JeffB

Thank your for the clarification of terms Atlantix2000.

You have to be careful using a plug converter that takes your stateroom (European) two prong outlet to what you see in the standard US (N. American) outlet that supports appliances that operate on 110-120 v AC current. When I parenthesized "European" outlets above, be aware that the typical standard voltage in Europe is 220v to 240v. However, plug types (the blades or prongs) differ in style, e.g., Italy's prongs are different than Germany's but still operate appliances rated at 220v-240v. The key here is to make sure a US or N. American purchased appliance you are plugging into a 220v-240v receptacle in your stateroom displays an imprint, tag or sticker that it will operate at an input current of 110v-120v or 220v-240v. If you want to plug in and operate an appliance that displays somewhere on it that it only runs on 115v (typical in N. America), you can buy a converter that takes the 220v-240v input and changes the output current to 110v-120v. If you try to plug in an appliance that only operates on 110v-120v AC into a cabin outlet that delivers 220v to an appliance you'll burn it up or worse, start a fire. Fortunately, most laptops and phones have built in voltage conversion if needed and will do fine on down converted 220-240v AC. Unfortunately, most cruise lines prohibit converters along with power strips that have multiple 110-120 outlets. Enforcement is spotty in my experience relying on security screeners running your carry-on items through X-ray machines in the terminals that are not ship's staff. I have a converter like the photo in Matt's post above. I also have this converter and it made it through Celebrity screening out of Port Canaveral last month. These tend to be "must haves" in most European hotels that you might stay in pre-or-post cruise. If it's confiscated on boarding, you'll get it back on debarkation to use it on that post cruise hotel stay. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7VBQ46X?ref=ppx_pop_dt_b_product_details&th=1 I haven't even touched the subject of USB ports - this article runs down with helpful photos what I just wrote about above to include USB ports. Also pay attention to Hertz rates. Ship's current (Hertz) varies line to line and ship to ship. If you find your laptop acting strangely when plugged into a cabin outlet, that could be the reason. Still, most laptops seem to work fine in my experience. https://quirkycruise.com/cruise-ship-adapters/

Celebrity Infinity is a Millennium Class ship. The first thing you'll notice is that it's smaller (2800 guests) and, IMO, easier to get around. It isn't a megaship with 7000 guests either and you'll notice this on port days during debarkation. Still, popular venues like the Martini (Ice) Bar, Ocean View Cafe and Al Bacio can get busy. You'll develop a feel for the guest flow in any popular or common places on board and can find quieter times. You'll be Elite status. There are plenty of links to what that status gets you. Google it but make sure its 2024 or later. Things change. The poster above me ran down the "happy Hour" perk on Celebrity. You'll have this perk embedded in your cruise card. Brands are usually well liquors. IMO, the drink packages are ridiculously overpriced. The "happy Hour" in the Sky lounge on deck 14 is the best bar on the ship for enjoying this perk. There are other bars - always busy - so I recommend the Sky Lounge. This perk works for us as there is no way I drink that much to make the bev pkg worth it. If you enjoy wine with dinner, you get 20% off a bottle in the main or specialty restaurants. We can make a bottle last 2-3 dinner seatings. Speaking of which we love Murano and Lobster Murano a specialty served there. Tuscan is good as well - they've cut down on plate/serving sizes. A good thing, IMO as it was easy to overeat on Antipasti before your entre' . Sushi on Five is nice if you like Sushi. Le Petite Chef is an expensive novelty but pretty cool. The Greek Isle itineraries are loaded with opportunities to get refresher history lessons on Greece and Rome at the height of their global influence BC. Ephesus and Rhodes are loaded with interesting history if you like that sort of thing. We tend to hire private guides as large groups on ship's tours tend to get unwieldy. We've used ToursByLocals extensively. They are very professional....and licensed (a big deal if you want depth of historical knowledge), also pricey these days but visiting these places is a once in lifetime event for most. Optimize your time in port. We've used this company 3X in Istanbul. Each time, a knowledgeable and professional guide avoided crowds and provided an excellent tour of Istanbul where there is a ton of history. He has guides in Ephesus that specialize there: Get in touch with him here: [email protected] It's a bit of a drive from Kusadasi to Ephesus but there are many ways to get there and you'll save some money by going to Ephesus from Kusadasi on your own and meeting a private guide there. Have a look here: https://ephesiantourism.com/kusadasi-cruise-port-to-ephesus/#:~:text=Ephesus has a total of,a taxi from your stop.

Hi Kevin C, we've been sailing mostly Celebrity ships/itineraries since 2001. In our 70s, we continue now to almost exclusively book and sail with Celebrity. We've sailed with Princess and Virgin recently and enjoyed both of these cruises. Both have a different vibe. Not better or worse, just a different vibe aboard Celebrity. While we're selective about dates where kids are more likely to be aboard, even then, I'm rarely aware they are aboard. Infrequently, I will see them in the MDR after 8p, most have been well behaved. Select dining times in the MDR at or just after 8 for a more attentive and less crowded experience. This advice has a caveat. There will be shows at 7 and 9p. The 7p show ends just before 8. Get to the MDR before the crowd from the show starts arriving - around 8:10 to 8:15. There's plenty of room to accommodate the rush but the wait staff can get overloaded. You may feel like you waited too long for a waiter to appear with the delicious bread basket if you're in the rush yourself. We are not pool fans but strolling through those areas, rowdy kids don't seem to be present. You might see them in the Ocean VIew Cafe at busy times. It's easy to adjust breakfast and lunch times that avoids the crowds (mostly), toddlers and up. If you've already visited a port on Silhouette's itinerary try staying aboard for empty Ocean View at Breakfast and Lunch, empty Cafe al Bacio and run of the ship without bumping elbows with anyone. Check MDR menus before booking a specialty restaurant. That's because the MDR often offers tasty meals you'll enjoy still with excellent and sophisticated table service and without the fees that accompany specialty dining. We've been to all of them and our favorite is Murano (sadly absent from Edge Class) because you won't get the famous Lobster Murano anywhere else at sea or as far as I know, ashore. Table side preparation of that dish is unique. Recommend the Anjou Pear appetizer and there's also a dessert dish that is flambéd - Strawberry Balloon. Frankly, everything on Murano's menu is delightful and worth the upcharge - look or ask for discounts. Another hack in the MDR. We've booked both select (fixed 6:30 or 8p) dining and anytime dining where you can still make a reservation on the App or probably better on board - find wait staff around the ship on day one booking specialty restaurants. To be honest, I'm not sure it makes a lot of difference although the sections within the MDR serving select dinners is separate and smaller than the MDR section serving anytime diners. Select diners are dining in smaller numbers these days and the space allotted in the MDR for anytime diners is larger. If I recall the Solstice class ships (Silhouette is among that class of ships) has one section on deck 4 port for fixed diners and 3 sections (one on deck 4 starboard and two (port and starboard on deck 3) for anytime diners. Tip: if you want to avoid diner confusion about seating on the first evening, its a perfect time to book a specialty restaurant. In addition, a discount is more likely on the first night or any over-night or late night port call. I could go on and on but this is already TLDNR. Enjoy your cruise.

