cruisequeen4ever

My in-laws are extremely picky and liked it so much that they ate there every night they could on their cruise. We were dying to try it as a result and were less than impressed with our experience to the point where we have no interest in returning. Our experience seems to be in the minority though. I have seen so many people rave about it on here. 

My best friend had this happen to her on multiple occasions, one Princess  cruise. The steward repeatedly would just barge in. Several times, we’ve had one do a quick three knock and immediately open the door before you could even have a chance to say someone’s in here. There should be better training about this for the stewards.

It’s really a shame that not all cruise lines and not all ships accommodate wheelchairs and mobility scooters on tenders. It seems like the newer ships are more accessible, at least on some other cruise lines.

7 hours ago, Guindalf said:

 

My handicapped experience with the two cruise lines is just about identical, with Celebrity having the edge, if only for the automatic room door. This has been a feature on the two accessible suites we've had in the past and, although we loved the medallion (once we got used to the 'creepy' factor!), there was no automatic door in our suite this trip.

 

My comments have pretty much all been based on excursions, which are not cruise-line exclusive.

Aw yes, I do remember how handy the auto door was on Celebrity and did mention to my hubby that that was the one thing Celebrity had that I missed between the 2 rooms. 

On 9/13/2023 at 1:52 PM, Guindalf said:

Day Four: Supplemental - Endecott Arm and Dawes Glacier

 

We entered the Arm at 5:00am and on to a (distant) view of a small-ish glacier. A late-sleeper could easily have missed it all! After our first trip to Glacier Bay in 2009 and the Hubbard Glacier in 2019, not to mention the Misty Fjords earlier in this trip, I have to say this was underwhelming.

 

I'll just leave that there.

 

Day Five: Skagway.

 

We had an early afternoon booking for the train, which is a must-do for anyone visiting for the first time. However, this was our second ride on the White Pass and Yukon Rail Road, the first being back in 2009. The accessible version was sold out, so we booked the regular trip, knowing I could leave the scooter there and walk the few steps into the carriage. However, there was plenty of space and I was easily accommodated. It was a little funny when a group of people decided they were going to take seats in the handicap coach and were quickly hurried out!

 

The communications have (obviously) been upgraded since 2009 and the commentary was excellent - much clearer than the first trip. Last time, we disembarked the train in Carcross and bussed back to the ship. This tour did a loop at the top and came back, so it didn't matter which side you chose to sit on, you were able to see everything. Some of the stories of endurance for very little reward were stunning, not to mention those who perished.

 

There was a shuttle running the 7/10ths of a mile from the ship along the pier due to two landslides. these were provided free of charge and were able to accommodate the scooter.

 

I will have more to say about handicapped cruising and the differences between the two lines at the end of the review. Save to say, one experience outweighs the other by a LONG way, including some minor differences.

 

(Gotcha now 🙂 You have to read to the end!).

 

 

You definitely have me curious as my handicapped experiences with the 2 lines also varied greatly, and for me, Princess was light years more accommodating. 

I really like the Medallion system. Sure, there are some tech glitches and frustrations, and I can totally see how it would be challenging for some to use, but it is ultra convenient for me. I love ordering drinks with my phone exactly when I want to instead of having to wait to hope for a waiter to see me trying to get his attention. Now when my drink has an attempted delivery one deck down while I’m watching from above in the Piazza, that’s another story. 🤦‍♀️

6 hours ago, SCX22 said:

 

Just chiming in...

I would say X's target is Gen X and older Millennials.  Depending on the time of year and itinerary, it may sway older, but not like Princess.

 

I'm in my mid-30s and love X; I loved X in my 20s.  It's hip but still has what someone is looking for in traditional cruising.  (If you're at all into flying, X is like Virgin Atlantic and Princess is like British Airways.)  Their ships are more contemporary; they have refurbished their old fleet to reflect the times, unlike Princess' Grand Class ships while still in good condition feel dated.  I much prefer the performers and shows on X; it's more my genre.  Post-pandemic, the front line crew on X  that interact with passengers is more put together--or they know how to fake it until they make it.  The post-pandemic crew on Princess seem overworked and unsure of what they are doing.  Pre-pandemic, their crews were on par with each other.  I think X is really deserving of the accolade that they recently received from Forbes.

 

I agree that X's prices post-restart period are becoming outrageous.  If you want to go on longer cruises and/or more cruises Princess still takes the cake, but there is a little bit of sacrificing to do.  For us, X is now a treat, and Princess is everyday fare.  Still recommend X for Galapagos cruises, regardless of price.

Your depiction of the post-pandemic crew situation was worded so well. Pre-pandemic, each cruise line had their own dedicated crew, and that resulted in uniformed service. Post-pandemic, every cruise line took what they could get, and that has resulted in a mish mash experience. For instance, I now see Celebrity style desserts in the IC on Princess. A bartender didn’t know what I meant by a Lava Flow despite having ordered them for years on Princess and said on his previous ship on Royal Caribbean, they called it a Miami Vice. Several cruise directions came from Celebrity and are now on Princess. The attitudes of many are different because they’re used to different expectations. It’s just an overall different experience. 
 

I also have to agree that Celebrity’s post-pandemic crew acts more put-together. 
 

