alreadypacked

We are Princess cruisers but recently have been sailing NCL - a couple of reasons for that: NY port, casino at seas program & some different itineraries ............. we are not happy with the added fee but since we don't have a cruise booked with them, we'll do a wait & see.

 

Getting back to topic: we love room service in the AM for coffee. Nice to have that first cup without showering and dressing. Also if we have an early excursion, cereal, fruit, Danish will be enough breakfast. And, would this include ice too? For us, there never seems to be enough ice. Let's hope that Princess doesn't follow NCL. :eek:

This!

If you put a pretty top on over nice jeans and smile, nobody looks at your feet. Just got off the Golden on Tuesday and I wore silver plastic flipflops every night. Not the $2 kind, but high end orthotic ones. They have a good arch and metatarsal bump. Even wore them to formal night under my long dress. We were on an extended 2 month trip so we had packed very light, and we had had a suitcase stolen in at the port in Buenos Aires when we had gotten on the Celebrity Infinity. I did have a pair of silver woven elastic ballet flats, but they were pretty ratty by the time we got to the Golden. So I wore the flips with a nice pedicure with a pinky taupe polish.

Your shoes sound like ones I could wear. I need good arch and metatarsal support and am always on the lookout for new brands and styles.

If you wouldn't mind saying, what brand of shoe were you wearing?

We just booked an 8 day September Conquest cruise.

How would you rate the buffet and dining room food?

If you took any food photos, could you please post them?

Thanks!:)

Too many people get caught up in brand loyalty and then get offended when their brand doesn't do what they expect. I would never "leave" any business unless they treated me with the utmost disrespect.

 

In this case each cruise is considered on its individual merits. I check Carnival, NCL and RCI when I plan a cruise and let each ship, itinerary and benefits speak for itself. The little stuff may add up, or it may not.

 

I think with Carnival we see a lot of people wanting the rock bottom price, but complain because they think the experience should be that of a higher price point. Champaign tastes on a beer budget.

 

For me, my next cruise is likely the Dream because for the price and experience it is much better than the other offerings. If that changes, so will I.

As a longtime Carnival cruiser though, I have seen their product go from "rock-bottom price but really good quality food and entertainment" to "not-always-rock-bottom price to mediocre food and entertainment".

I guess that's my beef--Carnival's product used to be superior in many ways to more expensive lines.

Would you really leave Carnival and choose another cruise line if you don't have chocolates on your pillow, or towel animals, or complimentary robes, or turn down service, or a 'reward' for being a return customer, or any of the other little "services" that have no impact other than they are a nicety?

The last few years, we have been sailing Carnival less because of changes we didn't care for--but not for some of the reasons you mentioned. Chocolates on pillows, towel animals, and robes (I actually ask the steward to remove the robes altogether so we have extra space) mean nothing to me.

I like turndown service as they freshen the bathroom again, and I like the Platinum priority boarding, however!

Where we used to sail Carnival twice or more a year, now we often sail Carnival only once (in 2013, not at all) and sail other lines for our additional cruises that year.

Reason: Carnival's declining food quality and choices in both the main dining room and Lido buffet and declining quality of entertainment (such as DJs on the pool deck in lieu of live bands, horrid piano bar singers).

I will say that the entertainment on our Nov 2014 Freedom cruise had significantly improved compared to the previous 3 or 4 cruises largely due to the excellent piano bar performer! The last time I'd seen a packed piano bar on CCL, smoking was allowed!

Maybe things are looking up. But I'd be most happy if the food returned to the circa 2002-2008 quality and variety.

No. The company I worked for considered this fraud/theft of service. The employee would have been talked to and the consequences of continued actions discussed. Yes, I fired several employees for fraud/theft of service. Unfortunately, the employees didn't take it seriously and thought it was NBD. They found out otherwise.

 

However, I did not work for Princess and they do not appear to have the same standards or operating procedures.

Pam, you are a wealth of knowledge on these boards! Out of curiosity, did you work for a cruise line or in another branch of travel/hospitality?

IMO, Disney has the best private island. And, they dock - no tendering!

Never been to the Disney island, but you make a very good point.

I've never been to Half Moon Cay...why is it better? I think Princess Cays is nice.

Having been to both, I feel that Half Moon Cay is far superior to Princess Cay for the following reasons:

Half Moon Cay has soft fine white sand that reminded me of confectioners sugar.

The ocean at Half Moon Cay is calm with no waves or undertow, has a rock-free soft white sand bottom, is clear (think swimming-pool-clear) and shallow--I walked out pretty far and it was only a little over waist-deep.

Princess Cay, on the other hand, has many submerged rocks hidden in the sand--some were downright large and hazardous. The tender announcer tells guests to watch out for "rocks" but the reason behind this advisory is not made clear. I found out later when my foot unsuspectingly twisted on a submerged rock/boulder when I was walking along what appeared to be a soft sandy beach.

The ocean at Princess Cay is not nearly as clear as HMC and has a rocky bottom and sea grass in many areas.

Personally, I would not get off the ship again in Princess Cay, but that's just me. It's not my kind of beach.

