Discovery - Glad To Be Off

[AF-1]

Myrte Ave. Mayehm,  did you choose to sail this ship out of LA because it was located near your home and you didn't have to fly to the port?  Curious as to why you chose this ship verses the Grand Class ships that you like; which also sail out of LA area. Cheers.  I did enjoy reading your comments

[HaveDogWillTravel]

@VibeGuyI have only spent 35 days since November on the Ruby but I agree with your entire review. I don’t think I’ve ever agreed so much with any one in my entire life…..hilarious.   I also booked 2 more sailings for this month and next just to spend more time with “my” crew (some leave during my sailing next week but many are there through June 9). 

Edited April 21, 2022 by HaveDogWillTravel

[travelhound]

9 hours ago, Thrak said:

 

This is my fear. We have, in the past, pretty much loved cruising with Princess. I fear that the new protocols, unbridled smoking in the casino (GAH!), and our first experience on a Royal class ship (Royal Princess) may combine to essentially "poison" cruising for us for the future. I (we) have become used to a certain level of service, quality of cruising, etc. and I'm afraid that standard will not be even close to being met. I am afraid that the things that caused us to be so very enamored of the cruise experience will simply not be there.

 

I'm hoping that I'm just being nervous due to a very small percentage of unhappy people who are posting. It's well know that unhappy people will speak up far more often than those who are happy. We will have to decide for ourselves when we sail on May 2nd. We are planning to cruise with an open mind and will, hopefully, not be unduly influenced by negative posts.

We have been cruising for over 30 years and have definitely seen a slow but steady downward change to big box mass market.  That said, we still love cruising and try to make the best of these difficult changes 🙂

[USCcruisecrazy]

19 hours ago, Chelly said:

I am riveted to this thread of posters' disappointing experiences on Discovery.   I am  booked on Discovery's Oct 8 sailing to Mexico.   This is the first time I've had troubling concerns about an upcoming cruise.

 

I've cruised more than 35 times; mostly on HAL, Celeb and Princess... with a few RCL, Carnival, NCL and Viking tossed in.  

 

I usually travel solo in a well situated balcony cabin.   This time I booked an additional balcony cabin as a gift for my adult son.  It will be his first cruise.   I've always managed to "survive" a disappointing cruise by maintaining a good attitude and by avoiding difficult areas, sticking with what works for me.  

 

However, now that I've involved another person in my cruise, I'm troubled by so many bad reviews of Discovery.   For months, I've hyped to my son all the wonderful experiences I've had on Princess and have been excited about the new Discovery.   Based on what I'm reading, I fear this cruise will be a huge disappointment to a newbie cruiser.    Hoping in upcoming months Discovery's travel experience will improve, but have come to the point of cancelling and booking with HAL or Celebrity.  Really feel stuck between a rock and a hard place.

I wouldn't stress over it.  I have found a few things to be constant over the years. 1) more times than not, those that write reviews had a bad experience and want to vent, but are not necessarily representative of the majority. 2) Having the right attitude going in will greatly increase your odds of success!!  So, think positive and do your thing.  I expect you will be very satisfied in the end.  And most important...enjoy time with your son!!

[Myrtle Ave. Mayhem]

4 hours ago, AF-1 said:

Myrte Ave. Mayehm,  did you choose to sail this ship out of LA because it was located near your home and you didn't have to fly to the port?  Curious as to why you chose this ship verses the Grand Class ships that you like; which also sail out of LA area. Cheers.  I did enjoy reading your comments

@AF-1Yes, Good Morning!

Great question. Yes, I live in LA & wanted a no fuss travel to the ship cruise. I was very curious to "try out" the newest Princess ship, thus the reason I purposely didn't book a Grand class ship. Over the years Princess has been one of my favorite cruise lines. The pricing couldn't be passed by either. I came on with an open mind & positive attitude. The MDR food & service were delightful. Loved all the live music! I was aware of the GRT & PSR when I booked. Will I come back to Princess,  Yes..... on a Grand class. My next cruise is back to Viking Ocean on a trans-Atlantic in December. 

