srpilo

Whats the phone number in the email ?  

Just Google that number and see the results.

On 7/12/2022 at 8:38 PM, LACruiser88 said:

We will be onboard in March for 32 days, Buenos Aires to Los Angeles.

Onboard Sapphire Nov 2nd, and finally getting back to Hawaii after all the Grand cancellations as you may recall last fall 😎

Looks like the generator issue may have been resolved, at the end of last week on open sea's she was doing 19 knots between Norway and Iceland...                                                                                                      As we're on her in late August for the "Midnight Sun" I've been closely following her performance and itineraries progress daily, and up til now she's made all her itinerary stops on time, and at all the required speeds necessary.

Fingers Crossed

On 6/29/2022 at 8:17 PM, CalLuvsCrusingToo said:

This is CASINO Booking.

We are only days away from our Cruise and it appears Casino Dept. has NOT paid their portion!

No wonder the App won't work when I keep trying to add our Info. 🤔

 

I have called twice a day for 9 days and am Always told the casino rep can't help me,

and Supervisor will call me back.   Nobody ever calls back!

 

I just sent Another email, so will be on record of the issue.....

But what are we suppose to do when they stonewall?  

I am soooo tired of calling, but what recourse do we have?

 

 

 

 

Well Any updates.. Did they finally resolve the issue ?

8 hours ago, insidecabin said:

Last day today, not much to report, this has been our smoothest round Britain cruise flat seas most of the way.

 

South Queensferry we got 2 local vessels to support the tenders our elite got us on when we were ready and return there was no real line or wait even though we got back same time as a couple of excursion coaches.

 

Local cruise bus(X99) is £10 for a full day ticket no need for the princess offering.

 

Our dinner at 8pm has worked out great same table every night.

This is way off routine for us as we are normally fully flexible(NCL fans)

 

Still no C word conversations the coughing has increased a bit, we had one passenger down our hall disappear, there was a trolley that looked like it was full of bedding with an orange cover and a person with sanitising equipment (not regular team) was in and out.

 

Today I did a walk about to find quarantine deck.

 

Aloha forward elevators locked off both sides.

Port side locked of back to the fire door between mid and aft most of the cabins aft of that empty including the suites.

Starboard back to the fire door between forward and  mid. Judging by the service trolleys normal use aft  from there.

 

There are around 100 crew leaving the ship in Southampton, last of the opening team, talking to a supervisor they are not sure if they will all get replaced, with transport and possibly of some having to quarantine if positive could leave them short.

 

I was told the issues with restaurants being shut and only Sabatini or Crown Grill is a chef shortage.

 

I posted elsewhere one surprise was over 1000 passengers were new to Princess this cruise.

Probably the great rates for us in the UK attracting business.

 

Any questions?

Did you happen to hear what the minimum days was for the "Most Traveled"  Elite luncheon or the total days for the Most Traveled couple ?

6 minutes ago, loge23 said:

CineGraphic has been around the (block) ocean a few times and states that his/her favorite cruise line is Princess. Clearly, it is a valid and reasonable opinion and poses an similarly reasonable question. Just how much one will let slide depends on how one perceives value.  

 

What CineGraphic is clearly pointing out, imo, is a competitive issue. In a very crowded industry, Princess has heretofore always been able to effectively differentiate themselves. It's their "secret sauce", this differentiation - and it included many little things as well as the big ones. It's why we keep coming back, the expectations - it's familiar and comfortable: the decor appeals to us, the staff is welcoming, the food may not be Michelin quality but it's always been good; but when the formula changes, the value preposition changes as well.  The brand means something, represents something - and that something is value. 

 

Some of the changes we have experienced since the re-boot have been directly linked to the global supply crisis and COVID. While that's somewhat forgivable and understandable, it does change that value preposition and it becomes a competitive - and cost - issue. I should add that we've taken two cruises since the reboot - one, on Brand X, wowed us, but we were in their Retreat Class; and the other, on the Enchanted Princess, was OK, but certainly not what we were used to - and we're Princess regulars. We're booked for an October/November long TA cruise on the Regal and one after that, so we'll see.

 

CinGraphic wouldn't have bothered to post this if he/she didn't care about their favorite cruise line. They are simply pointing out that along with the fish, there's plenty of competition out there on the high seas. We've noticed. While it's cavalier to suggest we "move on" to "another line", many will if the Princess we know and love becomes something other than what drew us in and brings us back to begin with. That IS important, and we DO care. Care enough to hold FCC's, bookings, and bother to check in and opine here, and enough to allocate considerable sums for our vacation plans.

 

The alleged fact that the complaints have never been this plentiful is telling. Both on this site and others, reviews have been lukewarm. Maybe it's time for Carnival to wake up and realize what business they're still in, and to effectively differentiate their brands. Sending out disabled cruise ships - and eliminating little expectations -  is really not a good strategy in that regard. Yes, it's a tough environment, but their competition is not backing down. How much ARE we willing to let slide?

