space – and more luxury with even more activities to avoid large gatherings in public spaces. Additional testing and protocols will be confirmed closer to your sailing departure date in line with the most up to date recommendations from local government and health officials as well as our Healthy Sail Panel. These measures, including vaccination and testing requirements, will evolve along with public health standards. 

 

We apologize for any inconvenience these changes may cause. We're confident they will deliver a more satisfying vacation experience. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Celebrity Cruises at 1-844-418-6824 in North America or (316) 554-5961 worldwide.

Sincerely,

 

Celebrity Cruises

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LXA350

LXA350

Posted
Posted

Let's hope that these are the last changes as things seem a bit volatile at the moment. On the other hand if restrictions will be implemented now with strickt curfews possibly the situation in places like Mykonos will improve by September allowing passengers to get off the ship and discover the town independantly.

 

What's the passenger capacity limit currently for Apex cruses?

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Miaminice "Live from...." Rare

Miaminice

Posted
Posted (edited)
11 minutes ago, little britain said:

Anyone on Apex? Any updates on the mask requirements - "Masks required indoors and outdoors, except when eating or drinking ".  

 

It´s a Greek regulation! And as long as Apex sails in Greece it will be that way...
It was also part of yesterday´s email again.

Don´t overinterpret the wording though. Once you are seated or lying in a deck chair, you can take your mask off outside. It´s just while you are walking around.

Edited by Miaminice
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hnm2234

hnm2234

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Hi all - as we’re sadly getting ready to debark, I’ll share some thoughts / observations from the last week. All and all, we had a fantastic time and would do it again in a heartbeat!! - I know it’s been said before but the WiFi is VERY slow. We only have the basic level but it took about 20 minutes to load this page. Given the slow speed with reduced capacity I hope they are able to increase the bandwidth to accommodate. - Dubrovnik was great, very happy for that substitution! There were a number of excursions added when our itinerary was changed. We opted to just book the transfer to Old Town for $10pp and explore on our own from there. The transfer was definitely worth it in my opinion. We originally thought we’d easily be able to jump on a tour once off the ship but found most companies were only operating 9am and 5/6pm tours right now (they said due to heat & lower tourist volume). I would recommend booking something ahead of time or trying to get off the ship early if this is important to you. We walked the city walls on our own, it was very neat! - We were the only ship in Santorini yesterday! No wait for the tender or cable car in either direction! - We did 2 specialty dining meals on our trip, La Petite Chef and Rooftop Garden Grill. We really enjoyed the rooftop! Sitting outside was really nice and the food was good (esp the Mac and cheese!) LPC was terrible, the animation was fine, a cute concept but not worth the money especially considering how bad the menu is. I only ate one of the four courses - very disappointing overall. - Captain Dimitri is fantastic!! Will look to sail with him again in the future. - Two people did test positive at the end of the trip. The Captain made an announcement on Friday evening. I believe he said it was an unvaccinated child and a vaccinated adult with that child. They did the contact tracing and re-tested everyone impacted who were all negative. Unfortunate for those people, but it seems like the protocols are working. - Masks are still required inside and outside (except when eating, drinking, etc). I was a little worried about this, but it was fine. Everyone seemed to comply without being reminded by the crew. - For anyone wondering, Giuseppe mentioned he would be on the Apex until November and will then be joining the new ship “Beyond”. - We we’re in a sunset verandah room and loved it! Would definitely look to grab one of these again. The balcony had a ton of space. I’ll let you know if I think of anything else note worthy :)

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Fredrik

Fredrik

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Arrived just before our scheduled time 11:30 and on board before noon. We probably showed our tickets and passports, C19 vax certificate half a dozen times, but it’s good that they are thorough. Asked and we’re approximately 700 guests on board. It certainly does not feel crowded yet. Lunch in Luminae was excellent and the crew is really happy and upbeat. So far, so good.

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kayguz

kayguz

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Just got off the Apex today. We traveled with a vaccinated teen and an unvaccinated child.  It was a wonderful trip and we are thankful we finally were able to cruise again.  This week there were a few changes regarding the unvaccinated kids which were disappointing but it is what it is at the moment and it was something we expected.  
the kids camp was fantastic- this is the first celebrity cruise that we brought any younger kids with us.  Friday we noted that none of the regular counselors were there  and then we heard about the positive cases.  Vaxxed parent and unvaxxed child were asymptomatic positive.  They were isolated and then the counselors were negative but they also had to isolate for a week per protocol. They closed camp down at 10 (late night) as there was only 1 staff person and they had the kids watching a movie.  I was told they did all the contact tracing and notified those affected and that it was a 10-12 yr old.  My son was in the 6-9 group and there were times when the groups were together for a few activities.  There were 43 kids in the under 12 group on the ship (I was told.).  It never seemed very crowded but the kids had fun.  I asked about how they Contact traced and was told security reviewed all the footage (in camp- but elsewhere??)— got this from two sources.  Not sure what is a close contact (15 min rule doesn’t seem to apply to the Delta variant).  In any case, we weren’t notified of additional testing (others did have to go thru an additional test I think).   We will watch for symptoms and likely have him tested again at a week to be sure.  
On a side note- my husband had a scare when he returned from Santorini with my son.  He was told to go directly to his cabin to hear from medical 😒.  He got there and within 5 mins his negative test result showed up on the app.  Then after 15 mins he called guest relations and they said they hadn’t any idea why and he was free to go about his business 🤷‍♀️
 

I did express my concern with shore excursions that if kids are required to go on celebrity curated tours, then they need to offer some options that are kid friendly and not 5 hr guided walking tours or beach trips that include access to a nude beach.  I was very kind and acknowledged its a fluid situation and changes by the day it seems.  Patrick worked with us and found an arranged some options that were perfect for our needs.  Some people were frustrated and rather ugly about things— it’s not Celebrity’s fault it is the Greek authorities changing the requirements. I also mentioned that $168 for a beach excursion in Mykonos is outrageous for a family to do as the only option that was appealing.  I found out after the fact they added a $60 one late that evening (after I booked something to get us off the ship.)

I would totally do it all again- just be prepared to roll with it.  Masks were a non issue for us- it was a tad frustrating to watch the mask usage decline through the week and wasn’t being enforced that I noticed.  Concerning to me just because of my unvaccinated child — but we kept him masked up so hopefully that helped him🤞  Feel free to ask any questions- loved the ship and crew and the entertainment was exceptional.  

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mollie jo

mollie jo

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Thank you for sharing your experience. We are sailing next Saturday.  First time on Celebrity and first time to Greece.  Most of our dinner reservations are at 6:30.  Wondering about times for the main evening entertainment.  Do you remember the show times?

 

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Fredrik

Fredrik

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Posted
6 hours ago, mollie jo said:

Thank you for sharing your experience. We are sailing next Saturday.  First time on Celebrity and first time to Greece.  Most of our dinner reservations are at 6:30.  Wondering about times for the main evening entertainment.  Do you remember the show times?

 

Show times are 9:30 in general.

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