LIVE From the Royal Princess: 4/6/2019

[HBCcruiser]

1 hour ago, mmllss said:

really enjoyed your Live feed!  Can you tell me how much the winemakers dinner was and can you let me know  how you did the pub crawl - that looked like so much fun! 

 

The Wine Makers was $40.00 pp.

 

I planned the pub crawl via our Roll Call and created a Google sheet to keep track of people who wanted to participate. I also told everyone when and where we would start. I looked at recent ship patters posted online to determine which bars would be open and when, and created a list of bars we would visit taking into consideration that it’s easier to walk across and down floors rather than up. I also wanted to end up in an adult only area/bar.  In other words, be strategic. 

 

I created a list of bar trivia questions (one question per bar) and created multiple choice answer sheets. We spent 20 min at each bar, I gave the trivia question, and folks  wrote their answers in pen. The person or team (of 2) with the most questions correct won the crowns. It was fun! You have to bring everything with you, but I live close to the pier so it was not a problem. You can also do it with cards. Everyone gets a card at each venue. The highest hand at the end wins. Take lots of photos along get the way. That makes it fun too!

 

The bar order check list:

Edited April 20, 2019 by HBCcruiser

[mmllss]

4 hours ago, HBCcruiser said:

 

The Wine Makers was $40.00 pp.

 

I planned the pub crawl via our Roll Call and created a Google sheet to keep track of people who wanted to participate. I also told everyone when and where we would start. I looked at recent ship patters posted online to determine which bars would be open and when, and created a list of bars we would visit taking into consideration that it’s easier to walk across and down floors rather than up. I also wanted to end up in an adult only area/bar.  In other words, be strategic. 

 

I created a list of bar trivia questions (one question per bar) and created multiple choice answer sheets. We spent 20 min at each bar, I gave the trivia question, and folks  wrote their answers in pen. The person or team (of 2) with the most questions correct won the crowns. It was fun! You have to bring everything with you, but I live close to the pier so it was not a problem. You can also do it with cards. Everyone gets a card at each venue. The highest hand at the end wins. Take lots of photos along get the way. That makes it fun too!

 

The bar order check list:

 

[mmllss]

Thanks so much for the info - looks like so much fun I need to try it!  Is the wine included in the dinner or do you purchase that separate?

[HBCcruiser]

Thanks so much for the info - looks like so much fun I need to try it!  Is the wine included in the dinner or do you purchase that separate?

All included and pretty much unlimited too! My favorite was the Petit Sirah. He just kept pouring as our glasses emptied!


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[HBCcruiser]

Finally finished with the video. It contains a ship tour, sanctuary tour, suite tour and lots of food and drink p0rn! It's very long. Thanks for sailing along with me!

 

 

 

 

[Colo Cruiser]

Awesome video!  

Thanks for taking the time out of your cruise to do the live!   😎

[AF-1]

Excellent video. Love the quality and color of go-pro cameras.  Sound track was perfect for your video. Sound track reminded me of the Sirius XM station Watercolors.  

Edited April 22, 2019 by AF-1

[HBCcruiser]

Glad you both liked it!! 

 

[ceilidh1]

So great to view this from another person's perspective! Now I see how much of the ship was actually missed! This was the first time we didn't do the balloon drop - mainly because the last time was the New Years Eve balloon drop and I don't think anything, ever, could live up to that so I didn't want to spoil it! LOL

 

Thank you - great video and great live post!

[4cats4me]

Excellent video! Thank you for preserving so many nice memories from our 4/6 cruise.  

[HBCcruiser]

Excellent video! Thank you for preserving so many nice memories from our 4/6 cruise.  

 

So great meeting you both! I hope we get to cruise together again. You are fun, nice people!!

