Rare 4cats4me Posted October 12, 2016 #1 Share Posted October 12, 2016 Having a wonderful time. Will write more upon our return. Dining room food is excellent. Staff is great. Everyone so friendly. Weather is excrutiatingly hot and humid this time. Butter in dining room has to be requested on this ship. Buffet food not so great Entertainment is good Love our Caribe balcony and had forgotten how big they are! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helenb Posted October 12, 2016 #2 Share Posted October 12, 2016 Can you let us know what the Always Available items are on the MDR menus? Specifically, I'm wondering if thej Curtis Stone items are on the menu, or if they are the traditional Princess items. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shredie Posted October 12, 2016 #3 Share Posted October 12, 2016 Have fun. Love that ship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Cruise Raider Posted October 12, 2016 #4 Share Posted October 12, 2016 We sailed on the Grand in both December and again just last August. I agree, the staff is outstanding. Glad to hear you are having a good time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed342 Posted October 17, 2016 #5 Share Posted October 17, 2016 I would like to know, if you can, tell me what the onboard rates are for using the Internet. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 4cats4me Posted October 17, 2016 Author #6 Share Posted October 17, 2016 I would like to know, if you can, tell me what the onboard rates are for using the Internet. Thanks. I don't know, since we got free internet. Sorry Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 4cats4me Posted October 17, 2016 Author #7 Share Posted October 17, 2016 (edited) Can you let us know what the Always Available items are on the MDR menus? Specifically, I'm wondering if thej Curtis Stone items are on the menu, or if they are the traditional Princess items. There was one Curtis sttne item offered each night on the menu, at least the 6/10 nights that we ate in the MDR. The always available menu had shrimp cocktail, Caesar salad. Chicken breast (very tender and good), a hamburger and salmon (so-so) I had heard many mention Curtis Stone menu, so I thought the whole menu would be his offerings, and not just one entree per evening. Someone we dined with had the pork belly Curtis Stone and said it was very good We loved everything we ordered every night. Usually I only like one or two meals out of 6. We loved the Szechuan shrimp, the filet mignon/shrimp dish. 4 or 5 of us had the filet mignon and all of of us were happy with the medium rare preparation The fish dishes were really good, especially the tilapia with orange hollandaise sauce. The best ice cream that I tried was nectarine flavor, served with a rhubarb Napoleon The best sorbet was Limoncello, and I am NOT a fan of the liqueur, but the sorbet was something else [emoji2] Norman Love desserts were all pretty good, too We loved the spaghetti Carbonara and most pasta dishes Sadly, our service in Crown Grill was lacking. Took way too long, the steak really didn't taste as good as if usually does. Not horrible but just nothing to write home about. Waiter didn't bring us the three salts for the filet. It just wasn't the usual Crown Grill experience that we are accustomed to. We canceled our second reservation there and opted for the MDR instead, where the food was much better. Even the desserts in the Crown Grill looked pathetic compared to what we'd gotten back in April and the previous March on the Regal Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Edited October 17, 2016 by 4cats4me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcvt Posted October 17, 2016 #8 Share Posted October 17, 2016 (edited) Having a wonderful time. Will write more upon our return. Dining room food is excellent. Staff is great. Everyone so friendly. Weather is excrutiatingly hot and humid this time. Butter in dining room has to be requested on this ship. Buffet food not so great Entertainment is good Love our Caribe balcony and had forgotten how big they are! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk I remember checking when you posted this and it was 95° that day :eek: Last time we did that itinerary, we took the little Princess towels they give you on the dock, 'ran' to a bar on the marina, ordered a bucket of iced beers, put the towels in the bucket, and enjoyed a few Pacificos with icey towels on our necks :) And yes, Caribe balconies are the way to go. Yay. Edited October 17, 2016 by gcvt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helenb Posted October 17, 2016 #9 Share Posted October 17, 2016 There was one Curtis sttne item offered each night on the menu, at least the 6/10 nights that we ate in the MDR. The always available menu had shrimp cocktail, Caesar salad. Chicken breast (very tender and good), a hamburger and salmon (so-so) I had heard many mention Curtis Stone menu, so I thought the whole menu would be his offerings, and not just one entree per evening. Someone we dined with had the pork belly Curtis Stone and said it was very good We loved everything we ordered every night. Usually I only like one or two meals out of 6. We loved the Szechuan shrimp, the filet mignon/shrimp dish. 4 or 5 of us had the filet mignon and all of of us were happy with the medium rare preparation The fish dishes were really good, especially the tilapia with orange hollandaise sauce. The best ice cream that I tried was nectarine flavor, served with a rhubarb Napoleon The best sorbet was Limoncello, and I am NOT a fan of the liqueur, but the sorbet was something else [emoji2] Norman Love desserts were all pretty good, too We loved the spaghetti Carbonara and most pasta dishes Sadly, our service in Crown Grill was lacking. Took way too long, the steak really didn't taste as good as if usually does. Not horrible but just nothing to write home about. Waiter didn't bring us the three salts for the filet. It just wasn't the usual Crown Grill experience that we are accustomed to. We canceled our second reservation there and opted for the MDR instead, where