CB cruise from Houston 2/15/14 review

[caribill]

Here is a review of some of the aspects of the Feb. 15, 2014 voyage of the CB out of Bayport Houston.

To summarize:

o No fog problem either departing on Feb. 15 or returning on Feb. 22.

o Made every port on schedule

o Great weather except for high winds, cool temps and slightly rough seas on the last sea day while returning to Houston.

o Great crew

Captain: Giorgio Pomata

Cruise Director: Marahscah Stanton

Executive Chef: Antonio Cereda

Maitre d’Hotel: Mario Propato

Future Cruise Sales: Lisa

Captain’s Circle Host: Fermin Quejado (soon to transfer to the Ruby Princess)

This was our first cruise with this CD. He had great enthusiasm and energy and this was well reflected in the enthusiasm and energy in his staff.

We arrived and parked at Bayport at 10:55 AM. Passengers were still leaving when we arrived. Parking is just in front of the terminal building and it was a short walk from our car to the terminal. You can either drive up to the terminal, drop off luggage and then circle to drive into the parking lot or first drive into the parking lot, park and then bring your luggage to the terminal. Parking is $75 for the week if paid in advance (http://www.bayportcruiseparking.com/ ), $80 if paying when you enter the lot.

There was a coast guard inspection before boarding could start, but boarding still began started at 11:45 AM. Due to the Coast Guard inspection, cabin stewards were still finishing up preparing the cabins, but we were able go to our cabin as usual and deposit our carry-ons before heading to lunch in the dining room.

When initially boarding the ship and having the picture taken for the cruise card, we had to remove our glasses. First time we have had to do this. I do not know if this is also required on the other Princess ships.

When disembarking the ship at the ports, the hand held scanners were used to scan the cruise card. But when returning back to the ship, the old “ding” machines were used.

Our cabin was starboard side near the front on the Emerald desk. In the evening we could sometimes hear music from shows in the Princess Theater, but never at the normal times for sleeping.

Elite amenities in the bathroom were:

o eye gel mask

o emery board

o shower cap

o linen mist

o a tube of lotion

The smaller soap size was OK. If more was needed, the cabin steward would replace. The new dispensers for shower gel and combined shampoo/conditioner were in the shower. I used soap instead of the shower gel. No problem using the shampoo/conditioner and the pump for it worked well.

At the muster drill, the first announcement was to take precautions to prevent noro (wash those hands) and if gastrointestinal problems are suspected, to go to your cabin and call 911 from there. The second announcement was that parents (or other appropriate adults) were responsible for the behavior of their children.

Traditional dining times in the Palm Dining Room (deck 6 aft) were at 5:45 PM and at 8:00 PM. Coral Dining Room (deck 6 near the atrium) had an early fixed seating at 5:30 PM and was Anytime from 7 PM to 9:30 PM. The Island Dining Room (deck 5 near the atrium) was Anytime from 5:30 PM to 9:30 PM. However I noticed that both the Coral and Island dining rooms were seating people starting around 5 PM.

At our seating each evening in the Palm dining room, the lights would occasionally dim and occasionally get fully bright. Neither our waitstaff nor our headwaiter could explain why. My guess is sometimes the gerbils were getting tired and at other times they were extra energetic.

Formal evenings were the first sea day (Sunday) and the second sea day (Thursday). I saw very few men in the dining rooms those evenings who did not follow Princess formal evening dress guidelines. There were a scattered few with dress shirt and no tie or jacket, a few with dress shirt and a tie, and a few with a jacket and no tie.

The previous time I had been on a Princess cruise, the dining room lunch menu (sea days only) would have a couple of breakfast items from that morning’s breakfast rotating entrees. On this cruise, the equivalent on each lunch menu was a fixed “brunch” list that included:

o Continental Breakfast (croissant, Danish pastries, butter, honey, marmalade)

o Maple Granola

o Seasonal fresh fruits

o Eggs Benedict

o James Beard’s French toast

The Baked Alaska parade on the last evening had real baked Alaska (they were models on our previous Princess cruise with the served pieces having been cut from a sheet baked Alaska cake).

