DCThunder

I have a TA leaving England on Sept. 2, with a duration of 15 days. According to the section on "Cruises leaving the UK until Sept. 5", I only need a self-test/self-attestation to board, or at least that's how I read it (and maybe some wishful thinking!).

As I'm transferring to Southampton when I arrive (not staying in London), there's no ability to go back to LHR to get a Princess transfer.

Since this policy become effective Sept. 6, does a TA sailing from the UK on Sept. 2 default to the "current" rules which is only a self-certification of a negative test?

Watch: Wild boar runs loose through Spanish beach - UPI.com Here's a PSA in case any Princess cruises call on Malaya beach in Benajarafe, Spain. Whoooo-Pig Sooey! Go Razorbacks!🐷

That's how I bought mine, but don't know for certain.

I'm also doing the National Express bus. I couldn't quite justify in my mind the cost of a private car and I'm getting in a few days ahead of embarkation, so a Princess transfer wasn't an option. At least it's England...I can communicate with the locals!🍻

I was on Enchanted at Easter this past year and there was a retired Protestant minister aboard who did a Good Friday service and an Easter morning service. Both were fairly bare bones and very non-denominational. There was a good crowd in the main theatre for the Easter morning service and the pianist from the house band played some hymns. The minister gave a brief sermon and there were some Scripture readings appropriate to Easter. The whole thing was a bit underwhelming, unfortunately.

😒 Well, that's disappointing...☹️

As a solo, paying a single supplement, do I get 2X Mariner credits?

Wouldn't you have to pick up the car at the cruise port too? Avis might not want airport>cruise port rentals.

I'm not aware of any car rental drop off points at Port Everglades, but others might. Walking from the airport to the cruise port is NOT FEASIBLE. You'd need a cab/UBER/shuttle bus to do it. If you dropped off the rental car the morning of the cruise departure you could probably get a Princess airport transfer. On my last departure from Port Everglades, I flew in two days early, rented a car for the middle day, returned it to the airport, took a shuttle from the airport to my hotel, and then a hotel shuttle to the cruise port on departure day.

HAL needs to talk to SpaceX ASAP and get Starlink on the ships. I believe I've read somewhere that Royal Caribbean is already getting it installed on at least one ship.

Just curious, did the cruise end in Trieste? Is that why you went to the airport on the 2nd day? I've got an overnight in Trieste on an Adriatic cruise from Piraeus in October 2023 and was wondering about day trips to Venice so your information is very helpful for long range planning.

I emailed my request on Aug. 4 and got a reply on Aug. 8 that the credit had been issued. This is for a cruise at the end of September. I got $150 for a 7 day cruise which was more than I expected.

I did B2B2Bs on Enchanted in April/May and enjoyed every minute of it. I never had any of the issues that have been expounded upon (at length) in other threads. I leave on TA on Enchanted soon and will be interested in seeing if things have changed in the time between disembarking in Mid May and boarding again on Sept. 2. My previous cruises were at an average occupancy of 65% so if the passenger count is significantly higher, that could account for some of the issues with staffing in MDRs. But I had no issues with toilets or unsanitary conditions in the World Marketplace as some posters on CC seem to have had.

That is how I (and others) read it. I'm on a Princess Southampton to NYC TA leaving Sept. 2, so this is very good news, to me at least.

Perhaps this has been posted elsewhere, but Princess has posted the following on their FAQs for cruises departing from Southampton: Update 8/8/2022 - Unless otherwise communicated, all guests ages five and older must take a viral COVID-19 test (PCR or antigen) within three days prior to embarkation on the ship. This can be done at any time in the three days before on the day of embarkation. Guests no longer need to provide a test certificate, however they will be asked to confirm that the test has been taken, with a negative result, as part of the pre-boarding health declaration at the cruise terminal/airport. Guests under five years of age are exempt from pre-cruise testing. (Please note that these updated guidelines apply to the UK and EU but not to the U.S., Canada or Greece). So at least one CCL line is beginning to change testing requirements, albeit only for the UK/EU countries. But the shift is coming to HAL too...

Good on ya, mate! On a TA, I "walked" my way across the ocean doing a solid hour on the treadmill every day we weren't in port.

Beef Wellington seems to be the spécialité de la maison of the Princess line. Sort of like Gordon Ramsey testing the Hells Kitchen chefs with making that dish.

Not a low carb dieter, I see... 😃

I did an eastbound TA on Princess in April and loved it and doing a westbound one in early September. Interesting thing is that (at least on Princess) the clocks moved forward at noon on the days they changed, not during the night. I was told this was for the benefit of the crew, especially those on the overnight shifts. I will be interested to see if we gain an hour at noon on the westbound cruise. But I can echo the statements that the sea days were the best days. We had great weather the whole trip, including across the Bay of Biscay and up the Channel and this was in early-mid April.

If there's an excursion to Virgin Gorda to see The Baths, you might want to consider that. I haven't been there since 1987 off a sailboat so I expect the whole area of Spanish Town (main settlement on VG) will have changed, but The Baths are still unique in the whole Caribbean. You do need to snorkle to get the best of them but you don't need SCUBA equipment or training.

Everyone is forgetting the "hidden calories" of a cruise, namely alcohol! If you're having a Bloody or mimosa with breakfast, pounding a few brewskis before/during lunch, a few specialty cocktails before dinner, then wine with dinner, and a nightcap in the jazz lounge before bedtime, the calories add-up. And if you've paid $50-75/person/day for a beverage package, you don't want to let a drop of the booze you paid for go to waste.🍷🍹🍻 I'm not knocking drinking or how much you drink. That's up to you. But don't blame weight gain on a cruise solely on eating 3 squares a day.

Don't forget that the crew uses the same internet that passengers do for their own purposes. So it's not just 3000 guests trying to connect, but 1500-2000 crew as well.

Is that like transferring the balance of one credit card to another credit card for 0% interest and a 5% fee?😄