BRANDEE

[quote name='Av8tor']Regal's maiden voyage leaves Venice at 11pm (no overnight). Anyone know if muster will be late at night (10pm - about 1 hr prior to leaving) or earlier in the day/evening??

Thx[/quote]
Muster drills are one hour before sailing. Our (July)Royal cruise boarded 1 pm and spent the night in the Venice port. One hour before our 9 am sail we had our muster drill @ 8 am. It was obvious that many passengers did not read the Patter the night before. They literally rolled out of bed.

Muster drills have to take place once all passengers are on board and before sailing. I remember reading the new Maritime Law . This was after the Costa cruise ship sinking.

Yes, I am hoping that someone on Marina deck will respond. We were on a Celebrity cruise last year and they "upgraded" us to a suite below the lido deck and it was horrible with carts rolling all hours of the night.

Go to "Search this Forum" on right top of page. Type "Royal Marina Question". Looks like you are right about the carts. Hopefully you can turn down the upgrade. Also looks like your cabin is right below the Sea View Bar. Good Luck.

We were just assigned to M 424 on the Royal sailing Sunday. They call this an upgrade but it is right below the sky walk and the lido deck. Sound like it would be noisy and not private. Please respond if you have been on this deck. Also do you gave to take the room you are assigned?

My brother had R424 on July sailing. This is a mini suite and an angled balcony that is much larger than the regular balconies. No problem with the sky walk. Nice cabin. I'm not sure if one floor below Lido would be noisy. Hopefully, someone who was on Marina deck could give you a better idea of noise.

Cruised on St. Patrick's at least five times. No corned beef and cabbage on the menu :( The last time there were balloons and decorations in the piazza. There were passengers who enjoyed the day with beads, green wigs, shamrock tiaras and plenty of beer. :) Make your own celebration and I'm sure others will join in.

I forgot to mention that when cruising into Glacier Bay , the ship does a very slow 360 turn.

We are on the northbound Vancouver to Whittier with Glacier Bay and College Fjord glaciers so we are thinking we would really use the the balcony on those days and just thinking that if its raining the partial covered balcony would be nice, but at this point worth about 600.00 more?

When you get to Glacier Bay and College Fjord, you really have to go up on top to get a full view and "feeling". It was cold and windy but words can not describe the total view.

 

We did spend a lot of time on our balcony as we cruised. Surprisingly, our TA put us on the side of the ship not facing the shore, we were always told to take the shore for the view. But we had the side with 12 hours of sun, so our balcony was used to the max. When cruising the inside passage, there is land on both sides of the ship, but not towns. We did see glaciers and waterfalls and seals and whales and pippins and little icebergs. Partial cover does give you shade if it is too sunny and cover if it rains. On sea days we spend a lot of time on the balcony, too.

 

My husband still talks about out balcony experience on the Alaskan cruise. For us, it was money well spent. We cruised the Sapphire on the Carib deck (larger balcony with regular cabin).

We have booked cabin A627 on the Island Princess for June 4th Alaska but would like opinions/advice as to whether cabin C705 which I have a hold on is a better choice. It looks like A627 is an uncovered balcony and C705 is half or so covered but is a mini suite thus more money. Is the part covered balcony and additional cost worthwhile for Alaska?

We used our balcony every day on our Alaskan cruise. It was worth every extra penny. Viewing Glacier Bay , however, should be seen at the top of the ship. Breath taking!!

 

We had a partial covered balcony and the sun is beautiful and warming on a cool day. Our TA was on the cruise with us. We were part of an escorted land and cruise tour with 140 cruisers. We were all booked on the starboard side going south, which is not facing the shore. Reason: we had sun from 10am to 10pm which made our balcony 25+ degrees hotter than the port side. This allowed us to read, play cards and eat on the balcony while floating by glaciers and waterfalls. We did go up on board to get pictures of the shore when docking, but the ability to use our balcony all day was great.

 

At first I thought we would only see water on the starboard side, but we were no more than 300 feet from glaciers and waterfalls. BTW we were on the Inside Passage Cruise.

 

Either way, this is the cruise to splurge on a balcony.

In Aruba, just walk out of the port and turn right for the best shopping. There is a small outdoor market to the left.

In St. Thomas, if docking at Havensight, there are stores right there, plus a doable walk into Charlotte Amelia.

One of these

 

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ZJpoCxkCL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

 

or maybe one of these

 

http://www.thesafetyequipmentstore.com/personal-protection-supplies-Draeger-R58353.html

 

That should keep the bugs away from you.

 

Or else do what I do and not worry about it. It makes life a lot simpler.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

 

DON

 

 

Hilarious!! Cruising in 6 weeks..Be happy, don't worry!!

 

I'm excited just hearing about what others have done on Princess. :)

 

 

My husband and I did a 14 day land/cruise on the Sapphire the end of July 2008. It was fantastic.

