California Restart Thread - Panorama Departing 8/21/21

[Sheebah]

On 8/22/2021 at 2:33 PM, bdever said:

Live Sail Away:

 

Thanks so much for sharing our live sailaway vid! It was so exciting to be dockside for the event. 

[klfhngr]

1 hour ago, Sheebah said:

Thanks so much for sharing our live sailaway vid! It was so exciting to be dockside for the event. 

I watched it, good stuff!!! Thank YOU!!!

[kcandcc]

@Wanna_Cruizethank you so much for taking the time to post and answer questions. We are booked on Panorama on 10/16 and going from Carnival over to Princess terminal for a 7 day coastal CA on the Majestic on 10/23. Both ships have the same requirements to board (the negative COVID test) but our problem is that we will be on Panorama during the timeframe to get the test for the Majestic.  Called Princess and they said that Carnival could give us the test and they would accept it but when I called Carnival they said they would not give us a test!  If you would not mind keeping your eyes and ears open for any announcements regarding passengers signing up for testing and post.  I am sure other passengers would need a negative test to travel to certain areas so am hopeful that the agent I spoke with at Carnival did not know what she was talking about!

 

Enjoying all the tips and tricks!  We are 60/61 and have been on 21 cruises (mostly Princess, Carnival and Royal C) and live in the Bay Area.

[Wanna_Cruize]

s

On 8/24/2021 at 8:46 AM, bdever said:

@Wanna_Cruize 

 

Also, how is the Midnight Project band?

 

How was the bracelet situation in Havana pool area today on first sea day? Still different colors/no bracelet peep?

 

Is slip & sip required in some venues such as comedy club?

 

Havana Bar- are people dancing with masks on or off? Is masked while dancing being enforced in Havana?

 

I saw that the Elemis Spa body wash & shampoo are not being offered in Havana showers on MG. Are they still stocking Elemis body wash & shampoo in Havana or did they do away with that too?

 

Thanks!

The wristband situation is very confusing. We were issued yellow Havana Wristbands, but others have Blue. Doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason as to what color is given. There are also people with white wristbands, and some with no wristbands at all. However, I did see the cocktail waiters kicking some people out who attempted to order drinks out on the patio, and there were directed inside. 

 

The Midnight Project band is good, have heard them a couple of times. You can faintly hear them in the hallways at night, but not that I've noticed in the cabins. I didn't notice the people who were dancing if they were wearing masks or not, as I was just passing through. I did see people singing karaoke in the Havana bar wearing masks on the first couple of days at least.  

 

Sip & cover is enforced in the casino and comedy clubs pretty consistently. Not sure in the Havana club at night, but they do have the signs posted outside each venue giving the rules. People onboard are pretty consistently wearing masks indoors. 

 

I just checked the shower, and the shower gel and shampoo dispensers on the wall are marked as Elemis, but there are not separate bottles of shampoo, etc. given out in the bathroom. 

[ASR1996]

Wanna_Cruise, thank you so much for your posts.  I am reading them and rereading them.  We will be on the Panorama in a few weeks in a Havana cabana and I really appreciate all of your observations.

Again, thank you so much for taking the time!             

[bdever]

CDC color code for this sailing is now yellow with the CDC starting an investigation. 
 

@Wanna_Cruize Thanks for the info on sip & cover being enforced in the venues and Elemis products still in the showers!

I’m nervous about Havana being crowded now with all the different colors of wristbands and no wristbands. Have you and your wonderful husband found it to be crowded? Also, tell us the story about when you told him about the Cabana upgrade and his reaction! Did you wait until after boarding to tell him?
 

[kdr69]

On 8/21/2021 at 10:17 AM, nlstigger said:

Took a walk from Hotel Maya down to the ship this morning. So happy to be here and see my ship docked and ready to go!

 

Am staying at Hotel Maya in November for my Radiance cruise How is it?

[nlstigger]

13 minutes ago, kdr69 said:

Am staying at Hotel Maya in November for my Radiance cruise How is it?

I enjoyed Hotel Maya for the 14 hours I was there. The parking deal (promo code p41) was good. The lot was pretty full when I came in friday night due to a private party on premises. The cruise parking is an outdoor lot mixed in with with all other hotel guests. At check in they gave me a card to put in my window with dates valid for 2 weeks. Its a doubletree, so they also gave me

two warm chocolate chip cookies. I stopped for a beer and a quesadilla at the El Fuego Restaurant before going to bed and it was good. The bed was comfortable and I had a water view balcony room.  I walked down to the port on The walking path andit was easy to get too.

[matt1119]

1 hour ago, bdever said:

CDC color code for this sailing is now yellow with the CDC starting an investigation. 
 

@Wanna_Cruize Thanks for the info on sip & cover being enforced in the venues and Elemis products still in the showers!

I’m nervous about Havana being crowded now with all the different colors of wristbands and no wristbands. Have you and your wonderful husband found it to be crowded? Also, tell us the story about when you told him about the Cabana upgrade and his reaction! Did you wait until after boarding to tell him?
 

