Pool Deck Atmosphere

[rnr4thatsme]

Hello!  This is my first Princess cruise and I've heard it is more relaxed than say NCL or Carnival, but I was just wondering what the vibe was around the main pool deck?  Is there live music, any cruise activity staff hosted activities?  We will be on a 4 day Pacific Coastal in late April on the Discovery.  Thanks!

[SargassoPirate]

Just my opinion, but I find the atmosphere around the pool deck anything but relaxing.  If it's not an over-amplified band or DJ it's an over-amplfied MUTS.  

 

Again, just my opinion.

[txjim09]

It really depends on  what the CD has planned.  Our last Ruby cruise in January had very little poolside activities other than New Years Eve but entertainment was pretty anemic throughout the voyage.  Back up a year, same ship and CD and they would have sailaway music and bands on various days and more energetic music throughout.

 

Generally speaking, there are plenty of places outside to relax if that's what you're looking for and on many voyages plenty of outdoor live entertainment.  Just depends.....

[skynight]

The outdoor movie is loud and dominates the vibe. Deck above the Lido Pool will have hot tubs and not very much noise. Retreat Pool is adults only. Quieter, but limited seating. Wake View Pool will be quieter. The Sanctuary offers private reserved lounges. There is a cost. Go there immediately on boarding to select your lounge. On a short tropical cruise The Sanctuary will be in high demand.

[CapnCrews]

The atmosphere around this or any main pool deck changes every 5 minutes as people come and go.  Sometimes there are only 8 people sunning, sometimes there's a white party and loud music and people dancing.

I appreciate the comments that came in response to your question, but the only real answer is "you'll see when you get there."

And it will be a thing that has never happened before, nor will ever again.

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, SargassoPirate said:

it's an over-amplfied MUTS. 

Agreed.

I can understand the attraction of watching a film in the evening, but do we have to endure the over amplified sound for the entire day ?

Does anyone actually enjoy it ?

[memoak]

5 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Agreed.

I can understand the attraction of watching a film in the evening, but do we have to endure the over amplified sound for the entire day ?

Does anyone actually enjoy it ?

It was great during the World Cup last year and it was packed Beothuk people cheering on the teams 

[wowzz]

10 minutes ago, memoak said:

It was great during the World Cup last year and it was packed Beothuk people cheering on the teams 

That I can understand, but showing a movie,  at full volume at 11am , with no one watching ? Why bother ?

[PMGS247]

7 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Agreed.

I can understand the attraction of watching a film in the evening, but do we have to endure the over amplified sound for the entire day ?

Does anyone actually enjoy it ?

 

Depends on what's on, to be fair.  My wife and I branched out to HAL this past November to sail on the Nieuw Statendam, which has a big screen above its main pool much like Princess.  They did not use it nearly as much as Princess though, playing a movie or live sports around 8pm each night.

 

We did find ourselves calling the screen a waste throughout the day as it did absolutely nothing other than a couple hours at night. This is probably a more ideal schedule for someone like yourself, but I can definitely chime in with a different point of view and say I definitely missed the daytime movies.

 

I will agree that they probably take it a little too far.  If I had total control I'd have it be 1-2 morning/afternoon movies and cut out a lot of the filler that they run in between, but overall I appreciate that they make good use of the screen.

[wowzz]

7 minutes ago, PMGS247 said:

will agree that they probably take it a little too far.  If I had total control I'd have it be 1-2 morning/afternoon movies and cut out a lot of the filler that they run in between

That seems like a good compromise, even to an old curmudgeon like me !

[cruisingrob21]

2 hours ago, rnr4thatsme said:

Hello!  This is my first Princess cruise and I've heard it is more relaxed than say NCL or Carnival, but I was just wondering what the vibe was around the main pool deck?  Is there live music, any cruise activity staff hosted activities?  We will be on a 4 day Pacific Coastal in late April on the Discovery.  Thanks!

While the other posters have nailed the atmosphere - the weather on your itinerary (assuming its a NB voyage from LA to Vancouver or something similar) will dictate it more than anything.  If its windy, showery and cool, probably not a lot will be going on on the pool deck. They will likely have a movie on, but it could be cool and breezy meaning you'll need to bundle and not many folks will be in the pool.  Alternatively, it could be sunny and mild, but its not going to be hot.  I would imagine NCL and Carnival ships would have a similar experience on this itinerary since its just a very mild part of the world, year round.  It could be 80 degrees F inland (Portland, Seattle, Redding, Sacramento) but still 60F in the coastal communities along this route and 50F or 55F 10 miles out at sea.

Edited March 1, 2023 by cruisingrob21

[JimmyVWine]

2 hours ago, wowzz said:

That I can understand, but showing a movie,  at full volume at 11am , with no one watching ? Why bother ?

Falls into the "damned if you do, damned if you don't" category.  Failure to show a movie at 11:00 will result in a post here and elsewhere that has as its title: "Just Tried Princess For The First Time And It Was Sooooo Boring!"  The rant will refer to the fact that the advertised movies were "non-existent".  

 

My solution would be for Princess to install a Bluetooth transmitting sound system around the pool area allowing anyone who wants to use their own Bluetooth enabled earbuds or headphones to connect to that system and listen to whatever is playing on the screen.  For everyone else, the pool area is devoid of noise from the screen.  

