May16

Celebrity Cruises Just Got Even Better

by Graeme on May 16th, 2012 at 2:14 pm
Posted In: celebrity cruises

 

One of the most ambitious fleet revitalisations initiatives in the history of the cruise industry has just been completed as Celebrity Millennium sets sail from the Port of Miami following an extensive enhanced refurbishment.

Celebrity Millennium is the fourth and final ship to complete the cruise line’s £90-million investment programme, dubbed “Solsticizing”.

Ships that have been enhanced now feature a host of venues and experiences guests love most on the newest Celebrity Cruises ships.

One of the many new features added to the refurbished ships is Celebrity Cruises’ AquaClass category of staterooms, with spacious, private balconies; exclusive access to the speciality restaurant, Blu; complimentary access to the Persian Garden and Relaxation Room in the AquaSpa; a personal Spa Concierge to book AquaSpa treatments; use of plush Frette bathrobes and slippers; enhanced personal care products, and in-room features including Hansgrohe shower heads, fog-free bathroom mirrors, aromatherapy selections, and daily deliveries of complimentary bottled water and teas. AquaClass and its host of features will be added to Celebrity Constellation in 2013.

 

Another Celebrity Cruises exclusive – “Qsine,” the restaurant introduced on Celebrity Eclipse in 2010 and Celebrity Silhouette last year – is also dazzling guests on Celebrity Infinity, Celebrity Summit and Celebrity Millennium as a result of each ship’s make over.

The first restaurant at sea to present a menu and wine list on an iPad, Qsine serves a blend of classic and contemporary dishes in custom-made table ware, such as spring rolls served in vertical springs, and popcorn shrimp in cinema-style popcorn boxes.

I have been lucky enough to have sailed on the Eclipse which is part of the Solstice class and I can honestly say that is is one of the most beautiful ships I’ve been on and if the revitilisations are of any standard as the Eclipse then there wont be a ship in the fleet that i wouldnt love to go on.

Have you been on one of the revitalized ships or experienced the solstice class ships/ Let us know by adding a comment below. Or you can read some Celebrity Cruise Reviews.

 

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May08

NCL Gets Techy

by Graeme on May 8th, 2012 at 6:59 pm
Posted In: Uncategorized

Norwegian Cruise Line has announced the latest in its steady stream of tech-savvy innovations. The Norwegian iConcierge smartphone app, which rolled out aboard  Norwegian Epic in late March, is being billed as the first app to allow passengers to talk and text with fellow cruisers while at sea, and will soon provide upgraded ship-to-shore (and vice versa) cell phone service capabilities.

The free app was developed by the cruise line in partnership with Allin Interactive, and is designed so that guests with iPhone, iPad, Android, and Windows 7-equipped devices can review information about ship services and make shore excursion (and soon dining) reservations. The app will also allow guests on each sailing to communicate with each other via unlimited phone calls and text messages, for one flat introductory rate of $7.95 (valid for the duration of the sailing). Some 1,500 guests have already downloaded it, and plans to expand the service to Norwegian’s fleet beyond Epic are in the works.

App enhancements that will improve cell phone services for “off-ship” calls are also being developed. Currently, calls between shore and ship can be notoriously costly (rates vary by customers’ cell service provider), but Norwegian iConcierge app users will soon be able to make calls at more affordable rates, starting at a comparatively reasonable $0.79/minute.

As far as i am concerned this is fantastic. The amount of money normally charged to use your phone on-board is extortionate. Its amazing how technology is moving so fast and its about time that it helps save you money rather than cost you more.

Let me know what you think by commenting below.

Cheers

Graeme

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May01

Titanic 2. Really?

by Graeme on May 1st, 2012 at 10:53 pm
Posted In: Uncategorized

An Australian billionaire said he’ll build a high-tech replica of the Titanic at a Chinese shipyard and its maiden voyage in late 2016 will be from England to New York (all the way)

“It will be every bit as luxurious as the original Titanic, but … will have state-of-the-art 21st-century technology and the latest navigation and safety systems,” He called the project “a tribute to the spirit of the men and women who worked on the original Titanic.”

Safest ship afloat? We all know what happened last time they said this, don’t we?

