a continued ascent into a caribbean dream | 12.1-12.12 (celebrity ascent)

[asquared17]

hello friends!! 

 

i am a little behind on this as i usually like to start 30 days out and work has been nuts. but!!!! we SAIL AGAIN!! DRY DOCK NO MORE!

 

we are back on our new favorite ship, celebrity ascent, for an ELEVEN night itinerary!!! this will be the longest sailing we have ever been on. J and i did a 10 night on serenade back in the day when i was first converting her to the cruising life, and that was nice -- i am excited for a longer, more relaxed time at sea with really great food options. 

 

itinerary

FLL > at sea > at sea > st. maarten > antigua > st. lucia > barbados > dominica, roseau > st. kitts > at sea > at sea > FLL

 

you already know we are booked at the holland house for our st. maarten stop!! i am toying with booking paradise beach comforts off @SMOKEY0202

's recommendation -- the pricing is great but i always get a litttttttle bit of travel anxiety when exploring somewhere new. i am sure it will be fine and we need to do the thing; i'll talk to J about it and see if they still have availability. 

i have ended two cruises in bridgetown before and flown home from there to JFK and all i can tell you is how happy i am not to be ending there this time around  i am not even sure if we will get off the ship or if i will have too much PTSD from the last times. looking forward to antigua as well and i think i remember dominica being especially beautiful. 

 

some general details

• in and out of FLL + we booked these flights WAY super far in advance, so despite leaving on the sunday of thanksgiving weekend, we got a screaming deal. 
• i took advantage of last year's BF sale to book premium access (celebrity's version of the key) so we have wifi for 2 devices at $15.99 a day along with all the other premium access bennies. 
  • there is a lot of controversy because after next august, they are eliminating the embarkation day lunch (not sure if we'd go to this anyway??) but we figured for the room service and wifi alone, it was worth it. 
• this will be our second time on ascent and she is our new FAVORITE ship; i am looking forward to sea days and setting up shop on the sun deck where we normally lay about. 
• we are aqua class once more which we are stoked about as we love dining in blu. 
• i did purchase one case of acqua panna water over the fourth of july sale and it was the only time i've seen the price lower. fingers crossed for BF, but not sure the cancel/rebook hassle will be worth it for a few dollars. 

 

other interesting things to note

• we will be taking advantage of elite happy hour to stock up on waters and i may venture to try their wine 
• we will also be bringing wine and some NA drinks on board since we don't have a drink package this time around 

 

please let me know if you have any questions about the ship, itinerary, or other things!! 

28 days to go!!!

[asquared17]

do we have overlapping port stops with anyone on the boards??

[AshleyDillo]

1 minute ago, asquared17 said:

do we have overlapping port stops with anyone on the boards??

I'm on Constellation the first week of December, but it's doing Western Caribbean 

[asquared17]

2 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

I'm on Constellation the first week of December, but it's doing Western Caribbean 

THIS IS RUDE. 

tell them you need to go east/southern instead!!!!

[WAAAYTOOO]

2 minutes ago, asquared17 said:

do we have overlapping port stops with anyone on the boards??

We will miss you by a few days in St Maarten.  We will be there on 12-10 (SY) and it looks like you will be there on 12-4.  

[JohnK6404]

Ooooo ... will be following! Our JAN 2026 11-night Odyssey sailing (1/15/26-1/26/26) stops at 4 of your ports (St. Lucia/St. Kitts/Barbados/St. Maarten).

[lovetheplaya]

Yay!!! 

[Ampurp85]

Yaaaaay you're cruising soon. 

How is the packing going?

[asquared17]

7 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

We will miss you by a few days in St Maarten.  We will be there on 12-10 (SY) and it looks like you will be there on 12-4.  

oh gosh and i was holding out hope for you and dan! maybe we will sync up on another itinerary

5 hours ago, JohnK6404 said:

Ooooo ... will be following! Our JAN 2026 11-night Odyssey sailing (1/15/26-1/26/26) stops at 4 of your ports (St. Lucia/St. Kitts/Barbados/St. Maarten).

nice!!! do you depart from bayonne? so much easier than a FL flight. i’m looking forward to our silhouette repositioning when we end up in bayonne so we don’t have to fly home

3 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

How is the packing going?

well… considering i still haven’t unpacked from the mexico trip it’s a time. i keep going to do it and losing steam. i need to refill all my toiletries and get a move on. i’m also in the process of updating my suitcase/luggage game so i am not wanting to haul back up to the attic endlessly with suitcases

[ScottD]

Niiice!! I'm actually sitting here now trying to find flights to FLL or MIA for the end of March but damn they're expensive. Has me considering the drive... but lets be real, I'm not doing that, ha ha.   

