mariakitty

We are on the Grand doing a 7 day California Coastal. Yesterday we were in Ensenada our only foreign port. As I write this we are loaded into the Long Beach terminal waiting for full customs inspection to be complete so not exactly the way I intended to spend my morning. We weren't aware of this until yesterday and after taking 10+ cruises we have never had to do this. It occurred to us that we probably never visited US ports at the end of a cruise. Believe me we will be more diligent in selecting itineraries after this as this isn't exactly how we like spending our precious cruise time. :) i know this has nothing to do with Princess though perhaps they could be more particular about the order of ports to prevent this in the future.

It still beats not being on a cruise!

We are on the Grand with my mom and brother. Brother bought the package but mom did not (they share a cabin). For those worried about princess getting taken advantage of, don't. You can only buy one drink at a time and bottled beverages are opened by the bartender. To buy drinks for others would be a lot of work.

Thanks for posting another thread about the Grand! We will board on the 15th and it was good to hear you had smooth boarding experience. We plan to arrive by 11am so fingers crossed we get onboard noonish.

I am disappointed about the price hike in the sanctuary. I haven't been yet so I planned to to time, but now I'm not so sure. The priciest so high that I couldn't go, it just gives me pause. I look forward to your review of the sanctuary. :)

What an enjoyable thread! We will be on the Grand on the 15th. I was vey excited to hear Crab Shack is now on the Grand. Is the pub lunch being served on sea days? My husband would love fish & chips with a pint of Guinness. :)

Enjoy your cruise!

I'm in panic mode. We sail the Grand next Saturday 3/15/14, driving down from southern Oregon. The plan was to drive down, stay in Berkeley Friday night and park at the 55francisco garage for the duration of the cruise. Now the garage is full and will not accept new reservations. I didn't book earlier because of my disabled mother, but now I am kicking myself. Airfare for 4 is going to run $2000 so we would rather drive.

Can anyone recommend alternative parking options? Park and stay hotels? Since we are coming from the north we don't want to stay near the airport since that is an hour out of the way. Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated. :)

I got this right from Princess. I called them earlier in the week and I simply didn't believe the agent so I checked princess.com and the available balcony cabins that I checked say "Special Notes: NO NIGHTSTANDS". I can probably live without a nightstand, but I'm a nighttime reader and I like to have my clock, Kindle, etc. within easy reach. :)

We are in the process of selecting cabins for a family cruise to Alaska in June 2014. We are looking at the Grand 7-day Inside Passage to Tracy Arm and there will be at least 8 family members going. My immediate family including my husband and two boys (9 and 11) will be in one cabin. We would like a balcony but we are running into the issue of "No Nightstands" in the cabin. What is up with that? This seems strange to me and I've never heard of this on Princess before. For what we will be paying for a cabin I do feel a nightstand would be appropriate. :)

We are fairly price sensitive due to taking our boys at the height of the Alaska season. My husband wants an inside and I want a mini, so the balcony was sort of a compromise. Has anyone had a cabin on the Grand without a nighstand? Was this a problem for you? Am I wrong that this feels like a cheapening of cabin amenities? Maybe I'm spoiled - I've never cruised Alaska without a mini-suite so I'm feeling like we will feel like sardines in such a small cabin.

~Maria