capriccio

16 minutes ago, DennysDad said:

I love it when its in writing online. Because calling can become ____said on the phone when I called etc. (Ashland) I find to be a very reliable source. I do plan to call, but it does concern me not on website. It would be the primary reason for booking that particular hotel. Amount of bags makes Uber a double expense, shuttles work better for us. 

i agree that @Ashlandis a very reliable source on this board and that websites can be unreliable but if you are concerned it is best to double check because policies can change without any notice.

29 minutes ago, DennysDad said:

Have you used there shuttle?

No but I always call a hotel (any hotel) about things that aren't clear on their websites like shuttles, early check-in, late check-out, etc.

9 hours ago, DennysDad said:

Hampton inn Blue Lagoon has a shuttle for a fee to port? It doesn't say that anywhere on there website. 

Calling the hotel directly and confirming is always a good idea.  They will also be able to provide you with the current pricing and scheduling.

3 hours ago, Reina del Mar said:

Coral Princess 29th Feb-26th March 2024. Steak on favourites menu every night- more than edible.

2 hours ago, leck57 said:

 

I was on Coral earlier in Feb and steak was on the menu every night. I had it a couple of times and it was quite good. Obviously not Crown Grill standard but still good.

This time last year we were on the Coral Princess for 28 days and their steak was very good and often avialable in the MDR and excellent (the best we've ever had on Princess and rivaled expensive US steakhouses) in the Bayou Cafe and Steakhouse. Maybe because the meat is from Australia (just a guess)?

In addition to the visitlauderdale.com website mentioned above, the Port Everglades Cruise Guide (https://www.calameo.com/read/004673538e0c61586eefa) found on the Port Everglades website (www.porteverglades.net with lots of port specific info) has advertisements (mostly at the end of the guide) for hotels that have sleep and park packages:

I have another Signature Restaurant question.  Are all suite passengers still entitled to a specialty restaurant dinner on embarkation night as on other ships in the fleet?  If so

• do you have any idea of how empty the Signature Restaurant is that evening?  I presume it is still open.
• did you experience or hear fellow passengers complain about difficulties getting a reservation in one of the specialty restaurants?

Thanks!

Last year we used WiFi calling on board to text with 4 different couples with various providers without any issues.  When off the ship we’d go somewhere with WiFi and send them a text.

26 minutes ago, memoak said:

On any cruise you will usually have numerous holds on your card. This enables Princess to make sure you have enough credit to pay your bill at the end of  the cruise

And that practice is not limited to cruise lines.  Hotels do the same thing.

14 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

Unless on a TA or TP cruise you will likely have a port call about every other day.  Pretty simple to use the WIFI in the port.

If you gave a family emergency,  just ask Guest Relations to help.  They gave us free daily for a week when 95 year old MIL was hospitalized.

But the OP already has an AT&T account so will not incur any additional costs using WiFi calling and won’t be limited to specific days and times while in port.

AT&T is our carrier.  Just make sure you are on WiFi calling (not cellular or cellular roaming).  We were on a 28 day cruise around Australia a year ago and it worked great for texting and face timing.  Our daughter had to have emergency surgery while we were half a world - and 12 time zones - away and it was very reassuring to be able to talk to her while she was in the hospital for a few days.

6 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

Do they actually just advise that, or is really that they will not sell the excursion to you unless your flight meets that requirement?

In 2019 we were on the transfer via Windsor Castle with my brother and sister-in-law.  I forget the timing but I remember that their return flight was scheduled about 10 minutes before the Princess cut-off when they first tried to reserve the transfer.  Luckily the airline changed the departure time to 10 minutes after the cut-off and they were able to book the transfer.  BTW it was a great way to spend a good portion of the day.  We all enjoyed it.

@Bridget2 - I too have never heard of Princess accessing your checking account.  Did you receive a final version of your folio via email?  It is usually sent anywhere from disembarkation day to 3 or 4 days later.  In one case a year ago, when I hadn't received it within a week I sent an email to customerrelations@princesscruises.com noting my folio number, ship and cruise dates.  They responded within a week. 

