Woke up at about 5:30am and soon the Celebrity Eclipse was pulling in to dock.
We can't board until after 11:30 though. So, we wandered into Southampton to get breakfast - the Holiday Inn charges outrageous prices for breakfast! - and then came back to the hotel to finish packing and then just laze around until we decide to check out. Standard checkout time is 12 noon, so we can basically just check out and wander over to stand in line to go on board.
Later:
We got onto the ship quite quickly - although we've never sailed with them before we have "Select" status with Celebrity because of the cruises we have taken with their sister company Royal Caribbean. This means that we got "priority boarding" although I think they were being really quick and efficient regardless of which line you were in.
The hardest part was actually getting out of the hotel - lots of people had stayed there overnight before a cruise - both this one and the Emerald Princess cruise also leaving today. Most people had no motivation to leave the hotel much before noon - because they'd be too early to board anyway - so there were lots of people trying to leave their rooms and check out at the same time. It took quite some time before we could get into the elevator to get out of there!
Like Royal Caribbean, Celebrity starts letting people onto the ship before the cabins are all ready and you have to find a place to wait, along with your carry-on bags. I had heard on a forum that one of the small restaurants is always open for lunch at embarkation and almost always has a place to sit. It was, and it did - we had a lovely lunch and the cabin was ready before we finished.
The ship is very nice; I'll post some photos later. From here on in, there's no promise of daily updates; it's all dependent on the ship's internet access. As you can see - it has taken me a few days to post this one :-)
Paul and Sandy on holiday - stories from our last few holidays and plans for the next one(s)!
Upcoming holidays:
Upcoming Holidays:
25 January 2025 - Sandy is taking a four day cruise - Sydney to Hobart and return.
April 2025 - Not a cruise! - instead a trip to Brisbane to watch the Panthers vs Dolphins game, and of course to see the family.
August 2025 - And again, not a cruise! - a weekend in Sydney to see Star Wars: A New Hope, with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra performing the music live.
27 September 2025 - Slightly early celebration for Paul's 70th birthday - 7 day Barrier Reef cruise on the Carnival (ex-P&O) Encounter.
August - September 2026 - 12 day "British Isles with France and Belfast" cruise on the Majestic Princess then a stay in the UK afterwards.
25 January 2025 - Sandy is taking a four day cruise - Sydney to Hobart and return.
April 2025 - Not a cruise! - instead a trip to Brisbane to watch the Panthers vs Dolphins game, and of course to see the family.
August 2025 - And again, not a cruise! - a weekend in Sydney to see Star Wars: A New Hope, with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra performing the music live.
27 September 2025 - Slightly early celebration for Paul's 70th birthday - 7 day Barrier Reef cruise on the Carnival (ex-P&O) Encounter.
August - September 2026 - 12 day "British Isles with France and Belfast" cruise on the Majestic Princess then a stay in the UK afterwards.
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