Looking forward to this, the itinerary sounds great!!! 

[asquared17]

14 minutes ago, ScottD said:

I'm actually sitting here now trying to find flights to FLL or MIA for the end of March but damn they're expensive

omg YES!!

we booked super early in advance for those an it was cheaper to do two one way tickets tha a round trip. actually worked out in our favor since we switching sailings for our feb cruise.

also our hotel rates were exorbitant!! we actually wound up using points for our stay in feb and in may because the prices were so high; it was cheaper on thanksgiving weekend! 

[Pooch]

You know I’m on board for this my friend!!  I’ve been living in packing central since mid-September, first my trip to Disney, then up to Maine with hubby now on Allure in 12 days.  DD insists we dress nice every night so (drum roll please) I bought 2 new dresses and a jumpsuit from AT while outlet shopping in Maine!

Looking forward to a ridiculously long thread!!!

[SMOKEY0202]

Enjoy that great itinerary and 11 nights, that's gonna be some hefty packing for this adventure.

Gonna be a great blog and 11 nights on Celebrity with some great food and pastries...

[ScottD]

12 hours ago, asquared17 said:

omg YES!!

we booked super early in advance for those an it was cheaper to do two one way tickets tha a round trip. actually worked out in our favor since we switching sailings for our feb cruise.

also our hotel rates were exorbitant!! we actually wound up using points for our stay in feb and in may because the prices were so high; it was cheaper on thanksgiving weekend! 

We got the hotel a while ago, we usually stay near the MIA airport or over by the port near the bay, but the kid realllly wanted to check out South Beach this time, so we got a good deal on one of the little boutique hotels right on Ocean Ave. Luckily we did that a few months ago, because now the prices are all insane... I think between being Spring break and now I see they are having a huge 3 day EDM\DJ festival thing right at Bayside park that weekend, the prices are all jacked up. Which probably explains the flights being crazy high, as well. 

[SweetPea]

On 11/3/2025 at 10:04 AM, asquared17 said:

do we have overlapping port stops with anyone on the boards??

Boo, no, but we embark in NYC for our 11 night the day you disembark. Someday!

 

But am i reading that you don't like Barbados?!

[JohnK6404]

18 hours ago, asquared17 said:

nice!!! do you depart from bayonne? so much easier than a FL flight. i’m looking forward to our silhouette repositioning when we end up in bayonne so we don’t have to fly home

Yes!  We of course love the convenience (only about 1:30 drive)! Helps keep the cost down even though the parking at the terminal is getting a little nutty at $35/day. Naturally, still much cheaper than flights/hotel/food/entertainment/Ubers pre-cruise in another port.

[asquared17]

On 11/3/2025 at 8:46 PM, Pooch said:

I bought 2 new dresses and a jumpsuit from AT while outlet shopping in Maine!

YESSS!! we love new outfits!

On 11/3/2025 at 8:46 PM, Pooch said:

Looking forward to a ridiculously long thread!!!

well at least we can put the other one to bed finally

 

On 11/3/2025 at 10:24 PM, SMOKEY0202 said:

Enjoy that great itinerary and 11 nights, that's gonna be some hefty packing for this adventure.

Gonna be a great blog and 11 nights on Celebrity with some great food and pastries...

there are already suitcase shenanigans afoot… i’m so excited!!

On 11/4/2025 at 6:50 AM, ScottD said:

we got a good deal on one of the little boutique hotels right on Ocean Ave. Luckily we did that a few months ago, because now the prices are all insane... I think between being Spring break and now I see they are having a huge 3 day EDM\DJ festival thing right at Bayside park that weekend, the prices are all jacked up. Which probably explains the flights being crazy high, as well. 

we were down there once and coincided with one of the music festivals in FLL i’m glad you locked in a hotel!! airfare has just been absurd these days. 