If you do find one that offers a shuttle (most seem to only offer shutlles from/to the airport) it will most likely require a per person payment.  With 8 people make sure you do the the math comparing that price to 2 Uber XLs (at least that is what we needed for 8 in Fort Lauderdale last summer) before deciding your best option.

8 minutes ago, nhraformula00 said:

LX200GPS, Princess does not make you wait if you come early to the ship??? We are going on Emerald Princess on May 20th. for a 10 day. Our first Princess. 

I'm not @lx200gps but I can answer that question.  Princess no longer assigns check in times and the entire process, once they open the doors (usually by 11 am) and you get through the initial security, is very quick.  Try to fill out your information on the Medallion app before arriving at the port (if you run into issues, don't panic since staff can help you at check in).  It is even a few minutes quicker if you have had the Medallion delivered to your home.  In July we (a group of 8 including 2 kids) arrived at the terminal around 11 am and waited maybe 10 minutes to get through security.  After security those with the medallion go through the green line and those who need to pick up the medallion or have other issues go through the blue line.  DH and I were in the green line and hardly slowed down.  Our kids and grandkids were in the blue line and met up with us within 10 minutes and we all boarded the ship together.  Enjoy your cruise!

3 minutes ago, puckliny said:

Hi folks.   I see lots of opinions and I believe the ones who say it’s down to the ship is correct.  The countries may not need it but a cruise personnel could be a stickler especially with the open loop issue.  I’ve made an appointment at a Passport Agency hopefully they can crank it out same day.  RC won’t say anything other than 6 months citing from the “book”.  If it goes to a contract reading I’m sure they will have themselves covered.   My question is really has anyone been on this route with this particular problem and know what happens.   In any case if I get the passports tomorrow it’s all moot.  Thanks everyone.  

A wise decision.  Best wishes to you and your family and I hope you all have a wonderful cruise!

6 minutes ago, lx200gps said:

I would have thought that T2 would be the first stop, as it is the first terminal off the driveway, the first one a driver would come to after turning off Eisenhower. That should mean that the Princess passengers, if any, would be disgorged slightly before the T4 passengers, thereby adding an intolerable 5 minute delay for the Disney passengers ;o) And this presupposes that the van driver doesn't decide to head straight down Eisenhower to the farthest terminals first, then double back to drop off the the T2/T4 passengers last.  That did happen to us once, hence our love for Uber.

In the 15 years we've sailed out of Port Everglades (most recently in July 2023) T4 is the first stop because the road from Eisenhower Blvd. is one way entering the terminal area.  It passes the garage,turns right for the drop off for T4 and then curves around to left for T2 and back out to Eisenhower Blvd. 

Now in many of those years T4 was only used very sporadically (we embarked Princess ships once and disembarked on another Princess ship once and I'd occasionally see a Celebrity ship docked there) but now T4 had a major makeover is and is dedicated to Disney that home ports one of their ships in Port Everglades.

We seldom take Princess excursions so I find the rolls calls extremely useful for joining and/or organizing private tours with like minded passengers.  We've had some great successes both joining and organizing them.

22 hours ago, fantavet said:

I'll be staying at the end of June for a Disney Cruise. You mentioned the shuttle service. I was a little nervous about trying to meet the Disney port arrival time. I heard the hotel shuttle will make multiple stops? Does this add a lot of time to travel to your terminal?

If the shuttle makes multiple stops, the Disney terminal (#4) is closest to the Renaissance. It and terminal 2 (Princess) share a driveway from Eisenhower Blvd.  It is also before the security check point so I am 99% sure you would be the first stop.

We have little knowledge of how Facebook works because we've never joined for a number of reasons.  This discussion just added another reason to the list.  Thank you.