 

 

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[VersaliusPrimus]

Thank you VERY much for all the info, especially the comparison with NCL's Haven/suite!  My parents and I sailed on the Royal for an Eastern Caribbean cruise in Dec 2017 and loved the ship.  After cruising on the Carnival Conquest, Enchantment of the Seas, Pride of America, and the Island, Sapphire, and Royal Princess, we have settled on the Royal Class Princess ships as our go-to when looking at future cruises.  Your review and comparison of amenities and experience reinforce our decision to stick with Princess to get better value for our money (just about half the cost of the Haven is a bit of a shock).     

 

Speaking of the Pride of America, I noticed you mentioned you booked a cruise on it.  We were on it in May 2017 and departed with rather mixed feelings about the ship itself.  A breakdown:

 

+ Most of the time we were out on excursions the weather cooperated, resulting in premiere opportunities to grab pictures and enjoy the scenery. 

+ Likely because it was still mid May, we were often the only cruise ship in port so shops and excursion stops were generally not crowded.

+ The Pride of America is decorated appropriately, with various artwork, statues, and even a scaled down version of the Washington Monument proudly declaring its namesake.  We also appreciated a tribute to the military during the final production show the evening before disembarkation. 

+ Speaking of production shows, my parents enjoyed the musical productions, including a tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.

+ We stayed in an aft corner suite with a large wraparound balcony.  This balcony really came in handy when sailing by the Napali Coast (where several helicopter scenes from the Jurassic Park/World movies were filmed). 

+ As you mentioned, having breakfast on disembarkation day in a specialty restaurant certainly beats navigating the crowd at the buffet or breakfast in the cabin (we're probably doing this on Princess ships from now on). 

+ Our butler was very helpful in getting us familiar with NCL, booking excursions, and fulfilling any requests we had. 

 

-- While we enjoyed some of the excursions (lava crater, seahorse farm), others seemed like a waste of time.  Several times on different islands we stopped for 10 min to see a waterfall with barely as much water running over it as the water slides on some cruise ships.  Especially after visiting Niagara Falls a few years ago, we were not impressed and would rather the tour end a few minutes early for some extra shopping time or just returning to our cabin to get off our feet. 

-- The only exception to good weather was Hilo, where it rained on and off while we were on the east side of the island visiting the lava fields (weather cleared up on the west side).  The rain was heavy enough my parents stayed on the bus while I got off to walk through the lava tube.  Walking down to it, our group passed a park ranger who did not warn us the lava tube was flooding, muddy, and completely dark because the power was out.  Cellphone flashlight apps came in handy, but they did not prevent my shoes soaking into my socks. 

-- While the balcony was more than adequate for the 3 of us, the interior of the cabin felt small for a suite.  About the same size as the suite we stayed in while on the Island Princess (about the same size ship as well), but this suite felt smaller due to being "box-y."  Much like older style homes versus open concept, this suite was compartmentalized to the point that no individual compartment felt like it lived up to the "suite" title.  The shower is still the smallest we have ever seen, even smaller than the one in the balcony cabin on the Conquest.  Too small for my dad to move or even raise one arm, even my 5' 2" petite mom had trouble turning around.  We also did not like the ~ 4" raised step up you had to take to get into the bathroom (our toes felt it those first couple days until it became automatic).  This "suite" was well below the forward suite on the Royal Princess in sheer space, functionality of the layout, and quality of amenities.  Of course, this is comparing a ship launched in 2002 with one launched in 2012, but the differences should still be considered when planning your next vacation.     

 

I've left a few things out, but those are the highlights.  Looking back, I should probably have made this its own review thread on the NCL board, but this way is more direct to you.  🙂

 

Some pics (taken with the rear camera of my Samsung S6):

1.  The shower in our "suite."

2.  Storage space inside the bedroom compartment of the suite.

3.  View from the doorway into the bedroom compartment (not enough space for me to step back for a better picture). 

4.  The step up into the bathroom.

5.  View of the balcony to the left...

6.  ... and right around to the port side of the ship.  Plenty of viewing space. 