20 hours ago, SweetPea said:

Boo, no, but we embark in NYC for our 11 night the day you disembark. Someday!

UGH RUDE. 

20 hours ago, SweetPea said:

But am i reading that you don't like Barbados?!

let’s just say i’ve had some ~experiences in the barbados port and airport

19 hours ago, JohnK6404 said:

Yes!  We of course love the convenience (only about 1:30 drive)! Helps keep the cost down even though the parking at the terminal is getting a little nutty at $35/day. Naturally, still much cheaper than flights/hotel/food/entertainment/Ubers pre-cruise in another port.

this sounds like a dream compared to the usual FL expenses can’t wait to read your liveblog on this one! what a great time to NOT be here

[SweetPea]

8 hours ago, asquared17 said:

let’s just say i’ve had some ~experiences in the barbados port and airport

Hmmm, I mean, are we talking @Ampurp85 level Shenanigans? 

 

I love the Boatyard in Barbados!

 

[jbrinkm]

On 11/3/2025 at 6:31 PM, ScottD said:

Niiice!! I'm actually sitting here now trying to find flights to FLL or MIA for the end of March but damn they're expensive. Has me considering the drive... but lets be real, I'm not doing that, ha ha.   

I'm looking for 4th of July week and forgot when I booked the cruise that there will be all sorts of big deal soccer thingies in the NE and Miami, in addition to usual holiday craziness. The flight prices are ridiculous. Kayak keeps telling me "prices are high for your trip..." No sh^$*^%#%*, Kayak! I have a lot of time still but I'm worried they'll just go up in price, not down. I've looked at Amtrack and tiny little local airports, trying to find some loophole.

It will be nice to read about your warm trip to the Caribbean while the NE is freezing in December. Following!

[Ampurp85]

Flight prices have continued to climb. We are flying into MIA for the Jan cruses even though we cruise out of FLL. I finally got a good deal of about $329 (I used miles but that was the equivalent cost) r/t and jumped on it last month. Which was the closest I have ever booked flights. 

[Lovetocruise2002]

Omg! Don’t even talk about flight prices! I am currently stressing big time because I still don’t have flights for our NYE sailing. Prices are absurd! Like truly! I might have to fly Spirit and even those prices are crazy town. Not sure if we should drive…

[asquared17]

7 hours ago, SweetPea said:

Hmmm, I mean, are we talking @Ampurp85 level Shenanigans? 

I love the Boatyard in Barbados!

i pray @Ampurp85 contains her shenanigans!!!! 

barbados is beautiful but has been very stressful when traveling with my parents and the airport experience is A TIME. 

we have a variation of this itinerary twice more on ascent in the next two years, so i sense we will be seeing much more of barbados

 

5 hours ago, jbrinkm said:

The flight prices are ridiculous. Kayak keeps telling me "prices are high for your trip..." No sh^$*^%#%*, Kayak! I have a lot of time still but I'm worried they'll just go up in price, not down. I've looked at Amtrack and tiny little local airports, trying to find some loophole.

It will be nice to read about your warm trip to the Caribbean while the NE is freezing in December. Following!

i think we honestly booked these tickets almost a week or two after they loaded earlier this year, knowing thanksgiving travel was going to be nuts. at one point, a round trip ticket was $1400. i nearly expired. 

have you looked at flying into PBI? sometimes flights are cheaper; you can stay out there a day or two and then catch rental car to the port??

trying to think outside the box here…

5 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

Flight prices have continued to climb. We are flying into MIA for the Jan cruses even though we cruise out of FLL. I finally got a good deal of about $329 (I used miles but that was the equivalent cost) r/t and jumped on it last month. Which was the closest I have ever booked flights. 

i’m so glad you finally have flights but WOOF that is close for you we’ve done the into MIA even if sailing out of FLL before — it pays to check and compare pricing for sure.

1 hour ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Omg! Don’t even talk about flight prices! I am currently stressing big time because I still don’t have flights for our NYE sailing. Prices are absurd! Like truly! I might have to fly Spirit and even those prices are crazy town. Not sure if we should drive…

omg!! can you guys use points/miles??? 

