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We had an excellent day today in Invergordon after finding that the plans we had to take the bus were not going to work out, the express bus was not running and had never shown up the previous 2 ships as well.  The local bus could certainly not handle the large number of people waiting for it, and we were concerned about getting back, there are not many taxi's in the Scottish Highlands in these smaller towns.  We found Invergordon Bus Tours at the pier and took a tour from 10-4:30 today with Duncan.  We paid L50 per person which was more than fair and less than taking a taxi one way to Inverness, which is 50 minutes by car.  This company offers 4 tours, we chose one to Beauly, a charming little town, Loch Ness for a photo stop and then 2.5 hours on our own in Inverness which seemed plenty of times for us!  Look them up, we highly recommend them, and Diane was an excellent driver as well and was one of the most friendly drivers we have encountered, getting off the bus at the photo stop and visiting with us!

On 7/24/2024 at 7:16 AM, marys350 said:

My husband and I did the Golden Circle & Kerid Crater Tour with Iceland Everywhere Tours in June and were very happy with the small group experience. Our minibus was clean and comfortable and Siggy our driver/guide was excellent. Pick-up and drop off was right at the cruise port. The cost was about 1/3 of the price of NCL's shore excursion and we received a discount for paying at the time of booking instead of on the day of tour. Excellent cancellation/refund policy. I'd suggest emailing Iceland Everywhere Tours before you book and ask if you will be back to the ship in time. We were in port overnight so we didn't have to worry about missing the ship's departure. As a first time cruiser, make sure that you allow extra time to get back to ship before official all aboard time. We've done many private non-ship sponsored tours and like to get back to the ship at least 90 minutes to 2 hours before sail-away.

How many people were on each bus?  We have this tour booked, but I am curious how large each group is.  Thanks!

On 6/18/2024 at 4:32 AM, ljandgb said:

 

You assume wrong.  It's on my bucket list.

 

https://insidethevolcano.com

Thanks for sharing this!  What an experience!  My claustrophobia would make it difficult, but might be worth trying it anyway!  LOL.

1 hour ago, ljandgb said:

Or you could do something completely different, like Inside the Volcano from Reykjavik.

 

I'll admit, though, I've been to Iceland 3 times and have done the full Golden Circle.  I have been to Thingvellir, and snorkeled Silfra, but having been to Yellowstone several times, I'm not that jazzed about more geothermals.

Wow, I just looked up snorkeling at Silfra!  Looks amazing!  I can see why you have been 3 times, there really is so much to do!  Thanks!

I know these are totally different experiences, however we only have 3 Iceland ports and we really don't love being on buses or in vans for 7-8 hour tours.  Rarely is there enough time at each stop, and we just find we enjoy exploring the towns on our own more.  Thinking of cancelling my Golden Circle tour and exploring Reykjavik on our own, there seems to be so much there to see.  Having been to Yellowstone before, not sure the geyser will thrill us.  We also have an all day tour in Akureyri so we would see some of Iceland's natural wonders.  Is is really worth 2 full days in a car driving to do both of these tours?  Would love to hear from someone who has done both!

On 9/28/2023 at 3:26 PM, skynight said:

Speak with your current and new cabin stewards in advance. Follow their advice. As long as you have time it is best to carry your valuables and place them into your new cabin's safe. Remember to keep your IDs and passports with you. You will require them to clear immigration when you exit the ship to board your excursion. Your cabin steward will probably ask you to keep all the items that you have hanging in the closet on hangers. These will be moved on hangers to your new cabin and be hung in the closet. Other items need to be packed into the suitcase. The staff will move them to the new cabin, or if you have time you can wheel them there yourself. Your excursion meeting time will probably be fairly early as Princess likes to clear the ship as quickly as possible. You probably will not have much time for a leisurely breakfast.  

