FSU Girl

Yes! We didn't get a full 8 hours sleep, maybe 3-4 hours with the meals and settling in etc. We love eating so didn't want to skip dinner. It was such a wonderful experience to be brought real silverware, having a "table" made up for us. But that amount of sleep was enough to get us to Italy not totally drained. We took a quick one hour power nap at the hotel and that combo got us through a full day/night in Italy.

It does sound really nice! Flying in first class is definitely going to spoil me. I don't normally like flying, but I think I would actually enjoy this flight. I think if I could get a couple hours of sleep it would help with the jetlag

We have flown to London and back 3 times. We get the lie-flat seats on the way to London and fly overnight so we can get the most benefit from the high cost of the seat by getting a good dinner, hours of sleep, and a good breakfast. We arrive in London in early enough to meet the Princess agent at the airport and get on the coach going directly to the ship to begin our cruise. That saves us the cost of a hotel room and restaurant meals which helps cover the extra cost of the lie-flat seat.

I'm going to be so spoiled flying first class I think I might actually like flying. :) We are flying in two days before the ship leaves to explore the city, can we still book through Princess if we are doing that? I'd also like to book transportation to the ship, could I pick from the airport and just take a taxi back there to meet up with the ship transportation?

There are several business class sales. going on. got sfo-lhr rt for $2500.00 on Lufthansa for next summer. You have to travel wed or thur. my favorite part of travel. do it. Premium economy is nice but you cant sleep.

 

 

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I'll check it out, but we can't fly during the week. We will be flying out Friday night after work since we can only take off two weeks for the honeymoon. I think that was the rate I was seeing when I was looking at flights.

I would definitely choose the night flight for business class and the lie flat beds. I've had many experiences flying from Australia and being able to get a good night sleep on a lie flat bed after a nice dinner with wine/champagne and gentle wake up with a business class breakfast is worth much more than a daytime business class flight with breakfast/lunch. Also, if you are flying soon after the wedding, you will really appreciate the quiet luxury of long haul business class ahead of economy to prepare for a great honeymoon cruise. Best wishes

 

(PS if you were flying to Oz I would recommend the Qantas business class pajamas - it is so funny to see all of the business class passengers getting changed into their PJs before bed lol)

I'm definitely getting sold on flying overnight in the business class :)

That is so funny about the pajamas! If we ever fly over there I'll try and convince future hubby to do that. I've always wanted to go to Australia, but it's a very far trip so might have to wait until we are retired and can travel the world.

Take the flight over in business class and take the latest flight out. Three years ago we took a 10:30pm flight out of Chicago told the flight attendant not to wake us till breakfast and promptly went to sleep. We arrived in London at 12:30 pm their time and felt great. Good enough to go to Harrods after quick showers, our hotel room was available for check-in. We are flying to Rome in three weeks and our flight leaves Chicago at 5:30pm we won't be tired enough to fall asleep right away, we arrive in Rome at 9:00am and we won't be able to check in till 2pm. It's going to be a long day.

That's great advice, I would definitely be tired enough to go to sleep then. I'll have to look over the times I think there were a couple we could choose from. The last couple times I flew to Europe I got bad jetlag and ended up sleeping through the day. I'm determined to do a lot when we land since we'll only have two days for sightseeing and want to get it all done :)

Congratulations on the upcoming wedding and honeymoon!!!

 

It's a little confusing now with different classes of air travel since domestic and int'l use overlapping terms for different products.

 

Domestic is primarily coach or first (although some of the lines have rolled out "business" or other super premium options that include the often include lie-flat seats on the long trans-continental (or trans-con) flights, like SEA - JFK). Many domestic carriers also offer "premium economy" which generally buys you an economy seat with a little more distance between the seat rows (so more leg room, but NOT more shoulder/seat width).

