Review Caribbean Princess Partial Panama Canal Transit Apr 21 - May 1

[sherman931]

I have written a couple of reviews in the distant past and thought it time I wrote another. Especially,since I rely on Cruise Critic so much when I may have some questions I thought it was time for me to give a little payback. I was in the Navy for 9 years and spent 5 of them on destroyers I have to smile when people post about what a terrible cruise they had. To me a bad day cruising is still better than a good day on a navy vessel. I always look forward to a good cruise, and I always have one. I can always find something good to eat with all the choices available.

 

 

My wife and I enjoy cruising. This was our 30+ cruise most on Princess, a couple on Royal Caribbean. We are seniors so we no longer go for the gusto vis a vis port intensive activities. We generally stay on board (we are the people you generally see sitting around the piazza or poolside on port days. Wedo enjoy eating drinking and gambling, and that is why we enjoy cruising. We live in Boynton Beach about 45 min north of PEV.

 

 

DAY 1 EMBARKATION

 

 

We left home a little before 10AM and headed to the port. We are elite status so after parking the car and going through the check in process we were in the lounge before 11AM .Regardless of your status, I think they have really streamlined things at the Princess Terminal and the process is smooth and quick for everyone. To my surprise we started boarding before 11AM. We decided to forego Horizon Court, which is now called World Fresh Market, more about that later. We hung around the Piazza and had a lite lunch from International Cafe. Got our luggage around 2 pm and quickly unpacked and was all settled in by 3 pm.

 

 

GENERAL INFO

 

 

The Caribbean Princess was my first cruise ship ever. Despite other posts, I thought the ship was ingreat shape. In the words of Capt Jack, “She's not old, she's inher prime”. As you may know the CB under went dry dock and some major renovations about a year ago. The entire Horizon Court was renovated. Also looks like a lot of new carpet throughout the public areas. The crew was very friendly and courteous. Internet was good and It worked well and I had no problems with it except speed. Got the free Elite package. There are video screens all over the public areas showing schedules, maps, and other info. But if you want to see a menu you must walk to a dining room entrance area and read a printed paper menu in a frame hanging on the wall. Went to our cabin around noon Baja 436. Standard balcony room. Our steward was Olimpio Angeles, very nice and outgoing. I gave him $10; told him we have few demands and are easy going passengers and he went off a happy camper. We always tip our steward in advance and generally get superb service. Also left an additional tip at the end of the cruise.

 

CB has the new beds and mattresses. I thought the bed was comfortable. Certainly better than the old ones.

ALERT The new bed frames arelower than the old, meaning the space between the metal frame and cabin floor is about 2” shorter. Our luggage did not fit under the bed as it usually did. Fortunately I squeezed it into the close storage area without a problem.

 

 

Selected Anytime Dining in the Coral DR. We like to reserve a special table (a four top #350) in the corner of the dining room. We then have the same time and location every evening in the Coral DR. I do this through the DR maitre d. After I make the arrangements I give him a nice tip. From that point on we just bypass any lines and walk right to our table. At the endof the cruise we give our waiter and assistant waiter an extra tip.

 

 

The food was good, some choices better than others. If a person can’t find something good to eat I don’t think it’s the ship’s problem per se. I did find the DR lunch to sometimes have better choices than dinner menu. Dress code was not enforced, as many have previously noted in other posts so I won't comment further.

 

 

We go to the casino every day and night. So far (day 5) the casino has been relatively slow. Easy to get a seat at any table or slot. From a personal perspective while I am a senior myself, I have to say the average age of passenger on the ship appears to be 60+. I think I saw just a couple of families with kids.

 

 

Checked on the “coffee card issue”.I was told by coffee staff that all cards will expire at the end of this calendar year as Princess is coming out with a new process.

 

 

The Princess House Band was performing in the Wheel House Bar and a group London Calling was to be inCrooners this evening. Did not see either

 

 

DAY 2 AT SEA Good weather,smooth seas Formal Night

 

 

Pub lunch available in Crown Grill. Tonight was the Champagne Water Fall and Captain's Welcome Aboard. Guitarist Georgia Thursting performs in Explorers Lounge. Production Show Bravo in the Princess Theater. Piano and entertainer AJ Clark later in Explorers. Did not see any performers, went to casino.