On our last B2B, the cabin we were moving in was not available to move our things into the safe before our 9am excursion.  The couple who were to vacate the room had not left, and the room steward was unable to do anything about it.  Clearly, they were breaking the rules about when the rooms are to be vacated.  We found our new room steward, explained the situation to her, and told her we had items that MUST be left in a safe for the day.  She assured us she would move all our items on the cart and the luggage we had packed while we were out, and was able to find us an empty cabin to use the safe for that day.  I had asked about using the ship safe for the day, but the process was quite long and involved, and seemed extremely difficult, having to itemize each and every item you are putting into the ship safe.  This was the Sapphire.  Do not leave any valuables to be moved for you, and if you can not get into the new room to use that safe, talk to the steward, explain the situation and ask for assistance!

31 minutes ago, jeanandjim said:

Currently on-board. They have specialty coffees and pastries in the furthest forward part of the Horizon Court known as the Amuleto. They also have specialty coffees and pastries in the Piazza deck 5 at Good Spirits at Sea. The pastries have included almond croissants every morning (I've had a couple). But be forewarned they are not the really good ones that are on some ships and have an almond paste inside. These just have almond and sugar on the outside. Good but not the best.

Jim😎

PS We are also in the aft portion on deck 9 and have not realized any creaking.

Thanks so much!  Very helpful.  Guess I will not be eating quite as many almond croissants, I do love that almond paste in there!  My waistline might be happier tho!  Glad the aft area is quiet, we are really excited to try this ship and have a nice cabin aft.  Thanks Jim!

8 hours ago, atlast95 said:

Where are you going on your cruise?

We board in Southampton, do Spain snd Gibraltar, Greek and Israel ports and Turkey, getting off in Rome. Doing a back to back and super excited. First trip on Island. Loved Pacific Princess in 2019 for a month so small ships work for us if there are lots of port days. 

8 hours ago, atlast95 said:

Found almond croissants in the coffee and dessert area of the Horizon buffet but had to ask for it. He pulled out a tray and put one on a plate for me so I felt obliged to take it. Of course I ate it and now I think I might have a problem because it was so good. Thanks a lot 😆 

Yes, that is my problem as well. They are the best and I don’t normally eat croissants!  Good to know you must ask. Thanks and enjoy your new discovery!

2 hours ago, atlast95 said:

Will look into the Almond Croissant situation and get back to you.

Thanks!  I can live without the IC, but would miss my almond croissants if there were not any!

Good to know I can pay for good coffee at Good Spirits, happy to have my favorite coffee drinks or drip!

32 minutes ago, atlast95 said:

This is an older cabin so only two outlets side by side by the desk. No USB ports. You might want to bring a power bar since we can only plug in one phone charger at a time. The hair dryer is ancient.

Thanks so much. Need to plan for no USB ports for sure!  Great suggestion.   And will pack my travel hairdryer and white noise machine for swells and creaks.  Maybe more walking will be good to counter all the desserts.  Are there almond croissants in the buffet with no IC?

10 minutes ago, atlast95 said:

We are in E625 right now. What would you like to know?

Are the rooms quiet in terms of squeaking noises?  I have been in aft rooms, and is it just the usual sounds?  Would you book this room again?  Thanks so much for your response, we are doing about a month on her coming up!  Super excited.  Also, if you are a coffee drinker, have they switched from the syrup of the past to the Lavazza coffee Princess is transitioning to?

Sapphire hands down.  The staff on the grand is nothing compared to the Sapphire and the ship is nicer as well.  Have an issue on the Grand?  Don't expect then to care or respond, even if it is a safety issue.  Ask for anything at all on the Sapphire and they will do their best to make it happen.

Searched the boards and know that the Island added rooms in this area.  Looking at these rooms for a B2B this fall.  Anyone have any experience staying on the Island since the rooms were added on Deck 8 aft?  What did you think?  Everything I see on the Island for Deck 8 aft seems very old.  

Curious what your experience was in this area as we are looking at the Island Princess also on deck 8 aft.  There is not much recent information on these cabins so would appreciate knowing how it went for you.

We were on for about a month and really enjoyed Savoy.  It was never very crowded and we were able to get a table for 2 every night with no one next to us, which is what we preferred.  The service was excellent, and on our B2B we had great servers at both tables we were at.  The hostess there was the best, handled all our booking changes herself and made sure we were comfortable.

