California Coastal Cruise

[Astro Flyer]

Fog! Ugh!

 

Praying we won't have fog. First time on this itinerary--have only sailed Caribbean (about 27 times!)!

 

Great info on this thread!

 

Fortunately fog related delays along the CA coast are not as frequent as those affecting the Gulf Coast region. Once our tendering into SB was delayed about an hour until the fog burned off to allow safe tendering operations but no delays returning to the ship.

 

I've read of several delays from Houston & earlier this week read about a RCI ship being affected by "pea soup" fog in Tampa. :( That was the 1st time I've read about fog affecting Tampa & it resulted in a 60 hour delayed return to port to end a cruise.

 

I realize that fog is out of the control of any cruiseline however I think that the terms offered to those who had their cruise cancelled could have been better.

 

"The line is providing each passenger with a full refund of the cruise fare paid. Additionally, the line is giving each passenger a future cruise certificate for 25 percent of the cruise fare paid for the February 23 sailing. The certificate may be used for any future cruise on a Royal Caribbean ship within the next year".

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=6205

 

The 25% discount based on their cancelled cruise's price could easily be offset by a higher future cruise fare & not everyone can book another cruise sailing within a year. :(

Edited February 26, 2015 by Astro Flyer

[Thrak]

Although we have sailed into the bay under the Golden Gate Bridge several times I've never been awake to check it out. I don't like getting up early. :rolleyes:

[Turbopaws]

A friend of ours has done several Alaska cruises and said that people dressed more relaxed on those cruises. How serious do most people take the formal nights on these cruises? We prefer nice but simple.

 

I've done the CA coastal cruise recently. You can easily get by with slacks, a shirt, tie, and sports coat for men and a dress or skirt and top for women. I've seen some men come without ties and they had no problem getting in. One fellow I talked with said "I had to wear ties for 30 years at work and I'll be damned if I'm going to wear one now":)

 

As long as you are nicely dressed, you don't need anything more formal than that.

[capriccio]

 

I've read of several delays from Houston & earlier this week read about a RCI ship being affected by "pea soup" fog in Tampa. :( That was the 1st time I've read about fog affecting Tampa & it resulted in a 60 hour delayed return to port to end a cruise.

 

 

Fog in Tampa in January and February can be a problem.

 

The inbound cruise was due to dock Monday morning and didn't until around 6 pm Tuesday evening and the next cruise was completely cancelled after embarking passengers had to spend a night in a hotel (actually probably 2 nights since they weren't told until mid-afternoon).

[Astro Flyer]

Fog in Tampa in January and February can be a problem.

 

The inbound cruise was due to dock Monday morning and didn't until around 6 pm Tuesday evening and the next cruise was completely cancelled after embarking passengers had to spend a night in a hotel (actually probably 2 nights since they weren't told until mid-afternoon).

Thanks...good to know about Tampa in January & February having potential fog related delays.

 

My apologies for misreading the article because it was about a 36 hour delay & not a 60 hour delay. :o

Edited February 26, 2015 by Astro Flyer

[cvpends]

My favorite California Coastal was on the Sapphire two years ago, because we sailed into San Francisco in the afternoon, stayed overnight, then left the next afternoon. Sailing under the Golden Gate in the afternoon was simply spectacular, and enjoying the city lights from our balcony was a fantastic way to end the evening

 

This year, as for you, our California Coastal arrives in San Francisco in the early morning and leaves late that same night. IMHO, it will be worth while to be up early and stay up late to enjoy the sailing in and out of the Bay. Hopefully either the morning or the night won't be too foggy.

 

California Coastal cruises are not as formal as Mexican Riviera or Caribbean cruises -- probably more like Alaska. Lots of good advice in this thread for appropriate formal night attire. The main thing is, wear what fits your idea of a good vacation -- don't drag along cloths you don't enjoy wearing.

 

I hope you enjoy your experience in our beautiful state! The whale watching should be fantastic. I am booked on that also, but we are sailing a bit before you, and on the Ruby.

[CU64]

Although we have sailed into the bay under the Golden Gate Bridge several times I've never been awake to check it out. I don't like getting up early. :rolleyes:

 

April, 2014......Celebrity Century Calif Coastal RT LA...arrived SF about noon with the clearest sunny day one could imagine....when it is like this, nothing beats it!