[jbrinkm]

11 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Omg! Don’t even talk about flight prices! I am currently stressing big time because I still don’t have flights for our NYE sailing. Prices are absurd! Like truly! I might have to fly Spirit and even those prices are crazy town. Not sure if we should drive…

I, too, am considering Spirit. Please send thoughts and prayers.

9 hours ago, asquared17 said:

have you looked at flying into PBI? sometimes flights are cheaper; you can stay out there a day or two and then catch rental car to the port??

trying to think outside the box here…

PBI is definitely in the mix! But once I add all of that other stuff to the cost, I start to feel like the original flight price wasn't so bad. And hotels are also ridiculous during those dates (and some not even available already due to the soccer stuff). I'm going to wait until Spirit releases the dates I need to see what we could do that for, and then I'll probably just grit my teeth and pony up.

[OCSC Mike]

16 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Not sure if we should drive

FWIW, my TA lives near you (might be your neighboUr) and he even drives to Florida sometimes, lol.

[ScottD]

2 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

FWIW, my TA lives near you (might be your neighboUr) and he even drives to Florida sometimes, lol.

Im borderline on driving down from Philly...but im the only driver and not sure i feel like attempting it. 

[OCSC Mike]

2 minutes ago, ScottD said:

Im borderline on driving down from Philly...but im the only driver and not sure i feel like attempting it. 

I did it once... when I moved here in my early 20's (my wife/gf at the time was already down here). I left in the middle of the night and drove straight through with as few stops as possible. It wasn't fun then although I was kinda running on adrenaline given the circumstances and obviously much younger. I certainly wouldn't want to do it now. My TA is nuts.

That said, if I were factoring in the cost of airfare for three, I may feel differently. I haven't flown in seven years, lol, and have no idea what Philly to a major FL airport even costs these days.

[Lovetocruise2002]

16 hours ago, asquared17 said:

omg!! can you guys use points/miles??? 

No  not enough to use. And we won't touch the kids miles. We save that for them so they have a bank of miles once they start venturing on their own.

Even Spirit has gone up in price now. I am seriously getting stressed.

2 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

FWIW, my TA lives near you (might be your neighboUr) and he even drives to Florida sometimes, lol.

I was just talking to my friends at work today about this. They know me well and highly recommended that I do not drive lol 

[SMOKEY0202]

are high across board and now with government shutdown cancelled and extremely delayed flights are happening left and right.

Gotta have many back up plans at this point then add weather conditions into mix

 

 

[asquared17]

we need to have cruise blog family timeshare somewhere that we can stay in before cruises!!

and then maybe some kind of clubhouse also where we could drive halfway or something and fly from there??

i feel like this would solve it, guys. 

[asquared17]

On 11/3/2025 at 5:39 PM, asquared17 said:

i’m also in the process of updating my suitcase/luggage game so i am not wanting to haul back up to the attic endlessly with suitcases

i meant to circle back on this. (i cringe at the corporate girl in me that just came out.)

last week, i found a like-new navy away trunk suitcase on therealreal; it had some cosmetic wear on the outside that i thought i could clean up and was a fraction of the price if i were to purchase outright new. 

away will probably do somewhere between 20-30% off this year for black friday; they did 25 off last BF and that’s what landed me the original trunk purchase. it definitely took some getting used to the layout but it is MUCH easier to maneuver and pack than a traditional wide body clamshell. 

i took a chance and ordered it! it arrived yesterday but i had been in office this week and was fried by the time i got home, so armed with my cold brew this morning, i grabbed my disinfectant spray and magic eraser. …twenty minutes and a lot of elbow grease later, my almost new suitcase looks BRAND NEW!! reset the lock and it’s ready for packinggggggg. 

i may try a preliminary round on tuesday next week since i have the day off.

[SMOKEY0202]

It's been hell on wheels at work so what's best therapy, book last minute cruise for December.  Not as if it's not well deserved or needed in my book so suitcase is pulled out with packing in progress.  Have i even mentioned to my boss oh by way gonna be sailing seas 12 nights with a few nights in Miami beforehand.... NOPE

With all craziness with and government shutdown, managed cheap flight but luckily just coming from ATL. Traveling Christmas week i might need extra drinks from Delta lounge to survive crowds and shenanigans at airport.

