Shogun Live from Grand Princess 2nd June

[Mrs Monkey]

Hi Shogun,

 

have a lovely time in the Fjords, the great thing is if you are staying onboard there will be amazing scenery to look at. We are sailing on the Grand at the end of July an dcan't wait.

 

Bon Voyage

[strummer]

Have a great trip - looking forward to hearing how the jubilee celebrations are on the Grand :)

[phabric]

I will be looking for more reviews.

[paul929207]

You are off to a great start - free internet and being paid to drink the coffee. Keep up the good work.

[CruisingObsessed]

Thanks for posting this thread! I am also looking forward to the staggering boarding. While on the surface it seems like a good idea, I wonder if it will supercede the Platinum/Elite boarding. Already those are not applicable to some of the short cruises here.

 

The only reason it would be a problem is it is competitive to get good sanctuary spots or certain specialty dining times--now something being early and elite will probably allow you to get. If that changes, you will have to choose your cabin by desired boarding time

[Shogun]

Hi Cruise Buddies

We are safely onboard the Grand Princess,

Embarkation well ship had to sail late , muster was late still 900 folks trying to get to the ship or on it,

Problem one traffic very bad QE Terminal has only one gate with two large ships in just could not handle traffic, we took a fixed price taxi good job we did over an hour to do a few miles,

Check in queues hundreds in line, asked if there was an Elite crew and got taken passed hundreds a few folks muttering where are they going, Elite check in small wait only minutes then next very queue is for security not sure why as four terminals screening got through them in seconds, but still a very long queue, very many complaints a few folks letting off steam at anyone wearing Princess Uniform .

First suite case at stateroom before us, next no show then a phone call , about your suitcase , we have it at security OK whats up it’s the skian dubh show them it not a weapon and they are happy,

Off to muster card scanned no issues, Deck party under way Union Jack Flags by the hundred, pier not good for a sailaway a public have no access so nothing 4 blokes playing away in a small brass band,

What my English friends were not aware of is if Scotland votes for independence then no more Union Jack Flag,

We have the P&O ship Azure joining us tomorrow in Zeebrugge.

So far ship looks nice clean crew all smiles,

Saw Hotel Manager at work he cleared tables and instruct crew to do same when not serving like to see this, he can not have a good ship if he is not out and leading by example.

More later folks

Yours Shogun

[cruisedreamer17]

Yes, we are also on the July 1 cruise on the CB, so looking forward to your updates on the ports etc. Have a great time and hopefully all your work is behind you!

Laurie

[indigosails]

Good on ya, Shogun! Enjoying your posts. Have a great trip!

[sotong]

Azura no longer joining you they are back on the Norway itinery. Dropped my mum off at terminal for azura at 1.30 and traffic was fine, may be staggered boarding working there.

 

They sail at 8pm now so not following GP, independence of seas and the the p&o ship out.

 

Have a god cruise, following your review as we are on Princess for first time in August.

 

Gillian

[compozer]

Have a wonderful cruise. We love the Grand.

[whitecap]

Hi All

 

Thank you for taking the time to read my rantings and thank you for all the good wishes,

 

 

for the person who asked about my dog we called him after the orginal Shogun, so w call him puppy Shogun, got a text this morning that he slepted with the dog sitter last night in her bed,

 

couple of fun points from last night

 

at the airport a little girl said good bye to daddy he walks off, little girl waits a second then runs after daddy through security etc so funny as every time he took her back she shouted out do not go please stay, then ran after him again,

 

then not having food the snack we picked up was hot ham, well it was warmed, but the hot refered to the curry powered inside it hot hot hot,

 

cracked the hotel internet surfing for free not sure how, but hey its free

 

also last night when we went out for coffee girl at till type in £30 pound note no such item has ever been printed so got very cheap coffee as we only gave her a £20 but did nt spot it until I checked reciept this morning,

 

may be the Scottish banks notes confused her,

 

sun is up flags are out so taxi booked to arrive in a couple of hours

 

so looking forward to doing nowthing for a week

 

yours Shogun

 

Shogun, quick question: is Alfredo's Pizza a "specialty restaurant" with a charge and if you have time, could you please post a copy of their menu? But first and foremost, ENJOY YOUR CRUISE!!

Thanks

Jon

[Floflegs]

Have a great cruise and keep the ship in ood order for us next week!

[cherylandtk]

Shogun, quick question: is Alfredo's Pizza a "specialty restaurant" with a charge and if you have time, could you please post a copy of their menu? But first and foremost, ENJOY YOUR CRUISE!!

Thanks

Jon

Jon, not Shogun but can answer your question from experience. No charge for Alfredo's, menu is five specialty pizzas as follows:

 

Capricciosa - artichokes, mushrooms and prosciutto, cotto

Romana - anchovies, capers and black olives

Tarantina - mussels, shrimp and capers

Grand Princess - cheeses and ham

Vegetariana - lotsa veggies

 

You can subtract any ingredient, but you cannot add, and they do not have sausage or pepperoni. If you want that type of pizza, you would need to go up to the Lido and order there.

[Floflegs]

Shogun, is your sgian dhub real or an imitation? Bob has both but only takes the imitation, with no blade, and has never been questioned.

[balcony queen]

What time did you check in Shogun

[Azjack]

Shogun:

 

Thanks for all the info. I look forward to your posts on every subject, but we are especially interested in your thoughts on the Grand. We are on the Baltic RT on July 7.

