CU64

On 4/23/2024 at 7:02 PM, Treasure Hunter said:

We took The Emerald from LA to Hawaii and has a fabulous time. Last year we did NY round trip to New England/ Canada. Both times the service and CDs entertainment was great. It has a cosy, friendly feel. Would definitely cruise again.

Agreed

19 hours ago, EbayCruiser said:

Thanks for all the replies.  If we go on Utopia, it will just be me & my daughter.  Niece & her friend are staying with the Princess cruise.

 

I am so back & forth, with the reserve package Princess is almost twice the price for just 2 more nights.  We have a mini suite on Princess but could not get a Jr. Suite for a good price so we will have a ocean view balcony on Utopia but we won’t be in the room very much.

 

We are now leaning towards Utopia!

 

Drop the extra price for Reserve Class. You will be fine eating in MDR or other venues with your friends. The minisuites are very nice.

22 hours ago, EbayCruiser said:

We booked the Caribbean Princess for a 6 night cruise for March '25.  There are four of us (all ladies) with 2 rooms (mini-suite with the reserve package).

 

We have never cruised Princess before but I have cruised on Holland America, RCI, & Disney once.  Looking for good food and a nice, clean ship.

 

Reading the reviews and see a lot of bad ones about old ship, sewer smells and bad food.  I realize all of this is subjective but we are paying a lot for this cruise with the reserve benefits.  

 

Now I have looked at a 4 night on the new Utopia of the Seas in October '24.  I have been on the Oasis class ships 3 times and really loved them but not sure about the crowds (children) and the food.

 

Thoughts?

If you want a Wow factor from the ship environment ( age 51) it will not be Princess. No bells and whistles. For that one person, RCI might be it. For the rest of you, and for quality interpersonal interaction in Reserve Class dining, I would go Princess, unless you are going to look around and find fault. If you want a Wow factor, book an aft Suite for the bigger balcony on the older ships. 

4 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

Once cleared, the gangway will be open all night long.  I saw a few passengers disembarking with their luggage (your responsibility).

 

You are correct.  Flying out of Quebec is a nightmare (expensive and very few flights).

 

I am not sure you will be able to get to Montreal by train in time to catch a flight EAST.  IF...they dock in the morning, it will take a train 2.5 hours to get from Quebec to Montreal.  You would still have to clear customs and immigrations in Montreal.  It will be another hour or so (terminal is large/Nexus or Global Entry?).  

 

The train will have several fare options.  If you sign up ahead of time, there are usually Tuesday specials and a senior option.

 

https://www.viarail.ca/en

 

 

 

Clearing Customs can be a long process. Also they do not tell you exactly where to go to get to international flights so you need time to navigate. Only time I almost missed a flight.

20 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Minisuites have the shower over the bath. Not suitable for people who need an accessible cabin.

 

Also you can't just buy Reserve Class as an add-on to a regular cabin. You have to book a Reserve Class cabin to get access to Reserve Class dining.

I mean get a regular Reserve Class minisuite. It depends on your disability whether you need accessible. 

On 12/15/2023 at 4:54 AM, tml1230 said:

we never had much interest in the reserve (old club class) option .....UNTIL we tried it!  To us the instant seating and engaging staff makes for a wonderful experience! we don"t leave home without it!!

Agreed

On 3/11/2024 at 9:02 AM, JordanF said:

I read it as an extra course option. Maybe I had it wrong?  I any event, I figured I'd do fine in the food department without it. 

On 3/11/2024 at 9:02 AM, JordanF said:

I read it as an extra course option. Maybe I had it wrong?  I any event, I figured I'd do fine in the food department without it. 

The extra course is usually a specialty prepared pasta dish and often a separate salad. You may choose these over other menu items. I had never had Reserve Class until our 15 day Hawaii RT from LA on Emerald. What a pleasure to be in that environment. Not having to reserve or wait is not the half of it. Personal attention and service. Ability to add and/or modify regular menu items with ease. People showed up light casual dress & did not spend time looking at phones. A very lovely civilized experience. Will always book now going forward.

It elevated the whole travel experience. 

