First cruise - Diamond - lots of questions!

[Summertime]

I have spent days reading over the Princess reviews and reading all sorts of different threads from this site - I appreciate all of the great information! My girls and I are taking our first cruise on the Princess Diamond in late March. I have a few questions regarding the type of cabin I have. It's the PH Penthouse suite with balcony on the caribe deck. My girls are 6 and 8. Do you think that this suite will have a good amount of room for us? I have tried to find out what ammenties come with this room other than what is on the princess website. Do you have any tips for any special services that I can have with this room? Can or should I order things before we arrive such as a robe in the room, fruit and cookies for the girls for our arrival? I'm also wondering if I can get my clothes pressed, do I need to bring something along to do this or can the steward have it done? Also, is there access to movies in the suite? There might be times when the girls would want to watch a children's movie in the cabin but I can't find out if this would be possible. Somewhere I read that I should bring my laptop but I would rather not lug it on board if it's not necessary. After I booked, my travel agent said that over 800 children are booked on this ship! Gasp! Has anyone sailed with such a huge amount of kids - it seems like the activity place for kids will be overflowing. Also, I'm trying to avoid standing in long lines to embark with my children - would an early time be best or would a 2:00 p.m. arrival be suitable - the ship leaves at 5:00 p.m.

 

Thanks so much for all your help!

Summer

[Crowsie]

Oh Summer...I would love to be able to answer your questions, but I have not been lucky enough to be in a penthouse suite!

 

I am bumping this back up for you in hopes that someone with experience will chime in!

[GottoCruise]

You will get laundry and dry cleaning - You will get robes - You should have plenty of room - You can order whatever you want from room service - fresh fruit is left everyday...you can easily bring cookies down from the buffet and keep them in the room for the children (or you :D ) - or ask the Steward to bring some..no problem..You will have a 1 time mini-bar set up...& you can exchange any drinks for your preferences....there are movies on the Cabin TV (no VCR) - most are suitable for children - look up the scheduale - it will be in your room. I always prefer to get to embarkation very early - time to unpack and settle in and lunch etc. The amount of children aboard sounds staggering! Hope you survive!! Have fun...GotToCruise!

[ca2ga2000]

What date are you sailing the Diamond that has over 800 kids on board? Just curious...

[Summertime]

We are on the March 26th sailing. I think there will be a lot of families on this cruise because of Easter break. I am okay with lots of children since I have two myself but the idea of over 800 on board seems staggering!

 

Summer

[Cruisin' Chick]

About the in-cabin movies: there is only one (or two, I can't remember) channel that will be devoted to movies. Usually the kids-oriented movie will play in the early morning, maybe one time later but not in the evening. Some of the programming (the oldies stuff) may be suitable for the children. Carnival has three movie channels (at least when we sailed with them) going all through the day, including one for little kids.

[Fuzzyape]

Summer,

 

I don't have much experience with Princess, just one cruise, but I can add to some of the other suggestions. If you don't have a robe in your room ask, you'll get one (or however many you need for family members in your room). I suggest you get a robe. They are nice (my wife liked her's so much we ended up buying one).

 

Definately get the fruit brought to your room in the afternoon. There was nothing like returning from an exciting excursion to a small plate of fruit. It hit the spot!

 

Have fun.

[Sandy R]

Your's is a question I can answer! My huband and I sailed on the Diamond last December and were lucky enough to be upgraded to a PH suite. It was wonderful! The balcony is huge, the living room is large, the bedroom is large, the bathroom is split in two... one side is sink and toilet, the other side is shower and jacuzzi tub. There is a door between each section making a throughway or you can close the center door for privacy. And their is a drape that you can pull for privacy between the living room and bedroom. I take it the girls will sleep on the sofa bed in the living area. You'll love the PH suite! I didn't notice if you could play DVD's or tapes but the children's area on the ship is great. Our kids are grown but the area looks perfect for kids. I would imagine they play tapes for the kids as well as organize lots of other activities. Their is a refrigerator in the cabin and robes, too. You'll get a breakfast menu every day to order from for the following day as well as a canape list for each afternoon. Any other questions I can answer, I'll check back...

