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NEW LIVE from the Royal 10/29-1//10

paulmichael

By paulmichael,
in Princess Cruises

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iceman2a

iceman2a

Posted
Posted
This really has nothing to do with our trip, but I thought I would share. Our neighbors just came back from a trip on NCL Epic. They are early 60's, extremely active, seasoned cruisers. They complained about no real Promanade, small cabins/balconies and feeling nickled and dimed throughout the cruise. (Does any of this sound familiar?). They hated "Freestyle Dining", and especially that even on "Formal" night, t-shirts with slogans and jeans were acceptable in all restaurants. Felt they never got to know their servers and that for the first time ever did nothing extra for the wait staff. There were also specialty shows (Blue Group, Cirque, Legends of Music) that needed tickets and, for some, additional fees. They also did not like having sink in bedroom part of cabin.

They went to St. Thomas and St. Maartens and loved the island stops. They said they would have made some official complaints but went as part of charitable group with discounted fares and did not want to create problems for the group. Ordinarily I would not share views of others, but I respect their opinion and thought it was indicative of the trends we are all seeing in cruise ships.

 

I found that the cabins on Epic were smaller than Royal Princess and "much" smaller than older ships!

 

There are no "formal" nights on NCL, and I have seen people turned away from Taste (1mdr) for jeans & t-shirts, other dinning rooms are more relaxed!

 

You don't need "tickets" for shows but if you want to go at certian time you do need reservations and only Cirque has an up charge and that's a dinner show.

 

As for the "sink", a major design screw up, in fact the whole cabin design on Epic was a screw up!

 

Your neighbors would probably enjoy the Royal Princess. I don't think it's a question about the trend of new ships, just the difference in the cruise experience between Princess and NCL!

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jangor

jangor

Posted
Posted
I found that the cabins on Epic were smaller than Royal Princess and "much" smaller than older ships!

 

There are no "formal" nights on NCL, and I have seen people turned away from Taste (1mdr) for jeans & t-shirts, other dinning rooms are more relaxed!

 

You don't need "tickets" for shows but if you want to go at certian time you do need reservations and only Cirque has an up charge and that's a dinner show.

 

As for the "sink", a major design screw up, in fact the whole cabin design on Epic was a screw up!

 

Your neighbors would probably enjoy the Royal Princess. I don't think it's a question about the trend of new ships, just the difference in the cruise experience between Princess and NCL!

Thank you for clarifying. They had just returned and were very unhappy, so I probably misunderstood their comments. I will be on Royal DEc. 8 and can make some comparisons with them at that time.

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dmwnc1959

dmwnc1959

Posted
Posted

 

LOVED your review!!! Also loved the fact that you detailed every meal, and especially the different 'progressive lunch' options that you had, which is in my Plan several times. ;) THANKS for the recommendation at the Ocean Terrace Seafood Bar, and I saw your pictures on Instagram. AMAZING!!!

 

I was particularly interested in this entry, since I plan on having exactly the same as you did on my first visit there:

 

Day 4 Dinner - We tried the CrabShack on the only night of the cruise it was offered (Fondues had been the night before). Enjoyed everything! Appetizer was popcorn shrimp & hush puppies. Soup was Manhattan Clam Chowder. For entree, I had the peel & eat shrimp, while Scott had the mud bug boil. A few choices from the Pastry Shop were the dessert options.

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Mom33

Mom33

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macuser.... thanks for your Royal Princess review....Your progressive meals were very interesting :D and sounds like something we might try on our Caribbean cruise. 7 days seems too short a cruise to experience all the different venues, but your plan seems to have worked well. :)

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macusr

macusr

Posted
Posted
LOVED your review!!! Also loved the fact that you detailed every meal, and especially the different 'progressive lunch' options that you had, which is in my Plan several times. ;) THANKS for the recommendation at the Ocean Terrace Seafood Bar, and I saw your pictures on Instagram. AMAZING!!!

 

I was particularly interested in this entry, since I plan on having exactly the same as you did on my first visit there:

 

Day 4 Dinner - We tried the CrabShack on the only night of the cruise it was offered (Fondues had been the night before). Enjoyed everything! Appetizer was popcorn shrimp & hush puppies. Soup was Manhattan Clam Chowder. For entree, I had the peel & eat shrimp, while Scott had the mud bug boil. A few choices from the Pastry Shop were the dessert options.

 

Thanks - I'm very happy that you read my review Dave!

 

Oh that chile & lime crab margarita was just to die for! Scott regrets that we didn't get around to trying Ocean Terrace until last day - we would have gone back again for sure!

 

The "popcorn" shrimp are jumbo so I found the name a bit humorous! I am not a fan of clam chowder - then I learned that Manhattan chowder is completely different from New England chowder. So I was really pleased with the soup and now know that if I see Manhattan on a future restaurant menu that I should get it. And of course how can you go wrong with peel & eat shrimp? The entree is a generous portion so by the time they wheeled the dessert case over we were pretty stuffed!