 

Happy cruising!

 

 

[XBGuy]

9 hours ago, VibeGuy said:

 

Things that are distinctly better since our pre-COVID sailings:

 

. . .
 

2) Vines has a couple of new obscurities including perhaps the best Gewurztraminer made in California. 
 

 

 

Would you please share the name of the maker of that "best Gewurstraminer made in California?"

 

I'm always on the lookout for good wine.

 

Gewurztraminer is not particularly popular with Americans.  It seems unusual to see in a venue like Vines which, who's kidding who. does not attract wiine buffs looking for "obscurities."  

[Blondilu]

I don't know if it's the brand VibeGuy is talking about, but I saw this on a poster in my hometown of Sonoma, California: "Gundlach Bundschu Gewurstraminer, If you can't say it you shouldn't be driving". 

 

And I have seen several Sonoma wines on a Princess ship.

[loge23]

12 hours ago, VibeGuy said:

 

 

17) The Chamisal “INOX” Chardonnay is off the menu at Vines. 

 

 

2) Vines has a couple of new obscurities including perhaps the best Gewurztraminer made in California. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Just a heads up for anyone cruising on the newest Royal class ships: No more Vines. Still on the Regal and Royal, but not on the Enchanted or Discovery. A big phooey for me. Insult to injury - they replaced the Vines with the hamburger restaurant, formally a pop-up in the also-eliminated Wheelhouse bar.

On the plus side, they now serve wine by-the-glass in real wine glasses! They scrapped the somewhat secret Riedels, but the new stemware is very nice and appropriate for wine. Now if they could beef up the by-the-glass selections in the DR's!

[Astro Flyer]

3 hours ago, XBGuy said:

Would you please share the name of the maker of that "best Gewurstraminer made in California?"

This was recently posted from Discovery’s wine list:

 

Navarro Estate Gewurtztraminer; Anderson Valley, California - $40

 

 

 

Edited April 21, 2022 by Astro Flyer

[AF-1]

4 hours ago, Myrtle Ave. Mayhem said:

@AF-1Yes, Good Morning!

Great question. Yes, I live in LA & wanted a no fuss travel to the ship cruise. I was very curious to "try out" the newest Princess ship, thus the reason I purposely didn't book a Grand class ship. Over the years Princess has been one of my favorite cruise lines. The pricing couldn't be passed by either. I came on with an open mind & positive attitude. The MDR food & service were delightful. Loved all the live music! I was aware of the GRT & PSR when I booked. Will I come back to Princess,  Yes..... on a Grand class. My next cruise is back to Viking Ocean on a trans-Atlantic in December. 

 

Happy cruising!

 

 

Thank you for your feedback.  I too like the Grand Class ships

[Chelly]

5 hours ago, USCcruisecrazy said:

I wouldn't stress over it.  I have found a few things to be constant over the years. 1) more times than not, those that write reviews had a bad experience and want to vent, but are not necessarily representative of the majority. 2) Having the right attitude going in will greatly increase your odds of success!!  So, think positive and do your thing.  I expect you will be very satisfied in the end.  And most important...enjoy time with your son!!

Thank you, @USCcruisecrazy and others who replied to my post.    Princess hasn't disappointed me yet so will not fret about what to expect on the new Discovery .   Appreciate all the positive comments and good advise.

[VibeGuy]

42 minutes ago, Astro Flyer said:

This was recently posted from Discovery’s wine list:

 

Navarro Estate Gewurtztraminer; Anderson Valley, California - $40

 

 

 

That’s the one.  It’s sort of an unexpected find, and very sessionable.  
 

I enjoy that Priorat red blend a lot and I don’t recall having seen it on glass lists before.    I cannot think of when I wouldn’t enjoy a glass of Conundrum.   The Ancient Peaks Renegade isn’t a Usual Suspect on glass lists, either. 

