First Time Cruiser has become a YouTube junkie

[rkacruiser]

13 hours ago, john watson said:

Coral Princess and Island Princess I believe were specifically built as Panamax ships having said that we are now in the Post-Panamax era.

 

Correct.  That is my understanding as well.

 

13 hours ago, john watson said:

Sapphire Princess and Diamond Princess were specifically designed for Alaska cruises

 

And neither ever made any Alaska cruises after they went into service!  Diamond Princess--maybe Sapphire as well, not sure--was specifically outfitted/or modified after delivery--for the Japanese market.  Diamond sailed many, many pre-Covid cruises on Japanese itineraries.  Sapphire seemed to sail on South Pacific/Southern Asian itineraries.  2 or 3 years ago, when she sailed an itinerary that took her to the UK, maybe some itineraries in that area--not certain--and then a return to South Asia were quite different from the area of the world where she had been sailing.  

 

Royal Princess can carry 3600 guests.  Sapphire Princess can carry 2670 guests.  I'd prefer a Princess Alaskan cruise on Sapphire Princess as compared with Royal Princess.  

 

For the small Southeastern Alaskan ports, a Sapphire Princess deployment for an Alaskan itinerary makes more sense than the deployment of a Royal Class ship.  Particularly when other mega ships, think NCL's and RCCL's monsters, might be in port at the same time.  

 

The appropriate size of ship for Alaskan cruises are the Coral/Island Princess size ships if one is going to sail on an Alaskan cruise on Princess Cruises.  

 

 

[john watson]

9 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Correct.  That is my understanding as well.

 

 

 Diamond Princess--maybe Sapphire as well, not sure--was specifically outfitted/or modified after delivery--for the Japanese market.  

 

 

 

I was on Diamond Princess on the final cruise before the modifications were completed.  It was a fantastic experience.  The ship was built in Japan and had not returned for around a decade as far as I understand.  The return to Japan itinerary was Hong Kong to Yokohama but stopped at a few non-Japanese ports as well as Japanese ports.  Every time we arrived  a Japanese port there would be 3000/4000 ship spotters there to greet the ship. The sailaways include civic ceremony and Japanese war drummers.  The Japanese Baths were still being constructed as we sailed and we were not allowed to see them.  However on the final day the girl who was in there agreed to show me and my daughter around.  The first rule is that males went to the left and females went to the right of the duplicate facilities.  The next day each sex would go to the opposite side, something to do with Ying  and Yang.  The girl explained the first thing you do is go to the changing rooms and take off all your clothes.  Then you walk out naked with a towel and proceed to the bath. When you reach the bath you climb in with the group of other naked people.  Opportunities existed for getting out and plunging into a hot pool, where the water was unbearable and then the cold pol where the water was freezing. There was also a steam room. My initial thinking was the Americans would not go for this.

 

They had created a large circular platform at the rear where people could bask in the sun a bit like clock hands with feet in the middle.  This was $20 I think but you wore swimwear because it was visible from higher decks.

 

Probably not suitable facilities for Alaska.

 

Regards John

[rkacruiser]

12 hours ago, john watson said:

Every time we arrived  a Japanese port there would be 3000/4000 ship spotters there to greet the ship. The sailaways include civic ceremony and Japanese war drummers. 

 

Thanks for posting your memories!  Quite interesting.

 

I remember in 2002 when the Volendam arrived in Tokyo for her maiden arrival the celebration that the Japanese provided.  News helicopters flying overhead, fire boats with water spouts, and arriving at the pier, the drummers were putting on quite a show!  

 

Was Sapphire Princess converted for the Japanese market as Diamond Princess was?  

 

Are you aware of how Diamond Princess became named such?  Her name was to have been Sapphire Princess.  

[john watson]

2 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

 

 

Was Sapphire Princess converted for the Japanese market as Diamond Princess was?  

 

Are you aware of how Diamond Princess became named such?  Her name was to have been Sapphire Princess.  

 

Diamond Princess was being built and progress and schedule meant she was ahead of Sapphire Princess.  Cruises were sold for Diamond but an unfortunate fire broke out during construction pushing her launch date back.  Sapphire Princess was being built alongside unaffected by the fire suddenly it meant her completion would be ahead of Diamond Princess.  Pragmatically it was decided to switch the names such that passengers who had booked cruises on Diamond would still sail oblivious to the switch.

