cruisinpoler

Hi. My family and I will be in Paris for 2 nights post-cruise. My husband and I are 40-something, and our 18 and 19 year old sons will be with us. I understand that the shows are topless and a bit racy, but just how racy are they? How many of you who have actually been to a show would take your men-children? I would love to experience a show there, but am a little tiny bit hesitant about taking them. Am I being a prude? I am thinking we would skip the dinner. Thanks!

I am not sure how to delete this... i accidentally posted twice.

We had lunch at Giovanni's table and it was wonderful!

What about a sailing trip? There are several companies I have found online that will pick you up from the top of the cable car, drive you to their port, do a 3-4 hour tour with lunch and swimming, some with hot springs, then bring you back. The food reviews well on tripadvisor, as do the cruises. You can see Oia from the water, the red and black sand beaches, and the lighthouse. We are seriously considering doing this. Seems like a fun, laid-back way to take in the views and cool off.

Hey, OP... I could not help notice your username and I just found this tour company in barcelona that you might be interested in. Google Barcelona Dragon Tours... I have not used them but am seriously considering booking one of their tours for my trip.

I have cruised with Carnival 3 times, Royal 4 times, and just returned from an Alaskan cruise on the Crown Princess.

 

I am 41, active, and adventurous. I have enjoyed RC the most out of the three for many reasons. One is the layout of the ships. I found myself still getting lost on day 7 of my Princess Cruise. For me, the Royal ships were more intuitive. While the common areas on Princess were elegant, There was not a real center of activity with the fun energy of the promenade. Also, I really love Central Park on Oasis class, and there was no public area on the Crown Princess to sit and relax in a relatively calm environment like that either. The entertainment on Princess was seriously lacking, and we found ourselves bored with nothing to do many evenings. I am not a belly-flop contest kinda girl, but I do enjoy the Quest, the Newlywed Game (or whatever they call it on Royal), and the other shows that I have seen on Royal. The food was good, although I found the buffet did not have the variety of RC. I recall the windjammer having ethnic options almost every day. Central Park Cafe also had a great variety, as opposed to International Cafe on Princess which had very limited options. It was tough to find food "after hours" on Princess.

 

It may have been partially because this was an Alaskan cruise and kinda cold outside, but the vibe was way more laid back. In a way, I enjoyed that but I prefer to have a choice. We ended up going to karaoke every night... well, that was fun but it did get a little old. A couple of things I really enjoyed on Princess were the naturalist lectures and the open back of the ship, where they gave you hot chocolate and blankets as you watched Alaska go by. The lectures were actually incredible and life altering!

 

For me, Royal is the best because it is a mix of fun, entertainment, and good food. The food really is not significantly better in my opinion, and the service was not what I had experienced in the past on RC. We hardly ever saw our room steward, and the waiters were just OK. The variety on RC is better, and I actually thought the wine tastings on RC were classier, more informative, intimate, and showcased better quality wines. The tastings I attended on Princess were in the MDR and about 100 people were there. In Vintages, there were 8 of us.

 

Embarkation on Princess was a breeze, but it is always pretty easy on Royal as well.

 

An 82 year old man traveled with us. He had cruised on Carnival and Royal as well, and he preferred Princess. He thought the food was better and enjoyed the atmosphere more.

Hi. We are cruising from barcelona next year and are thinking of taking the high-speed train from barcelona to madrid post-cruise. there will be 7 of us- 4 men, 2 women and a toddler. my concern is lugging all that luggage through the train station... we will have at least one medium-sized bag per person since we are going on a 12-day cruise... i have taken trains in europe and know that some of the train stations have stairs and can be difficult to navigate. how are the train stations in barcelona and madrid? we would probably take cabs from the port to the station, then the station to our hotel in madrid. thanks!!

Hi. Do the luggage tags need to be printed in color? I know some cruise lines use the color to quickly determine which deck the bags belong on. Thanks!!

