MayasWay

I tried calling to get ours changed from a 14 day B2B and they did NOT give me two cruise credits for it. She went on and on about how the number of days was just as important.

Extremely frustrating to read that others are given such privileges only to find out that it clearly depends on who you talk to. So, while the customer service rep kept telling me that number of days counts as much as number of cruises, I know that's not at all true. Taking long cruises or B2B's with Princess does not pay off in terms of priority! The end of 50 days or the end of your 5th cruise is not at all an equivalency ... 5, 4-day cruises is not at all equivalent to 5, 10-day cruises! Interesting and sad loyalty priority.

If you were able to talk sense to customer service, please let me know who you spoke to ....

You could also try asking your steward right when you aboard the ship. We were surprised to find that Princess doesn't have handhelds and requested our steward to look into getting one. Not sure how commonly this is provided, but after asking, one was installed for us (in an obstructed ocean view room, on a 14 day cruise).

On the Caribbean Princess last week (5 day) we were told there were to be NO reservations at all for anytime dining. I was shocked. They said it was because it was "a short" cruise. So, less service???

And even if that was to be a new policy for short cruises (wasn't on our last 5-day cruise) this same cruise was sold as part of a 9-day (4-day plus 5-day B2B) and those folks weren't given reservation privileges either. Met a young honeymooning couple and a 50th anniversary couple both taking the 9 day cruise and equally disappointed in the reservation policy.

... And they did allow reservations for single days ahead of time (no waiting in line in the morning), open from 8:00 am to 5:30pm.

We are just off the Caribbean Princess and I was quite surprised to discover the cost ... $30/day if you book for the entire cruise (which includes your check in day) or $40/day if you want fewer days. So, for our 5 day cruise, it would be an additional $300 for hubby and I. I had seen $15 and $20/day quoted as prices from posts here many times, not at all true for us! Such a disappointment!

We're on the Caribbean Princess soon (first time on the boat). Is gelato available there, too? If so, where would it be found?

Thanks for the info RickEk. Followup questions ...

Do you recall how high the barrier wall was on the front promenade? I'm wondering how tall one might need to be to see over it.

Also, when you viewed glaciers (like Margerie in Glacier Bay or those in College Fjord) I know the weather comes into play in this, but do you know if the Star makes the continuous 360 degree turns and gets as close as Coral?

We cruised the Coral in Alaska last year and enjoyed it so much that we are hoping to treat the entire family next summer to the same experience. Our family is quite outdoor-oriented and we really enjoyed many of the enrichment activities and lectures on the Coral. However, we need to depart on a weekend this time, so must plan on a different ship.

The cruise we're considering is Voyage of the Glaciers (Vancouver to Whittier) on the Star.

We have some questions we're hoping someone can answer:

1) Can we count on a naturalist to be aboard on this cruise?

2) Similarly, will the National Park Rangers come aboard in Glacier Bay? How about Libby Riddle or other speakers?

3) Does the Star have the "secret" viewing decks out front under the bridge like the Coral? If so, which floor(s)?

4) Does the Star have other "secret" viewing areas that might be especially peaceful for viewing glaciers, wildlife, etc.?

5) Can we count on a similar Princess experience on the Star as the Coral?

MANY, many thanks for your time and consideration!

Becky

Thanks for the response ... A couple of more questions, we are trying decide between a Princess and RC cruise of Alaska for next summer ....

Where on the ship did you find the best outdoor/outside viewing?

Are there plenty of deck chairs on the promenade?

Did the National Park Rangers come aboard to talk?

Thanks for the review, I have two questions ....

1- Are there any 'secret' deck areas on the Radiance. When we cruised with Princess in Alaska, two high decks had open access out front just below the bridge that were accessed from guest room hallways ... Anything like that on Radiance?

2- Was there a naturalist on board to give talks about what you are seeing?

Thanks!

If it helps to know ... our data points for the Scavi tour:

We traveled off season (late October). I was unable to get an email to them with my home email, but using a gmail account it went through with no problems (not sure why that happened).

Sent my request (the one that finally went through) on Sep 1 and had a confirmation on Sep 2 for a tour on Oct 28.

As I understand, it helps if you can give them more than one date to check, and use your finest pleasantries in the correspondence.

Best of luck - a highlight of our trip!

Well thanks all for your feedback. Looks like we'll have to pay by piece, though we're lucky to be staying in a place in Budapest with self serve laundry the day before embarking on our cruise.

If it's of interest, and what prompted me to ask the question, is that we were on a Windstar cruise where you can get a laundry package, unlimited, for the week for $99. Not cheap but nice not to have to think about how much each pair of undies cost to wash. And wonderful to come back to freshly pressed things each day (in by 9, back the same day). We travel for multiple weeks with just carry ons and almost always include a one week cruise with land travel, so it's a nice treat.

We'll be traveling for over a week before boarding an Avalon river cruise. Does anyone know if they have a laundry package? Traveling with Windstar we found their week long package to be a real treat.