On 12/26/2023 at 3:01 PM, cruisinsince75 said:

We have quite the dilemma.  We are booked in a mid ship accessible mini suite.  Reserve Collection was not available for our accessible stateroom.  Our friends are in a full suite and they obviously have RC privileges which include dining.  There doesn't seem to be a way to add RC to our booking.  It appears that you can only do RC in a handful of pre-selected staterooms that are not accessible.  We are already paying extra for our mid ship location.  Is there a way to pay extra for the RC dining privileges?  I can't find any options for it anywhere.  Thanks in advance.

Do you really need accessible if you have a minisuite? Get regular & buy reserve class.

1 hour ago, cr8tiv1 said:

A lot has to do with the itinerary.  My Alaskan 16 day cruise in 2025 is over $5000 per person in a suite.  Booked on day one.  
 

iceland/Greenland is over $6 k for 16 days.  
 

I’m sure prices will only go up.  Rarely do suites drop in price.  Yes, sometimes they do, but not very often.  
 

 

How did you get that Alaska RT LA in August 2025 for 10k on Day 1.

I was quoted around 14 on VTG….about day 4

2 hours ago, memoak said:

All my friends and myself sail with the Plus package. It is just too good a deal to not get

No it is not, unless you do a lot of wine and cocktail drinking. 
 

4 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

We don't care if you've spent tens of thousands of dollars on the Sky Suite, it's FIVE DOLLARS PER CALL! 

3 hours ago, memoak said:

This is not any surprise. Read the perks 

It really makes no sense. They are pushing those packages more than they give a hoot about Suite guests. 

3 hours ago, nzrainbow said:

I booked an Interior Guarantee Cabin aboard Grand Princess recently. I've booked Interiors many, many times before on a range of Princess ships and have never before had an issue with the layout.  I was initially advised that ALL the Interior cabins on the Grand could be configured as twin singles or queen bed and also that some had 4 berths... 2 of which dropped down from the side walls. 

My booking was for a queen bed configuration. When I embarked the Cabin (Plaza 227) was configured as a twin bed bunkroom i.e 2 singles made up with 2 drop down beds folded away. I advised the Cabin steward and housekeeping steward that I required a queen bed and was told that the room couldn't be successfully reconfigured to a queen as I'd hit my head on the bunk beds when entering or exiting the bed because there was insufficient accessway either side of the queen bed.  Also that there was only one bedside cabinet (with 2 fixed bedside lamps) designed to go between the 2 single beds..... pushing the 2 singles together in the centre of the cabin meant there was insufficient room to one side for the single bedside cabinet which would then have to be placed sideways meaning the drawers could NOT be opened!

The option of a single bed, potential brain damage from bashing my head on a protruding folded bunk and an unusable bedside cabinet resulted in my agreeing to have both singles pushed together hard against one wall beneath the overhanging bunk. This allowed a wider walkway down the other side of the bed and also gave sufficient room to have the single bedside cabinet facing the correct way. This left it almost impossible for the poor steward to make the bed without climbing all over it and of course allowing entry to the queen bed from one side only!

Definitely NOT an ideal situation and I don't believe Princess should be marketing these particular cabins as suitable for a Queen configuration so have posted this in the hope that it may help someone else in the future 🙂 The first pic shows the cabin with the queen bed centered and the second with the bed pushed to one side to allow better access (for ONE person) and the use of the bedside cabinet drawers!

 

I prefer centered

The original poster must have had travel experience with 70 cruises, which is why I would ask a simple question: Why? Why did you need to go now…knowing any inaugural cruise problems…and supply issues for anything, especially since Covid. Then to add 3 cruises. What were you thinking? And to use EZ Air in this era of flight problems. Now you want Princess to take care of your lost money? I am in disbelief.

9 hours ago, NavyVeteran said:

On a British Isles cruise a few years ago, Club Class had one table for eight. It was used by my family group of four couples traveling together. Since we were the only group of eight in Club Class, no one else used that table. it was great for us. We could show up anytime and go to our table, and we didn't have to coordinate to all arrive at the same time. I will try to arrange the same on an Alaska cruise this fall when we will have a family group of ten in Reserve Dining.

Now that would be worth it !

11 hours ago, Princessfan20 said:

 

This is true and all good gamblers know this aspect of the game.  The fact is that the effect of other players at the table is random, as likely to help as hurt, whether the players are good or bad. The only sense in which other players at the table affect a good player is they make the count fluctuate faster.  

 

Others’ play at times can be frustrating, but the math proves that in the long run, the decisions of other players at the table has no effect on the expected result for a basic strategy player. You lose when you lose and win when you win and it is basically a lot of luck and no one else's fault.

