XBGuy

What causes water to taste "funny?"  My understanding is that pure water is odorless and tasteless.  My further understanding is that what we detect as the taste of water are "impurities."  Impurities would include minerals that are dissolved in the water from wherever it is sourced or chemicals such as chorine or fluorides that are added by public water providers.  My best guess is that "funny" tasting water is water that tastes different from what I am accustomed.  The reason that it tastes different is that it has different impurity content.

Personally, I regularly drink ship's water.  Yes, it tastes different from the water that comes out of the taps at home.  Being over a certain age, I take daily prescription meds with a glass of water from the basin in our cabin.  In the restaurants and dining rooms, we always ask for flat water.

Also, I might mention that the Chef's Table cannot be booked, at all, prior to boarding.  Once on board you can request a Chef's Table invitation by calling the DINE line.  If you are in a full suite, the Suite Concierge can help you.  My understanding is that the older (e.g., Grand Class) ships now have a designated Suite Concierge even though they do not have a Suite Concierge Lounge.  Others here on Cruise Critic have reported that they have engaged the assistance of the headwaiter in various dining venues to make a request for a Chef's Table invitation.

One thing that might be added to the "Pro" side is that some travel agents will monitor pricing on their clients' cruises.  If there is a fare reduction prior to final payment, they will go ahead and refare their client automatically.  Then, they will advise the client that they have just saved them $X.  (My coffee shop buddy's travel agent regularly does this for him.)  While some may be uncomfortable with a third party independently taking this action, a variation would be if the travel agent just advised a client of a drop in fare and asked if the client wanted to refare.

On the "Con" side I would insert this.  Using a travel agent adds another moving part to the mechanism.  This can add to failures where the travel agent misunderstands the client, or the travel agent misunderstands something about the terms of the cruise pricing.  There is also always the possibility that a travel agent can miss a message (voice mail or email) from a client.  Travel agents are entitled to take vacations, too, and it is entirely possible that the backup coverage arrangement can fail.  Similarly, the travel agent can agree to verbal instructions from the client, and fail to follow through.  Many of these problems are not time critical, and the cruiser can follow-up if he/she does not see action on his/her request.  However, one of the reasons to engage a travel agent is to not have to worry about the details.  Also, I have read one report here on Cruise Critic where a travel agent failed to make a final payment in time even though the poster had paid the travel agent.  Yes, the poster's cruise was cancelled.  

@cat shepard, you may or may not recall that about a year ago I posted that “Monastrell” is the Spanish name for the Rhone “Mourvedre” grape.  Well, guess what.  The Spaniards have another name for Mourvedre—Mataro.  Go figure.  I suspect, not sure, that the choice in nomenclature is regional.

An interesting question is why does an Australian wine use that name?

Actually, I am aware of a couple California wineries who call out Mataro instead of Mourvedre.  In every one of those cases, the source vineyard for the grapes is quite old.  My thought is that the original planter was a Spanish immigrant, and that was the name he used.  Maybe some day I’ll have the opportunity to ask Joel Peterson why his wine is labeled “Mataro.”

@lgonquin. you asked about the menu.  @Astro Flyer posted some terrific pictures of their UBD, and that is a great representation of the UBD.  Here is the menu that accompanied our meal on the Emerald Princess some years ago,  Over the years, the menu has not changed that much.  The main course is always a choice between Filet Mignon, Lobster Tails or Surf 'n' Turf,  In four UBDs I have seen some slight changes in the starters.  Also, though, as you might expect, sometimes supplies do not get loaded onto the ship prior to departure, and, so, adjustments might be required.

Some people have reported that they have been about to make off-menu requests.  We are very OK with the standard choices and have never made a special request.  I would think that special requests are at the discretion of the Room Service management.

You can instruct them on when to serve beverages.  We have always had the Champagne served immediately with the Canapes.  We have always requested a glass of wine for our cocktail and ask for that to be served after the canapes.  To be honest, the wine is not that great.  So, we have bottles of our own wine standing by to enjoy with our meal.  Coffee and tea are available and will be brought when you specify. 

I have posted many times here on Cruise Critic that the Ultimate Balcony Dinner is the best dining experience on Princess.

The thing that wins me over is the superior level of service.  Two servers are dedicated to your enjoyment and satisfaction.  That is so pleasant compared to reading posts about people getting indifferent service in the restaurants and the dining rooms.  Before our first UBD I was a bit concerned about having two servers hovering over us as we were trying to enjoy a somewhat intimate evening, but I had nothing to fear.  Once you have settled down to the table the servers disappear.  When you have finished one course and are ready to move on to the next, they reappear.  Used tableware is removed, and the next course is presented.