I miss the old days, but having done 2 Princess cruises and 1 Celebrity cruise this year, Princess still remains my favorite.

I say go with Princess because you will still have access to loads of activities but without the multitude of kids. You can be as busy or as relaxed as you wish on Princess. There are game shows, trivia, crafts, shows, and bingo throughout every day. The only thing I can think of that you won’t have is waterslides.

I agree; that’s definitely not the strength of Celebrity. We had a great comedian and a really fun guest entertainer boy band impersonation show, but the regular Celebrity cast shows just don’t usually makes.

Im not surprised, given that they gave so many away as casino cruises. 

I can try to answer some of that, not from personal experience having it but from witnessing those who did have it. Please note, this was from pre-pandemic, so things may have changed.

For dinner, Princess let them choose an appetizer, entree, and dessert from any of the options at any of the restaurants on property. I’m not sure if no alcoholic beverages were included. I saw them getting crab and halibut, so you really can choose anything. For breakfast, they had a full buffet that only they could have. Those who didn't have the meal package needed to order off the regular menu. 
 

I live in Alaska, and our food prices are exorbitant, wherever you choose to eat. Yes, the meal plan is expensive,  but I consider it be a strong value and a great amount of convenience to be able to start and end your long touring days with filling, quality Alaskan food. 

I forgot to take mine off when I went swimming one time, and it still worked. I always try to remember to take it off to be safe, though.

It seems like they either stay the same price or go up closer to the sail date and once onboard. 

I live in Anchorage, and the local news

reports are vague. It does seem like the real problem is being kept hush hush. Who knows though. I hope all the pax affected were able to at best, get on a Princess ship Saturday or a Holland America ship Sunday to sail south or at least enjoy a few days of Alaska over the weekend before flying home. 

Your food situation was really bad, yet you maintained such a positive attitude about the trip. It’s hard sometimes to see the good when there’s constant bad, so I’m 

glad you didn’t let the food taint your opinion of the ports and experiences.

I can’t imagine the stress of coming home to the pipe emergency, and even then, you maintained a positive attitude. Kudos!! Can’t wait to read about your next adventure! 

On 8/24/2023 at 3:45 PM, YVRteacher said:

I got the job!!! It’s my dream job! I was so happy when I found out I cried. The interview was 45 minutes and was intense.

 

I’m still a teacher librarian (yay!) and in the new position at a new school I won’t be doing all the primary literacy groups, intermediate literacy groups and personal interest project groups I was doing at my previous school. I’ll be able to focus on kids and books! The school has more than double the size of student population and is in a great location. 

You really lucked out with that! At my former school, the librarian led all those same types of groups, was then eventually cut to half time and got fed up and retired. Education has changed so much. 

Sounds like Royal Caribbean was more than generous with the cruisers who had an extended cruise due to the hurricane.

We ate at Catch on the Enchanted last month and we’re very letdown. The food was frankly not as good as the MDR or buffet. 

15 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

That’s interesting because several tour guides in different ports have told us there was free medical and dental care. I wonder why they said that?

 

Where in Alaska do you live?

 

I still need to finish this review.

I live in Anchorage, the largest city in Alaska. We are unfortunately actually known to have outrageously expensive medical costs. 
 

My guess is that either those tour guides are all Alaska Native, so they’re used to receiving free healthcare, or they’re from out of state and don’t understand that Alaska Natives get free healthcare but not any other residents. 

Yvonne, I absolutely adore your blogs. Your adventures with your dad (and without) are so entertaining. 
 

As an Alaskan, I do need to correct one fact, though. We do not receive free medical or free dental for living in Alaska or for being born in Alaska. Only indigenous Alaskans aka Native Alaskans receive free medical care. 
 

Your peach and blueberries story made me want ice cream with fresh fruit!  Our produce can be pretty sad unless it’s locally grown in the summer months, so one of the things we look forward to the most on cruises is all of the awesome fresh fruit! 
 

I thoroughly enjoyed this, as I do all of your cruise blogs. We enjoyed visiting your lovely country on a Baltic cruise just before the pandemic. 😀 Happy cruising to you!

The European land tours are always exorbitantly expensive. The only real reasons to do one are if you’re a lady traveling alone or if you want someone else to take care of everything for you along the way. Otherwise, save a ton of money, and DIY. 

We were midship, so we chose one of the midship dining rooms, and we were happy with it. When we did chef’s table, it was held at the aft dining room, and it was nice, too. It just would’ve been inconvenient to go there each night as you have to cross a deck all the way aft, and then go all the way down. The elevators are smaller in the aft, and there was quite a wait for an elevator after dinner.

We cruised out of Barcelona on the Enchanted last month, and I’m sorry I can’t remember the designations of different lines. I can say, however, that there was little to no line in in any of them when we arrived at 10:45 AM. We are elite, so we were able to walk right on after checking in. I’m going through security. It looks like the regular line was about to start being released board also.
 

Just make sure that you download them prior to leaving the ship because if I remember correctly, when we were on the Enchanted last month, once we got into port, the app would not let us view them, unless we had downloaded them. OP, your idea of printing them is great, since Princess no longer does this for us.