 

Sandy

[bardgal]

Here is where you can find a list of the PH suite amenities:

http://www.princess.com/news/article.jsp?newsArticleId=na687

 

On the Diamond there is a movie channel that is just for kids, and runs the same movie for almost 24hrs straight. The film changes every day. I remember when I was on in Oct (PH suite C400), they had Shrek 2.

 

Check out my uberlong review at:

http://cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=7032

[Summertime]

Thanks Sandy for your first hand account - it sounds like the suite is lovely and big (and yes my girls will be sleeping on the sofa bed ) I am hoping that I can relax on this cruise - my first cruise ever. My husband died of cancer last year and this is the first trip I will have taken with my girls alone - we are all in need of some time to relax. I feel like I haven't been able to breathe in over a year. I did want to ask if your room was portside? Is the balcony covered? I've read conflicting reports about the caribe deck and if other people can look down onto it? I noticed that there are the Panoramic lifts right outside our room - do you remember if they were noisey? Also, did you get prefered embarking because you were in a PH suite? I'm trying to figure out what the best time to arrive at the port might be. Thanks for your help. These boards are just the best, I can't imagine taking a cruise without being a member here and getting all of the inside information - I feel so much more prepared.

 

Summer

[Sandy R]

Hi Summer... happy to be able to help. We were in PH Suite #C420 port side. The PH Suit balconies are partially covered so unless you're standing at the railing no one can really see you from above. I'm not sure what the Panoramic lifts are but we had absolutely no noise at all although we were very close to the elevator bank. And, we had no obstruction from our balcony. We did have priority embarkation but since we're Elite, we have that anyway. We arrived at the ship about 10:45 am. They didn't begin boarding until 12 noon but we were in the 1st group to board. I think there are 2 places to board for "suite people" but one of those areas board before the other. The area you want to wait in, is way down toward the right of the area where you first check in and get your "key cards". Also, if you're doing PC dining, when you board, use your cabin telephone and press concierge and make your reservations for the first 2 nights. Because you are in a suite, the rest of the week, you'll get priority reservations. If they give you a problem, go to the head waiter in the restaurant you want to have dinner in and they'll help you. Our favorites were Sterling Steak House and Vivaldi's (Italian).

 

You and your daughters are going to have a wonderful time.

 

Sandy

[Summertime]

Bardgal, I read your review several days ago - it was fantastic! It was such an awesome review and the most up-beat one I have read. I remember thinking after I read it that you had such a great attitude and that goes a long way towards a wonderful trip. It made me feel extra excited about our upcoming cruise. Thanks for the PH ammenties list - it gives me an even better idea to know what to expect staying in this suite.

 

Summer

[bardgal]

Thanks Summer!

 

So sorry about your hubby!

 

You're going to have a blast. You'll get Platinum boarding with the suite, but then if you're going to MEX (I forgot what day you're going), then damn near the entire ship is Platinum because here in LA, we're all CRUISE WHORES!!!!!! (it's addictive!) And it's easy here, cuz Mexico rocks, and airfare isn't a factor!

 

Another secret: if you have PC, and find the great waitstaff and table you like, make a standing reservation for it every night. You can have ALL MENUS in ALL PC RESTAURANTS ANY NIGHT - just smile and ask.

[Jean248]

Summer,

 

My husband and I will be on the same cruise as you and your girls. We'll be travelling without our son since his college spring break falls on a different week. After reading about the number of kids on this cruise, we may be the only passengers cruising without kids!

 

You asked about a hotel in the area in a previous thread. Where did you decide to stay? My husband and I plan to spend Friday night in Long Beach somewhere.

 

We're scheduled to be in A751 which is an aft cabin. Please stop by sometime and say hello. We'd love to meet you and your girls.

