KathyC

I always carry cash for tipping, I didn't really think about using OBC for it.

Maybe specialty dining...forgot about that...

We've done Quantum in early March; arrived to an icy ship that came back during a snowstorm and by mid-day the next day we were on the top deck in a light jacket. People were in the covered pool having a grand old time! This class is built for the weather, with so much being indoors we didn't even notice the outdoor temps unless we walked on the top deck.

I finally emailed Stephanie yesterday and she's working on our reservation. I'll ask for a quote on Elevate - we don't usually do excursions, especially in those ports but if the ship actually goes to Key West maybe we will there. Aren't gratuities included with Always? Trying to think what I would use the OBC on...other than in the casino. ?

No more $10 a day to upgrade just the drink package, huh? I'm hoping it's something they still offer once onboard or a perk for Elite and above.

Have fun and be careful!!

Not much smaller than our opening on Adventure of the Seas LOL I don't know that I want to spend $200 more on the regular balcony for a group cruise - I don't know how much time we're spending in the cabin.

We stayed in one of the middle cabins, 7154. I looked over my periscopes from the sailing and the only negative to that cabin location is that the balcony was always very wet, and we couldn't go out there until the warmth of the sun dried everything up. What we did about that, mid-way through the trip was get fresh pool towels in the evening, lay them out on the chairs, then remove them in the morning & drop them back off at the pool. We did have a bit of ash from the smoke stacks, but the cabin attendant wiped everything down when he could. We loved the extended balcony so we had extra cover over our heads. Deck 6 has an extended cover, so when you look directly down from deck 7 you see white, not the ocean. You have to look out to see the wake. Not sure how much of that is a problem on the corner cabins. Grandeur was definitely a crew party ship when we sailed her, and at night we could hear the parties going on below, both in port & at sea. I haver periscopes from my cabin where you could hear the late night music. I'm sure the crew will be different, so may or may not be an issue. But they partied until the wee hours of the morning a couple nights, and we sang along to happy birthday from our balcony one evening! ?

Definitely no guests...maybe quiet test sailings with staff only? I see similar IT sailings on Navigator. Maybe just doing upgrades and behind the scenes work in prep for when they restart.

83 days until my May Navi sailing and my internet purchase options are limited to the Deluxe Drink package + 1 Voom, listed under Beverages. Nothing under Internet & more. They were there before the current sale, I'll see if they pop back up when the sail is over tonight.

We're looking at either the Deluxe Porthole View with Verandah or Edge Stateroom with Infinite Verandah. I figure we won't be in the cabin much so the extra $200 for the second one may be better spent elsewhere... ?

Us too - I still need to get Stephanie my deposit. We can't decide on the cabin.

From Iceland today:

Thanks @monorailmedic! https://www.cruisehabit.com/celebrity-discussed-planned-passenger-capacity-new-itineraries-vaccine-requirements-apex-inaugural?fbclid=IwAR03LisgljF1VeC5Sh-80-oiE9Kt1w06eJhQHFYrMPPuQlTt1Vlglkx5gvw

Those itineraries haven't been released yet.

We had an aft on Grandeur and felt rumblings as well, but she's a pretty old ship. We also had some black stuff from the smoke stacks to clean off every day. Sometimes our cabin attendant would get to it before we did. We noticed that we couldn't stay out there all day, as everything was damp in the morning so it had to dry. They are great for sea days, to just lay there on the balcony and stare at the wake. Would do again.

We did our first (and only, darn covid) Celebrity sailing in Oct 2019 and loved it. I actually did a post on the differences. We were Aquaclass not in a suite, but you may find it informative with differences. We sailed Summit right after her revolution.

I got an email from Celebrity that Equinox has Caribbean sailings through Jan 2023 available to book.

No one here works for Royal Caribbean. We are a group of cruise fans, and we do sympathize with your situation as many of us have lost our jobs too.

Yes, they do check ID. My boys (now 21 & 23) found the 18-20 age the roughest when it came to activities, but also enjoyed the new freedoms they had by being over 18. Mine are not overly outgoing either, but always have each other so that worked out well. At 18 you can go into the casino, nightclubs (some will be 21+ but not all), attend the late night comedy. Your brother will obviously be able to do anything that involves alcohol. Some sailings there has been scheduled meet ups in the Cruise Planner. There may be one member of the cruise staff that shows up for the first one, but usually it's a place for that age group to gather and it's expected the the most social of the group will go around and introduce themselves and start forming groups. Similar to that person on the floor in your dorm that is the one to gather folks. But there will be no coordinated activities. My boys used to hang out in the evenings in the card rooms, outdoor movies, comedy clubs, and Sorrentos. Or they would meet up with us in the Schooner Bar for music. They loved Music Hall for the bands. During the day, if it was a sea day, you'll find them near the pool. They enjoy the pool games (belly flop, volleyball, etc). Since you're on Symphony, think Playmakers as a good spot to draw in your age group. Another idea would be to approach the Activities Director (not the Cruise Director, they aren't usually easy to get a conversation in with) and ask about how many passengers are on board in your age group and if there will be any planned meetups listed in the Cruise Compass. They print those every day, and if you ask the AD will usually try their best to include something to help facilitate a great vacation for you. They are working for a 10 on your post-cruise survey - and want to make you happy. If they know there is someone looking for something specific they will make it happen if they can.

Honestly, I think I'd rather have them wait to release the schedule and get it right the first time, than get an email saying my sailing was changed/cancelled because they are moving ships around. We book either for the ship or for a specific port of call, and usually end up cancelling and having to wait for refunds when they do that. (Still annoyed my B2B Freedom out of San Juan got changed to Explorer LOL.)

We like them in December...but not Christmas week since we have to fly to cruise. Early in the month gets you all the benefits of the holiday sailings without all of the hassles of holiday travel.

Make sure you stop at Barrachina for a pina colada!

Mine has Michelle Martin playing the role of Gopher. ? It was there, I just missed it when scanning for Michael's name.