There were zero public announcements on Valiant Lady. The one exception is safety or an announcement that a safety drill by crew members is taking place. Otherwise ...... beautiful silence. "Edgy" entertainment? Virgin Voyages is an LGBTQ advocate. It is a gay friendly cruise line for sure - so is Celebrity for that matter. In both lines I've never experienced any "inappropriate public displays" among guests who I identify as either lesbians or homosexuals. Many performers in the entertainment industry are gay. That demographic is present in Virgin Voyages entertainment, same as Celebrity. There was a performance by a magician that featured some "colorful" language but no different than that I hear in Celebrity's late night, adults only, comedy acts. "The Ship Show's" MC is a transgender lesbian queen. Think Rupaul. She had a few jokes in her show that some might consider off-color. Again, no different than Celebrity late night comedy acts. I'm completely comfortable around gays for the most part but I'm a bit put off by PDA in the form of amorous touching among lesbians or homosexual men. I've seen absolutely none of that on either Virgin or Celebrity cruise ships. Heck, most of the adagio performances on cruise ships are very sexual in an athletic sort of way. If you are strongly and politically opposed to the gay or trans lifestyle you may find Virgin Voyages are not for you. OTH, there is absolutely nothing amounting to in-your-face overtly LGBTQ behavior on the Virgin cruise I enjoyed.

Thanks for reading another one of my tomes, WAAAYTOO, as they can easily be identified at TLDR. I really liked Virgin, Ann not quite as much as I did. She thought Celebrity's entertainment was better and in some cases it is. There's no cruise director on Virgin Voyages. Just a staff of energetic young people who are around and about to answer any questions you might have. The "Ship Show" star is a Diva Queen and entertainment on Virgin is a bit edgy with choreography modern street dance type and language in the performances that tends to the adults only lewd side. We were fine with it. The way the Galley works is at the location of the stand you select staff takes your order and gives you a buzzer you take back to your table. It takes a while to get your food selection - maybe 10-15 minutes (unless you do grab and go, bento boxes, pastries and desserts or the bagel place). The benefit is that there's no lines or people crowding and shoving to get a particular dish. Ann didn't like that. I didn't care because, no lines and the food and diversity of it outweighed the inconvenience of waiting for your buzzer to go off. I didn't mention cabins. We booked a Standard Sea Terrace. In Celebrity lingo its a Standard Veranda. There are other balcony type cabins on offer for an additional cost. They might be bigger or be in preferred location. The standard Sea Terrace is small at around 180 sq feet compared to Celebrity Verandas that are closer to 200 sq ft. The balcony, similar in size to Celebrity's, boasts a hammock. Did not use it. Storage (closet space and drawers) are efficiently placed and met our needs. There are USB ports and electrical outlets all over the cabin. A nice feature. Everything in the cabin (lights, curtains, TV) is controlled on a small tablet that sits on the desk. Another nice feature. Public spaces don very modern, minimalist architecture. The bathroom is tiny. Large people would have a problem fitting in the shower. The five specialty restaurants are architecturally pleasing to the eye. The most impressive was the Korean Barbeque place, Gumbae. Loved this one. The Italian spot, Extra Virgin, featured a warm and intimate environment. The Wake is the Virgin's rendition of a steak house. Great menu. Test Kitchen is really unique google it if you're interested in how that one works. Pink Agave is the Mexican spot. We didn't make that one but alternatively did the Ship Show with dinner.

