chefchick

How are the new craft cocktails? :D

I'm sure Seattle corporate is not pleased with the downgrade. I have no frame of reference in regards to other luxury lines as I have only sailed with Seabourn, but as a regular reader of cruise critic, it seems that ALL lines, from Crystal to Carnival have their cheerleaders and their naysayers that pine for "the good old days". As a huge fan of the triplets, I have yet to sail on the larger vessels, but am excited about my trip to the med next year on Encore. Will it be perfect? of course not, I'm not sure "perfection" exists, but I do expect a level of quality in food and service and so far, on Seabourn, I have received my money's worth. If that changes in the future I'm sure we will find another line that we feel in a good value.

The question is...if Seabourn is no longer 5 star, then who is?

As a professional, I applaude your passion for cooking and although I understand your disappointment (trust me, you've made it abundantly clear) the deed has been done and it's time to "pack your knives" and move on.

What have you learned? That there are opportunities out there to expand your culinary career and maybe next time you will do some more research and pick a more appropriate holiday in which to indulge your passions. Perhaps a stint at Le Cordon Bleu would have been a better use of your time and vacation money than a cruise to begin with?

Also, if you do pursue a serious career in the culinary field, please know that the kitchen is not a place for those easily offended or in need of constant attention. I agree with the above poster who stated that you owe the cruise director an apology.

Good luck to you in your future endeavors.

I would take a copy of your invoice with you and be prepared to go to guest services or the pursers office with "proof" if necessary. Also bring a phone number/contact info of your TA just in case.

I'm sure it won't be a problem though.

ETA: For God's sake stop unpacking! Nothing any of the reps may have said to you could possibly imply that you are NOT booked on the cruise and will not have a cabin waiting for you when you board!

This!!! And more importantly- that you won't be charged in full wether you thought you had a cabin or not.

Bon Voyage

HELP! It's going to be my 21st birthday on my next cruise and I want to get something extra special to wear for the evening. I love these two dresses I've seen online but are they a bit too over the top for a cruise? :(

By all means, dress up! Most of us live a pretty casual lifestyle nowadays. A cruise gives you the opportunity to dress like a rock star every night if you choose. And it's your 21st birthday!?! Heck yeah, I suggest the red one!

I used uber from long beach pier to LAX this last April. After leaving the terminal I "booked" the car on the app and it took about 10-15 mins for him to arrive. There was a little confusion about where to meet him (I was waiting near the taxi stand) but met up with him in the pick up area inside the garage instead. Ride to the airport was swift and painless.

As a comparison, we used a pre booked Towncar from LAX to the pier. It took longer for us to meet up with that driver after luggage pick up and it cost about $15 more. I know uber isn't perfect, but when it works, it works well.

So, Uber was easy to book to LAX? That's my plan for an Oct 22nd cruise...

I also have an upcoming cruise and had planned to use Uber for both embark and disembarkation transfers to/from LAX/San Pedro. Would love to know first hand experience regarding ease of use from those who have used it recently.

Thanks.

I have sailed most mainstream lines and even some of the smaller lines such as Windstar and Seabourn. "Dress Codes" have evolved pretty much across the board as cruisers and the population at large have for the most part, become more casual dressers. Yes, it would be nice if the MD was given more authority to enforce the evening's dress code in the MDR, but can you imagine the backlash and CC reviews of "I was abused on my own vacation by Princess!"

**When it comes down to it, arguing over clothing choices on someone's holiday is a waste of time. And as we have read here, many times cruisers were "doing the right thing" they were just seen at "the wrong time" and were assumed not complying. I've read just as many threads about cruisers being called a snob for dressing formally as those being snubbed for being casual. What really concerns me is the new cruiser who might feel intimidated enough by these arguments regarding appropriate dress that they shy away from enjoying their cruise fully by relagating themselves to the buffet or room service.

My point? Enjoy your cruise and stop judging! Why don't we just start being thankful we have the opportunity and means to vacation and focus more on our own attire (and good time) and less on our neighbors.

**I am clearly not suggesting that bathing suits and flip flops are appropriate for the MDR. No shirt, no shoes, no Sir, I don't want to see that ::eek:

I just booked a 1:30 flight out of LAX so I hope that time is good..flying FC so priority lines should help? And could always catch a later flight I suppose.

Anyway, my question is regarding transfers. Does anyone here have experience with taking Uber from the port to LAX?

