CruzeQueen2

@Jeter02 Your time on the Sky Princess has been so wonderful, IMHO,  I hope the next ship for you is as pleasing. Your positivity, no doubt, played a part in your receiving such attentive and personalized attention.

With that said, I'm sure you will enjoy you next ship in a similar fashion.

Hope to read about your next adventures here, soon. Wishing you more blue skies and clear sailings. Will I see you on the Crown, or Majestic?

On 6/23/2023 at 10:06 AM, Bimmer09 said:

                                   APEX

We checked in at 12.30 and were onboard by 1 p.m. Cabins were ready by 1.30 and we found our way to 8310 all the way back at the stern a couple floors above Eden. We booked an SV (Sunset Verandah) which has a door to a short corridor shared with 8308 a Sunset Sky Suite. Quiet but you can hear people in the cabin next door (8312) talking when in the 8310 bathroom.

Designed by British designer Kelly Hoppen whose favorite color is beige/blah and who has a fetish regarding toss pillows in profusion. I tossed most of them.

 

 

 The room is well designed when it comes to storage except half the wardrobe is too short to hang pants (mine) by their bottoms using the crocodile clips provided so they have to hang folded in half. First world problem and no biggie. Our clothes including Polar jackets for Iceland (there's a clue to the climate in the name) were stuffed in. Lots of drawer space and desk-top space. There's a white box on the desk to charge things designed by someone who never charged things in a  ship's cabin (close but no cigar) but luckily another charging place by the starboard side of the bed where my Canon battery chargers fit. USB sockets in the white box got plenty of use. No major complaints about the cabin. Nice job.

 

Top marks for the bathroom!

 

 Superb spacious shower with its clamshell door which stays closed. No water gets spilled. Great pressure, temperature controls. Decent towels. No plumbing issues for 12 days. No bar soap (bring from home) just pumps with bath gel, shampoo and conditioner of unknown origin.

 

Space, space and more space. Sink long enough to bath a baby in or for passengers with giant hands and hot dog fingers.

 

The balcony didn't get a lot of use in Iceland but fab in the UK and for the sunny sailaway from Rotterdam.

 

 

A small home that served us well for 12 days. 

As is her custom Carol uses Clorox wipes to clean the surfaces one touches- handles, faucets, phones etc before unpacking. I get out of her way for a short while.

Norris

Hot dog fingers. EEAA. May I play along? LOVE this report so much. @Bimmer09

Thank you for the entertaining stories.

Nice to see you back...sharing such useful information. Thank you.💖 

You really lucked out with the weather. Great photos with blue skies. Very nice.

Count me in! Thanks for taking us along - ALL the way and AWA-AY WE GO!  I've read other reports written by you, Norris and I also appreciate your style.

Looking forward to all of it!

Balcony breakfast is also nice.

@iamaqt2 Thanks for doing this. Please post the officer board if you have a chance. Have fun!

Fabulous photos! @Fishbone Thanks for sharing.

Were you warm enough today? Looks like the sun was out for you. Happy to see that for you.

@Jeter02 Thank you for sharing your experiences with us. I enjoy reading your reports and I appreciate all the info that you are sending us. LOVE the food pics, of course and you captured The Catch very well. Did they have those place settings set when the restaurant was closed? 

I get the impression that you haven't eaten there yet. I strongly recommend for you to do that, if you can.

I have read several of your previous LIVE reports and like your style. You have given me the confidence to try out my own solo sailing. Thank you. Keep it coming...please.

15 minutes ago, Stealthdog said:

This post will be titled “The Bus From Hell” - that is what a lot of people on the bus was calling it.

 

I was about to comment on the age of the buses they use for the land tour portion and this experience kind of reaffirmed my thoughts.  The buses are fairly low tech and old.  The seats are comfortable and there is a bathroom on board.  But there are no outlets for plugs or USBs to charge cell phones and there is no Wi-Fi on the bus.  As we go through the Alaskan countryside there are stretches of 20 minutes to an hour where there is no internet service/dead zones, and when there is service it’s mostly 3G.  So, make sure you are fully charged before leaving the lodge, or bring a battery charger on the bus.  
 

We boarded the bus at 125pm in anchorage and were supposed to be at McKinley lodge by 4pm.  When we boarded, the bus was really hot but I thought once we started moving the AC would probably kick in.  Within 5 minutes, the grumbling already started and people started yelling out to the poor bus driver to turn the AC on.  It’s funny because you would think it’s Alaska, why do you need AC?  It was low 70s and sunny yesterday.  It felt like it was probably high 80s-low 90s on the bus.  After about 30 minutes there was a coordinated attempt to close all the window shades to at least prevent the sun from entering the bus.

 

For about 45 minutes the grumbling continued and people starting taking all their layers off.  Eventually the bus driver announced he was going to make a stop to call Princess and see if they could trouble shoot the not working AC system.  The bus stopped on the back side of a little hill and a passenger who is a firefighter got us all to move away from the bus because where the bus parked on the side of the road was unsafe and if any driver crossing over the hill wasn’t paying attention they could have rammed into the back of the bus.  
 

