catgirl411

26 minutes ago, Lena11033 said:

 

I had closed off areas too on Celebrity, with no signs only found out when trying to walk through a public space only to be shouted at by the group 😐

But yes with higher ranking staff being 'all about the charter' it makes you feel like you've crashed a party you weren't invited to - which for the money you are paying you should feel like

Exactly the feeling we felt.  Sometimes it happens with large family reunions too. On a recent Christmas and New Year’s cruise a multigenerational family of 26 ( who were very nice) took over the piano bar (Crooners) every night, making it difficult to get a seat and driving the music selection. It is difficult for large groups to see that there are other passengers on board.

On 5/13/2024 at 7:35 PM, Lena11033 said:

 

Agreed I found out on here, by then too late. Then on board found a second large group, they however were more quieter - you wouldn't have known they were there

Totally agree…wish there was a way to know ahead of time.  Just got off Regal Princess British Isles. There were 312 Red Hat Society ladies on board…they were everywhere. Always dressed in their red hats and purple outfits.  I think the worst thing is that you feel like you are attending someone else’s party. Years ago, we had a similar experience with the Philadelphia Phillies fan club. In that case HAL closed off several venues at certain times for their exclusive use.

Hi all,

we are booked on a October Canaries and Portugal cruise on Apex. While we are experienced S Class cruisers, this will be our first E Class cruise. I’m staring to organize dinner reservations and am looking for advice on choosing the MDRs. Is it best to try all 4? Do you have favourites? If so, why? Your advice will be most appreciated. TIA

26 minutes ago, Pirateskigirl said:

I saw one of the little red hats calling cards in the spa treatment room where I had my massage.

Just got home from the May 5th sailing of this cruise. It was great and we lucked into wonderful weather. Enjoy your cruise. One experience you won’t have is the 312 Red Hat Society ladies who were on board our cruise…they were everywhere. 
 

interestingly we had a passenger emergency not long after leaving Southhampton. They were going to transport by helicopter but it was too windy so they sent a Coast Guard boat. Apparently the passenger had a heart attack.
 

On 4/24/2024 at 5:16 PM, JamieLogical said:

 

Already done!

 

Though I am thinking about rebidding. There are only four Reserve Class Forward Facing Minisuites on the ship, so the chances of me getting an upgrade are slim to none, but they are all right next door to the four normal forward-facing minisuites, one of which I am now in. So they are pretty similar, just the Reserve Class have the larger, wrap-around balconies and get the Reserve Class benefits.

 

We are currently on Regal in the British Isles in M107. The cabin is great and the balcony is amazing. It is only day 2 but I can imagine it will be wonderful when in port.  The room configuration is wonderful basically L shaped and there is a huge picture window which provides a view from the bed.  So far we couldn’t be happier with it.

9 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

Photographers may be back---

Noticed that on Chic night they had roaming photographers back on Solstice.   They even were back roaming around Luminae offering to take pictures.

 

Wonder if this is being seen on other ships?

Currently on Regal Princess and they are back here as well. Not in big numbers and not aggressive but still around. It’s formal night tonight so we will see if they are roaming the dining room.

6 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

If I might ask, how do two people in their 70s get 2 large suitcases along with a carryon bag on and off the Sky Train, and where is the luggage stored on the ride over?

Well we are two people in their late 60s, one with a hip that had been unsuccessfully replaced and one who was waiting for knee replacement at the time. We try to avoid anything crazy involving walking and carrying. We travel with two large suitcases and a carryon each. We truly didn’t find the SkyTrsin to be any harder than walking through airports dragging suitcases. It was just fine and usually isn’t crowded. You just keep the luggage beside you on the train.  It is an LRT for commuting not a train as such. 

13 hours ago, Alaska05 said:

After reading your experience from the airport, we are seriously considering taking the Skytrain from YVR when we arrive about 6:00 pm on a Thursday evening.  We are staying at the Marriott Pinnacle on W. Hastings. 

Do it. The SkyTrain works very well.

16 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We finally boarded the ship a little after 2 pm, over 3.5 hours after checking in with the ship transfer POC at the airport. The first part of the adventure took over 90 minutes to go 12 km from the Vancouver airport to the cruise terminal, mostly caused by some serious downtown traffic jams due to ongoing construction along with 3 cruise ships in port today!

 

 
But after creeping along or standing still for over 90 minutes, we finally saw the ship! 
 

