Just back from Diamond - a bit long

[Shelly97060]

We just completed our trip on Diamond Princess. This was our first cruise and it was wonderful. Here are a few things I would share:

 

Embarkation - apparently every 6 weeks all the crew goes through customs. This was one of those times, so they did not start boarding passengers until 1:00 pm... we were in our rooms by 1:20 and our luggage was waiting. Lots of folks had gotten to the pier early but most were in really good spirits and didn't complain too much about the wait.

 

Mini suite - there were four of us and the mini was perfect and we really enjoyed the balcony. We did not expect any "perks" with the mini but were pleased to recieve several treats during the week ( maybe they did this for all cabins I am not sure). We recieved canapes the first night, fresh fruit bowl the next which they offered to replenish daily, chocolate dipped strawberries another night, a little sewing kit one night and another batch of canapes the last night. Each time it was a nice little unexpected treat. Maybe this is something new they are doing with minis - I hope so as it was very nice.

 

kids club & kids in general - my 9 year old daughter loved kids club and never wanted to leave it. My 13 year old did not participate as he was not interested in the dating game type activities. most of the kids we saw hanging out in "Off Limits" were about 15 -16. Both kids had a great time in their own way. There were 380 kids on our ship. All were well behaved.

 

Excursions - We did two excursions through Princess.

• PV Beach Break - this excursion took you to a hotel on the beach and you could either swim in a pool, which had a great water slide for the kids or you could play in the ocean. We stuck to the heated pool, since the water was so cold. Lunch and one drink were included in the cost. bring your own towels or plan on giving them your cruise card if you want to use theirs.
  
• Stone Island in Mazatlan - This excursion took you on a boat ride to see some sights and then over to the island. You are then taken to the restaurant and beach. You get to pick either a horseback ride, or a horse and carriage ride ( we skipped both just because the beach was so inviting). Then you can lay on the beach and play in the ocean. They also had a piniata for the kids and made sure they each got a mini piniata to take home. Bring your own beach towels if you do this trip. Lunch and all the drinks you want including bottled water are all included in the price.
  

Best kept coffee secret - The lobby bar sells espresso drinks... which is no secret, but they also have great regular coffee which is FREE. Early in the morning lots of the employees would stop there to get coffee, after we had a cup we knew why. Yummy rich fresh brewed coffee... Let's just keep this our little secret though since there was never a line there at all and you could sit and enjoy the ocean view.

 

Disembark - we went up and waited in Skywalkers until they called our number. It was fun to watch all the activity below, and no one was up there so it was peaceful. When they did call our group we headed down and it took about 25 minutes from the time we left the ship until we has our luggage.

 

Anyway, if anyone has any questions I can answer feel free to ask. Thanks to all of you for all the great information you shared prior to our trip, it really helped us to get the most out of our trip. If I can return the favor I am happy to help - Shelly

[Shelly97060]

I took advantage of the in port spa specials and was able to chose 2 treatments for $79. I had the massage and the reflexology (sp?). It was wonderful and she really did a great job working out the kinks... one thing I had expected was some sort of sales pitch about various products. I was pleasantly surprised as no one tried to sell me anything. After completing my treatment I had the use of the thermal beds. It was a bargain :D

[margu1241]

Shelly,

 

I will be on the Diamond in a month with my 16yo and 13 yo. I have seen conflicting info on the boards about which age group the 13 yo would be in, but it sounds from your post that he was in with the older teens. Did you look into the possiblity of the next age group down? I think that might be more appropriate for my son, as he is a young 13 (both chronologically and maturationally). Anyone else try this with success?

Patty

[Shelly97060]

I did speak to the kids club folks about this and she said it depends on how many kids they have at the time. We didn't look into it until pretty late in the week and by then he had started enjoying going to see the shows with us and it was all working out very well. So we didn't pursue. I think if you ask about it when you sign them up you would have the best luck.

 

on the first night they will give you a packet that tells what activities the groups will be doing each day. That will help you decide which group looks best for your child.

[Logie]

Thank you for your positive and informative review!!

[mii]

It sounds like you had a great first cruise but I am curious about something. You said you had a mini-suite and got chocolate strawberries,sewing kit and canapes. Since when they start that. I have been on mini's and not receive things like that. Now a regular suite you do get those things. Just wondering about that. I am glad you did enjoy your cruise.

 

Marilyn

[Jean248]

Thanks for the information. We will be on the Diamond next week at this time and can't wait!!

 

While you were in Cabo, did you see any whales? We are scheduled to go on one of the whale watching excursions, and from what I've read, the whales are already gone. Just wondered if you saw any or if you heard reports from any of the other passengers who went on the excursions.

 

Thanks.

 

Jean

[Shelly97060]

Mii - I am not sure if the little extras were something everyone got or maybe something they did because it was our first cruise. I didn't ask. Each item delivered had a little note saying it was compliments of " X" and had a different service area as the sender ( Matre'd, room steward, etc). I hope they do make this a standard thing for the mini's it was so nice. Maybe it is something new they are piloting?

