LIVE from Discovery: Feb 24 - Mar 2

[New2cruise2022]

Hello and welcome to anyone that wants to follow along with our LIVE for Discovery Princess: Feb 24th to Mar 2nd. 
 

This is a 7-night cruise with embarkation in Los Angeles at San Pedro with three ports in the Mexican Riviera: Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta. 

 

 

[New2cruise2022]

Who We Are:

We are best friends friends first and we happen to be brothers as well. My brother, @drwbrt, and I talk everyday and try to plan and take a dude’s trip once a year. For context, I am in my mid-40s and he is in his late-30s. We both have 6 kids. (You read that right … 6 kids … each. Yes, if you are doing the math, that’s an even dozen between the two of us.) So, a week away isn’t something that comes easy. 
 

We live nearly 2,000 miles away from each other, with me in the mountains of Utah and @drwbrt from the hills of Tennessee. I’m an attorney and restaurateur (because that is a sensible combination) and he has a background in business analytics and things I won’t pretend to understand. 
 

Our purchase decisions are driven by value seeking. We love the values that cruises deliver and between the two of us we have experience with Disney, Royal Carribean, NCL and, in a few days, we will add Princess to the list. The prices and packages available with Princess caught our attention and here we are. 

[New2cruise2022]

Our Trip: 

We booked this itinerary on Aug 24, 2023, a solid 184 days out from sailing. 184 days filled with Cruise Critic, YouTube, and Google searches. Research and anticipation has done nothing but build excitement and capture value. 
 

We are booked in two cabins and our honored guests are my three grown sons (22, 18, and 16). If you are on this sailing, it’s possible we will be easily identifiable. 
 

We booked interior cabins next to one another on Marina, somewhere between midship and forward. 
 

 

UPGRADE: There has rarely been a lottery or gambling opportunity that doesn’t pique our interest. The upgrade bidding was no exception. @drwbrt did his research and did a minimum bid on a Deluxe Oceanview cabin. On Discovery there are only 6 of these cabins and they are forward facing with floor-to-ceiling windows. The small inventory made this upgrade bid highly unlikely. Yesterday (Wednesday) a counteroffer for a Deluxe Balcony (Obstructed) came through. Again, drwbrt did his research and felt like he knew the risks and rewards and took the gambler’s adventure and accepted the counteroffer.
 

Our new cabin assignment is M101. Forward facing with a very large balcony that cannot be accessed while the ship is at sea. We have more space, a loveseat and a balcony with limited use. We could not be happier with the room. It is forward and high on the ship, so it might not be ideal for someone that gets uneasy with sea sickness. Neither of us have problems with that and we will enjoy the natural light and occasional fresh air the balcony provides. 

Edited February 22 by New2cruise2022
Location correction

[New2cruise2022]

Travel Day:

We are belt and suspenders kind of people. Generally risk averse with a sprinkle of paranoia. So, we are on our way today (Thursday) for a Saturday morning embarkation. We are driving from Utah and drwbrt is on a plane from Tennessee. 
 

Our drive features 650 miles (about 10 hours of driving with gas stops) with a few extra stops. We will have a short hello with my daughter that is 3 hours away at college and then a stop in Ontario, CA to pick up drwbrt. (Cheaper flight and on the way.) Final destination this evening is the SpringHill Suites in Downey, CA. 
 

We stayed at this SpringHill Suites last year when we cruised out of San Pedro on the NCL Bliss. The hotel was brand new a year ago and we liked the location, about 30 mins from the port. 
 

Weather looks good the whole way (for the drive and the flight), and it seems like Mother Nature is done trying to drown Los Angeles … at least for a few days. 

 

[sternfanla]

I can't wait to read more.

[drwbrt]

Start the drink count. Blue Moon at the airport. I tried to tap my medallion but there must be something wrong with our premier package. Headed to guest services. 