The DR has it's own wine by the glass list. Can you imagine the inefficiency if waitstaff had to run back and forth to Vines? You can certainly bring a glass of wine from Vines to the DR but probably not in their better glassware.

 

 

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I'm new to Princess and have no idea how far Vines is in relation to the MDR, so that's why I asked the question. Here's another one...is the wines by the glass selection any better in the specialty restaurants? I assume I could get "parings" there with AIBP but maybe I'm wrong about that too?

Just looking for info from experienced Princess cruisers...not trying to make the already hard working crew's job any harder.

If I have the AIBP can I order a specific wine by the glass from vines in the dining room? I know I can bring one in with me to start with but what if I want to change from a white to red...or a second glass? My question is; will the dining room staff only serve dining room wines?

Just curious.

Sorry if this has been answered before (new to Princess)...if we book a specialty restaurant and also have the AIBP, can we get wine pairings with each course? (As long as those wines are available by the glass, under $10 of course). Also, does the cover charge for each restaurant include gratuity?

Thank you in advance for your help.

I did this tour in April and it was the best part of my Carnival cruise. We had an amazing lunch, we drank decent wine and the tour itself was well thought out and executed. Highly recommend!

 

That said, take a look at what Gardyloo found. Those are good prices for international summer travel, whereas the $3K-ish prices you saw are average; not a deal but also not unusually high.

 

This is exactly the advice I was looking for. Thank you. And yes, I will look into that BA flight (thanks again Gardyloo)

 

 

Just to clarify for anyone who might be confused, Wowzz is talking about European DOMESTIC flights, i.e. connecting flights within Europe, such as London to Rome, or Venice to Paris. "European flights" in this case doesn't refer to long haul international, i.e. transatlantic flights. For those, "business class" means actual business class, although the hard product can vary from airline to airline.

I am aware of the difference between long haul business class vs intra-Europe/domestic. Again, I am doing research on ease of airport transfers/connections, lounge access and amenities...unlike my husband I love to fly so he leaves all these details to me.

Appreciate all the advice here. This is one of the more "helpful" boards on CC.

Waterbug and Gardylou - thank you for your insights. I consider the travel day to be part of the overall experience, hence my need for comfort and amenities vs purely low cost. After much research I hope to book on non domestic airlines for a change of pace. Yes, Delta and American might have great long haul Business class products but I'd prefer something different.

Our vacation will start in Rome and end in Venice with a couple of nights spent in each city. Since we are also embarking on a 14 day cruise we are looking at a 3 week jaunt so adding days to get to/from another city is not ideal but also not out of the question. I had read here before the great advice to check Vancouver flights for better pricing and have had my eye on 2 particular multi city options; Sea-Fco (on Lufthansa - B747 with a layover in Frankfurt) and Vce - Sea (on Swiss - B777 with layovers in Zurich and SFO) current cost for that route is $3425US/person. I have seen it as high as $4k and average around $3600. The other option is to take the train to Vancouver, overnight in hotel and fly out from there. Vancouver to Rome on Air Canada - B777 with layover in Toronto and the same VCE to Sea return as above on Swiss Air for $3471CA (or $2636 US)/person. Fares starting in Canada have been approx 30% less the entire time I have been monitoring. Yes, that would be a significant savings even with train tix and hotel stay in Vancouver so I am definitely considering it. I am a little gun shy over the whole thing because Seabourn has already changed itineraries for other Med cruises and as you know changing airfare is not "as easy" as canceling/changing cruise fares before final payment.

But all that aside...what do you think of the above fares in general? I know no one can be certain of anything other than "they will change" but if you were me would you continue to monitor in hopes for better pricing?

Sorry for the long winded questions here...now take out your crystal ball and tell me what you see? ;)

We have a Med cruise booked for early June, 2017. Since we will be celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary we are splurging on rt business class tix. I've been monitoring pricing and they still seem high. In GENERAL, do airlines drop their prices and/or have a sale for next Summer's travel in the previous Winter? We have no airline miles. Routing, airline preference, amenities and seat comfort are more important than just the lowest price so I'm curious if you more seasoned travelers have an educated guess in regards to how many months out one should expecting better pricing?

Thank you in advance for your advice.

Something you might also consider in regards to the differences. Seabourn will not have the same amount of "entertainment" and activities that you might be accustomed to on ships like Celebrity and Azamara. In the evening there is usually a show or at least a singer or duo in one of the lounges but not the Broadway style entertainment or the multiple venues for entertainment choice you might find in larger, mainstream lines. A trip to the casino or a nightcap in the club is all I really need after dinner so it suits me, but I know others might be bored by the lack of choices. It also is really not a ship set up for children, so take that into consideration if that is a concern.

