Kay S

We will be doing the opposite route next year. I love a TA. I love watching the ocean from the Crow's Nest and relaxing all day without some hurry-hurry port to visit. DH plays cards with his new friends (and he always finds some) and I read--a lot. Leisurely breakfasts in the MDR, long lunches at the buffet or grill, new dishes to try at dinner and a couple of visits to Pinnacle. I have never been bored on a TA. (And I sleep like a baby in the rocking ship.)

Interesting. I'm glad they are making it available to anyone now.

Is the 360 dinner by invitation only?

When they took Alfredo's from a free venue to a paid one, they made that clear. Only Princess would take away something free and then "bundle" it into a fee program and call that a "perk."

Nobody told our photographer that. In her case, my granddaughter wouldn't have held still long enough anyway. 🙂

There are those of us who are not "old" but handicapped (polio) and in need of mobility assistance.

Glacier Bay is spectacular. Mendenhall, not so much. Mendenhall just sits there while Glacier Bay "moves" with ice sheets falling off and the ship doing a 360 degree turn.

You, being a Californian, know that distance is irrelevant when it comes to issues about our southern border. If someone gets removed from the ship, for whatever reason, the regulations still apply, 90 miles or 90 feet. Maybe you mean that it would be possible to drive rather than fly back to the US, but crossing the border will still require documentation, passport or otherwise. The risk is small, maybe, but the risk still does exist. I would not want to be the one to find out what that might be.

I think the word "class" was confusing too many people. The new name isn't much better. My last Princess cruise on Discovery had a large sign at the entrance that said just "Reserve." I guess with the medallion, they can see you coming. There was always someone waiting for us to seat us in Reserve. Since we were supposed to be there, I guess I didn't notice if it was a problem for non-suite guests.

Bingo! Exactly why I never have minded paying for travel for my grandchildren.

We have cruised with family many times, often taking just grandchildren. All of mine had passports as infants. Renewal is required more often for children than adults. One funny time was when we needed to get a passport photo for a baby who couldn't yet sit up. Her dad did contortions holding her so he would not be visible in the picture. It worked!

Get the passport. It will be worth it.

This is encouraging.

Yes.

Hearsay. She has a cousin who knows a guy. 😝 Why let scientifically collected data get in the way of good old anecdotal gossip? OP, go to Todos Santos. Become one of the several thousands of tourists who have gone and have come back alive to tell about it.

The service in Reserve is the best on the ship.

They live off the money they make during the cruise season. There are also people who live there who have "normal" jobs, like teachers and nurses and postmen, etc. who get paid by their employers. Many (maybe most?) of the people you will find doing "tourist" jobs are seasonal workers and go back to their home states during the off season. The pandemic was brutal for the Alaskan tourist economy, but they pulled through somehow.

Media scare tactics. Yes, crime happens in Mexico, but it also happens in the states and in Canada. (I'm Canadian, BTW.) If you take a Princess excursion to Todos Santos, you will be safe. Living in California, I have done at least a dozen Mexico cruises, and I have met many people who went on the Todos Santos excursion. Since they were alive when I met them, I assume all went well. 🙂 People who run into trouble with criminals are usually in situations that were inherently dangerous in the first place.

HAL at the very least seems to be retreating from their branded "Music Walk."

I believe only Alfredo's has a charge for standard fare passengers. If Princess has started charging extra for the buffet and grill, it's news to me.

I think I also saw the YouTube video you describe. I wouldn't call the people in that video "foodies," but I guess I don't really know what that word means.

All the cruise lines do it. I get a Carnival ad at least twice a month. The worst is American Cruise Line (the domestic river cruises). My more serious problem with them is the sales pressure on board. On Princess, they practically follow you around with their hands out.

I hear that.

Got that one booked.

I haven't gotten my letter and $50 yet for a complaint I made in 2021. 😄 Get a move on, Alvin.