 

 

 

 

DAY 3 FALMOUTH Good weather HOT! Drink of the Day (DOD) El Mejor Margarita $9.25

 

Comedian Darrell Joyce in the theater. Went to the show, was just OK. Music and dancing the the Crimson Duo in the Wheelhouse and AJ Clark in Explorers.

 

DAY 4 AT SEA Good weather, sea alittle choppy DOD Stir Me Up $8.75

 

Variety show today in Princess Theater with vocalist Todd Adamson. Apparently the new trend is for theater shows to be transmitted live via video to Explorers Lounge. We had dinner at Planks BBQ. Food was good and plentiful. You get four choices of meats each. It is served family style, thus wife and I had choice of eight meats. No way we eat all that, we had a total of four, and with all the sides, etc. it was more than enough. Not very busy despite the push to be sure you reserve early.

 

Variety Show, vocalist Todd Adamson.Did not see

 

DAY 5 CARTAGENA Good weather, HOT!DOD Morning Dew $8.00

 

Arrived at 6:30 leave at noon for Panama Canal. Second Pub Lunch today in Crown Grill. Production Show,Born To be Wild.

 

DAY 6 PANAMA CANAL/CRISTOBOL DOD Three Wise Men $8.25

 

This was the last Panama Canal Cruise for the season. CB went through the new locks. I had previously cruised on the Coral through the old locks. The old locks were much more interesting with more workers and the mechanical mules. Not to take away from the new Canal, enjoyed cruise on Coral better. However the new Canal is still an engineering marvel, just seems a bit “sterile”.A narrator was giving descriptions over the ships PA as we proceeded through the canal. I did not think she was very good. She was all over the place about Panama, the jungle, birds and she did not hold my interest at all.

 

Pretty good comedian in the theater,Jeff Burghart. He did a lot of impressions I enjoyed his show

 

Generally a good idea to get to the theater at least 30 minutes before showtime, as it fills up pretty quick.

 

There was a Medical Emergency on board about 1 1/2 hours after leaving Cristobol and we had to return to anchorage area to remove passenger. Adjusted arrival time and tour schedules for LIMON with no major problems. We arrived about 2 hours late and we departed at 6:30 instead of 4:30. Don’t know any particulars about what happen, but the passenger was evacuated by boat in the harbor.

 

 

Day 7 LIMON Mostly cloudy DOD Illusion $7.75

 

 

Good show in the theater, Tom Franek, a comedian, singer and pianist was very good.

 

Italian night in the dining room tonight.

 

Second medical emergency tonight just prior to our scheduled 6:30 departure from Limon. Didn’t leave port until 11:00 PM. Do not know any further details as to outcome.

 

Day 8 At Sea Second Good weatherFormal Night DOD Sapphire Sling $8.25

 

Production Show Broadway Ballroom, a Broadway themed show in the theater. Usual Princess dancers and singers doing broadway song and dance. Typical Princess stage show.

 

Day 9 Grand Cayman Good weather DOD West Indies Yellow Bird $7.75

 

Anchored at Grand Cayman and used port tenders for those going ashore. Will depart about 2:00PM.

 

So far this has been a tough cruise for me for gambling. To date, nothing but losses on tables and slots. Finally had a good night at the tables, but still deep in the hole. Only two days left, later today and all day tomorrow for casino fun. Will keep you posted as to outcome. At least we got a comp from the casino this morning in our mailbox, complimentary dinner at Plank’sor Steamer’s. We already ate at Plank’s and my wife has shellfishallergy LOL. Don’t know yet what we will do.

 

Tom Franek did a second show with newmaterial. Pretty good show

 

Day 10 At Sea

 

Last day of the cruise, back to FLL in the morning. Glad I live close by (Boynton Beach) will be home before most people get to the airport. I had a very good night in the casino, recovered almost 50% of my losses from the previous 9 days.Never thought I would do that. We went back to Planks again, using the free gift from the casino. You really have to be a big eater to enjoy the place. IMO they give you way too much food.. The ribs were good as well as the tri-tips. Place was empty this night too Anyone interested can find the menu on the Princess web site.

 

 

We put down the deposit for future cruise.

 

Quick casino update. I did not win, but on the last night I manage to win back half of my losses. In the mind of a disilussioned gambler, I came home a winner.