Very nice comparison review! Thank you.:)

This is why, unfortunately, my annual guys-cruise group had to move on to RCI for this year's trip. We used to have the old open bar package, but they canceled it last year and told us we'd have to do their lame Cheers program.

 

RCI doesn't cap their packages, and they have tiers, so it was a no-brainer. I wish Carnival would get with the times and drop their arbitrary cap, it should be left to the staff to determine who has been over served. We much prefer the Carnival nightlife, I hope we get to come back someday.

Agreed, Grady!

I have utilized the beverage package on another line that didn't make everyone over 21 in the cabin purchase it. This worked for us on one cruise when DH wasn't drinking due to a medical reason. Further, DH was on a guys cruise (not Carnival) and his cabin-mate went and purchased the beverage package before he did, and no one questioned who else was in the cabin with him. DH purchased his package not long after.

When I go on my annual girls' Carnival cruise and share a triple cabin with my sister and friend, both of whom will not spring for Cheers, I am penalized!

Other cruise lines have no such rule and must be making a profit otherwise I'd think they'd discontinue the program.

Carnival's Cheers doesn't even include bottled water like the other lines' beverage programs!

Carnival caps the per-program drinks to 15 per day (with no bottled water included). I'm not advocating sharing but even if some passegers did--as some inevitably will--it seems like they should still profit. Other lines apparently do, while including bottled water and without everybody-in-cabin purchase requirements.

My favorite California Coastal was on the Sapphire two years ago, because we sailed into San Francisco in the afternoon, stayed overnight, then left the next afternoon. Sailing under the Golden Gate in the afternoon was simply spectacular, and enjoying the city lights from our balcony was a fantastic way to end the evening

 

This year, as for you, our California Coastal arrives in San Francisco in the early morning and leaves late that same night. IMHO, it will be worth while to be up early and stay up late to enjoy the sailing in and out of the Bay. Hopefully either the morning or the night won't be too foggy.

 

California Coastal cruises are not as formal as Mexican Riviera or Caribbean cruises -- probably more like Alaska. Lots of good advice in this thread for appropriate formal night attire. The main thing is, wear what fits your idea of a good vacation -- don't drag along cloths you don't enjoy wearing.

 

I hope you enjoy your experience in our beautiful state! The whale watching should be fantastic. I am booked on that also, but we are sailing a bit before you, and on the Ruby.

I know cruise lines don't change the dress code based on itinerary, but I'd heard that many passengers on some itineraries, such as Alaska, typically dress down a bit. A friend of mine who did Alaska recently as well as a neighbor who's done several Alaska cruises confirmed this. As it's our first time doing anything other than Caribbean (where we routinely dress up), I had wondered if a California Coastal might skew a little more to the casual side being that the climate this time of year is on the cool side.

As I know "dress code" is a volatile subject on these boards, just to be clear, DH and I were thinking of only "slightly dressing down a bit" on formal night. We will still dress respectably--no jeans, T-shirts or sneakers.

DH was thinking dark slacks, dress shirt and a tie for himself. I was thinking nice slacks and dressy sweater for myself. Not formal, of course, but from what I've seen on Princess (and Celebrity) Caribbean cruises, I believe this attire would be satisfactory.

This info helps a lot. Thanks!

Hi! Thanks so much for your feedback. I booked my cruise early January under my married name, completely forgetting my passport is with my maiden name. We cruise a week from tomorrow, and I only realized this error when doing my online checkin. Is this going to be ok? We are leaving from Orlando on the liberty to the caribbean. Appreciate any help!

Bring marriage certificate...

In 2011, I booked my cruise under my maiden name even though I'd recently married, because at the time of booking my passport still reflected my maiden name.

In the interim between booking and sailing, I had applied for and gotten a new passport reflecting my married name. So of course now the name on my new passport no longer matches my booking.

All I did upon check-in at the cruise port (Miami) was show my new passport and marriage certificate and they updated my name on the booking and even re-did my sail and sign card in my married name, then and there.

Really easy. Got the feeling they are used to this.

Enjoy your cruise!!

Early morning, just as the sun is starting to come up, is my very favorite time to sail into San Francisco. There is something magical about the lights of the city in the early morning light. Keep your fingers crossed for a clear day. One time it was so foggy sailing in that we could not see the bridge as we sailed under it. :mad:

Fog! Ugh!

Praying we won't have fog. First time on this itinerary--have only sailed Caribbean (about 27 times!)!

Great info on this thread!

In San Francisco we rode cable cars and walked our feet off, in San Diego we toured the Midway which is a fabulous retired aircraft carrier that you can just walk over to, in Santa Barbara we rented a car and drove to Solvang and surrounding area, in Ensenada we did a ships excursion to two wineries that was lots of fun, and in Catalina we just walked around in our own and explored.

Thanks!!

DH will especially like the Midway. Great info!

Sailing in and out under the Golden Gate Bridge is a beautiful sight! We loved our California Coastal cruise

Glad to hear it!

What excursions did you do?

Can you tell me what airline had the non stop at that price? Looking for a good price to Fort Lauderdale from LAX in December.

 

Thanks

We're flying on Jetblue.

