LIVE Geoherb's Solo Cruise on Majestic Princess, August 22, 2021

[geoherb]

I'm packed a ready to leave in the morning for the Majestic Princess. We've had four great live threads about the ship over the past few weeks. I think most of the menus and Patters have been posted, but I will try to take photos of all of them and post them after my cruise is over.

 

This will be my third cruise vacation without DH. He's staying home to work and take care of his mother. After our transatlantic cruise in the fall of 2019, he decided he did not want to risk being away from her in case anything happens. He's an only child, and she's about to turn 95. Before my mother died a couple of years ago, my brother who lives in town and I coordinated our vacations so that one of us would always be in town for her, so I do understand DH's thinking.

 

The Majestic Princess will be new to me. I've sailed on the Regal and Royal before, so much of it will be somewhat familiar. This will be the first cruise where I'll be using the medallion app. In the past, we've been on ships with the medallions but never bothered to do anything with the app. It seems like Princess is forcing (or at least highly encouraging) people to use it more.

 

I booked this cruise at the end of July. That was a couple of weeks before Princess announced the new Covid requirements. I thought about canceling, but decided not to. I had been watching prices for a few weeks before that. Next week was the best price for a solo cruiser when I booked with a 50% single supplement. Now the single supplements for the September dates have come down in price as well. My travel agent gave me a little bit of a discount plus was able to offer some onboard credit. I'll also get OBC for using a future cruise deposit and my shareholder credit.

 

The Princess Plus fare was more than $100 per day when I booked the cruise. (The current rate for the September 19 cruise for a solo in an inside cabin is $814 more for Princess Plus, which is about $116 per day.) Needless to say, I did not get the Princess Plus. It would actually be less expensive to buy the wi-fi package, pay the gratuities, and purchase the premier drinks package separately. Princess's pricing does not make sense, although one rep told me it was because I was getting a Drop & Go fare. (For someone booking double occupancy on September 19, it would be $370 for an inside, $350 for a balcony, and the normal $280 for a mini suite.) I'll trade my minibar liquors for beers and the sodas for sparkling water.

 

I booked the lowest category inside cabin. It would have been more than $900 to upgrade to a balcony. I received an upsell offer two weeks after booking the cruise. It would have been $398 to upgrade to a standard balcony and $518 to upgrade to a deluxe balcony. I passed on those offers. I did not receive my cabin assignment until two days ago. Princess assigned me to the highest category of inside cabin. It's a great location near the central stairs/elevators. I will be taking the stairs. 

 

I called Princess to buy the wi-fi package. There's no longer a way that I could see to purchase it online or through the app. I'll received the 50% OBC when I am on the ship. On my Alaskan cruises on the Island Princess in 2019, I managed to keep up with emails and a live thread using just the formerly free minutes. On our transatlantic in 2019 and my partial Panama Canal cruise, though, I purchased the unlimited internet package. On the transatlantic, it was due to the sluggish internet speed. I ended up getting a partial refund. For the Panama Canal, it was so I could watch some away hockey games. I planned that cruise so I would not miss any of the Carolina Hurricanes' home games. 

 

I booked my flights through EZair. I usually would want to arrive a day early, but the additional cost of a hotel room in Seattle was more than I wanted to pay. The flights were a little bit more through EZair over booking them on my own, but the peace of mind is worth it. Princess will take care of me if my flight does not make it to Seattle in time. The flight tomorrow is direct from Raleigh-Durham, and due to the time difference, it should give me plenty of time since it is scheduled to arrive at 10:12 a.m. I'll be taking the Princess transportation from the airport to the port. On our two previous cruises from Seattle, my brother and his wife took us to the port. I kidded that the reason they moved from Seattle to California is to avoid having to do that now that Princess is using Pier 91. As a solo traveler, it's less expensive than a cab or Uber. 

 

The three ports are Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan with scenic cruising in Glacier Bay. I do not have any excursions planned. 

 

The roll call for this cruise has been fairly active, although there's not a meet and greet scheduled for our cruise. I will encourage the other participants on it to post here as well. According to my cursory look at available cabins after people got our cabin assignments, there will be about 400 empty cabins. I'll find out when the Captain's Circle hostess announces the numbers for each level next week.

[Ombud]

Enjoy! I love solo cruising with Cruise Critic friends!!

[Eaglecw]

There’s an informal M&G on Monday at 10:30 in the Hollywood Conservatory. This will be our 15^th cruise to Alaska. We’ve also been following the other LIVE cruises on the Majestic. The COVID test didn’t go well. We had our tests at Walgreens on Thursday at 12:45. As our Friday night no test results, called Walgreens and they said “you’ll get an E-mail” click. I ended up calling Sound Mobile Diagnostics https://soundmobilediagnostics.com/ and had him come over and give us the test this afternoon. My wife ended up getting her test results from Walgreens late Friday night. He told me he went up to a couple of hotels up by Sea-Tac airport to give COVID tests last weekend.  

There's a lot over on the Majestic Princess August 22nd Face book page

Edited August 22, 2021 by Eaglecw

[azbirdmom]

Glad that you will continue the tradition of "live froms".  Have a fabulous cruise and I will be following along, no doubt reliving our wonderful time on the Majestic.

[Kay S]

How fun!  We're going on another virtual voyage!

[PurpleHays]

Can you run by Durham and pick me up? I can be packed and ready to go!