 

lots of complaints about balcony furniture, esp on Caribe deck. Any insight on this?.

 

Have a great cruise

 

Jack

[caber]

Hi Shogun,

Glad you made it.

We had the same problem at Southampton with the skean dhu in the hold luggage. We had to treck back shoreside to have an arguement with the customs lady. In the end she agreed not to confiscate it but to pass it on to Princess security. When we got back to our cabin the phone rang, asking us to come and pick it up. What a waste of time.

We tried to explain that if we wanted to stab someone, a steak knife from the ship would do a better job. :eek:

[Shogun]

Hi All

Well it’s a cold windy and its raining here in Zeebrugge, tours are a way loads of white buses snaking there way through the docks, have not seen the P&O ship that we were told would be docking here, so may be info was wrong,

So quick round up I have sailed with Captain Bilton before, on a cross with real issues, very bad noro, engine problems, plumbing issues etc, and I liked the way he kept us up to date with information, Captain again kept passengers informed yesterday about the delays etc.

The ship is not new but as a whole does not show her age, this is the first time I have been onboard since the dry dock and the atrium looks nice, there are a few issues with the ships layout, but that is only because we have become so used to the Crown format. Now if you go looking you will find a little rust, a crack tile etc, there is a large glass door missing on the upper decks but no doubt Princess will have one ordered for its replacement, the ship is clean and so far would be happy to sail on her again, which is a good thing since we are back onboard in a few months,

As to the crew, well a barman spotted me from my time on the Crown three years ago and welcomed me like his long lost brother, almost got my name right was very close, I do like seeing crew that we have sailed with before.

So far this crew have been very friendly not just the normal Princess standard but lots of smiling faces, service has been fast and very polite.

Dinning room was a liitle slow but for first night all went well, food was served hot and was as per order, nice touch was waiter started using our names by the end of our meal not just mine but all at the table,

Our room steward is very good, we never see him in our cabin but see his cart in the hallway, we go for breakfast and on our return room has been made up.

So wants makes him better than others is that he has folded clothes that I left on the back of a chair, shoes are in pairs and lined up, desk is neat papers stacked neatly etc.

Now not all onboard are happy some comments from fellow passengers,

Knowone told me that kids were allowed on this ship,

Its not the same as P&O

There is no tea pot in my cabin

Then the one I liked “ I do not like Princess but the price the ports and the dates were right and the food is good”. Some folks are never happy.

As to my fellow passengers overall this is a young cruise, would say most fall between 30 to 50 age range however quite a few families, but very few of the more mature passenger .

Now we have all heard about the cut backs but the eggs benedict comes with two eggs compared to the Ruby that came with only one when we were on her. So make be the cuts are not as bad as folks say they are.

Movie selection onboard is excellent would say the best I have ever seen on a Princess ship, this might be down to the Vista being used to show movies.

Need to go now and do nothing, but chill out and relax.

As to my little knife for those who are at loss as to what we are talking about it has a steel blade but would not cut butter.

 

As to the furniture sorry can not say as we have an inside cabin,

 

 

yours Shogun

[Floflegs]

I am surprised you were allowed your "real" Sgian Dhub. We were told years ago they were not allowed so DH bought one which looks like the real thing but has no blade.

We too Have sailed With Captain Bilton during a red alert or Noro and he certainly kept people informed.

Do let us know how the shows are.

Enjoy your time relaxing

[wobblybob74]

Have a great cruise and keep the ship in ood order for us next week!

 

Ood order? Blimey, I don't want any of them on board!

 

 

Really looking forward to boarding on Saturday. The next few days are going to drag, that's for sure!

 

Thanks for your updates, Shogun!

[Mrs Monkey]

Hi Shogun,

I can shed some light re the other P&O ship. Apparently Azura was supposed to be going to the Fjords and the cruise was cancelled due to staff strikes at the ports in Norway. P&O gave the option to cancel or for passengers to still travel on the a different itinerary (one of the ports was to be Zebrugge). However, plans then changed again as the strike was called off and the ship could take its original itineray. Unfortunately several passengers had already cancelled so there are quite a few unhappy P&O passengers.

 

Glad you are enjoying the ship and a relaxing holiday. Thanks for the updates.

[sotong]

Further info on Azura, if you had cancelled you could be reinstated. My mum cancelled on sat am and then reinstated back into the same act cabin. Lucky for them we live in Southampton, agree you would be annoyed if lived too far to get to port for the later 8pm departure.

Have a good trip Shogun.

Gillian

[Mrs Monkey]

Further info on Azura, if you had cancelled you could be reinstated. My mum cancelled on sat am and then reinstated back into the same act cabin. Lucky for them we live in Southampton, agree you would be annoyed if lived too far to get to port for the later 8pm departure.

Have a good trip Shogun.

Gillian

Glad your mum sill got to go on her cruise. The Fjords are wonderful.

[JWJs]

Thanks for posting live! :)

Glad puppy got to sleep in the sitter's bed! That's the way it should be! :)

[Dorset Cruiser]

Looking forward to reading your review. Talking about 'daggers', we have just returned from Majorca and I inadvertently packed DH's rather expensive Swiss Army knife in our hand luggage rather than in our hold luggage, as I normally do. Guess what he is getting for Christmas this year:D