dreaminofcruisin

Mention them in the post-cruise survey. It seems that is what gets them promotions and raises and things.... We had one bar server who worked really hard to get us to do that and told us how important it was to him.

The short version is that you can swap out the mini bar still, just not for coffee "cards". Here's the long version:

BUT....you don't have to feel obligated to do so since you have already paid tips which are from $14.50/day/person to $16.50/day/person depending on the type for cabin you have. They are called "Crew Appreciation" or "Gratuities" and either included with Plus or Premium packages or listed separately on your folio when you cruise. We ask very little of our stewards so I often don't tip extra. If I have needed them for extra things or for whatever reason found that they did more than expected, I might tip them extra. There's lots of opinions on CC....so you will get various responses.

From Port Everglades, we usually take a cab to the airport. However, we are thinking of using the transfer next winter for our family group. Why? We have 2 kids along and the last year when we went we carried car seats and used Uber XL, but found it such a hassle to have to attach the car seats and all the luggage barely fit into 2 Ubers! Our plan is to use a hotel with a shuttle to the airport, an arranged shuttle to the cruise port and the Princess transfer from the cruise port to the airport. We don't have any excursions planned at the ports that require transportation needing car seats, so it should be just one less thing to deal with. It will likely cost us a bit more, but the less hassle factor should make it worthwhile for us. I also think that often cruisers who don't travel much and maybe especially those from smaller towns that never deal with cabs just find it more convenient to let Princess handle the transportation for them. It reducess their anxiety and makes their trip just that much more pleasant. We have used Princess transfers in the past, but usually only when a long distance from port to airport or in a really busy city where we were concerned getting a taxi/uber might be more difficult than usual. I think the bottom line is....different strokes for different folks. Everyone has their own reasons for their transportation choices.

Better tell them when you make a reservation. They no longer bring a bill. At least that was our experience in August on the Emerald.

When's the cruise? If you haven't made final payment yet, the cost of the transfer will be included in your final payment. You should be able to see that in your online account.

Yes. They should refund the port charges. It should be a REFUNDABLE credit. However, my experience is that if you don't use it and you don't go get the cash refund before you get off the ship, you'll never see that check......

Thanks for the informative post. This is also what I thought. Yes, Carnival ships (at least the Horizon) has the 'car wash' type of hand sink. Unfortunately, they are hidden in a corner and no one suggests to people to use them. The week we were on, the only ones that used them were our group, especially my 5 year old grandson who thought they were 'cool'. Too bad the Ruby doesn't have the sinks installed outside the buffet....it really should...

Thanks for the ideas. I tried Microsoft Edge (originally used Google)...same thing. As far as the excursions not being available yet....I guess Princess was just kidding when they sent me the email last fall that said "Excursions now available". I know. I know. Don't expect them to have a system that actually does logical things..... 🤷‍♀️ I guess I'll give it a few weeks....though based on the very funky error message, I still think it's a bug and they're thinking I am missing some kind of information somewhere. I did go look at demographic stuff, but it all looks pretty normal to me.

Wondering if anyone else has had this issue? I have a cruise booked for February 2024. We have a group of people so decided we want a Cabana at Amber Cove. I know it's early, but I've never done this before and since there are a limited number of Cabanas, I figured I should book it early. When I click on my name, click Add to Cart, it comes back with "Guests with a errors" and my name. I called Princess last week and the same thing happened to the representative on the phone. She decided it was because I'm not within 180 days of the trip. 🙄 I told her that I am sure I have booked other excursions earlier than that. She agreed that she had seen that too, but thought that was the issue. Just a side note....I did try and pick any other random excursion and same thing. I also tried picking my husband instead. Same thing. Today I logged in and tried booking an excursion on another cruise that is more than 180 days out. It worked great. It is in 2023 though, if that matters. By the way, I did pick "Shore Excursions" from the phone menu, so apparently this was the 'expert' on shore excursions. 😜 I guess I'll have to call back and hope I get someone else, but just thought I would throw it out to everyone and see if anyone has any other ideas or has seen this? TIA

Yup. This is what ours for August states also.

I just emailed mine on Sunday night and it was on my account by the end of the day on Monday!

Perhaps they should install sinks by the buffet on the Ruby like most Princess ships have. I was so surprised when we were on her last fall that there were no sinks. 😔

I've never heard of Princess charging sales tax in any port, so this is surprising. I know Carnival does. I was on the Ruby last fall with a port stop in LA and we were having drinks on the back deck while in port and weren't charged sales tax.....

Our last 2 cruises, they have had no problem with you ordering 2 alcoholic beverages at a time. I think this changed due to being able to do it on the medallion. On our California coastal last fall, every time we ordered a drink at one bar, the bartender always asked if we wanted a double! 😁

For years I have heard people complain about the 'noise' in the pool area. I understand their concerns. However, it is nothing like the 'noise' on a Carnival cruise. Last winter we were on the Carnival Horizon and it was so loud that you couldn't even talk to a person standing next to you. Even my adult children thought it was excessive. 😊 Relative to that kind of "loud", Princess would be considered quiet. I've never had a problem holding a conversation on the pool deck. I guess there are different levels of noise..... 😳

To add to what tigtraveling said... You can pick up 2 bottles each every time you get water. This works nicely if you are on your way back to your cabin so you can stock up a bit so they are available in your cabin when you need them.

Thanks for this. I hadn't seen this before. We had a specialty dining included last summer on the Emerald and since we don't often do SD we were debating about whether or not to tip at the end. In the past, they had presented something for us to sign where you could add an extra gratuity. This time, they never came back after dessert, so we figured we were just supposed to leave....🤷‍♀️ So, if you do want to tip extra you would have had to have cash. Now....this was out of Southampton, so I don't know if this happened because tipping isn't as big in the UK, but just FYI.

D408-D412, D407-D411, D420-D428, D421-D429

If you are looking for a larger balcony....check out Dolphin Deck 9 Aft: D701-D725 or Forward D145-D227 or some of the mid-ship bump-out cabins.

If price is your priority, it will be fine. If you are flying Business class and expect the Delta experience....nope. It's much more like Domestic First Class...if that. We had a return flight last summer on Icelandair Business class from LHR. The oddest thing to me was that the flight atttendents served the meal and then hid behind the curtain in the galley for the rest of the flight. It was unpleasant because you had to open the curtain and go back there to use the restroom. Never quite sure if we were 'allowed' with the curtains closed. Not really sure what the deal was, but seemed like the policy as it happened both from LHR to Iceland and from Iceland to MSP. Very weird.

No experience, but these people seemed to enjoy it.

Within the next day or 2 they will put a notice in your room of the time and meeting place for disembarkation. Last fall, we were to meet in one of the dining rooms for an 8:45 disembark time. We left our cabin at 8:30 (as required) and went to the meeting place. They told us we could leave as they had already started disembarking our group! This was on the Ruby in San Francisco.

You will still be picking up your luggage and bringing it to the bus, so just do that together.

Well maybe.... On one past cruise, the credit card was mine. I had set up the reservation and put myself first, DH second. In the app, HE could see BOTH of our folios. I could only see mine....