Edited March 1, 2023 by JimmyVWine

[voljeep]

4 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

Falls into the "damned if you do, damned if you don't" category.  Failure to show a movie at 11:00 will result in a post here and elsewhere that has as its title: "Just Tried Princess For The First Time And It Was Sooooo Boring!"  The rant will refer to the fact that the advertised movies were "non-existent".  

 

My solution would be for Princess to install a Bluetooth transmitting sound system around the pool area allowing anyone who wants to use their own Bluetooth enabled earbuds or headphones to connect to that system and listen to whatever is playing on the screen.  For everyone else, the pool area is devoid of noise from the screen.  

Aren't there quiet pool areas on most Princess ships - not the 1 or 2 main pools with MUTS - but other pool areas

 

something for everyone.

[dreaminofcruisin]

For years I have heard people complain about the 'noise' in the pool area. I understand their concerns. However, it is nothing like the 'noise' on a Carnival cruise. Last winter we were on the Carnival Horizon and it was so loud that you couldn't even talk to a person standing next to you. Even my adult children thought it was excessive. 😊

Relative to that kind of "loud", Princess would be considered quiet. I've never had a problem holding a conversation on the pool deck.

I guess there are different levels of noise..... 😳

[LACruiser88]

1 hour ago, voljeep said:

Aren't there quiet pool areas on most Princess ships - not the 1 or 2 main pools with MUTS - but other pool areas

 

something for everyone.

This is the main reason we prefer the Sanctuary.

[JimmyVWine]

1 hour ago, voljeep said:

Aren't there quiet pool areas on most Princess ships - not the 1 or 2 main pools with MUTS - but other pool areas

 

something for everyone.

No.  The "Quiet Pool" is only found in the Retreat area and that is not available to everyone.  

[voljeep]

7 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

No.  The "Quiet Pool" is only found in the Retreat area and that is not available to everyone.  

Everyone - meaning it's adults only - that's my definition of 'quiet'

 

The Retreat Pool is Discovery’s complimentary adults-only pool and is located on Deck 17. It’s a bit tricky to find as you can only access it through stateroom hallways or by using the forward elevator bank. But once you get there, you’ll find a quiet oasis with a medium-sized pool, numerous loungers, and a full-service bar.

 

Also the Wakeview Pool - and 'quiet' is very relative...

[JimmyVWine]

12 minutes ago, voljeep said:

Everyone - meaning it's adults only - that's my definition of 'quiet'

Both silly and prejudicial.  When my daughter was a teenager and we cruised together, we wanted to stay together as a family. The three of us would not have added any noise to the Retreat area when she was 15.  But we followed the rules and stuck together at the main pool areas.  Pretty obnoxious to think that a family of two parents and a 15 year old can't fit someone's definition of "quiet" or that somehow that family unit is not worthy of or entitled to the same quiet as everyone else. 

[voljeep]

1 minute ago, JimmyVWine said:

Both silly and prejudicial.  When my daughter was a teenager and we cruised together, we wanted to stay together as a family. The three of us would not have added any noise to the Retreat area when she was 15.  But we followed the rules and stuck together at the main pool areas.  Pretty obnoxious to think that a family of two parents and a 15 year old can't fit someone's definition of "quiet" or that somehow that family unit is not worthy of or entitled to the same quiet as everyone else. 

come on man - not my ship, not my rules ...

 

j/s

 

is 15 the line? - what about 14,13 and with 'friends'

[RNRcruisers]

On our cruise last month, there were activities around the main pool many afternoons. We didn't hang out there much but walking through there were sometimes games or trivia being run by the cruise director's staff. If not those then there were movies or music playing.

[JimmyVWine]

4 minutes ago, voljeep said:

come on man - not my ship, not my rules ...

 

j/s

 

is 15 the line? - what about 14,13 and with 'friends'

You are missing the point.  I am not arguing in favor of changing the age limit at the Retreat. I am arguing that people who don't qualify to go there are still worthy of and entitled to some peace and quiet every now and then around the main pool area.  The main pool area should not be cacophonous at all hours of the day.  A Bluetooth transmitter system would go a long way to fixing that.  

 

But now that you bring it up, if were up to me it would be 15 and older as long as they are accompanied by an adult. 

Edited March 1, 2023 by JimmyVWine

[wowzz]

Given that the consensus on here ( admittedly a small sample) is that no one likes MUTS, why does Princess persist with it.

I mention it on every one of my post cruise surveys. I guess others do too.

It just seems that Princess have invested so much money in the screens, that they will use them regardless of the opinions of their paying passengers.

 

[that]

10 hours ago, rnr4thatsme said:

Hello!  This is my first Princess cruise and I've heard it is more relaxed than say NCL or Carnival, but I was just wondering what the vibe was around the main pool deck?  Is there live music, any cruise activity staff hosted activities?  We will be on a 4 day Pacific Coastal in late April on the Discovery.  Thanks!

Are you sailing the 80s theme cruise?

[rnr4thatsme]

6 minutes ago, that said:

Are you sailing the 80s theme cruise?

No… just the regular…

[that]

The repositioning cruise

Los Angeles to Vancouver?