xamsx

We stayed at the Home 2 Suites by Hilton the last time we sailed from Tampa. They had breakfast and the place was packed with departing cruisers. You could walk to the port if you only had one bag each as it is fairly close. We drive, so it is a few minutes to the port, valet park, and onto the ship.

Was on the Equinox in March and went to both Tuscan and Murano. My husband and I were with my mother and my aunt. The four of us felt the food, service, and overall experience were far superior in the Tuscan Grille to Murano. I was on the Connie in October and December and hubby and I went to the Tuscan Grille on that ship several times. IMO, the Tuscan was better on the Equinox.

The desserts look beautiful, but the taste doesn't match the appearance. As far as the ice cream, more than half the time, it is freezer burned.

I am pretty sure everyone knows the third party takes a cut, including the cruise lines. 🙂

We have not cruised Princess since 2019. We usually cruise Celebrity, but after we experienced their changes after Jan 1, we decided to move around and have a few Princess, Celebrity, and Silversea (also RCCL) cruises booked. One thing I absolutely loved when I saw it was that Princess had ratings and reviews left for their excursions. I was able to read the details + reviews, go to look at private tours and compare the day's itinerary + price. I also didn't find Princess' prices to be more expensive than Viator's, which surprised me. Direct was the best price (if it could be had), but Princess vs. Viator? Very competitive. That might be a YMMV, however.

I wish. On our TA last October, there were a number of children, at least more than I would have expected. One, who was about 4-5 years old, would run screaming around the MDR while the parents ignored him. He'd roll around on the floor, slamming into chairs (the kid must have been bruised at the end of the cruise). It got to the point where you could see people holding their breath, hoping that (large) party would not be seated near them. It was quite the topic of conversation. If the dining staff said anything to the parents, it was not heeded.

Go to Amazon and buy WashEZE 3-in-1 sheets. Take them out of the box before you pack (they come in a pouch). They are good for washing and drying. I have also used Lucky Fiji Power Sheets (meh) and Breezeo (which can also be used for hand washing but is not a 3-in-1).

Got off the Equinox in March. Honestly? The desserts look beautiful, but the taste does not match the appearance. You will have no issue avoiding sweets.

Hubby and I have done three Celebrity cruises in the last six months. The OV buffet was wonderful pre-Jan 1. The cuts in food quality that were complained about after the first of the year in the Celebrity subforum are real. While we never went hungry, there was a real difference in the quality of food post and pre-January 1st. The only meal that was the same was breakfast.

That's painful. Thank you both for the information.

Does Princess offer a way to upgrade to faster internet?

IMO, yes. We cruise mainly on Celebrity, but they made some major (negative) changes on Jan 1, and our December cruise vs our March cruise was a noticeable difference. My husband and I have decided that Celebrity is no longer worth the upcharge. While we do have an X cruise booked (and a Princess cruise booked), we are branching out further to see if we want to pay up for a better room on Princess or Royal Caribbean (if they cut things on X, I am afraid of what RCCL may have done to Royal Caribbean), or simply go to Sebourn or Oceania.

I have been on three Celebrity cruises (none less than 10 days) in the last six months. I saw one tux during that time. On the transatlantic, I saw more people dress up for Halloween than any of the formal nights (there were supposedly three). They don’t call them “formal” anymore (evening chic), but it is supposedly a step up from “smart casual.” Hubby and I only take carry on when flying. We no longer bring formal clothes of any sort to Europe. We are “smart casual “ people these days, and that works for us. We have a Celebrity Scandinavian cruise booked in 2024, two weeks on our own, then a month on Princess for the UK and then the Princess TA home. That will be accomplished without dressing up (carry on only).

I would kill to have a Costco nearby. Unfortunately, the nearest one is hours away. Ironically, when we book travel most of the time it is through Costco travel (for the gift card kickbacks) and then we order stuff online. I like my old Delsey a lot. The newer one (22”) is bigger, but ‘feels’ flimsier. They have both held up very well.

Amazon

The links are for neworleans.com; they are just direct links. After you take the jazz cruise, get on the streetcar and take it to the end and back. Or, you can take the streetcar to the end, and when it comes back, get off at the French Market (earlier is better). Then do the jazz cruise later. If you plan on doing a bayou tour or plantation tour, read all the particulars. There really are only a few who do the plantation tours, and the site tour itself is fairly short (but gives you time to walk the grounds afterward). Anything you book, do with Viator or go directly to the tour guide's website. BTW, you will be amazed at how quick and easy the Tampa port is to get in and out of compared to Port Everglades. If you are driving, book valet parking service at the pier (one-time $20 upgrade regardless of the time you are parked there). When driving in, simply tell the cop who is directing traffic you have valet service. They will direct you to the left side. Your luggage gets unloaded at the curb, you porter or do walk on your luggage. It takes about 5 minutes in total. Leaving is where that upcharge really pays for itself. We walked off, handed the ticket over for our valet parking, and you get your vehicle asap. We were on the road 10-15 minutes from the walk-off. If you are not driving and staying at a hotel near the port, you can simply walk your luggage over. It is only a few minutes walk from the closest hotels. Again, easy-peasy.

