Treven

I always cruise by myself and so far, my fares have been running me 175-185% of the base fare.

Yes, bring your power board/strip. Just make sure it doesn't have a built in surge protector as been already posted.

Nope, nope, nope!

Please, don't worry yourself sick over this. Being a new cruiser, ship-sponsored excursions are a safe bet. In any event, you don't need to be back onboard any earlier than one hour before departure. When leaving on a tour, at the bottom of the gangplank will be a good sized sign with departure time on it. Pay attention to that. Also note whether, when you dock, are you on "ship's time" or "local time".

Above all, relax and have a good time.

I always bring along a box of packets of Splenda, just to make sure I'm using the gen-u-ine article and not a generic. A local diner where I go for breakfast has the Costco version. I quickly learned to bring my own.

Or better yet, she was so irritated that real butter wan't being served on the ship, she had stopped off at a local dairy to pick up some butter, to take to the dining room. That was the real reason she was late returning to the ship. Oh woe, woe is me, she cried as the ship departed without her😱.

And, I hope the value of the bags of "Made In China" stuff she had off set the cost of the trip back home.

 

Bob

I assumed that in one of her bags was a couple pounds of butter. She was on her knees, in anguish, realizing she wouldn't get her butter in the cabin's fridge to keep it cold until she got home.🙄

My keycard was demagnetized by my camera. They were both hanging around my neck. After getting a replacement card (which is no big deal), whenever I had my camera hanging from my neck I put the lanyard/keycard in my pocket.

Maybe she wasn't thinking clearly due to a lack of sufficient butter at dinner.

That must have been it! I'll give her some of mine. I'll even give her some of my Kerrygold unsalted butter. Not a lot, but "some"🙃; I never said I was compassionate.

The earlier you can board increases your chances. As soon as you get to your cabin, hopefully by noon-ish, call the DINE line on the phone. The maximum number of diners is 12. As been posted, if you have a food allergy, you probably won't make the cut.

On my iPad I have MaJong, Backgamon, Canasta (my fave), and solitaire. I'll spend several hours on these every day and none of these require an internet connection.

Ahhhh, the caste system comes to Princess! :eek:

Separate, but (more) equal?

I have been trying for a long time to get chair hoggers to defend themselves but no takers so far.

Hope you aren't holding your breath. Nor from those who get left at the pier because they were late.

Game, Set, Match.😋

One of the kindest things I've seen on a Princess cruise involved a late ship's tour returning in Grenada. Many of us were on the Promenade Deck (and, I'm sure, balconies) watching the returning passengers as our departure had been delayed. At the very end of the line of passengers, far behind them, was an older lady using a walker. And the ShoreEx manager stayed with her the entire time. Every so often she had to stop and rest and he would stop, too, and when they were close enough to the ship, I could hear him telling her not to rush, not to worry, the ship would not be leaving without them and someone had to be the last passenger back on the ship.

 

I was so touched by his thoughtfulness that I documented it and sent it to anyone who might read it (You Made the Difference card, cruise survey, HGM for that cruise, Princess Customer Relations).

"Like"

Bet she won't make that mistake twice!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

I wouldn't bet on that.

I've seen the same, and I agree that it is very arrogant.....:):):)

 

Bob

It's obviously because they're special😃

This is the real reason traveling solo why I have always taken Princess Excursions am such a scary cat for time keeping.Even if I don't go on an excursion always hang around close to ship and on board at least two hours earlier than departure time.

Still have empathy for those that do get left behind because in my mind this has always been my greatest dread .

I agree. If I've been to a port that I've been to before, and I'm not interested in the excursions offered by the ship, I'll most likely wander about the port area and perhaps do a little shopping. Even after having a few cruises under my belt, I still tend to go the "tried and true" route and stick with ship-sponsored excursions, especially if it's a port I've never been to.

Belize is wonderful if you get out of Belize City.

Actually the excursion I was on, after skirting Belize City, went to a/the aloe vera factory, then to the country's sole brewery. We had the tasting room to ourselves, about ten of us, and we had unlimited tasting of all their varieties. Their "tastes" were full Pilsner glasses. Me, I had just a couple inches of the different beers. They also served chips & salsa. Their chips and salsa was different than that I found in my various Mexican ports; still tasty, but different.

I've not been, that I can remember but I'm sure it isn't as bad as Belize. If a cruise I was on stopped there again, I'd merely stay on the ship.

In addition, if you're going to get an accessible cabin, you'll need to book it ASAP. There aren't that many of them on any given ship. As I need an accessible cabin, I have to book it 14-18 months in advance or I don't get to cruise.

?.. At the end of the cruise you had to turn them in or got charged for them!

So you'd get charged (if your kid lost his/hers) for something you didn't want to begin with.😕

It looks like we're all (almost all?) in agreement, "lady, it's all your fault - you and your shopping bags"!😳

I, too, only use a debit card. To avoid any issues with holds on my money, I do the following:

 

1) Pre-pay what I can (drink packages, etc)

2) Determine my estimated spend on board (gratuities, gambling, shore excursions)

3) Subtract any OBC from my booking from my estimated expenses.

4) Gift myself OBC close to the anticipated amount needed using my debit card.

5) Enjoy my cruise without worrying about sticker shock or held funds at the end. Coming back from a cruise is bad enough withouth the additional worry.

This is pretty close to what I do. I'll gift myself $500-750 in between my payments to make sure most (all?) of my onboard expenses are covered. I rarely owe money at the end of my cruise and often get a refund of my overage.

The onus is totally on the late mother. Why should she be considered more special than the other 2-3k pax who were onboard the ship. As we all know, the customary 30 minute requirement is there for a very good reason, and it's not to inconvenience this one woman, or couple.

Hopefully the info that there were other relatives onboard so the children weren't totally alone was correct.