karatemom2

If you let the Cruise Director know, sometimes they will mention it and send good wishes during the morning Wake Show on the day of your anniversary. If you want to have some fun and are a good sport, since it is your anniversary cruise, you might consider sighing up to participate in the "Marriage Match Show". Always good fun and usually held toward the end of the cruise.

That's a very good itinerary regardless of how many times you have been to Juneau. The Treadwell Trail is often very overlooked and super interesting. I wouldn't worry much about driving - the roads are excellent and easy to navigate and the worst you might encounter is some rain.

We have cruised on Royal, Discovery, Sky, and Enchanted since cruising began after COVID and have not seen the Ultimate Ship Tour offered on any of our cruises. I don’t think they have started up again, although the Galley Tour following the cooking demo is being offered.

Sorry, haven’t done an Australian sailing. Still on the bucket list. Maybe someone else can offer insight.

We have found if you are all part of the same traveling party they will allow a non Elite companion within reason. We have had friends of my kids who traveled with us who were sharing our rooms - they were allowed. My daughter’s boyfriend - now husband was allowed to join her no issue at all. I think if you are two separate traveling parties who are not related or sharing a reservation somehow, it’s less likely to be permitted.

Well it’s been a few years since I was there. That’s what we paid - mind you it was midweek and a number of years ago so maybe priced have increased. But that rate seems quite steep for Mexico.

Around $5 for adults and $3 for kids.

I guess that is an advantage of casino bookings requiring full payment up front. We can make our dining reservations right away.

Just an FYI if you enjoy the casino onboard - be sure the cash in any chips or receipts prior to your port call in Victoria. The casino does not open up again after you arrive for that stop - check your daily schedule for the hours that last day and make sure you cash out ahead of time, or you will end up waiting for a check to be mailed from Princess to reimburse you for your balance.

While reservations do make things easier, they are not mandatory. You can walk up and request to be seated any time. There are two lines at the dining rooms, one for those with reservations and one for those without, and often you can be seated at the time you prefer without a reservation. You may wait just a bit longer for a table, especially if you prefer not to share, but you will usually be seated within a short timeframe. Many people with reservations end up choosing to eat at an earlier or later time for whatever reason, so it is fluid and the dining room hosts are very good at managing getting people seated as soon as possible. And, considering most people don't pay in full until it is required, you will be receiving the opening to book your dining at the same time as most others, so as Host CJSKIDS pointed out, you shouldn't have an issue picking the times you prefer. You can also go to the dining room on your embarkation day and make any adjustments and even ask for the same table and wait team if that is something that you would like. We often scout out a table with our host the first evening that we like and then reserve it so we can just walk in and go to the same table and have a wait team we get to know.

Yes, drop off is easy - you may have to navigate some line up of cars, but generally not that difficult. Driver can drop off both passenger and luggage and then proceed out of the lot. And yes, Uber, Lyft, taxis, shuttles, and private car transfers all have access.

Yes, we did this. We have also just rented cars from Avis. No matter how you do it, driving yourself in Skagway is always worth it to explore the Yukon highway at your own pace and also drive to Dyea. It included a very nice boxed lunch which we appreciated as well as a binder with suggestions for places to visit and directions which is especially helpful if you are a first time visitor.

There is a lot to see downtown, but many of the shops may be closed that late. However, Victoria is beautiful at night with the buildings all lit up and there will likely still be things happening at Inner Harbour. Maybe a carriage ride around town? Or visit some of the famous pubs? You don’t have much time, but in my opinion Victoria is always worth it, even for a short window. You will just have to expect limited options at that hour with little time.

I don’t think there are any plans to build a parking structure at the port at San Pedro. It is a huge lot with plenty of capacity. We never have a problem finding a space and have been cruising out of LA regularly for 20 years. Yes, if there are a couple of ships in port it can be busy, especially if you get there during the crossover while people are leaving. But overall it is a very easy and convenient parking area to walk on and off your ship. You just don’t find that at every port. We love it!

Our favorite place to get a quick treat is Murchie's Tea and Coffee - the pastries are amazing. But my daughter and her husband always have to stop at their favorite little hole in the wall cafe there for poutine. They swear it is the best they have ever had!

It's kind of a ridiculous timeframe so maybe not worth the effort to get off the ship. It's a shame because Victoria is a charming city. It is very beautiful after dark - perhaps an evening carriage ride or a pub visit just to see a little bit of the town? Those are a couple of things I know would be available still, even that late in the evening.

