Kimba2

16 hours ago, rma2001 said:

I have been buying it over the last few days with the last 60 today. Tanking was good for me 🙂

Have been monitoring and I was waiting to buy at $35 but I saw reports that some analysts predict $21-$22 for the bottom.  It hit $32.39 earlier today for the 52-week low.  I'll buy at $34 if it starts to go back up but wait it out if it continues to tank.

14 minutes ago, TrixieBel said:

 

Still quarantine you - then transfer you from the ship to jail under charges... 👮‍♂️

Ha - charges of smoking while quarantined - I love it.  Reminds me of the Basic Instinct scene where Sharon Stone is being questioned as a suspect for murder and lights up - she was told "no smoking" and replied "What are you gonna do — arrest me for smoking?"

35 minutes ago, K.T.B. said:

 

Possibly ban you from sailing with them again?

You're right - very possible.  But I'm not sure that I would care at that point - Hello Royal, we're coming back.

 

8 minutes ago, gdlamberth said:

Thanks, the first answer is somewhat disturbing; sort of defeats the purpose of a quarantine.  If not smokers are not smoking,  they must be going through some sort of withdrawal; if they re smoking,  cabin cleanup will be a bit more difficult. 

A bit more difficult than sanitizing an entire ship exposed to the virus?  Smoking is probably the least of the cleanup problems, especially if passengers are being asked not to flush.  

3 hours ago, HAL Sailer said:

 

Inside cabin passengers and many crew members stuck inside with no sky, sun, moon.

 

(Is there is a bow/stern camera view broadcast on TV for INSIDERS to at least see the outside?)

 

Drinkers unable to receive drinks.

 

Smokers unable to smoke.

 

None of those issues are as big as the virus, but those issues can lead to other medical and/or mental health issues for passengers who are alcohol dependant, nicotine dependant, or claustrophobic.

I think that I would smoke anyway.  Seriously, what could they do - kick me off the ship?  

No apology necessary.  Thank you for the update.

On 1/22/2020 at 9:22 AM, mtnesterz said:

Princess states the dress code plainly on their website. You are not asked to dress for yourself, but the occasion and by extension, the enjoyment of everyone.

 

Other cruise lines take a more casual approach and perhaps they see the times.  People want to travel lighter, a carry-on if possible.  Formal wear takes a lot of space. Princess does not enforce the dress code, but many think they should enforce it as Cunard does. Passengers who simply don't want to dress for dinner might enjoy the experience of a more casual cruise line.

 

On Princess, a man will feel under-dressed wearing a sportcoat and tie, but he will fit in acceptably. A suit hits the mark. A tux or dinner jacket is pleasantly distinctive. Others wrote above that it is OK to dress casually, but you might feel very out of place.

Sorry, I can't seem to find where on my reservation that it states I must dress for "the enjoyment of everyone".  Is there some sort of vote that's taken when you get on the ship?  I enjoy not dressing formally and there are many others like me - would we be everyone?  If so, our everyone gets enjoyment from everyone being able to dress they way they choose - formally or informally.

"Passengers who simply don't want to dress for dinner might enjoy the experience of a more casual cruise line." - Right!  Or those passengers who simply insist that everyone must dress formally might enjoy the experience of eating in their rooms."

"On Princess, a man will feel under-dressed wearing a sportcoat and tie . . . it is OK to dress casually, but you might feel very out of place."  - I disagree.  People who dress casually don't care what other people wear therefore, by definition, they would never feel out of place.

Passengers - do not be intimidated to dress the way others feel you should dress - it's your vacation and you paid for it - enjoy it in casual clothes or formal clothes.

And you're right about 30 mins - we just ordered a martini during the wait.  But it was the disorganization followed by the (very) slow service.  We just thought that things could have been handled differently. 

2 hours ago, mosenga said:

Dining is already a problem on the Princess ships. They've changed the set dining times to 5:00 and 7:15. On our recent cruise, the ATD line was really long. We spoke to passengers who waited a VERY long time for a table. I fear that further segregation would only make it worse.