 

Int'l has First, Biz, Prem Econ, Coach/Econ. First is the super fancy and expensive option, followed by business class, which is generally also very expensive and luxurious (but a step down from first). Premium Economy on an int'l flight is very similar to domestic first class, where the seats are wider and have generous recline (but usu. not lie-flat). You get an amenities kit, and meals are served with real metal utensils and actual flatware. I think the most common general layout for int'l flights is 3-cabin, where Biz, Prem Econ, Coach. I think it's not unusual for PE to have their own bathroom for the ~25-30 seats.

 

Here's a picture of Delta's int'l premium economy seats, which is a good example for what I saw on AirFrance and Alitalia.

 

If you can swing it, First/Biz is a great product; we did Premium Economy for our int'l flights though and felt pretty pampered (and it cost 1/4 of what Biz would have been and only about 33% more than economy). There's plenty of material out there comparing the exact experience once you have an idea which airline(s) you're looking at.

 

Going out the premium flights are great because you start your vacation feeling pampered. Coming home though, you're often tired and it's the final pampered "vacation" opportunity before the trip comes to a close. If you think you'll bring a lot of souvenirs home, Premium cabins usu. get free baggage allowances so that might be a useful perk on the return flight. I know we checked an extra (free) bag coming home from EU for our random souvenirs we bought (like fresh olive oil from the greek vineyard). Ditto coming home from Alaska. You also may have different weight allowances on luggage in premium seats, I think we had 70 lbs instead of 50 for our trips, which is great because the big suitcases often pack to about 55-60 lbs... so we did one bigger (heavier) bag instead of 2.

 

I personally would opt for Premium Economy both ways, versus a mix of coach-biz... but that's just my personal preference. Price out the options and then you'll have an idea what your cost/benefit ratio looks like. Another perk if you have other travel coming up, a r/t flight to Europe in premium economy with the frequent flier bonus for being in a premium cabin may be enough to earn the first tier frequent flier status on the carrier - so keep that in mind. I like delta domestic, so we flew delta partners and credited all the miles back to the delta program, I think I got ~20k status miles off the EU trip and 25k is "Silver" status with them.

Thank you!! I think we are definitely going to fly first/business for one of flights. It won't break the bank to do and I've never done it before so being pampered would be nice. We usually fly with the extra leg room seats on normal flights since my fiance is really tall and has long legs. I was looking at I think it was either American Airlines or British Airlines and I think the highest seat was Business no first class, but it did mention lie flat seats. My Fiance flies a lot for work so he has a lot of those points. If we did a different airline he had something where he could buy one first class ticket and get the second free, but it wasn't offered for any of the airlines to London so we can't take advantage of that.

We were in the same situation on our honeymoon last year. I'd recommend flying business to Europe to take advantage of the flat seats to sleep. Flight back home will likely leave morning/afternoon and you won't be tired to take advantage of the beds. You'll still be awake before turning in for the night to enjoy the dinner service and then up again for breakfast service in the morning. Our business class flight with Lufthansa was actually our top 3 favorite parts of our honeymoon. I can't recommend the splurge enough!

That does sound really great. My fiance is really tall so we can never fly without the extra leg room so that's been the only splurge I've done lol. He will definitely sleep so I do think the lying flat would be really beneficial, maybe I'll be able to. Did flying that way help with jetlag at all?

The "flexible fare" option is only about the price not the dates and times. It allows you to pay for the flight when you do your final payment and before that IF the price goes down you can get the newer lower price.

Oh that sounds great! I thought it meant like with airlines the date and times were flexible. Thank you that's great to know

The pricing of Princess EZair can be amazing on international flights. Use your Cruise Personalizer to get a quote. Look at Flexible fares. Be sure to put in the complete to and from. If one flight is short and does not offer Business, you will be put in first. Here is a sample of my upcoming Delta/Air France-Joon flights. LAX-Paris CDG-Barcelona. EZair $1612.11, Delta price $8519.00. Business LAX-Paris, First Paris-Barcelona.. Congrats on the upcoming wedding.