 

Other than chocolates on the pillow I never expected a thing, so it was nice to get the little items.

 

Jean248 - we did see whales from the ship. It was great. Hope you have a great cruise!

 

Shelly

[Lynda90]

Shelly, thanks for the great review. So glad you had a wonderful time. Which cabin were you in?

[Coral]

Welcome back! Glad you enjoyed your first cruise.

[Sumar76]

So glad you had a great first cruise! Now you're hooked!

 

I was wondering if you had traditional dining or pc? I know this might start a whole controversy, just wondering if what you chose worked for you. Thanks

[randyat1001]

We were on the Diamond in a mini in Feb. and did not receive the extras listed, sounds like it was a 1st cruise bonus. Glad you enjoyed the trip as we did.

[AZPam]

 

While you were in Cabo, did you see any whales? We are scheduled to go on one of the whale watching excursions, and from what I've read, the whales are already gone. Just wondered if you saw any or if you heard reports from any of the other passengers who went on the excursions.

 

Thanks.

 

Jean

 

We were on the same cruise as Shelley, but never did get to meet up with her! So disappointed about that!

 

Re the whales, another in our cruise critic group paid $80 per person for the excursion to see the whales out of Cabo and never saw a one. We did see a few coming and going out of Cabo on the trip, but they were pretty far away. Mostly just saw the humps and blow spouts of water. Saw some dolphins too.

 

I also want to say what a wonderful trip this was. There were a few hic-ups as there are with any trip, but not enough to ruin anything. Our only real complaint were the collage-aged frat boys and sorority girls that were drunk and loud walking down the halls at 3am every night. Oh well, we just rolled over and went back to sleep!

 

We did Los Veranos Canopy Tour in PV and highly recommend them. Unfortunately, the hubby is a big guy at 6'4" and they wouldn't let him do the zip lines. That was the only excuse I needed not to go since I am a chicken at heart, but the kids had a blast. Lots of walking and climbing stairs on that tour they don't tell you about, so be prepared.

 

We did Randi's Happy Horses in Mazatlan and had a blast there too. Wonderful operation and they matched us up perfectly with the right horse for each person. The beach was beautiful and we ended up renting ATV's there also. $35 for an hour. Victor's garlic shrimp was everything we had hoped for!

 

At Cabo we took a water taxi to see Lover's Beach and the Arches before heading to Billigan's to sit back and relax with a few beers. We rented some jet ski's there for an hour which was a lot of fun. Just not enough time in Cabo, so would like to go back there one of these days.

 

My kids are 20 and almost 18, so they really weren't part of any group. The younger one was interested in the teen club, but did go to check it out the first night. My son went to a meet and greet for the 18-20 year old crowd where he met a few nice girls, but once they found somebody that could buy them drinks, he was history! He wasn't too concerned since he has a nice girlfriend at home, but this age group really does get kind of left out of the loop. He could get into Skywalker's but said it was a pretty drunk crowd in there every night, so wasn't really interested.

 

The only other thing I can think those of you that will be doing this trip soon is to bring along a light weight coat/windbreaker. Our first day at sea was really chilly (approx 65) and overcast. We actually saw the captain the Horizon Court that morning and he said it's like that on every trip. Last day at sea was pretty chilly too, but not as cold until mid afternoon. Of course, we are from Phoenix area, so anything below 70 degress is cold to us!

 

Guess that's my review.

 

Pam

[Shelly97060]

Lyndabaker - we were in D224. It was a quad and was great for four of us. It was also right across from the laundry room which was great for quick ironing touch ups. Also well positioned near elevators.

 

 

Sumar76 - we had first seating traditional. It was nice for our first cruise because I really wanted to experience the pleasure of the same wait staff and table mates as well as the baked alaska parade. However, I am going to try PC next time. Sometimes, we just weren't all that hungry at 5:45 pm. I spoke with several people on board who had PC and loved it so I will give it a try!

 

Randyat1001 - you could be right about the first time cruise treatment... They also mentioned that the Diamond and Sapphire were having a competition this month to see which ship could recieve the highest satisfaction ratings... maybe the little extras were sent to help boost the survey results. I don't know, but it was really nice just the same. I hope they decide to start doing it for all minis. We got a little spoiled.:)

[randyat1001]

I love the idea of a competition between the ships!

I surprised DW with the vow renewal and as part of the package had certain treats but I will say we paid for them as the package was fairly pricey but well worth it.

Randy

[Jean248]

Shelly or Pam,

 

Did either of you eat at Sabatini's and, if so, what did you think of it?

 

Jean

[AZPam]

Shelly or Pam,

 

Did either of you eat at Sabatini's and, if so, what did you think of it?

 

Jean

 

Sorry, we are perfectly content eating in the normal dining rooms, so have never done it. Considering I gained almost 5 lbs this past week, the food couldn't be too terrible!

 

Pam

[Shelly97060]

Jean - sorry, we did not eat at Sabatini's. - Shelly