WallyNDiane

On our Feb 2020 cruise we were asked to watch a safety video in our room. We then attended a muster drill that was held in the main theater. No one had to bring life vest but they showed how to properly put one on. It was a quick and easy process. We were led by our group leader to our muster station.

My wife and I were on the Norovirus shortened Caribbean Princess cruise that sailed last February 2. We did not get sick and despite the virus concern, we made the best of our cruise despite missing 5 of our 8 ports. At the same time, the Covid 19 virus was just starting to catch the attention of Americans. While we were disappointed by missing the 5 ports, we really enjoyed Princess' movies shown on the outdoor screen as well as in the theater. The movies were great and we really enjoyed the excellent sound system on both the outdoor screen system and the main theater. They played several concerts including one by The Who. They had the sound system cranked and it was a joy to see many 60 and 70 year olds playing "air guitar" to Pete Townshend unique playing style. Clearly others on our cruise were making the best of it as well. Princess also put us up in excellent hotels for 3 nights. We were lucky to be put up in a JW Marriott -Turnberry resort. That resort was stunning.

Because we got a future cruise credit for the shortened cruise, we booked a ten day cruise for next February, As I sit here watching the panic of the Covid 19 panic, I am putting together our just completed cruise photo slideshow. Despite taking a reduced number a photos, I still have a great photo presentation of our shortened cruise. And I am getting excited about our next cruise. Am I concerned about the Covid 19 virus? I would be lying if I didn't say I am a bit concerned. But I am betting that through everyone's diligence in minimizing the spread of this virus and the research of the brilliant minds of people who work in the health systems, that our February 2021 cruise will be an excellent cruise.

So please don't think that our cruising days are behind us. We will survive and hearing Hot Hot Hot music (kinda don't like that song) and seeing spontaneous Congo lines breaking out will still be in our future. Carry on.

I have no vote. But I would be a bit concerned putting too many ships in the Caribbean in the meat of the summer hurricane season.

I bought 101 shares today. It is what it is. Long term we will be ok. I booked a Princess Cruise next February.

We just completed our first Princess cruise in February. It was a Norovirus shortened cruise and we did get to experience the emotions of a fairly "safe" intestinal bug. I can't imagine the stress placed on the crew and passengers when a more lethal virus outbreak is present.

I applaud Princess as well for pausing their cruises until this virus outbreak is better understood and contained. While it had to be a difficult decision, it was the correct one. Time will only tell how this all shakes out. But we all hope that the long term impact is neglible for the public and for business.

We did our 1st Princess cruise in February. We found the food to be excellent or lackluster. Our favorites.

Calamari in Sabitini's was the best we have ever had. Plentiful and simply delicious.

Black and Blu Onion Soup in Crown Grill. Very nice and the blue cheese didn't overpower the soup.

Ribeye in Crowngrill, perfect steak, perfectly cooked.

The volcano ice cream dessert off the children's menu in the MDR was very good.

On the breakfast buffet, I enjoyed the corned beef hash with the grilled tomato to be very good. The lunch buffet was so so. I did love their potato salad.

The main dining room meals were either good or unforgettable. I love lamb but the two lamb dishes I had were sub par. Their prime rib was very good. Their lobster on the last formal night was really bad. Dry lobster sitting on a risotto bed was horrible. Think of a dry (and small) lobster tail sitting on a bed of rice and elmers glue. At our table, a few ordered beef Wellington versus the lobster. After the lobster everyone wished we got the Beef Wellington.

After an October 2018 Celebrity Eclipse cruise where the food was outstanding, we were disappointed in the CP food.

We were on the Norovirus shortened Feb 2 Caribbean Cruise. Once the virus outbreak became known, we didn't make any changes to our cruise routine. Cruising in mid winter during the peak of the cold and flu season and with an older cruise passenger group, cruise passengers are always subjected to a higher chance of catching a virus, 

We take every precaution we can, including taking our own alcohol based hand de sanitizer with us to use after we get our food in the buffet. But it is what it is. We take every precaution and hope we don't get sick.

We were on the shortened Feb 2 CB cruise. Couple observations we made.