Palmer said that previous attempts to build a Titanic replica failed because of failures to raise enough money to commission a shipyard. The Titanic II is the first of four luxury cruise ships Palmer has commissioned.

Palmer did not provide a cost estimate. He said he had established a new shipping company, Blue Star Line Pty. Ltd., and that design work for the Titanic II has begun with assistance from a historical research team.

The diesel-powered ship will have four smoke stacks like the coal-powered original, but they will be purely decorative.

The most obvious changes from the original Titanic would be below the water line, including welding rather than rivets, a bulbous bow for greater fuel efficiency and enlarged rudder and bow thrusters for increased maneuverability, Palmer said.

Now I’ve heard of some fantastic ideas when it comes to cruising, but I’m just not sure that this is one of them. Is this not tempting fate just a little bit or perhaps just maybe a little weird?

Don’t get me wrong, if it is something you would like to go one I’m sure I will get you booked on it.

What are your thoughts?

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Apr25

Smuggle or Struggle

by Graeme on April 25th, 2012 at 12:09 am
Posted In: Uncategorized

When you’ve spent a fortune on your holiday, are you really bothered about the cost of the drinks on board? Would you take your booze with you…..even if the company threatened to take it away or worse kick you off the ship? That was the question posed to members of our www.cruises.co.uk forum following the release of the report outlining the policies and rules of bringing alcohol onboard imposed by the major cruise lines.

Over the last 10 years, the cruise lines have increased the cost of alcoholic drinks on the ships, much to the frustration of regular cruisers who use our www.cruises.co.uk web site. It seems more guests are risking taking their own alcohol on board, although with tighter security restrictions in place, for general safety, it’s easy for cruise staff to see what passengers are carrying.

So what’s a cruise passenger to do when the cost of booze continues to rise and cruise lines are imposing tougher restrictions? Well, I have found a few pictures online of some crafty ways to smuggle onboard should you be inclined to do so.

What are your thoughts, comment below.

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Apr17

Butler or Steward?

by Graeme on April 17th, 2012 at 4:15 pm
Posted In: Uncategorized

 

What’s the difference between a personal butler and an attentive cabin steward?

It seems butlers provide all those little extras that cabin staff have no time to provide.

The six ships in Silversea’s fleet offer private butler service, while  Azamara, Celebrity, Crystal, and Norwegian Cruise lines provide butlers in their more expensive suites.

So does Cunard – butlers have been in service with the company since the original Queen Mary sailed in 1936.

MSC Cruises, P&O Cruises, Regent Seven Seas, Ponant, and Oceanic also have butlers in their top suites, as does Regent Seven Seas and Oceania Cruise lines.

Interestingly, Seabourn’s luxury fleet, which regularly garners industry awards for top service, has no butlers and settles instead on a high staff-to-passenger ratio.

River cruise ships have also moved into pamper mode and Scenic Tours has a private butler for all suites on the Danube Deck. All suites on Uniworld’s river cruise ships Antoinette and River Beatrice also offer butler service.

What can the butler do?

For many passengers, their butler becomes their personal assistant on board the cruise ship.

He/she unpacks and repacks luggage, arranges private in-suite parties, delivers afternoon tea, pre-dinner canapes in the evening and petits fours at night.

The butler can also serve meals in-suite, decorate the suite for special occasions such as a birthday or anniversary, draw a bubble bath, make reservations for dinner in the ship’s specialty restaurants and book spa treatments.

As cruising continues to increase in popularity, cruise lines are going all out to entice would-be passengers with extra personal perks.

I experienced early teething problems with my Butler on Silverseas as I have never had a butler and did not know what tasks to set him.

It is a cruising holiday but finding work for my butler was causing me stress. Soon I realised that he loved to be kept busy and is not offended when I ask him to do the simplest of tasks. He even cleaned my sunglasses without me asking, now that was a nice touch.

Each day he would remind me where I was eating that evening as he had managed to book me into a different restaurant for each night of the cruise. By the end I felt as though I would have been lost without him. In the end the tip I gave him was much appreciated as I don’t think he was even expecting anything.

 

Have you had a butler onboard? What did you think?

Please comment below.

 

All the best

Graeme

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