Live from Grand Princess October 14-18

[CruzDayz]

2 minutes ago, Honolulu Blue said:

 

According to one of the cruisers on the 10/18 cruise (also with the 80s theme) who has access to the schedule, the Hall & Oates tribute act will get two shows in the main theater on Monday.

Here is the lineup for the 10/18 cruise. I'm bored and want to leave now. 🙂

Monday 10/18 Hall and Oats 6:45 and 8:45 Princess Theater

Tuesday 10/19 Comedian Carlos Oscar 5:30 Vista Lounge

Production Show Sweet Soul Music 6:45  Princess Theatre

Wednesday 10/20 Cabo, nothing much going on. Music at bars.

Thursday 10/21 Production Show British Invasion 8:45 Princess Theater

Friday 10/22  Comedian Carlos Oscar 7:45 Vista Lounge 

Saturday 10/23 ☹️☹️☹️☹️

[redrobin]

On 10/16/2021 at 7:50 PM, cr8tiv1 said:

I was wondering about your itinerary.  It seems as though it went like this:  LA/Ensenada/San Diego/Sea Day/LA.  (couldn't confirm since that cruise is no longer available on Princess.com).]

 

Did you have to go through customs because you stopped in Ensenada first?  I know they do the same if Princess hits Ensenada before arriving in Hilo (not the norm).

 

 

Yes, you're exactly right! We were in San Diego until 9:30pm. I was planning to sleep in, have a leisurely morning on the ship, and spend the afternoon in port. Instead, was off the ship at 8:30am. Customs should have been a quick process with the ship's low capacity, but it was delayed by a few passengers who either didn't understand the instructions or decided to disregard them. At least the Medallions are good to track people down!

[redrobin]

Had trouble accessing Cruise Critic onboard. Overall, internet was, as expected, much better than in Alaska. However, I found the Medallion app would hang and have more trouble loading at times. I do like the ability to order drinks with the app, but with the ship's low capacity, it was easier to just order at the bar or from a server. I still much prefer the printed Patter over JourneyView. Locating shipmates is a helpful feature. 

 

On the Majestic I enjoyed the sparkle and newness of the ship. However, being on the Grand felt more like coming home, with a Princess design and layout I've come to know.  I missed having a full Promenade deck on the Majestic, but was disappointed on the Grand that every time I went to walk around deck there was a section unexpectedly closed off. Weather was perfect for enjoying our balcony.

 

I enjoyed lunch at Alfredos on the Majestic, so went there on the Grand. The venue is smaller. Pizza was good, but the menu was more limited. MDR food was OK, I give the edge to the Majestic food, probably because of the Alaskan influence. Had dinner in Sabatini's that was excellent. Service by the crew everywhere was also top notch.

 

All three comedians were funny - Carlos Oscar, Maryellen Hooper, and Bobby Collins. Bobby Collins made me laugh the most. Daniel Oliver, who played piano and sang at Crooners has an amazing voice. Nice way to relax and enjoy a drink. Gary Golding from South Africa was the cruise director. I know I've sailed with him before, but can't remember when.

 

Smoking is still allowed in the casino, but there weren't many smokers. I liked the slot selection more on the Majestic, but playing on the Grand was more enjoyable. The casino was much less crowded and the casino staff were more attentive. 

 

It was definitely a different experience being on a cruise with so few passengers. You walked down the hallway by empty cabin after empty cabin. I could count on one hand the number of times I shared an elevator with another party. Last night I walked on the upper decks. It was a nice evening. Two people were watching Movies Under the Stars. It was like a ghost ship. I have mixed feelings. In certain ways it was great not having crowds. But, I'm still looking forward to a return to normal when the ships are fully back to life. 

 

Edited October 18, 2021 by redrobin

[donswife]

I'm now home and can finally get back into my CC account!  I will share some thoughts tomorrow (if I can still get into my account 🙄

[donswife]

Well, it is no longer live, but I'm alive!  Some random thoughts:

 

The crew:  They now are called "Teammates" and everyone we spoke with was so happy to be working again.  The ratio of crew to passengers afforded the opportunity for many conversations.  Getting to know the people is one of my favorite parts of cruising. It seemed everyone I talked to had been with Princess prior to the pandemic, but no one that I recognized from other ships. Gary Golding was CD.

 

Our cabin: We had a window suite. We have had them twice on the Caribbean Princess. There were not as many amenities as usual,  like the sleep kit, pillow menu, cotton balls and bath salts, etc.  Instead of the 2 little bottles of Korbel, our room steward poured glasses of sparkling wine like in the mini-suites, but we got the usual mini-bar set up, and had no trouble swapping items.  We also received 2 bottles of water per day.  I had ordered a water package, as we were not sure if the bottles would be offered. 

 

The ship: It was our first time on the Grand, yet the layout was familiar. I thought she was in good condition, very clean, and of course not at all crowded. There were spots marked on the floor for lining up at the service desk, International cafe, etc. Parts of the promenade deck were blocked off for painting and maintenance at times. I found out that the aft is blocked off for a smoking area for the crew, as they are no longer allowed to smoke in the same area as the passengers. 

