boomerone

I booked the flights from BA to Iguazu Puerto with Latam Airlines for next January - no problem booking on their website.

Following disembarkation in Buenos Aires we took a cab to the domestic airport flew with LAN (now LATAM) to Puerto Iguazu booked a hotel (Cataratas) near the front gate to the Argentinian side of the Falls, stayed overnight, toured the Falls on our own the following day (including the upper and lower walks and the large 30+passenger zodiac boat to the base of the Falls), returned to the hotel for a second night and caught a cab back to the airport. Enjoyed two very special dinners at Aqva in town and saved close to $2500 over what the cruise line was charging for their post cruise excursion to Iguazu.

I like to sail on Princess, but it appears they do not have a cruise for the Galapagos Islands. Which cruise line have you used for Galapagos?

 

 

Thanks.

After two fantastic (albeit a little more expensive but well worth it) expedition cruises with Silversea to Antarctica (Prince Albert II) and the Arctic (Silver Explorer) we wanted to go to the Galapagos but alas at the time Silversea had no itineraries there and we went with Celebrity Xpedition. Silversea now has Galapagos expeditions and I would recommend them based on our two sailings with them. The shore excursion guides with Celebrity were absolutely wonderful as they were contracted employees who grew up in the Galapagos but found the dining, cabin accommodations, overall service, and interest exhibited by the Celebrity employees to be well below what we had experienced with Silversea. We found the 7 day Galapagos experience with Celebrity to be about two days too long. We arranged our follow-on visit to Cusco and Machu Picchu on our own (very easy to do our air, lodging in a great B&B, touring arranged by the B&B) and saved close to $2500 from what Celebrity was going to charge us. We met folks on the land portion of our holiday who were on the Xpedition with us and learned found they weren't too excited about their land tour.

just off Ruby on B2B2B, two pop choir events both using music from "Grease", sadly poor participation (most from rehearsal one really didn't like the music choice...I bailed on these) and reception from the audiences. Sang in another two pop choirs using songs listed in post 10 and almost 90 participated in the first one and nearly 45 in the second. What a fun time we had! Also did a Christmas season pop choir that was a lot of fun as well performing on the Big Stage and not in the Piazza.

This is not true. I booked in the USA from my travel agent and it was $2,000 more for a 14 day cruise for an inside cabin. I also checked on the Princess website and the cost was even more. I cancelled the cruise...booked with an Australian agent and saved $2,000 and now I don't have to pay gratuities so the savings is even more

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Hello wadswatcher---I read your post regarding booking with an Australian agent but I'm wondering how you did that. I tried but was told since I was booking the trip from a location in the USA I could not go through a foreign TA. Were you overseas when you booked? Was someone hoodwinking me? We ended up booking the trip we wanted to take from a USA TA and later learned the Aussies we are making the trip with paid Princess much less for the same cabin category as ours. I was also told that gratuities were not factored into the price we paid in the USA and we would find those automatically added to our onboard account.

I just learned that the silver and gold wine packages I have purchased on most of our Princess sailings are not available on the Sun Princess (or the Dawn or the Sea). Bummer! Does anyone have a sample wine list with costs or any recent info on wine choices onboard for me to peruse? Thanks in advance!

So glad I went to the Tattoo 33 years ago during my stint with the Royal Air Force. It was a memory for a lifetime. Back then the coolest part of the Tattoo was three teams representing the branches of service each firing a big 1700's era cannon, breaking down the cannon, hoisting all the pieces (and themselves) across a simulated river (two walls perhaps 5 meters apart), reassembling the cannon, and then firing it again. The event was timed and the team with the shortest cumulative time over the duration of the Tattoo won the trophy at the final performance. Absolutely breathtaking but I do not believe they still do this event. I'd go again in a heartbeat regardless of the weather.

Heads up Sip and Sail'ers::::Beware when booking a cruise with this amenity package. Buried in the legalese is a statement that the promotion may be capacity controlled meaning once a specified number of cruisers take advantage of the promotion it can go away even if Princess is still advertising the promotion for the remainder of their sailings. This happened to me for a cruise I was booking (a sailing 9 months down the road and well inside the time limits for the promotion) and it wasn't until I noted that we had been automatically downgraded to the all inclusive soda package instead of AIBP that I was made aware of the legalese. Thankfully the Princess customer service rep came through in the clutch. If you want the AIBP make certain it is still available for the sailing you are interested in and have your TA or Princess rep double verify that it is still available and you get that verification in writing.