 

Disembarkation

 

We arrived in FLL Tuesday and were alongside pier 2 at 6AM. I was in a group scheduled to disembark at 8:30 (pick up luggage in terminal) and we were called at 8:20, by 8:30 we had our luggage and cleared customs The officer barely glanced at our passports before waving us through. To the garage, got our ca rand home by 9:30. My heart goes out to all who had to catch planes to head home. I dont know how they do it, I know I couldn't.

 

Movies on Board. Most, if not all, of the movies are also available in the statroom via on demand. The movies were shown in Explorers, the Theater, and MUTS

Padding 2

Kate and Leopold

Murder on the Orient Express

The Commuter

Darkest Hour

The Post

Mama Mia

Battle of the Sexes

Justice League

Grease

Eddie the Eagle

Dr. Strange

Three Billboards

The Greatest Showman

Star Wars Episode VIII The Last Jedi

Welcome to the Jungle

 

Lectures

Panama Canal Through To Gatun Lake WeGo

Limon Costa Rican Treasure

Grand Caymen From Pirates to Parrotsand to Hell, too

 

Entertainment was provided in theTheater, Wheelhouse, Club Fusion, Piazza and Explorers by thefollowing:

 

London Calling

Crimson Duo

Steel Pan with Dennis Smith

Xcite

AJ Clark

DJ Niki

Sunshine Duo

Darrell Joyce Comedian

Tom Addison

Jazz Group Princess House Band

Tom Franek

 

Hope this review as helpful to anyone seeking information about the ship or the cruise I know I did not cover a lot of areas, but this is the best I could do.

 

Thanks

Bob

[JimAOk1945]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. We took the partial transit on the Island Princess and really enjoyed it.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Forums mobile app

[voljeep]

What time was your "reservation" in "anytime dining" ?

[sherman931]

What time was your "reservation" in "anytime dining" ?

 

7:30 PM. Worked out great because the first shows in the theaters were at 6:45

[voljeep]

OK, I asked wondering if that tied up that table for the whole night, but it looks like somebody could have used that 4 top for a 5-5:30 seating, but not much later given the sometimes lengthy process in the mdr...

[sherman931]

OK, I asked wondering if that tied up that table for the whole night, but it looks like somebody could have used that 4 top for a 5-5:30 seating, but not much later given the sometimes lengthy process in the mdr...

There were plenty of empty tables throughout the evening. Dining room seemed slower that usual on this cruise. There was a bit of a rush after shows or other events but lines quickly disappeared as there were plenty of tables

[voljeep]

from what I understand, it's not the number of tables available, it's the number of cook, runners, waiters, etc. to service those tables in a 'reasonable' amount of time...

[moki'smommy]

We had Club Class. Only once on the cruise were we asked to wait "about 10 minutes" for a table. On another occasion, we waited maybe 2 minutes while they re-set the table from a party who had gone. While it did vary somewhat based on what was happening, most nights we would go about 7:30-8:00. No problem. Yes, they were obviously re-setting tables from earlier diners.

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[Woobstr112G]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review.....:):):)

Bob

[Lucky TGO]

Thanks for your review very nice.

Tony

[saltyg8r]

I have written a couple of reviews in the distant past and thought it time I wrote another. Especially,since I rely on Cruise Critic so much when I may have some questions I thought it was time for me to give a little payback. I was in the Navy for 9 years and spent 5 of them on destroyers I have to smile when people post about what a terrible cruise they had. To me a bad day cruising is still better than a good day on a navy vessel. I always look forward to a good cruise, and I always have one. I can always find something good to eat with all the choices available.

 

 

My wife and I enjoy cruising. This was our 30+ cruise most on Princess, a couple on Royal Caribbean. We are seniors so we no longer go for the gusto vis a vis port intensive activities. We generally stay on board (we are the people you generally see sitting around the piazza or poolside on port days. Wedo enjoy eating drinking and gambling, and that is why we enjoy cruising. We live in Boynton Beach about 45 min north of PEV.

 

 

DAY 1 EMBARKATION

 

 

We left home a little before 10AM and headed to the port. We are elite status so after parking the car and going through the check in process we were in the lounge before 11AM .Regardless of your status, I think they have really streamlined things at the Princess Terminal and the process is smooth and quick for everyone. To my surprise we started boarding before 11AM. We decided to forego Horizon Court, which is now called World Fresh Market, more about that later. We hung around the Piazza and had a lite lunch from International Cafe. Got our luggage around 2 pm and quickly unpacked and was all settled in by 3 pm.