[Chelly]

4 hours ago, Myrtle Ave. Mayhem said:

@AF-1Yes, Good Morning!

Great question. Yes, I live in LA & wanted a no fuss travel to the ship cruise. I was very curious to "try out" the newest Princess ship, thus the reason I purposely didn't book a Grand class ship. Over the years Princess has been one of my favorite cruise lines. The pricing couldn't be passed by either. I came on with an open mind & positive attitude. The MDR food & service were delightful. Loved all the live music! I was aware of the GRT & PSR when I booked. Will I come back to Princess,  Yes..... on a Grand class. My next cruise is back to Viking Ocean on a trans-Atlantic in December. 

 

Happy cruising!

 

 

Sorry, but could you tell me what GRT and PSR mean?   Thanks.

[Blondilu]

GRT is gross registered tonnage and I believe PSR is passenger to staff ratio.

[Myrtle Ave. Mayhem]

30 minutes ago, Chelly said:

Sorry, but could you tell me what GRT and PSR mean?   Thanks.

@ChellyGross Registed Registered Tonnage. Passenger Space Ratio. The GRT/PSR can sometimes be misleading. It often depends on where which public rooms are placed where. For example, on Crown Princess Adagio, Sabatini's, & Skywalkers are placed far aft, thus off the beaten path. 

Edited April 21, 2022 by Myrtle Ave. Mayhem

[XBGuy]

54 minutes ago, Astro Flyer said:

This was recently posted from Discovery’s wine list:

 

Navarro Estate Gewurtztraminer; Anderson Valley, California - $40

 

 

 

 

Thank you @Astro Flyer.  I agree that the Navarro Gewurz is s good one.

[Mike45LC]

On 4/19/2022 at 12:30 AM, caribill said:

 

That would be great for everyone if the mobile devices supported by the use of an app pre-cruise and during the cruise were not limited to the most recent technology.

 

The Medallion app did not work at all on my brand new iPhone last month on Majestic.   The lines for assistance from the "navigators" were the longest lines on the ship, but all they could do  for me was mutter the mantra "connectivity issues".  I was able to order a drink only once on the entire seven day cruise (and it never got delivered).   I had the "most recent technology" and the app was still a failure.  But as has always been the case, there were lots of bars to get my drink from.

[startedwithamouse]

6 hours ago, loge23 said:

Just a heads up for anyone cruising on the newest Royal class ships: No more Vines. Still on the Regal and Royal, but not on the Enchanted or Discovery. A big phooey for me. Insult to injury - they replaced the Vines with the hamburger restaurant, formally a pop-up in the also-eliminated Wheelhouse bar.

On the plus side, they now serve wine by-the-glass in real wine glasses! They scrapped the somewhat secret Riedels, but the new stemware is very nice and appropriate for wine. Now if they could beef up the by-the-glass selections in the DR's!

A hamburger restaurant?  They have a grand total of one Umani burger and a plant based option on the menu. 🙄  have you even tried the Salty Dog?  They have many, many delicious plates to try, and are all very well executed both in taste and presentation. The charred asparagus and beef short rib are standouts. Princess still offers an extensive wine menu, available at most venues. This is a much better use of the space as more specialty dining is needed. 

[cr8tiv1]

My story:  I am a light weight wine drinker.  My TA gave me a wine gift (although I also had the Princess Plus Package).  So I went to Vines.  Dewa was kind enough to educate me on white wines and allowed me to sample a few.  I told him, "sweet/white/fruity..."  He poured me three to sample.  I was surprised how much I liked the Navarro Estate Gewürztraminer; Anderson Valley, California - $40.  So I ordered a bottle from Room Service...and brought it home.

 

An added bonus.  The voucher was for $32.  I asked Room Service about the 25% off of bottled wine.  Hmmmm.  $40 - 25% = $32  ?????  Didn't matter to me.  I was expecting to have to pay the difference.  It's been a really long time since I've had a Gewürztraminer.  It was really good.