I'm a long time Celebrity loyalist pushing 80 Celebrity cruises since 2001. 10 more on other lines (Disney, Royal, NCL, MSC, Princess, Oceana). I found myself in a cruising rut and thought a change-up was required. I chose, Virgin Voyages, that is noted for its owner, Richard Branson, and his traditions breaking approach to high seas cruising. Yes, there were differences, most of which I considered good. At first glance, Virgin Voyages are pricey but when you unpack what you're getting as part of your cruise fare, costs are comparable. A recent post appeared up thread that said this: I’d like to try Celebrity but paying over $2,000 (Premium) for drinks on a $3,000 cruise fare seems crazy. It IS crazy and it is reflective of unwelcome pricing and revenue stream approaches by Celebrity Corporate. I'm an Elite Plus Celebrity Cruiser with just over 2000 Loyalty points - I'm unlikely to reach Pinnacle status. I stopped purchasing "everything included" packages when they dropped gratuities from those packages around 18 months ago - maybe longer. I find the free 5-7pm happy hour Celebrity loyalty perk all I need. I simply cannot consume the alcohol required to make "the (drink) package" - Classic or Premium worth the cost. Not even close. Virgin status matched. I obtained the Blue Level of Loyalty which got me a free bag of laundry and one specialty coffee per day. The perks are better after 4 cruises obtains the Deep Blue Loyalty level. That includes $100 of Sailor Loot and a free upgrade to already free WiFi to premium or streaming capable WiFi plus the Blue perks. If you book a suite (they are very expensive) you become a Rock Star on that voyage and get a whole range of premium services for that including a stocked hosted bar in your suite cabin. A bump up from Sailor status for non-suite guests. Virgin Voyages approaches the enjoyment of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages very differently that Celebrity - in a good way. First, a full range of non-alcoholic beverages including fountain sodas and the usual selection of juices is part of your cruise fare. For alcoholic beverages you pre-purchase a "bar tab" in an amount that suits how much alcohol you think you will consume during your voyage. There are unsponsored web sites that have bar tab calculators to fine tune your estimated cost of drinks. There are incentives in the form of bonuses up to $100 depending on how much of a bar tab you purchase. I bought a $200 bar tab and got a $25 bonus. On a 5n cruise, that turned out to be just about right consuming one cocktail and 1-2 glasses of wine per day. How does that work? I got two cash perks of $100 each credited to my on-board account; one from my TA and one from Virgin. I had $225 of bar tab plus $200 of "Sailor Loot", as Virgin calls it's cash incentive perks. Once you've used your bar tab, you sailor loot will cover drinks too. It's a very good system and a major plus-up that influences which company, Virgin or Celebrity, I'll book with. Virgin Voyages uses a bracelet approach for your room key and for any onboard purchases including cocktails and wine. It's like Princess Cruises without the need to buy watch bands from them. Bar staff scans your bracelet after you've placed your order. Gift shops and Duty Free shops do the same if you buy anything on board. There are 22 restaurants aboard the three Virgin Voyages ships sailing now with one on order. 5 of these are comparable to any of Celebrity's Specialty Restaurants. The difference is they are part of your cruise fare. We had time to pre-reserve a table and visited 4 of them - all excellent with high end service and food quality. The other five eateries are lower key but fun themed. One of those five is called the Galley. Unlike traditional cruise line buffets, Branson went for more of a food court style. There is a lot of different food choices available in these stands. There should be no problem finding something you like. Two unique offerings are a Bento Box with sushi in it or a "Grab and Go" offering if want something like a pre-made salad or sandwich quickly. You just grab it from the user accessable cooler shelf (like a grocery store cooler) in the Galley. Ship made ice cream and various types of pastries, cakes and candies are also available in several places around the ship. No charge. Several coffee shops are spread around the ship. Specialty coffees on offer have to paid for using your bracelet. All of this was a very nice change to the usual cruise ship buffets, al Bacio and pay as you go gelato. In the end there are similar offerings, if not quite as diverse aboard Celebrity ships and, in the Ocean View Cafe. One of the bar areas at the aft of the ship serves small apps offerings late afternoon with a Greek take. It's a beautiful setting and tasty bites to eat are served there by wait staff. Branson shaped entertainment aboard his virgin fleet to be completely different from Celebrity's production and featured performers shows. More like a festival with smaller less ambitious shows - all of them very good entertainment and the shows are performed more than once per night so, you won't miss-out because a performance venue is filled up. And that does happen. About 6 months ago, Virgin stopped the requirement to pre-book these shows on the Virgin App. It's now first come first serve, except one, "The Ship Show" - a variety type show that comes with dinner. We booked that. It was free and it was fun. All three Virgin ships have different entertainment line-ups. A clever move to encourage future bookings when you know the entertainment won't be the same as the cruise you just sailed. We lined up 20-30 minutes before a show we wanted to see at the time we wanted to see it I could go on. I hit what I perceive as some major and enticing features of a Virgin Cruise. I found the staff to be friendly, engaging and very good at what they do. Ship's company officers do not wear uniforms. They are hard to distinguish from other guests in shorts and tee-shirts. They do wear distinctive black ones though. They're not omni-present and visible like they are on Celebrity ships - an intentional Branson approach. An important note for seniors. We are in our 70s so I was a bit apprehensive about the ship's vibe. We fit in just fine. Virgin isn't catering to the Carnival crowd that loudly parties and is drunk the entire cruise and routinely vomits in passageways. All-in-all this was a pretty staid group of cruisers a bit younger, but not by a lot, than the average Celebrity cruiser by age (47). The higher cruise fares helps to keep undesirables (you know who these are without sticking your nose up) on shore, not on Virgin's ships. This was a themed Halloween Cruise. We dressed as the Mad Hatter and White Rabbit, my wife has costuming experience. That said, out of nearly a hundred cruisers that competed, we won the "Best Dressed" category at the costume ball beating out the other finalists who were dressed as Bat Man and Cat Woman. That got us a free 7n cruise. Besides that huge plus, I really liked VIrgin's whimsical approach to cruising. I booked our free cruise - a R/T Barcelona-Barcelona - in June next year and added a B2B repositioning Barcelona to Rome cruise. I'm comparing similar Celebrity Eclipse and Virgin's Scarlet Lady translants in April 2026 that end in Amsterdam and Barcelona respectively. Not leaning either way yet. Pricing will feature in the decision. My TA is working on that.

I've looked at the Brightline option from Fort Lauderdale station to Orlando - we have friends we want to visit there and it could serve as a trial run for a sailing on Celebrity Equinox from Port Canaveral to Barcelona in May '25. Yes, I anticipated you're going to ask if Celebrity Equinox is now porting at Cape Canaveral and yes they are in the 2025 early season. We can drive there in about 3.5h, another 45 minutes to parking at Port Canaveral. Brightline point to point, takes 4-5h not including about an hour from the Brightline terminal in Orlando to Port Canaveral. It's also not cheap and seat pricing is load controlled. Like the other poster tells you he paid an extra $20 because he waited to get tickets. The base price for the main cabin is $89 - it goes up from there. The Premium fare which gets you some goodies for a price starts at $119. So your talking for us it's going to cost around $200 to 300 R/T. Is it worth it? Well, you've got to consider the cost of parking your car if you drive; that's a bad idea, I finally concluded for us as we're on a B2B with the second leg after the transplant going from Barcelona to Rome. We're gone for 25-30 days. A whopper of a parking bill. We'll fly back from Rome to ORL. Probably not happening for the Equinox cruise. I can see it for a cruise from Boca and points north like Stuart and Fort Pierce. May try it if/when we go visit our friends in Orlando.