 

 

GENERAL INFO

 

 

The Caribbean Princess was my first cruise ship ever. Despite other posts, I thought the ship was ingreat shape. In the words of Capt Jack, “She's not old, she's inher prime”. As you may know the CB under went dry dock and some major renovations about a year ago. The entire Horizon Court was renovated. Also looks like a lot of new carpet throughout the public areas. The crew was very friendly and courteous. Internet was good and It worked well and I had no problems with it except speed. Got the free Elite package. There are video screens all over the public areas showing schedules, maps, and other info. But if you want to see a menu you must walk to a dining room entrance area and read a printed paper menu in a frame hanging on the wall. Went to our cabin around noon Baja 436. Standard balcony room. Our steward was Olimpio Angeles, very nice and outgoing. I gave him $10; told him we have few demands and are easy going passengers and he went off a happy camper. We always tip our steward in advance and generally get superb service. Also left an additional tip at the end of the cruise.

 

CB has the new beds and mattresses. I thought the bed was comfortable. Certainly better than the old ones.

ALERT The new bed frames arelower than the old, meaning the space between the metal frame and cabin floor is about 2” shorter. Our luggage did not fit under the bed as it usually did. Fortunately I squeezed it into the close storage area without a problem.

 

 

Selected Anytime Dining in the Coral DR. We like to reserve a special table (a four top #350) in the corner of the dining room. We then have the same time and location every evening in the Coral DR. I do this through the DR maitre d. After I make the arrangements I give him a nice tip. From that point on we just bypass any lines and walk right to our table. At the endof the cruise we give our waiter and assistant waiter an extra tip.

 

 

The food was good, some choices better than others. If a person can’t find something good to eat I don’t think it’s the ship’s problem per se. I did find the DR lunch to sometimes have better choices than dinner menu. Dress code was not enforced, as many have previously noted in other posts so I won't comment further.

 

 

We go to the casino every day and night. So far (day 5) the casino has been relatively slow. Easy to get a seat at any table or slot. From a personal perspective while I am a senior myself, I have to say the average age of passenger on the ship appears to be 60+. I think I saw just a couple of families with kids.

 

 

Checked on the “coffee card issue”.I was told by coffee staff that all cards will expire at the end of this calendar year as Princess is coming out with a new process.

 

 

The Princess House Band was performing in the Wheel House Bar and a group London Calling was to be inCrooners this evening. Did not see either

 

 

DAY 2 AT SEA Good weather,smooth seas Formal Night

 

 

Pub lunch available in Crown Grill. Tonight was the Champagne Water Fall and Captain's Welcome Aboard. Guitarist Georgia Thursting performs in Explorers Lounge. Production Show Bravo in the Princess Theater. Piano and entertainer AJ Clark later in Explorers. Did not see any performers, went to casino.

 

 

 

 

DAY 3 FALMOUTH Good weather HOT! Drink of the Day (DOD) El Mejor Margarita $9.25

 

Comedian Darrell Joyce in the theater. Went to the show, was just OK. Music and dancing the the Crimson Duo in the Wheelhouse and AJ Clark in Explorers.

 

DAY 4 AT SEA Good weather, sea alittle choppy DOD Stir Me Up $8.75

 

Variety show today in Princess Theater with vocalist Todd Adamson. Apparently the new trend is for theater shows to be transmitted live via video to Explorers Lounge. We had dinner at Planks BBQ. Food was good and plentiful. You get four choices of meats each. It is served family style, thus wife and I had choice of eight meats. No way we eat all that, we had a total of four, and with all the sides, etc. it was more than enough. Not very busy despite the push to be sure you reserve early.

 

Variety Show, vocalist Todd Adamson.Did not see

 

DAY 5 CARTAGENA Good weather, HOT!DOD Morning Dew $8.00

 

Arrived at 6:30 leave at noon for Panama Canal. Second Pub Lunch today in Crown Grill. Production Show,Born To be Wild.

 

DAY 6 PANAMA CANAL/CRISTOBOL DOD Three Wise Men $8.25

 

This was the last Panama Canal Cruise for the season. CB went through the new locks. I had previously cruised on the Coral through the old locks. The old locks were much more interesting with more workers and the mechanical mules. Not to take away from the new Canal, enjoyed cruise on Coral better. However the new Canal is still an engineering marvel, just seems a bit “sterile”.A narrator was giving descriptions over the ships PA as we proceeded through the canal. I did not think she was very good. She was all over the place about Panama, the jungle, birds and she did not hold my interest at all.