Help! Help! My no taxes thread got hijacked by H&R Block!

Ugh! After reading this thread, I went back and read your original post, OP...

Yes, this thread went off in another (I think, unintended) tangent!!

We'll be making it our first cocktail on the Regal in 8 days! :D

Have a great cruise!! Let us know how you liked it.

Made me think of my last Carnival Cruise, everything was DJ even on the deck at sailaway. The entertainment there is getting to be the worse.

So true! Loved the live bands of old on Carnival--such a loss for us when Carnival watered down their product.

Been cruising Princess and Celebrity a lot more recently due to the declining Carnival product. In November 2014, however, we gave Carnival another shot and though they still had DJ's on the deck at sailaway and throughout the cruise (including the main atrium at times), there was more live music throughout the ship than in recent years.

The piano bar singer was excellent for the first time in years!! Not sure if it's fleet-wide (we were on the Freedom), but I'm hopeful. There are things we love about each line, and Carnival's entertainment was one (Princess' food and pool decks is what we love about them!).

Fun!

Here is the link to the video:

Fun video! Makes me want to try it on our upcoming cruise. We're not sailing the Caribbean, but I'm sure it'll still be available.

We loved watching Love Boat reruns on the Ruby in 2012!! Loved that show!

Thanks for the tip Ryndam! Yes, I've heard it gets pretty chilly there--DH and I will bring plenty of warm clothes and dress in layers. Really looking forward to the trip! The only areas I've previously been to in California are Los Angeles, Santa Monica and Venice Beach over 10 years ago.

DH and I just booked one of those California Coastal cruises on the Crown! Great rates even with roundtrip airfare from Florida. $669pp for a balcony. Roundtrip nonstop air from FLL-LAX $366pp.

We were planning to vacation in the US this year instead of a Caribbean cruise like we usually do, and San Francisco was on our list of possible places. When we saw these good prices for a California itinerary, we jumped on it. Another cruise, it is!

How about moving it to the new site which would move the ship from view and create a dedicated road like they do at many ports and connect it to i-26 this would reduce traffic by providing a direct access. For shore power you can supply it in the new port but you can't force the cruise company to install it usually it's ships post 2000 that has shore power capability, which the current port can't support until a new port is built.

 

For the economy the new terminal by the images provided looks like it allows the passengers to leave the port walk down the sidewalk to the market and then they can go back and board the ship when they are done shipping.

Hmm...

I can't contribute anything about the shore power issue but...

I live in Fort Lauderdale, and many here love seeing the ships in port and love to watch the sail out--in person or on the webcam.

DH and I even met Cruise Critic's own Carolyn Spencer Brown at a very busy sail-out viewing spot.

Ships visible in port don't seem to be an issue here at all.

We do get a kind of black soot/dirt on our deck and patio furniture here--such that I did not experience back home in the northeast. But I can't say for certain if it's from Port Everglades, FLL Airport (we live only minutes from both), or just the heavy traffic in Broward County.

Whatever... cruise ship passengers bring lots of dollars into this area in terms of hotel stays, dining out and even purchaes at our local Publix supermarkets. I can't tell you how many times DH & I see people walking towards a hotel on A Saturday or Sunday morning in resort casual wear carrying Publix bags. We always say, "They must be cruisers."

Yeah, I had a good laugh at the idea of feeling "stress and guilt" about smuggling alcohol onboard. That's ridiculous.

 

My two cents: if Carnival would do away with the rule that if one person in the stateroom gets the package then everybody has to get the package, then I'd be all over it. I don't have a problem knocking back several beers over the course of the day with two or three cocktails as well. My wife, on the other hand, doesn't even come close to breaking even. So I'd essentially be drinking for two just to break even.

 

Until that changes, we'll continue smuggling.

I hear you.

I wanted to buy Cheers, but my two roommates (girls cruise) didn't. Carnival would not sell Cheers to me alone... but they'd happily sell it too me if I paid for my two roommates as well--who barely drink on cruises!!

It was a bit of a raw deal to me because DH and I had cruised Celebrity and Princess the last two years (taking a break from Carnival) and I got used to having a beverage package--even when DH didn't partake.

My sail & sign on my recent "return cruise" to Carnival was three times that of roommate 1 and twice that of roommate 2. It left a bitter taste in my mouth. I could have saved money with the package. And I didn't even come close to 15 drinks a day. As others have stated, you don't need to drink that much for Cheers to be a good deal.

Other lines seem to make a profit with their beverage packages without enforcing such a rule. Surely loss of revenue due to potential sharing is built into the price. And I don't buy the stereotyped "low class" Carnival cruisers are likely to be heavy drinkers line of thinking. I saw just as much drinking going on on the higher-end lines.

The other lines even include bottled water and specialty coffee drinks on their packages--and still seem to make a profit otherwise I doubt they'd continue the programs. Carnival does not include bottled water but they said I could have all the soda I wanted! I do not drink soda. I don't drink specialty coffee either, but I prefer bottled water to tap water for a couple of reasons and would have enjoyed that.

Yet another great Splendor repositioning review!!

Just Finished GAPearl's and am now reading Seannyice81"s!