Now that there is a dedicated Signature restaurant, I presume the suite breakfast no longer takes place in one of the specialty restaurants.  Is that correct?  If so, how does the experience compare (food, service, menu flexibility) with the specialty restaurant suite breakfasts?  Thanks.

14 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

On another thread, our on site expert about what documents are needed @Ferry_Watcher has said that in Seattle an expired passport would be acceptable as long as you also have an official Birth Certificate. If they would accept an expired passport, how could you turn down a valid one with less than 6 months remaining!

 

I do believe Royal Caribbean is one of the lines she and her colleagues handle in Seattle.

Wasn't that comment about closed loop cruise requirements?  The OP is on a Fort Lauderdale to San Juan cruise.  In that case a valid passport is required but the question is the length of validity and is 6 months a requirement of RCI or a recommendation?

12 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

Now, if you are trying to avoid college Spring breaks, that is much more challenging as those are all over the place!

So true but as someone who lives just up the beach from Fort Lauderdale, here in south Florida spring break season is the entire month of March with the highest number in the middle of the month. 

We will not drive anywhere near the beach in March.  We learned that during our first year here when it took forever to get down A1A (the beach road that separates the beach from the hotels and restaurants) because of jaywalking beach goers.  Once they got to the beach, in some areas it was standing room only!

12 minutes ago, puckliny said:

Thanks, I just got off the phone with RC of course they just state the "policy", they won't say it's ok let alone put it in writing.  Looks like an emergency visit to a Passport Agency.  Do they actually produce the passport the same day?  Going to have to drive from NY to Boston to get an appointment on Weds (2 days before the cruise).

 

This whole open loop thing is a major pain, wish RC was a little more verbal with this, didn't find out until I "checked in'  which allows multiple types of documents and up to just 3 days prior to the cruise.  Then a little note popped up.  OMG!  

 

Thanks for all the advice, looks like I have to do it even though the countries may not need it RC might and they could stop us from boarding.  

I noticed you are new to Cruise Critic (welcome!) so you might not be aware of all the different forums. There is a forum specifically for each cruise line where questions and comments by that lines past, present, and future cruisers are posted and answered.  The RCI forum is https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/51-royal-caribbean-international/

Post your concerns there and ask if anyone has been on your specific itinerary with a US passport with less than 6 month's validity.  This type of question comes up with some regularity (last month it was an itinerary on a different cruise line that included stops in Panama and Honduras if I remember correctly) and posters who had just completed that itinerary were able to give a knowledgeable response.

20 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

In theory that's a good suggestion, but in reality not for cruise passengers. It's not uncommon, particularly in the Caribbean, for countries to have less stringent passport requirements for cruise passengers, especially US citizens, than for those arriving by air. Cruise passengers arriving and departing the same day are often considered to be "in transit" and not subject to the same requirements as other arrivals.

 

Unfortunately the Department of State's website all too often does not reflect these differences, which results in misinforming cruise passengers of passport requirements.

 

It's common for the cruise  lines' own websites, particularly the mass market lines' websites to be a more accurate source of this information than the Department of State website.

That State Department website identifies if the country is part of the WHTI and the accepted alternative (to a passport) documents in the Entry and Exit requirements section. They also include a warning that a passport is required if having to fly back to the US in an emergency.

For example in the case of Barbados:

Those traveling to Barbados on a cruise may use another Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) compliant document. However, we strongly recommend visitors obtain a passport before travel in case of an unforeseen emergency that requires a cruise passenger to disembark and return by air.
 

2 hours ago, puckliny said:

 Are birth certificates and Enhanced Driver's licences not good enough?

This itinerary is not a closed loop cruise.  According to the Department of Homeland Security (https://www.dhs.gov/western-hemisphere-travel-initiative)

U.S. citizens on closed-loop cruises (cruises that begin and end at the same U.S. port) are able to enter the United States with a birth certificate and government-issued photo ID. Please be aware that you may still be required to present a passport to enter the countries your cruise ship is visiting. Check with your cruise line to ensure you have the appropriate documents.