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macusr

macusr

Posted
Posted
macuser.... thanks for your Royal Princess review....Your progressive meals were very interesting :D and sounds like something we might try on our Caribbean cruise. 7 days seems too short a cruise to experience all the different venues, but your plan seems to have worked well. :)

 

And you have 2 more days than I had! Though we didn't get to try every onboard dining option, I think we did pretty well in focusing on the Royal unique ones. The progressive approach really helped!

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dmwnc1959

dmwnc1959

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Thanks - I'm very happy that you read my review Dave!

 

I followed yours and Scott's posts on Twitter and Instagram and really loved all of the pictures! And since all of the 'design faults' have been relentlessly pounded into our heads (that's why I quit reading them ;)), what I want to know now are the things that will make my cruise even better, more fun, what to try, and what others really enjoyed so that I can sample them too. And although you listed some of the pro's and con's, your review wasn't an 'in your face' Letterman-style Top 10 List of the things you 'hated' or were 'disappointed in'. And that made it all the more enjoyable to read. :D

 

Looking forward to my Chile & Lime Crab Margarita and an evening at the Crab Shack!

 

8 Days and Counting until it's my turn to cruise Royal Princess!!! :D:D:D

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macusr

macusr

Posted
Posted
I followed yours and Scott's posts on Twitter and Instagram and really loved all of the pictures! And since all of the 'design faults' have been relentlessly pounded into our heads (that's why I quit reading them ;)), what I want to know now are the things that will make my cruise even better, more fun, what to try, and what others really enjoyed so that I can sample them too. And although you listed some of the pro's and con's, your review wasn't an 'in your face' Letterman-style Top 10 List of the things you 'hated' or were 'disappointed in'. And that made it all the more enjoyable to read. :D

 

Looking forward to my Chile & Lime Crab Margarita and an evening at the Crab Shack!

 

8 Days and Counting until it's my turn to cruise Royal Princess!!! :D:D:D

 

Well if I can even partly repay you for all the work you put into the Everything Thread by giving you specific tips on things to try, then I'll consider that a success!

 

So in that spirit, be sure to get the chocolate bear claw pastry in Horizon/Internatlonal Cafe/MDR, veal pasta pockets at Alfredo's, the Brownie Blast sundae at Gelato's but with Nutella as the gelato flavor, and the milky-chocolate hazelnut souffle in the MDR!

 

How exciting your countdown is now in single digits!

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dmwnc1959

dmwnc1959

Posted
Posted
Well if I can even partly repay you for all the work you put into the Everything Thread by giving you specific tips on things to try, then I'll consider that a success!

 

So in that spirit, be sure to get the chocolate bear claw pastry in Horizon/Internatlonal Cafe/MDR, veal pasta pockets at Alfredo's, the Brownie Blast sundae at Gelato's but with Nutella as the gelato flavor, and the milky-chocolate hazelnut souffle in the MDR!

 

How exciting your countdown is now in single digits!

 

 

I think that I just gained five pounds...;) I see now that I'm going to make good use of the walking and jogging track!

 

Yes, single digits on the Countdown Clock! I'm beginning to have anxiety attacks. I'll breathe a little easier when I am actually in Fort Lauderdale and can walk down next Sunday and finally see Royal Princess with my own two eyes. :D

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chamima

chamima

Posted
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I think that I just gained five pounds...;) I see now that I'm going to make good use of the walking and jogging track!

 

Yes, single digits on the Countdown Clock! I'm beginning to have anxiety attacks. I'll breathe a little easier when I am actually in Fort Lauderdale and can walk down next Sunday and finally see Royal Princess with my own two eyes. :D

 

Dave

Will you be posting while on board?

If so, will you start a new thread or just keep this one going?

 

I think a LOT of people are VERY excited for you to finally board the ship that you have given so many of us so much info about! :D

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dmwnc1959

dmwnc1959

Posted
Posted
Dave

Will you be posting while on board?

If so, will you start a new thread or just keep this one going?

 

I think a LOT of people are VERY excited for you to finally board the ship that you have given so many of us so much info about! :D

 

Hi Karen,

 

I'll be watching Wendy's ROYAL RIDE LIVE with great interest to see how hers goes. ;)

 

If hers goes well enough, I may try and continue the momentum, but on my own thread. We'll have to wait and see, and it all depends on the internet and how it's holding up.

 

:D

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alexmom

alexmom

Posted
Posted
Thanks #1winelover, torontotl, sunsetbeachgal, fishon55 for all your kind words. To those of you still counting down the days, hopefully you found a tip or two helpful!

 

Great review and that chili-crab margarita thingie sounds like it's right up my alley ! I'm a grazer so the idea of a little bit here and a little bit there also sounds good to me.

 

Again, thank you so much for your review, it was both informative and graceful.

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IECalCruiser

IECalCruiser

Posted
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Hi Karen,

 

I'll be watching Wendy's ROYAL RIDE LIVE with great interest to see how hers goes. ;)

 

If hers goes well enough, I may try and continue the momentum, but on my own thread. We'll have to wait and see, and it all depends on the internet and how it's holding up.

 

:D

Looking forward to your impressions, whether as a live or after your cruise.
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