In our experience, Princess unlike some other lines, does not have a limited sign up daily for the club programs. You register your kids for their appropriate age group and it is drop in and drop out during all open hours. Princess knows exactly how many kids will be onboard each cruise and staffs the clubs appropriately to accommodate the number of children onboard. You will sign them in and out as you like during the club hours - no reservation needed. Older tweens with your permission can sign themselves in and out (I think the age used to be 10 - not sure if that still holds true). We allowed our daughter sign out privileges once she was 11 as long as she notified when she signed in and out - even easier to manage now with the medallions as you can see where your travel companions are at all times. Teens can come and go from the teen club as they like during open hours. The youngers are divided into the applicable age groups with age appropriate activities. Not sure how old your kids are, but if you look at the Princess web site family page, it provides a little more detail about the clubs, hours, etc.

No, you are NOT crazy. Book it now and lock it in if this is something important to you. That excursion will most definitely sell out and will be limited in space. The chance to take a small boat up close to the glacier is far and away superior to viewing it from the distance of the ship. We have done similar excursions twice in Tracy Arm Fjord and they were amazing. Last time we waited too long and the excursion through the ship was full, and it was not an excursion we were able to book privately. It may seem pricey now - but given the recent trend, as the sailing date draws near, excursion prices seem to be going up and popular tours like this WILL sell out. So book now to be sure you have a space reserved - you can always cancel for a refund if you change your mind for any reason.

We have been on Discovery Princess a few times - once was during Spring Break, once over New Year's and once over Presidents' Day/Super Bowl Weekend. So I can speak to the crowds a bit during these peak periods - yes, the ship will be full and it will be a bit crowded. But the good news is there will be a lot of families and other kids onboard. Princess runs a great Kids Program and will offer much to do, particularly during these peak weeks. My kids are grown now, but they always enjoyed their time in the clubs on Princess. The casino is near the theatre, but you shouldn't notice any issues with smelling smoke outside of the casino and definitely not in the theatre. It's mostly noticeable when you walk through, but you can avoid that. Discovery is a great ship - there is ample entertainment for everyone in the family. If it is warm enough you can enjoy the pool areas and the Movies Under the Stars. Assuming this is likely a Mexican Riviera or Pacific Coastal cruise which both offer fun itineraries with plenty of choices for family activities in the ports. In terms of the desserts - I'm not all that familiar with how they enforce these benefits, but if you get a package that includes two a day, I would imagine that you could get them and share them with the kids if you want to do that. I doubt they are going to police that for a family traveling together. There are plenty of other dessert options for the kids as well - including soft serve ice cream. In terms of cabin, that is really a personal and financial choice. We have traveled with our kids from insides to suites. We generally prefer a balcony. You would need to check the cabin configuration to see what the sleeping arrangements are - cabins for four usually feature drop down bunks. The deluxe balconies and mini suites also have pull out sleeper beds. When we traveled when our kids were young - we kind of preferred the drop down bunks because they don't impede in walking space in the room like a pull out - plus the kids loved them. No matter what, I'm sure you will find plenty of fun activities for adults and kids on the Discovery- including a new arcade that was just completed recently. There are a number of threads here in this forum with live reports from the ship if you use the search feature, you can pull those up and review them which you might find helpful.

When we visited Marseille last September we took a ferry to the Chateau d'If in the morning and spent a couple of hours touring there. It was quite easy as the ferries to the island run right from the harbor area near where the shuttle buses from the ship drop you off. In the afternoon we took the tiny train tour that drives you to Cathedral Notre Dame de la Garde - you can depart and tour the cathedral then catch the train back to town. All very easy to do on our own and accessible from your cruise ship shuttle. We enjoyed some crepes for lunch at one of the local eateries along the harbor as well - plenty of options there.

We used EC Minibus last year for our transit to and from Southampton with tours both directions - on the way we did Stonehenge, on the way back we did Hampton Court Palace. We were quite pleased with the service - they also took care of taking care of any necessary reservations and ticketing for the tours. I would definitely use them again.

Just another reason Skagway is awesome. Quirky and historic little town. I’m sure the 1,000 or so locals who live there year round love getting the best pizza in town and a good taco in one fine establishment.

It wasn’t terribly difficult. The ferry drops you right at the entrance and the course through the cave is well guided with ropes or bars as hand holds on both sides of the path. There are some stairs and uneven areas so while you don’t have to be in top physical shape you do need pretty good mobility. It is not walker or wheelchair friendly, but anyone with normal physical capability shouldn’t find it too challenging. Here is a link with more info and a couple of the photos we took. https://grottadinettuno.it

I have to give a shout out to Soleil and our experience in that dining room last September. We had a private two top toward the back and reserved it for the full two weeks. Our wait team was amazing and the Maitre D’ stopped by our table virtually every night without fail to check on us and several times brought us special dishes not on the menu. One of the best dining experiences of all our Princess cruises.

Now I have a certain song ringing in my ears! 🎶 🎉