jacketwatch

A ship leaves port and cruises at a set speed to get into the next port on time and I once read that if a ship leaves say 30 mins. late it has to increase speed to arrive on time and that can cost a lot of money in extra fuel consumed to make up for lost time.

Sorry to see this however no cruise line will wait if you are late unless you are on a ships tour and that it late returning.

I wonder how this turned out and how old the kids are.

OP the hubby also missed the ship. He got off to look for her and then they both were bumped.

Big question is why was she late??

Hi fellow princess cruisers.

 

Thinking of taking a 15 nighter on the diamond princess. For those who have done similar cruise, do you recommend it. Is February a good time to cruise this region????. Ship leaves from Singapore and goes to Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. How did you find the ship?????.

 

Regards bob.

We did the Diamond two yrs. ago out of Japan and yes its a very nice ship. I would recommend it.

Last Feb. we took its sister ship the Sapphire out of Singapore to Brunei, HCMC, Nha Trang, Bangkok, Koh Samui and Sihanoukville (Cambodia). It was a great cruise and the ports are fantastic. It was hot but also dry except for a light rain one day in Singapore.

I say go for it and I can refer you to a wonderful private guide for HCMC who actually I became aware of here from the port boards. He is well reviewed and we organized 11 people from the ship so we met him for a private van tour. We paid like $110.00 for the two of us and this included lunch and VN iced coffee at the Rex hotel downtown which is 5*.

http://www.rexhotelvietnam.com/

I did not think the review was too long at all. It read quite easily and and flowed. We took the Diamond two yrs. ago out of Yokohama to northern Japan and the Sapphire in Feb. out of Singapore so we hit some of the same ports you did. Yes Singapore is hot but it so nice too. I agree with all you said. We spent 5 days there before our cruise and its by far my favorite embarkation port.

We had a private guide for HCMC so our experience there was a bit different. We too enjoyed it and had like 11 people, all from the ship that the tour guide organized so it went very nicely.

We took a ships tour in Nha Trang and saw some cool things though the guide we had spoke limited English.

I too think Princess does a very nice job, especially when it comes to on board service.

Larry the Royal has the midship pools and forward of that has the Retreat pool. Neither are covered.

 

There is no aft pool on the Royal either. Also the Spa is in the bowels of the ship and so there is not a top deck Lotus pool.

 

The water feature at the main pools is a huge waste of prime space and yes with any wind at all makes a bit of a mess.

 

On Regal they added am aft pool at least but it is small and is adjacent to a smoking area. Think hot tub sized, not pool.

 

Perhaps these design considerations will be adjusted on recently announced new builds

Thank you. Seems like the smaller Sapphire has more pool space which is pretty nice really. A huge part of the pool deck one the Getaway is for a water park for kids which is great if you are a kid but becomes cramped for adults especially on sea days.

Overall, the cruise was GOOD. Weather (not that the cruiseline is responsible) was perfect but a little windy. Food was plentiful and I have no complaints. Everything was delicious.

 

However, I disembarked with a very...perplexed feeling. :rolleyes:

 

It was my second cruise on a Royal class ship. Even so, I never got the hang of the layout. I still accidentally took the aft elevator to the dead end spot by the dining room and I wondered for the 14th time why the elevator doesn't simply LABEL this button as being for that dining room. Seems like it would be an easy fix.

 

I realize it was Spring Break and I have no complaints about the fellow passengers. There were a lot of us. The ship was bursting at the seams and the staff was taxed to their max. Honestly, everyone was great. It was just a lot of people. 4000 people is a lot any way you slice it. For example, it was impossible to be in the pool without someone physically touching you here and there because there's only so much space and, as I said, 4000 people is a lot.

 

I was looking forward to Movies Under the Stars. It was very windy the first few nights. The fountain show got a bunch of chairs (and people) very wet. I can't say anyone was enjoying the show and I wonder why the crew didn't skip it considering the conditions.

 

I guess I did have one fellow passenger complaint. Isn't it common sense to be quiet when others are watching a movie? Shouldn't the parents instruct their children to be respectful? My husband had to go ask a group to please stop talking so loudly.

 

Midway through the week I realized that maybe Royal Class is not for us. I was missing the Grand class ships and wondering why it's a good idea to double the amount of passengers who go on vacation with me.