[Jean OR]

We are Jean and Glen.  We live near Houston, TX most of the year and in Oregon During the summer.We’re at a hotel north of Seattle and looking forward to going on a cruise again.   Got very rapid Covid test at Portland, OR airport on Thursday. Results in under 3 hours.

Thanks for the info on the informal M & G on Monday.  We hope to be at the Hollywood Conservatory at 10:30.

[MamaFej]

58 minutes ago, Eaglecw said:

There’s an informal M&G on Monday at 10:30 in the Hollywood Conservatory. This will be our 15^th cruise to Alaska. We’ve also been following the other LIVE cruises on the Majestic. The COVID test didn’t go well. We had our tests at Walgreens on Thursday at 12:45. As our Friday night no test results, called Walgreens and they said “you’ll get an E-mail” click. I ended up calling Sound Mobile Diagnostics https://soundmobilediagnostics.com/ and had him come over and give us the test this afternoon. My wife ended up getting her test results from Walgreens late Friday night. He told me he went up to a couple of hotels up by Sea-Tac airport to give COVID tests last weekend.  

There's a lot over on the Majestic Princess August 22nd Face book page

I am having a rough time with the Sound Diagnostics website (probably because I'm in a pretty rural area with a very slow connection). Do you recall how much you paid for the tests, and which one you did?

 

Thanks in advance. 

[MsSoCalCruiser]

Thank you, Geoherb for taking us along on your cruise.  I am really looking forward to reading your posts. Take care and have a great cruise!

[Purple Gallinule]

1 hour ago, Jean OR said:

We are Jean and Glen.  We live near Houston, TX most of the year and in Oregon During the summer.We’re at a hotel north of Seattle and looking forward to going on a cruise again.   Got very rapid Covid test at Portland, OR airport on Thursday. Results in under 3 hours.

Thanks for the info on the informal M & G on Monday.  We hope to be at the Hollywood Conservatory at 10:30.

Hey! Jean and Glen. It's Mel and Jeanne from Colorado Springs. We are going to be on the Majestic on Sep 19th. Hope to see a bird or two, so let us know what luck you have. We hope you have a GREAT cruise and we will be watching for your posts.

[hooked_on_cruising]

3 hours ago, geoherb said:

This will be my third cruise vacation without DH. He's staying home to work and take care of his mother. After our transatlantic cruise in the fall of 2019, he decided he did not want to risk being away from her in case anything happens. 

 

I am also on this cruise.  I believe I met you and your DH on the Crown in 2019.  It was in the Piazza competition for Martinis.  He was also concerned about using the wi-fi calling to be able to stay in contact with his mother.  See you on board tomorrow.  

 

Tanya from Alabama

[Eaglecw]

2 hours ago, MamaFej said:

I am having a rough time with the Sound Diagnostics website (probably because I'm in a pretty rural area with a very slow connection). Do you recall how much you paid for the tests, and which one you did?

 

Thanks in advance.

It was the Rapid Allergen test, took about 20 minutes. He's an ER Doctor in Tacoma, he comes to you. It was $190, it's less if you get a group of people to be tested at one time. I forgot to say I HATE Walgreens!!

Edited August 22, 2021 by Eaglecw

[caribill]

5 hours ago, geoherb said:

I'm packed a ready to leave in the morning for the Majestic Princess. We've had four great live threads about the ship over the past few weeks.

 

Looking forward to your "Live from". Thanks for doing it.

 

May you have smooth sailing and great weather.

[CynCyn]

Happy cruising!
 

I’m not going to make it this year…..first exposure to COVID, then my surrogate mom died.  Now I am like @geoherb ‘s DH, no one here to help with mom.  
 

if possible, can you post pictures of the elusive room service menus?

[dog]

Looking forward to your posts. Safe travels 

[phabric]

Looking for to your review as a solo.  I did an Alaska solo in 2019.

[RRFan]

Wishing you all a great cruise!!  

[CruzinNoony]

Geoherb, I was hoping that you would do a "live from".  I will be following along.  Have a super trip!  DH and I will be on the Majestic on Sept. 5.

[san diego sue]

I hope Geoherb made his flight and is on his way. With storm Henri approaching the East Coast, planes may not be flying. I know he is more south  ,  not anywhere near where the storm is to make downfall. Planes  come from elsewhere and it does hinder flights everywhere.Hope we hear from him when he is suppose to land this morning.

[CineGraphic]

11 minutes ago, san diego sue said:

I hope Geoherb made his flight and is on his way. With storm Henri approaching the East Coast, planes may not be flying. I know he is more south  ,  not anywhere near where the storm is to make downfall. Planes  come from elsewhere and it does hinder flights everywhere.Hope we hear from him when he is suppose to land this morning.

 

The only non-stop out of Raleigh Durham to Seattle is Delta 692, and it's expected to land in less than an hour.

[Host CJSKIDS]

Enjoy your cruise and can't wait to follow along!

[CPASam]

Seeing the Magestic's bridge cam in port in Seattle.  Have a great cruise!  

[san diego sue]

15 minutes ago, CineGraphic said:

 

The only non-stop out of Raleigh Durham to Seattle is Delta 692, and it's expected to land in less than an hour.

That is good news.Looking forward to the Live that Geoherb does this week.

[CPASam]

 

Edited August 22, 2021 by CPASam

[mthomp5]

Have a great cruise!  Following along on your adventures.  We’ve also sailed on the Royal and Regal but not the Majestic…yet.  We plan to this December.  Interested to hear your comparison between Regal/Royal and the Majestic.  I wish they offered the Royal Tea on the Majestic but I don’t think they do.