So, I am not scheduled to board the Crown next Saturday until 1:30 pm, but on other cruise lines we have been able to board much earlier. We plan to arrive about 11 am based on some posts I have read on here and are hoping to have lunch in the MDR. Do you think this will work out?

Thanks everyone! Interesting discussion. I will just have the tour operator stop by a convenience store!

-OP

Hi. What are the best specials you have ever seen on Royal? Do they come out at particular times-officially or in your experience?

We booked the 12 night med cruise on Brilliance with the Memorial Day special- buy one, every other person in your stateroom is 50% off. Amazing deal, saved us several thousand bucks compared to the special that they are running right now. Problem is, we may have to reschedule... I think this means they will have to rebook under the current special. Any advice on when the best specials may come out is appreciated.

Thanks
Jen

Hi. Can you please give me some more info about this particular cabin? We are 2 families, 4 adults, 2 teens, and a 3 year old. We are accustomed to close quarters, but would this be too close? We plan to put the family with the 3 year old in the master (the kid sleeps with them), my husband and myself in the 2nd bedroom, and the 2 teens in the living room, one on the sofa and one on a roll-away. We are interested in trying a suite for all the extra amenities and because we live in different cities, we kind of want to be close to each other. Thanks!

 

SO, folks who have actually been in this suite, do you think this will work for us? It seems very large, as it is as big as all 3 of our staterooms would be if we did 2 balcony rooms and an inside cabin. Thanks!

Hi. Can you please give me some more info about this particular cabin? We are 2 families, 4 adults, 2 teens, and a 3 year old. We are accustomed to close quarters, but would this be too close? We plan to put the family with the 3 year old in the master (the kid sleeps with them), my husband and myself in the 2nd bedroom, and the 2 teens in the living room, one on the sofa and one on a roll-away. We are interested in trying a suite for all the extra amenities and because we live in different cities, we kind of want to be close to each other. Thanks!

Hi! Anyone have pix of the 2 bedroom suite on Brilliance of the Sease, 7672? I am particularly interested in the second bedroom, as that is where my husband and I would be sleeping. Is there a closet and how much space/storage space? Do the bedrooms have windows or doors to the balcony? There would be 7 of us- Another couple with a 3 year old who would share the master, my husband and myself, and our 2 teenage boys who would share the fold out in the living area. Do you think it is worth it to stay in the suite with all those people, as opposed to getting 3 staterooms? Thanks!!

Jen

Hi. I plan to use independent vendors for our July cruise on Crown Princess. I have narrowed it down to two in Skagway and 2 in Ketchikan and could use some help deciding which to use.

Skagway: We want to see the Yukon, ride the dog carts at Caribous Crossing, and take the train... Chilkoot VS Dyea Dave: costs are comparable. Dave seems very personable and I like that he stops at a small cafe for lunch; however, he only offers the option of taking the bus up and the train back, and I kind of want to take the train out and the bus back. Also, he does not guarantee a dog cart rise at Caribou Crossing and that is very important to us. With Chilkoot, you have the option of taking the train up and the bus back, they have a tour which includes the dog cart for sure, but the lunch does not sound all that special. If anyone can speak to how crowded the dog carts are and how difficult it is to get on one, it would be appreciated. I like that Dave's operation seems small, like a mom and pop type thing, but I like the options offered by Chilkoot.

 

Ketchikan: Salmon fishing- Ketchikan charter boats vs. Alaska Catch. Just can't decide. The only influencing factor is that Ketchikan charter boats has a couple of bad reviews on tripadvisor and alaska catch has none. Is that a big deal? probably not, but I don't want to have to deal with a grumpy person if I can avoid it. Thanks

wow, thanks! I am glad I asked. The fishing company will ship the fish home for us. I appreciate all the info!

Hi. I searched but was unable to find posts answering this question. We are taking an independent fishing tour in Ketchikan and need to take bag lunches from the ship. Will room service bring them to us or should we go to the international cafe and pack our own? will they give us bags/something else to carry them in? Thanks!

Jen

Anyone have pix of this one? Haven't seen any yet! Thanks!