wildcats40

We are planning a cruise on the Caribbean Princess that goes through the new locks of the Panama Canal.  Hoping to hear from others who have taken this trip.  We've heard some ships open the bow so passengers can get the best view of the passage.  Does the Caribbean Princess?  

Thanks for any information. 

Elaine

We've been to Norfolk many times and do recommend the Battleship Wisconsin and the Nauticus.  They are very close to the port.  It is also easy to walk around the downtown and there are some good local places to eat.  I know you will be on a cruise, but the Naval Base cruise is interesting and leaves from that area, also.  The Norfolk Zoo is nice but you'd have to Uber or take a taxi there although it isn't terribly far.  Another area you might enjoy is Ghent.  It's a doable walk from the port or you could take an Uber.  There are antique and boutique shops, local restaurants and bars.  The Mermaid Winery and some breweries are in that area as well.  The MacArthur Center is your basic mall so nothing special.  Let me know if you have any more questions.

Born To Dance was on earlier this month. 

We were on the Star Princess a few weeks ago.  The movies I recall are Shallow, Bohemian Rhapsody, Mary Poppins Returns, and Avengers.  

It will be our first time in a suite and we know it includes a mini bar.  What exactly comes in the mini bar?  Wondering if we need to purchase sodas or water bottle packages.  

Thanks

Thank you for the information.  We may do the nearby Cabrillo aquarium as we will be tired from the long flight. 

Thanks for the reassurance.  We will get off the ship early and take our own bags. 

We will be arriving in Vancouver on a Princess cruise and need to be at the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel before 9:00 for a tour.  How long does customs usually take (coming from US) and is it reasonable to make it to the hotel that early?  We plan to walk to the hotel from the port.  

Thank you.

We will have an afternoon/evening and next morning in San Pedro before our cruise.  Staying at the Doubletree San Pedro.  Would appreciate suggestions on nearby places to eat or things to do.  Noticed Rex's Cafe is close and sounds like they have a good breakfast.  Is it a safe, easy area to walk to?  We won't have a car but could uber places if needed.  

Thanks, Elaine

Would appreciate recommendations for the better cabin on the Pride of America.   I've heard some say port side was better and others starboard better.  Thoughts?  Also, is a mid-ship balcony important because of rough water or would a large balcony forward be a better choice?  I think the large balcony cabins also have more square footage inside.  

Thanks for any advice!  

Elaine

Thanks for the information.  We may skip the whale watching.  We have seen a couple on an Alaskan cruise several years ago.  

Perfect.  Thanks. 

We will be doing a pre cruise night at the Double Tree in San Pedro in May.  We will use this time to adjust to the time difference from the east coast but will have a free afternoon.  Does anyone have a recommendation for a whale watching tour from San Pedro?  Is May a good time to see whales and other marine life?

thanks

elaine

Last year we stayed at the Grosvenor House after our Princess cruise from Southampton.  We thought the hotel was very nice, quiet, and comfortable.  I believe we had a larger bed and room.  The location was close to Hyde Park, shops, and restaurants.  It was a short cab ride to where we took a bus tour of a London.  The price was high but we enjoyed it.  

Thank you.  We changed our reservation to the Doubletree San Pedro.  

We are going to be on the Star Princess and I'm confused as to where would be the most convenient area to stay at for one night before the cruise.  We have reservations in Long Beach but the ship leaves from Pier 93.  I had thought that was very close to Long Beach but now see that it is a little further away.  Any recommendations?

Thanks

Elaine

Thanks for the great ideas.  I'm putting together a collection of things now!

My father is going to surprise my mother with a cruise on the Pride of America (7 day Hawaii) for her 80th birthday.  I'm looking for suggestions on fun, inexpensive ways to reveal this gift.  It will be about 6 months before the cruise.  Possibly a gift basket of Hawaiian items.  Maybe a magnet for the stateroom door.  Ideas?

Thanks!

Elaine

We are doing the LA to Vancouver route next May. Thanks for the information and I'd love to hear from you, DnA2010, when you get back. We don't usually have any problem with sea sickness on ships but this cruise we did reserve the cabin at the very aft of the ship because we'd heard the view so nice. Now I'm thinking that might not be a great idea...

We are wondering if anyone has done the short one way cruises between LA and Vancouver. Thinking of doing this with adult children for a short vacation. Would they be bored with the sea days or are there lots of activities for all ages? Do they tend to be a more party going crowd? How is the service since you don’t get to know the staff too well on such a short cruise? Thanks for any comments.

We were hoping to do the ultimate ship tour on our last cruise and went immediately to sign up for it because we heard it fills up fast. But, the day before we were to do the tour we got a notice that it was canceled due to lack of participation. The crazy thing is we never saw it advertised anywhere so no wonder it didn't fill up!

We were hoping to have an escape room on our recent Sapphire Princess cruise but there wasn't one offered. We'd look at the Patter every evening but never saw anything about it. I think it would be a nice addition to the entertainment options.

We flew into Heathrow a few weeks ago and were surprised to see how long the line was to customs. Thankfully we had flown business class from the US and had a "fast pass" to go to the short line so it only took us ten minutes or so. From what I heard the other line took about 2 hours to get through. I did find out this was a little longer than usual because of school being out.

Was on the Sapphire Princess a few weeks ago and there were a few arts and crafts activities...two watercolor events, card making, and box making. They weren’t really classes but supplied the materials.

We were in Copenhagen a couple weeks ago and did a Best of Copenhagen tour. We had just under two hours to spend in Tivoli but were able to walk around the entire park. We weren't interested in the rides but they looked nice and lines weren't long at all. We were there during the daytime but I'm sure it looks pretty at night. Since we had limited time we just had fish and chips at a food booth instead of going to a sit down restaurant. The restaurants looked good. You might want to look them up online and make a reservation.