One of the above photos shows the Chocolate Mousse Raspberry dessert.  It is awesome.  On our first UBD I was quite surprised that more came after that.  After the servers pick up the dessert plates and any other table items that are not being used, they wish you a good evening, but they also leave a platter of more sweets--sometimes it is cookies and sometimes it is petit fours.  Believe me when I tell you, you have no room for those.  The good news is that you can nosh on them as you wish over the next few days.

@karatemom2, you have a specific evening in mind for your UBD.  That sounds great.  I tell people who are planning for their first UBD that if they do not have a particular date in mind, then try to schedule it early in the cruise.  That way you have a few days to enjoy the platter of sweets, and, also, you have a few days to enjoy the floral centerpiece that is on your table.

Here you go, @alwalaska.

Reading across the sheet, you can see that my methodology was to items costs for the three pricing scenarios:  Standard Pricing (with not package), Princess Plus addon pricing and Princess Premier addon pricing.

The reason, neither plan seem to work for me is that we order wine by the bottle, and the 25% discount that the plans offer on bottle purchases do not cover the cost of the packages.

While this spreadsheet demonstrates that the addon packages would cost rather than save me money, anybody can modify it to better reflect their cruising preferences, and I would not be at all surprised if it showed that the packages work out to their benefit.

I know that some of the amounts that I have entered for some of the items have to be updated.  Specifically,

• Gratuities.  I really don't recall where I found that number.
• Wi-Fi -- We are Captain's Circle Elite Level.  We also, really don't use internet access very much when we cruise.  So, a single-device plan works fine for us.  However, I know that Princess has increased the rate since I built this.  I think it doubled.
• Specialty Dining -- I know there was an increase (18%?) recently.  That would have to be added in.

The pricing that I used for the "Wines" line item in the "Standard Pricing" column was based on the final folio from a previous cruise--that was our actual consumption.  The Plus/Premier entries for that line reflect the 25% discount on bottles of wine.  You can see that I created a second version of my spreadsheet starting in row 25.  The only difference here was that I inflated the price of the wines in the "Standard" scenario figuring that Princess had increased their prices since my last cruise.

I do not expect people to cruise the same way I do.  Anybody can take these sheets and plug in the numbers that they typically spend.

• I like my coffee hot and black.  The standard hot-and-black coffee offered in the various rooms is fine for me.  Mrs.  XBGuy does not drink coffee.  If you like custom coffees, then enter a line for that.
• In addition to not drinking wines by the glass, we do not drink cocktails.  If you do, then put in a line for that.
• We do not attend fitness classes.  If you do, . . . .
• If you require multi-device connectivity, then you would would have to update the Wi-Fi line.

We have a domestic situation that precludes us from cruising in the immediate future,  When that situation is resolved, I will look at this comparison again, and see whether or not it works for me.

53 minutes ago, suzyed said:

Or you could just order from the regular wine list and just pay the difference between those wine and the allowed $15.   BTW, the "red blend" on the Plus list was not bad.

 

Are all wines on the various Princess lists are available by the glass? 

A fun thing that may or may not work out for anybody, is to walk around Vines seating area and check the bottles that they have on display on the shelves.  For the most part, these bottles are the same that appear on their printed list.  However, I have occasionally found older bottles that have fallen off the list.  One one cruise I found a Chappellet Merlot with a few years on it.  I asked the server about it, and it turned out he was happy to open it up for me.  Now, of course ordering a bottle of wine that has been standing on a shelf for, possibly, years, has some risk.  However, I was more than pleased with that Merlot.  Subsequently, on that cruise I found a single bottle of Seghesio Dry Creek Valley "Old Vines" Zinfandel.  It was equally good.

Like I say, it may or may not work out for anybody, but you can look for free.

@Drew B 58, your new approach is completely reasonable.  Go for it.

I am also an analytical guy.  Some time ago I posted a comparison spreadsheet that pretty convincingly demonstrated that neither of the package plans "pencil out" for me.  However, what works for me has nothing to do with what works for somebody else.

I agree that a cruise should be a "splurge."  Don't deny yourself.

This story does not really address the OP's question, but I love telling it. 

In the early 1980s (This was, definitely, another era.) we took our second cruise--a Western Caribbean itinerary out of Fort Lauderdale.  As we pulled away from the dock, we joined other passengers, throwing streamers off the ship--again, a different era.  As the ship was motoring  out the channel we did some exploring.  At the forward portion of the ship we found some stairs that led up.  There was nothing indicating that we could not walk up.  So, we did.  We were on a flying bridge right next to the command bridge.  As we neared the exit of the channel leading to open ocean, the door to the bridge opened and out came a white uniformed officer.  I was a bit nervous expecting to be told that passengers were not allowed.  I was wrong.

"Would madame like to blow the horn?"