 

Food: We were always able to find something we enjoyed eating. The suite breakfast in Crown Grill was a highlight. The waiters, Irina and Anish, were eager to bring whatever we asked for (except that there was a berry shortage), and had a good time laughing and teasing.  We had dinner in Sabatinis the first night.  We were never actually told we could have it complementary, but when I tried booking it in the MC app ahead of time (thanks to tips from prior Grand short trip reports), it came out no charge.  The special items in the Club class dining seemed more mundane than usual, but they did make a good chicken dish one night.  I liked the little dishes of salads and things in the buffet and having the hot items and salad bar served.  I hope they continue with this arrangement.

 

[AF-1]

Do not miss Carlos Oscar in the Vista lounge.  He is a great comedian.  The British Invasion show was particularly good too.  

[HBCcruiser]

@AF-1 Do you happen to remember in which restaurant they served embarkation lunch? 

[Sea Hag]

22 hours ago, HBCcruiser said:

@AF-1 Do you happen to remember in which restaurant they served embarkation lunch? 

On all the Princess ships we've sailed on, embarkation lunch has always been in the MDR on deck 6, midship. On the Grand, that's the Da Vinci.

[HBCcruiser]

4 minutes ago, Sea Hag said:

On all the Princess ships we've sailed on, embarkation lunch has always been in the MDR on deck 6, midship. On the Grand, that's the Da Vinci.

Thanks! Hope all is well with you. 😎

[Sea Hag]

Just now, HBCcruiser said:

Thanks! Hope all is well with you. 😎

We're all fine around here. Hope you are too. 😃

[HBCcruiser]

3 minutes ago, Sea Hag said:

We're all fine around here. Hope you are too. 😃

Yup! Leaving for a B2B on the Grand Saturday. What could be better than cruising? 😁

[MOLAcruiser]

I would love to know if there are any Canadians reading this post who have already cruised on the Grand Princess this fall from San Pedro. I am wondering about the post-cruise PCR testing required for our return to Canada, and whether it is in fact done on land after you disembark and have gone through customs, or are they doing it onboard the ship the day before as other cruise lines do? Although the Princess website says it is done on land and results are known in 60 minutes, I'd really like to hear from someone who has experienced it themselves, to know if it was quick and efficient and whether a 2:10 pm flight would be OK. We don't have later options without an overnight stay.

 

Thank you.

 

Margo

[Steelers36]

59 minutes ago, MOLAcruiser said:

I would love to know if there are any Canadians reading this post who have already cruised on the Grand Princess this fall from San Pedro. I am wondering about the post-cruise PCR testing required for our return to Canada, and whether it is in fact done on land after you disembark and have gone through customs, or are they doing it onboard the ship the day before as other cruise lines do? Although the Princess website says it is done on land and results are known in 60 minutes, I'd really like to hear from someone who has experienced it themselves, to know if it was quick and efficient and whether a 2:10 pm flight would be OK. We don't have later options without an overnight stay.

 

Thank you.

 

Margo

I have not gone through this, but I bet you could almost walk to the airport after the test and make your flight.

[LarryHD2]

21 hours ago, MOLAcruiser said:

I would love to know if there are any Canadians reading this post who have already cruised on the Grand Princess this fall from San Pedro. I am wondering about the post-cruise PCR testing required for our return to Canada, and whether it is in fact done on land after you disembark and have gone through customs, or are they doing it onboard the ship the day before as other cruise lines do? Although the Princess website says it is done on land and results are known in 60 minutes, I'd really like to hear from someone who has experienced it themselves, to know if it was quick and efficient and whether a 2:10 pm flight would be OK. We don't have later options without an overnight stay.

 

Thank you.

 

Margo

FYI - there is a testing lab at LAX - https://www.flylax.com/travelsafely#CovidTest  My wife used it before the cruise and it took about 30min for results.  It says you do need an appointment but there was only 1 other person there when we were there and they had 4 customer windows.

 

I heard that there is also a testing site upstairs at the dock but I can't confirm.

 

 

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, LarryHD2 said:

FYI - there is a testing lab at LAX - https://www.flylax.com/travelsafely#CovidTest  My wife used it before the cruise and it took about 30min for results.  It says you do need an appointment but there was only 1 other person there when we were there and they had 4 customer windows.

 

I heard that there is also a testing site upstairs at the dock but I can't confirm.

 

 

Not cheap, but then everything purchased at an airport costs more.

 

[MOLAcruiser]

Thanks for your answers. Regarding the post cruise PCR test for Canadians and other international travellers, Princess does it for us for free right at the San Pedro port so we don’t need to pay to get it done at LAX, but my understanding is that instead of getting the testing done onboard the day before, you disembark on the final morning, get your luggage and go through customs and then go into an adjacent building for the tests. Results are said to take about 60 minutes. I had just hoped to hear from someone who had already done this to confirm the timing was as advertised, with no delays. Maybe not many Canadians have cruised from there yet, but perhaps in the next few weeks there will be some. Our payment is due this Friday, and I’m still deciding what to do. So, if there are any Canadians reading this who have already completed a cruise at San Pedro and had their PCR test there, I’d love to hear from you. Thanks.