 

Our visit to Princess Cays ...(for the love of God, is it KEYS or KAYS?)...our day there sealed the deal for us. Oh...MY...GOD. What has Princess done to that island? It used to be our favorite stop. We loved a simple, no-fuss, beach day with lunch provided for us. Now it's just like going to a cheap amusement park with a wave pool.

 

The STAFF for the rental equipment was rude to everyone. Are they employees of Princess? They were consistently awful. Here's how my conversation went:

"Do you have floating chairs to rent?"

"$9.95. Fill this out."

I filled out the form and gave my room key. She handed it back.

"Ova there." She nodded her head toward the side of the building.

I walked around and see chairs. "Do I take one of these?"

She grunted something at me.

 

I saw similar exchanges except one lady who wanted two chairs. She asked if she could pay cash and handed the girl $20. No paperwork was filled out for that rental. (hmmmm)

 

The restrooms each had an attendant at the door but they appeared to do nothing. Stalls went without toilet paper and nothing was cleaned while we were there.

 

Sitting on my chair, I was unable to see the water because my view consisted of endless blue clam shells.

 

I wonder if the $30 Princess is making for each shell is worth spoiling the overall experience of being at a Caribbean beach? They ought to be limiting the number of shells rented and they should be staggered in placement.

 

Then we endured the nightmare of tendering back to the ship. 4000 people and they decided it was a good idea to use only a couple tenders? I've never seen a tender line as long as this one. We got in line just before 2:00 and it was after 3:00 when we boarded. The sun was hot, there was no shade or water in sight. I was concerned for the elderly and for those with young babies. I'm shocked that Princess thinks this is acceptable.

 

Safe to say we will never visit Princess Cays again.

 

I don't think Regal class is for us. It's just too many people and it taxes all the resources. I feel badly for the staff who are working so hard to make the experience good for all these people. By the last day I was yearning for a trip on the Caribbean Princess....sigh.

 

I saw the post about two more Royal class ships and I was sad. We might cruise one of those again...maybe. But it's not our first choice.

 

One more thing: We had a LOVELY dinner at the Crown grill.

Thank you for the review and yes you will find those here who love to take shots at posters from the safety of the internet. :roll eyes:

We were recently on the Sapphire and seemed to constantly remind ourselves of what elevators to take to various destinations. Quirky but no big deal for us. I mean we were not in a hurry and got a laugh out of it. Often. :)

How many pools does the Royal have? On the sapphire which is a much smaller ship with a max passenger of about 2700 we seemed to have plenty of choices for pool space even on sea days. Does the Royal have a covered pool? we always found space there. I am afraid you can't do much about bring break crowds except to plan around it if its a big factor. One big criticism I have for the NL Getaway is that it has one pool for 4 k guests and on sea days it was jammed.

Perhaps Princess needs to do something about people talking loudly while at MUTS. That is rather rude. However often just telling the staff will do the trick. There was one nut on the CCL Legend who's toasted and spewing 4 letter words on the pool deck. I complained as did others I think and I did see this guy several times during the cruise and he was pretty mute. I think he got the message.

Too bad about grumpy attendants on shore. I don't know if they are Princess employees or not. Either way mention it on your post cruise review.

As for the view being blocked by the clam shells I find that a bit much and from what I saw from the pic you had a nice view. Hey you are on vacation and no vacation will be perfect. Most are pretty good. Enjoy!!

Cheers, Larry. :)

Royal and Regal coffee is made from beans. You can see the bean hoppers on top of the coffee makers.

Thats good, its a step in the right direction. I hope they plan to go fleet wide with this.

Sorry but you need to go down to the IC to get it.

I don't even think room service could deliver the IC brew (or cappuccinos ,etc.), even if you were willing to pay for it. :(

At dinner the waiters were kind enough to get it for me. When we were on the Island the head waiter at breakfast knew I had the card and just got me a carafe of brewed coffee in the mornings. Good guy.:)

Thanks for the quick answer Nina and Caribill

 

Has Princess never had drip coffee in their cabins, or is this a new thing?

 

I ask because my impression of Princess was always a tier or two above NCL.

 

I don't mean to offend anyone but, if Motel 6 can equip their rooms with coffee makers should I not expect similar from the Hilton?