A pro in Vegas taught me years ago,if you lose 4 straight hands, leave the table. You can go back if you wish, later. He also taught me about letting it ride, and when to pull back. Simple good advice.

12 hours ago, JGmf said:

 

I don't necessarily disagree with @memoak, but sometimes dumb play saves the table.  That said, I hate it more b/c it slows the rhythm of game (pensive deep thought about their hunches) and also drives me nuts on how stupid it these players can be.

Agreed.

First time in a suite. We Iike shared table to have fun with others at dinner.

We are in a dilemma. We would like the special service in RC but afraid we would not get to chat or get

to know others. I have made reservation for MDR because of this but hate to not take advantage of RC.

Any experiences please share. Ty

2 hours ago, 2MellowCruisers said:

You quoted my post and since I cannot hear the inflection in your voice, I’m not sure how to take it. A great question was asked and great answers and experiences have been given. I was just giving our experience to see how it compares with others. We don’t gamble for the comps. It is something we enjoy and the comps are a nice bonus. We budget what we want to spend, sometimes based on what we would spend for the cruise if not comped. Sometimes we come out ahead, and sometimes not. The casino counts on us doing the latter. The times I shared are an average and not always in one sitting. There are also others things on a cruise we enjoy so we may play a little go do other things and maybe go back. But playing in a casino if definitely something we enjoy on a cruise. 
 

We are currently on a cruise and I am up by almost $2600.00 and that was the result of the free play I was given. I haven’t spent a penny of my own money. My DH is only down a tiny bit so our plan is to go home ahead in this one. We didn’t go to the casino at all yesterday and don’t have plans to spend a lot of time today. 
 

If the casino is not your thing then please spend those 3-4 hours doing something you enjoy. I want you to keep your beautiful head of hair. 😁

Yes, you read it tongue in cheek. Congrats on 2600

On 3/6/2024 at 7:31 PM, 2MellowCruisers said:

Also for reference:

On our recent Crown Princess cruise in January, I earned a little over 20,000 points and got an offer for a Balcony and $600 casino cash.  No Plus package.  Maybe because our cruise was 16 days vs 7 days?  I wish I could figure out how they decide what they will offer.  We spend maybe 3- 5 hours in the casino daily playing mostly slots.  We used to always get balcony and free play offers with Plus Package via email but lately they have been reduced insides, lower free play and no Plus Package even though we haven't reduced our play.

 

To OP: I'm not sure if anything is different for Australia but we are also able to just go online and after logging in, we can check out cruises and it will show our casino discount.  Either $0 or a reduced amount if we want to upgrade.  I will say that I checked on cruises this week and a lot of the offers went away on cruises I was just checking out last month.  Also, check to see if you have given princess your email address and I believe there is somewhere in your profile that you can check to receive promotional offers.

I would set my hair on fire If I had to sit in front of a slot machine 3-4 hrs daily on a CRUISE. Guess I will be paying regular prices for my cabins.

On 3/10/2024 at 12:43 PM, gardengalaz said:

Hi, Everyone!

 

I've commandeered my wife's account here so I can give you a live account of our experience aboard the Discovery Princess.  

 

To set the stage, we hold Elite status on Celebrity and Platinum on Princess.  It's interesting that the Platinum benefits on Princess are actually better than the Elite benefits on Celebrity.  Our last cruise on Princess was a decade ago after which we abandoned Princess and moved to Celebrity.  Since the re-launch of cruising post-COVID, we've been on 8 Celebrity cruises, each of which grew progressively worse to the point we thought it time to look at other options.  We wanted a cruise departing from Los Angeles/Long Beach since it's a reasonable drive from our home in Phoenix -- and Princess offered this itinerary, which is a new one for us. So we thought we'd give Princess another try ... and the factor that sealed the deal for us was Princess' Premiere Package -- an astounding bargain compared to Celebrity!

 

We arrived at the port at 10:45AM ... and the place was MOBBED.  Long lines of people stretching way past the terminal building, weaving their way through the gauntlet ... but the line never stopped moving, other than one quick stop to scan our medallions and show our passports.  We were on board in less than 15 minutes from our arrival at the port.  No real complaints there, but it does render the whole Elite embarkation lounge and priority embarkation lines rather pointless.