7.  The living room with mini-fridge under the TV. 

8.  The view from the cabin door.  Some storage space on the left, door to the bedroom on the right. 

9.  The Washington monument replica situated in the atrium (don't recall its name on NCL) between the forward facing elevator shafts, with a bust of the man himself overseeing operations at guest services behind me.

10.  The view from the Waimea Canyon lookout (3400 ft above sea level).

11.  Ending on a high note, this is the view of the Napali Coast from our balcony as we slowly sailed on by. 

  

 

 

 

[HBCcruiser]

VersaliusPrimus- Thank you for the great information. I’ve been reading the reviews on the POA and realize it is an older ship, so my expectations are not that high. Our plan is to spend time exploring the islands rather than spending time onboard. I anticipate we will spend our time onboard in our suite - DOS - in the hot tub on the deck.😎

[AF-1]

I have to agree with VersaliusPrimus about the NCL suites on smaller ships.  I had a penthouse suite on NCL Jade;  the balcony was huge but the actual suite itself compares to a mini suite on other ships.  I think Pride of America received a refurb two years ago.  Have fun in Hawaii;  I lived there for five years and loved it.

[VersaliusPrimus]

10 hours ago, HBCcruiser said:

VersaliusPrimus- Thank you for the great information. I’ve been reading the reviews on the POA and realize it is an older ship, so my expectations are not that high. Our plan is to spend time exploring the islands rather than spending time onboard. I anticipate we will spend our time onboard in our suite - DOS - in the hot tub on the deck.😎

Ah, that was the clue I needed to figure out what DOS meant.  Denial-of-service, disk operating system, and Department of Surgery just didn't seem to fit.  😉

 

Just looked up the room specs and a video tour.  It's only about 4x the space of the suite we were in... o.0

Relaxing in the hot tub while taking in the Napali Coast as you float on by sounds like a real vacation.  May you be greeted with sunny skies and calm waters.  😄

 

9 hours ago, AF-1 said:

I have to agree with VersaliusPrimus about the NCL suites on smaller ships.  I had a penthouse suite on NCL Jade;  the balcony was huge but the actual suite itself compares to a mini suite on other ships.  I think Pride of America received a refurb two years ago.  Have fun in Hawaii;  I lived there for five years and loved it.

The ship itself was in generally good shape, it's primarily the design of the cabins that we didn't enjoy.  Even still, a refurb to bring in new furniture, carpets, etc. is always appreciated.  We've been thinking about doing a cruise in the Haven on one of their newer, larger ships to get a better reading on what NCL can offer, but their pricing compared to Princess seemed too high to have comparable value (especially with the numbers provided by HBCcruiser earlier in the thread). 

[HBCcruiser]

The ship itself was in generally good shape, it's primarily the design of the cabins that we didn't enjoy.  Even still, a refurb to bring in new furniture, carpets, etc. is always appreciated.  We've been thinking about doing a cruise in the Haven on one of their newer, larger ships to get a better reading on what NCL can offer, but their pricing compared to Princess seemed too high to have comparable value (especially with the numbers provided by HBCcruiser earlier in the thread). 

The newer ships are expensive right now but I’m sure you can get better Haven deals on the Breakaway Class ships, especially if you can travel any time of the year. We loved the Haven on the BA-(Breakaway)!


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[BballinQT24]

Loved “sailing” along with you! Thanks for taking the time to post about your trip.

[ShyannDay]

HBCcruiser - thanks so much for your very informative and fun review.  I have a question for you - I will be sailing on The Royal in R606 and my elderly Aunt and Uncle in R612.  From what I can see on the ship map, it looks like we need to go to two different elevators to get to the Concerto dining room for Club Class ... is this true?  It doesn't look like there's a direct route.

 

Also I can't believe how narrow the balcony is!!  😲

[HBCcruiser]

26 minutes ago, ShyannDay said:

HBCcruiser - thanks so much for your very informative and fun review.  I have a question for you - I will be sailing on The Royal in R606 and my elderly Aunt and Uncle in R612.  From what I can see on the ship map, it looks like we need to go to two different elevators to get to the Concerto dining room for Club Class ... is this true?  It doesn't look like there's a direct route.

