Just Off Diamond MR March 31-April 7

[Editor]

The trip was great!

I'll be posting a full review soon.

[KCSungirl]

Editor,

 

Can you answer a few questions as I am boarding on Saturday.

 

Who was the Cruise Director and Captain?

 

Who were some of the featured entertainers? Do you remember the Production Show names?

 

How was the weather? Was it cool the first day at sea or the last day at sea?

 

Did the pool decks seem overly crowded on sea days?

 

Are they doing theme menus every night or have the menus changed at all?

 

I appreciate any help you or anyone else can give me. Thanks, Sungirl

[Editor]

Hi Sungirl:

 

I'll try to answer your questions as best I can.

 

The cruise director's name was Josh. I don't recall his last name. Unfortunately, I don't know the name of the captain, though he's a very handsome elderly gentleman.

 

The magician's name was Alexander. I'm horrible with names, but there were two comedians. They were pretty funny. We didn't see any of the production shows, though one was a tribute to Elton John.

 

We had very nice weather. It was cool on the first day at sea, though still warm enough to lay in the sun. The second day was even warmer with Mexico being very warm. The last day at sea was overcast and cold!

 

On sea days, the decks around the pools were very crowded. We preferred to lay on deck chairs toward the rear of the ship directly under the Diamond Princess sign.

 

We during the late traditional seating. One night was Italian themed, another was French. The last night was American.

[Colo Cruiser]

Editor,

 

Can you answer a few questions as I am boarding on Saturday.

 

Who was the Cruise Director and Captain?

 

Who were some of the featured entertainers? Do you remember the Production Show names?

 

How was the weather? Was it cool the first day at sea or the last day at sea?

 

Did the pool decks seem overly crowded on sea days?

 

Are they doing theme menus every night or have the menus changed at all?

 

I appreciate any help you or anyone else can give me. Thanks, Sungirl

 

 

 

CD is Josh Daybol

Captain is Tony Yoemans

[DrivesLikeMario]

How was the weather? Was it cool the first day at sea or the last day at sea?

 

Did the pool decks seem overly crowded on sea days?

 

I appreciate any help you or anyone else can give me. Thanks, Sungirl

 

We've done this itin. many times & the weather is very typical - cool the first day; cool the last day to day & a half. Very warm/hot other days.

 

On our March 24th cruise, the pool decks were the most crowded I've ever seen. People save the chaise lounges from 7AM onwards and we found them to be completely gone by noon. Many passengers would save them from very, very early on in the morning but not use them until around 1pm. LOTS of deck chair saving on this ship!!

[ladypalmtree]

The shows are Piano man, a tribute to Billy Joel. Elton.Liborace {sp}...etc..very good show..the other is undercover..not so good..the comedy shows were good..themes for dinner...two American..one French..one Italian...Mexican I believe...Sun and Thurs were formal nights..lobster on the second.........the food was very good, first day for us was cold..as was the last..Mexico was very warm..Pool area very crowded on sea days..do your laundry on off times...room service was great..just tip a couple of bucks...the pizza grill is yummy..as was the hamburger-hotdog grill...the buffet was good for breakfast..did not like it so much for lunch...and dinner was first seating in the International Dining room.our waiter was Marian..and he was fantastic...we left the beautiful ship on the 31st..sniff....:(

[KCSungirl]

One more question, Did you see all types of dress on formal night? We are dressing down a bit, but I usually see everything.

 

I am looking for a new production show! I have seen all of them more than once.

 

I have cruised this itinerary before and was curious if it ever warms up on the sea days the closer we are to summer weather??

 

I guess I have to get my butt up and out to get a lounge chair on deck. I am not fussy about where I sit, I only want full sun. Maybe the aft pool would be my best bet.

 

Even though I have cruised many times, I feel the excitement like it's my first cruise. Looking forward to some hot Mexican sun. (and Margaritas)

 

Thanks again for the replies, Sungirl ;-)

[junglejane]

The captain is Tony Yeomans. The production shows are Piano Man (tribute to Elton John, Billy Joel, Liberace, etc.) and Undercover. The magician was Alexander. The comedians were Kevin Jordan and Jim McDonald. There was a sweaty juggler named Daniel Rosen. There was a hypnotist named Steve Bayner.

 

My husband wore a tux on formal night and was in a very small minority. There were definitely men in the dining room who were not wearing suits or tuxes, but rather what I personally would call "smart casual." I would definitely say that people were not dressed as formally as on our Alaska cruise.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

--Junglejane

[southwestgal]

Junglejane,

 

I was also on the same cruise, and I agree, I couldn't believe the amount of chair saving/hogging on this cruise. This time, I handled it differently. For the first time ever, in my 20+ years of cruising, I removed belongings from chairs, placed them nearby and took over the lounge! First, I would watch the lounge and if nobody appeared for 30 minutes, then I would casually walk over, remove the towel and magazine and sit down. In every case, except once, nobody came to claim the lounge. The one time they did, it was over 6 hours later! I just pleaded ignorance, they found their towels and magazines and went away. I only did it when there were just towels and/or magazines. I wouldn't do it if there was a beach bag, etc. on the lounge.

 

I have to tell you that taking matters into my own hands was extremely liberating! So instead of getting mad or frustrated, I just turned the situation around. I plan on doing this every time I cruise.

 

Southwestgal

[chrismch]

I'm with you! I've had it with chair hogs. If I just see towels and drink glasses they're gone. I will probably finish using "their chair" before they even look for it. At most I use a chair for 1 hr which is usually what most folks do except for those who read for hours in the shade.

[D&DCanada]

We just got off the Diamond on April 7, and always felt over-dressed, especially on smart casual night where we witnessed diners wearing shorts, sweats, tear-aways, flip flops, tanks, and cowboy hats. None of these people were turned away!

We also tried to enjoy our Dolphin deck mini-suite balcony because of all of the chair hogs on the public decks, but alas, a few of the unattended young people on the ship thought it was hilarious to pour their drinks from the top deck onto us!

We enjoyed the comedian Jim McDonald, as well as Jonathan Kane, as Sir Elton John.

[junglejane]

We just got off the Diamond on April 7, and always felt over-dressed, especially on smart casual night where we witnessed diners wearing shorts, sweats, tear-aways, flip flops, tanks, and cowboy hats.

 

Sounds like our experience 3/24-3/31. I thought that what many people wore on formal nights was what I would call "smart casual" or "country club casual" (for the men: nicer slacks and nicer shirts -- but not ties or jackets, much less a suit; for the ladies: nicer dresses or pants outfits but not what I would call a cocktail dress, i.e., you could wear it to work or church) and on the "smart casual" days they'd wear grunge attire.

 

--Junglejane

[Editor]

On the second day at sea we had A LOT of trouble finding a lounge chair. As two people left, we took over their chairs. Two were unattended with only a pair of flip-flops on them. My husband took them off and we took the two chairs for our girls. Hours later, a group of "tweens" appeared, took their flip-flops, and left. If chairs are left unattended for a while, take them! Also, too many save seats in the theater. Princess does not allow this, so make sure you tell people "too bad."

 

On the first formal night diners were dressed very formal (i.e., gowns, tuxes, very fancy party dresses, etc.). My husband was turned away in his Izod polo and Dockers. On the second formal night some were just as dressy, but more toned it down a bit. My husband wore a button down short sleeved shirt and was allowed in. On smart casual nights there were a few guys and gals dressed rather slovenly (i.e., sloppy T-shirts and jeans), but for the most part, everyone was dressed nice.