I was (and still am) a fan of Celebrity cruises, but once I tried the intimate size and incredibly intuitive service of Seabourn I find it hard to imagine I will ever go back, but you should gather all the information and make an informed decision.

Good luck to you. I honestly think if you try Seabourn you will love it.

Does anyone know where Chef Jes will be next? We had the great fortune to meet him and was very impressed with not only his food but his management and social skills. With all the work that must go into running the food operations he still managed to make the rounds every evening and make every guest feel special.

And since you all seem to have the inside scoop...can anyone tell me if David E Green is still with Seabourn and on which ship?

I never used to give much thought to the officers and crew on the mainline ships but once you've met the wonderful crew of a Seabourn yacht, you tend to have your favorites right? :D

I used Uber many times in Paris last year. I used my regular US Uber app and it worked exactly the same way. We used it for larger groups (requested a van) and for single person trips. Since it was fashion week getting a cab at certain ranks was close to impossible with the crowds so uber, although not perfect (language barriers -that's on me and my lousy French, also one time I was left high and dry when the driver canceled last minute) came in very handy.

I hope it becomes more popular all over as it gives riders more choice.

I went ahead and put a deposit down on this cruise. I sincerely hope Seabourn doesn't feel the need to change this itinerary as it is, to me, the perfect blend of big marque stops and small, out of the way (and new to me) ports.

Having only sailed on the triplets with Seabourn I am also hoping the Encore lives up to the hype and continues the tradition of high touch service, great cuisine and all we have come to love about the line.

I guess I only have 10 months to wait and see. :D

In anticipation of our 25th Anniversary next year, I am researching Seabourn Med cruises (our favorite destination). I would love to check out Encore and the original voyage I was looking at has been changed, so now I have narrowed it down to a 14 day Rome to Venice in early June. Originally, I was thinking that I wouldn't have to book this far out, but according to the site all categories besides veranda are "call for availability". Is it possible that 10 months out this voyage is almost sold out? Or is this a "call to action" ploy on SB part? I know I could just put a deposit down, but I was kinda hoping to wait until December to see if Encore lives up to the hype. Also, the prices seem kinda high, but again, we are many months out.

If I book now, I know there can be price adjustments, but can I change to a different ship/itinerary or even cancel outright (within the 120 days rule)? We've only ever sailed the triplets so any of the newer ships would be a change, but the Encore does look so shiny in new (in the glossy brochures) 😄

Am I overthinking it? And how many more changes might we see in the Med sailings before next Summer.

Thank you in advance for your thoughts.

I assume the OP is deciding if premium economy is a "good idea" when traveling overseas? I booked that class on the a380 SFO - CDG last year. I was able to do a paid upgrade to business class at the gate. It was expensive, but I splurged and even though it wasn't a lie flat seat, it was probably the nicest flight (food and service wise) I have ever flown. On the way back, I had my PE seat. It was fine for a daytime flight, but it was, of course, nothing like business class.

Premium economy still beats that hell out of regular economy everyday.

I can't believe in all my years of cruising (24 and counting) I have never enjoyed a room service breakfast!?! To be fair, many of those years were spent on mainstream cruiselines and smaller staterooms so the dining room seemed more appropriate, but since I hope to be cruising on The Wind next year, can someone tell me if there is plenty of room in the sitting area of a veranda suite to have a proper breakfast and coffee for two? What about the veranda itself ? Seems in the pictures I have seen there really isn't anything more than a small table...

Glad to hear the room service breakfast menu is expanded, that is a promising start to my leisurely breakfast fantasies :)

Thanks to both of you for your quick responses. Les, I thought your itinerary was a closer match to mine as I saw some of your posts re: excursion ideas in your planning stages.

Although the entire itinerary looks amazing (voyage 2712)? I am very interested in the Amalfi coast. I'm sorry you missed Amalfi town. Since the day is so short there, I am planning to hire a private driver in Sorrento to go on an Amalfi Coast tour (Ravello, Positano, etc). Does anyone have suggestions for tour companies? APTours and Rome in Limo get good reviews on the Italy Ports boards, but I'd love first hand knowledge.

For you SS vets, is there a way to tell from the website which ports are tenders vs docked? Am I not looking at the itinerary correctly or do you just have to KNOW your destinations better?