[SingerEsq]

On our first trip there were lots of grey whales; the highlight was a mother and calf swimming along the side of our boat. Mom was almost as long as the boat! On the Princess excursion it was all about humpback whales - dozens and dozens of them. The highlight was the three whales that kept swimming around and under the boat for more than 1/2 hour, floating on their sides so we could look right into their eyes and then exhaling loudly (and wettly). The folks on the bow got covered in whale snot :D. I can laugh because we were one deck up at that time :p.

 

We're doing another California Coastal leaving on March 28th. The whale watching in SB sounds great. May I ask how big the excursion boat is, and is the trip bumpy? I know the seas can vary, but husband has a bad back from an auto accident and does not like to do anything too small and too bumpy due to the compression of the spine. He does ok in larger excursion boats. For example, no problem taking the ferry boats to Alcatraz, even though the sea was choppy and does ok on tenders.

 

Thanks!

[capriccio]

We're doing another California Coastal leaving on March 28th. The whale watching in SB sounds great. May I ask how big the excursion boat is, and is the trip bumpy? I know the seas can vary, but husband has a bad back from an auto accident and does not like to do anything too small and too bumpy due to the compression of the spine. He does ok in larger excursion boats. For example, no problem taking the ferry boats to Alcatraz, even though the sea was choppy and does ok on tenders.

 

Thanks!

 

The excursion boat was a good size (definitely bigger than a tender); I'm guessing it probably held 100 people. There was an interior cabin large enough to hold everyone (and where everyone sat until we whales were sighted because we were moving at a good clip and it was overcast and cold on deck). While in transit the naturalist on board gave a lecture/question and answer session and passed around maps, bones, etc. It was quite comfortable. When we reached the whales there was plenty of space on deck for everyone to move around. I do remember sitting on deck on the return trip because the sun had come out and it had warmed up a bit.

[gnatz007]

we are on the April 5th Star out of San Francisco. Praying for nice warm weather and no rain! If my 11 year old sees a whale he will go through the roof! we may have to look into the whale watching excursion.

[SingerEsq]

The excursion boat was a good size (definitely bigger than a tender); I'm guessing it probably held 100 people. There was an interior cabin large enough to hold everyone (and where everyone sat until we whales were sighted because we were moving at a good clip and it was overcast and cold on deck). While in transit the naturalist on board gave a lecture/question and answer session and passed around maps, bones, etc. It was quite comfortable. When we reached the whales there was plenty of space on deck for everyone to move around. I do remember sitting on deck on the return trip because the sun had come out and it had warmed up a bit.

 

Thanks! I haven't used Princess excursions much in the past few years, and the website offers a lot of information. There was a short video and the boat looks fine. We booked it. Sure hope the whales are out and about on April 1!

[Thrak]

we are on the April 5th Star out of San Francisco. Praying for nice warm weather and no rain! If my 11 year old sees a whale he will go through the roof! we may have to look into the whale watching excursion.

 

You have a much better chance of actually seeing a whale if you book and excursion. We've seen whale spouts numerous times while on a cruise ship but you don't usually actually see the whale itself in that situation. It is pretty cool though to step out on the balcony or be walking along the promenade deck and spot whales spouting. :)

[Lovetocruiseprincess]

It's really up to you like to dress up of not but you can get by with just a dress shirt & dress pants without lugging the jacket along. Why take something that you'll only be using a few times when it's not a necessity?

[alreadypacked]

My favorite California Coastal was on the Sapphire two years ago, because we sailed into San Francisco in the afternoon, stayed overnight, then left the next afternoon. Sailing under the Golden Gate in the afternoon was simply spectacular, and enjoying the city lights from our balcony was a fantastic way to end the evening

 

This year, as for you, our California Coastal arrives in San Francisco in the early morning and leaves late that same night. IMHO, it will be worth while to be up early and stay up late to enjoy the sailing in and out of the Bay. Hopefully either the morning or the night won't be too foggy.

 

California Coastal cruises are not as formal as Mexican Riviera or Caribbean cruises -- probably more like Alaska. Lots of good advice in this thread for appropriate formal night attire. The main thing is, wear what fits your idea of a good vacation -- don't drag along cloths you don't enjoy wearing.

 

I hope you enjoy your experience in our beautiful state! The whale watching should be fantastic. I am booked on that also, but we are sailing a bit before you, and on the Ruby.

 

I know cruise lines don't change the dress code based on itinerary, but I'd heard that many passengers on some itineraries, such as Alaska, typically dress down a bit. A friend of mine who did Alaska recently as well as a neighbor who's done several Alaska cruises confirmed this. As it's our first time doing anything other than Caribbean (where we routinely dress up), I had wondered if a California Coastal might skew a little more to the casual side being that the climate this time of year is on the cool side.