 

Pretty good comedian in the theater,Jeff Burghart. He did a lot of impressions I enjoyed his show

 

Generally a good idea to get to the theater at least 30 minutes before showtime, as it fills up pretty quick.

 

There was a Medical Emergency on board about 1 1/2 hours after leaving Cristobol and we had to return to anchorage area to remove passenger. Adjusted arrival time and tour schedules for LIMON with no major problems. We arrived about 2 hours late and we departed at 6:30 instead of 4:30. Don’t know any particulars about what happen, but the passenger was evacuated by boat in the harbor.

 

 

Day 7 LIMON Mostly cloudy DOD Illusion $7.75

 

 

Good show in the theater, Tom Franek, a comedian, singer and pianist was very good.

 

Italian night in the dining room tonight.

 

Second medical emergency tonight just prior to our scheduled 6:30 departure from Limon. Didn’t leave port until 11:00 PM. Do not know any further details as to outcome.

 

Day 8 At Sea Second Good weatherFormal Night DOD Sapphire Sling $8.25

 

Production Show Broadway Ballroom, a Broadway themed show in the theater. Usual Princess dancers and singers doing broadway song and dance. Typical Princess stage show.

 

Day 9 Grand Cayman Good weather DOD West Indies Yellow Bird $7.75

 

Anchored at Grand Cayman and used port tenders for those going ashore. Will depart about 2:00PM.

 

So far this has been a tough cruise for me for gambling. To date, nothing but losses on tables and slots. Finally had a good night at the tables, but still deep in the hole. Only two days left, later today and all day tomorrow for casino fun. Will keep you posted as to outcome. At least we got a comp from the casino this morning in our mailbox, complimentary dinner at Plank’sor Steamer’s. We already ate at Plank’s and my wife has shellfishallergy LOL. Don’t know yet what we will do.

 

Tom Franek did a second show with newmaterial. Pretty good show

 

Day 10 At Sea

 

Last day of the cruise, back to FLL in the morning. Glad I live close by (Boynton Beach) will be home before most people get to the airport. I had a very good night in the casino, recovered almost 50% of my losses from the previous 9 days.Never thought I would do that. We went back to Planks again, using the free gift from the casino. You really have to be a big eater to enjoy the place. IMO they give you way too much food.. The ribs were good as well as the tri-tips. Place was empty this night too Anyone interested can find the menu on the Princess web site.

 

 

We put down the deposit for future cruise.

 

Quick casino update. I did not win, but on the last night I manage to win back half of my losses. In the mind of a disilussioned gambler, I came home a winner.

 

Disembarkation

 

We arrived in FLL Tuesday and were alongside pier 2 at 6AM. I was in a group scheduled to disembark at 8:30 (pick up luggage in terminal) and we were called at 8:20, by 8:30 we had our luggage and cleared customs The officer barely glanced at our passports before waving us through. To the garage, got our ca rand home by 9:30. My heart goes out to all who had to catch planes to head home. I dont know how they do it, I know I couldn't.

 

Movies on Board. Most, if not all, of the movies are also available in the statroom via on demand. The movies were shown in Explorers, the Theater, and MUTS

Padding 2

Kate and Leopold

Murder on the Orient Express

The Commuter

Darkest Hour

The Post

Mama Mia

Battle of the Sexes

Justice League

Grease

Eddie the Eagle

Dr. Strange

Three Billboards

The Greatest Showman

Star Wars Episode VIII The Last Jedi

Welcome to the Jungle

 

Lectures

Panama Canal Through To Gatun Lake WeGo

Limon Costa Rican Treasure

Grand Caymen From Pirates to Parrotsand to Hell, too

 

Entertainment was provided in theTheater, Wheelhouse, Club Fusion, Piazza and Explorers by thefollowing:

 

London Calling

Crimson Duo

Steel Pan with Dennis Smith

Xcite

AJ Clark

DJ Niki

Sunshine Duo

Darrell Joyce Comedian

Tom Addison

Jazz Group Princess House Band

Tom Franek

 

Hope this review as helpful to anyone seeking information about the ship or the cruise I know I did not cover a lot of areas, but this is the best I could do.