1) Some people would bypass the hand washing line at the buffet and tell the staff member standing at the station that they were just cutting through the World Markerplace buffet as they were headed to the rear Salty Dog/Steamers buffet. On one occasion we saw a couple who bypassed the wash station standing in line getting served at the World Marketplace. Despite the Norovirus they knowingly bypassed the hand wash station.

2) We saw people wash there hands then immediately take their hand and rub their mouth. If they were infected with the virus, they immediately compromised their hands by that action.

3) Saw one instance where a passenger threw up in the room corridor. No idea on how they sanitize the carpet. We also saw many food trays left on the floor by guest room doors. I witnessed one person inadvertently kick a tray with her foot knocking over a half full glass onto the carpet and onto the carpeting door entry. No idea on how they sanitize that. We saw more trays at doors than any other cruise. However we didn't know if people had room service because they were quarantined because of Norovirus or just wanted breakfast in bed.

4) This was my only concern with Princess. They would have their carts in the hallway filled full of used bed sheets. It was so easy to inadvertently come in contact with those used sheets as you walked by the cart.

5) One night at dinner, we ate with a couple where the man had a bad cold. He constantly would put his Kleenex on the dining room table. After discussion with the 8 people at our table, he says that he had the norovirus and he was just released from quarantine. He didn't eat much and he and his wife left dinner early. As he left the table, he placed his napkin on the table. He was sitting to my immediate left and when he placed his lap napkin on the table , it unfolded and touched my utensils. Needless to say, I didn't eat dessert and we left early.

We all commented on how hard the Princess staff was working. But as soon as they cleaned something, someone would come along and touch the just cleaned surface.

We also had dinner with many who said they were doing back to back cruises on the CP or other Princess cruise ships. So the staff are not the only ones who carry germs to subsequent cruises.

This was our first Princess Cruise and our first 14 day cruise. Both of us commented on how old the passengers were. Despite really calm seas, we saw people hanging onto handrails all over the ship. We didn't get sick and we did enjoy our cruise, but it was clear to see how difficult of a battle it is for Princess to stay ahead of a Norovirus outbreak.

EDVM96. Thanks for the photos. I said rice above, but after your photo and consult with my wife, it was Risotto not rice. But whatever it was, it was a tasteless paste that delivered no flavor or moisture to the tail.

We already booked our 2021 cruise so the lobster in the MDR didn't deter us from returning to Princess.

Unfortunately our lobster was the worst we ever had on the last formal night. It was a dry tail (no drawn butter) sitting on a bed of very tasteless dry rice paste. Both my wife and I requested a second tail and when the waiter asked us if we wanted the 2nd tail, we both said no. It was our worst meal of our cruise.

My wife ordered a lobster tail at the Crown Grill. It was large and served with drawn butter. She thought it was excellent.

This was on our Feb 2 Caribbean Princess cruise.

3 hours ago, Alabaster Cruiser said:

Something I noticed on the Feb. 2 sailing was that we were not allowed to touch anything in the buffet line but if you ordered an omelette they would hand you a beeper.  When you got the omelette the beeper was placed back in the charger and never wiped down.  Be sure to wash after giving it back.  But when a ship has an active casino everyone playing at tables touch the cards and chips.  Even cleaning them daily is a futile act.

 

We said the same thing about the omelette beepers. While it was the last night of the cruise, those voting gizmo's they hand out for that singing competition is another source.

Bottom line, there are many potential things that people touch or sneeze/cough on. Some are easily cleaned, some aren't. That's why chasing these viruses is so darn difficult. 

Nothing beats washing your hands frequently and using your own hand sanitizer frequently. My wife brought two small hand sanitizer dispensers that we used all the time. Tough battle as people are aged and traveling in the heart of the cold and flu season.

My wife and I were on the shortened Feb 2 Caribbean Princess cruise. Couple comments from our observation. The passengers on that sailing looked Old. Saw more canes, walkers,wheelchairs, scooters than on any other cruise. The ocean was really calm but I saw more people hanging onto the hallway safety rails. The other thing we noticed was the slow elevators. People were constantly pressing the elevator buttons despite them being lit. So handrails and elevator buttons are another potential source on the bug. Menus are also being touched so cleaning hands with Purell after handling the dining rooms menus is also advisable.