It turned out there was something wrong with the pressure and the the bus needed to go into maintenance to fix the AC system.  We loaded back onto the bus and got to McKinley around 5pm, one hour later than we were supposed to get there.  When we parked outside the lodge, the lodges Princess rep tried to board the bus to give us instructions of what to do.  The passengers started to riot and told him we were all getting off and he could give us the information off the bus.  I don’t have any recommendations on what side of the bus to sit on because no one was paying attention to the outside and all the window shades were down so we didn’t have views anyways.
 

Everyone’s clothes were drenched of sweat from sitting on that bus for about 4 hours, and the riot moved inside the lodge to guest services where there was a steady berating towards all the reps at guest services.  We didn’t wait to watch the show and immediately went to the restaurant try to make reservations, which there weren’t any because we were the last bus to get to the lodge and they were already seating for dinner.  We were told we could be seated right then, or next available time was 845pm.  Because our clothes were still wet, we probably smelled of BO, and just wanted to shower and change, we didn’t want to eat at 515 in our wretched state.  It was also too late to sign up for any excursion tours at the lodge.

 

We took our room key to check out our room and drop off the backpacks.  The room was a lot different from Kenai - it was hotel style with 2 twin beds.  We had no internet service in the room and were too far away from the lodge to get onto the lodges Wi-Fi.  And of course our luggage wasn’t there - we called the lodge to ask and were told we may not get our luggage until 7pm.  Morale was very low in that hotel room, but our luck was about to change!  
 

Bus impromptu stop pics below - got to see a Smokey the bear forest fire sign. Sorry for the upside down bus - my state of mind was so off I probably wasn’t taking pictures right. 

Love the cliff-hanger teaser. You luck is about to change...can't wait to read what happens next. Better than the book I'm presently reading. Thank you @Stealthdog

On 6/13/2023 at 7:32 AM, Catchum said:

We were on the crown in April and once we found the juice be we used it a lot - only available until 1pm on port days and 2pm sea days I think. The sign is only there when it is open otherwise you would not know, and it can be a long wait as they juice the fruit whilst you wait - If you want one before an early excursion get it the day before in a to go cup - the sort they have for iced coffee and keep it in the fridge in your cabin.

@Catchum You found the juices on the Crown. Where? I'll be on Crown in August. 

The juices were at the Wakeview bar on Majestic.

Did you find any of the special desserts at IC? I would be interested in trying out the cakes, not the ice cream monstrosities. TIA

@Stealthdog Thank you for continuing to take us along! Bonus to see the lodges; nice to see the great weather you are having.

Pardon my ignorance here - are the meals included as they are on the ship?

Seeing your photos, I may choose to try out a lodge one of these days. I've only seen AK via the cruise ship itineraries; was informed by some locals that I have yet to experience the true Alaska.

Enjoy your hikes! The scenery is very nice, like a lot of the scenery we have in BC. Spoiled to live on the west coast, that's why the AK cruise is easy to jump onto, year after year.

Can't wait to see Denali. I think you mentioned you are also going there.

Thanks so much, JC. It's so generous of you to share this part of your travels with us.

Would love to see some food pics, if you deem them worthy of sharing. Food is always nice to see, IMO.

19 hours ago, Garycruz said:

I'm sailing on the Crown Princess in July and I'm not as concerned about the shower head as I am about the mattress. I've read that the mattresses on this ship are really poor to the point that some people complained about getting a bad back from sleeping on them. I really hope it's not as bad as it sounds as getting a decent night's sleep can go a long way towards an enjoyable vacation.

I'm thinking the same. Can't imagine having OLD bed issues. So many ships in the fleet had new mattresses switched over pre-covid. Fingers crossed. 

For those on board now, or recently, please tell us your beds were fine. TIA

24 minutes ago, dave_k58 said:

will you be on the Aug 25 sailing?

 

No. Earlier in the month.

13 minutes ago, cruzrbachoua said:

Do you have a copy of the balcony breakfast menu? 

@cruzrbachoua I 'm pretty sure it is listed on the website. Sorry I don't have a hard copy to share. Basically, the balcony breakfast is a plate of smoked salmon roses, with cream cheese, capers, etc and toasted bread - I think they were english muffins, not bagels. Main course was quiche, with salad, and bacon. Lovely melon filled with berries and whipped cream on the side. Pastries that we requested were almond and chocolate croissants. Fresh squeezed OJ and a small bottle of bubbles. Coffee, tea of course. We thoroughly enjoyed our balcony breakfast, inside the cabin. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

@Stealthdog Thanks for sharing so much about your cruise, JC. I also LOVE College Fjord glacier viewing the most. You chose a great day for that dinner. Your pictures of the dinner look amazing. I love seeing how they set it up for you - ON the balcony.

We had a balcony breakfast, but chose to eat it inside. The breakfast selections were good. 

Have a fantastic time on the rest of your travels through Alaska. The weather you have today looks wonderful.  You have been most generous to share your reporting with us all. I enjoyed sailing along with you. Thank you again and again.

