californiacruising

Thank you for your suggestions. Will pass them on to others in our group.

Can anyone recommend a good Chinese restaurant in Seattle?

TIA

We were on this cruise. It was a delight to see your family interact with each other. Your kids are so well behaved and seemed to have so much fun. Such great memories for all of you. Your youngest son has such an infectious smile. He chatted with me about his stuffed animal which he renamed "blackie and bluey". Made my day since I was missing our grandkids.

Great review with lots of tips.

Ellen

We were on the same cruise as cruznsnooze and have the same thoughts about the buffet. We ate almost every breakfast and dinner in the Versailles. I accompanied my granddaughters (6 and 2) who are early risers to the buffet when it opened most mornings. They were very happy to get Fruitloops, fruit, and apple juice. I had the herring and salmon there. Then later joined the rest of the family for a very nice relaxing breakfast in the Versailles. Love that they have Scottish kippers as a choice.

The other thing we enjoyed at the buffet were the pretzel rods. Found out about them on this board. Thanks to those who mentioned them. One of the adults would go get them at lunch while the kids were at the pool.

We had a fantastic cruise. So many memories for the six of us. We are glad we sailed the Star. It was a good fit for the family.

Have a great cruise. It's always fun to try something new.

Several people have mentioned about a long embarkation time on the Star. Could you please let us know how yours goes?

We are on the Dec. 14th sailing and would appreciate any info.

TIA,

Ellen

We will be sailing on the Serenade of the Seas in January and would like to eat at one of the specialty restaurants. I know food is very subjective but which restaurant would you chose and why?

TIA,

Ellen

Now this part is just freaky!!! They actually tell you how to jump overboard if necessary! WHAT...OMG....never in all our 25 cruises have we been instructed to do that!

We were on the cruise before yours. We enjoyed trying out Princess because they seem to be the only ones sailing out of West Coast ports. (don't do Carnival). The major problem we have with them is the need to buy a coffee card for fresh brewed coffee. It was an inconvenience going to IC (International Cafe) before breakfast and before dinner. This quickly became annoying.

Next cruise is b2b on Serenade of Seas. Back to flying but at least it is a relatively short flight to New Orleans.

Thank you for posting the Compass from your cruise. It's been a long time since we sailed RCI. It was great seeing the activities offered.

Ellen

We have returned from our cruise and I wanted to thank you for the help you gave us.

Son and his family picked us up at the ship but we returned by train. Took the train from Santa Clara to the last stop, then took the muni to the Embarcadero stop ( it was the first underground station), walked to the Ferry Building and took a trolley on the F line. It was easy to do and incredibly inexpensive since we are Seniors and got a transfer.

As we waiting for the Muni the people were very friendly and helpful. Left us with the nice impression of the city and look forward to returning soon.

Thanks again!

Coffee in the morning is a necessity. Coffee in the evening with dinner and also with desert is a simple pleasure. Coffee on Princess is an inconvenience.

Having to buy a coffee card to get fresh brewed coffee which is free on every other line is annoying. We came back with an unpunched coffee card. All we want is coffee.

I was on the Crown at the same time as RTL last week. At our Muster Station we were required to put on the life jackets. They also checked to see if we had them on correctly, that was a first for us. We have no problem following any safety instructions.

Thanks for asking these questions, Heather. We are on the same cruise as you next week and generally cruise the line you do. Took a 4 day cruise last fall on the Golden Princess. We liked the ship. It is very traditional in decor and smaller than the Crown Princess, about 2500 passenger capacity compared to 3000. We prefer the smaller ship. Crown Princess is newer. Hopefully those who know these ships will comment.

Looking at a 7 night Mexico trip on the Crown Princess, Nov. 29th - good price right now. Going to wait to see how we like the ship before booking.

Hope to see you and your Dad on board. Not long now!

Ellen

Thank you very much for your help. We will definitely need a taxi since it is about 2.5 miles.

It really helped that you mentioned the closest station. Thanks again!

Please help. We will be arriving on the Crown Princess on a Monday morning at Pier 27. We would like to take the light rail to Santa Clara but do not know the nearest station to the Pier. Also do not know the number of the route.

Is it within walking distance or do we need to take a taxi?

TIA,

Ellen

It's a beautiful book. The pictures are outstanding. We used OBC to purchase it. They offered to mail it for $9.95. We had it autographed. Glad we bought it.