How back-to-backs work

[joeinsb]

I'm the wife of joeinsb, and I have a question about back-to-back cruises. We're going to do three back-to-backs in the same stateroom on Century in March -- one four-day and two five-days -- because we wanted to check out the refurbished ship, but didn't want to fly across the country for just a short cruise.

 

We're curious about how back-to-backs work. I know we have to get on & off at the end of each cruise, but will we disembark at a special time with other back-to-backers or do we just get off with any group?

 

Are all the ship's services (for example, the gym and the library) closed during the changeover from one cruise to another? I'm curious if we'll have to turn in our library books at the end of each cruise or if can we keep them for the duration of our three cruises. Are the movies shown on TV during the changeover period? We're just curious about the kinds of activities we can do while the new passengers are boarding and we're waiting for lunch to be served.

 

Is it likely we will have the same table during all of our cruises? We'd love to hear from anyone who has had experience with back-to-back cruises. One passenger on a previous cruise said she doesn't like to do b-to-bs because she feels she loses a cruise day at the end of each cruise due to the limited services available, but we've always wanted to try one because we thought it would be fun to know that our cruise wasn't really ending when others were departing the ship. That's normally such a sad day for us.

[HELENROSE]

We have only done b2b on Princess, but I am sure it will be almost the same on Celebrity.

 

We were told to go to a certain lounge at a certain time. We were all escorted off the ship, showed our passports and got right back on the ship. If you are in the same state room, you don't have to worry about moving. It is GREAT having the ship almost to ourselves. The Libruary books we have kept for both cruises. The gym is always open.

 

For lunch, they had us eat in the dinning rooms if we wanted to. It was only open to b2b passengers. We received "In Transit" cards in case we wanted to get off the ship for awhile and for returning. 'We received new photo cards for boarding.

 

We LOVE the b2b and do it when ever we can. Enjoy the peace and quiet those days. Hope this helps somewhat.

[devora]

On our b2bs we have done, you usually meet in one of the lounges as a group, and someone from the ship's staff escorts you off and back on the ship. In our experiences, they have tried to get us off before the regular passengers disembark, and then back on. There are usually only limited services available. The library does close. However, once the new guests come on, things will start to get more active. But of course since the ship is in port, the casino is closed, stores are closed, etc. just like they would normally be on a port day.

Hope this helps.

[lysolqn]

We've done a few B2B cruises on Celebrity, most recently on Century last January. We were not required to get off the ship. We were given In Transit passes in case we wanted to get off but we remained onboard.

 

Other than lounging poolside, there are no "actitivites" available.

 

At the end of week one, you can request the same table for the following week if you so choose. You can also request the same waiter if you were pleased with the service but the waitstaff doesn't necessarily have the same stations each cruise and the waiter/assitant waiter team changes regularly.

 

Enjoy!

[judyfssw]

We did a b2b in February on the Constellation. We were invited to one of the board rooms by a certain time where there were danish and liquids. About 10:30, we were all taken to the customs area and given an in-transit card to use if we chose to go into San Juan. Since we were meeting other friends, we chose to wait in the terminal for them.

We were also given new sea passes and needed to get a new photo when we went back on the ship. We, also had the same room and that was wonderful! We didn't have to move our clothes. The one thing that I didn't like was that the door to our room remained open during the change over.

We would do it again on a 7 day cruise. Enjoy your cruise.

[Spender Nui]

I've done back to back on both Celebrity and Princess. Never had to get off the ship.

[Ships R Great]

We were B2B on Century last month. We did have to get off the ship. We met at a designated place, with other B2Bers, and were escorted off the ship. Weere given in-transit passes in case we did not want to stay with the group (maybe do some sightseeing). We had to wait until ship cleared customs and all other passengers were off before we were escorted back on. We had the same cabin (try very hard to get the same cabin) so we did not have to pack. If we had, our stateroom attendants would have helped us move to new cabin.

 

The best part of a B2B is listening to others bemoan packing and disembarking. You just sit there and smile inwardly (boasting out loud is bad form). B2B2B is even better!

 

Enjoy Century. She was a wonderful ship before and still is, after the refurb. As to same table.

 

You can request the same, or a different, table and the same waiter if you wish. They will bend over backwards to accomodate you. We were told that the waiters and asst. waiters do not work as teams and they would not guarantee that we would have the same asst., though they did say we would ahve the smae waiter. We not only had the same team but the specific table we requested. You can't beat that!

 

X tries and 99% of the time comes through for you.

 

Our cabin door was closed and locked between sailings.

[XatSea]

joeinsb:

We're doing the same in January: 18, 22, 27th.

I'm pretty sure we have to get off the ship in order to clear customs/immigration regulations.

If you wish to tour Miami area you may be able to be among the first off as long as you have no intention of returning within a few hours. Others wil be required to wait until passengers are off.

All ships activities cease except for getting Century ready for new arrivals...

No library (but you can keep the book from the previous time)

I believe the dedicated Librarian postion has been shelved. Whether other staff will keep track of books or an honor system is used is still not clear.

The gym area might be available... it was on our B2B in October.

You might also be able to request the same table while on board... but expect excuses why this is not possible.... "Head office sent me this " arrangement... was the line used in October when we requested a window table for the second voyage.

 

We love any day when we get the ship to ourselves... others are just temps..

When air fare exceeds ticket prices, B2Bs etc are the way to stretch a cruising budget.