Agreed.  And people who want to dress up can dress up - every night if they would like to - so that option is already there.  Those who don't want to dress up don't have to - they can be casual every night if they want to.

We just came back from the Regal over New Year's week - we waited in line at least 30 mins every night.  The first night we went to the dining room shortly before 7:00pm and we were told it was a half hour wait - we were also told that the other dining room was opening at 7:30pm if we wanted to go down there.  However, they weren't going to make a call to the other dining room to ensure that we would get in at 7:30pm so it didn't seem to make sense.  The second night - again, a 30 min wait - this time we were told that we could make reservations beginning at 8:00am - so much for any time dining.

Once inside we had very slow service - it was awful.  

 

14 hours ago, frugaltravel said:

Don't you just earn 1% on purchases toward credits with this card? If so, getting a pure 2% cash back card seems like a much better deal. Simple. Easy to cash out. Can save the $ toward a cruise or use it for anything else.

 

Well the Princess card triples the points on any Princess Cruise or Princess related purchases (airfare booked with Princess, on board purchases and room charges).  So, for example, I don't bring cash for the Casino any more - I charge my room for Casino money and get triple the points for what I lose.  And, I only use the card for Princess Cruises and Princess related purchases.

Never had any problems with redemption until this past week when I also tried to redeem my points as statement credit and haven't been able to do so.

14 hours ago, Ombud said:

Let me get back to my earlier question:

I do frequent the casino but have never gotten a perk from that. They just get extra revenue from me. I'm just wondering if those perks are any different from 'normal' elite perks:

- internet minutes

- upgraded insurance

- preferential water shuttle / boarding / disembarkation lounge 

- free laundry

- mini bar

- early booking

- extra OBC after reaching 21+ cruises

 

What does the 'SUPER SECRET ELITE' level get?

 

I've noticed recently that when I go to the Princess site on my phone and search cruises, there is now a tab "Casino Deals".  Not sure if everyone is getting this or if it's just because I make nightly donations to the cause when I'm cruising.

14 hours ago, Thrak said:

Bourbon is whiskey. Rye is whiskey. Irish is whiskey. Scotch is whisky (no "e"). They are all different types of whiskey. The song American Pie always bugged me with the line about "drinking whiskey and rye" since rye is whiskey.  Canada makes whiskey. Japan makes whiskey. Jack Daniels is Tennessee Whiskey - which is pretty much just bourbon that is filtered differently at the end. There are blends and single malts. Whiskey is a very broad-reaching term. 😁

When Paul Simon met Mickey Mantle on “The Dick Cavett Show,” the Mick asked him why he didn’t use his name instead of DiMaggio’s. “Wrong amount of syllables,” Simon told the Yankee star.

On 11/20/2019 at 12:58 PM, c-boy said:

wonderful, I can drown out my neighbors whinning about the food, no straws, no bar soap, no barrel chair. Alexa play smooth jazz 

Don't forget the cheating at trivia and how the dinner was ruined because somebody wore jeans on the optional formal night.

On 10/20/2019 at 9:05 AM, MissP22 said:

We're happily seeing the Crown Princess now allowing no jackets or even dress shirts on formal nights in the DR. Just a pair of Dockers & a Polo shirt are fine.

On casual nights even shorts are now being tolerated with some people even wearing cutoff jean shorts. 

This is why we sail Princess - so we don't have to dress up.  I get a kick out of those who are so concerned with the way others dress.  

Sailed on the Crown several times - never had any problem with not dressing formal.  Majority of passengers just don't dress up for formal nights.

On 10/19/2019 at 12:27 AM, NSWP said:

On Princess there is no consistency in enforcement re dress codes, For example on formal nights, some Maitre'D's/Head Waiters will not allow you into MDR unless you have jacket and tie on.  However some will permit access to MDR on formal nights in shirt and trousers, no tie & no jacket.  I wish they would enforce it 100% or get rid of the formal nights and its dress requirements.

