buckeye7

Anxious to follow along, as we’ll be on the Emerald in July. We sailed her many years ago and I like the larger cabin / balcony size compared to the new ships. If you eat in any of the “casual” restaurants (Planks and whatever else) we’d love to hear if they are worth it.

GIve the numbers and PINs to your TA and they do it! : )

No worries! Sometimes it’s helpful for a topic to come up again in the feed for newer readers or as a reminder for those preparing for a trip. I knew about this, but hadn’t remembered to add a bit of painters tape to the packing list.

Are they happy with us taking food out of the buffet or do we have to sneak it out? It’s absolutely fine! It’s all yours for the taking, anywhere you’d like to take it!

Just a note to say that we don't usually eat any meals at the buffet either, but it's really nice to grab a plate of hors d'oeuvres from the buffet and take it somewhere to have with a glass of wine in the late afternoon or before dinner. They have cheeses, veggies, etc... Stroll through during the less busy hours and you may find something that hits the spot!

Does anyone know if they will refund the $10 shipping charge once onboard if you buy the Plus package aboard? We were planning to use shipboard credit to buy the Plus package.

We have $275 OBC from our cell provider T-Mobile. It doesn’t show yet, but they assured me that once you board, it shows up and is available. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I'm also an introvert and I love cruising in Europe. I don't love Caribbean cruises as much, where there tends to be more focus on partying by the pool. I also didn't love cruises before most stopped having set dining times and being seated with strangers. We cruise Princess and always get a table for two. We have a great time seeing sites without the hassle of packing up and arranging travel between sites. There are always plenty of quiet spaces on the ship. Traveling in Europe can be sensory overload and the cruise ship is the perfect place to unwind in the evening. I think you will have such a great time!!

Now I just got the email about the app as well.

I wonder if they are doing a “soft opening” and trying to make sure the new system works with no glitches before they direct everyone there.

Weird because I just sent mine through email the old way and got this automated response, with no mention or link to a new system. "Thank you for submitting your request for Carnival Corporation Shareholder Benefits. Due to current high volumes, please allow up to 21 days for processing. You will receive a confirmation once the benefit has been applied to your booking."

Oh my gosh, this is great news! Thank you for the quick replies!

Hi Everyone, I have tried to find this out from Princess, but no luck with contact yet, so I thought I'd see if anyone has info. I know Princess changed their rule and you can now buy the Plus package once onboard. Does this mean I can use any onboard credit I have (including Shareholder) to purchase Plus? Thank you!

I'll be disembarking from the Emerald in Boston, just as you are ready to board her! We were on the Emerald years ago but not recently. From comparing the older ship staterooms to the newer ships we've sailed recently, I think the rooms may be larger on the older. At least it seemed to me that the mini-suites were larger on the older ships. For our medallions, we used watch bands meant for Apple Airtags. There are lots of options on Amazon if you search it. Hope you have a great cruise!

Sorry if this has been recently asked (can’t get Search to work), but I’m wondering if anyone has heard what types of sales Princess might offer on Black Friday. Has it always been $1 deposit or do they change the sale every year? Thanks!

We wore sneakers on our 2-week Mediterranean trip a month ago and we looked like 90% of the people we saw in Spain, France, and Italy. My husband even bought a new pair while there. Wear the comfortable sneakers!!!

I’m just off the Enchanted and heard a bit of coughing but nothing extreme. We took the stairs 99% of the time and wore masks on shuttles, buses, etc… I washed my hands and carried Prime Defense hand sanitizer which we used a lot. I’m now in Italy for a few days and have a cold, despite all that : ) I tested myself to make sure it isn’t covid and got a negative. (We never saw any of the tell tale tables outside cabins, so I don’t know if there was much covid on the ship.)

We’re onboard now. We have enjoyed live music in O’Malley’s and had a few nice cocktails there. (Drink menu below.) We’ve had one formal night so far. I thought most people looked very nice. A wide variety of dresses, pantsuits, jackets, suits, just dress shirts, etc…. I wore black pants and top with a caftan and husband wore black pants and black button down. I felt we were on par in those clothes. We have enjoyed Gigi’s pizza for lunch each day. We did have a very disappointing meal in Sabatini’s. Food was average at best. Food in MDR was waayy better.

Same! This works so well!

I am loyal to LandsEnd for swimsuits as well. I did, however, just buy this suit at Costco for a very low price and it’s surprisingly well- made. Thicker like Lands End and a very nice fit. I have a black short sarong that I’ll wear with it. https://www.amazon.com/Nautica-Womens-Cross-Swimsuit-Castaway/dp/B09TJTTJHZ/ref=asc_df_B09TJTTJHZ/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=596474166135&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11683808765871562679&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1023640&hvtargid=pla-1657886612825&psc=1

This is very doable. We’ve never cruised in Europe (or anywhere) with any more than a 21” roller and a backpack or tote. I would suggest doing some practice packing a couple weeks beforehand so you can figure out exactly what fits in your case and giving yourself time to think it through. Try for pieces that serve more than one purpose — black pants that can be worn for dinner and sightseeing. We also bring some laundry detergent sheets so we can do laundry on the ship or wash things out in the sink if needed. Liquids are the trickiest so we think this through (ie. We bring sunscreen sticks instead of lotion.) It’s so nice not to have so much stuff to drag around and keep track of! Have a great time!

This happened to us for our upcoming cruise. We had booked with onboard credits, and suddenly the excursion was just gone. We never got an email explaining why, but our credit came back so we used it to book a different, but similar, excursion. I would have liked to have gotten an email so I wouldn't have thought I had lost my mind.

Wow. Glad you shared. We have tickets to do this in a few weeks and I had no idea this is what the steps are like. I wonder how long it takes to descend. My husband and I are in good health, but that looks scary to me!

I can’t compare different lines, because we have mostly done Princess, but just wanted to suggest checking out the Princess itineraries. They have one that seems to match your wishes. We loved our Princess Mediterranean cruise and we saw the ports you are hoping to see! (Heading back in a few weeks, as a matter of fact!)

I bought some Prime Defense at CVS. I can’t find anything that confirms that it works against Norovirus. Does anyone have a source that confirms this? Thanks!!