skf

Brandee...

That's called "Creative trip planning."

It can be tough living in the middle of nowhere. For us we can fly either from home or take a limo 80 km to Boston.

In 2013 we flew on AC through Princess EZ Air from BOS via Montréal to Rome for a very low price and got there early in the day.

We will be looking to fly again to Rome next October and AC's flights are around $3300 USD one way for plain Economy. It's too early for EZ Air pricing so we will look again in a few weeks.

Steve

there seems to be a big disparity between the 2 weeks (from a sell out perspective)

To OP...

That does happen...last year on Royal we were on a cruise with a variety of days and stops. One was 15 days, one 18, one 22 and another 25. The cabins on different legs showed up as sold on some legs and not on others; it was strange.

You should call Princess and see what they can do for you. Perhaps who can get a specific cabin number if you ask nicely.

Steve

Yay, Judyjudy! I knew they have milk in the IC because I've seen them mixing milk with heavy cream to make coffee cream. But I never noticed anyone asking for it.

If you are asking if passengers ignore the dress code and wear shorts anyway, then the answer is yes.

On Royal one old duffer tried it and was sent away. He was mad as he** but the Supervisors would not bend. (It probably did not help his case that you could smell him 20 feet away.)

I know for a fact that Japan and China have cabotage laws pertaining to passengers, very similar to the PVSA.

That's what I thought from looking into Japan cruises. They go to Korea or Russia so they can drop you in a different port in Japan.

You could not travel between New Orleans and Detroit on Air Canada, without a stop in Canada.

Just for fun I looked into flying AC to Europe...no problem. Then I tried to "book" from FLL to Montréal or Toronto and back to Boston. Couldn't be done without a legitimate stop in Canada or a hotel stay.

Steve

Essence is a store.

It's their perfume shoppe.

Goodies...

We have stayed in both e-110 & e-109 on Royal, so I think the same cabins on Regal are identical. We were not bothered by movement at all. We just left Royal's e-109 and it was a good cabin; however, I cannot recommend it for more than two people. We were three and when the steward gets it ready for night the love seat opens up to completely block both the refrigerator and the balcony.

Two people would be very comfy. Of course that is a pretty good deal on a Mini suite.

Steve

There was another report of this, where it took the poster until

9:00PM to get it straightened out.

If ever you have difficulties at a bar location, please do as we did and ask to see the Bar Manager, a senior officer.

Steve

The last couple of times we disembarked, they did assign "Walk Off Zones".

You are given a disembarkation sheet where you tell Princess your departure info...flights, etc. If you get something that does not work for you return your tags to Passenger Services for a replacement time. They assign a departure time and you are advised not to leave until your assignment is called because this fouls-up and seriously annoys the Immigration officers.

Well I'll tell you what went wrong - we got a flat nosewheel tire. The captain told us the engineers found an aircraft bolt in it, must have fallen off some other plane!! He kept us well informed.

3 and a half hours to get a new wheel/tire fitted and signed off.

My story is not related to cruising but I was reminded of it by this horror story...

We were flying Air Gaspé back to Mont-Joli Québec from Port-Menier on Anticosti Island, where the runway was gravel. The first plane ( DC-3) got a flat on a wing tire halfway down the runway. The second plane (DC-4) had to go back and get a spare and a wing-jack. Pilot somehow managed to land and after everyone was done kicking the new tire it was time to get to work and put the jack under the wing. The jack did not fit because it was designed to lift the plane with a full tire, not a flat. What to do? "We will send a worker to the tractor shed and bring back a bottle-jack to put under the axle!" Voilà, all went well until even the tractor jack could not be placed. What to do encore? "We will dig a hole in the runway for the tractor jack!" Finally it was done and we were off for the mainland. Good thing we landed first in DC-4 because when DC-3 landed its brakes froze on the runway.

The RCMP went out for the baggage, the airport turned off the runway lights, and we went to the motel at the airport, arriving at 11:30 PM...our scheduled arrival was at noon.

Very late Steve

I gave my highest mark, 3, to Princess Bed. When they asked why I gave a zero to "Luxe" I responded that anything named "Luxe" should be thrown overboard.

I also remarked that they were putting too much thought into this silly project.

Steve

Is the time change every day and is it the cumulative effect that leaves your internal clock still screwed up? If so, I may have to rethink it.

Yeah, the cumulative effect of losing an hour each day is not great. (Once you reach the point where you start going north or south the hours do not change so quickly.) We find it better to fly east and deal with the jet lag all at once. Of course, we do go at least a day early. Next year's cruise in October is Rome to FLL and we will have 2+ days to see what we missed two years ago.

Steve

You can always ask Stewart for more if you run low. My sis-in-law did and got the good stuff (probably because my hubby and I are Elite).