the food was much better. Even the desserts in the Crown Grill looked pathetic compared to what we'd gotten back in April and the previous March on the Regal Thank you for your detailed response. It is much appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjvgh Posted October 18, 2016 #10 Share Posted October 18, 2016 Can you tell me how the formal nights were on the Grand Princess. (or anyone else that has sailed on the Grand). Was there anything special offered in the dining rooms or on board other than photographs? Did one of the evenings include meeting the Captain? Photo ops with the Captain? Sailing next February on the Grand to Hawaii and looking forward to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SheriffJoe Posted October 18, 2016 #11 Share Posted October 18, 2016 Dana, this ain't live! LOL:eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 4cats4me Posted October 19, 2016 Author #12 Share Posted October 19, 2016 (edited) Dana, this ain't live! LOL:eek: It was when I started the thread LOL Cliff notes version: New beds coming in December. Good thing, because I hadcto come home to get valuable sleep that I couldn't get for 1 0 nights. No joke LOL. The hugest middle hump of any bed One hip was way higher than the other Dining room excellent this time. We had anytime but ended up with a dedicated table with the greatest waiters of all time in Da Vinci. And the nicest maitre d, Michael! Waiters Elmer and Rustom, you rocked! Loved having a reserved 4-top for the two of us at 7:30 when Da Vinci opened to us anytimers after clearing it of the overflow traditional diners. Ironically. All those years we made reservations and were only given the choice of 6:20 or 8:15, we didn't bother to worry about that on this cruise Showed up to AT on deck 5 on night two around 6:00 and were met with a looong line, which moved rapidly. Those of us who wished to share were taken in immediately. We sat at a 10-top, five couples. Very nice people. Next night crown Grill. Service not so great. We canceled future reservation. Buffet one night... Never could we just find an open table on this trip. It was as if people camped out all day every day, even on port days So weird HC woefully small. Can't wait to get back on the Regal That HC needs to be gutted and redesigned to have better flow Food bad on day one, improved thereafter. Stir fry really good! Klunker ward for Hc goes to the pasta on day 10 which had a curry sauce??. It was a twist on Italian that I had never seen [emoji33] Chicken moist. Breakfast offerings the same as usual MDR. Food all good Favorite sorbet as Limoncello, and I don't even like Limoncello Nectarine ice cream so good Tilapia good. Salmon just okay. Veggies all prepared nice and crisp Potatoes boiled Pastas exceptional, as usual. Pizza all good at both locations. Hamburger wasn't as good as I recall at the Trident Grill Husband loved the hot dog Cocktails all good. Favorite is key lime pie martini We enjoyed the elite lounge function a few nights and were able to order any drink we wanted for $5 we didn't have to stick to the one drink that was listed Gotta love the people who were chowing down up there as they moved along in line chomping on carrot sticks, ET, one guy picked up a slide of bell pepper with his finger instead of the tongs and put it back. Ewwww. Noticed this occur 3 times at the Elite lounge Toilet wouldn't flush one day. Called passenger services and they sent someone immediately to assess the situation and it was fixed within 1.5 hours. We forgot our code for the safe and someone came within 20 minutes to assist. We had a small dripping water leak outside our cabin. But steward noticed it ASAP and called maintenance. They were working on it one day. We noticed s few leaky areas and got dripped on a couple times In 2014 that ship leaked too. Missed the interactive TV in our stateroom Loved our huge Caribe balcony. Ours was much larger than the mini suites balconies. Much preferred a covered balcony Nice weather for sailaway Horrible weather for our return Shows were fun. We didn't partake of most onboard activities We did three ship's excursions since they were basically paid for by princess We love PV and had a great day in Mazatlan at hotel playa, But they can keep Manzanillo It was so industrial. We thought it would be more like Zihuatanejo Did a substandard Princess excursion to Tesoro. $89 (free thank Goodness) Only 3 hours of free time and they wanted us to spend time at some stupid orientation and wait in a looong lime to get our all inclusive wristbands, but that should have been given to us on the bus, hence, half hour wasted time in line. Then we were informed by our "guide" that the Restaurant opens for lunch at 1:30, but we had to depart at 2:00 ... People were ticked off. Then the Restaurant did us a favor by opening at 1:00. Gee, thanks, $89 pp all inclusive It was a cute little hotel. But it was teeming with babies and toddlers and it didn't feel like a very adult experience at all, kids sitting up on the bar stools in the pool. Lame-o swim up bar, so small On the other hand. We very much enjoyed the Yelapa tour by Vallarta Adventures. The crew on the catamaran are the best we've ever encountered. Those guys are great we have gone with them three times now and are never disappointed. Hotel Playa Mazatlan excursion was $59 pp and we could have eaten the buffet on our own for $10, but our tour included two cocktails, use of the facilities, but that place was teeming with a couple hundred kids. They all stayed at the kid's pool. Anew busloads of kids arrived right before our big bus arrived. LOL They all departed at noon We don't usually get off the ship in Cabo we made it a pool day onboard We loved our Elite minibar and called immediately to substitute Out all the alcohol for Sky Vodka, and as others have mentioned, you have to go lime by line. We liked how easy it was to get someone on the phone as soon as we boarded, unlike the Regal, where room service didn't pick up for the first day or two. So we were able to swap that mini bar asap and start boozing. Note to self, bring on a bottle of ocean spray cranberry on our next cruise as a mixer or else pay $2 per glass from the bar. Wifi signal was poor in the cabin and good if we went onto the balcony Cabin was freezing, just like in 2014 on the same ship. The freezing was okay for the hot part of the cruise, but 40-50% of the 10 days is cool to cold, so it was a bit problematic. Well, that is all I can recall right now. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Edited October 19, 2016 by 4cats4me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