Hi All

We are doing a cruise tour to Alasaka starting August 1, 2017 on the Star Princess.

 

I read that the Emerald deck is covered above so it is a good choice for Alaska. The only cabins that I see available are E 208/206/204 or 202...there are also two cabins available on the very back of the ship.

 

The deck plan shows a walk way ... is the walk way in front of the balcony or is it below?

 

What do you think about the two cabins at the rear of the ship on the Emerald deck?

 

all the the mentioned cabins are labeled premium balcony...not sure what that means.

 

HELP! There are two couples going and this is all my responsibility. I'm a wreck....

The eight BF category cabins on Emerald Deck forward on the Grand, Golden, and Star Princess are phenomenal deals. Privacy is not an issue if you are seated on the spacious covered balcony and there is room to spare even with 5 people on it. If standing at the balcony railing you will be able to say hello to those passing by on the promenade deck and they will likely envy you for choosing that cabin location. A walker would have to be 7 ft+ to peer over the railing into your space. Deck motion has never been a problem for us in the numerous times we've booked this cabin location. There is a chance you might hear some noise from the Princess Theatre during shows or rehearsals but unless you take afternoon naps or go to bed early when the stages shows are conducted you won't be bothered at all by noise. Try it you'll love it.

Pacific Princess 22 September sailing: Istanbul just got cancelled and itinerary rearranged to 27 Sep=at sea, 28 Sep=Corfu, 29 Sep=Kotor, 30 Sep=Dubrovnik. All other port visits and dates unchanged.

So, what, we should have rules against anything that bothers others? I'm bothered by speedos. Make them not allowed. I'm bothered by whiney girls who talk in that annoying drawn out, sing-songy nasally voice- let's have a curfew! I don't like women who wear too tight clothes at 250 lbs- let's make them be in by 12 so I don't have to look at them.

 

I prefer to parent as I see fit. Not have someone else (a cruise line I am paying) tell me what time my teen has to stop socializing.

Don't mean to be snarky and you hopefully are decent parents but here's a gentle reminder. "What goes around comes around" and even in the best of households if attitudes toward giving kids too much freedom are not adjusted certain parents could find their kids and themselves in peril. I certainly hope this will not be the case for you but it gets proven every day that too many parents who like to give their kids an unrealistic amount of "space" learn this lesson too late. Kids are kids and by nature of limited life experience they are prone to making bad decisions, even the so-called "good kids" who, without limits being imposed, can dig immense holes for themselves that will changes their lives (and the lives of conscientious parents as well) forever. Didn't Crosby, Stills, and Nash write a song about "teach your children well"? Raising children is difficult, especially in our overly permissive society that seems to have forgotten what accountability is, and I wish you the best of luck.

You are kidding, right? You don't think that there should be some limits on the activities of children?

 

:eek:

As grandparent to 14 and 17 year old good looking, popular, All-American, scholarly, athletic boys I concur with you. They will be under our imposed curfew when we sail with them in the near future. Not much good happens after midnight (we've taught the boys this reality) anywhere and a cruise ship is no different. It seems that a large number of "parents" are quite willing to abdicate their parental responsibilities to the ship. In the sad situation where something went wrong with their youngsters (especially females) I'm sure they would be the first to run to an attorney. Enforce the curfew and require the parents to sign waivers if something bad happens to their teenagers after 1 am they will not hold the cruise line responsible.

I have a question for those of you you have been to Berlin with Viking. I'm on the June 27th cruise and will be visiting Berlin on July 5th. I've arranged a private guide in Berlin, so all I need is the complimentary Viking transfer to and from Berlin. I've been trying (through my TA) to have Viking advise when and where they leave you for the "Berlin on Your Own" tour - I'd like to tell the guide where to meet us, and at what time. The Viking Star has completed two cruises that included Berlin on the itinerary and is now on its 3rd cruise with that itinerary (I'll be on the 4th). So the Berlin transfer has been done at least twice already, possibly a 3rd time. But Viking cannot provide any details to my TA. I can wait until I am on board and check with the Shore Excursion desk early in the cruise, then notify the guide. But if anyone has made the trip to Berlin with Viking, I'd appreciate any details you can share regarding the logistics.