Mrs, XBGuy was pretty stunned, "Me?"

He pointed to a button.

Mrs. XBGuy is not the most confident person in the world.  She hesitantly pushed the button, and the horn sounded for about a tenth of a second.  The officer,  who I subsequently learned was the captain, covered her hand with his, and together they gave the horn a proper "We're leaving port" blast.

OP, I had the same goal mentioned by @Flatbush Flyer.  I wanted to to fly in a DeHavilland Beaver.  On our fourth AK cruise I booked an flightseeing excursion in Ketchikan on a Beaver through the cruise line,  (My coffee shop buddy did not understand this, "Let me see if I have this straight.  You're going to fly in a plane that was designed and engineered in the 1940s?")  When we arrived in Ketchikan, it was pretty drizzly.  (No real surprise there,  Ketchikan is in a rain forest.)  We walked off the ship to the dock looking our tour.  We found a lady with a clipboard, and she told us that all floatplane excursions were cancelled that day because of the weather,  OK, I guess I understand that.  Within a day our onboard account was credited to reflect the fare that we had prepaid for the excursion,  So, as far as I was concerned that all worked out seamlessly.

The next year on our fifth AK cruise, I booked the same excursion prior to departure,  It was bright and sunny in Ketchikan when we arrived.  Our little trip in the Beaver was great.

I don't see any reason not to pre-book your excursion.  The weather is going to be whatever it is going to be regardless of when you book.  My opinion has nothing to do with a choice of booking through the cruise line or making your own private arrangements.  As you can see from my story, there is no downside when booking through the cruise line.  I know many people prefer to book their own excursions.  That is fine.  If the weather prohibits flying on the day you arrive, the private providers will also not be able to fly.  They will then refund your money to your credit card account.

There was an interesting article in the Los Angeles Times, the other day, regarding beavers.  It seems that aerial photographs of recent burn areas found a number of green "oases" in the middle of larger areas that were totally ravaged by fire.  You guessed it--ponds made by beavers.  It seems that not only do beavers create ponds by constructing dams, they also dig tunnels under and around these ponds.  Water seeps into these tunnels, and, so the area around the pond becomes quite damp and is able to resist the flames of a brush fire,

2 hours ago, kochleffel said:

 

And they thought they were safe in New Jersey.

I have been on AK cruises (not HAL) where one of the port excursions (Ketchikan?) was on a salmon fishing boat.  If you caught a salmon, the fisherman had a choice of having it frozen and shipped to his home or taking on the ship and having the dining room galley prepare it to enjoy for that evening's dinner.  On our very first AK cruise in 1992, there was a party of eight at the table next to us.  One of their members caught one and had the galley prepare it for their dinner.  They offered a taste to us. and it was excellent.  This is a good way to be confident of freshness--pull it out of the sea and eat it a few hours later.

I have read recently of somebody doing this on Princess.  I assume it would be available on HAL, but I do not know for sure.

At the risk of being unreal.  We only buy wine by the bottle.  Some time ago I did a spreadsheet comparison of my cruise costs Standard Pricing vs, Plus Pricing vs. Premier Pricing.  I found that the packages do not pencil out when I bought by the bottle.  The 25% per bottle discount that is offered with both the packages did not offset the price of the packages.

Because of a domestic situation, we have been unable to cruise for the past couple years.  We hope that this situation is resolved at some time in the future.  When we do resume cruising, I will rework my spreadsheet.

Returning to the thread topic, I did think of something that I do not believe has been mentioned.  There used to be a fun event offered in Vines called Stammtisch.  One of the Vines servers would facilitate a conversation comparing multiple wines.  Attendance was limited to 10 or 12--however many chairs there are around that big table.  After the session was over, the server would open up one more bottle--typically, one of the wines in that day's program--and participants were able to sit around, enjoy that last bottle and chat.  I always enjoyed it because it was a small group, the participants were, generally, more than casual wine drinkers and conversation was encouraged.  This program ended quite a few years ago, much to my disappointment.  I would love for Princess to restart Stammtisch or something similar.

OP, I have raved about Tracy’s King Crab Shack in Juneau for years.  Then, on an excursion in Ketchikan, we had a Dungeness Crab lunch.  Awesome.  I would not say that one is better than the other.  Similarly,  I wouldn’t say that Snow Crab is better or worse than any other crab,

Here is what I will say.  Whatever crab you try on the ship will not be as good as you can get on shore.  More than likely whatever you can get onboard will be overcooked (especially, if it has been sitting under a heat lamp) and, so, will be chewy.’

It's interesting that there have been several references to the Costa Riviera.  That was the ship on which we took our second cruise--Western Caribbean--in the early 1980s.