AirTags are great. We use them for our luggage and I have one inside my purse. No need to porter a 21” Delsey (assuming you rebuy that size or they find the suitcase and get it home to you). That size will fit through the scanners, so you can walk it on and deliver it immediately to your room once you board (I have a 22” Delsey that went through the scanners in Port Everglades last month).

My husband and I have different ideas on how to pack for carry-on only, which changes what suitcases we use. I currently am using Sherpani Meridian (22", approximately 6 pounds, expandable). I can use it for carry-on on Delta metal international (business or first class). The pro is it is very lightweight. The con is that it is a hard case, so it is not possible to tuck my iPad in the front of it (I like to read while waiting for boarding or on a train). That means my purse (I use a high fashion Pacsafe (yes, that is sarcasm)) needs to be able to fit my iPad. I also have a Delsey Paris helium aero (19", approximately 8 pounds, expandable) that I use when the airline does not allow for as large a carry-on. My husband has used a Delsey helium hyperlite carry-on 2 wheel (20.5", approximately 7 pounds, expandable) for nearly 10 years now. The pro is that it has front zipper openings and those pockets can hold a lot (iPad, computers, jackets, etc.). He originally wanted that suitcase due to the 2 wheels. He didn't think a 4-wheel would work on the streets and sidewalks in Europe. He's since discovered that my 4-wheel cases do very well on those stones (and even better on smooth surfaces) than his 2-wheeler. We also pack a collapsible suitcase in one of our carry-ons for any extra "stuff" we may purchase that does not make sense to ship home. We have only used it once (on the TA we took this past October), but I do not regret packing it each time we travel carry-on. And yes, fear of lost luggage is one reason to do carry-on only. Honestly? When my husband first suggested it, I thought he was crazy. Now, I am used to it. Assuming you are flying to get to your cruise port and have to deal with the TSA 100ml liquid restrictions, get your shampoo/conditioner once you land by having an Amazon order waiting for you at a drop box/location for pick-up or buy it in the ship's salon (or simply have your hair done exclusively in the ship's salon!) Have a wonderful vacation. 🙂

I can only speak for myself and my husband, but yes, it made me book Seabourn. When hubby and I head to Europe we do so with carry-on only. It is just easier to get around with a small suitcase. We were looking for a cruise to do a “B2B” off a Celebrity cruise with my mother (the before and after sailing on Celebrity did next appeal to us). With the constraints of carry-on luggage, dressing up for dinner is really not an option. I cannot pack evening wear when an extra top and slacks would be better utilized over a month. While I am personally not going to wear jeans in the dining room, a more relaxed dress code makes sense for us. And, I am definitely looking for that in a cruise line.

We were in Italy for just over a month last fall. My husband got us cheap e-sims (which are now virtual), but my phone had a difficulty with that, so I switched to the the $100 option for the month with my Verizon plan. The only times I had a poor (no) connection was on a train in a tunnel and on the boat to/from Sicily. The internet was never slow. We were in: Verona (Valpolicella), Florence (Tuscany), Rome, Sorrento, and Sicily (Ortigia). On the way out I used the $10 a day option on our transatlantic stops (France (Toulon), Spain, Portugal).

Got off a boat from Sicily, waited long enough to get sunburned for the bus that let us off at the gate. We then walked with our suitcases (carry on luggage only) to the train station. It was warm, not hot. To say I felt like a mess is an understatement. After that experience, we took a private car (from Rome) that was allowed to drop us at the terminal for our TA cruise. It was very important to us to book a service that was allowed to drop us at the terminal instead of at the gate. It was worth every euro.

We got off the equinox last week at 7:30 on a walk off. My other flew out of FLL at 10:30 am. She took a taxi (with my aunt) which was cheaper for two than a shuttle bus. The last time off the ship was (I think) 9:30. Everything was very quick and efficient, including customs which is now facial recognition, our passports were not looked at. This was different than Tampa which was facial recognition and passport.

Anacapri is terrific. Bottom level has little on it (marina grande, you catch a boat on this level), second level is typical cruise port stuff (capri), top level (Anacapri) is much quieter and cooler. There is an old church, a few shops and a few restaurants. A small tip... if you take the bus back down don't try and get on at the main waystation with everyone else. Walk up two to three stops (a few blocks). You will be able to get on the bus, and might even score a seat! The taxi is outrageously expensive, but the view from one is phenomenal. Doing the funicular once is interesting.

We were on equinox recently (got off last week). Hubby took a photo of the MDR lobster. That is a dinner fork next to it.

Like many others have said, the OV cafe is great when you don’t want a long meal in a dining room. Quiet and very pleasant. Sometimes, when my husband wasn’t thrilled with the dessert choices in the dining room or aqua we would head up there for a dessert or ice cream. Well, he’d have a dessert, I would have a glass of wine.