Thanks,

Gerry

I like the train idea, never thought of that myself. If you are going to be visiting Berlin for the first and perhaps only time by all means do it but be prepared for a long day on the bus. I suggested to VOC on our post-cruise critique that if they wanted to enhance the visit to Berlin they should spend two nights in Warnemunde and allow passengers to remain in Berlin overnight in order to allot a more reasonable time to see that magnificent city. 3-4 hours is simply not adequate to witness all there is to see in Berlin. The Checkpoint Charlie Museum (allow 90-120 minutes minimum), Treptow Memorial Park, and the boat ride on the Spree River are "must-do's and I doubt one can do those in the short time allotted to the tour. Plus, one would miss all the other sights in the city. I contend that the port visit to Gdansk could be sacrificed in order to see more of Berlin. If you've been there before or intend to go back at some other time (ie. for the pre sail portion of "Elegant Elbe" with the Viking river cruise division) I can strongly recommend the optional excursion to Rostock. We did that one and it was wonderful. A small group (16) had the river boat all to ourselves as we glided down the river passing a shipyard where we could see at least two Viking longships under construction and the old Russian Navy yard. The guided tour in Rostock was enjoyable and informative. Our guide was stellar. We visited a small restaurant with its own onsite micro-brewery and sampled two types of excellent beer accompanied by pretzels and mustard and sausage with the sweetest sauerkraut I've ever tasted. We returned to the ship in Warnemunde with lots of time to take a leisurely stroll through the entire town, out to the picturesque coast (and entrance to the port), down the sandy beach, and we even had time for my wife to get her hair cut at a very reasonably priced and quite professional hair salon. BTW, when in Berlin don't miss the opportunity to try the famous curry wurst. Enjoy!

Help!!!!!

I have been following this thread with great interest as Janie and I will be embarking in Bergen on May 16. I have tried numerous times to nail down the time the Viking Star christening ceremony will occur. Sadly, Viking agents at their telephone reservation center and at the customer service number have either expressed no knowledge of the ceremony or simply cannot answer the question. My latest correspondence from Viking tells me the ceremony is scheduled for 10pm---that's right, 10pm---on the night of the 16 May. Is it just me thinking this is a nutty time for such a big deal or are you folks in disbelief as well? The Viking Ocean Cruises website says it will be on the 17th in conjunction with Norway's Constitution Day. Inside of a week of this event I would think everyone at Viking would have a handle on the ceremony.

Thanks to all of you who have been so nice to distribute good info on the new ship. See you soon! John and Janie

Sailed on Sapphire in January in southeast Asia and was shocked to see the outrageous prices ($350-400 USD for a shirt or windbreaker) and woeful inventory (mostly small sizes) for most of the clothing items in the boutiques. Strolled through on day one and didn't go back. Princess is obviously catering to their cashed up Chinese, Japanese, and Russian clients. Would not want to be a sales clerk in the boutiques as very few folks were in the shops. I've heard the Diamond has done the same thing. Hopefully the other ships won't have the same high prices and poor inventories.

Sign me up for a British Isles cruise, please.. :D

We booked B2B2B Rome to Rome on Pacific thinking it would be great to steer clear of 2500-3000+ fellow adventurers. Making the most out of our frequent flyer tickets.

Please could you tell me which toiletries we will receive as Elite. I will need to start packing soon and would like to know whether I should pack shampoo, conditioner, body lotions etc.

 

Thank you.

We have noted a bit of a downgrade in the Elite bath amenities lately. You'll get the shampoo and shower gel in a big dispenser in the shower and I do not think it is as good as they used to be in the tiny containers. My wife said the shampoo left her hair feeling dry and not as clean as it was before. She'll be taking her own shampoo and conditioner with her on future cruises. I'm hair challenged so it doesn't matter to me. The rest of the Lotus Spa amenities package is relatively unchanged. Safe (and squeaky clean) journeys!

I imagine I am in the minority, but I don't think this thread ever needed to be started. All it accomplished was to get some people needlessly worried and upset. I can't imagine rushing to the computer to report on an ongoing event without knowing the facts. As it turned out, these were minor events that were dealt with appropriately and didn't need to be posted and discussed all over the internet.