Hector, the singling headwaiter from the Palm Dining Room who has been mentioned in other threads, sang two songs each evening.

The wine packages are only offered on voyages of at least 10 days. Our headwaiter had no knowledge of any schedule to bring the $49/day beverage package to the CB.

The cooking show on the final sea day in the Princess Theater was at capacity with standing room only for some. For the first time that I remember at one of these shows, the flambé dessert was prepared with no flame. The show had entertainment talent from each of the dining room’s staff. There was a singer from the Coral DR, Gangnam style dancing from the Island, and Hector the singing headwaiter from the Palm dining room. Hector received a standing ovation from the packed theater.

There was a dessert buffet on the last sea day, but most people missed it since it was not listed in the Patter.

The British Pub lunch was offered twice in the Crown Grill, on the first and last sea days, with a different menu each time.

The Crab Shack was offered one evening in a section of the Café Caribe.

There were cases of gastrointestinal illness on board, but no outbreak. About the fourth day there was more emphasis on using the hand sanitizers (ineffective against noro) at both the buffet and at the dining room entrances. The buffet started handing the main plates and silverware to you when entering, but there was no restriction on getting your own salad plates or cereal bowls or serving yourself at the buffet. Salt and pepper shakers were removed from the tables at the buffet, but not from the dining room tables. Bread baskets continued to be placed on the dining room tables.

There was no backstage tour offered during the cruise.

There were no lectures giving any historical or geographical information about the ports.

The announcement at the start of shows in the Princess Theater has been changed from saying no children in the first three rows to saying no children under the age of 18 in the first three rows unless accompanied by an adult.

For the seven evenings the entertainment in the Princess Theater was:

o Welcome aboard show at 7 PM and 8:30 PM.

o Production show “Do You Wanna Dance” at 7 PM, 8:15 PM, and 10 PM

o Comedian Rollin’ Jay Moore at 7 PM, 8:15 PM, and 10 PM

o Production show “Caribbean Caliente” at 7 PM and 8:15 PM

o Vocalist Zach Winningham at 7 PM, 8:15 PM, and 10 PM

o Production show “Born To Be Wild” at 7 PM, 8:15 PM, and 10 PM

o Hawley Magic at 7 PM and 8:30 PM

The production shows had four male dancers, seven female dancers, 2 male singers and 2 female singers. The singers also did quite of bit of dancing while they were singing.

Although there were bands and games and karaoke in the other lounges in the evening, there was never a second guest entertainer in one of those venues, only the main entertainment in the Princess Theater.

The piano entertainer at Crooners was Bert Stratton.

The Ultimate Deck Party was on Tuesday evening, the day of the visit to Roatan.

MUTS evening movies (each shown twice in an evening) were:

o “Last Vegas”

o “The Hunger Games: Catchiong Fire”

o “Thor: The Dark Wold”

o “Gravity”

o “Captain Phillips”

o “Mamma Mia!”

The MUTS movies were usually shown the next day in the afternoon on the Princess Theater. They were also shown the next day once in the evening on the cabin TV.

The MUTS schedule was such that the evening movie could only be viewed by second Traditional seating diners the next day in the Princess Theater. For example, “Gravity” was scheduled on MUTS from 7:00 PM until 8:33 PM and again from 9:15 PM until 10:48 PM. It was shown the next night on the cabin TV at 8:30 PM. With second seating going from 8 PM to at least 9:45 PM, seeing the movie on MUTS or the cabin TV was not possible.

There was no classical music duo, trio or quartet on board.

The Pop Choir was led by the Cruise Director. Songs performed (last sea day at 5 PM) were:

o “Oh what a night”

o “Waterloo”

o “Isn’t she lovely”

o “It’s not unusual”

o “Sweet Caroline”

Internet was at the usual speed for being on a Princess ship. I had no trouble connecting to it in my cabin with my netbook any time that I wanted to connect. Princess.com could be accessed without using Internet minutes and the E-card feature was also there at no charge.