My advice is to change your dining selection to Select Any Time via your TA or, if you booked on line, call Celebrity. This way you can show up at whatever restaurant you like on day one. With Fixed dining, you'll get an assigned restaurant from one of the four on the first night. If you like it, stick around. If you don't or just want to cycle though all four of them. Find a time when the hostess isn't busy and ask to switch to another restaurant or call the number for the restaurant manager and request a change. You might find they try to talk you out of changing. Be persistent. You may get an assigned restaurant via a card in your cabin for the first night even if you select Any Time dining. The Restaurant managers do that to spread out guests on the first night. After that you can go wherever and whenever you want. Another tip: make a pre-cruise reservation at a specialty restaurant the first night of your cruise. That way you avoid the typical confusion of guests at the various dining venues on night one. Also, if you anticipate you're going to splurge for specialty dining, book a dining package pre-cruise. Nearly a year out, you should get a good deal on a dining package. Maybe even better, watch for prices to drop for the package as the cruise gets closer and the ships restaurant managers aren't getting enough pre-cruise bookings. These discounts might only last for a day or two so, if you see a discount, grab it. On today's front page of the RCL blog's main page, there's a good article on doing that very thing to save money on specialty restaurants that have experienced large price increases for entry post pandemic.

Some thoughts on Edge Class ships, dining: We've sailed 3/4 Edge Class ships at least once and in some cases 3 or more times. Ascent is the one Edge Class ship we've not sailed and obviously XL which is not in service yet. Edge class dining is unique as compared to Millennium and Solstice class ships. When you book, you can choose Select Fixed or Anytime Dining. As the title reveals Fixed Dining has two seatings - early and late - 6pm or 8:30pm. I'm told by restaurant staff that the 4 Edge class restaurants have specific areas for fixed and anytime diners when times might conflict. I can honestly say, I've never noticed this. After our first Edge Class Cruise (on Edge) during which we had fixed seating - as was our preference on Solstice and Millennium class ships - that didn't work if you like trying all four of the main restaurants and maybe settle on one that you like the staff best. Menus are essentially the same with the exception of a specialty main course and dessert. My experience is that you can forget about making reservations for any time dining. It doesn't work pre-cruise on the app and the hostesses will tell you don't worry, come when you like. If you do Fixed seating, you'll be initially assigned to one of the 4 restaurants. You can change but I don't think the restaurant managers like doing a lot of that. It messes up their table planning, especially if you are in a large group. As you enter any of the Edge class ship's 4 restaurants, there are two hostess podiums - one for diners with reservations, one for diners without reservations. Again, I don't think it makes any difference. You're seated according to table availability by usually, I've found, one default hostess. Who, BTW is also really good at managing table availability. All the hostesses want to know is your cabin number. There are definitely the right and wrong times to get a table quickly instead of waiting. You're' going to wait from 6 to at 6:50pm and at 8 to just after. I have found that if I leave the theater before the cruise director's gig at the end of the show, go directly to the main dining venue of our choice for that night, I'll get seated right away and my wife will join me with the friendly guidance of wait staff or maitre d. If you find a wait staff you like, and if you ask, the hostess will try to assign you a table in that wait staff's assigned section. The best hostesses, and most of them are very good, will remember you and your cabin number when you approach their podium if you are a repeat diner in one venue. We are late diners for the sole purpose of seeing the 7pm shows. That works for us. It's tight if, like the OP, you want to eat early and then see the 7pm shows. It would be nice if main dining hours started at 5 or 5:30pm to accommodate a more relaxed early dining experience for early diners wanting to see the 7pm show. Optionally, you can eat early and then stay up for the 9pm show. Specialty restaurants: Well, our fave, Murano, is not on Edge Class ships. TBH, the specialty restaurant up-charge on Edge Class may not provide a better dining experience than the 4 main dining restaurants. JMO. YMMV.... and your experience by ship will also vary but is, for the most part, consistently great. Fine Cuts is very good but too much food for us. We've seen Le Petit Chef - it's a fun one time experience. I actually like Raw on 5. You can usually walk in at any time if you get the urge but, again, why? On the plus side, I've never found it to be very busy. It's an ala-cart menu and IMO, affordable/not over-priced. Forget dining on the Magic Carpet unless you are in port and it's not raining or windy. I've found that bar and dining innovation to be off-putting. Again, JMO. You can also walk into Le Grand Bistro. Nice but nothing special, rarely busy, a nice lunch option with a Frenchy al-cart menu. Eden is indeed very nice. We've experienced both excellent and not up to par dining experiences in Eden though. It takes just one of these to make you think twice about paying a specialty dining up charge. Blue and Luminae are dining venues for Aqua and Suite Class guests respectively. We don't book Aqua Class at all and can't comment on Blue - it looks appealing. We booked suites twice, dined at Luminae and found it noisy and trying too hard to be special and upscale. You don't like lines? They form at Luminae all the time. No reservations! Strange. Very off-putting, IMO. The retreat was over-crowded on ships sailing at cabin capacity and you paid a ton extra for that privilege. Think carefully about booking a suite when you can do two cruises in a Balcony for the price of the least expensive of suites - the Sky Suite - with the dubious special privilege's of dining at a noisy, not very special, supposedly exclusive restaurant and fighting the crowds at the main pool while at a small Retreat area pool area with a limited number of lounge chairs. Here's a decent but, as usual, not a great read on Celebrity's supposedly only Edge Class dining dining. There's a section on Murano which isn't on Edge Class ships. Go figure. https://www.celebritycruises.com/blog/celebrity-select-dining PS: the Entertainment venues on Edge class ships are, again, unique and innovative. Yes, the main theater is small. People line up early to get seats they want - usually the best ones for viewing the stage. But, the LED screens, theater in the round, and the Broadway quality of the production shows, to me, are worth going early and lining up. There are usually three of them on each cruise of 7d or more. The Club on deck 4 mid-ship, hosts production shows as well and lines form an hour early for those usually late in the evening shows in this venue. It holds maybe 150 people and there are only a hand-full of really good seats close to the performing area. There are usually two, sometimes more of these per 7d cruise. Eden hosts production staff shows too. Once more, guests grab the best seats close to the performance area an hour to 90 minutes early. Once again, worth the wait if you want to experience production dancers, singers, aerialists and acrobats (a separate cast from those doing the production shows in the main theater) doing their stuff within a few feet of where you're seated. Exhilarating and the performers seem to thrive on this kind of intimate performing. Usually, only one of these per 7d cruise. Worth staying up late and going early. Relax and have a pre-show drink!

