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Alaska Pre-Cruise Tour #13 in case you were wondering which meant relocating every night. Seeing the interior of Alaska starting in Fairbanks was well worth it, but it renewed my love of cruising (unpack once, repack at the end).
Celebrity is my eight cruise line and is now my favorite (right after Windstar). The ship is clean, well maintained and the staff is excellent. The service was prompt every where without being intrusive. The lack of continuous sales pitches from oversea speakers was refreshing. It seemed like those who wanted to play Bingo were able to find the location and play with out the rest of us being hassled.
The Captain's Club events were nice and low key which would not be surprising considering that there were only about 100 of us on the ship. This is in contrast to the Cruise Critic Get Together which rated somewhere around pathetic. Yes, we had a location and some coffee and tea: a couple of crew members came by and introduced themselves but that was it. Considering the support and fun with RCI and NCL, one has to wonder.
The fitness facilities are excellent. The entertainers were great including a terrific classical string trio, a pianist and an incredibly funny comedian. Caissie - the Cruise Director - is a better vocalist than any in the performing group but I am inclined toward classical rather than funk.
Our visit to Hubbard Glacier was amazing - the day was clear and almost windless enabling us to get within .5 miles. Whales were along side the ship on several days. Rain in Icy Point Straight and Ketchikan didn't do anything to dim my fun, but there were a lot of people completely soaked.
We transfered from late dining into Celebrity Select and had a wonderful time meeting interesting people from around the world at dinner while also being able to sit with new friends from the pre-cruise tour on several occasions. Our dining times ranged from 1745-2100; we never waiting more than 15 minutes for a table even with a group of six.
Can't comment on any of their tours since I didn't take any after boarding the ship. The naturalist had numerous interesting presentations.
Celebrity again? Took advantage of the on-board booking program for 2013 and 2014.
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