All Things PRIDE!!

[stewartgirl721]

with the 2.0 updates is anything being downsized to make room for the new places??

[grumpyjr88]

Agreed. I've sailed the Pride a time or two; almost all of our sailings as Platinum members. The earliest that we've ever boarded was 12:30, the latest close to 2pm. The first couple of years they would depart Freeport later than they do now, and arrivals were closer to 10am. At that point cabins weren't available until 2:30pm, so when they boarded at 1pm, you would get a benefit of an hour and a half (had fttf been available then). When they started leaving Freeport earlier and arriving in Baltimore at 9am, pax were asked to vacate their cabins earlier and they generally became available around 1:30pm, a benefit of maybe an hour or so if arrival was on time. The parking lot never opens prior to 11am, so the absolute earliest (and that assumes an on time departure from Freeport and no weather or other delays) that anyone driving could ever board the Pride would be noon, so again your back to one and a half hours max. We typically have started arriving a little later because 12:30-1pm is really a more typical experience. Whether fttf is worth it to anyone individually is up to them, but I agree that in Baltimore you definitely get the least bang for your buck.

 

 

hmmmm, that's good to know. I might have to look at the train schedule again. I live in DC just a few blocks from Union Station so we aren't driving but we don't want to sit for hours waiting either.

 

I mostly wanted the FTTF so I could drop my stuff off at the room asap.

[M&T ReadyToCruiseAgain]

Agreed. I've sailed the Pride a time or two; almost all of our sailings as Platinum members. The earliest that we've ever boarded was 12:30, the latest close to 2pm. The first couple of years they would depart Freeport later than they do now, and arrivals were closer to 10am. At that point cabins weren't available until 2:30pm, so when they boarded at 1pm, you would get a benefit of an hour and a half (had fttf been available then). When they started leaving Freeport earlier and arriving in Baltimore at 9am, pax were asked to vacate their cabins earlier and they generally became available around 1:30pm, a benefit of maybe an hour or so if arrival was on time. The parking lot never opens prior to 11am, so the absolute earliest (and that assumes an on time departure from Freeport and no weather or other delays) that anyone driving could ever board the Pride would be noon, so again your back to one and a half hours max. We typically have started arriving a little later because 12:30-1pm is really a more typical experience. Whether fttf is worth it to anyone individually is up to them, but I agree that in Baltimore you definitely get the least bang for your buck.

 

Got info about the parking lot. We are driving to the port and it's only about an hour and a half. Do they let you line up for the parking lot? When we dropped off our daughter and new son-in-law for their honeymoon cruise it seems I recall seeing a line of cars waiting to park. I don't recall the time of morning.

[DKane]

They do line you up in the lot.

 

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[xowendyxo]

What if you take a shuttle from the hotel? We have a 1015 shuttle :eek:

[bigdog1958]

What if you take a shuttle from the hotel? We have a 1015 shuttle :eek:

 

You can get right into the terminal and go through security and check in no problem... They dont let cars come in to park early as they have to have the previous cruise cars leave.... Just be prepared to wait in the terminal for up to 2-3 hours if you arrive around 10:30am...

[DKane]

When we were waiting in line, shuttles drove into the lot but they could have been picking up passengers

 

 

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[NCTribeFan]

What if you take a shuttle from the hotel? We have a 1015 shuttle :eek:

 

Why would they even do that? Because they're picking up returning pax?

 

In Charleston (where they have very limited facilities), the hotel shuttles I've had (3 times from 2 different hotels) wouldn't even pick you up until noon.

 

I'd rather wait in comfort at the hotel for an extra hour than sit in the terminal for that long. Guess I'd better contact my hotel and find out how they handle things.

[xowendyxo]

Why would they even do that? Because they're picking up returning pax?

 

In Charleston (where they have very limited facilities), the hotel shuttles I've had (3 times from 2 different hotels) wouldn't even pick you up until noon.

 

I'd rather wait in comfort at the hotel for an extra hour than sit in the terminal for that long.