Thanks for your response HeWhoWaits. We've been told by the current stage manager aboard reflection that changes to Reflections stage are coming in August during the production company changeover process. I'm interested in information pertaining to the extent of the modifications to Reflection's stage that might preclude production shows on our booked future cruise in September this year. Just speculating but it's likely that the modifications would involve installation of LED screens like those on the Edge class ships that provide a back-drop to the production shows there. That would take some time to do that, more than what could be done in the usual 9h turn-around day at Port Everglades between cruises. My sense is that no one who we might contact at Celebrity's Customer Support would know anything about this - its an Operations Department issue in coordination with Celebrity Entertainment.

During a backstage tour on our Reflection cruise just last week, we learned that the current production cast will end their contracts sometime in late August of this year. Further, and at that time, Celebrity will introduce production shows, currently being run on Edge Class ships, on Reflection. Reflection will undergo modifications to the theater's stage to accommodate the new shows. I don't know what the extent of those "modifications" are but I see the potential for production shows to be cancelled during the 7n, B2B (4n + 3n) Reflection cruise we just booked from Friday 09/06 - Friday 09/13. I looked at the Celebrity's Entertainment website and there is nothing there on this potential. A google search came up empty too. Anyone care to comment?

Century Class, was different than Millennium Class that was different than Solstice, Edge Class is different from Solstice Class. Celebrity makes a big deal when marketing a new class of ships stating that their new ship designs are driven by advanced technology more than size or amenities for cruisers. There is usually a specific design feature, e.g., Eden in Edge class ships, that sets it apart from previous design features. Millennium and Solstice class ships are still sailing itineraries along with Edge class ships and the 4 Edge Class ships (Edge, Apex, Beyond and Assent) are evolutionary in design. Celebrity does a very good job of learning from issues and correcting them on each new ship in the Edge Class. So, there are differences between all four ships in Celebrity's Edge Class fleet. As noted above, you're going to enjoy sailing on any of Celebrity's ships. My experience sailing each of Celebrity's ships that are in service at least once is the continuity of the onboard character that the front office wants to create and service delivery. It is the same friendliness of the crew, from officers to staff, on all the ships I've sailed on. Service is very high in quality because of the rigorous training Celebrity conducts. There might be a few hick-ups when large numbers of crew or officers transfer from one ship to another or their contracts end. I've been impressed with how Corporate manages this to keep the chaos from routine transfers, on to and off the ships that can occur, keeping it to a minimum or hardly noticeable. As I walk up the boarding platform and enter the ship, my usual exclamation is that, "I'm home."

WaayToo, won't be in attendance at that one. Our group of airborne EW/Recon Marines is April 17th in San Diego. We're members of the John R. Daily Squadron an affiliate squadron of MCAA.

Second the above response. Good idea but my guess is no. Had a similar circumstance on a recent west coast itinerary involving Seattle and Vancouver. We asked if we could debark in one port and re-embark at another. Pre-cruise, the request was entertained but the probably set response that we got a few days later was no. In our case it was because of in-country visa requirements. Visitors getting on and off a cruise ship for a day are treated differently than overnight travelers moving within or through the country. I still think you should inquire with RCL support teams (not reservations and booking). It's likely country dependent.

The answer to your question is no. If one person in the cabin orders a drink package the others have to purchase the same package. You have to know your per day alcohol consumption along with water/energy drinks, al Bacio coffees, sodas and Smoothees (premium pkg only at venues these are offered) consumption then figure out if you are going to use the package enough to warrant the daily charge. The classic pkg includes a lot of non-alcoholic beverages. You may find that the cost per day per person is worth it if buying the classic drink pkg allows your husband to drink alcoholic beverages plus non-alcoholic beverages while you just consume non-alcoholic beverages. Here's a link to a fairly current blog post that will cover questions you might have about determining what is your best bet with or without a beverage package. For some, the convenience of simply presenting your Sea Pass card when ordering a beverage and not having a post cruise bar bill is worth it even if you're not equaling the daily costs. You may also find that the daily cost is much higher for the package than what you would be charged if you just ordered your beverage and paid individually for them. https://eatsleepcruise.com/review-of-celebrity-cruises-beverage-packages/#:~:text=Can just one person purchase,the Zero Proof drink package.