 

Thanks

Bob

Great review..Thanks

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-T817A using Forums mobile app

[Cruzinnana47]

Thanks for your review..very informative and well done. We were on the same cruise and we just returned yesterday (spent an extra day in FLL before flying home). Agree with you about Planks: too much food! My hubby definitely likes his meat, particularly barbeque, but we still couldn't finish it all. I wondered why they recommended reservations, as it was not that busy when we ate there.

 

Embarkation was certainly a pleasant surprize--very quick and easy. And we were surprized when we didn't have to fill out a customs form for disembarkation--the agent quickly glanced at our passports, too, after we'd left the ship.

 

Sounds like you enjoyed the cruise, as we did!.

[caribill]

I wondered why they recommended reservations' date=' as it was not that busy when we ate there.

 

[/quote']

 

a) Old marketing trick. Create a Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO)

 

b) So they can staff the area to meet the demand (or lack of demand)

[sherman931]

Went Tom Planks twice and both nights there was only about six tables occupied, maybe less.

[AF-1]

Bob, great review. Thanks for sharing. How many people does Planks accommodate; or better how many table are set up?

[sherman931]

Bob, great review. Thanks for sharing. How many people does Planks accommodate; or better how many table are set up?

If you recall the Horizon Court and Caribe Cafe on CB or similar class ships, they basically eliminated the Caribe Cafe. Now one side of the ship is Planks and the other side is Steamers. Bkfast and lunch is available during the day on either side and in the evening they become the “specialty” dining area. I would gues there are 30+ tables on each side.

[louden]

Checked on the “coffee card issue”.I was told by coffee staff that all cards will expire at the end of this calendar year as Princess is coming out with a new process.

Thank you for posting your review. Could not help but notice the above quote. If this is the case one can only hope Princess will offer some sort of OBC for cards that have never been used. Going to try to call Princess to see if they have any information.

Louden

[voljeep]

Checked on the “coffee card issue”.I was told by coffee staff that all cards will expire at the end of this calendar year as Princess is coming out with a new process.

Thank you for posting your review. Could not help but notice the above quote. If this is the case one can only hope Princess will offer some sort of OBC for cards that have never been used. Going to try to call Princess to see if they have any information.

Louden

 

 

call Princess, yeah, good luck with that...:rolleyes:

 

actually call 5 times over 5 days and let the forum know how that turns out...;p

[KevintheIrishDJ]

We were on the same cruise and also have a place in Boynton. I would add:

- We used the Crown Grill BOGO coupon on Embarkation night. Wonderful.

- Really liked the omelets in the "back of the buffet".

- Wait staff and Room Stewart were absolutely great.

- The duo in the Wheelhouse were not very good. The did play "How Much if that Doggie in the Window" which was a fast 3/4 time. We were able to do "our" waltz to it.

- Only issue I had was the sound level in the theater. I have been an entertainer for over 30 years and consequently have hearing loss. The sound was so high I had to cover my ears several times. I tried to talk to the CD about it. He basically said I was wrong and they were "required" not to play too loud. I asked what the db level was and he could not answer me.

- We rented a car from Enterprise for about half of what Uber would charge. Dropped it off at the Hyatt Marina and walked to the ship. Very convenient.

Edited May 4, 2018 by KevintheIrishDJ

[louden]

call Princess, yeah, good luck with that...:rolleyes:

 

actually call 5 times over 5 days and let the forum know how that turns out...;p

 

Not really expecting anything positive but can"t fault a girl for trying. Will let you know.

 

Cheers Louden

[mustgo]

Any idea if you can buy a meal in Planks to take to your balcony? If so, one dinner could be shared there since so much food.

[voljeep]

can one person order the Planks menu, the other go thru the regular buffet and get say, a salad and take it back to Planks, and then share both with the other?

 

"share" - that would seem to be a great concept for a restaurant !!;p

[sherman931]

I do not know if you can order from Planks to take to your room; my guess would be they are not set up to do that. As to one person ordering a meal and another going to the buffet, that is certainly physically doable as the buffet is close by. However, there is a host/hostess at the entrance area to Planks and I do not know what their reaction would be.

[Thrak]

can one person order the Planks menu, the other go thru the regular buffet and get say, a salad and take it back to Planks, and then share both with the other?

 

"share" - that would seem to be a great concept for a restaurant !!;p

 

Yes. You can also have one order from Planks and the other order from Steamers. Not a problem at all..