 

I know, that was my thought! I booked before they changed the embarkation time, now I wish I would have waited. Oh well, we have our exchange student and i'm sure it's going to take a little longer to get his paperwork ok'd, and I'll have plenty of time if there's a problem.

 

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[NCTribeFan]

I seem to remember several years ago when I first joined Cruise Critic. Someone arrived at port with an exchange student and they wouldn't let him board.

 

Not to freak you out or anything! Sorry! :o

 

Just be sure to triple-check the documentation needed.

 

Sailed once with DD's then BF, who was over from England. I was so paranoid that he wouldn't have the documentation needed (that he might need a visa that US passport-holders didn't need). He did have to have his passport updated and get one with a chip in it, but that was all he needed.

 

Well, that and having to report to immigrations on the morning we returned at a very early hour.

 

So now that it's April, I can officially say that I sail next month! :D

 

Just need to remember to submit my S/H credit info as soon as my quarterly statement is available.

[grumpyjr88]

Has anyone ordered a bottle of alcohol for your room from room service after you were on board? Some people say they have and some say they weren't allowed so I'm wondering if it's by ship or just the luck of who you get on the phone.

[brilliantseas]

Has anyone ordered a bottle of alcohol for your room from room service after you were on board? Some people say they have and some say they weren't allowed so I'm wondering if it's by ship or just the luck of who you get on the phone.

 

To the best of my knowledge, you can not buy full bottles of hard liquor from room service; they can only be ordered in advance from the Bon Voyage Department. You can order beer and full bottles of wine from room service.

[Blizzardlane]

We got a bottle of gin from room service on the Freedom just a couple weeks ago. Same price as Bon Voyage.

[rrraydon]

I've cruised Pride quite a few times and have never been able to board before 1pm...and that was the earliest boarding time of them all. Usually it was about 1:30-2:00.

[DKane]

We boarded Pride by 11:15 back in August.

 

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[DKane]

You can order hard liquor from room service.

 

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[jordanaire]

What's the latest on the Pride's propulsion problems? We set sail 4 weeks from tomorrow and was wondering if it will be repaired by then? I see the Miracle is suffering from propulsion issues too!

 

:cool: Bill

[BattyL]

What's the latest on the Pride's propulsion problems? We set sail 4 weeks from tomorrow and was wondering if it will be repaired by then? I see the Miracle is suffering from propulsion issues too!

 

:cool: Bill

 

I would like to know this also. We are sailing next week. I wouldn't mind skipping Freeport and getting OBC and future cruise credit. LOL :)

[PaulMedik]

What's the latest on the Pride's propulsion problems? We set sail 4 weeks from tomorrow and was wondering if it will be repaired by then? I see the Miracle is suffering from propulsion issues too!

 

:cool: Bill

 

 

Bill,

 

I don't know the 'official' latest info on the propulsion issue, but I can tell you that the propulsion appeared to be nearly equal (Starboard and Port) by our stop in Half Moon Cay. I watched the aft wake of Pride for the past week and each day it gradually increased in the starboard side until they were equal by our 5th day.

 

If the 'official' info was announced while we were on board, then I missed it. :p

 

There was a distinct vibration throughout the ship that was present from the time we boarded until about the 5th day also. It felt like the ship was using thrusters the entire time instead of just when maneuvering.

 

We had high winds for the first two days, then perfect weather until yesterday when it was similar to winter in the North Atlantic with cold temps, high winds, and wicked high seas. :( Most passengers spent yesterday in their cabins and ordered room service, based on the lack of passengers in public areas and the amount of room service trays I saw piled in the hallways. If our propulsion had went out yesterday.......I doubt we'd be back in port for quite some time. :rolleyes:

 

Late yesterday I spoke with an officer in the gym (The only people in the gym and steam rooms yesterday when we were there was crew members I assume due to the rough seas) and he commented that Pride was due to be dry docked three months ago and that they had decided to push it back to later this year to make more money. He stated that the generator may have failed regardless, but would have been less likely if they had the dry dock when scheduled. Our conversation was casual and he brought the topic up. I didn't ask him any questions about the propulsion and only commented that we were pleased with our experience on Pride and that prior to that days rough seas we had noticed she was running quite rough. We talked about Carnival ships, differences between ships in the same class (Mainily Dream vs Breeze ), and different features in the spa areas; steam rooms etc. He was a wealth of information about dry steam and the best type of rocks, rock sizes, and moisture additives.