I've done a lot of cruising since 2001 when we sailed our first cruise, a 10n Western Caribbean itinerary, aboard Celebrity Mercury. I have six cruises booked through 2023, 2024 and have 75 cruises under my belt already - most of them with Celebrity (and I'm still not close to Zenith). Just recently, I asked my TA to check the pricing on a January 2024 Sky Suite booking. I thought if I cancelled and booked an Infinite Veranda, I might save some money. Several Cabin classes below Celebrity's high priced Retreat cabins that would seem to be a realistic goal. Boy, was I shocked. I booked Beyond's Sky suite using the onboard booking agents a good 18 months earlier than the sailing date - probably within 2-3 months of the first itinerary listings for 2024. Generally, following that approach will get you the lowest cabin fares and deals. I sure proved that with the Beyond booking. First, the 10n Sky Suite with everything included cost about $3700 per person, all inclusive for a total of $7400 and change (checks math .... about $370/d pp). A new booking of an Infinite Veranda with everything included was now $3950 pp. Astonishingly, the asking price for a comparable available suite was $9500 pp ...... that's right! $19000 for both of us!!! In lurking and reading recent posts on this blog, I've seen multiple posts about rising prices. Certainly, there is unprecedented demand for cruising and plenty of folks are willing to pay for the exclusivity of suite offerings across the industry. But this? Both myself and my TA were flabbergasted. A quick search of comparable Princess and Royal itineraries and cabins demonstrated similar price increases well above what we are accustomed to paying. If we continue to cruise after we've sailed on our 6 booked cruises, I'll be looking for no frills cabins and amenities. As much as I have enjoyed the exclusivity of suite life and accompanying amenities on Princess, Royal and Celebrity, we're getting priced out of booking these kinds of lux getaways. These days, even OV and Veranda cabins are often 2-3X more than what we're used to shelling out. Sad, really.

I'm a die-hard Celebrity Cruise Line loyalist having notched 72 cruises with this company since 2001 and sill haven't come close to reaching Zenith!! There are many things I like about sailing on a Celebrity ship but the concept of "X" = excellence and beyond expectations (among other jingles over the years) has lost some of it's luster IMO. The industry always competitive has become more so post COVID as the lines work to recoup billions in lost revenue and retire debt. Celebrity sailings have become more homogeneous with other lines that seem to "try harder. setting themself apart to gain market share. TBC, I'm not making this post to ding Celebrity - we have 6 future cruises booked so, we still enjoy what the company has to offer. But, when checking fares for 7n E or W Caribbean sailings out of Fort Lauderdale, I became discouraged at the pricing, especially for suite classes. First, Industry wide, suites are in high demand so, available suites fill up fast and after introducing itineraries as far out as 24 months in advance, dynamic pricing models take charge with prices rising with demand. Just for fun, I thought I'd take a look at Princess Cruise Lines and specifically, Caribbean Princess that sails 7n E, W Caribbean itineraries out of Fort Lauderdale. If I'm looking for a suite, it's not going to be one of the high end types (e.g., Iconic) but rather a Sky Suite. These are particularly nice on Edge class ships as are the suite perks (Retreat, Luminae Restaurant) exclusive for suite guests. They are rather ordinary on Solstice and Millennium class ships but with the same attempt at exclusivity. Caribbean Princess was launched in 2003 and completely refurbished in 2019 so, she's a bit long in the tooth. But the cabin pricing for equivalent low end suites was 30-50% less than any Sky Suite cabins on Equinox - the one Celebrity ship that sails the Caribbean in the summer months. So, I said, I'll give Princess a whirl - my first. Princess has a very British way to classify it's suites: Suites (high end) Club Class Mini-Suites (added perks the same as full suite guests) and Mini Suites (same cabin minus the full suite perks). Booked the Club Class Mini Suite. Compared to well under 300 sq.ft. for Equinox's Sky Suites. The Club Class and non-Club Class Suites are a spacious 325 Sq.ft sporting two rooms and very large balcony with two lounge chairs and a walk-in closet just outside of a large tub equipped bathroom. I was very impressed with the Club Class Suite. Princess does a similar if not a bit more convoluted "everything included." There are two tiers - Standard and Premium, priced differently with different perks. The pricing of the Standard offering is also considerably less than the "everything included" on Equinox and the Premium, although more costly, turns out, on a day to day basis, to be a really good deal. The Premium offering includes two specialty dinning credits per person (Sabatini's, an Italian menu and Crown Grill - steaks), and a photo package along with the standard prepaid gratuities, wifi and drinks package. For all categories of suite guests, a section of one of the main dining rooms is reserved for these guests. Because the number of guests is limited, there is never a wait, table spacing is more generous and table service is accordingly better. This approach, compared to Celebrity's Luminae (exclusive dining for suite guests) is hands down better in terms of quality of service and noise control that Celebrity's exclusive dining. Menus were varied and with plenty of choices. Food quality and presentation was equivalent to Celebrity's menus and for a few specific dishes, were better. There were lots of bar venues with differing forms of entertainment. We easily found a favorite that we made our way to every night before shows. You could always find a seat at a bar; that is not the case on Equinox where unless you camp out at the Martini Bar (AKA, Ice Bar) when it opens at 4pm, it's hard to get a seat unless you happen to be walking right behind someone that is leaving and grab the bar seats before others approach and beat you to it. The production sows and entertainment were good and, for the most part, on par with Celebrity's, We were sailed aboard Caribbean Princess in early June and watched the premier of a new production show - Bravo. It was Vegas and certainly close to Broadway level performance. The bottom line is that if suites are in your cruising budget, the value on Caribbean Princess sailing out of Fort Lauderdale is remarkably good. So good that, in fact, we booked Caribbean Princess sailing a 13n Fort Lauderdale to Quebec starting July 222nd on board. Doing so got us a 50% discount on a Mini-Suite (not Club Class - they were sold out) and 50% off the Premier Everything Included package. The cabin fare was equivalent to those found on 7n cruises and purchasing the Premier package was the best deal I've gotten in a long time on any cruise line. We had a very good, if not limited to one ship, experience with Princess. I'm not abandoning Celebrity but Princess is, for sure, "trying harder."

