LIVE: Regal Princess, February 5-12, 2022: Geoherb goes solo again

[gardenbunny]

With regard to the bar soap conversations that some ship do have it and others don’t, makes me wonder if they are using the reserves that were on board when the pause began???  Just a thought.

As I recall, long before Covid, for environmental reasons they were going to switch to pump bottles at sinks and the shower stall to have body wash and shampoo (which did happen first)..  And also for body lotion - have not seen that yet.

We were on Enchanted NYE and no bar soap and the pump bottle at the sink.

 

[cjpj]

2 hours ago, KLM3164 said:

Which ship were you on? If you were on the Sky they haven’t had the round bars of soap since cruising resumed. Other ships however still have them. I’m now curious if they have them on the new ship, Enchanted.

We were on the Regal. Didn't have to ask for it and received another bar during the voyage.

[Steelers36]

6 hours ago, Carolina Cruisers 2 said:

When I inquired I was told the Emerald would be used as isolation deck.

I suppose no matter which deck they select, it is going to disturb someone's ideal location.  The mid-ship balconies there are a good deal and close to the "action decks" of 5 thru 7.  Further from Lido, yes.  We have mid-ship Inside booked there for upcoming Regal since we liked the location when we had one of the "obstructed" balconies mid-ship.  Hopefully, they won't need isolation decks by Fall.

[culvercitycruiser]

If anyone gets a chance, would you please take a photo of the coffee menu with prices?

thanks

 

[KCSungirl]

Hi Geoherb. 
 

I’m sitting on the sofa having a good time knowing you are at sea. Don’t forget George Washington’s teeth were wood and fight for your answer😉

 

wish you smooth seas and sunny skies. 💕

[Carnevale]

20 hours ago, dance4fun said:

You are welcome, @Carnevale. Our sailing choice has been on Princess ( although we have as many cruises on another brand as we do with Princess ) primarily based on dancing availability.

 

As we discussed in our post, we are concerned that Crooners appears to be missing on the Sky Princess deck plan and that a "jazz" club may be taking the place of the disco.  With the change in the Wheelhouse bar from what we experienced on the Emerald and Caribbean princess, Princess appears to be lowering the priority of dance offering to passengers.  While the Vista Lounge is very nice, its stern location subjects dancers to more ship movement.   

 

Eliminating dancing options would drive us to other brands.  We have friends trying to get us to join them on a Viking ocean voyage.  When we questions them about music, they have said lots of classical and jazz.  We counter offer the Cunard's QM2 with its largest dance floor on the ocean.  Love the QM2 sequence dances!

 

We highly suspect Princess is monitoring this thread which is great.  The day after our post mentioning only one waltz by Project 5, the band announced Anne Murray's "Could I have this dance?" by saying, "we are going to play a waltz".  Several couples got up to dance.  Thank you, Project 5!  

 

Crooners / Kevin, we will be back earlier tonight.  Only caught the last song last night.

You sound like us!  We have sailed on many lines in search of ballroom dancing opportunities.  Cunard is by far the best but doesn’t have enough ships to provide the range of itineraries we see on Princess.  For years we were loyal to HAL but don’t sail with them since they took away ballroom dancing in favour of a poor quality knock off band.  I hope Princess continues to create dance opportunities as it’s so nice to have them as an option.

 

Enjoy the waltz!  Wish we were there to dance it too.

[caribill]

15 hours ago, geoherb said:

 

Yes, there are supply chain issues around the world right now. But some things could be sourced with other brands or from different suppliers.

 

 

Since Princess only gives out its own special brand of soap, it would not be available from any supplier other than the one it uses.

[caribill]

10 hours ago, reedprincess said:

However - if you guys also have the drink package, you have all the water, sodas, specialty coffees you want, unlimited for duration. 

 

 

Soda for the mini-bar is in cans.

 

Soda with the beverage package is not.

[Alcairns]

10 hours ago, KLM3164 said:

Which ship were you on? If you were on the Sky they haven’t had the round bars of soap since cruising resumed. Other ships however still have them. I’m now curious if they have them on the new ship, Enchanted.

We were on Sky in October and they had the round bar soaps. Maybe this was only in suites but they definitely had them. 

[dance4fun]

5 hours ago, Carnevale said:

You sound like us!  We have sailed on many lines in search of ballroom dancing opportunities.  Hope Princess continues create dance opportunities as it’s so nice to have them as an option.

 

Last night, there was a Big Band advertised event for the show band from 10-11 pm in the Vista Lounge. We didn't attend since we had already agreed to meet another couple at Crooners.  Several couples besides us got up to dance.  We let another couple have the dance floor when Kevin played a waltz.

Edited February 9, 2022 by dance4fun

[geoherb]

12 hours ago, Carolina Cruisers 2 said:

 

 

Did you feel more motion being up HIGH?

 

 

Not that I remember from that cruise. When we had a cabin at the very front on the Aloha Deck of the Sun Princess, we felt a lot of motion. The seas were rough on that cruise. The seas have been very calm so far. I haven't felt any motion in my aft cabin either, just vibrations from the engines when we dock or anchor.

[geoherb]

9 hours ago, KCSungirl said:

Hi Geoherb. 
 