 

When we were on board a few people who had booked back to back cruises were a bit miffed as the ship had a couple of days in Yokohama where press and news media boarded. The two days were not obvious to anyone who booked.  All the passengers had to disembark which obviously affected the b2b people greatly.  In fact we met a couple who told us this and had coincidentally booked the Intercontinental Grand Hotel Yokohama on an emergency basis.  This was an excellent hotel as they speak English and you can see the hotel from the quayside as it is shaped like a giant orange fruit segment and within walking distance through a park.  This press business was due to Japan being identified as a new market.

 

We went on Sapphire more recently on a British Isles cruise and did not notice any Japanese modifications.  What I did notice however was quite a few Japanese passengers going round the British Isles with us.  Reception had also acquired Japanese speaking staff behind the counter.  I shared a MDR breakfast table with four Japanese people of which only one spoke English spoken slowly.  The waiter provided them with Japanese Breakfast Menus, same items but written in their characters! I concluded the round Japan cruisers had liked the experience and were branching out around the world.

 

Regards John

Edited September 21, 2021 by john watson

[rkacruiser]

20 hours ago, john watson said:

Diamond Princess was being built and progress and schedule meant she was ahead of Sapphire Princess.  Cruises were sold for Diamond but an unfortunate fire broke out during construction pushing her launch date back.  Sapphire Princess was being built alongside unaffected by the fire suddenly it meant her completion would be ahead of Diamond Princess.  Pragmatically it was decided to switch the names such that passengers who had booked cruises on Diamond would still sail oblivious to the switch.

 

I was aboard the Volendam when we called at Nagasaki just a few days after the fire on the newbuild.  As we approached our dock, we passed now Diamond Princess being built in her dry dock.  The fire on the newbuild was devastating to the upper superstructure.  It was the thinking of those of us who saw her that she would never sail.  The damage looked that severe.  Somehow, the below decks were unaffected; her machinery remained in good condition.  The shipyard cut off the damaged superstructure and rebuilt it so she could enter service as Sapphire Princess.  

 

I have Australian friends who cruised on one of the UK voyages when Sapphire Princess was doing them and then sailed on the repositioning voyage to Singapore.  They enjoyed the ship and their cruises.  They wanted me to join them on the repositioning cruise.  Now, I regret that I didn't do so.  

[Sailin Gal]

PACD_JG your post made me smile.  I was more or less forced into my first cruise 14 years ago for a family milestone.  I too am an OCD traveler and love the planning almost as much as the trip, and YT was in its infancy back then, so most of my research was done here on CC, Carnival's website, and destination sites.  I had a word doc several pages long of tips I had copied/pasted from various boards here, and remember getting on the Carnival ship and immediately going to find 'the secret door' near the bow.

 

 We're also booked on Royal Princess for Alaska next summer (moved from Sapphire) and once again I've been scouring through the boards and travel sites.  The one thing I have noticed for me, from the 'pre youtube days' to now, is that watching the videos of my ship ahead of time has taken some of the fun away for me.  I rather liked the excitement of getting on the ship and seeing it for the first time without knowing before hand what it looked like.  That said, I wish I had seen some videos of the NCL Jewel before I sailed on her.  Some of the decor on that ship was atrocious LOL!  

 

[rkacruiser]

21 hours ago, Sailin Gal said:

that watching the videos of my ship ahead of time has taken some of the fun away for me.  I rather liked the excitement of getting on the ship and seeing it for the first time without knowing before hand what it looked like. 

I agree with you.  My pre-cruise curiosity is satisfied by viewing the glossy brochures with the deck plans.  The pictures in those brochures help to "whet my appetite" for what I will see when I am aboard.  

 

21 hours ago, Sailin Gal said:

I wish I had seen some videos of the NCL Jewel before I sailed on her.  Some of the decor on that ship was atrocious

 

That opinion has been expressed by some who sailed on  Carnival ships whose decor was designed by Joe Farcus.  Some like such decor;  some don't.  I have never sailed on NCL Jewel; no opinion as a result.  For the decor designed by Mr. Farcus, I have always found it to be "interesting" and liked much of what he designed.  Very colorful and imaginative most of the time.  

[BoozinCroozin]

Nothing wrong with it at all. I prefer to be informed. I am not spending all this money to have something go wrong it do something that is a waste of time. Plus it gets you in the mood to go and prepare.

[ajkillen]

So I am considering booking our first ever cruise for 2023. I am overwhelmed by the options, and definitely want to do a northern Europe cruise for about 9-15 days. We are not fancy people and care more about the excursions than we do onboard activities. In fact we don't really want to do anything that involves large groups...  I don't even know where to start....

 

Where do I find these youtube videos? Maybe they will help me... 