This is the sad state of human interaction. There's been a lot written about how destructive this is to mankind's existence on the planet. Look around. No one is getting along and there are plenty of dangerous people who leverage discord and turn it into violent acts. An article appeared in the NYTs (and reprinted elsewhere) written by a flight attendant listing 12 rules for flying on an airplane. Here's a reprint that's not paywalled like the NYT is: https://www.telegraphindia.com/world/a-flight-attendants-12-etiquette-rules-for-making-flying-pleasant/cid/1939675 The list doesn't really apply to cruising but I'm sure this group could come with a good one that does and goes beyond the rules of behavior that the cruise lines feel comfortable delineating (and that few read, are scrupulously followed by passengers and enforced by crew) . Here are a few of my suggestions: Smile; greet fellow passengers and crew even if you don't know them. Cruise ship bars, lounges and dinning rooms are not your child's play area. Lining up is a part of cruising. Respect that part where there is a need to do so (e.g. checking in, serve yourself, open dining areas). Crew members assigned to serving you in your staterooms and within public areas are not your servants. Treat them with respect and common courtesy. Your turn.

I get what you're saying. We are Celebrity loyalists but have plenty of Royal cruises under our belts, the last one aboard Allure of the Seas out of Port Everglades a year ago in June. (we live in Fort Lauderdale). The situation you're describing is not confined to Royal Caribbean cruises. It's happening industry wide. That is because "we've been found out." Long term cruisers can remember the days when cruising was a past time of seasoned travelers. While that's still true, cruising has become a very popular, mainstream way of taking a vacation. Everyone here has experienced the kinds of behaviors you describe as the old formalities of cruising have given way to a much more relaxed style which has the potential of being abused by passengers who drink too heavily and have few child rearing skills producing unruly and disrespectful kids. That's what happens when the travel flood gates opened post COVID with thousands more folks than before with "travel revenge" who had never booked a cruise vacation started booking them ..... liked the value and repeatedly returned. Celebrity has a different vibe than Royal and the passenger cohort tends to be older and more sedate. There are periods when school is in session that you don't even see kids about. Celebrity markets an upscale cruising experience - no waterslides and go-karts. Royal markets family fun with amusement park features. While Royal offers the exclusivity of suites, Celebrity offers "The Retreat" and "Suite Life" a concept the previous Celebrity President, Lisa Lutoff-Perlo brought to the line. That was part of a fleetwide modernization program that featured new Edge Class ships and major modifications to Solstice and Millennium Class ships. It was a pretty successful undertaking that mined a market of cruisers willing to pay for the exclusivity this concept offered. The rest of the cruise industry has followed with most lines offering this kind of thing. Of late, Suites are in high demand across the cruise line industry. They are pricey and can be hard to find at a reasonable per-day, per-person cost. You probably know your loyalty points cross over if you choose to sail aboard a Celebrity ship. So there is that. If you want to pay for exclusivity and the usual quiet and serene surroundings that begets, be prepared to open your wallet for that. There is also Silver Seas - also a RCG product - offering small ship luxury at a price. Perks don't cross over and that is because you don't need them. Everything is included in the whopping cruise fares. Finally, Celebrity offers two small expedition yachts and one luxury, all suite yacht for 100 guests. The fare for a sailing on one of these three offerings is astronomical - IMO, anyway. Personally, I'd rather take two cruises in a Balcony or Ocean view Cabin than one cruise at the same price as two of those in a suite. YMMV.

Just travelled through Schiphol 2 weeks ago. Compared to passage through that airport in October 2021, it is much improved. However, the airport is huge and I found it difficult to navigate with confusing terminal and gate directions. Delta check in is in Terminal 1. Make sure your driver (I assume you will be using a taxi or Uber) drops you off at the entrance to that terminal. If that happens and if I remember correctly, Delta's check in lines will be in view from the entrance where you walk in to terminal 1. Expect a taxi fare to be between E60 - E70 and takes 20-30 minutes from the cruise terminal to the airport. You can use a credit card. You need to arrive at Schiphol 3h before your departure time - you may use all of that time or you may not. It all depends on how busy it is. Therefore, unless you can walk off the ship between 6 and 6:30am start looking for a later flight. We were on Celebrity Apex and there were walk-off times as early as 6AM. Unfortunately, the walk off times are determined by ship's staff based on Customs protocols the day of arrival. You won't be able to determine your walk-off time until they are announced onboard ship a day or two before your arrival. If you sailed from a non-Schengen country to Amsterdam, you will have to go through Immigration. I doubt you'll have to deal with that and if you do it's a breeze. Schiphol has installed an automated baggage drop and this is located to the right of the Delta counters. I recommend you not use these. Tote your bags to the Delta agent counters and drop them off there. The automated system can be finnicky weighing your bag and scanning your boarding pass to get luggage tags and you don't want to be messing around with that. Make sure your checked bags are < 50 pounds. if the weight is 51 pounds you'll pay extra and it's over $100US. I think Delta wants you to get your boarding pass before you drop your luggage with an agent, not sure but your line will be shorter if you already have your boarding pass. There are Kiosks to do that but they are not directly in front of the Delta counters. They are to your right a ways (go figure). Once you're checked in and have your boarding pass in hand you'll proceed to security. Make sure you know your flight's gate. Ask the agent which security you should go through for that gate and get specific directions. I believe you'll access security, one level up. Access to that level is directly behind Delta's counters. It is not at all clear for first timers that you have to proceed through a gated area then ride escalators up to pass through security. You'll scan your boarding pass to open a gate - there are lots of them so look for those gates and head that way. Once you get to security the lines move very quickly. Schiphol has a very cool partly automated security area and employees guiding passengers to the best line. Once cleared through security, follow the signs to your gate. It will seem like you have to walk for miles and you probably will. Good luck