 

I trust Princess to ensure the safety of their passengers and will continue to have faith until something happens to belie that trust. It hasn't happened in the 12 years I have been sailing on Princess.

 

BTW, we sail on the Emerald in four weeks from Southampton to Houston.

billco--Well said!!! Concur with you 100%. We've been cruising with Princess since '79 and have never had a situation which merited the commotion this "mountain out of a molehill" thread caused. We trust Princess to handle any glitch professionally if one should occur. We had a saying in the Navy when I was flying that whenever something went cuckoo the first step would be to "wind the clock" implying one should take a breath, analyze the situation and don't make it worse by shooting from the hip. I think we had some "ready, shoot, aim" reactions here.

Boomerone,

 

Good for you, I am glad I am not the only one. Another thing that galls me are the people that stroll into the theater 15 minutes after the show starts and hunt for seats and talk to each other about where to sit, bothering everyone else who showed up ontime and WERE enjoying the performance.

 

Or the ones that get a seat in the middle of the row and after 15 or 20 minutes get up and bother everyone and decide to leave.

 

No manners at all. They can't even wait for a break in the performance. Nope, it is all about Me.

 

Also if you are attending. STHU, that is not the time to talk to your bestest girl friend about what you had for dinner or what you are going to do tomorrow.

aaerobear---It is sad to see our increasingly inconsiderate society where common sense is an uncommon virtue mirrored on cruise ships where people should be more laid back and respectful of others who are enjoying their mutual break from the mayhem of everyday life. I love it when a performer "goes after" a latecomer who is interrupting his/her show. How about those who arrive first in the theatres and lounges and sit in the seats on the end of a row and then grumble and roll eyes and huff and puff when you ask to pass by? Also, what's with those who get up as soon as the final number is performed and climb over others who are applauding the performance? Why do so many fail to show appreciation for the work done by the dancers, singers, and other performers? Why do some refuse to lift their seats and leave their drink glasses on the floor by their seat so others can trip over or step on them as they exit? Couldn't Princess add a sentence to their pre-show "use of pyrotechnics and strobe lighting" announcement that asks people to take their glassware out of the theatre and raise their seats when the show is over? There should be a pill for the "ME, ME, ME" people.

I've been on cruises where the forward thinking cruise director staff member who is going to introduce the show steps up a couple minutes before the curtain rises and asks people to slide over and fill in vacant seats near the center of the rows so others can get in easier. I'd like to see Princess close the doors as the show starts to keep the slowpokes out. Having had a doofus stumble over me when he arrived late I must say it is very dangerous for all concerned to allow people to enter a darkened theatre, especially those who refuse to let their eyes adjust to the darkness.

Cruisers who abuse crew members deserve the same in return.

 

Treat the crew members as you would like to be treated, and your cruise experience will be far better than if you "grump" around and complain all the time.

Idaho Cruises---Well Said! Sadly, there are some who seem happiest when they are being a pain in the butt to someone else.

Of all the companies listed, how many will give you a monetary "reward" other than a refund when you return something? A hotel may give you a voucher for a future stay (princess will do the same at times) Most of the listed companies take the returned product and simply give you a refund.

 

The "trick" of a voucher is that you have to spend more money and return to the merchant (hotels, airlines, cruiselines)to use your voucher. Hence they get their money back and it costs them nothing.

 

I stood in the elite line on a Princess cruise earlier this year to change some money. I was number three in line. Just as I was about to be helped a passenger in a wheelchair rolled up and started to complain that he had been waiting for over 15 minutes to be waited on and that he was not going to be treated this way by incompetent uncaring imbeciles. He demanded to see the PSM. Well I had seen him and his wife roll up just as I was stepping up to the counter, so I knew he was lying through his teeth. I turned to him and said. "You sir are a blatant liar and have just arrived at the desk, get back in line and wait your turn. Try to learn some manners while you wait!!" He was about to respond when his wife rolled the chair away and disappeared.