 

As I know "dress code" is a volatile subject on these boards, just to be clear, DH and I were thinking of only "slightly dressing down a bit" on formal night. We will still dress respectably--no jeans, T-shirts or sneakers.

 

DH was thinking dark slacks, dress shirt and a tie for himself. I was thinking nice slacks and dressy sweater for myself. Not formal, of course, but from what I've seen on Princess (and Celebrity) Caribbean cruises, I believe this attire would be satisfactory.

 

This info helps a lot. Thanks!

[LynnSD]

You should be fine. But just FYI, evenings in California can be very cool, so a blazer/ sport coat and some kind of wrap for the ladies might actually be welcome.

[SingerEsq]

As it's our first time doing anything other than Caribbean (where we routinely dress up), I had wondered if a California Coastal might skew a little more to the casual side being that the climate this time of year is on the cool side.

 

Interesting. We look at it exactly opposite, that a warmer climate may lead folks to dress a little less formal. Regardless, we take formal wear on any cruise with formal nights, that's been for everything from Alaska to the Caribbean to Tahiti. Personally, I have never noticed a measurable difference in people dressing up or dressing down on any itinerary. People do what they want to do, but IMO, you will see about the same amount of people dressed formally on a California Coastal as any other. You'll be fine with what you have suggested, though.

[SoCal Cruiser78]

You should be fine. But just FYI, evenings in California can be very cool, so a blazer/ sport coat and some kind of wrap for the ladies might actually be welcome.

 

I agree that you should be fine, and that it does cool off quickly here after sundown. The CA coastal I did last fall was even more casual at dinner than my Alaska cruise.

Edited March 1, 2015 by Ryndam2002

[Daniel1313]

Does anyone know if the Casino will be open on a California Coastal cruise?

 

Thanks....

[SingerEsq]

Does anyone know if the Casino will be open on a California Coastal cruise?

 

Thanks....

 

Yes. The ship always sails out far enough for the casino! Not to worry.

[Colo Cruiser]

Does anyone know if the Casino will be open on a California Coastal cruise?

 

Thanks....

 

 

Yes.

[Daniel1313]

Thanks ....

[paphoslady]

I'm from the UK and looking at a California Costal cruise for the spring of 2016.

What's the best itinerary, definitely want to visit San Francisco. Also very interested to hear that there is a good chance of seeing whales at this time of year, so I guess a whale watching tour is another must do!!

[capriccio]

I'm from the UK and looking at a California Costal cruise for the spring of 2016.

What's the best itinerary, definitely want to visit San Francisco. Also very interested to hear that there is a good chance of seeing whales at this time of year, so I guess a whale watching tour is another must do!!

 

We really enjoyed the 'wine country' coastal (Los Angeles to Vancouver). In 2012 it stopped in Santa Barbara (whale watching, sightseeing or wineries excursions), San Francisco (wineries or sightseeing excursions), Astoria Oregon (breweries, sightseeing or Mt. St. Helens excursions), Seattle (wineries or sightseeing excursions), and Victoria (whale watching (Orcas), sightseeing, or Butchart Gardens excursions). That cruise is on our list of 'will repeat someday'!

[elliair]

We're doing a 7-day in April out of San Pedro. We're taking shorts and T-shirts for Santa Barbara, San Diego and Ensenada. For San Francisco, it will be jeans and sweat shirt. The weather here has been unseasonably warm and I expect it to remain that way. San Francisco is the unpredictable city for weather. For formal night, pants and a glitzy top. Remember, any one you meet on the ship, it's highly unlikely you will ever see them again or even remember what they were wearing. So, dress for comfort than for show.

[Shmoo here]

We really enjoyed the 'wine country' coastal (Los Angeles to Vancouver). In 2012 it stopped in Santa Barbara (whale watching, sightseeing or wineries excursions), San Francisco (wineries or sightseeing excursions), Astoria Oregon (breweries, sightseeing or Mt. St. Helens excursions), Seattle (wineries or sightseeing excursions), and Victoria (whale watching (Orcas), sightseeing, or Butchart Gardens excursions). That cruise is on our list of 'will repeat someday'!

 

We booked our Wine Country coastal this year, partly due to the ports - Santa Barbara, San Francisco, Astoria, Victoria, Vancouver. Then they switched Santa Barbara for Catalina :(. But they did move up our entry to San Francisco so that we over night there.