Thanks for the great Beyond review crusiellama. We've got 4 Edge Class cruises booked. Three on Apex and one on Beyond through January 2024. On our first Edge Class Cruise (Edge, Athens, June 2022) it took some getting used to the new design but we did. Just sailed Apex in January and had similar reactions to yours and another poster who found The Retreat "too crowded." Agree with that. Nice to hear Beyond has added a 3rd deck to The Retreat. The Retreat Lounge wasn't the "step above" you would expect for the premium being paid and Luminae was by far not our favorite restaurant - that would be Normandy. But as you noted, the staff that served us across the ship were outstanding and service at a high level. Glad to see the Martini bar improved as both Edge's and Apex's are small and there is insufficient seating. The special effects in the main theater were also a noteworthy addition to ship board entertainment. There's no question that Celebrity's food quality has declined post COVID interruption but is entirely satisfying. I tend to stick to long time menu "favorites" and I enjoyed them. The roasted pork chops is one of them. The Chilean Sea Bass was Branzino and that particular fish filet was thin. Lobster tails on Lobster night in the mains are smaller (tender and succulent) but the Beef Wellington is still very good. WIth Celebrity trying to position itself as a "premium" line, the concept of "X" signifying excellence, Lutoff-Perlo might want to consider shaving the company's margins a bit to preserve the concept of "X." I know that's not what stockholders want and she's under pressure to keep margins high. Still, tread cautiously there. Competitors are offering similar premium cruises at lower prices. We've got a Princess cruise scheduled in June (Caribbean Princess) and booked the equivalent of Celebrity's Sky Suite (not as big, same perks but fewer amenities and called Club Suites) for around 60% of the cost of Sky Suite on an Edge class ship. Don't know about others bu, given the premium, I'm loath to book a Sky Suite on Millenium or Solstice class ships given the plus-up of the "suite life" on Edge class.

Accepted tests are PCR or antigen tests taken in person, supervised virtually, or unsupervised self-administered. Proof of a negative test can be the printed or digital results, a clear photo of your self-test result, or your actual self-test in hand. https://www.celebritycruises.com/healthy-at-sea/transatlantic-travel-requirements Note that your COVID tests do not need to be supervised. You can use unsupervised, self administered COVID tests. Purchase these before you sail (or use the ones you may have gotten for free during that campaign). Make sure that the tests you use are not expired and be aware that expiration dates may have been extended by the FDA. Google "extended dates for" ...... (the brand of test you have). Insurance coverage for on-site supervised testing, e.g., CVS and others, is fading. A typical supervised test at CVS is going to run you in the $120 range. Since you don't need these, buy a self test kit for under $20 at Amazon. Here's the link. https://www.amazon.com/Covid-19-Test-Kits/b?ie=UTF8&node=2348082201

I just booked with AIr2Sea for a one-way flight from Miami to Athens in October, 2023. This is the first time I have used Air2Sea since the cruising restart. I didn't care for it much before COVID as available routings and connections were poor. I was impressed with the ease of finding suitable flights at the Air2Sea website - its well designed and easy to use without calling an Air2Sea agent. I bounced what was available using Matrix Software (Google Flight without the adds) to what was being offered in the Air2Sea web site. Not a lot of differences, several options by both airlines and routing and this far in advance, the fare was pretty good and equivalent at both websites. I'm assuming Roselo didn't have choices and ended up with this short layover between national and international flights. From the post, Roselo has an international flight as part of her Air2Sea itinerary. She may have been able to avoid this and have more choices on routing by booking just inside 6 months (for international). This is the point at which the airlines allegedly start to manage fares - prices rise or fall based on bookings and inquiries (dynamic pricing). Generally and as I understand it, Air2Sea won't offer an itinerary that won't work and I can't imagine Roselo's itinerary being forced on her. I suppose that is possible if it was the only itinerary offered but then again if its being booked inside 60d, that could have been the case.

Day 9: A pleasant surprise. Raw on Five. As I've noted previously in my reviews, I'm not enamored by specialty restaurants as they seldom set themselves apart from main dining venues - our exceptions are Murano and Eden. I can now add Raw on Five. We walked up for lunch without a reservation and were seated immediately in a desirable window table. An experienced waiter - that I judged so by his manner, presentation and skills - approached and gave an explanation of the menu. There's no up-charge to dine here. Menu items are al a carte and priced accordingly. I thought the pricing was reasonable. I ordered a sashimi plate with a choice of 4 of 6 items on the menu for that plate. My second order was something akin to a California roll- A green topped tuna roll. The green top was beautifully sliced avocados neatly laid on top of each of 10 pieces forming a roll. This was $12 - well worth it. My wife had shrimp tempura. She liked it. The best parts of this lunch experience were that it was delightfully quiet in a beautiful setting with 5* food quality and table service. A. We debark tomorrow morning. This is our 5th cruise on an Edge class ship, the first right after the cruise industry's restart in June 2021. They take some getting used to but it has been pointed out to us that each new class ship in the Celebrity fleet builds on what worked and what didn't in the previous class. Edge is an improvement on a lot of levels especially propulsion, hull design, system management and cabin design. I like the restaurant changes that are part of the cruise industry's trend to offer more dining options moving away from "Main" dining concepts that have predominated since the beginning of the Golden Age of Cruising in the early 20th century. The average age on this cruise I'd estimate to be 65. It's an old crowd, few kids, If any at all, and an adults only cruising experience as compared to the younger crowd and family experience on RCL ships. It isn't for everyone but it works for us. The Sky suites were nice but I have trouble justifying the enormous up charge. We'd rather take two cruises in the $4-5K range than one for $8k+. That's just us. If price is no object, go for it. Some of the perks - priority boarding and debarkation, private dining room - Luminae - access to Blue and the Retreat - are nice but I can do without all of them. As I've mentioned Luminae wasn't great and the Retreat was, IMO, in the one instant I went out there to try the pool and lounge chairs, was more crowded than I would have expected of the exclusivity you're paying for to be in there. The Retreat Lounge is a bit on the boring side. Folks that were in there stuck in their groups and the two times we went there for cocktails before dinner we didn't socialize and stuck to ourselves. This will be my last post in this series. Hope it's been informative and useful if you are considering a voyage on Edge class ships in the Celebrity fleet.