The “Reflections DVD” was priced at $39.99 for a 2-disk set. (Save 10% if Ruby, Platinum or Elite.) There was no longer a machine which passengers could use to order prints from their own camera memory cards.

Captain’s Circle information:

o 845 Gold, 357 Ruby, 375 Platinum, 101 Elite. (Over 50% onboard were new to Princess)

o Most-traveled had 1053 days. Second most-traveled had 809 days. Third most-traveled had 571 days.

o Not sure of exact cutoff for the top 40, but it was somewhere in the 200s. The top 40 event was a cocktail party, not a luncheon. On previous sailings with this Captain it was also a cocktail party.

o Another cost savings: no jar of nuts, etc. on the tables at the Captain’s Circle past passenger party.

More cost savings: The number of celebratory balloons on passengers’ doors (birthdays, anniversaries, etc.) has been cut from three to two.

The ads played on board for the new Royal and Regal still promised you could “Escape Completely,” not that you would “Come Back New.” The ad broadcast for exotic sailings still showed the “Tahitian Princess” name.

There was only one evening with no smoking in the casino. At other times, smoking was allowed in the casino on the starboard side, but not on the port side or in the center where the gaming tables were.

The casino was very, very busy the last sea day, especially the gaming tables.

The TV morning show by the CD and the assistant CD started being broadcast at 10 PM each evening. For the question of the day, the prize (usually 5 winners) was a free play on the “Cash Vault” machine in the casino. Since this machine is considered a “game of skill” and not a “game of chance,” the machine was available 24 hours a day.

However, there was one winner of the morning show prize the last full day of a bottle of sparkling wine (but referenced as being Champagne).

The Princess Links was basically a joke. Several holes with no obvious layout on a relatively small flat area in an area of the ship subject to high winds whenever the ship was underway.

Prices for the Sanctuary were up. Now $20 for half day and $30 for a full day.

The main pool areas were very well used on the sunny and warm sea days.

Another thread for another ship reported that the viewing area above the bridge was closed throughout the trip. On this CB voyage, it was open and available each time I checked which included while in port, while at sea during the day and also at night. I did not check it the last sea day when the promenade deck was closed due to high winds.

No EZCheck when returning to Houston.

Needed to be out of cabins by 8 AM disembarkation day.

Platinum/Elite/Suite lounge was not crowded. Disembarkation announcement were made there a couple of minutes before the announcements in the regular meeting locations.

Disembarkation ran about on time per the published schedule. Express walk offs were scheduled from 7:05 AM until 7:55 AM. First bus for IAH disembarked at 8 AM, to HOU at 8:15. Last bus to IAH scheduled to disembark at 10:05 AM, to HOU at 9:05 AM. Last disembarkation was scheduled for 10:45 AM.

There were nine of ten lanes open at immigration/customs so the lines were quickly. Three of the lanes were for non-US citizens and the other six were for US citizens.

There was a line of taxis waiting after exiting the terminal.

If any questions, please ask.

[gelo7]

Very comprehensive review, thanks, for sharing your thoughts.

[cubfan63]

Thank you for the report.

 

I'm wondering whether the lack of nuts on the tables at the Captain's Circle party was related to norovirus concerns rather than a cost-cutting effort.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[douglinc@msn.com]

This was very informative, thanks. We will be sailing her for the 1st. time 3-29.

 

Doug

[wineforhealth]

Thank Caribill for a very complete review

[OhioDogLover]

Thanks for the review. Enjoyed the preview of our upcoming cruise.

 

Ohiodoglover

[AALCRUISER]

Thank you for the informative review. Did you happen to notice if people were bring extra bottles of wine onboard and if so, were they able tobring it and just pay an extra fee. I have read so many different answers. We are sailing in 2 days, March 1.

[planb]

Thank you ! Great info. We sail this weekend and you answered doe lingering questions we had. Hoping we are going just before spring break - breaks !

[Stevesan]

Thank you, Caribill.

You posted the quintessential cruise review.