 

Then it took another 90 minutes to go through the checkin process. The main cause for this horrendous delay was that the embarking passengers associated with all 3 ships were being processed through the same cruise terminal, where normally there is only 1-2 ships in port on any given day! 😱

 

 

  
But we finally made it to our cabin and all is good, especially after admiring the view from our aft-facing balcony. 😁

 

 

 
And of course how could resist not taking a photo of the not so elusive Vancouver International Airport pigeon while we waited 30 minutes before boarding the ship transfer bus! 😂

  

 

Have you ever done the Sky Trsin from the airport to the port? It’s fast, cheap and easy and avoids the downtown traffic.

8 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Thanks! We like both Princess and Celebrity, but for different reasons. It also helps that we’re now Elite on Princess, Elite+ on Celebrity, and 4-star on HAL, as we love free laundry!
 

In the case of Alaska cruises like the one we're getting ready to embark on, Princess was our number one choice not only for the variety of cruising destinations, but also because of the reasonable fare we paid for one of their aft-facing Vista Suites. However, HAL has a new Alaska 28-day “single-itinerary” cruise that includes going up the Bering Strait to Nome as well as a bunch of other stops at ports off the normal beaten path!
 

But I will say our first Alaska cruise back in 2013 was on the Celebrity Solstice, and we had an awesome time on their 7-day RT cruise out of Seattle. We’ve also been on Disney and HAL cruises to Alaska, and had a great time on their 7-day cruises as well. But this time we’ll be cruising around up there for 22 days and are super excited, even though it’s forecasted to be a little chilly on embarkation day in Vancouver as well as for most of the cruise! 🥶
  

 

One our favourite cruise experiences was the day we spent in Glacier Bay. We were on Royal Princess in an aft facing suite and we had breakfast served to us out on the very large balcony. It was magical!

A word on Scenic dress code. A number of years ago, we did the 14 day Amsterdam to Budapest route. It was a wonderful trip. There were almost 100 Aussies on board, about 20 Canadians, 6 Americans and a scattered number of others. The Aussies were so much fun, such lovely people. We got to know one couple quite well. He was a retired senior civil servant . When it came to dress though he came to dinner barefoot almost every night and he wasn’t the only one. For those of us from North America , “no shirt, no shoes, no service” is ingrained in us so it was very strange to see.

15 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

@mahdnc @DaKahuna Really a thing that is on our list! 
 

We have paid attention for years for the Panama 🇵🇦 transit. 
It’s only twice a year and timing has not fitted with the schedule😝

So it’s either make it work or consider a different brand⚓️🤭

But we will be there for a transit! 
 

It’s very tempting for Mr❤️😎 You see him on the balcony or top deck with binoculars in hand❤️😎😎😎🙌🏻⚓️ 

We did it on Princess over Christmas and New Year’s December 2022. It was awesome!

42 minutes ago, ronrick1943 said:

I don't disagree with you, I'm just saving if you buy the glass of wine, or your on the drink package-not wrong.  However if your on the package that includes wine at lunch or dinner then sit at the table and finish it.  Otherwise wait until you get to a bar to buy it.  Just an opinion........

Ok that helps clarify. It isn’t the walking around with a drink that you object to…it’s how the drink was paid for. I guess I’ve gotten used to drink packages where it doesn’t matter when/where you acquire the drink, 

8 hours ago, ronrick1943 said:

WE aren't talking about people playing by the rules--It's the people that want to take advantage of the situation.  Those that order a glass of wine just before getting up---or those that purchased a bottle off ship and pour a glass of wine or cocktail to take outside of the suite.  Sorry but it happens probably more than we think.

I still don’t understand the problem with someone ordering a glass of wine just before getting up from dinner and walking away with it. One of the cool things imho about being on a ship is the freedom to walk around with a drink if I want to…something I sure can’t do on land. What if I want to stand out on the deck after dinner and watch the ocean with a glass of wine in hand? Who am I hurting?

8 hours ago, ronrick1943 said:

It really shouldn't be allowed, if you're cruising you should be able to follow the rules.  Taking a glass of wine into dinner is wrong--as well as taking one out of a restaurant.  Why be petty to save a few dollars.  If you want to drink around the ship, buy the drink package.

1 hour ago, MEFIowa said:

And, of course, people are drinking free and freely all over the ship on the evening of the Captain's Party.

 

People who bring their own beer and hard liquor on board should be drinking it in their cabins. And for wine, pay the corkage fee if you want to drink your wine outside your cabin.

