Happiest when cruising

Yes, I realize that it is a short distance away. I was wondering if you park your car( if you drove), then how do you get the venue? I wondered what time it opened? Could you feasibly get off a red eye and go there?

What time did it open? It would be great for those with an early flight arrival. What if you had driven to the port? Did you have to walk from the parking lot?

Sadly, we didn’t book it. I was just checking to see if it was something I could make work. That was an inside cabin with standard pricing, at 7K which would already be pushing my vacation budget. Of course, adding on those flights and hotels would make it over 10K. That’s without any kind of bundle or adding Internet and gratuities. So, hopefully I can forgive myself.

I’d love to know what the price was before the press release. It’s now a ridiculous price for a forward inside cabin. Canadian dollars, as that’s where I live.

Have you ever had lunch or anything at Iguana Joes? It’s a fun way to start or finish a day there. If you ever want a beach day and evening, Reflexions Beach Club is a short cab ride away and so beautiful. They have a very nice restaurant and when the ship departs late, you can enjoy a sunset dinner right at the beach.

We also went on this tour. It was nice, but at the time, I had a foot injury that was causing me some trouble on the boat. Just having to go up and down the steps was troublesome. I would not recommend this excursion for anyone with mobility issues. I ended up mostly just sitting in the shade where the bar was and where the provided snacks were. They actually used that narrow ledge behind our heads for that. It was still fun, but I felt we could have stayed on the ship and spent the money on a balcony dinner or a nice window table in the MDR. You can see from these pictures that it was also a bit crowded.

Hmm. I’m not even sure we pay tax on coffee in Canada. It’s also very rare that I purchase it at a restaurant or get one at a fast food or drive though type place. I just enjoy my coffee at home in the morning, for the most part. I just fill up my travel mug and take it with me, if I have an early start. I plan to purchase my one large coffee on board in the morning, and pour it into my own cup. If by chance the coffee in the buffet and MDR is drinkable this time, even better. I’ll enjoy the fancy coffee, instead of a dessert later in the day. Will we be seeing you on the Crown next week?

I’ve been searching through all the posts that show the breakfast at IC. I was hoping to see the apple turnovers. On our last cruise in September I asked about them, and was told they were discontinued, but I was hoping it was just on the Discovery. Looks like my husband will have to find a new favourite. Thanks for showing us Barbados, it always brings us right back there in our minds. We love it there.

Haha..something went very wrong there. Although I would like it, as I don’t care it the other way, so I would have been thrilled. I imagine it would have been a bit salty, though. Maybe since it was not on the menu they just improvised…and I might even ask for it to be served that way next week.

Thanks so much for the review. We leave next week for Hawaii on the Crown.

It’s all good, cruising is something we enjoy and just have to deal with it as it comes. I tuck away as much USD as I can during the year and have a USD bank account and credit card. My husband is better at just forgetting about it it and thinking USD once we are away. I am an old banker and my mind automatically still converts it, at the time I make a purchase. Then I have to decide if it’s worth it, that goes the same for excursions and any shopping we might do while we are away. These days, I definitely think twice about purchases. I also remember when the exchange was even higher than today.

That would probably be me..and it is. 5.00 for the blended, which is what I am most interested in.

I believe it was me that said up to 5.00 for the coffee that I like. I stick to my word and see I was correct for my favourite fancy coffee drinks. I don’t care how much the tea is, as I don’t really care for it. I do also like a large fresh brewed coffee in the morning, which is a reasonable price. Of course..they are adding on 18% for the gratuities on top of that. I won’t go into how I also need to add on about 38% to my final cost as I am Canadian. So…approximately 8.15 for my daily fix of a fun coffee drink. It’s easy to see why I will miss being able to use the old “coffee card” system and how I’m a little sad that I won’t be able to change out the mini bar, since it was finally going to be available to me in the next couple of weeks. But…time goes on and things change, I’m still going to have a great time.

Well, there are no paper napkins at any buffet, that I have noticed. The v can both o Ed would be too large and probably dip into the food. Another yucky situation. I think we all just have to do our best to think of others. I am pretty careful if we do end up at the buffet. We typically take our meals in the MDR, when we can.

I don’t think they meant table service, just the food served onto your plate by the crew. The individual cups of veggies and single plated desserts, that kind of thing. In other words..passengers don’t touch the tongs. We got to cruise like that last fall, and I liked it.

Thanks for writing about this cruise. We did it last year and have it booked again for next year!

Sure…there might be a few, just like those that might have been on a land vacation pre cruise. I am talking about the braggers who just feel it was a perk, so they want to get everything they can out of it.

You would leave it to do yourself at home, not send it out onboard at the end of the cruise. I do understand many long voyages where it makes sense to send it out midway, or something. At the end, just so you don’t have to do it when you get home seems unfair.

Haha… I’m guessing most people don’t care that much.

I have found it interesting to read about the free laundry. People actually send it out towards the end of their cruise, so they go home with all clean laundry. I don’t think that was the original intent of the perk. Sometimes…we have created our own problems.

It doesn’t sound grumbly at all. It sounds honest. When we board the Crown next week, I will have my eyes wide open because of your review. I do understand things don’t always go well, but I do reserve my 10’s for only the best. I feel bad for the crew having to wear those silly hats, too. Edited to add that seems that it’s looking like those hats are something you might see on a Carnival cruise. I’ve seen more pictures in the last couple of months with people showing off their towel animals, too. I think over the 17 years we’ve cruised with Princess, we had one, and it was our 25th Anniversary. I don’t love them, and would rather the crew get those extra few minutes off just to relax or do something they enjoy..like a nap.

I’m also Canadian, and I won’t be booking with any packages either. I can’t imagine spending that kind of money for 7 days. I try to think like I was at home. Would I be willing to spend that much on having coffee out somewhere? I have no problem paying for my morning coffee at the IC. It’s pretty good and only a couple of dollars, or so. I am with you on all those sugary drinks, too. But, everyone has a different idea of vacation and I think that it is great there are options for us to choose, or not to. I haven’t bothered with the math of what that would cost for the 22 days we’ll be on board for, but I’m sure it’s a no from me. It would be a ridiculous amount. I’ll pay my gratuities and maybe get the internet. But… I’m thinking of going cold turkey for that, too. I can just catch up with all the social media sites when I get home. Thanks for calling Princess to get the newest information.

Not TMI… I lost my mom awhile ago so it fun to read. I’d get the wifi, for peace of mind. That’s so great your mom can figure out all of the technology.

That is so fantastic. Congratulations on your savings.

Well… they don’t have Pepsi onboard, only a few Coke products. You can certainly bring on a case, if you like. Getting the wifi at half price, would seal the deal for me, not to get the Plus or Premium package. You could always just use WIFI on port days to catch up on things, if you decided to pass on that, too. Paying the gratuities before you board, if you don’t have any OBC, will make it easier to have a small folio at the end. I hope that helps.