[New2cruise2022]

1 minute ago, drwbrt said:

Start the drink count. Blue Moon at the airport. I tried to tap my medallion but there must be something wrong with our premier package. Headed to guest services. 

Ok, but was the beer good? 🍻

[avonlady6390]

Hope you have a great cruise I did the same on you are doing in 2022. Fyi about your balcony you you can access it anytime but there may be too much wind at times and I believe at night the drapes will need to be kept closed no light coming through to the balcony something to do with the bridge.

[phroggie]

Last summer we were in cabin M104 on Discovery Princess for an Alaskan cruise. I can describe the cabin in one word: flippin' awesome. OK that's two words: totes flippin' awesome. No, that's three words and I'm ripping off Monty Python. Anyway, it's a large, roomy cabin and a great sized balcony if you don't mind it being mostly exposed to the cabin above so behave yourselves. I also loved how it's in that cul-de-sac which meant almost no traffic outside the door. It also was convenient in case the captain needed to ask for directions: I could just shout them down to him.

 

I tried to book one of those cabins on next summer's Caribbean cruise but the policy has changed and they're only available if three (or more?) are booking. Bum-mer. And when I claimed I have a split personality which counts as three they wanted to charge the other one a separate fare. These up-sales are getting ridiculous.

 

Regarding access to the balcony, worry not: it was accessible for the entire cruise and if you don't believe me I included a picture taken from the balcony. (BTW: it was taken at 22:45 about six days before the summer solstice and about 6˚ south of the Arctic Circle. That's the midnight sun Ella Fitzgerald sang about.) However YMMV and on the drive home, along the Baja coast, they tend to drive the boats as fast as they can. If there's a 20-or-so knot wind out of the north they may indeed lock them.

 

Enjoy. I usually follow Discovery Princess on the bow cam and also she can be seen from a webcam in Cabo. (She was there earlier today but has since started the drive back to LA.)

 

Edited February 22 by phroggie

[New2cruise2022]

34 minutes ago, avonlady6390 said:

Hope you have a great cruise I did the same on you are doing in 2022. Fyi about your balcony you you can access it anytime but there may be too much wind at times and I believe at night the drapes will need to be kept closed no light coming through to the balcony something to do with the bridge.

Thanks for the heads up. When I’m ready to sleep, I could honestly get a great snooze on the surface of the sun with a rave going on next door. No lights too bright, no sounds to loud. Just zzzzzs. 😴💤🛌

[New2cruise2022]

3 minutes ago, phroggie said:

Last summer we were in cabin M104 on Discovery Princess for an Alaskan cruise. I can describe the cabin in one word: flippin' awesome. OK that's two words: totes flippin' awesome. No, that's three words and I'm ripping off Monty Python. Anyway, it's a large, roomy cabin and a great sized balcony if you don't mind it being mostly exposed to the cabin above so behave yourselves. I also loved how it's in that cul-de-sac which meant almost no traffic outside the door. It also was convenient in case the captain needed to ask for directions: I could just shout them down to him.

 

I tried to book one of those cabins on next summer's Caribbean cruise but the policy has changed and they're only available if three (or more?) are booking. Bum-mer. And when I claimed I have a split personality which counts as three they wanted to charge the other one a separate fare. These up-sales are getting ridiculous.

 

Regarding access to the balcony, worry not: it was accessible for the entire cruise and if you don't believe me I included a picture taken from the balcony. (BTW: it was taken at 22:45 about six days before the summer solstice and about 6˚ south of the Arctic Circle. That's the midnight sun Ella Fitzgerald sang about.) However YMMV and on the drive home, along the Baja coast, they tend to drive the boats as fast as they can. If there's a 20-or-so knot wind out of the north they may indeed lock them.

 

Thank you for getting me even more hyped than I already was and props for doing so in an entertaining and funny way. 
 

We feel like we won the lottery with this upgrade. Glad to hear we aren’t alone in this thinking. 