My wife who is a retired hospital lab supervisor constantly was reminding me not to touch my mouth with my hands. We were lucky as we didn't get the virus.

The first island we missed was St Kitts. The captain came on and said the number of new cases were dropping and we were ok to get into Martinique., which we did.

We were first told that we would get to Barbados, but then it was announced that Barbados was scratched. We were sailing to Trinidad and at 10:30 PM the captain announced that the ship has turned around and sailing back to Fort Lauderdale.

Despite all the announcements and on ship rumors, we did see people not washing their hands as the entered the buffet areas. 

On our Feb 2 Caribbean Princess cruise we arrived at the terminal at 12:15. The line to get into the terminal was quite long. It was wrapped onto the front of the terminal. From our experience, the wait was to get through the security clearance X-ray stations. Once we cleared security, we picked up our Medallions and started walking to the ship in just a few minutes. 

I didnt pay attention to the time, but I estimate 20-30 minutes line time to get through security.

We were on the Feb 2 Norovirus cruise. When we arrived back in Ft Lauderdale, we saw sanitation service trucks already parked on the dock. So I am sure that ship was as sanitized as possible.

Indeed Princess staff served food, drinks and seasonings in the buffet.  

Average age of the Feb 2 cruise passengers were quite old. We saw more canes, walkers, wheelchairs and scooters on this cruise than any other cruise.

I would not hesitate to cruise again on this ship.  

We were on the Feb 2 Caribbean Princess Norovirus shortened cruise. From my observation, the cruise started out in a normal fashion. Winter is the heart of the cold and flu season so there are always people on the cruise with colds. Unfortunate consequence of winter cruising. However my wife and I commented as soon as the first night on the age of the passengers. Empirically, this cruise probably was the oldest average age cruise we were ever on. We ate one night with a couple who were 94 and 92. We saw more walkers, canes and scooters on this cruise that ever before.

Then the Norovirus started to spread. We did not get it. We took vitamin C and washed our hands constantly. Princess staff served food on the buffet and got your drinks and even sugar, sweeteners and salt and pepper. Likewise at dinner, your waiter poured sugar or sweateners and seasoned your food.

I always take vitamin C before cruises and keep our hands washed and hope we don't get sick. Having close to 3,000 passengers plus another 1,000 or so of cruise staff in the cold and flu season always increases the risk of getting sick.

We were on the Norovirus shortened 2/02 Caribbean Princess cruise. We were credited approximately $70 for port fees of the 5 missed ports. That credit showed as a refundable on board credit on our statement. Do I need to do anything to get that money or will Princess automatically process it? Will we get a check or a credit on our credit card? Thanks all.

Just ate there last week. I ordered the ribeye and it was large and really good. I ordered the cream spinach for the vegetable and the serving size was quite large. My wife got the lobster and it was large and served with butter. It was much better than the main dining room lobster as it was small, served with no drawn butter and served over a dry clump of tasteless rice.

I asked the waiter if the $10 charge would apply if my wife wanted to order a steak with her lobster tail. He said that was correct.

Both my wife and I were so full after our meal we barely ate 1/2 of our dessert. So you better have a huge appetite if you order two main entrees there.

We were on this cruise which was our first time on Princess. Princess did everything they could but they could not stop the virus. Many very old people who appeared frail. Some people refused to wash their hands. I didn't get that at all. Lines at the hand wash basins were long and I saw more than a few just walk into the buffet.

The only criticism of Princess I had was allowing the band to play in the lobby area by the guest service desk. I loved the sound system that ship had plus they played loud which I love. But on the first morning after they announced the ship was heading back to Ft Lauderdale, the line at the guest service counter was very very long. The music was so loud that they taking people behind the guest service area to near the shore excursion counter so they could hear each other. I simply don't know why they allowed the band to play (or play that loud) with so many agitated guests.

Because of the Super Bowl, we booked air through Princess Air. Because of that, they put us up at the JW Marriot Turnberry resort for 3 nights. A very beautiful resort but very expensive. We had to walk blocks to find something to eat. There was some elderly with us who couldn't walk that far, so they ate at the resort, Princess did not reimburse for food so they spent a ton of money.