Steve

Yes! thats why I cruise because I cannot afford a 50 million dollar yacht to travel with!

I think that's why Queen Elizabeth II sold the royal yacht...she couldn't stand the fuel bills.

All the OP's considerations, with departure port maybe in the lead. We can get to FLL easily by air, or as for this year we drove there thru Orlando where I have family.

When booking a transatlantic we far prefer from Europe to North America as the travel days are 25 hours long compared to eastbound's cursed 23-hour days which really screws up our internal clocks.

We bought the Gold card for 10 discounted bottles for a 10-day cruise and took Caribill's advice and brought home three bottles. A few nights onboard we decided to take the bottle back to the cabin and have it later...Stewart left clean glasses every night after that.

I think that the Maitre-d specials change constantly, so I didn't put in the new arrivals.

Steve

We had un-punched coffee cards from last year. The barista took them out of the plastic sleeve we keep them in, saw that they did not have the ship's name & cruise #, and wrote them in himself. Ya gotta hate a dedicated employee.

We were informed that that free regular coffee would still be available on our next cruise. This theory remains unverified.

Steve

Originally Posted by IECalCruiser View Post

WE JUST GOT OFF ROYAL OCTOBER 11 2015 AND THIS IS THE UPDATED WINE LIST...I HAVE MARKED THE PRICE CHANGES IN RED

MAITRE’D SPECIALS

Off the List

Burgundy, Macon-Villages Laboure-Roi (Burgundy, FR) $34 NOT AVAIL.

Chardonnay, Simi (Sonoma, CA) $42

Pinot Gris, Adelsheim (Willamette Valley, OR) $42NOT AVAIL.

Simi, Reserve (Alexander Valley, CA) $80 NOT AVAIL.

Mount Veeder, Reserve (Napa Valley, CA) $85 NOT AVAIL

Premium sparking

PRINCESS 50th ANNIVERSARY (SPECIAL EDITION) PROSECCO, Villa Sandi Superior, DOCG, Valdobbiadene, Italy $50

Martini & Rossi Asti Spumante (Asti, IT) $27 NOW $28

Korbel Brut (CA) $27

Korbel Brut Rose (CA) $28

Villa Sandl Prosecco (Veneto, IT) $32

Domaine Chandon Brut Cuvee (Napa Valley, CA) $38

Schramsberg Mirabelle Brut Rose (North Coast, CA) $48

Dessert wine

Errazuriz Sauvignon Blanc (Valle de Casablanca, Chile) $21

WHITE WINE

Sauvignon Blanc

Blackstone (CA) $28

Pouilly-Fume, Domaine Mollet-Maudry (Tracy-sur-loire, FR) $35

Sancerre, Roc de L’abbaya Domaine Molly-Maudry (FR) $44

Nobilo Regional Collection (Marlborough, NZ) $34

Puerto Viejo (Maule Valley, Chile) $27

Silverado Miller Ranch (Napa Valley, CA) $45

Riesling

Hogue (Columbia Valley, WA) $26

Jekel (Monterrey, CA) $29

Deinhard (Mosel, Germany) $28

Pinot Grigio

Danzante (La Venezie, IT) $32

Estancia (CA) $38

Adeisheim (Wilamette Valley, OR) $42

Blush/Rose

Les Fumees Blanches (Cotes de Gascogne, FR) $30

Woodbridge White Zinfandel (CA) $28

Chardonnay

Greystone Cellars, CIA (CA) $30

Chablis, Les Ecurles Seugbeyrue de Tanley (Chablis, FR) $36

Chamisel Stainless (Central Coast, CA) $39

Clos du Bois (North Coast, CA) $34

Deakin Estate (Victoria, AUS) $29

Fetzer sundial (CA) $28

Chateau Chaintre Macon (Maconnais, FR) $34

Hayes Ranch (CA) $29

Puerto Viejo (Moule Valley, Chile) $27

Robert Mondavi Private Select (CA) $32

Silverado (Carneros, CA) $45

Simi (Sonoma, CA) $42

Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi (CA) $28

Assorted Whites from the Old World & New World

Anthilla Donnafugata (Sicilia, IT) $36

Coppo Gavi La Rocca (Monterotondo di Gavi, IT) $34

Ruffino Orvieto Classico (Umbria, IT) $29

Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc Viagnier (Napa Valley, CA) $34