 

Also I can't believe how narrow the balcony is!!  😲

 

Yes and no. You need to be on Deck 6 to get there.  Take the Panoramic Lifts  in the middle of the ship to Deck 6 then walk aft. Those elevators get very busy so be forewarned. Don’t take the elevators closest to your cabin. Those are the aft lifts. If you take the aft lifts you’ll either have to take it to 7 and walk across then take stairs down, or go to 5 walk across and take stairs up. It is best to exit your cabin walk left towards the front of the ship to catch the Panoramic Lifts. It’s a confusing ship because there are places that you “Can’t get there from here.”  You’ll love it though! 

 

I will attach photos to help show you. 

 

Balcony....I know right!🙄

Edited April 23, 2019 by HBCcruiser

[HBCcruiser]

This may help too being you are in suites as well.:

 

 

[4cats4me]

20 hours ago, HBCcruiser said:

 

So great meeting you both! I hope we get to cruise together again. You are fun, nice people!!

 

 

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Thank you, Tiffany.  Enjoyed meeting you and your mom, as well. We are booked for the 4/18/2020 Royal cruise, so maybe we can meet up if you book that sailing.  😀 We booked over 6 months ago.  

[Waterluv]

On 4/9/2019 at 3:32 PM, HBCcruiser said:

 

Thanks! Yeh we were turned down for the Chefs Lumiere Dinner - we were  not “Royalty” enough to make the cut.🤣🤣 Happy with Wine Makers though! 

The Chefs Table was absolutely amazing. This was my birthday cruise and our friends sailed with us and all 4 of us were there. This is about our 20th cruise and 1st Chefs Table but definitely not the last. If you cruise again, try again it is a really wonderful experience in my opinion 

[ShyannDay]

4 hours ago, HBCcruiser said:

 

Yes and no. You need to be on Deck 6 to get there.  Take the Panoramic Lifts  in the middle of the ship to Deck 6 then walk aft. Those elevators get very busy so be forewarned. Don’t take the elevators closest to your cabin. Those are the aft lifts. If you take the aft lifts you’ll either have to take it to 7 and walk across then take stairs down, or go to 5 walk across and take stairs up. It is best to exit your cabin walk left towards the front of the ship to catch the Panoramic Lifts. It’s a confusing ship because there are places that you “Can’t get there from here.”  You’ll love it though! 

 

I will attach photos to help show you. 

 

Balcony....I know right!🙄

 

 

Thank you so much for your reply HBCcruiser.  That's kind of what we thought looking at the ship maps.  It will not be a problem for us using the stairs or figuring it out, but my Aunt and Uncle are elderly and knowing in advance is better ... so no aft elevators for the dining room.  Really do appreciate all the information you shared and your willingness to answer everyone's questions without being impatient or snide. 

 

Cheers!

[HBCcruiser]

7 hours ago, Waterluv said:

The Chefs Table was absolutely amazing. This was my birthday cruise and our friends sailed with us and all 4 of us were there. This is about our 20th cruise and 1st Chefs Table but definitely not the last. If you cruise again, try again it is a really wonderful experience in my opinion 

 

How awesome! We thought there was too much food at the wine makers event. We could have split each serving and still have been full. Did you feel that with the Chefs Table?

[Waterluv]

Lol yes we all felt that way so much and way too much food. Everyone kept stating how they wouldn't eat for a week. Shameless we found ourselves in Sabatinis for breakfast the next morning 😂. One thing I did feel a little bad about everything was so beautiful and specially made for us but I am a picky eater and it seemed like everyone gobbled everything but me 🙄 for example I hope I am spelling correctly Beef Tar Tar is RAW😥🙄 I couldn't do it, it was so beautifully presented...I didn't eat it. Overall we all really did feel like royalty at that moment. It has passed however I realized that after working all day then coming home and cooking dinner last night....awah man reality. Have a good day all of to work