mbglib

10 minutes ago, talkorpi said:

Back onboard for Hollywood Hiccups. Booked a last minute excursion for tomorrow. Beginning to feel like the cruise of Monday & Tuesday again!

This is off-topic, but if you like chicken, try the chicken nuggets in the children's corner of the buffet at lunch or sometimes just near the carving station.  I ventured there last week and they were, to me, the best chicken nuggets I have ever had.  I think I ate them three or four of the seven days and I normally don't care for them!

8 minutes ago, talkorpi said:

Back onboard for Hollywood Hiccups. Booked a last minute excursion for tomorrow. Beginning to feel like the cruise of Monday & Tuesday again!

6 hours ago, dheat789 said:

Thanks all for your replies, I called Diamond desk back again today and said to the lady I was told previously that I could make a reservation through her for my free dinner on my upcoming cruise and she said yes and took care of it for me. So I guess it just depends on what person you get when you call. Third time was a charm.

We were told this by the Diamond desk, but two different times, no reservation existed once we were onboard.

4 hours ago, SiliconCruiser said:

They used to make announcements that people could not reserve seats. On our last cruise in Feb. I noticed that they were no longer making that announcement. On that same cruise was an early implementation of the Premier Seating program for the production show.  There were probably less than 15-20 people that used that section.  Then there was a mad dash for those when they removed the covers (I didn't think they were very good seats.)

IMHO, I thought this was quite unfair on the Ruby Princess as they removed the covers pretty near to showtime and those passengers arriving last then were able to get the previously-reserved seats.

16 hours ago, talkorpi said:

Day 2 Recap:

 

Dining room breakfast was a nice way to start the morning. Did some trivia and fun activities in the morning including a neat fruit and vegetable carving demonstration before getting lunch at Salty Dog Grill. I think the entire ship decided to go up to the pools right at noon because it was PACKED. However, SDG was a pleasant surprise and everything was really good!

 

I was onboard last week with about 3200 other people and the pool that you go through the spa to get to was not a busy as the others, even though the "chair hogs" with towels, but no one in sight were out in force.

Thank you, everyone, for the wonderful input.

1 hour ago, trinitygirl said:

My favourite dinner (pre-Covid, I have not cruised since 2019) was to ask for a bowl of steamed veggies with extra broccoli, and a half portion of the fettuccine Alfredo - mixed together they made a really excellent meal, which felt a little indulgent but still sensible.  I know that FA has been taken off the favourites menu now but I believe that  you can order it ahead of time, so I planning to try that in July on the Enchanted.   I usually have the green salad as a starter - there are all sorts of entrees but hidden in there somewhere is usually one that is based on lettuce - with vinaigrette dressing.  And I always order a dessert but try to restrict myself to just a taste rather than the whole thing.  For breakfast, there is always an oat-based choice - granola or oatmeal in the MDR - and I would choose that with fruit and plain yoghurt to start my day, but usually once a week there will be Eggs Florentine in the main dining room so that's a special treat.  On days when I have room-service because of an early excursion, I would choose the cereal (those horrible little boxes but needs must) - they usually have raisin bran or muesli - with plain yoghurt and a banana. Now having read the posts above, I am going to up my game this year and try asking for berries - that never occurred to me before!   And for lunch on the ship, I would usually choose the soup and a salad.   I try to stay away from the buffet because it's all a little overwhelming and very easy to end up with a plate of hashbrowns and fried eggs on toast:  sticking to the MDR is a better option for me - it lessens the possibility of making poor choices.  You have to concentrate to find the healthier options but they are there and it's not difficult to eat well on board.  Enjoy!

Thank you.  Great ideas!

On 2/21/2023 at 10:21 PM, milogurd said:

You can ask your cabin steward for distilled water when you board, but it’s better if you pre-order it. That way you’re sure it will be there waiting for you in your cabin when you board. Either way, it’s free of charge.

 

To pre-order distilled water for a CPAP machine, go to the Princess website then click on “Booked Guests” at the top of the page.

Log into your account using either your login credentials or your booking number.

Once you’re logged in, click on “Access Cruise Personalizer”.

Select “Check-In”, then scroll down to the “Guest Check-in Status” section.

Click on “Dietary Requests”, and tick the box next to “Distilled water (for CPAP machine use ONLY)”.

Then click on the “Send Dietary Restriction” button.

 

Your distilled water and an approved extension cord will be waiting for you in your cabin when you board. If it’s not there, check with your room steward.

Thank you for posting this.

Thank you so much for writing this. I am enjoying your trip!

Just now, Happy2cruise said:

At home I mix them together with seasonings, keep in refrigerator and just shake before adding to salad.  On the ship, I just add a little of each to the salad.  Hope this helps!

Thank you.

5 hours ago, runner15km said:

You can still enter all needed information on the Princess site w/o the app.

I have not been able to find the arrival time section, nor the place to buy wifi.  Would you please give some direction?

Thank you

6 minutes ago, nini said:

 

I suggest to people to experiment with the ratio they prefer, by putting half and half in a small container. Then taste it and determine if you want more of the oil or vinegar. Then you will not waste a large batch of the ratios you do not like.