Hogue Gewurztraminer (Columbia Valley, WA) $29

Rex-Goliath Moscato (CA) $28

RED WINE

Pinot Noir

Estancia Pinnacles Ranches (Monterrey, CA) $34

Gevrey-Chambertin, Laboure-roi (Cote-de-Nuits, FR) $49

Robert Mondavi Private Selection (CA) $32

Wild Horse (Central Coast, CA) $40

Patz & Hall (Sonoma Coast, CA) $59

Merlot

Ancient Peaks (Paso Robles, CA) $36

Danzante (Le Venezie, IT) $34

Fetzer Single Peak(CA) $29

Hogue Genesis (Columbia Valley, WA) $29

Oberon (Napa Valley, CA) $40

Puerto Viejo (Curico Valley, Chile) $27

Robert Mondavi Private Selection (CA) $32

Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi (CA) $28

Tangley Oaks (Napa Valley, CA) $98 NOW $39

Cabernet Sauvignon

Greystone Cellars, CIA (CA) $30

Clos du Bois (North Coast, CA) $34

Robert Mondavi Private Selection (CA) $31

Deakin Estate (Victoria, AUS) $32

Don Maximiano (Valle de Aconcagua) $99

Errazuriz (Valle de Aconcagua) $29 THIS ONE HAD A NAME TYPO. IT IS A 375 ml BOTTLE

Hogue Genesis (Columbia Valley, WA) $32

Pacific Bay (Mendocino County, CA) $29

Pine Ridge (Napa Valley, CA) $79

Puerto Viejo (Curico Valley, Chile) $27

Robert Mondavi Reserve (Napa Valley, CA) $135

Sanctuary (Napa Valley, CA) $58

Silverado (Napa Valley, CA) $65

Simi Landslide (Alexander Valley, CA) $48

Wente Southern Hills (Livermore, CA) $30

Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi (CA) $28

Sangiovese

Marchesi de’ Frescobaldi Chianti bastiglioni (Toscana, IT) $32

Ruffino Chianti Classico Riserva (Toscana, IT) $42

Marchesi de’ Frescobaldi Rosso di Montalcino (Toscana, IT) $49

Silverado (Napa Valley, CA) $46

Malbec

Decero (Mendoza, Argentina) $34

Diseno (Mendoza, Argentina) $29

Petite Sirah

Spellbound (CA) $38

Shiraz

Katnook Estate (Coonawarra, AUS) $32

Mcpherson (South Eastern Australia) $34

Zinfandel

Seghesio (Sonoma County, CA) $39

Sextant (Central Coast, CA) $34

Zen of Zin (CA) $29

Corvina

Zeni Amarone Dello Valpolicella Classico (Valpolicella, IT) $59

Zeni Valpolicella (Venezia, IT) $28

Nebbiolo

Giordano Barolo Tradizione (Piemonte, IT) $45 OUR NEW PERSONAL FAVORITE

Carmenere

Tributo Caliterra (Valle de Colchagua, Chile) $35

Garnacha

Artazui (Navarra, Spain) $34

Palacios Remondo La Montesa (Rioja, Spain) $36

Red Blends

Estancia Meritage Reserve $39

Mondavi-Rothschild Opus One (Napa Valley, CA) $169

Overture (Napa Valley, CA) $109

Vail Ilach Embruix (Priorat, Spain) $44

Red Bordeaux Blends

Chateau Montcabrier Cotes de Bordeaux (Bordeaux, FR) $34

Phillippe de Rothschild Mouton-Cadet (Bordeaux, FR) $29

Red Rhone Blends

Domaine du Vieux Lazaret Chateauneuf-du-Pape (Val de Rhone, FR) $38

De Aureo Spirito Cotes-du-Rhone (Val de Rhone, FR) $34

Super-Tuscan

Luce Della Vite (Montalcino-Toscana, IT) $115

Tenuta Dell’ornellaia (Bogheri-Toscana, IT) $240

I think it's likely any cruise with a bunch of North Americans aboard will have World Series games, probably on the MUTS screen

This is usually the case; if not, the games will be in one club or other. In 2007 on Crown the final game was scheduled for a club and a forgettable movie for MUTS...there was a near-mutiny and they changed it to MUTS.

Thank you, Minikiss. We too were looking for Toulon information, but the Fodors book on France apparently never heard of the place.

Steve

It's not a mobility issue that disallows some to board independently.

It's more of a competency issue.

We were elite but able to bring my special-needs brother thru the Priority line even though he had a different cabin. I am sure Princess will oblige any reasonable requests...OP's question sounds reasonable to me.

Steve

Are you prepared to incur the wrath of irate passengers when you take up all or most of the room in a luggage bin?

Give me old school and dependable every time!

Or as we say around heah in New Hampsha..."If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

there is Whole and Skim. I've been known to mix the two.

I do that too, as we use 2% at home so I figure 1.5% is close enough.

Tomato juice (& maybe v-8?) is free for breakfast, then after 11-ish there is a charge.