 

I just watched some videos on River cruises and they look pretty awesome, but don't seem to cover as much ground as the larger cruises.

 

Thanks in advance 🙂

[Snoopkat]

1 hour ago, ajkillen said:

Where do I find these youtube videos? Maybe they will help me... 

 

I started with something along the lines of Googling 'best YouTube channels for cruising'. Currently my favourite channels are Tips for Travellers, Visit With Us, Cruise with Ben and David and Emma Cruises. They are all UK channels and each channel offers something a little bit different so you get a good mix of info. If you start with those, you'll hopefully be able to get a sense of what you're looking for and work out what to look for on YouTube next. 

[john watson]

4 hours ago, ajkillen said:

So I am considering booking our first ever cruise for 2023. I am overwhelmed by the options, and definitely want to do a northern Europe cruise for about 9-15 days. We are not fancy people and care more about the excursions than we do onboard activities. In fact we don't really want to do anything that involves large groups...  I don't even know where to start....

 

Where do I find these youtube videos? Maybe they will help me... 

 

I just watched some videos on River cruises and they look pretty awesome, but don't seem to cover as much ground as the larger cruises.

 

Thanks in advance 🙂

 

It is helpful to get more accurate responses if you at least have your location country listed.  Answers for Australians, British and US cruisers can be different.

 

Regards John

[ajkillen]

6 hours ago, john watson said:

 

It is helpful to get more accurate responses if you at least have your location country listed.  Answers for Australians, British and US cruisers can be different.

 

Regards John

Thanks John!  I live in the US, but I was born and raised in Wales 🙂 My family all still lives in Wales. I am Welsh and still have a British passport. My husband is American. I think we would prefer anything that is aimed at British or European passengers. 

Edited October 11, 2021 by ajkillen

[ajkillen]

9 hours ago, Snoopkat said:

I started with something along the lines of Googling 'best YouTube channels for cruising'. Currently my favourite channels are Tips for Travellers, Visit With Us, Cruise with Ben and David and Emma Cruises. They are all UK channels and each channel offers something a little bit different so you get a good mix of info. If you start with those, you'll hopefully be able to get a sense of what you're looking for and work out what to look for on YouTube next. 

Thanks so much for this!  I will probably spend my day going down this rabbit hole.... 🤣

[ajkillen]

9 hours ago, Snoopkat said:

I started with something along the lines of Googling 'best YouTube channels for cruising'. Currently my favourite channels are Tips for Travellers, Visit With Us, Cruise with Ben and David and Emma Cruises. They are all UK channels and each channel offers something a little bit different so you get a good mix of info. If you start with those, you'll hopefully be able to get a sense of what you're looking for and work out what to look for on YouTube next. 

 

I already love Ben and David!! This is going to fill up my day quickly 🙂

[Snoopkat]

Haha it is extremely addictive and way more fun than FB and other social media. With the amount of time I spent on YouTube researching cruises, it would be a tragedy if I get on my first cruise and realise I hate it...

[ajkillen]

2 hours ago, Snoopkat said:

Haha it is extremely addictive and way more fun than FB and other social media. With the amount of time I spent on YouTube researching cruises, it would be a tragedy if I get on my first cruise and realise I hate it...

I literally spent about 6 hours today watching Ben and David and Emma.....  Hopefully it will be a quiet day at work tomorrow..... 😛   So much research to do!  I am pretty sure I will love anything that is excursion heavy.  I really don't care about all the stuff on the ships, other than views and the food. 

[Snoopkat]

3 hours ago, ajkillen said:

I literally spent about 6 hours today watching Ben and David and Emma.....  Hopefully it will be a quiet day at work tomorrow..... 😛   So much research to do!  I am pretty sure I will love anything that is excursion heavy.  I really don't care about all the stuff on the ships, other than views and the food. 

You might like Azamara as they're supposed to be all about the destination. It's top on my 'to cruise with' list once things go back to normal for us.

[CruisingWalter]

On 8/28/2021 at 10:16 PM, PACD_JG said:

I booked my family's first cruise to Alaska on Princess in June 2022.  

 Princess is the best cruise line for Alaska in our opinion, but even better when you do a CruiseTour that combines land and sea. We did 7 days on land and 7 days at sea when we sailed on the Sapphire Princess. Alaska is HUGE, bigger than Texas, and the land portion of the tour allowed us to see and experience much more of the interior. 

 

In addition to the YouTube vloggers, you should look at Sean and Stef as well. They've been close friends of mine for 10 years and it's been incredible to watch them grow that channel and for Stef to continue to carry it forward.