I do not use oil but do a dressing of 3 tbs. balsamic, 2 tbs. mustard, 1 tbs. real maple syrup.

You can change it up with different kinds of balsamic and mustard.

Thank you.

28 minutes ago, rnr4thatsme said:

Either/or...  at home, I just add it separately to my salad and then mix it with the salad because I don't want to dirty another bowl, lol...  some people pre-mix it in jars.  Both work fine, I think.

Thank you.

2 hours ago, peanutter said:

Hi all.  I've seen some references made indicating the sugar free desserts contain aspartame. Just curious, is it certain they contain specifically aspartame or maybe this term is being used as a catch all for sugar substitutes?  The reason I ask is because I can eat that, but I can't have any sugar alcohols at all - it's a gut thing.  I never get them (sf desserts) onboard as I was not sure what substitute they used (and real sugar doesn't bother me, except for the extra calories!)  I will ask onboard in the future but just wondering if others had already confirmed this.  Thanks!

I wondered this too.  I can't tolerate aspartame, but other types of sugar substitutes don't seem to bother me.

13 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

Princess’s balsamic vinaigrette is really good stuff. I’m sure it’s not olive oil based, so I don’t think it’s made from a particularly healthy oil, but it’s healthier than most of the other dressings. I love it on broccoli and cauliflower also. 
 

The thing I personally worry about the most is the soy milk. I can’t believe it’s organic, and nonorganic soy products aren’t great, but, again, it’s all relative. 

Thank you.  I will try that.

4 hours ago, deultgen said:

 

haha, I think there are very few "healthy" items on the ship, but I think there are lots of "healthyER" options, like sugar free deserts.

Yes, healthier is what I meant and I have received lots of good suggestions that I hadn't considered.  Thank you.

2 minutes ago, Happy2cruise said:

Oil and Vinegar is available in separate containers.

This is going to sound uninformed and it is.  I have never used oil and vinegar.  Do you just put some of each on your salad or mix it together first?  Thanks for educating me. 🙂

3 hours ago, MacCruising2018 said:

I appreciate this question, thank you for posting!  As someone who struggles with digestive issues, indulging could lead to post cruise flare up and being uncomfortable (nothing to do with calories). If there's an option for a more organic option (vegetarian/vegan), I'll usually take it.  I'd love to know if there's particular restaurants, or dishes available, on board that might be available.  

You are welcome.  In another thread, I read that separate Vegan menus are available on some ships.  You might ask about that.

1 hour ago, deultgen said:

I would suggest many sugar free desert options both on the menus and at the International Cafe.

Thank you for the suggestion and for taking my post seriously.

1 hour ago, reedprincess said:

Salads

Vegetarian menus (sometimes, depends what they're cooked and seasoned with)

Indian menu

Carving stations in buffet with no gravy.

Griddled chicken at Lido grill

Fruit plates

Steamed green veggies in MDR (yes, available)

Salad bar, oil and vinegar available

Salmon

Fish dishes, no sauce or sauces in the side .

Some salads at International Cafe (although they can be heavily dressed)

Meat dishes in MDR with no sauce, or sauce in the side. 

There's sugar free desserts, although they're not low carb (made with flour and all that stuff). 

Sugar free ice cream

Vodka on the rocks

Rum on the rooms

Whiskey neat

Dirty martini

Hot dog  or burger no bun.

On Royal class ships, there's a grilled veggie and meat station in the forward section of the buffet...

And so forth... Lots of options to shave some unnecessary calories, sugar, etc out of the diet 

 

And for all those that say things like "live s little" or "just take the stairs" , lots of people have dietary needs that have nothing to do with weight or such a - and taking a few flight of stairs does not wipe out thousands of extra calories.  

 

 

Thank you for all the great ideas.  I do plan to live a little and take what stairs I can, but still like healthy options.  It is hard to do sugar free as I can't have aspartame.  Some things do use Splenda though which is allowed.

2 minutes ago, sirclean said:

In the MDR (before COVID mind you), I had sometimes ordered steamed veggies.  I know I could get steamed carrots, broccoli, and maybe squash.  There was never a problem to get it, but I ve only sailed once since COVID and did nt ask on the last trip.

 

I leave next week for a week, so I may order some then if nothing looks particularly great, or if I m feeling that my bulk tonnage is increasing too much, too fast!  (I can not imagine how that could happen with a drink package and otherwise the fresh baked bread and almost mandatory deserts

each night! 

Thank you.  I will try that.  I know I will overeat and plan to enjoy it, but was hoping some cruise critic users might know some "secrets" to at least help in some areas.

Thank you, Jaycruising and Sirclean, for offering useful suggestions.

14 minutes ago, wowzz said:

A salad from the buffet with no dressing. 

 

Did you see any dressings that would be even somewhat healthy?  Thanks.

What do you think are the healthiest food choices on Princess?  Just looking for suggestions... Thank you.

On the Carnival Dream in February, all of the room service items (except for the continental breakfast) had a charge.  For me, this was one of the worst changes Carnival has made.