Wow, I’m not really understanding the problem with this? Sometimes you haven’t finished your drink when it is time to go to the show. It doesn’t mean the drink came from your own stock. It could have been from dinner or from one of the bars. It’s not unusual to see this on other cruise lines (Princess, Celebrity for example).

Completely agree with this philosophy. In the old days, before packages, I used to dread the bill slipped under the door on the last day with all of the charges. It was depressing to be reminded of another $1500 or so of charges at the end of a lovely vacation. 

On 4/4/2024 at 10:29 PM, mking8288 said:

LOL ... get use to it.  Once you tried, experienced and enjoy it - the refreshing & clean experience ... environmentally friendly as fewer paper tissues are needed on a routine basis.  You can't and really don't want to go back.  Hotels abroad, especially better ones throughout Asia, not just Japan ... also South Korea, Taiwan & even places like Singapore have them ... oops, almost forgot, Honolulu upscale resort hotels too (as they "used" to get huge influx of Japanese visitors to the island)

 

It's easy DIY install but when we remodeled our co-op, general contractor installed it for us - prices varied widely, better ones are several hundreds & up, with remote & sensors ... high end ones in the thousands.  Replacement parts are expensive as you can't just order it from Home Depot or pick up a generic lid or seat from True Value Hardware, etc. 

Loved Japanese toilets especially the heated seats! I was in a public washroom at a museum in Tokyo where in addition to the “standard” features, it also played music to cover the sounds!

So excited to follow another of your wonderful Lives! I was thinking of you the other day when I received my new DB backpack…purchased on your recommendation. I got it on an excellent sale. Can’t wait to try it out on our May British Isles cruise.

Completely disagree with OP. We did the land tour to Denali and Mt McKinley Lodge. Loved everything about it. The train was wonderful. Yes, the accommodation isn’t luxury but it was good and we had a couple of lovely meals. Also love the Captain Cook in Anchorage…great hotel with wonderful dining.

20 minutes ago, CanadianBurger said:

We did not, but I talked to people today that did both the teppanaki and the hot pot, and absolutely loved them both. 
 

They also have teenagers. The 15yo is absolutely loving it and has made friends with the others, but the 17yo has kept mostly to himself. Depends on the kid I guess. Not sure how many there are, but I’d guess <25, just from how few I’ve seen. Itinerary, time of year, and cruise length have a huge impact on the number of kids, so I wouldn’t go by this for your cruise at all. 
 

One thing I should mention. They booked four in a cabin, and the cabin was marked as sleeping four. But they didn’t have a pull-out sofa in the room. Even the room steward couldn’t figure out what was going on. They went to guest services, and they gave them an additional inside cabin for the teens. So if you’re booking multiple people in a room, double and triple check with Princess if in fact the sofa pulls out into a bed. Maybe they’ll figure it out and update things after a few cruises. 

Thanks! Good to know about the rooms…after some debate we decided that they would book two Oceanview cabins and our adult stepdaughter booked an interior. DH and I have a balcony. They are doing 7 days and we are doing B2B so that we can enjoy whatever doesn’t work for them in our second week.

So thankful that you have provided this very balanced view of your experience on Sun Princess. We recently booked for a Caribbean cruise next February. We are experienced cruisers but this is the first cruise for some of our family group which includes our 13 year old granddaughter and 15 year old grandson. Have you seen many teenagers onboard and are they allowed in Princess Live for trivia etc?  The other thing they will love is Umai for teppanaki. I can’t recall if you tried that.

On 3/4/2024 at 12:15 PM, TravelBluebird said:

Right?  Cruises are like a box of chocolates—you never know what you are going to get! 😂

 

I’m going with the group’s flow—I get to cruise so often, only fair to go with the Group Gestalt!

I love this philosophy. We’ve booked our first ever family cruise for next February and I am really going to try to relax and let everyone enjoy it in their own way. And as an additional way of coping, we will be doing it B2B while the others are only doing the first 7 days. That should allow us to do anything we missed in the second week.

A few years ago we were in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur in July. It felt hotter than the surface of the sun (lol). I don’t think I’ve ever been so hot, even in summer in the Caribbean. Loved that trip, hated the heat and humidity. We were originally scheduled to do a Viet Nam, Thailand, Singapore ocean cruise in February 2021 but it was cancelled and we never got around to rescheduling for a variety of reasons. Looking forward to travelling along with you!

Really enjoying your posts. This is a bucket list trip for me so I will be following along. How do you find the heat?