 

I felt good after that and got a very big smile from the folks behind the desk.

aaerobear----Good on you! A jerk is a jerk is a jerk regardless of his/her physical capabilities. I do not consider myself to be a manners enforcer policeman. I too have respectfully given a piece of my mind to manners challenged offenders (chair hogs, line jumpers, verbal abusers of crew members, elevator shovers, slobs who leave glasses and dishware on the Promenade deck and in stairwells) without reservation. I just got off the Grand Princess which had an unbelievably good string quartet playing in the Piazza almost daily. The Piazza is not a great venue for this type of entertainment and I have left numerous comments over the years asking Princess to consider moving string quartets to a less noisy spot. Three loud mouthed women and one Casper Milquetoast husband sauntered into the front row of the Piazza mid performance and started conversing loudly on a variety of inane topics completely inappropriate to the setting. I glared at them for awhile and the man noticed my obvious disdain for their rude behavior but he accepted their conduct and said nothing to the women. A few more minutes passed and I quietly took the blabbermouths to task in a voice just loud enough only they could hear. They apologized to me and within a minute or so departed with Mr. Spineless in tow. They needed to apologize to all of us in attendance and also to the performers. Bottom line, if more of the silent majority respectfully asked offenders in any venue to cease their rudeness we would see less bad passenger behavior. Cruise lines also need to remove offenders from their ships at the first opportunity and refuse to allow offenders to return in the future. Wouldn't it be nice if all the cruise lines got together and issued a "No Cruise" list?

Joe May was incredibly gifted and greatly enhanced our South America cruise experiences. Our condolences to his family. Our fondest memory of Joe (aside from his awesome port lectures) was his excitement on the day we circled Cape Horn. The sea conditions were absolutely perfect and the Captain was able to get as close to the Cape as legally possible. We could see the albatross sculpture without binoculars. Joe was literally begging passengers to wake up family members and neighbors so they could see the sight. He said he could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times the weather and sea state were as cruiser friendly and on that particular sailing he was on his 109th voyage around the Cape. Rest in peace Joe, it's going to be difficult to replace you.

On Crown Princess in 2013 the cruise staff had a hunt for a stuffed bat and spider which they hid around the ship for a three day period. If you spotted either of the two you would write its location and date on a piece of paper and turn it in to the library staff. The prize was not announced prior to the event. When it was over a winner was chosen from those who found the bat and/or spider during the 3 days. There was a new location for each every day during the contest. During my walkabouts I searched for them and managed to find both each day. They were not easy to spot and I got no help from the crew. One of my papers came out of the pot so I won and received lots of goodies including a shopping bag, shirt, all kinds of prizes similar to what is awarded at trivia games (water bottle, magnets, lanyards, passport bag, etc), a very generous spa certificate, bingo card, and a bottle of bubbly. Good fun!

Martyjac---Your itinerary keeps you out of medevac range for several days in both directions should complications develop. You might be denied boarding if you tell Princess what your medical issues are and that would be awkward for all concerned. If you have purchased trip insurance I would check to see if you would still be covered as your cyst issue could be considered a pre-existing condition. Two medical professionals and a fire department EMT are in our family and they all would recommend you cancel the cruise, allow yourself time to heal, rebook and enjoy your next cruise without the anxiety of possible further medical trouble and the potential huge medical expense hanging over your head.

We stayed in cabin 6090 several years ago on a Tahiti cruise. Great location, great views, fantastic spot for sailaways, didn't mind the construction of the bulkhead, but it got mighty hot out there in the afternoon especially when facing the sun. However, the cabin apparently was at the end of the airconditioning run and we got no cold air into our cabin. Something was wrong with the blowers and/or neighbors had their balcony doors open and all the cold air was sucked out of the system before it reached our room. Princess engineers tried to fix it 3 times but didn't have any luck. It was 85F or above in the cabin most nights. Certainly it's fixed by now! Still, we had a great time and would book this cabin again. Enjoy!

What fun! Kelly (from Canada and a music major), a member of the Cruise Director's staff, was our choir leader on the Crown last Fall on the Canary Islands cruise. About 65 of us had a blast and it didn't matter that a few of us sang in the key of "OFF". On the following transatlantic voyage we had close to 100 singers and again some of us were a bit singing challenged but nobody cared as there was strength in numbers. We packed the atrium on both sailings. Can't wait to join in the fun again on the Emerald in April...hope we get to sing some new songs.