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JLMoran

Which fallback itinerary would you choose?  

21 members have voted

  1. 1. Which of the following 2021 Celebrity cruises would you pick as a fallback if the 14-night Iceland & Greenland on Aug 2 is canceled (see main post for port info on each)

    • 14 Night Iceland & Greenland - Celebrity Summit - Aug 1, 2021
      9
    • 10 Night Italy, Croatia, & Montenegro - Celebrity Edge - Jul 16 OR Aug 6, 2021
      9
    • 11 Night Italy, Malta, & Greek Islands - Celebrity Infinity - Aug 9, 2021
      1
    • 7 Night Alaska Southbound Glacier - Celebrity Millennium - July 2 / July 16 / July 30 /Aug 13 / Aug 27, 2021
      2


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I'm still holding to hope that my Aug 2 sailing to Iceland & Greenland is happening with no major port changes or other alterations. But I think it's time I start to think about what I'll do if it doesn't happen, given the recent CDC announcement further banning cruises for another 100 days from whatever the official publication date is. For sure, I will wait for Celebrity to cancel and take the FCC (hopefully still at 125%), and I've narrowed down the 2021 options to four different items. I'm listing them here in order of preference, along with their ports and what I feel are the pros and cons. Which would you choose if you were in this situation? Feel free to leave comments about your selection below.

With all of these cruises, one expectation is that the trip will be extended either before or after with some land vacation time, to get the same end result of a 3-week trip.

14 Night Iceland & Greenland -Celebrity Summit - Aug 1, 2021
7 ports, 6 sea days

  • Cape Liberty, NJ
  • Halifax, NS
  • Qaqortoq, Greenland
  • Prince Christian Sound (sailing day)
  • Reykjavik (overnight)
  • Akureyri
  • Kirkwall, Scotland
  • Southampton, England

This is almost the exact same cruise, but Sydney, NS is replaced by Kirkwall, Scotland (@Ray, @Joe01 -- thoughts on this port stop?); and the final port is changed from Dublin to Southampton, so no opportunity for an extended stay in Ireland without adding in some extra transportation from England. The big problem with this sailing? The price! This cruise is already more than 30% higher than my upcoming sailing, so even with a 125% FCC I'm going to be paying (possibly a lot) more for the same two cabins.

 

10 Night Italy, Croatia, & Montenegro - Celebrity Edge - Jul 16 or Aug 6, 2021
8 ports, 2 sea days

  • Civitavecchia (Rome)
  • Corfu, Greece
  • Split, Croatia
  • Trieste, Italy
  • Koper, Slovenia
  • Dubrovnik, Croatia
  • Kotor, Montenegro
  • Naples, Italy
  • Civitavecchia (Rome)

This is an intriguing option for me. A chance to sail on Celebrity's next-newest ship (Apex will be out by then), and a really nice selection of ports. And we want to see Italy as much as Ireland, so I could possibly change our extended stay to one that visits Rome and the surrounding area, or even arrange to disembark at Naples and then make our way back to Rome before flying home. And the cost is actually appreciably less than the "replacement" Iceland & Greenland option.

 

11 Night Italy, Malta, & Greek Islands - Celebrity Infinity - Aug 9, 2021
9 port days, 3 sea days

  • Venice, Italy
  • Rijeka, Croatia
  • Split, Croatia
  • Santorini, Greece
  • Mykonos, Greece
  • Athens (Piraeus), Greece)
  • Catania, Sicily
  • Valletta, Malta
  • Barcelona, Spain

I like that this cruise is 11 nights and visits the Greek islands, but I'm disappointed that there is not stop in Dubrovnik or Kotor. Ending in Barcelona, I'd consider extending the trip with a train ride to France or something else. Definitely would have to plan that out with a travel agent.

 

7 Night Alaska Southbound Glacier - Celebrity Millennium - Jul 2 / Jul 16 / Jul 30 / Aug 13 / Aug 27, 2021
6 ports, 1 sailing day (NO SEA DAYS); dates in italic are the ones I think I'd prefer to take

  • Seward
  • Hubbard Glacier (sailing)
  • Juneau
  • Skagway
  • Icy Strait Point
  • Ketchikan
  • Inside Passage (sailing)
  • Vancouver, BC

Definitely my least-preferred option, but one that I have to consider since I don't know how much FCC I'll get or how much travel restrictions will truly ease by summer 2021. If I did this one, the idea would be go to there before the cruise, do some kind of pre-cruise tour and then take the train from Anchorage to Seward.

