DCThunder

Maybe they need a Miami Vice themed cruise from Miami!

Another good tactic is to create a subaccount on your brokerage account (Schwab, for instance) and have them issue a debit card for that subaccount. Then only put a small amount of money into that subaccount and use the debit card to withdraw some of that money from an ATM when you need foreign currencies. The conversion rate is usually at the inter-bank rate rather than some crappy rate you might get from a currency exchange. Since the subaccount is separate from any main bank/investment account you might have, your exposure to fraud or hacking is limited to what's in the account, and that can be a small amount.

I like to patronize a particular bar for a pre-dinner cocktail and make it a point to get to know the bartender(s). I often will sit at the bar to chat with them. On my most recent 28 day cruise, my travel companion and I gave the bartenders $20 each after the first 14 days and then another $20 each at the end. We got outstanding service! 😉

I do not see the word "FREE" anywhere in what you posted. You can use their desktop computers to do what they say, but you have to connect to the internet service purchased from Princess to do anything except go to the princess.com website.

I always would stop in the Horizon Court after the 9:30 pm show in the Princess Theatre ended. This would be approximately 10:30 pm. At this time, there were people sitting at tables in the HC, often officers or senior crew who were off duty having a cup of coffee, but also some guests still playing cards or whatever. There were usually still some desserts left out, but the pickings were getting pretty slim. I don't know if the specialty coffee was still available.

Nautical Tradition. You Navy guys should know all about doing things solely because "there's a right way, a wrong way, and a Navy way!" 😁

You can communicate with others aboard either through the app (Shipmate Chat or something like that), or if the other person is also on WiFi the same as you would on land. I was on Island in Norway, Iceland, Greenland in July/August and the internet service was great. I think Island has upgraded to Starlink (Yay SpaceX and Elon Musk!!!)

It is a section of the Horizon Court (buffet) where the make fancy coffees and have various pastries and deserts. At breakfast, it is where you can get a freshly toasted bagel or English muffin, fresh waffles as well as croissants quickbreads, donuts, etc. It is open regular Horizon Court hours, but not 24 hours, or at least I don't believe it is. It is nothing like an International Cafe.

Ask Frankie Valli.

The ones on Regal were bright enough to wake the dead...

What Princess says on their website and what actually occurs at the cruise terminal on embarkation day are often light years apart.

FWIW, there's also a World Cruise segment from Sydney to Dubai, and then Dubai to Rome on Island Princess in February-April 2025. That might not work for your schedules, but as of mid-August, there was space available, at least on the Dubai-Rome leg that I've booked (3/14/25-4/11/25).

Well, Siri fits in my phone, and Prince Albert is in the can.

I endorse everything that's been said about casual dining on Island as I was aboard for 30 days doing the Norway/Iceland/Greenland B2Bs in July/August. Not much besides the Horizon Court, the MDRs, and the specialty restaurants. One thing to add, however, is that during the turnaround day in Southampton, the Bayou Cafe changed from a New Orleans themed menu to something much more akin to a Crown Grill/true steakhouse menu. I ate there both before and after the change, and while the New Orleans themed food was kind of MEH, the changed menu was awesome and well worth the $39.95 cover charge. The Bayou Cafe decor hasn't changed, but the food (and service) certainly has.

So saying, "Alexa, turn off the night light" doesn't work? Who knew... 😁

In my experience, they load your stuff onto a bellhops cart with anything on hangers on the top and the suitcases on the bottom, move it to a holding area, and then on to the new cabin when it's ready.

When I did a cabin move on a turnaround day on a B2B, I talked to my cabin steward about his preferred procedure. As a result, I packed up my stuff, left it in the closet, went on a shore excursion for the day, and returned to my new cabin with all my stuff hung up in the closet. I just had to unpack the suitcases and I was all set. Easy peasy. I know you might prefer to move your stuff yourself, but you do have to be out of the old cabin in time for them to get ready for the next guest and can't move to the new cabin until that's ready for you. Leaving it to the cabin stewards seems the best course of action, to me.

I don't know if the "2 casual meals" would carry over, but I've done several B2bs with two booking numbers, but one continuous cruise. Each time unused OBC from the first leg has seamlessly rolled over to the second leg and additional OBC has sometimes been added for the second leg. The only thing that doesn't roll over is any casino credit you might have. That needs to be cashed out at the end of each leg. If you have two booking numbers, you can get 2X shareholder OBC as well.

With a little Google-fu you can often find the same (or very similar) local tour providers that cost less than Princess (no middleman) and may be more flexible in time at locations. Despite all the fearmongering about missing the ship using a non-ship excursion, I've found private excursions to be preferrable.

They did the same thing on Regal on our TA from Rome to Port Everglades in December 2022. A highlight of all of the cruises I've taken.

They did the same thing on Island during both legs of my recent Norway/Iceland/Greenland B2Bs. After the same old "culinary battle" between the Executive Chef and the Maitre D' (or Director of Restaurant Ops), they took everyone on a lap through the galley that serviced the two MDRs. It was interesting.

Is it possible to store luggage in Sydney post-cruise to allow for land tours? I'm booked on a trans-Pac cruise from SF to Sydney and would like to do a land tour (not necessarily with Princess) before coming back to the US. I'm not sure I could get all my crap in suitcases/carry-ons that meet those size/weight requirements.

OK, that makes sense. I sailed out of Vancouver last year on HAL and the check-in process was a total mess and that didn't involve medallion pick-ups. Disembarkation wasn't much better either. (I though Canadians were so efficient 😉) I agree having free shipping for Elites would be a nice additional perk.

Why not just pick it up at the port for free? That seems to be the simple solution to all the angst about Medallion deliveries. I just did this in Southampton and it was a snap. Perhaps that's an outlier, but I'm planning on doing it again in Civitavecchia in November.

I just got off Island and did 16 days in an aft balcony on Baja (B736 to be precise). Here are some Pros/Cons: Pros: It was very quiet from noise from other cabins It was near the laundromat, but not so close as to be intrusive. Very convenient to the Lotus Spa Not as much motion from the ocean as you might expect Cons: It was a LONG way from the Horizon Court buffet meaning a long walk the length of the ship to get breakfast. Also a long way from the elevators to the main piazza. There was some vibration from the engines but you got used to it quickly. No noise from engines, just a vibration through the hull. Rumble from the thrusters when coming into port. It was evident when they were on TL;DR, I didn't think the aft cabin was bad, but I've come to prefer more forward cabins. Hope this helps and happy cruising. For an older ship, I liked Island and if you like to have a cocktail, see Chris and Akin in Explorers Bar and tell them Peter and Pat sent you!