@Nightowl11 I hope that you are enjoying your cruise. I will be boarding Crown in August. 

I am wondering about getting specialty coffees in the mornings. Is there anywhere besides the international cafe to get these?

I saw a recent patter that listed Coffee and Cones opens at 11:00am. 

I would appreciate any information about this, if you are a coffee drinker. I know that I will be able to order the special coffees on the tv for room service. Just trying to find out what other options there are.

Thank you. Enjoy your day in Icy Strait.

Not like before. I did find a limited offering of set wines, I think 5 bottles.Nothing special and no flexibility to switch out bottles to different ones. They also offered a three bottle package of champagne. Very limited. 

They are promoting the PLUS and Premier packages now instead.

20 minutes ago, Stealthdog said:

Dinner last night at The Catch by Rudy.  Hands down the best food on board.  If we do this again, we will just eat there every night.  After you sit, you are greeted with a glass of proscecco, a baguette, and spread for the baguette.  The table decorations and plates are all nicely done.  
 

The chef periodically stopped at each table to talk to the guests and make sure they were happy with the food.  This is the only place on ship we have seen this.

 

Appetizers I got the Tale of Citrus and Eric got the seafood sensation.  Both were great.  We both got the sea & shore and temperatures for the filet were perfect the first time.  Very nice flavors and clean.  Deserts were Rudis Artistic Face to Face and Chantilly Lace - again both fantastic.  We have zero critique about anything in the restaurant.  There are even nice views out the windows (to see our 15 feet swells lol) and because of the location we could hear the entertainment me from the piazza.

 

Highly recommend anyone going to Rudy’s if they have a dining package or want something other than MDR.  With their extensive menu you can go multiple times and not get the same things.  It’s probably tied with the Central Park restaurant on Royal Caribbean Oasis Class ships as our favorite specialty dining on a cruise ship.

@Stealthdog I second that! Everything you said. My experience there was the same. Loved every morsel and went there twice. Thanks for all the great reporting in so many areas. 💖

Bon voyage to you all.

Thank you @Jeter02 and all others on this board for sharing your experience with us. Looking forward to all the reports. 

@Stealthdog Enjoy those dinners!

Thanks for such a great report. I appreciate all the information, and ALL the time, that you have shared with us.

I hope you enjoy the glacier viewing days and that you get some lovely photos taken by the photographers.

@Mike & Zen Thank you for posting the officer board.

Thank you for posting the board from the Hollywood Pool. Very clearly stated. No room for mis-interpreting what it says!

Thank you for pointing out that stealth dog deserves time off. He has posted and responded MORE than enough to our questions and queries.Thank you, JC and Mike & Zen.

Enjoy your cruise everyone there, on board. I wish I was on the ship with you...

• DO NOT push the "Quote" button. It creates a copy that the next person cannot properly update.
• DO select and copy ALL of the text (including the instructions and the list) up to COPY TO THIS LINE . . . from the most up-to-date list (the most recent reply with the list). 
• Go to the bottom of the latest post, to the "Reply to this Topic..." box to create a new post.
• Paste your copied text into that box.
• Make your modifications to the list.
• Add change notes at the bottom.
• Click the "Submit Reply" button just below the list you are modifying.
• Confirm that everything is correct! You can edit for up to 20 minutes.

<COPY TO THIS LINE SO THERE IS SPACE TO TYPE "CHANGE NOTES" AFTER THE CHART> 

Fingers crossed. My first time to update the chart!

Paul Ciobanu DORO on Majestic

DORO on Majestic, now Paul Ciobanu

Not wanting to mess up the chart, if someone else can update it, that will be appreciated. 

Good morning SkagwayI I can see this from your ship's bridge cam.

Here's my question. Is the tender dropping people off where I see the metal gangway with the blue cover? Very strange indeed. Then do they shuttle you via bus farther along the way? 

It looks like you are being tendered to just past where the barrier is located at the rock  slidel site.

I thought the tender might take you to the dock at the end of Broadway...

We only had the bus shuttle in May, no tender.

Nevertheless, enjoy your excursion in Skagway when you get there. Another sunny day!

Have a fried dough treat  from the vendor on the side street, at 5th? or some popcorn while in town.

In Canada the dough treat is called a beaver tail, in Boston I think it's called a whales tail! Always tasty. 

Enjoy!

Hi @Oreo1340 Have you tried using the web-version of getting ocean -ready? There is a link beside the buttons on-line, in your personalizer, instead of going through the app. 

Through the web version you can get to Dine my Way. I make all my reservations there.

I have also found that when you call the Princess line, and go through all the steps - e.g.having a booking already, booked with agent or PC directly, etc. choose - Get help making a dining reservation and choose OCEAN READY assistance. I have had mild success with this as well. Several times, the wait was not too long and on Monday, the wait was 20 minutes, and it took some explaining and holding, but I was able to get what I needed.

Good Luck! 

Yes, you can also ask to speak with the DORO - Director of Restaurant Ops - through any staff member at the dining room. If it is Claudio Guiliani, you will be in luck! He is very thorough as the Director. The BEST. Bon Voyage!!