 

We started in Fairbanks heading south to Anchorage. We used Princess lodges in Fairbanks, Denali, McKinley and Anchorage, also their trains and buses. We were very pleased with all accommodations and transportation. Everything was very organized, we had keys to our room in hand before arriving at the lodges.

 

We took an escorted tour that was hosted by our travel agent (he does two a season). All our tours were arranged by Princess and our TA. The Tundra Wilderness Tour was 8 hours, long but worth it. We took preplanned tours and also had free time. We were in a group of about 140 (3 bus loads). Our escorted tour included meal vouchers for breakfast and most of our dinners. Food is not usually part of the package on land tours. Dinners at the lodges were expensive if not vouchered. At the time the extra $35 pp for the escorted tour with our TA was a steal.

 

Once in Whittier, we boarded our ship and on our own, except for two cocktail parties hosted by our TA. Our southern cruise was Glacier Bay, Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan and Vancouver. We used princess tours in all ports. We stayed an extra day in Vancouver, Princess and TA made hotel reservations. What a lovely city, wish we had stayed two days!

 

On our cruise , our TA put all (140) on the starboard side. We were not facing the shore. We had sun from 10am to 10pm on our balcony. The port side was 25 to 30+ degrees colder. We were on Carib deck with a partial covered balcony. We played cards, read, had lunch and just relaxed while floating by glaciers and waterfalls. Unbelievable! One day we were in shorts!

 

On the morning of Glacier Bay the best view was the top of the ship to feel the magnitude of the bay. Gloves, hats, sweat shirt, wind breaker and thermal underwear...it was freezing, windy and wonderful!

 

The conservatory..covered pool area..on the Sapphire extended the ships usable size in cold weather. I would definitely recommend a ship with a covered pool in cold weather cruises.

 

In 2012, our friends did the same cruise and were equally pleased. One of our friends has mobility problems and he was very satisfied with Princess and their tours.

 

We are slowly checking off our "bucket list", this cruise was a favorite.

That is correct: we were told by passengers with midship cabins that these stairs were used by passengers for the Muster Drill. And, as noted before, we were told by personnel on the Royal that Princess was assessing the cost/viability of enhancing this staircase to become a public stairwell, first on the Regal and then to be retrofit on the Royal. I don't know if that will happen, but they are apparently considering it seriously.

 

As a side note, we just disembarked the Caribbean Princess yesterday and used the midships staircase many times. It seems quite apparent that the midships staircases on the Grand Class ships are more than likely this kind of a retrofit, using what was likely intended (in the original design) to be a crew staircase.

 

Will be interesting to see what they do in this regard.

 

 

You are right about the stairs used at muster drills. No safety issue there. My room was right by the "stairs". I checked the doors leading to them and they were never locked..another good safety feature..easy access in emergency.

 

All that is needed would be carpet, wall paneling and fancy handrails..it is the same size staircase as other grand ships.

My husband and I always join the "On Deck for The Cure" Breast Cancer walk on our Princess cruises. We have walked a lot of promenades, stairs and no stairs. I don't remember which promenade goes with which ship, but I do remember walking through a machinery section on one ship. Years ago on the Ocean Princess, our group of 16, lost so many shuffleboard pucks overboard we thought we were going to get charged. We really missed the wrap around on the Royal. I was enjoying sitting on the Royal's promenade deck until a drink from above sprinkled all over me. It made me realize there were no waiters offering drinks there, so I had to search (not far) for a bar :D

Dave...Princess should really offer you a job. You have the best info and pictures!

MY dh will hang out then at 7:45 am. As soon as door is opened, he will dump the stuff in. I figure then by 9:30 it will be done. Somewhere I read that it takes 2 dryer cylces for clothes to get dry? So does 9:30 seem about right?

The wash time and drying time is posted on the wall. (not sure the exact time but 25 to wash and 35 to dry? ) The dryers are very hot and only needed one cycle. I did not have jeans..that might make a difference. You swipe your cruise card for tokens for the machines. There is a TV in the laundry room for entertainment!! Pretty crowded in the am if it is a sea day.

The hours were 8am to 10pm when I sailed in July. Reason..slamming door! The best time to avoid a crowd was dinner time.

Thank you Brandee

This year regal princess will do grand Mediteranean on 19/6/14 , I love their itinerary.

I will take your advice to see Venice and Barcelona 2 days in advance and after cruise.

thanks

Vera

When we booked out cruise last year, Princess offered a discount airfare if you let them get your reservation. It was $500 pp less than the airlines advertised. You were able to extend your trip before and after (for a few days) and not have to use their hotels. Not sure if it is being offered for the Grand Mediteranean this year?

We will be sailing on the Royal and have booked cabin E433 which is mid-ship very close to the mid-ship elevators. I am wondering if the lack of mid-ship stairs will be a big problem? While I normally would take stairs if only going up or down a couple of decks I have no problem taking the elevator IF they aren't overly crowded and busy.