On 3/21/2023 at 12:09 AM, jeromep said:

I presume that you are dining together.  When the bill comes around just let the waiter know that you are taking care of the table, and they will bill your room for the meal, not all that different from charging a meal to your room at a hotel on land.

We just tried this on the Sapphire in Feb.  Told the waiter at Sabatini's that one cabin was to be billed for all three dinners.  It did not happen that way and I did not notice until we were getting off the ship as we dined there the last night of the cruise.  Should be easy, surprised it was not.

We loved the Savoy dining room.  It has a steakhouse like feel and is much quieter than dining rooms that we have experienced it the past on Princess.  Talk to Vicktoria there at the desk, she is wonderful and will ensure you have a wonderful experience.  Tell her Lorraine appreciated all her kindness!

In November our room did not have the USB outlets on the lamps.  

On our last trip, we wanted something different and less touristy.  We walked and found Rico’s Tacos along the waterfront walk towards the beach.  Saw locals eating there.  Great food and amazing Mojito with tons of fresh mint.  A fun and different experience.  It was a hole in the wall kind of place, just a small seating area right across from the water.

Curious if the Sapphire still has Mighty Leaf or other specialty teas at the IC.  My November trip on the Regal, no specialty teas were in the IC, only the same teas that were in the buffet area, and not much variety.  Always get the coffee package and enjoy teas just as much.

We always fly into Long Beach, we live in SF Bay Area and it is a great airport, easy to get out of.  Taking an uber to the port is less for the two of us than the Princess transfer would be.  If you have more luggage than you can handle by yourself, that could be an issue, but with a large group, you should be able to manage.

This was a few years ago, 2019, but I think there are decorations and fun displays still.  Last year, there were Day of the Dead banners and events when we cruised in November as well.  Not many in costumes as I recall, but we were in Venice, so I got in the spirit!

10 hours ago, CalLuvsCrusingToo said:

 

I agree with this, as our other component to masking onboard, is to eat Outside on deck,

or in our cabin.  We also get Room Service Delivery, but we take tray at the door.

They do Not come in.

 

Past few cruises weve eaten in Crown Grill or MDR for dinner Day 1 & 2, then we stop going there.

I luv IC so we grab & go often, eat in our cabin usually, or order from Grill on deck, etc.

 

When we First day arrive to our cabin, we wear our mask inside our cabin, & Open balcony door to Air it out.

Then Clorox wipe surfaces, door handles, etc. all the while wearing our mask.

When its clean & Aired out?  We unmask inside.

 

We also  Air out our cabin Daily, after steward does his thing.

(we don't book any inside cabins anymore)

 

Knock on wood, works for us. 

We leave for Alaska again tomorrow.

 

 

 

We did 2 cruises last fall and did not eat in the MDR as there was no spacing since they closed other dining rooms and the tables were so close with everyone unmasked.  We ate outside or in our cabin.  I am wondering how many people who never ate in the MDR came down with Covid.  I am also convinced the dining rooms are a huge part of the problem.  Great idea to bring bleach wipes!  No more interior rooms, airflow is so important.  Enjoy Alaska!

On 9/8/2022 at 1:59 AM, hapster85 said:

That's surprising. The handful of times I've talked to the air department, the person who answered the call was able to take care of everything. Including after our cruise was cancelled, when I tested positive for covid on the land tour in Alaska, and needed new flights from Anchorage instead of Vancouver. Hopefully, they eventually get back to a staffing level they allows everyone the same level of service every time.

What I learned is that the agents can change your flight to another flight on the same airline from the same airport.  If the carrier does not have any flights that will work for you, they are unable to make a change without bumping you up to a supervisor.  Since I booked from San Jose CA airport instead of San Francisco, and Delta no longer makes that direct flight from San Jose, it was a problem.  It took a supervisor to let me change to another direct Delta flight out of San Francisco.   The plane changes in under one hour they were offering at major airports in the winter were surely going to be an issue.