Good onya.:D

[caribill]

Thank you for the informative review. Did you happen to notice if people were bring extra bottles of wine onboard and if so, were they able tobring it and just pay an extra fee. I have read so many different answers. We are sailing in 2 days, March 1.

 

I did not notice any checking of carryon belongings for wine and did not see any table for doing the checking.

[SeaWolfe]

Thank you for such a great review! I do have a couple of questions that hopefully you or someone else can answer.

 

You mentioned the "Reflections DVD" do you know if they offer a "deal" where you can buy a disk with all of your cruise photos on it instead of buying prints?

 

Also can you give me directions to get to the viewing area above the bridge?

 

Thanks again for your review!

[caribill]

I'm wondering whether the lack of nuts on the tables at the Captain's Circle party was related to norovirus concerns rather than a cost-cutting effort.

 

 

 

Good question.

[AALCRUISER]

Thankyou for the updated info.

[caribill]

Thank you for such a great review! I do have a couple of questions that hopefully you or someone else can answer.

 

You mentioned the "Reflections DVD" do you know if they offer a "deal" where you can buy a disk with all of your cruise photos on it instead of buying prints? Not sure of the details, but I think there was some offer to sell a DVD of photos you had purchased, but I did not see anything about getting images on a DVD of photos you did not purchase.

 

Also can you give me directions to get to the viewing area above the bridge? Go to deck 15 (Lido deck) and go all the way forward inside on the starboard side (I did not check port side). There will be an unlabled door that leads to a very short hallway to a second door to the outside.

 

 

see above in red

[mizzoucruiser]

Seriously, they showed Captain Phillips on MUTS? When we saw that movie, my daughters (ages 24 and 18) said they weren't going on the cruise. We leave in 9 days!!! I bet they still go. Just won't be around the MUTS screen that night!

[plunker]

Did they have a full 9 hole mini golf course?

[fab4cruisers]

Can you please tell me how to get to the viewing deck above the bridge? Hopefully we can do this when we get on board next week.

[chris2597]

How do passengers find out about the dessert buffet if it isn't in the Patters? What is the Crab Shack? Is there a main dining room open for lunch on embarkation day?

Thank you for the review.

[slc22]

Thanks for your review and info. I appreciate the link to pre-pay parking! Very helpful for my cruise in April.

 

How full was the parking lot? This is off topic, but Was wondering if they will separate parking when NCL also sails from Bayport. Will there be enough space for parking for cruisers of both vessels ?

 

Thx again! Wonderfully detailed review.

Edited February 27, 2014 by slc22

[sminfiddle]

Can you please tell me how to get to the viewing deck above the bridge? Hopefully we can do this when we get on board next week.

Lido deck (Deck 15), all the way forward. There's a door on the port side between L104 and L106, and one on starboard between L103 and L107.

[Paula_MacFan]

Thanks for posting such a detailed review! Very informative:)

[caribill]

How full was the parking lot?

 

Less than 50% full.

 

This picture shows right hand side of parking lot.

 

 

 

 

This picture shows the left hand side in front of the terminal. (The lot off to the left is for temporrary parking, not for the week long parking.)

 

[caribill]

How do passengers find out about the dessert buffet if it isn't in the Patters? Come across it accidentally. It was held at lunchtime on the last full day of the cruise. I heard they allowed it to be viewed for photographs just before noon when it then opened for getting desserts..

 

What is the Crab Shack? It was held on Wednesday evening (Belize day). See photo below for the menu for this "specialty" restaurant:

 

 

 

Is there a main dining room open for lunch on embarkation day? Coral dining room on deck 6 near the atrium was open from noon until 1:30 PM.

 

 

Thank you for the review.

 

See above in red

[caribill]

Did they have a full 9 hole mini golf course?

 

Nothing close. I count five holes in this poor excuse for a putting green. Certainly not mini-golf.

 

[RocketMan275]

Question: Only six movies listed for MUTS. Does this mean there is a night without MUTS or is there a repeat? If there is a night without, which night? Appreciate your time in posting this. Leaving tomorrow for CB on Saturday.