I have never seen anyone without a jacket and tie be told that they can't enter the main dining room.  Can't see Princess doing this as they don't want to upset the casual crowd.

So what is the prize for winning Trivia - a free cruise?  

 

I wish Princess would designate one of the main pools as family/kids and the other as adults only.  Too often both pools and the accompanying hot tubs are taken over by kids just being annoying.  (And I understand that on the Crown, for example, there is an adults pool by the spa - but it's not in the sun - and another pool at the back of the ship but that area is small.

I wish Princess would sail to Bermuda out of NYC.

OMG - six pages?

4 hours ago, MissP22 said:

Simple answer id to have him wear just a dress shirt, slacks & dress shoes. He'll be more comfortable & won't have to pack it or spend the extra money to rent one. 

Exactly.  The formal dress is just a suggestion on formal nights.  I wear slacks or jeans, a long sleeve white shirt and boat shoes - I've never, ever had a problem.  The host is telling you that dressing formally is an option - take it if you want to, don't if you don't want to.  But no reason to avoid the main dining room if you're not wearing a tux, a jacket or a tie.

Out of the three airports, I would choose the airport that has the cheapest fare into NYC.  LaGuardia is closest to Manhattan.  

Regarding hotels, depends what you want to do and how long you are in for.  The ship probably leaves from Red Hook, Brooklyn and there are a few hotels in Brooklyn.  However, if you plan on sightseeing in Manhattan then you should get a hotel in Manhattan,

13 hours ago, Tedferg said:

Lots of good input, thanks, two remaining questions. (1) If we were to us the ferry would we have a problem getting a cab from downtown Marriott to pier 11 ? Short ride.

(2) we will stay in Manhattan for two days after cruise - any problem getting cab from terminal to midtown Manhattan ?

 

BTW we would use the ferry for convenience, not to save money. It does seem a car and driver for four of us plus luggage is the best deal - I just thought the ferry could be easy and attractive.

You should probably just take a cab (or Uber) to the ship from the downtown Marriott.  The Marriott is basically at the foot of the Battery Tunnel on the Manhattan side and the port in Red Hook is a short distance from the end of the tunnel on the Brooklyn side.  The Marriott is on the West Side of Manhattan and the pier for the Ferry, I believe, is on the East Side - you have to go past the entrance of the Battery Tunnel to get to the Pier from the Marriott (by the time that you got to the pier you could be through the tunnel).  The ferry will not be as convenient.  

Also, as someone mentioned above, not sure where people are getting "sketchy" from - Red Hook is a nice area.  But people seem to believe that NYC is high crime when the fact is that our crime rates is among the lowest of major cities in the US.

 

14 hours ago, mfdiego said:

We learned about the incident from one of the staff as the deceased had been at the same bar talking with my husband the night before. We saw the man at the 3 Amigos in Cozumel at around 730pm when his wife fell off the bar and smacked her head on the concrete. She was walking on the bar. They were beyond drunk at the time. On something more serious than alcohol. I was worried about the wife that she might have suffered a concussion or worse. They went back to the ship. My son saw the man without his wife at Skywalkers at 1am or so. Then next day at sea we pretty much stayed in the room on our deck. We learned that eve they found the body at 4am and drained the pool. It made me sick to think people were swimming in the pool later in the day. Yuck. I heard they put caution tape around their cabin as it was a crime scene. No idea what happened to wife and if she was ok. She took a major fall. Very sad. 

"On something more serious than alcohol." - And you know this because you saw the toxicology tests?  

17 hours ago, Coral said:

I have no problems with them putting a limit on 15 alcoholic drinks. Does someone really need to drink more than that?

The Drink Police?  

Personally, I think the whole "Formal Night" thing is silly, to me it seems contrived and phony. People don't dress like that in normal day to day life, especially nowadays.

But, that said, if "Formal Night" is your thing I respect that. And until Princess changes it's policy, we'll eat elsewhere on those nights. There are a boatload (pun intended) of other options onboard.

But you don't have to eat elsewhere - nor should you feel that you have to.

And that's why many of us want to set the record straight.