 

I have 16GB worth of pictures from our cruise to go thru and over 100GB of GoPro video to edit and upload. My GoPro videos will NOT be the entertaining type, but they should show the ship and her current condition. I am very much an amateur with my GoPro since I just got it right before the cruise and didn't even know how to record with it until we were underway....

[NCTribeFan]

Haven't the Spirit-class ships always had issues with the propulsion? I sailed Miracle twice (Dec 2007 & Dec 2009) and thought this was an issue back then.

 

Oh well. In two weeks, we'll be on our first day at sea. I'm hoping it will be OK and that the seas won't be too rough. Thankfully, I'm much less prone to seasickness since discovering Ginger Root, thanks to these boards. But still. I'd rather it NOT be too rough!

 

I have to contact my hotel about the shuttle to the port. I'm Platinum. If I choose to arrive at around 12-12:30, is the terminal going to be packed with FTTF people? Is there a VIP lounge where I'll be able to sit and wait or will that be filled with FTTF? I'm not going to rush to the port just to get a seat and sit and wait two hours if that isn't necessary. But if I do wait and then have to stand around, I won't be happy.

[swalton85]

We just sailed the pride on 4/6 and got to the pier at noon, went through security, checked in and walked right on the ship. No waiting.

[rrraydon]

Haven't the Spirit-class ships always had issues with the propulsion? I sailed Miracle twice (Dec 2007 & Dec 2009) and thought this was an issue back then.

 

Oh well. In two weeks, we'll be on our first day at sea. I'm hoping it will be OK and that the seas won't be too rough. Thankfully, I'm much less prone to seasickness since discovering Ginger Root, thanks to these boards. But still. I'd rather it NOT be too rough!

 

I have to contact my hotel about the shuttle to the port. I'm Platinum. If I choose to arrive at around 12-12:30, is the terminal going to be packed with FTTF people? Is there a VIP lounge where I'll be able to sit and wait or will that be filled with FTTF? I'm not going to rush to the port just to get a seat and sit and wait two hours if that isn't necessary. But if I do wait and then have to stand around, I won't be happy.

 

There is no VIP lounge in Baltimore. Priority seating is sectioned off in the area with everyone else. I think 12:30 arrival time is good.

Edited April 21, 2014 by rrraydon

[rsrmjs]

 

We had high winds for the first two days, then perfect weather until yesterday when it was similar to winter in the North Atlantic with cold temps, high winds, and wicked high seas. :( Most passengers spent yesterday in their cabins and ordered room service, based on the lack of passengers in public areas and the amount of room service trays I saw piled in the hallways....

 

We were on this cruise; the Sea Day Brunch, Lido (Chocolate Extravaganza), and Fun Shops were busy on Saturday even with the slightly (I thought) rough seas. It was very windy and hard to open the balcony door. The boo boo bags were set out by the elevators.

 

We had worse conditions last November on the Pride. It was fun to look at the balcony rail and watch the horizon go up up up up and then back down down down down.

[NCTribeFan]

I'll ask for a noon shuttle from the hotel. By the time I drop my luggage (do they put on the bright orange sticker for VIP/FTTF so they get delivered quickly?) and go through security, the timing shouldn't be too bad.

 

Facilities sound a lot like Charleston - very old and very limited. Charleston does a great job of keeping the flow staggered (but they have a slightly longer window for boarding). Plush, fancy port terminals are of no interest to me. Just get me on the ship! :D

 

Anyone know what the Platinum gift is currently? I'm hoping for one of the cooler bags.

[WetToes]

NCTribeFan - I wouldn't worry about the FTTF people. I believe they only sell a small number of those. It may have changed, but I still wouldn't be concerned about that.

Hope you have a great cruise. :)