 

Can anyone who has sailed on the Royal and had cabins mid-ship comment on this issue? Is it bad enough to consider moving forward or aft? I hate to move though because we were lucky enough to snag a cabin with a larger balcony.[/quote

 

Big problem..no. I was in R444. Walked aft or forward most of the time. If using elevator , just give yourself some extra time. I'm a stair walker so I felt it was a pain in neck to wait for an elevator to go up 2 decks to go back and forth to the pool area. Swirls (ice cream) is right outside the elevators on pool deck..so just grab a cone and wait !

Thank you everyone for your advice. I will make decision very soon.

Vera

We took the 12 day grand Med this July 5th. We would have preferred late May or early June, but we wanted to sail on the new Royal. This was her second cruise and it started in Venice, ending in Barcelona. The itinerary was absolutely great but some days quite hot.

We took the Princess excursion in Istanbul (one day stop) that included Sophia, Tokapi, Blue Mosque and a Bosphorus Strait Cruise. And yes, it ended in a carpet weaving place!! We were in Istanbul during the protests, so going on a ships excursion did feel safer. The captain issued a letter the night before to stay away from gathering crowds.

If you can stretch your vacation a few extra days, two days in Venice is very nice. Get a vaparetto pass and sail up and down the Grand Canal and walk through streets and visit the island of Murano.

We stayed in Barcelona for a few days after the cruise. We were really surprised how much we loved it there. We took the Barcelona Turistic Hop on Hop Off Bus for two days. North one day, then south. Fantastic..must see La Sagrada Familia, Tibidado Mountain and Parc Guell. Great food, unbelievable architecture, nice beach and lovely people.

It looks like the Regal is the only Princess ship doing this itinerary. Is it available for May or June?

Unless one has to use the patch because other option don't work, the patch probably isn't worth the serious serious side-effects.

I have had luck with Sea-Band Ginger Gum. It is all natural with no side effects. (http://www.sea-band.com) is on the box. Two pieces of gum equal 50 mg of ginger oil. Mine were purchased in Florida. I carry them and chew one if I start to get "light" headed. Also, when sushi is available on board, get a cupful of shredded ginger and put it in your refrig to settle your stomach if needed.

Any recommendations for purchasing trip insurance besides through Princess? Have never done so in all our years, but maybe time to start thinking about it. Any input and recommendations appreciated. Thanks

We found Travel Guard or Access America (Allianz) to have more cancellation options if needed. Consider elderly parents, pregnant daughter in laws and the other friends who are cruising with you. Some policies are based on price of trip and some on age of insured. We also have used Princess Care in the past, but needed more "optons" lately.

PBI - 40 minutes North? Dream on. says a local.

 

AustinNow: We were on the first crossing of the Royal into FLL; didn't do self disembarkation. Even with immigration checking each little spot and even with having to get our bags the regular way, we were off the ship and outside at 9:35. Just be sure to get yourself into the earliest group and then you'll be at the airport sooner than you wanted to be.

Oops! FLL to Gateway Blvd.,Boynton Beach ( my exit) is 40 minutes then another 15/20 minutes north to PBI. Guess I was day dreaming!

There is West Palm Beach International Airport 40 minutes north of FLL and Miami International Airport is 40 minutes south of FLL. Maybe a direct flight.

Regarding you question about a 10:30 am flight out of FLL If absolutely everything is on time..ship's arrival, immigration clearance, transportation, traffic and security clearance at the airport..it's a possibility you will make your flight. That said, when coming home from a cruise to FLL, I always book no earlier than 12:30, preferring after 1:00. My last Caribbean cruise was delayed 1 1/2 hours in arriving to port. Luckily I had a 2:00 flight out of FLL.

 

Have a nice breakfast at the Horizon Court, book a tour of FLL and take the later flight. Stress free!

Did my first cruise in 1982 with my husband and 8 single cousins and friends. We were on the Home Lines' Oceanic. Italian food and Italian waiters :) Everyone had a blast but my husband, he felt confined on the ship. For the next 10 years we camped in a pop up trailer for vacation with our kids. After my mom died , I was very "low" and my husband told me to book any vacation I wanted. We took a Carnival cruise to the Caribbean in 1993 and my husband loved it. Sold the camper! We started off every other year, but soon it became a yearly vacation. We cruised Carnival, RCCL and Celebrity. Then we did the Mexican Riviera on the Regal Princess, the original "Love Boat" itinerary in 1998. Once on Princess we found our "escape". When we finish one cruise, it's my husband who says..where next?

Hi Guys,

 

Just wanting people thoughts on weather its worth upgrading to a balcony for a full transit of the panama canal?

It has been nine years since my Panama Canal partial cruise. I was on the Island Princess, Dolphin deck, with a balcony. We literally reached out and touched the lock walls as we went through. I'm still amazed at how the ship went through. So yes, upgrade to a balcony. :)