I have never seen so many top end luxury cars in my life. Bentley's, Lamborghini's, Ferrari's and Rolls Royces were frequently seen.

We did not get sick so we made the best of the shortened cruise.

I can get either discounted groceries or gas if I buy gift card at a Giant Eagle supermarket. A friend of ours pays for their entire cruise via these gift cards. The supermarket offers $.10 discount for every $50 spent. They double that offer numerous times per year. 

Just trying to save some bucks, nothing more, nothing less.

Thanks to all who commented.

I am deciding on how much $ to spend on Princess Gift cards to pay for on board purchases. I don't want to overspend on cards however. 

Are there any items in the gift shop that are at fair value and that are really nice? 

Can you cash in Princess Gift Cards at the beginning of your cruise to pay for excursions and on board purchases?

I want to avoid the last minute rush to settle your account at guest services. 

I can get some discounted gas if I buy Princess Gift cards. I don't want to buy many.

Thanks all.

Our flight is scheduled to arrive at 11:05. We got our flights through Princess ezeair as it was impossible to get flights otherwise. 

We honeymooned in Fort Lauderdale back in 1978 and I wanted to spend a couple precruise days there. The flights were basically full and if there were seats available, the costs were outrageous. Same on hotels. Darn Super Bowl. Price gouging is absolutely insane.

So after a lot of energy, we booked our flights through Princess as they were our last option. We leave Pittsburgh at 6 am, fly to Philadelphia and ultimately arrive in Fort Lauderdale at 11:05 on Feb 2nd, day of sailing.

So that adds a bit of stress to arriving as we don't have much wiggle room. Then to have the Medallion issue is just something I didn't need.

I wish I would of remembered the Super Bowl is in Miami on February 2nd, the day of our cruise departure. I probably would of selected another option if I knew that. Oh well, I guess in a larger sense, all this is a non issue.

We are on the Caribbean Princess, our first 2 week cruise. This is our 11th cruise.

Thank you to all who responded.

Just wanted to give everyone a heads up on the ordering of the Medallions. This is our first Princess Cruise so we were newbies on the process. We loaded the Princess App on our phone and went through the process of ordering the app. Unfortunately, we thought that we HAD to order Medallion accessories so we selected the lowest cost insert accessory. However the shipping costs were quite high. After we ordered them, I called Princess to see if they could ship them together to save us on the shipping cost. The agent was helpful and told us that we did not have to order any assessories. While on the phone, she walked us through cancelling the assessories ordered. We thought that we were ok, so did the agent. I asked her if we will still receive our Medallions with free lanyards and she said yes.

I later joined our cruise departure Facebook page. Over the last two weeks, everyone posted that they had received their medallions.We didn't so today I call Princess as we are now less than 2 weeks from our departure. I was told that when the order was cancelled for the assessories, it also cancelled our Medallion order. Because of the late date,  a new order can't be entered.

We were told that we now have to go to the Ocean Ready line at the check in terminal to receive our Medallions. 

Hopefully this post can prevent others from having a similar problem.  

Now my question are. 

1) Will we receive the same Medallions as we would of if they were sent to our home? I thought I read the Medallions will have your names engraved on them.

2) Due to the Super Bowl in Miami, we have late arriving flights into Fort Lauderdale. Should we expect a long wait in the Ocean Ready check in line at the terminal?

I just went through a major health issue and I wanted this cruise to be a stress free vacation. The Super Bowl added all kind of stress in getting flights (hotels and flight cost made early arrival too costly). Now I just find out about this Medallion issue. Hopefully it is no big deal but our late arriving flights have me concerned especially if there any weather delays.

The flexibility of anytime dining is just too important for us to pass up. 

Sometimes we come back to the ship around 2 and hit the buffet then the pool. We aren't hungry until after 7. Sometimes, especially sea days we sleep in and have a big breakfast at the main dining room and either skip or have a light lunch. We are hungry by 6.

But port time is too important to us. I refuse to come in early, just to get ready for an early dinner.

Cruising has a natural built in structure to your day. I can live without a dining structure.

2 hours ago, antsp said:

I’m assuming you have never been to Martinique

We were there's once back in 1993. 

The bus comment is great and I assume it is better to pay for taxi's in euros as well.

Since we got them, I will take some along.