 

[Thrak]

I am surprised by the number of folks here who enjoy Gewürztraminer. When I ordered it at Vines on one cruise the wine steward seemed surprised and said it was unusual for someone to order that wine. I don't ordinarily order white wines but that is one I like. I guess it's the light sweetness that appeals to me as opposed to many white wines that are so dry as to see almost astringent. I'm pleased to hear that Princess is carrying this wine.

[roxievegas]

Wanted to comment on the coming and going from the ship.

 

We were on the Majestic last month for 7 days - getting on the ship was easy, no long lines, just had to wait for the ship to be cleared so we could walk on.  passenger capacity was around 2100,  We did have a big problem getting off the ship at the end of the cruise.  We picked "walk off" at 7:30a.  We had packed our luggage and had them taken the night before, so we only had a carry on bag to walk off with.  Once we got off the ship (a long wait for clearance from customs) we went to the "luggage area" to get our bags - we had to wait 45 minutes before they closed the warehouse doors and allowed us into the area to find our luggage.

 

This trip we got to the pier around 10:30, waited in line for 40 minutes before we were checked in.  The lady at the front of the line said that due to our leaving on Easter, they were short handed.  Guess no one at Princess bothered to check the calendar.  We are not sure what we are going to do this time when we leave the ship - carry all our luggage off, let them take our bags again, or throw them over board (kidding)

 

Santa Barbara - tender.  This was a switch from Monterey because covid - we did the tender, but once we got to the dock in the marina area they could not figure out how to tie the shuttle close enough to the dock for us to get off  We sat on the shuttle for 15 minutes watching them tie and untie the ropes.  Finally one guy held one of the ropes and we had to step off with a gap.  We decided not to go anywhere - walked down the pier and got in the return line and went back to the ship.  Two hours wasted.

 

really don't like the tender stops, such a waste of time coming and going.  Next cruise no tender stops.

 

Have to give a big "great food" to the Ocean Terrace Seafood Bar (deck 6 outside the casino entrance).  The sushi is great - there is a charge, runs around $3.00 for 4 pieces of sushi.  They serve from 5:00p to 9:00p on daily but on the sea days, they open at noon for food.  It is made right in front of you if you sit at the bar.  We have had lunch and dinner there twice and hopefully will again before we get off in two days.

 

Our prime rib in the dining room and our steak in the Crown Grill were both excellent.  We normally order fish dinners, but we do like a nice steak dinner and we were no disappointed.

 

Looking forward to Ruby in June - going to Alaska out of San Francisco

[WAussieSFO]

11 minutes ago, roxievegas said:

We picked "walk off" at 7:30a.  We had packed our luggage and had them taken the night before, so we only had a carry on bag to walk off with.  Once we got off the ship (a long wait for clearance from customs) we went to the "luggage area" to get our bags - we had to wait 45 minutes before they closed the warehouse doors and allowed us into the area to find our luggage.

@roxievegas"Walk Off" is meant to be that you walk off with all of your luggage, no putting luggage out the night before.

[firefighter4u]

On 4/20/2022 at 3:18 PM, JF - retired RRT said:

One of these days, I want to try the Majestic just for the Hollywood BC.

We just got off a couple of weeks ago.  Hollywood area is nothing special IMO.  Its disappointing that the roof over the pool is not retractable during nice weather - which, unfortunately, wasn't a problem on our cruise.  If I paid for that area I would want my money back.

[LACruiser88]

46 minutes ago, firefighter4u said:

We just got off a couple of weeks ago.  Hollywood area is nothing special IMO.  Its disappointing that the roof over the pool is not retractable during nice weather - which, unfortunately, wasn't a problem on our cruise.  If I paid for that area I would want my money back.

Totally agree.  We could not get past the strong pool chlorine smell.

[mjmalino]

The only thing that I am going to say is that the once daily cabin servicing is post-covid as they were trying to limit how often the cabin stewards were entering the room. I am hoping that it will go back to twice a day in the near future. That being said, when we were on the Sky over NYE our steward did service the cabin twice a day, which really shocked me.