I’m sitting on the sofa having a good time knowing you are at sea....

 

wish you smooth seas and sunny skies. 💕

 

Thanks. I've been the recorder for my team, so I haven't had to fight for my answers yet. 

[geoherb]

4 hours ago, caribill said:

 

Since Princess only gives out its own special brand of soap, it would not be available from any supplier other than the one it uses.

.

I'm betting people who want soap wouldn't care if Princess had to buy a different brand. I've noticed that some of the bars are using paper napkins without the Princess logo. Someone must have made the decision that people would rather have a napkin.

[geoherb]

Here are the numbers from last night's Captain's Circle party:

295 blue

297 gold

138 ruby

365 platinum

230 elite

 

It adds up to 1,325. I'm not sure why it differs from the 1,266 the CD announced. 

 

The third-place couple had 122 cruises and 1,468 days; second place had 157 and 1,529; and first place had 189 and 1,895.

 

A lot of the platinum and elite passengers showed up. The captain did not. The drinks were not as free flowing. I only got one and was not offered another. It did not matter since I have Princess Plus this cruise. Only the loyalty and events manager and the future cruise consultant spoke. They did not have bottles of champagne as door prizes either. On the Caribbean in December, they surreptitiously scanned our medallions as we entered to draw for three bottles of champagne as door prizes. 

[Host CJSKIDS]

15 hours ago, azbirdmom said:

 

When you next see her could you ask if she knows yet how many will be on the February 19th voyage?  Seems like the capacity is inching up.

 

And  add Feb 26th @geoherbif you think about it when questioning please!

[fawnie]

thank you so much for posting all of this geoherb. I am living vicariously through your trip. You are so kind to address everyone's questions. Hope your trip is amazing 😉

[susancruzs]

Thanks so much for the live thread, enjoyed reading it.  I'll enter the soap fray!  I've always traveled with my own soap.  Soaps can be too scented for me.  Haven't cruised since Nov. 2019, I'll bring 2 bars instead of 1 for my Enchanted Baltic/TA cruise, just in case.  I've used the round soap at the sink always, put my bar soap in the shower.  I like bar soap, not big on pumps.

[dance4fun]

Anyone lose number based domino?  Because we play games everyday in the Horizons Court, the staff approached us about a tile they found.  Not ours.  Looks like a number based domino (not pip-based) with a 10 and a blank. Similar to a rummicube tile but with two numbers.  If it is yours, the Horizon Court staff starboard side had it.  May have been from previous sailing.

[geoherb]

16 hours ago, culvercitycruiser said:

If anyone gets a chance, would you please take a photo of the coffee menu with prices?

thanks

 

 

Here it is.

[geoherb]

I enjoyed this morning's snorkeling trip. The best part was being able to board the boat that took us to a tiny island (Rendezvous Caye). The second best part was that we had fewer than half the number normally going--45 instead of 100. Out of the 45, 34 of us snorkeled. They broke us up into two groups. I went with the first group.

 

The equipment they had for us was fine. We did have to wear vests. The excursion included a snack, which was a hamburger and a cup of rum punch. They did not provide more rum punch for free, but we could purchase it. I was thinking they'd have it available complimentary on the trip back, but they did not.

 

The first two photos were taken while snorkeling. The one of the sting ray was from the pier. The last one is the island. It's 220 steps lengthwise and 50 in width.

 

[geoherb]

The snorkeling boat got us back to the ship around 1. I decided to order room service for lunch. I had the chicken tacos, Caesar salad, a beer, and Key lime pie in a jar. I'm not sure why they've gone with hard shells for the tacos. They have upstairs at the grill as well. The photo on the TV still shows them in soft tortillas. But they tasted good. It took 12 minutes from the time I placed the order to when it arrived.

 

The Key lime pie was how it should be. On the Majestic last August, it was horrible--like lemon pie filling from a can and no crust.

 

[geoherb]

Last night's show in the theater featured magician Neil Croswell. Perhaps I was too tired to enjoy a magician last night. Here's a clip of him performing for Penn and Teller:

 

Penn & Teller Fool Us Neil Croswell - YouTube

 

Tonight's show features Tom Franek. He was Princess's entertainer of the year in 2018. 

 

Here is the menu tonight in the dining rooms.

Menu 2022-02-09.pdf

[floridababa]

Geoherb can you please find out from guest services when will princess give the covid test on the TA that end in Rome. Will it be done the day before disembarkation or the morning prior to getting on the bus to the airport. Also what time would the buses leave for the airport.

Thank you so much. Not sure if we  want the princess transfer of a private transfer.

[azbirdmom]

2 hours ago, geoherb said:

Here is the menu tonight in the dining rooms.

Menu 2022-02-09.pdf 770.22 kB · 41 downloads

 

Isn't tonight Dress to Impress night?  It doesn't look like a formal night menu and I haven't seen lobster on any of the menus thus far.  And have you gotten official word on Princess' definition of Dress to Impress?

[caribill]

15 hours ago, geoherb said:

 last night's Captain's Circle party:

 

They did not have bottles of champagne as door prizes either. On the Caribbean in December, they surreptitiously scanned our medallions as we entered to draw for three bottles of champagne as door prizes. 

 

Another cutback, saving about $3 total for the three bottles.