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At that time of year option 2 would be ideal weather wise, and would be a great cruise with lots of fantastic places to visit, and i think there was a TV show filmed in Croatia, cant remember the name of it! Dont think it was that successful ?  for me the greek option doesnt appeal as 1 greek island is basically the same as the next. 

With regards Kirkwall i have never been, it is to Scotland as Hawaii  is to the USA, part of the same country but you have to fly to get there, ( thats where the similarities between Hawaii and Kirkwall end lol  ) Flights to Shetland are more expensive than a flight to Amsterdam, Barcelona or Rome so given the choice it's not somewhere i would pick for a vacation. 

 

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3 hours ago, Ray said:

i think there was a TV show filmed in Croatia, cant remember the name of it! Dont think it was that successful ?

Yeah, sounds familiar but I can't quite place it. ?

Thanks for the input. I do agree that option 2 sounds like a good one, and it's the one I'm leaning toward the most right now from a sheer cost perspective (although I'll have to get a gauge on what flights to Rome will run me for 4 of us).

Lord willing, this is all just fun speculation and I'll be writing a live blog from the deck of Summit in 3 1/2 months.

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I have been on the Edge and it is amazing.  I also think the itinerary for that one is pretty amazing as well.  

Alaska is one that I have done only once pre kids and now want to take them since they are old enough to appreciate it.  It is quite different than Europe but it ranks up there and is just as memorable as my Mediterranean cruise.

 

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1 hour ago, Andrew72681 said:

Can we post a write in vote for the 11night Panama Canal on Celebrity edge for late 2021?

I’m limited to summertime when my kids are both out of school, since my current booking is for the four of us and I very much want to keep it full-family.

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8 hours ago, SpeedNoodles said:

I'm not, I didn't know this one existed!  I may have to cancel everything else and book that! lol

I didn’t either till I started poking around. If I wasn’t already on the Harmony group cruise I’d probably book it. Being over thanksgiving it means fewer days off of school and work, allowing for an 11 day to fit in. 

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Oy, just realized another reason I can't be booking that Panama cruise or anything else in the fall of 2021 -- my younger daughter will be in her senior year of high school and completing college applications, as well as going on any campus visits and interview she hadn't taken care of earlier in the summer! ? 

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In all honesty, my guess is as good as yours when it comes to Kirkwall. Never been to the Orkney Islands and for a Scot, I've actually barely visited the North much at all. If you're ever in the Central Belt of Scotland (i.e. Glasgow, Edinburgh and surrounding areas), ask away.

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I voted for choice 1, as it's the closest to what your current cruise is.  You've been looking so forward to this itinerary, planning, researching...I think you should still go for it...just one year later.  I like the idea of stopping in Scotland.  I loved the Summit so of course I need to vote for her.  ? 

 

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On 4/13/2020 at 9:40 AM, JLMoran said:

Oy, just realized another reason I can't be booking that Panama cruise or anything else in the fall of 2021 -- my younger daughter will be in her senior year of high school and completing college applications, as well as going on any campus visits and interview she hadn't taken care of earlier in the summer! ? 

Eh, by then you can just leave her back home ?

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1 hour ago, Andrew72681 said:

I hope your luck is better than mine. My Celebrity steal of a deal is officially dead with today’s announcement. And with four RC cruises already on the books can’t figure out where to fit a celebrity cruise in. 

Sorry to hear that. As it is, my wife is expressing reservations about cruising super-close to when things open up again. Can't blame her, we still won't have a vaccine and likely won't have reliable testing yet / in any sufficient quantity. If the sailing goes on and the itinerary is not at all modified, then I'm personally ready to go and roll the dice. But the "up to 48 hours prior to sail date" cancellation policy will still be in effect, and if she / the kids really balk, I'll buck up and deal with the cancellation...

 

 

for the three of them. I'll shed a tear as I wave goodbye from the ship on Aug 2. ?

 

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The 2021 variant on this sailing is rapidly selling out. Odds aren't looking good for being able to book it by the time a cancellation is given, at least while still having any kind of mid-ship OV or inside cabins left. I'll see how it plays out, but I'm very glad I did my homework now and have some alternatives lined up.

