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princess daphne

seabourndt

By seabourndt,
in Other Cruise Lines

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happyg

happyg

Posted
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Hi all - We just got off the Princess Daphne in Hong Kong on the 6th March, so I thought I would give you my impressions of the ship. First of all I should tell you that we really enjoyed ourselves & met some great people. Now for the negatives & positives. We were late boarding the ship in Singapore as another ship had taken our berth so we missed the sailing out of Singapore as we had to be seated for dinner. The cabin we were given was right at the back of the ship(645) directly above the propellers I think as everything in the room was vibrating & we couldn't hear each other talk....... .

Regards

Carole

Thank you Carole for you honest feedback. We have booked on PD16 leaving HK on 23 March and are in Cabin 639 which is at the back of the ship as well -sounds like we could have vibration noise as well. Maybe I wont unpack straight away just in case we have to move. I have bought a little travel iron to take, good to hear you took one and was able to use it. Thanks also for feedback on wearing of mens jacket at night.

 

With the news tonight of the earthquake in Japan, Im just hope that the cruise PD15 is ok, as they are scheduled to be in Tokoyo tomorrow. Lets hope they had warning and not close to land.

When you went ashore for excursions, did you use aussie $ or US $.

 

cheers Lynne

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seabourndt

seabourndt

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enjoyed raading it my friends lesley and des are on board never been on the daphe but would like to try it. hope they sort out where in japan you gpo if you do makje it there. i was in japan many years ago and loved it

dave

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matmar

matmar

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We have friends on the Princess Daphne at present and they were due in Tokoyo this morning. Have not heard from them as yet. Has anyone else heard from anyone on board to know they are safe?

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chookysgirl

chookysgirl

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Thanks for the update...we are on PD16 leaving HK 23/3 so interested to see what happens with PD15. Can't argue with nature but I'm sure they'll be disappointed if they miss Tokyo. Although, I would be happy to bypass it with all the aftershocks, nuclear meltdowns etc. :eek: Hope they're enjoying themselves anyway and not feeling the effects of any tsunami's.

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chookysgirl

chookysgirl

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Hi Bobsmith, no doubt will meet up on board, fingers crossed she sails safe to Hong Kong. Am looking forward to the cruise although a little perturbed by the previous articles. At least we'll board with less than high expectations and make the most of it and - as long as our air con works OK I'll be happy!

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  • 2 weeks later...
chookysgirl

chookysgirl

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Just back from HK-Singapore. Had a great time although as previously stated the poor old Daphne is looking a bit worse for wear. Thought the entertainment was fantastic, the dancers and costumes were excellent. Our biggest problem was our toilet not flushing properly. Our friends room down the corridor had drainage issues also with the shower not draining. When the plumber was called he stated "there's only so much we can do she's an old ship". Not good enough really. Food was plentiful and certainly plenty of variety although we would've liked an icecream bar on the pool deck at lunchtime, especially as the weather warmed up. Speaking of that, yes we did all encounter some problems with air con. One of our party was moved to a cooler room after the steward even complained how hot it was to clean their room!!! Our room however, was fine. If your planning a cruise on Daphne, you'll have a great time onboard don't worry about these little daily annoyances, because that's all they are really.

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matilda

matilda

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Hi everyone,

Just to let you know that we got back from our back-to-back Japan/Vietnam cruises on the PD several days ago. A great adventure!

We really liked the ship, although the air-con needs overhaul. The food, entertainment, cabins were great, and the air-con in our cabin was fine, but in some other places it was very hit-and-miss. The staff are terrific.

About Tokyo - we were very fortunate with that. If the earthquake had hit 24 hours later we would have been in the centre of Tokyo - which would have been dreadful. So - we counted ourselves extremely fortunate that we missed going there - and the mood of the passengers on the ship was "the poor, poor people of Japan, how sad". We also missed seeing Shanghai, due to fog, but went to Keelung (for Taipei), Taiwan, instead, and thoroughly enjoyed that city.

