westendgirl

I rarely post on CC, but just had to express my heart-felt gratitude to you Jeannie for brightening my life these past ten years! If Pescado Amarillo was at sea, I knew there would be a friendly, informative and insightful blog post awaiting each morning. The unselfishness and discipline it took to make time out of your busy cruising days to compose those posts is incredible.

I wonder if you realize how many lives you have touched, impacted, affected and enhanced over the years? We only had a couple brief encounters with you and G at sea but I'll remember them always. Please keep your blog alive, especially if you choose to tick those bucket list boxes. And - who knows - the call of the sea is mighty powerful and we may have the honor of following you once again! All best wishes for a wonderful life and continuing good health, on land or on sea!!

Janet 

So excited to be following you again!! Honestly, I think I've read every blog you've ever written - my favorite vicarious adventures! Smooth travels & Bon Voyage J&G ❤️🛳️

I would encourage everyone who agrees that the chair removal is ridiculous to call or send an email to Princess. I sent an email yesterday (polite but firm) to Customer Relations and received a call-back same day.

She stated it is fleet-wide and was commenced last May (??). There are limited chairs available if you ask your steward. However, they are monitoring complaints on this subject so there is a glimmer of hope. Please join me in emailing or calling Princess. We love Princess and think of it as a luxury hotel of sorts - not Motel 6 with no place to sit.

Shouldn't be a problem. We've done it a lot and you'll notice crew brings back many items from their shopping expeditions, including carry-outs from onshore restaurants.

We've received refund checks in as little as 2 weeks and as much as 6 weeks after disembarkation. The previous poster was correct - look carefully because you may mistake the envelope from Bottomline for junk mail.

We've gotten a couple over the years on Princess. The stewards work so hard I'm glad they don't take the time to make them daily.

Sign  me up!

Preparing to enjoy yet another of your Live From's. Thanks so much for taking the time and trouble to do it! We've been on some of the same cruises as you in the past and it's always fun to get home and read your input on the voyage. (We quit doing M&G's a few years ago but need to get back in the habit.)

From one of the other posts it looks like you're on the Sky next Fall as well. See you then - if not before. Bon voyage and smooth sailing!!

Tremendous - as always!! Thanks so much for taking us along.

Oh Marla! I'm late to the party and just spotted your excellent (as always) blog. We were actually on the same voyage as you. While I may not have recognized you and the mister - your selfies are almost non-existent - I would have certainly recognized Florence, so how was it possible to travel in parallel universes for an entire week?? Would have loved the opportunity to tell you in person how very much I enjoy your reports and photos and appreciate the time you take to post them. Maybe next time. Sigh.

Janet  

So happy that my first post on this new format is to wish you a terrific winter of exotic cruising and CONGRATULATIONS on 35 great years!! It wore me out just reading your first post and I can only imagine all the logistical planning that went into finalizing your itinerary - but that's what you do so well. We were scheduled on the Majestic from Rome to Singapore and cancelled it for the very reasons that you stated: far too many sea days. But boy, did you ever come up with a wonderful Plan B. Can't wait to travel along with you & G!!

Janet

Hello! I just saw this. I’m blushing here! 😊 Thanks for the motivation to blog again when we leave mid-October. Our plans have changed already (of course they have!), but we are starting in Southampton on October 21.

Certainly will be looking forward to following you J&G!!

Shouldn't he be Darby McGill in Scotland?

MacGill :D

Pia - thoroughly enjoyed your Live From, exactly as I have all of them over the years. Will be looking forward to your travels in Japan (but I believe you said it was on another line). Use those Princess FCC's soon! :D

Jeanie - looking forward to hopping onboard with you in October!

I really admire ALL of you who do Live Froms, the next best thing besides being there.

Have been following your Adventures in Ireland on FB - so glad you're doing a Live From! Thanks to you and to all who do so, taking valuable time out of your cruises to share the adventures with those of us [temporarily] on dry land!

Janet

PS Hugs to Matt O'Brien & Ron Goodman!

We've done a dozen or more cruises on the Royal/Regal. Lots to love. The only real negatives for us is that Princess Live and Club 6 are not conducive to playing trivia. This is not a concern if you don't enjoy playing trivia but if you do, it's major. On crossings, the venues are jam-packed but the Vista Lounge (where there's plenty of room) is given over to bingo or art auctions that produce revenue. I understand that completely - but proper scheduling could provide time slots in the Vista for trivia as well, at least during the day.

Thrilled to see your 'Live From' this morning!! Yours was the first blog I ever followed on Cruise Critic and have learned so much from you over the years. Very sorry to hear that you are no longer cruising with your dear Mike. Sincere condolences.

We were on the Caribbean in July and had a fine time. Some were grousing about the food in the (Winn Dixie!) World Marketplace but we always found something we liked and did not go hungry. Ate in the MDR a couple times and had good experiences.

They've stepped up their trivia prizes, as you reported. You were lucky enough to miss the giant foam rubber '#1' fingers from a couple years ago!

Again, SO happy to be onboard with you again!

PS Yes, you've absolutely still got it! :D

Email received last night from someone currently on this cruise and will be on it until Sept. 1st. Yes, old cards are good and will be until August 31, 2019.

We've missed you Pia!!! Hope you can do a Live From during your stay onboard. Bon Voyage!

True, but one of what used to be a unique feature of Princess cruises was that once boarding started (usually around noon) the cabins would be ready.

 

In a rush to make Princess look just like Carnival, RCI, Celebrity, etc., Princess has joined those lines in not having cabins available before 1 PM or later.

I agree Caribill. We were on the Caribbean's July 14 sailing and it was the first time in over 50 Princess cruises that the staterooms weren't ready when we boarded. It was cumbersome to lug our carry-ons to lunch and there were huge bottlenecks by the elevators just prior to 1:00 PM, waiting for the access doors to be opened. Scores of people were sitting on the stairs while they waited. Not good, Princess. :(

Just disembarked her last Saturday. We were really happy to see On Demand TV in our stateroom! Sometimes there's no other activities that catch your interest and it gives you the opportunity to catch up on your movie-watching, at your convenience.

Also enjoyed the roominess of the buffet areas and the light and bright décor.

We use it as air freshener in the cabin bathroom.

You nailed it!

YAY!! My favorite blog - and my favorite blogger! It must be mental telepathy - I checked your page a couple days ago before you posted and was sad that nothing about new plans had appeared. What a happy surprise this morning. :D

J&G - enjoy your exciting Season in this enchanting part of the world and heart-felt gratitude for continuing to take the time and effort to share with all of us. Smooth sailing!

Janet

It's been our experience that the decorating is done on the turn-around day closest to Dec. 1. They do bring in a special crew to do the decorating. We've spoken with them in both Europe and the U.S. They wear special shirts that state 'Princess Decorating Team' or something similar. (Not sure about AU cruises)

Fantastic shot Framer!! Talk about a birds-eye view :D

File this one under 'what were they thinking'?? A slap in the face for the P/E/S lounge. Quickest way I know for Princess to alienate its most loyal guests. :mad:

As a postscript, I don't usually post anything negative - especially on the Princess board. But they have deleted some of our favorite cocktails and substituted these new 'creations'. The bottom line: the bottom line. Mixers are cheaper than alcohol.