And no, I can't reserve cabins on that other sailing right now as I don't have a spare $1,800 for the 2-cabin booking charge. So it'll just be what it'll be if / when the time comes.

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1 hour ago, KathyC said:

I'm often envious of those who can just put down all sorts of deposits and not think about it.

Especially right now, given the fact if anything were to happen between then and now, there's no telling how the refund system will be affected!

I was considering a Celebrity cruise next year, though I've been suffering "sticker shock" every time I look. I hope that both they and RCCL end up giving some deep discounts when all this is said and done to encourage us to sail away with them!

You know, like a 95% discount on a Flora cruise to the Galapagos. ?

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So I've passed the point of no return -- final payment was due today (a few days early relative to when X said it's due, but that's the TA for you). Now it's just a matter of fingers crossed and seeing how the rest of the family feels about it all as the day gets closer and closer. 95 days and counting.

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3 minutes ago, JLMoran said:

So I've passed the point of no return -- final payment was due today (a few days early relative to when X said it's due, but that's the TA for you). Now it's just a matter of fingers crossed and seeing how the rest of the family feels about it all as the day gets closer and closer. 95 days and counting.

So, did you make the final payment or allow it to be cancelled ?

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Just now, WAAAYTOOO said:

So, did you make the final payment or allow it to be cancelled ?

Made it, of course! ? Since I got the confirmations from Travelex that I'd posted about in another thread, I was comfortable making the final payment. Plus, the Cruise With Confidence option means we can cancel on our own right up until Jul 31 and still get 100% FCC even if Celebrity doesn't cancel it themselves and award 125%.

A lot of people on my roll call have already canceled, which has played havoc with some of my custom excursion bookings (Private Journey and third-party). But a good number are sticking with it, too. Mainly the younger ones who don't already have a million dollars in FCC from other canceled trips. I'm expecting to find the prices have plummeted for some of the better cabins, hopefully enough so that I can get us out of our pair of OV cabins and into a pair of mid-ship balconies with perks. I was debating the family verandah cabins on the aft that normally require a minimum of 5 people to book, as those are open right now; but unless they stay open and the price goes way down, I don't think it'll happen. Currently over $3,500 per person for four people.

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3 minutes ago, Andrew72681 said:

As long as the ports are exactly the same. That’s going to be the frustrating part of Lift and Shift on unique itineraries. 

Yeah, now that I look at the 2020 and 2021 Greenland itineraries out of Cape Liberty side by side...they're not identical. ?

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This is the Celebrity verbiage, re: the subsequent year. I just dunno what they'd call the same itinerary.

Quote

 "'Eligible alternate sailing” means a booking in the same stateroom category sailing with CEL on the same product (itinerary) and cruise length scheduled within four weeks before or four weeks after the date of the original sailing but in the subsequent year.  For those sailings, CEL will protect the guest’s original price and/or promotion so long as the guest moves the eligible booking to the alternative sailing on or before August 1, 2020.'" """

 

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25 minutes ago, Chadster said:

Yeah, now that I look at the 2020 and 2021 Greenland itineraries out of Cape Liberty side by side...they're not identical. ?

We need someone to call and do a “lift and shift”  with a similar itinerary and see if it works. Perhaps what they really meant was “western” or “eastern” Caribbean itinerary and not identical ports under same itinerary. 

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36 minutes ago, Andrew72681 said:

We need someone to call and do a “lift and shift”  with a similar itinerary and see if it works. Perhaps what they really meant was “western” or “eastern” Caribbean itinerary and not identical ports under same itinerary. 

I think they just mean Caribbean.  Western or Eastern doesn't make a difference..they just don't want you swapping Caribbean for Europe or Alaska.

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18 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

I think they just mean Caribbean.  Western or Eastern doesn't make a difference..they just don't want you swapping Caribbean for Europe or Alaska.

One would have hoped if that’s what they meant it would have been spelled out. A simple word like “region” would solve that. But instead it reads as 

For example, if you are moving from a July 30, 2020 sailing, you must move to a sailings that is the same itinerary, length, and stateroom category, and the sail date should be June 30, 2021 – August 30, 2021. To be eligible, guests must move their booking on or before August 1, 2020.

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3 minutes ago, Andrew72681 said:

A simple word like “region” would solve that.

Really?  You know better than that!  ?