 

Once onboard, the crowd was intense ... crew members hawking whatever they were assigned to hawk ... clueless passengers about what was where and when staterooms would be ready ... elevators that simply could not handle the volume of passengers ... muster station check-ins scattered throughout.  It was truly insane.  I do wish the cruise lines had stuck to scheduled appointments for check-in though ... better crowd control and much more civilized.

 

We had lunch in the Skagway MDR and it was fantastic!  The service was great and the food quality, taste and presentation simply put Celebrity to shame.  We shall see if that pattern continues. 

 

After lunch, we went to our stateroom, E519 on Deck 8 and our checked bags had already been delivered.  We specifically chose this type of room because my wife has trouble with motion and we wanted to be as low in the ship as possible ... so the obstructed view balconies were the best choice available.  We did luck out because the specific location of our stateroom includes a balcony that provides a rather open view between the lifeboats. I'll post a photo. 

 

The room itself is very nice ... seems small compared to a similar room on the Celebrity ships we've sailed, but I think that just has to do with the whole "walk-in" closet feature in Princess' staterooms.  Plenty of space and storage for two people though.  Comfy bed, plenty of pillows, nice little sofa and table.  The bedside lamps have a USB port built-in, but no electrical outlets.  The balcony has two chairs and a small table.

 

After settling into our stateroom. I decided to go and check out the fitness center. Former bodybuilder here, so the fitness center and the food on offer throughout the ship are the primary things I care about.  The fitness center is well-equipped and operates 24 hrs.  Everything you need to keep up your training while on board.

 

Finding the fitness center though was no easy feat, and that became the first general issue we have with this ship.  The layout is VERY confusing ... and lots of things end up blocking routes that one would take intuitively.  Public passageways are tight and constricted in places ... weird little hallways that dead end ... it's really a very poorly designed ship IMHO. In that regard, Celebrity wins.

 

As far as service is concerned, it's been great.  Our drinks come quickly (in fact, we just ordered room service and it was here, quite literally, in 10 minutes flat!)  Everyone is super friendly and eager to help.

 

We popped into the Platinum and Elite lounge for a few minutes ... VERY nice hors d'oeuvres.

 

We had dinner in the Ketchikan MDR at the food was very good.  Our waiter was excellent, even though he seemed to be working solo (his assistant wasn't around much) ... no sommelier nor manager ever stopped by our table ... our waiter was doing it ALL.  Considering the last time we cruised on Princess, meals were a big and elegant production, we were rather disenchanted by the overall experience, BUT high praises to our waiter, Noel ... he did it all and did it well. The food itself was again FAR better than Celebrity's recent offerings. 

 

After dinner, the show in the main theatre was a magician.  I only watched for about 15 minutes before I'd had enough.  Too loud, too chaotic, too difficult to actually SEE what he was doing, even though there was a roving camera and giant screens ... it was simply far more showmanship than substance.  So I went to the jazz club, Take Five, and the trio performing there were simply fantastic.  The room itself is chopped up in a weird way, rendering it difficult if not impossible to see the musicians from large parts of the room, but that goes back to the odd design and layout of this ship.

 

Three final quick points ... the Wifi isn't StarLink but it is pretty good ... the Medallion APP is very handy once you figure out how to use it ... and the Salted Watermelon Margarita is not to be missed!

 

Comfy bed ... great night's sleep.  Let's see what tomorrow holds!

 

Let me know if you have any questions.

 

 

 

 

 

Take 5 one of best venues on Princess

7 hours ago, memoak said:

Yes

Ty

Is the reserve class dining room open on embarkation day

9 minutes ago, latebuyer said:

For the sept 17 sailings, balconies aren’t sold out, ocean view is. I’m not looking for judgement.

How about options ?

6 hours ago, latebuyer said:

I think i'll say i'm heavy so they give me a roll away bed. I am pretty heavy, just not 250 pounds.

Currently, website says all balconies sold out. You might want to consider ocean view for parents & inside for yourself. …maybe both nearly same as balcony and you all will be much happier. ….especially if you are not a child.

14 hours ago, Amy G said:

I have a C1 Cabana booked, and I am not really happy that I can't look down at the ocean from our balcony.  I might not even be able to see the ocean if people are standing out there.  Unfortunately, our cruise is fully booked, and there are no rooms to move to.

I would cancel