WAvoyager

LOL - My wife’s idea of casual is very different than mine (and Princess’s I’m sure). At very least I’ll get the entertaining 5 min of back and forth between my wife and a 6 y.o. why one outfit is “better” than the other! 🤺. 😆

Thanks! Unfortunately now the wife will be even more insistent that we all dress up and take lots of pictures during the cruise! 😜

So I know that the info on the photo package benefits says: Photo package includes digital downloads of images taken by onboard Princess photographers featuring the guest and three prints, up to 8x10 size of such photos or photos supplied by the guest. The photo package does not apply to Platinum Studio, weddings, portraits or group special events But the wording isn’t clear if this is per cabin or per passenger. I would normally expect it would be par cabin, but the entries in my onboard Purchases and Credits shows 2 Premier Photo Package records, and I can’t believe that each one provides 1 1/2 photos! Anyone have any firsthand knowledge of this? Is it 3 prints per room, or 3 prints per person with the package?

One thing to note - I believe these are all 2 passenger cabins - the sofa does not fold out. So if you need the extra bed space, you may not be able to book them.

Although the app is the same, some rules for how the data is handled may change on a country/regional basis. not saying that’s the case here, but I wouldn’t assume because the app is the same, the experience would be the same. (I’ve been a technical Product Manager for international companies for 20+ years, and I’ve always seen instances of differentiation in apps and processes).

If that’s the case, I can only think it’s to prevent anyone plugging devices into the TVs - preventing breakage of the input ports. Many hotels have now installed tvs which you can connect to your mobile devices to give you the added utility, without having to plug anything in. That’s always a welcome plus to those Arya for us.

If you switch inputs, I’m guessing the TV stays on the newly selected input. So the next people in the cabin may end up with a non-working TV, which prompts a call to get it fixed, and an unhappy passenger, or adds one more item the room steward has to check/fix before the cabin is ready for the next passenger.

We’ll be onboard too! was the email you received the “Booking Notification”? That notification says to arrive no earlier than 1:00 if you’re on decks C, D, & S, and you haven’t selected a boarding time. If you’ve selected a boarding time in the app, you can arrive earlier (assuming you have an earlier time). our flight is supposed to arrive at 9 am, and we have an early boarding time, so hopefully we’ll get to wander the ship for a while.

There’s also the potential added benefit of a more relaxing cruise. while some people feel compelled to drink more, in order to feel they got their money’s worth, others may feel more relaxed on the cruise knowing they don’t have to think about paying for a fresh juice, or a coffee, or bottle of water, or adult beverage - they get to order what they want, when they want it. So while you may not break even in the financial sense, you may come out well ahead in the “I had a great time” category. my wife says one of the best things about winning the lottery would be she could go to a restaurant and order whatever she wanted, anytime she wanted. That’s why I’m willing to pay for the Bachannal buffet at Caesar’s. And that’s what makes the Plus fare great for us. (My wife definitely gets her value from cocktails- I’m sure I just break even, since I don’t drink alcohol often, but I sure get value in other ways)

Ah - that makes more sense. The scene with the landlord could be rather unsettling on a MUTS screen!

One note which will be important to some guests - this category on many ships is two passenger only. The sofa does not convert to a bed. Probably for safety reasons due to the cabin configuration. I was going to bid on it on our upcoming cruise, but can’t lose the pull out. It’s the only time our daughter wants to sleep in her own bed!

They showed The Menu? Not exactly family friendly. 🙁

Yes, not much they could do about the rockslide, but the Crown was diverted due to propulsion issues. This was before the slides, and that’s why I was referring to them possibly thinking they could fix the problem every week. They kept upping the speed weekly, but I think they gave up on it eventually and settled for the revised itinerary. Maybe the slides contributed to the final decision.

The custom image is nice, and no peeling or wear on any of mine - even when the printed portion (name and cruise info) has begun to rub off. we usually buy a magnet when we go places, and since there’s really no use for the medallion after the cruise, at least the custom image can make it a bit more of a souvenir, instead of just another poorly implemented (for the environment) one time use item.

I think Princess was counting on being able to bring the ships speed up later in the season, so they could hit the ports. There was lots of evidence that speeds were improving, but then never got to the point where the full itinerary could be supported. Towards the end, I’d agree that they should have just announced the change for the full season, but in the first half, it did seem like there were ongoing efforts to salvage the stops for the rest of the season. My biggest disappointment was the substitution of Icy Point, and then when we arrived, half of Icy Point was shut down due to limited crowds and/or staffing. The adventure course designed for 4-6 year olds would’ve been great when my daughter was still a 4-6 y.o.! 🥲

We’re green for our next (April 15) cruise. I don’t remember filling in any health questions, and when I search through the app, there isn’t any section in the green lane info that relates to health questions. I wonder if it’s too early for them to appear, or if they’ve been removed from the app? I can’t remember where they used to appear. they have done several changes related to the Plus package - of course the info is confusing, and incorrect, but interesting to see the changes. We’re Premium package, but this is what we see…. I’m guessing the “Plus” is the old package, and the “Plus -60” means we have the newer package… instead? Also? Who knows? Premium doesn’t show up in the other areas (except in the website), but it did let us use the dining credits, so the app is partially aware. I’m sure it’ll be sorted out eventually.

Ahhhh - Dinner and a movie! What’s not to like? 😁

Proof that you can get it at the PSD until at least the end of the year, from time-traveler Tom. 😉

Same discussion my family and I have with high end buffets (like the Bacchanal at Caesars in Vegas) - some people feel like they really only get value if they eat a ton of food. To me the value is all in the tons of things I can have (or not) whenever I want to. Vacations where you only have to think “do I want to?” and not “should I?” are priceless to me.

I believe they always have to disable the medallion they’re replacing. That ensures no unwanted visitors to your cabin, as well as charges to your folio that you can dispute. The original has always been deactivated when we’ve had to get a replacement (sample size : 2).

We tend to drink a little less alcohol, but we also plan for a coffee, fresh juice or mocktail and a couple of bottled waters during the day, which further tip the equation.

They can print your name and cruise information on the medallion on the spot. It looks exactly the same as the “generic” medallion you receive in the mail. When we got to the port in LA, I realized I had no idea where my medallion was. The person checking us in disappeared for a couple of minutes while I searched through my luggage, and brought a replacement for me. Seconds later, I found my original medallion. The only difference was I had ordered the ships logo, and the replacement was just the Princess logo version..

It’s been a seamless process for us. While they’re checking your paperwork, they had a booth where they retrieved the medallions, and could “print” new medallions if you forget your (or forget where you put them ☺️) shipped medallion.

June on the Crown last year - it was 80+ degrees all through Alaska. My daughter was one of the kids swimming - until she discovered the hot tubs anyway. The pools were definitely not heated! They almost felt good after spending the afternoon at the sled dog camp in the sun and the 86 degree heat. It’s never seemed to me that any of the pools were heated (Discovery, Majestic, Crown, or Emerald).

That really should have been “no sooner than 5 days following the final payment due date”