Sabrina, the car trip from ATL to cruise was enough for you.  I can't imagine how that car ride would be this time with everyone coming. My theory i would book flights now because rates are continuing to go up and really there is no price too expensive to capture memories with family.

 

 

[Ampurp85]

So what you just said without saying, is you are going to be lugging two trunks that might be close to 70lbs for an 11N cruise?

[asquared17]

24 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

So what you just said without saying, is you are going to be lugging two trunks that might be close to 70lbs for an 11N cruise?

I DIDN’T ASK TO BE CALLED OUT THIS WAY!!!

[asquared17]

38 minutes ago, SMOKEY0202 said:

It's been hell on wheels at work

WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO US??? we are GOOD people!!!

39 minutes ago, SMOKEY0202 said:

Have i even mentioned to my boss oh by way gonna be sailing seas 12 nights with a few nights in Miami beforehand.... NOPE

ah, well. 

better to ask forgiveness than permission  

what’s your itinerary and ship look like?

[SweetPea]

1 hour ago, asquared17 said:

last week, i found a like-new navy away trunk suitcase on therealreal; it had some cosmetic wear on the outside that i thought i could clean up and was a fraction of the price if i were to purchase outright new. 

We are in the market for new luggage. I'm guessing you recommend? I'm disappointed you don't do before and after pics of your find!

2 hours ago, asquared17 said:

we need to have cruise blog family timeshare somewhere that we can stay in before cruises!!

and then maybe some kind of clubhouse also where we could drive halfway or something and fly from there??

i feel like this would solve it, guys. 

How did someone JUST come up with this? Brilliant  

 

 

[asquared17]

32 minutes ago, SweetPea said:

We are in the market for new luggage. I'm guessing you recommend? I'm disappointed you don't do before and after pics of your find!

YES!!! i will send you a referral code too they are really the best luggage in my opinion; they are super durable and clean up nicely; i don’t use luggage sleeves but i can usually get them looking pretty close to brand new with a little microfiber towel and target disinfectant spray (which we do after every trip tbh upon arriving home). i’ve had mine for years and i just really love them. 

34 minutes ago, SweetPea said:

How did someone JUST come up with this? Brilliant  

we need to start scouting property!!!!

[SMOKEY0202]

Batman is all in for new luggage minus his plastic wrap for rainy days to port

I always stay good luggage is a great investment.  Sad to say a good friend of mine doesn't think same way and let me say i am ashamed when we travel together for work because it's complete disaster if his so called luggage survives the flight then cringe but if can drive to destination it would be laundry baskets ....

When he got big promotion and needed to travel for work much more like me his gift from everyone was luggage 

Black Friday is best time to grab 

[InmyElement]

Soooooooo looking forward to riding along for this one..a sure Celebrity winner!!!  Late to the party…shocker! Currently on the road..2 days till Silhouette and Eclipse! Maybe it's time for me to start a fresh thread… haha.

On 11/3/2025 at 10:02 AM, asquared17 said:

i did purchase one case of acqua panna water over the fourth of july sale and it was the only time i've seen the price lower. fingers crossed for BF, but not sure the cancel/rebook hassle will be worth it for a few dollars.

On 11/3/2025 at 10:02 AM, asquared17 said:

we will be taking advantage of elite happy hour to stock up on waters and i may venture to try their wine 

Your so good! I didn't think of the Elite status during HH for the waters..THANKS! The acqua panna just wouldn't come down except for today its 30%..i got spoiled over at RC 45% sometimes..

12 hours ago, ScottD said:

Im borderline on driving down from Philly...but im the only driver and not sure i feel like attempting it. 

YOU can DO IT! I'm doing it right now, brother!  and ditto I'm the only one driving. I'm sitting in St.Simon's Island right now as I type this, and today we're heading to St.Augustine. And we're still together..so far! lol

We originally planned to drive when we booked this, but sending best wishes and safe travels to everyone with upcoming flights  hope all goes smoothly and you get to your destinations safely!

LETS GET THIS PARTY STARTED!

[OCSC Mike]

I know we pack light but I can’t get past “trunk.” All I keep picturing is the literal trunk that I took to overnight camp as a kid.

[Pooch]

I, too, am firmly in the “pack light” camp but between trying to keep up with DD’s dress code and packing for 3, I’M LOSING MY MIND!!!!