tulok

The big playground ships I will never do again. We had a family reunion on NCL with all the slides and go carts and it was chaos from day one. The kids were behaved, that isn’t the main issue, it was the huge crowds, around the pools, buffet, night venues, etc. And everything was geared to <30 year olds. I just wouldn’t want to have that as my vacation again. We were on Celebrity to Bermuda in summer 2022 and had low number of families. It was a nice cruise. We have really made the switch to river cruises and it will remain our main type of vacation for now. We chose Princess for a small family reunion with only adults in our party, June on Emerald. I am a little apprehensive about the larger ship as I have enjoyed all our small ship ocean cruises much more. But looking forward to trying Princess . I wish I had found a line I loved that much to stay with them. This is probably our 20something ocean cruise and I have only sailed a few of them more than twice. For a lot of factors, gone bankrupt, can afford more, itinerary, dates because of work schedule, cost, experience, etc.

Can I bring a flash drive with me and they will upload them?

Thanks for the idea. I just ordered as we always have our watches with us.

We are cruising with friends in/out of FLL in June. We are coming in a day early and staying at Riverside. We are flying AA and get into FLL an hour earlier than them. They are flying DL. Would the best place to meet would be at DL baggage claim? I can see on Google maps that terminal 3 is an easy walk to terminal 2. We will be taking an Uber to Riverside Hotel. Disembarkation: After the cruise, their flt on DL is 1131a and ours is 1150a. I assume the taxi will drop them off then us. My main question is about carrying our own luggage off the ship. I have seen a lot of talk stating to take your own luggage off the ship. Do we need to do that with those departure times? We have been at ports that have regular baggage delays. We will be on Princess.

I wouldn’t use duct tape, leaves a residue. We take painters tape or masking tape. I always travel with a roll of washi tape as the roll is smaller but works like painters tape. I will just have to bring a dark color to make sure it works on the sensor.

Yes we are premier but I read they have Zumba, barre, yoga, etc available but on the fitness portion on the app, you can only sign up for a private session with a trainer, not any classes. We have also been on a cruise (different brand) that you made reservations for the treadmill and bikes. Was new to us but being new to Princess, wanted to ask. The Princess web: On Board questions aren’t much help with fitness questions.

Does one have to reserve the fitness classes once on board or will they show up on the app as it gets closer? Do they normally fill up? Do you have to reserve the treadmill or bike or first come first serve? We are sailing in June 10day Caribbean.

Thank you for all the reviews of Riverside. I canceled our ES rooms and made reservations at Riverside. It looks fantastic and we will have 24hrs at the hotel so a lot to do to take the time. We got a fantastic rate since we are coming in June. Taxi or Uber? There are 4 people with at least 6 suitcases so a suv or van will probably be needed.

You better repack also.

We did this on another line for the cruise itself. We were told that if we go ahead and pay the deposit for the cruise, we would be more likely to cleared if there is a cancellation. The deposit was refundable and we had 48hrs after they called to cancel if it cleared with money returned. We cleared so it worked for us but I always wondered if there really was a list. I do understand the cruise lines thinking that you are going to be serious if you put money down.

@ronrick1943 You made this review as if I was on the ship with you. I really enjoyed your honesty. FYI- I was on the Princess CC board (I have a family in law reunion cruise coming up 😏🥺) and there was a review from someone on the Panama cruise at the same time. They have a great picture of the Nova as it came up next to them.

We were planning on booking La Dame twice while on our cruise. As I thought I would like to try every restaurant but now I am thinking The Grill and Silver Note are more our styles in the evening and will make reservations for more dinners there.

I always appreciate people’s opinions. I am adult enough to know that they are just an opinion but it gives some food for thought. An opinion would never make my decision of one brand over another without more research.

RSSC hasn’t been mentioned and after having two cruises with them, (I know not a lot for comparison), I am looking forward to compare with my upcoming SS cruise. I enjoyed the all-inclusive and it is the only reason I went back to ocean cruises from river cruising (still my favorite). I hate the big ships with 1000’s of people. RSSC did have its flaws.

Do they offer city maps of the area they drop off? There are a couple of ports we were just going to take the shuttle and enjoy the day. I will print my own maps before we leave home if it is necessary.

Merry Christmas. Sounds like they had a festive evening for everyone to enjoy. I like the togetherness they included for the celebration.

Ama Waterways does this also with a wine pairing. Also 3 tables of eight. It was a fun evening as the chefs really made the show. There was not an extra cost.

Cliffhanger 😂

Now you are really talking my language. Your report is starting to be that book you can’t put down.

Definitely going to try Silver Note. Did you have reservations or were you able to walk in?

Very good to know. As for the back of the ship, the extra steps are much needed with all the dessert choices.

Otium Suite is now on my bucket list. I have enjoyed reading your live report. Thank you for taking the time to post with pictures.

Thank you for all the information. It has been most helpful.

Our crystal ball might not be working that day and we may decide last minute to eat off the ship but didn’t decide until earlier that day or the day before. We thought until that moment we would use the reservation. At least the maitre d’ could go ahead and seat someone instead of them waiting to see if we will show up. We are mainly river cruisers now, happens much more on those types of cruises where reservation are not needed then ocean cruises. As I said before, booking reservations 120 days out, one can only assume what will be needed and wanted.

@Dolcevita Diva Thank you for the information. We will be on Spirit. I imagine that open seating is the same across ships. I am surprised that the first reservation time is 7 pm. I thought it would start at 6p and end around 9p. I like the idea of dessert and drinks at Silver Note. That is mainly what we were thinking and why another reservation would have been proposed. At 120 days out, it’s hard to imagine what our schedule will detail and deciding dinner reservations. But from following these boards, you snooze, you lose, as reservations can be hard to obtain. We always cancel our reservations ahead of time as warranted. Especially if we eat a large lunch off the ship or decide to eat dinner in town.