BamaVol

It runs the gamut from the cheapskates who remove the automatic tips on their final night to those who throw money at every crew member who crosses their path. The only extra money I spend (above the std included in the Plus package) is a little extra cash to bartenders and servers in bars. I like them to remember me and maybe a few bucks upfront helps with that. I am not watching what other people are doing. I would suggest that anyone who can tell you what “everyone else is doing” aren’t enjoying themselves on their cruise the way you’re supposed to. Or possibly have a serious OCD issue.

Possible cancelations? I’ve been through this process only twice so far. In each instance, I booked ocean view and was offered three higher categories to bid on. Nothing nicer than balconies. Currently I am being offered deluxe ocean view, balcony and deluxe balcony.

I think the itinerary and embarkation port matter. My last cruise, Panama Canal, they had a couple craft beers; Sam Adams Boston Lager and Lagunitas Lil Sumpin Sumpin. There were more foreign beers; Heineken, Corona, Peroni, Red Stripe. A true beer lover will not be excited by any of those. But I have sailed Norwegian and Royal Caribbean and it isn’t any better there. However, I did drink a beer in every port and even snuck a few past the liquor wardens. You can find good beer most everywhere if you look. Except mass market cruise ships.

I agree. Thanks for pointing out my oversight.

Fixed it.

I’m using a well known auto club. There was a sign by the desk listing prices for various travel services. These are waived for members.

We were fortunate then. Did not encounter any of these issues in March. But wouldn’t have experienced most of them. We don’t use room service, don’t purchase the premier package, don’t use the hot tubs, drove to the port. The ones that would concern me would be engine, a/c and electricity outages. These are ship-specific and probably indicative of past due maintenance. I still think she’s a wonderful ship. But I might hold off booking again until she’s had some work done.

I didn’t mean to suggest that they had earned anything, just curious if Princess rewarded them for it. I did mention to another TA in the office that I was booking a guarantee ocean view and hoped I could successfully bid for an upgrade to a balcony. She gushed over that in such a way that I wondered if perhaps they were compensated - possibly not at the same rate as the original booking, but something less.

I’ve been wondering the same about purchased upgrades. If I successfully bid on a higher level cabin, does my TA earn commission on that?

I’m pretty sure what I came across in the International Cafe wasn’t the juice bar offering. I’ve since seen a menu and pictures. It would seem that it hadn’t been implemented the first week of March on the Caribbean Princess. We did get a small refund in OBC before the cruise started. This may have been the reason.

I lived in East Tennessee for 10 years and became a Volunteer fan (despite having gone to Clemson). Years later, I found myself with a job offer that I couldn’t turn down in East central Alabama. I felt like a fish out of water for 7 years there. We returned to Tennessee but my daughter stayed and married a rabid Bama fan. She’s partially converted and has two kids - one says Roll Tide, the other says Go Vols. Now, the family is split across Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Iowa and Oregon. I remain a Tennessee fan. One Caribbean Princess feature I didn’t mention is the full promenade deck walking/jogging track. There are strategically placed benches and occasional deck chairs if you just want to sit. We still aim for 10-12,000 steps a day, taken at a leisurely pace. Warning; it goes up and down stairs at the bow. The staircases are narrow and sometimes you have to wait for other walkers to complete the climb/descent but everyone is nice about it. I like that there are multiple places to sit and enjoy being at sea without sitting around the pool. She has several in addition to the track, including one specifically for wake watchers.

Princess will be an older crowd compared to Royal Caribbean. Games and activities will be similar. I like Princess MDR food better, but it’s been a long time since I’ve sailed RC. We were on Caribbean Princess in March and were very satisfied with the condition and layout of the ship. Very friendly crew. The ship is not designed to please active families with teens and young children: no water slides, no go karts, no rock climbing walls. I assume at 80+, this is not what you seek. We have our first guarantee cabin coming up in September. I think you have to believe that the cabin location you receive will be less desirable than one you might select yourself. That’s why the price is lower. You will be further forward or aft, possibly under a nightclub or over a theater. But we felt like Princess cruisers go to bed earlier than other lines we are familiar with so noise at night won’t be a big issue.

Do you mean craft beer? I’m not sure what a premium beer is. Lagunitas IPA and Sam Adams Lager are generally found on US sailings.

Same here. But no one asked as it passed through the X-ray machine in my carryon. My backup is a multiple USB port that plugs into an outlet. All we need to power are phone, watch and iPad chargers.

Last week, at 90 days out, I booked 5:30 dining times for all 7 nights of our Alaska cruise. It was just as easy for our 10 night March Panama Canal cruise. We skipped the shows but could have been ready for a 7:30 performance 9/10 nights had we chosen to go. Are you scrolling through times? It may show 8:40 but spin that dial for earlier times.

I currently have an ocean view guarantee on the Sapphire. My upgrade options include these cabins and a regular balcony. The minimum is $15 and $320 respectively. I’m taking a shot at both.

Right now, I’m being told boarding won’t begin until 12:30. But this is 85 days from now. If true, what hours can I expect the MDR to be open for lunch on embarkation day? In March, on CB, I couldn’t find the right DR and used my medallion to order a chicken salad sandwich. It may have come from the International cafe. It was good but took 45 minutes to find me.

Throw it overboard and go ask for a fresh one.

Cost. My wife and I have had passports for years. Three of my four children have passports. I am taking my adult daughter, her husband and their two children on a cruise. I am paying. I would describe the couple as “working poor”. They get by but just barely. The likelihood of them leaving the country other than this one cruise is minuscule. If they needed passports, it would be up to me to pay for all four. The cruise isn’t booked yet, but it will only visit two ports in the Bahamas. I’m willing to pay for the cruise and they are grateful. If they had to pay for passports, they would have to decline. I’m already over budget but committed because I’d like my grandchildren to experience a cruise once in their lives. It might even inspire them to a higher level of financial achievement than their parents. If I had to pay for their passports on top of fare, gratuities, drinks, souvenirs for the kids, etc, I probably wouldn’t make the offer.

Yes, what Princess does consistently is behave inconsistently. Except when it comes to naming things.

We went from 3800:to 2000 to 1800 or 1350. The last one was the painful move because: no garage. I had boxes of mementos. The boxes had one-way openings: things went in but never came out. I went through each box and photographed anything interesting. I texted the pictures to my kids. Then I tossed it. We donated what others might want. It’s just stuff. Most meant nothing to anyone but us. I like living with less.

Ours came in separate boxes. But your solution would work.

You get a discount and Princess gets a kickback. Probably better to negotiate a cash price if you are interested.

I saw several shops at the port in Falmouth Jamaica with signs. But I have no need for overpriced jewelry.

We sailed the first week of March and there was no obvious short-staffing. We did have conversations with a few crew members who were getting close to the end of their contracts, but that’s normal. I did think the MDR was slow the first night, but only the first night. That seems to be common. I have no idea why.