easyboy Posted October 19, 2016 #13 Share Posted October 19, 2016 Thanks for the feedback. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucky TGO Posted October 19, 2016 #14 Share Posted October 19, 2016 Thank you for all the information very helpful. Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 4cats4me Posted October 19, 2016 Author #15 Share Posted October 19, 2016 (edited) Can you tell me how the formal nights were on the Grand Princess. (or anyone else that has sailed on the Grand). Was there anything special offered in the dining rooms or on board other than photographs? Did one of the evenings include meeting the Captain? Photo ops with the Captain? Sailing next February on the Grand to Hawaii and looking forward to it. We don't bring formalwear anymore, so we went to crown grill on night one and noticed everyone out and about and everyone was dressed really formal, just like the OLDEN days. It was nice to see so many dressing so beautifully. On the regal hardly anyone dressed formally, as in tuxes and ball gowns. On this cruise I did notice more tuxes and ball gowns. I think because the demographic was a little older the dress code was abided by. The first formal night was champagne water fall On the second formal night was the captain' party, but we didn't go because my husband didn't bring a suit. As for special things on formal night? I don't really understand the question. It was the same old formal night routine listed in the Patter The entertainment lineup is always very good on formal nights. I was very impressed by how nicely everyone dressed, (those that we saw passing through between shows, ET cet) Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Edited October 19, 2016 by 4cats4me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lwnbwlr Posted October 19, 2016 #16 Share Posted October 19, 2016 Thanks for posting. We're taking the Grand on a Hawaiian voyage in March and was wondering if there are DVD players in the mini-suites. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 4cats4me Posted October 19, 2016 Author #17 Share Posted October 19, 2016 (edited) Thanks for posting. We're taking the Grand on a Hawaiian voyage in March and was wondering if there are DVD players in the mini-suites. Thanks. We weren't in a mini, but the only dvd players I've seen in the past were in full suites only And we've had mini suites many times I never noticed DVD players if they were there, at least Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Edited October 19, 2016 by 4cats4me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Woobstr112G Posted October 20, 2016 #18 Share Posted October 20, 2016 We weren't in a mini, but the only dvd players I've seen in the past were in full suites onlyAnd we've had mini suites many times I never noticed DVD players if they were there, at least Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Mini's on Princess do not have DVD players. For those mini's that do not have the on demand TV system, it is very easy to bring a small portable DVD player and hook it up to one of the two televisions in your cabin.....:):):) Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redhatsharon Posted October 20, 2016 #19 Share Posted October 20, 2016 Hi Are the Caribe balconies covered? thanks Sharon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 4cats4me Posted October 20, 2016 Author #20 Share Posted October 20, 2016 (edited) Hi Are the Caribe balconies covered? thanks Sharon Very large, Half covered, half not. On the video, when I panned forward you can see overhead and get a better idea of how far the covering extends, and on the video, Below you will see the dolphin deck balconies which are fully exposed https://vimeo.com/188219794 Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Edited October 20, 2016 by 4cats4me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 4cats4me Posted October 20, 2016 Author #21 Share Posted October 20, 2016 Sailaway, Alcatraz Our view while in port Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare TriumphGuy Posted December 26, 2016 #22 Share Posted December 26, 2016 We're on Grand to Hawaii in April 2017, thanks for the review. Can't wait! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare TracieABD Posted December 26, 2016 #23 Share Posted December 26, 2016 Thank you so much for the great review. I was on the Grand a couple of years ago, and we had the best waitstaff! Even though the Grand is an older ship, I think it is wonderful. I am glad to hear you enjoyed your cruise! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scuba idcs Posted December 27, 2016 #24 Share Posted December 27, 2016 question for those aboard grand now. 12/30 departure. weather and clothes. i imagine sailing out the bay under the gate it was chilly? jeans, jackets?? what did you wear?? on the trip down, when did shorts weather start? coming back up it's always rougher, i know. thank you! milly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caribill Posted December 28, 2016 #25 Share Posted December 28, 2016 I would like to know, if you can, tell me what the onboard rates are for using the Internet. Thanks. Onboard rates on all Princess ships are the same as listed on the Princess web site for pre-cruise purchase. Only difference is number on bonus minutes. Onboard bonus minutes the first two days on board are 1/2 of the pre-purchase bonus minutes. After two days on board, there are no bonus minutes when you purchase a package. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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