[New2cruise2022]

Travel Day (continued):

First stop. I was very happy to find a bathroom. I should say my bladder was. My coffee was delicious this morning but the volume of the coffee overstayed its welcome in my body. 
I got to see my daughter and that is an added bonus. Poor college students being what they are, she was happy to meet me at gas station and leave with a free tank of gas (the kind only mom and dad usually provide). 
The sun felt great, but still to chilly (46 F) for my liking. 
So a stop focused on emptying and filling up. Eyes no longer floating. Onward. 

[drwbrt]

1 hour ago, New2cruise2022 said:

Ok, but was the beer good? 🍻

Excellent, I'll take it with an orange next time.

[voljeep]

1 hour ago, drwbrt said:

Start the drink count. Blue Moon at the airport. I tried to tap my medallion but there must be something wrong with our premier package. Headed to guest services. 

how much is an airport blue moon these days?

[startedwithamouse]

1 hour ago, New2cruise2022 said:

Travel Day:

We are belt and suspenders kind of people. Generally risk averse with a sprinkle of paranoia. So, we are on our way today (Thursday) for a Saturday morning embarkation. We are driving from Utah and drwbrt is on a plane from Tennessee. 
 

Our drive features 650 miles (about 10 hours of driving with gas stops) with a few extra stops. We will have a short hello with my daughter that is 3 hours away at college and then a stop in Ontario, CA to pick up drwbrt. (Cheaper flight and on the way.) Final destination this evening is the SpringHill Suites in Downey, CA. 
 

We stayed at this SpringHill Suites last year when we cruised out of San Pedro on the NCL Bliss. The hotel was brand new a year ago and we liked the location, about 30 mins from the port. 
 

Weather looks good the whole way (for the drive and the flight), and it seems like Mother Nature is done trying to drown Los Angeles … at least for a few days. 

 

Grab some pastries or sandwiches at Portos in the morning. They are an excellent bakery!

[drwbrt]

38 minutes ago, phroggie said:

for an Alaskan cruise

This is a great reason to book it.  I am just excited to be able to Jack Dawson every morning at the front of the ship.

[suzyluvs2cruise]

Hello @New2cruise2022 and @drwbrt.  We're sailing with you! Thanks for doing a "Live From" the cruise and hope to meet you on board.

[drwbrt]

4 minutes ago, voljeep said:

how much is an airport blue moon these days?

In my tiny airport?  Six gates. 16 minutes curb to gate even with additional screening from TSA and a $9 beer with a volunteered 20% gratuity.  Worth it, but only one. 

[DavidsNana]

Looking forward to your ongoing live review.  You guys sound like you are going to have a blast.

[2and2]

I will be following. Just got back from our Gulf cruise. Did you get the premier package?  I miss the $20.00 cognac and the called out top shelf "old fashioned".

[drwbrt]

Just now, 2and2 said:

I will be following. Just got back from our Gulf cruise. Did you get the premier package?  I miss the $20.00 cognac and the called out top shelf "old fashioned".

We are premiered.  Plus was a lock, we think there will be enough value in the specialty and the casual dining to justify the add-on.  I'm interested to see what drink options I would have missed out on—top shelf old fashioned sounds great.

[ColoradoMom!!]

I'll be following along too!  You guys crack me up!

 

LOVE the profile pic update @drwbrt  and am looking forward to more content on your web page 🤣

[New2cruise2022]

21 minutes ago, drwbrt said:

This is a great reason to book it.  I am just excited to be able to Jack Dawson every morning at the front of the ship.

Too soon. 

[drwbrt]

Just now, ColoradoMom!! said:

I'll be following along too!  You guys crack me up!

 

LOVE the profile pic update @drwbrt  and am looking forward to more content on your web page 🤣

Thanks!  We're just getting it started; but we're filling it with latest menus, patters, etc.  We'll preview everything here, but some details/attachments may be best posted there.

[drwbrt]

Just now, New2cruise2022 said:

Too soon. 

There was room on the door. It was that necklace that was ruining the buoyancy.