We were just on the Sapphire, our 6th cruise with Princess and we feel their service level is cut above NCL. However my big disappointment has always been their coffee. This time I bought the coffee card and last time, on the Diamond in 2014 it was via packets. However I would book Princess again in a heartbeat and just buy the card.

I did include my coffee comments in my post cruise evaluation and hopefully someday they get the idea. If they read this board they should.

Any questions please ask. :)

I'm cruising on the Coral in May after almost exclusively cruising on Royal Caribbean for many years. One thing I do remember is that the coffee on Princess was horrible. I like my coffee strong but if I recall, it was extremely weak.

 

Has it improved at all over the past few years? Is it possible to get strong coffee anywhere on. The ship?

We just got off the Sapphire and I agree. Their reg. coffee is bad. I purchased the coffee card and it included all the premium brew from the Intl. Cafe (which otherwise has a cost) and I think 15 speciality coffees like lattes, espressos, etc. If you like RCI coffee which is Seattles Best by comparison Princess coffee is awful. Get the coffee card. It's well worth it.

We always get insurance so try http://www.insuremytrip.com

It still shows on the website...... http://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruises/5NightBestOfTaiwanCruise-OV05I312?currencyCode=USD&sCruiseType=CO&sailDate=11%2F18%2F2016

 

So does the 23rd sailing http://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruises/7NightHongKongToSingaporeCruise-OV07I095?currencyCode=USD&sCruiseType=CO&sailDate=11%2F23%2F2016

 

There is the Mariner Of The Seas leaving Shanghai on 7 Oct 2016 which stops in Okinawa and ends in Singapore.

 

Perhaps you might want to consider this itinerary?

Thanks but those dates don't work for us and also we would've liked an Anthem class ship.

It still shows on the website...... http://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruises/5NightBestOfTaiwanCruise-OV05I312?currencyCode=USD&sCruiseType=CO&sailDate=11%2F18%2F2016

 

So does the 23rd sailing http://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruises/7NightHongKongToSingaporeCruise-OV07I095?currencyCode=USD&sCruiseType=CO&sailDate=11%2F23%2F2016[/QUOT

 

The original cruise out of Tianjin is gone and the new alternatives don't work for us. Time to move on. Major bummer too as we were supposed to port in Okinowa which as a WW II history buff I wanted to see.

The letter my TA got said it has been chartered and current guests will have to be "reaccommodated". Our cabin on the RCI website is assigned but with this change it just doesn't work for us.

I actually called Royal Caribbean and indeed they sad that ship has been chartered for that date

The Ovation 18th November cruise has been cancelled, but are you sure she has been chartered? Ovation arrives in Hong Kong on 29th October and sails various itineraries until 23rd November when she repositions for Singapore. All of these are bookable through the RCCL website (US and UK). I was thinking of booking one and assumed it would be through RCCL and not a charter. Does anyone know how to check if it is a charter or not?

Well she certainly told me that it was chartered.

not sure about that. We booked it while on the Oasis last Oct. and I done

Know what other routes were offered

I don't think so as my travel agent sad if I were to rebook it would be for whatever the current rate is. I will doublecheck that but that is what she said

They've offered $200.00 OBC.

Royal has charted this ship. Major bummer for us of course and all who booked it. We already have the air reserved on miles so the cost of putting the miles back in the bank will be 100% recovered but man we really liked this itinerary and ship. Well we just have to figure out what to do. Perhaps we can transfer a similar ship and itinerary further out. Time to look at schedules I guess.

Looking at a last minute cruise in April for the partial transit on the Coral but it's for an inside cabin and a few people from hubbies work who have done it said a balcony is a must to get the best experience . What are your thoughts? It would cost almost $4000 for a balcony versus just under $2000 for an inside on carribe deck which we really like. Hubbies getting ready to retire in March and we want to be able to keep cruising twice a year but if we got the balcony this would be our only one this year, lol.

Thanks I advance

No its not necessary and in fact we did have a balcony but found it preferable to move around the ship to see the PC from different vantage points. You are fine w/o it IMO. :)

hi , we are on the previous cruise on the sapphire. Reading on here I think its something that happens, perhaps they hope there will be cancellations. you state your cruise is the 4th march, but we don't dock in Singapore until the 6th march?

This is correct as we are on the sailing 24th. Feb. and it returns on March 6th.

I agree with the poster above who advised to get a coffee card. Also if like like Google coffee regular Princess coffee will be disappointing.