But the other site has folks reporting that they don't seem to care about eastern/western but they're giving pushback on southern.  They do consider the Bahamas/Perfect Day its own itinerary despite Perfect Day "having the largest freshwater pool in the Caribbean" ?

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30 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

Really?  You know better than that!  ?

But the other site has folks reporting that they don't seem to care about eastern/western but they're giving pushback on southern.  They do consider the Bahamas/Perfect Day its own itinerary despite Perfect Day "having the largest freshwater pool in the Caribbean" ?

Would be fun to swap out a boring itinerary like the 4 night I have on Indy for the 4 night on Oasis before my November Oasis sailing. 

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I’m sure that as long as I replace my existing 14-night Iceland & Greenland sailing on Aug 2, 2020 with the one on Aug 1, 2021 it will be fine. Difference of one port stop and the disembarkation port, but same ship / departure port / duration. Would be amazed if they batted an eye.

That said, I like that this is an option now and that it includes price protection at my current rate. The 2021 sailing is over 25% more expensive, so I might end up leveraging this.

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38 minutes ago, JLMoran said:

I’m sure that as long as I replace my existing 14-night Iceland & Greenland sailing on Aug 2, 2020 with the one on Aug 1, 2021 it will be fine. Difference of one port stop and the disembarkation port, but same ship / departure port / duration. Would be amazed if they batted an eye.

That said, I like that this is an option now and that it includes price protection at my current rate. The 2021 sailing is over 25% more expensive, so I might end up leveraging this.

I agree, Joe.  I think that your swap would meet the intent of the offer....and that it would be a good move for you if the current cruise gets scrapped.  Sorry that you would have to wait another year but at least you would still get the cruise you have been so looking forward to.

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2 hours ago, JLMoran said:

I’m sure that as long as I replace my existing 14-night Iceland & Greenland sailing on Aug 2, 2020 with the one on Aug 1, 2021 it will be fine. Difference of one port stop and the disembarkation port, but same ship / departure port / duration. Would be amazed if they batted an eye.

That said, I like that this is an option now and that it includes price protection at my current rate. The 2021 sailing is over 25% more expensive, so I might end up leveraging this.

I really hope this is the case, because as was said, it would be lousy to wait another year, but at least you'd be a lot more certain the cruise would go forward. I'm glad you'll get to take this trip either way, because I think we're all on pins and needles waiting for your travel blog for this one! ?

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10 hours ago, JLMoran said:

I’m sure that as long as I replace my existing 14-night Iceland & Greenland sailing on Aug 2, 2020 with the one on Aug 1, 2021 it will be fine. Difference of one port stop and the disembarkation port, but same ship / departure port / duration. Would be amazed if they batted an eye.

That said, I like that this is an option now and that it includes price protection at my current rate. The 2021 sailing is over 25% more expensive, so I might end up leveraging this.

I agree it's a good option.  My only fear is that you have to make the Lift & Switch decision before the cruise line cancels on you.  I don't think we know for sure that if the cruise line cancels the sailing that they will offer this option.  They aren't retroactively honoring it for prior cancellations where they offered the 125% FCC or a full refund.  We don't know yet that they'll offer Lift & Switch for the next round of cancellations.

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2 hours ago, AshleyDillo said:

I agree it's a good option.  My only fear is that you have to make the Lift & Switch decision before the cruise line cancels on you.  I don't think we know for sure that if the cruise line cancels the sailing that they will offer this option.  They aren't retroactively honoring it for prior cancellations where they offered the 125% FCC or a full refund.  We don't know yet that they'll offer Lift & Switch for the next round of cancellations.

Given that Royal has been canceling in 1-month increments, I would expect the next round of cancellations to go through mid-July before they get to August. If they cancel it on me before I decide to use that option, I'll just reevaluate at that point depending on the amount of the actual refund.

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14 hours ago, JLMoran said:

I’m sure that as long as I replace my existing 14-night Iceland & Greenland sailing on Aug 2, 2020 with the one on Aug 1, 2021 it will be fine. Difference of one port stop and the disembarkation port, but same ship / departure port / duration. Would be amazed if they batted an eye.

That said, I like that this is an option now and that it includes price protection at my current rate. The 2021 sailing is over 25% more expensive, so I might end up leveraging this.

Was thinking about you on this trip!  I'm booked on the Edge for this December (jury still out on that one) but already got an email that I can change.

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