 

Jean

[Summertime]

Hi Jean,

We'll be sure and stop by - hope you don't feel over-run with all the kids on-board - you're going to have to find spots on the ship where you can have some quiet time!

I wound up changing my plans before the cruise so we aren't booking a hotel the night before in L.A. Orginally I thought it would be fun to have a nice hotel to stay in the night before the cruise but we're actually going to be in San Diego and then drive up that morning. I still can't figure out when would be the best time to arrive at the port - when do you plan on being there?

Summer

[Summertime]

Hi Bardgal,

Thank you for your kind thoughts (and everyone else's too) about my husband, it's been a really, really tough year - I'm hoping I can do some deep breathing on this cruise and that my girls can just play and have fun - they deserve that after what they have gone through. Thanks for the tip about the dining - does that mean that if I'm in the Sterling Steakhouse restaurant, I can order off the mexican or asian dining room menu?

 

Summer

[snowcamper]

Summertime: we were on the Diamond at the end of Jan, and had a nice trip. We got to the pier about 2:00 and never stood on a line! walked right on! It was the easiest boarding I have ever done. And we weren't in any special grouping, like elite or a suite. Also, we were right near the forward lifts, on Dolphin deck, and never heard a sound. Enjoy your cruise!

[Jean248]

Summer,

 

We're arriving in LAX Friday night and spending the night in Long Beach. We're meeting a friend for breakfast so will probably get to the port aroung noon.

 

Can't wait! Hope to see you then.

 

Jean

[judynorth]

I just posted some pictures of the Diamond Princess from our May 2004 cruise. You might like to see what the ship looks like inside and out. YOu can reach them at the link in my signature. I hope you enjoy the Diamond as much as we did.

[bluehorizonlover123]

I have been on the Diamond but not in the Penthouse. You will have a butler at your beck and call. You will have 2 tvs in your room and you kids can watch whatever they want. You can eat your meals in your room served by your butler. He will take care of all your shore excursion planning. 800 kids is no big deal. you wont see them running around. Your kids will enjoy the kids program on this ship. It is a beautiful ship. My biggest suggestion is to book your dinner reservations all onthe first night. Try each restaurant one time and then pick the last 3 to repeat. You will miss repeating one of them. It is almost impossible to get reservations after the first night as those who booked traditional dining are allowed to try the dine around restaurants (which are very small by the way)But dine around people are not allowed to try traditional dining.

[Summertime]

Judy - your photographs are absolutely beautiful! Thank you for sharing. The detail shots are wonderful - so many people pass up the details in life. Maybe it's a good thing I booked my cruise not too long ago because if I had to wait much more than a month before I could get on this beautiful ship. I think I'd go crazy!

 

Summer

[bluehorizonlover123]

Wow you are a great photographer. Your pictures came out great. How did you get them with out a sole in sight. Did you go out at six in the morning before everyone was awake. That is amazing.

[CMHF]

Hi All,

 

Just got back from the Diamond yesterday, there were 570 kids on board between the ages of 3 & 18. I thought the kids were more well behaved than some of the adults.

Harvey

[snowcamper]

Judy, Wow - your pics are GREAT!

[judynorth]

Thanks for the compliments. It is hard to take a bad picture in Alaska. Everything is beautiful. We still enjoy just looking at them and can hardly wait to see the real thing again. I am not one to take pictures of people. We took a few just to prove that we were there, but most of the time I wanted the scenery not the people. I sure wish I could have put someone on the icebergs or on the shore in Tracy Arm to give you some idea of the size. You really can't tell by looking at the pictures. It was even hard to judge the size when we were there. The ice floes were huge and the waterfalls in Tracy Arm were several thousand feet high. Awesome is a good descriptive word for it.

 

As I remember it, I took most of the ship board pictures very early in the morning. Since we are from the east coast, I usually woke up at about 4 AM. Very few people were stirring at that early hour.

 

Summertime, maybe after seeing my pictures you will be tempted to take your SECOND cruise to Alaska!