So I've found the flight I like through the airlines site, can I find that through EZair? We can't really be flexible with dates or times, there is only one flight that will work with what we need. I only want to fly direct since I'm afraid of flying and we have to fly home the day of the cruise so the latest flight out is all that would work. It seems like EZair will get the much better rate though. And thank you!

To me, it's not worth the extra. I think of all the ways I could spend the money on the cruise--specialty dining, expensive excursions, etc.

 

Airfare for us to Europe was a lot less through Princess. This year we were able to take a daytime flight that left Newark at 8:30 a.m. and arrived in London at 8:40 p.m. It was nice that we did not feel like we were missing a night's sleep. It's still a long day of travel, especially since we had a 6 a.m. flight from our hometown to get to Newark. But we woke up the next day in London without jetlag.

We were looking at costs and it wasn't too crazy expensive, was actually why we picked London over Rome because it was triple the cost. The only direct flights offered from south Florida are overnight to get to London I didn't see any that go over the day, but that would have helped with jetlag!

I'm looking at flights for my British Isles cruise and since it's a honeymoon we thought we'd splurge on one leg of the trip and fly business class. None of the flights we were looking at had a first class so I'm guessing that's what it's called now? I've only flown coach so not really familiar with the perks and such.

They are pretty pricey though so we'd only do it either flying to London or flying home from London. I'm not sure which one we should splurge on. Anyone who has traveled that way have a recommendation? Flying to London would be an overnight flight, I have trouble sleeping on planes, but it might be easier with the lying flat down bed type seat. Or should we do it on the return trip where we will be awake the whole flight during the day so might get more out of the luxury?

Also if I look to book my airfare through Princess can I still choose flying one way in economy and the other in business? I've never book through a cruise for the air, but my parents recommended doing it that it would be cheaper.

I think it can take a couple months to get it back. You should be okay for December. If it's getting close you could always pay to rush it.

If it were me, I'd call and innocently ask if the info gets transmitted to the ship. If you get a good agent, they may even send a note onwards.

Ok I'll do that :) Thanks!

Isn't this a Honeymoon Cruise? Your birthday too?

 

I'd suggest that you call Princess and see if they have the Honeymoon noted. If that note flows through, I'd hope your special occasion would get special consideration.

 

Let me add that I'm a solo traveler and prefer to eat alone for breakfast and lunch, but I always enjoy Late TD at a large table. I've always managed to meet interesting and fun people on Princess Cruises. Dinner became a nice pause in the evening to relax over a good meal and converse with others. In December I sat with a woman from Australia, a gentleman from South Africa, and newlyweds from Mexico. We had great dinners and enlightening conversations together.

 

Yes, you can do that on a case by case basis by requesting a "community table" in the MDR during breakfast or lunch. Issue is those meals always seem to take longer, so not a good idea if you have something planned afterwards.

Yes it'll be our honeymoon and my 30th birthday :) I went online and made a note about both, should I call as well?

Normally I wouldn't mind sitting with others for dinner, but since it'll be our honeymoon I think it'll be nice to just be the two of us. The cruise is pretty port intense, but we could look into dining for lunch with other cruises on the two sea days. On a sea day we won't be rushing anywhere.

The way I have done it in the past is look at the DR and table number on your cruise card.

On embarkation day I will go to the restaurant when someone is there and ask them to show me the table. ;)

Ok we'll do that :)

50/50 chance.

If not just see the MD or HW once onboard.

Great odds lol. How will we know what table size we get? Is it something we have to go to the restaurant to find out?

I think you made the right choice with the late seating and I hope you have a good experience as I've always had.