The one time I was in a similar situation, the headwaiter was able to move us to another table.  I agree that the best action to take is to summon the room manager and advise him.  I understand that the answer might very well be, "There is nothing I can do."  However, if incidences like these are consistently reported, it may trickle up.

I disagree with the opinion that a Face Time conversation is the same as an in-person conversation.  I have observed that even when an ordinary telephone conversation is put on "speaker,"  not only is the volume of the speaker set to a higher level than normal conversation--especially, in a busy dining room--but when somebody puts their phone on speaker, they tend to talk louder.  Perfectly understandable.  When holding the phone to the ear, but microphone is quite close to the mouth.  The person holding the phone is subconsciously aware that there is no need to raise his/her voice.  When switching the audio to speaker, the user tends to hold the instrument away from his/her mouth and talks louder in order for the now distant microphone to pick up his/her wisdom.  I see (and hear) this regularly on my morning visits to the local coffee shop.

I loved the idea that somebody suggested using a jammer to foil the signal in the dining areas.  Since, as another poster has mentioned, we are talking about a wi-fi signal rather than a cellular signal, such a jammer would not work.  I am not an expert in these things, but I am going to wonder out loud.  It seems to me that wi-fi reception relies on some strategic placement of devices (routers? repeaters?) throughout the ship in order to provide shipwide coverage.  What if they did not deploy those devices in the dining areas?  I have no sympathy for people who feel they must check their email during dinner.

October 30, 1976 — NCL Southward — Honeymoon 

On 3/30/2024 at 10:07 AM, FirsttimecruiserRC2024 said:

this is our first cruise and we have no idea what to expect! 😄

Bon voyage.

You're going to have a great time.  I am envious.

@ldubs, in hindsight my comment was quite condescending.

I apologize to the Cruise Critic community.

21 minutes ago, richwmn said:

 

So a little about yesterday. We were at Fakarava on the island of Tuamotu in French Polynesia. It is a very small island which from the ship looks like a long, curved, narrow strip of land in the middle of the ocean. It is almost a circle so the inside cove is well protected. The main features are some very nice beaches and, of course, shopping. Since it is a small island, it is a tender port.

 

Would that make it an atoll?

In California some years ago a ballot initiative proposed that indoor smoking be banned in all restaurants and bars.  Bar owners, in particular, did not like this idea citing a loss of future business.  The argument made by those in favor of the initiative was that the employees of these establishments were being subjected to a health risk.

The initiative passed convincingly, and smoking was banned in bars and restaurants.  Of course, the complaints about loss of business only grew louder.

However, one year after the law went into effect, health tests on bar employees showed an marked improvement when compared similar tests performed prior to the banning of smoking.  The conclusion was unescapable.  Workers in a smoke-free environment were healthier.  There has been no effort to change the law since the announcement of that study.

I am pretty sure that Princess (or whoever runs the shipboard casinos) do not particularly care about the health of their indentured servants.  So, the only thing that will create change would be if casino revenues fall because enough people like @Lady Arwen and @tonit964 boycott the casino.  I can assure you that the XBGuys are doing their part.

5 hours ago, mtnesterz said:

All in how you look at it. The other way to see it is that Magic Castle maintained that much control over their product, demanding the same standards for using their name.

We have been invitied to the Hollywood location twice. The dress code is unwavering.

But it's the professional member magicians, like @Wonders By Wallis, you come for and Princess contract workers who've learned a few simple beginner effects would not astound.

A dress code gives me hope standards are high across the board and more than just another Princess money grab. I can't prove it, but that is my hope. 

I think that @mtnesterz has a pretty good grasp of the goals that Princess and Magic Castle have for this venue.

Regarding the men's dress code. if you go back and look at Post #69, the picture that @azbirdmom posted indicates that a blazer. dress slacks, collared shirt and tie are acceptable dress.  I do not own a blazer, but a year and a half ago, I enjoyed a terrific evening at the Magic Castle in Hollywood wearing a sport coat.  Yes, I wore slacks with a collared shirt and tie.  I would be quite surprised if somebody wearing slacks, collared shirt and tie and a sport jacket would be denied entrance to Spellbound.

When we start packing for a cruise, I always ask Mrs.  XBGuy if she wants to go formal this time, or not.  If she opts for formal, I wear slacks and a sport coat on embarkation day.  At least two collared shirs will be packed in our luggage and, maybe, a second pair of slacks.  It is pretty easy to find space in our luggage for one or two ties.

I think the Spellbound menu is good.  Nothing adventurous, at all,  That is right in the wheelhouse of the Princess passenger demographic.  I'm pretty sure the menu is brief because the goal is to have the guests finish their meal somewhat quickly so that they can get to the show.  It is not clear to me if the dining and the show are in the same or different rooms.  I eagerly await reports from people who actually get in and report on how it works.