I suspect (at least I hope) now that Carnival is no longer giving exemptions, the numbers will start going down.

[nlstigger]

I’ve danced At a couple of the band performances and they say wear mask when dancing on dance floor and stay 5 feet away from band so they can keep there mask off.  No one makes you have your mask on if you are sitting at a table listening to the music.

Edited August 25, 2021 by nlstigger

[pinto18]

16 hours ago, kcandcc said:

Enjoying all the tips and tricks!  We are 60/61 and have been on 21 cruises (mostly Princess, Carnival and Royal C) and live in the Bay Area.

Cant answer your questions but we are also going to. be on the Oct 16 cruise ( also from the Bay Area )

[Moviela]

31 minutes ago, kdr69 said:

Am staying at Hotel Maya in November for my Radiance cruise How is it?

Nice hotel. An Ensemble Hotel Partners property branded Doubletree by Hilton is a medium size hotel with a Latin theme and acres of waterfront to enjoy the scenery. They have plenty of parking and sell cruise packages to allow parking included while cruising. There is also a shuttle to take you the last mile to the door of the cruise terminal. A good place to stay the night before any cruise. I have never stayed there because I live a few minutes away.

[bdever]

1 hour ago, nlstigger said:

I’ve danced At a couple of the band performances and they say wear mask when dancing on dance floor and stay 5 feet away from band so they can keep there mask off.  No one makes you have your mask on if you are sitting at a table listening to the music.

Strange - how would you stay 5 feet away from the band? The dance floor in Havana is too small unless they removed tables and chairs? 

[kdr69]

3 hours ago, nlstigger said:

I walked down to the port on The walking path andit was easy to get too.

so would it be easy to walk to on departure day or do you recommend a cab?

[kdr69]

2 hours ago, Moviela said:

There is also a shuttle to take you the last mile to the door of the cruise terminal.

Good to know thanks

[treesah]

@Wanna_Cruize  Thanks for sharing.  We're on the 9/25 voyage.  Does the Havana Cabana area feel crowded?  

[travelplus]

How are the Staterooms on Deck 8 by the Sky Trampoline designation on the Deck Plan map?

[Wanna_Cruize]

1 hour ago, travelplus said:

How are the Staterooms on Deck 8 by the Sky Trampoline designation on the Deck Plan map?

I only saw the entrance to the Sky Trampoline area from the elevator one day, so I really can't comment on it. unfortunately]y. 

[Wanna_Cruize]

I did pay attention tonight and saw the dancers generally wearing masks, and there is a sign letting everyone know masks were required for dancing. Most people were complying. 

[Wanna_Cruize]

So an announcement was made tonight. There apparently is something amiss with our engines, that are impacting the ship's maximum cruising speed. We will now be arriving back in Long each at approximate 10:30 am. (unfortunately, all those waiting to board the next cruise will need to be pushed back by an hour or so.  We will arrive in Cabo an hour earlier, but will leave at 2pm (so must be back onboard at 1pm. 

[ScottsSweetie]

18 minutes ago, Wanna_Cruize said:

So an announcement was made tonight. There apparently is something amiss with our engines, that are impacting the ship's maximum cruising speed. We will now be arriving back in Long each at approximate 10:30 am. (unfortunately, all those waiting to board the next cruise will need to be pushed back by an hour or so.  We will arrive in Cabo an hour earlier, but will leave at 2pm (so must be back onboard at 1pm. 

This is being discussed on another site with my 9/4 group. The August 28 cruisers have already been told that their check-in times should be moved THREE hours out, their port times will be affected, and that their return into Long Beach on 9/4 will be 10:00am and they should adjust their departure flights accordingly. Looks like this will be an issue into the middle of September.

[travelplus]

33 minutes ago, Wanna_Cruize said:

I only saw the entrance to the Sky Trampoline area from the elevator one day, so I really can't comment on it. unfortunately]y. 

No worries perhaps someone else here can "chime in"

[Lady77]

Thanks for your up to the minute reporting about your experience on the Panorama.  We are part of the 8/28 cruise.  We are using this cruise as a sample of what it may be like on Princess for 2 weeks at Christmas to Hawaii.  So much up n the air still.  We love to dance and my husband has issues/difficulty wearing a mask with his hearing aids.  As I said, this will be a test cruise.

.

Lady 77 AKA Laurie 

[vicky3vicky]

Thanks so much for your informative posts! a few questions please. How is the cruise director, lee mason? Does he make the funship even ore fun? Is there an interior smoking area other than the casino and is the casino bar still there. Have you noticed the salad selection on the serenity deck? Thank you so much!

[mkcurran]

17 hours ago, Moviela said:

Nice hotel. An Ensemble Hotel Partners property branded Doubletree by Hilton is a medium size hotel with a Latin theme and acres of waterfront to enjoy the scenery. They have plenty of parking and sell cruise packages to allow parking included while cruising. There is also a shuttle to take you the last mile to the door of the cruise terminal. A good place to stay the night before any cruise. I have never stayed there because I live a few minutes away.

The shuttle driver also bribes the port people with cookies regularly so they can get in and out and around traffic very quickly. 🙂