 

I sincerely doubt there will be a change to 8:30 PM. Most likely your cruise card will show it's the same 8:15 PM or pushed up to 8 PM. None of my 15 cruises over the past several years had 8:30 PM

Thanks :) and that's good to hear it won't be moved later I would be very hungry. We put in a request for a table for 2, is it likely this will be met?

you def wanna search for pics of one in a balcony room (i was on Regal). mine was inside because of the cold weather and in a mini it was fine but if the person on the other side of the table had to get up and go to the bathroom the table would have to be moved. in a balcony room id think its tad tighter

 

as far as having it in warm weather on the balcony i'm positive its tight there. one person will be in the back 'stuck'. i researched this heavily before doing it last year.

 

i wouldnt let the tight space inside sway you though regardless . its a great deal romantically and financially. even.

 

also from my review linked below here's the money part:

Here’s the breakdown with my estimated conservative pricing if I got this at home: 2 apps crab (10x 2) =20; surf and turf (est. 35 in any home restaurant) = 70; 2 drinks (8x2) = 16; 2 desserts (5x2) = 10; bday cake and other extra desserts =15; roses = 10; ship pic = 25; half bottle champagne = 10 and then the apps which I forget what they are would probably be 10 as well so that’s nearly 200 bucks worth of stuff for 100

It sounds like a great deal. I feel like it would be inside since a British Isles cruise seems like it would have cold weather.

filet for the balcony dinner was one of the best i ever had. they said its same in the grill downstairs so if true, id gladly pay the 29 in the grill

 

but instead i paid the 100 for the room dinner again next month. its just such a cool experience. not even hotel room service is that good ..at least not at the hotels where i stay ;)

The balcony meal does sound really romantic. That could be a good way to celebrate the honeymoon. We are in just a normal balcony room is there enough space for all that?

My Fiance isn't as picky with his steak so he'd probably be happy with anything. I usually only like tender filet mignon so I'll definitely be wary of what I order on the ship.

On embarkation day look in the daily newsletter (The Patter) which will be in your cabin when you board. It will list the time and place that the Maitre d' will have a session for those who need to change dining arrangements. He will probably be able to get you changed from the "5:30" time to the "6:00" time (realizing that neither of these times may be the actual times on the ship). Also ask him your question about late returning excursions. He will let you know if you have his approval to eat in Anytime those evenings.

We decided to switch the time to 8:15, is it possible this time could end up being later? We looked at when most excursions end and feel like the 5:30 would be tough making it most days, so to eliminate stress we just switched to later and will find snacks on the ship to tide us over until then. We would need his approval if we do anytime dining for a night or two?

Very much so to many. Not so much to us. My wife would be fine if we never used specialty dining again. :p Fortunately for me, we will have another go at it in May as it's included in our cruise fare.

It seems you like it and your wife not so much? Any reason why she doesn’t? I figure we’ll try it out for two nights, one to celebrate our honeymoon and one to celebrate my birthday

free tapas if you order a glass of wine at Vines...or just stop by the Int'l Cafe

Thanks!

As far as I know, the menu plan is only on board.

 

As reported in another thread and based upon my own experiences, the ship staff may alter the exact seating times for Traditional Dining. It happens regularly and is believed to be a result of best accommodating passengers on each cruise, so there's no predictable pattern.

 

There seem to be more upset posters here when 5:30 gets moved to 5PM, and passengers begin using Anytime Dining causing long waits. You mentioned a late excursion return and its impact on your early seating. You can arrive too late for your seating and be refused, since they have another seating at your table following yours. So you'd potentially miss the menu you wanted as you were forced to the buffet or endure chaos of an overloaded ATD. (You wouldn't be the only passenger back late from an excursion.)

I’ll have to talk to my fiancé about that since 5 would be way too early to eat, he might be ok with switching to the later. Is there somewhere to grab a quick bite to eat to hold him over to a later dinner? He can get hangry lol.

The Crown Grill is scrummmmmmptious!! If you like steak, go there! Yes, you can now pre-book it online. If you want to go on Formal night or a holiday, I highly recommend you book as soon as possible as those nights fill up fast.

 

 

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How would I know which night is formal night to book then? My fiancé loves steak he might want to eat here more than once