Taken all round - a great holiday.

Regards, Lesley and Des (Matilda)

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Crustycruiser

Crustycruiser

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Hi Matilda and Chookysgirl

 

So pleased to hear that you are all back safely from your cruise to Japan. It was quite worrying there for a while - I was thinking of you all, and of my friends on the Daphne. Thanks to 'Matmar', we could track your change of route via marinetraffic.com. They have a great night-time photo of the ship in Kobe on the 13th March -now my desktop screen.

I'm also pleased that you liked the ship after so many earlier reports and reviews on other sites had been so negative. I loved it. It's a shame she won't be returning next season. Am eying off some extensive cruising on either the Athena, or maybe the Funchal, next year... Here's hoping.

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happyg

happyg

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My husband and I had a good time on board Princess Daphne from Hong Kong to Singapore. Fortunately our inside cabin had good airflow.

There would have to be something wrong with you if you couldnt find something to eat on board. The variety and amount of food was terrific. The staff were extremely helpful. The entertainment was excellent.

Unfortunately, when the weather became warmer and more humid, some of the cabins air con bombed out. Luckily, the staff were able to swap passengers to other cabins, however it was not an ideal suitation for everyone. Even the staffs cabins were running hot!

 

 

I guess my negative comments are as follows:

  • The ship is not suitable for families/children.
  • The average age of passengers on this trip was probably 50+ so probably wouldnt suit young people. If you were looking for multiple activities to do at one time, then this ship is not suitable. Deck 4 caters for restaurant, multiple lounges and the entertainment area. There are activities on each half hour, but not multiple at the same time.
  • The airconditioning on the ship needs a major overhaul - not just patching. Some areas worked, others were hot. With the age of this ship, it is probably suited to a 'cooler' climate cruise, not tropical humid conditions.

I probably would try one of their other ships in the fleet. I would not recommend the Princess Daphne until the owners replace the aircon and not just do 'patch ups' to the system.

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first cruise

first cruise

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Hi Everyone,

 

Just wanted to pop in and say we had a great cruise on the Princess Daphne, first the Hong Kong to Hong Kong, then the Hong Kong to Singapore. We always felt safe on the ship, were always informed what was happening (re: earthquake etc) and really can't fault any decisions made by the Captain. The Daphne does need an overhaul in the airconditioning department (we were one of several cabins moved to cooler climes) and she is showing her age a tad. One thing I did find interesting.... I was sitting in one of the public areas and I twisted 2 of the curtains together to get a better look at the dock outside...... 6 days later, those curtains were still twisted!!!!! I guess my attempts of trying to be an interior decorator must have been heeded!!!! We would cruise on the Princess Daphne again without hesitation. The whole dining experience was wonderful and the staff certainly knew their jobs. Hears cheers to a great cruise!!!!!

Shayne and Lea (first cruise, but not really)

... and you can all stop calling me Miss Daphne, the title and its requirements finished in Singapore!!!!!... lol

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debandjo

debandjo

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Hi all

 

We were also on the "eventful" Hong Kong to Hong Kong cruise and had a great time. No problems at all in our cabin. It was much larger than expected and the air con worked fine the whole trip. The bathroom was a bit tatty but a good size and everything was kept spotlessly clean by Roman our lovely cabin steward. The food was terrific, lots of variety and well presented and the waiting staff were excellent. In fact all of the staff were fantastic, always happy and smiling and would go out of their way to help.

 

Harry, if you're still "lurking" the photo gallery on here is a bit confusing (or maybe it's just me being a bit dense!) but if you want a copy of the last night photos just contact me at debandjody@hotmail.com and I'll send you a copy.

 

And Lea - I think you'll find that the title of Miss Daphne is a lifelong award not something you can ditch when you get home!:D

 

Does anyone know what Daphne is doing at the moment - I see that she's doing a Christmas and New Year cruise in Europe but nothing in between. Might look at the Funchal next year.

 

Debra

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