 

I have to think that all this mega-ship building may be at a point where it's exceeding demand. Alternatively, it may be kind of a perfect storm that is rolling in on the cruise industry: changing demographics as us Boomers age out, supply chain chaos, a pandemic, Russian aggression, and now rapidly rising global inflation foreshadowing a possible (probably?) recession. Both Venice and now Barcelona are actively working on limiting the number and size of ships - other ports may soon follow. So head winds are blowing in the industry just as the ships are resuming their operations - it's not a good time for stakeholders; but as long as they're offering berths, they have to perform - and that's just the business they're in after all. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

+1   

6 hours ago, Airwavey said:

It has been very hit and miss for me

 

But

I recently stopped accessing Web by my preferred browser Firefox and went online by straight Google from my android phone and links seem to come up better & quicker 

 

But direct to Twitter is rubbish. 

 

Best area? Princess Theatre has been best when I've been in there

Sorry if it's been asked already, how many passengers onboard this cruise ?

P.S. really enjoying your reports and updates 😉

1 hour ago, Essiesmom said:

Not quite true.  Shopping cart handles remain on Golden and .Star Princesses, now sailing for P&O AU as Pacific Adventure and Pacific Encounter.  The only ship to lose the handle was Grand.  EM

It's Very True ... Didn't I clearly state PRINCESS cruises  ??? .

The Op or any body else here isn't asking about P&O AU or past Princess ships 

2 hours ago, nini said:

No, cruisers from USA are not required to purchase travel insurance. Some of us actually already have medical insurance which covers us internationally- even on Medicare Advantage Plans.

Thanks, that what I thought

18 hours ago, phabric said:

I was on the Sky June 4-11,  Norway Fjords.  I had purchased the WiFi separate.  I was refunded $35 for lack of WIFI for 3 days. I don’t know if anything was refunded if you had WIFI was a perk.

Just curious ..

Was Travel Insurance required (asked for) in Southampton at boarding for North Americans ?  The FAQ's on the UK Princess site seems to require travel insurance for Brits, but not from USA and Canadians passengers (?)

34 minutes ago, Thrak said:

Spot checked just now:  $9.90

Yikes ! 🤥

1 hour ago, Coral said:

There is a great aft lounge called Skywalkers. It looks like a shopping cart handle if you look at the ship. It is on Deck 17.

 

I do remember being able to go outside under the Bridge and be outside and it is a great view. No outdoor bar there and it can be windy when sailing.

 

There is nothing equivalent to HAL's Crow's Next. The Sapphire is a great ship though!

FYI --Sapphire does not have the shopping cart Skywalkers, but rather the same Skywalkers layout as Ruby, Emerald, and Crown, and Diamond . The Caribbean Princess is the only remaining Princess ship with the shopping cart handle Skywalkers

On 6/8/2022 at 11:33 AM, John Bull said:

Depends on your cruise terminal.

You're allowed to walk out of the docks from any of the five cruise terminals.

But QE 11 terminal is deep n the docks and most of the docks sidewalks from there to the gate are protected from truck traffic by only a yellow-painted line, so a taxi is strongly recommended.

And Mayflower and Ocean terminals, altho on proper sidewalks are perhaps a little too far with luggage - about 25 minutes.

City and Horizon terminals are closest, only about a 15 minute walk to either train station or coach station.

The ground is level from all cruise terminals, but if distance or bad weather dissuade you from walking, there are taxi lines at all cruise terminals - £10 tops.

 

Train is generally the better bet for central London or LGW altho Nat Express bus is cheaper.

Nat Express bus is by far the better bet for LHR, there's no direct train service

 

JB 🙂

John just a heads up

Though not direct you can now access LHR by rail pretty easily -- SOU to  Reading, and change to the new Elizabeth line with one more  quick change before LHR right to T-2-3 or T-5

Use "Trainline.com" the UK's biggest rail search engine, it is very easy to use and book from the US.

PS. You can also book Nation Express coach tickets from the same site

3 hours ago, MustangGT said:

No more testing coming to U.S. from International travel effective Sunday!
 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/us-to-drop-covid-testing-for-incoming-international-air-travelers/ar-AAYjbA5?li=BBnb7Kz

 

eta - sorry there was another thread started.

😍🤩😍

3 hours ago, Sebbiesgrammy said:

This is important information, thank you!   How many people were on your  land tour, if I may ask and were people required to mask up on busses, planes and trains? Your info is the first I've seen from a land first tour and I am sure it will help inform many. 

3 hours ago, Sebbiesgrammy said:

This is important information, thank you!   How many people were on your  land tour, if I may ask and were people required to mask up on busses, planes and trains? Your info is the first I've seen from a land first tour and I am sure it will help inform many. 

When we departed Anchorage on the 7 hour McKinley Explorer train to Denali we had 3 full HAL train cars, with apox 75 passengers each car, additionally coming from the other direction from Fairbanks 5 buses arrived at Denali the same day for the tours originating in Fairbanks all told there were near 450 people booked in at the HAL McKinley Chalet Lodge during our stay (FYI they were unprepared for such a large group !!). The combined land tours were the first bookings of the season there, and there were some serious hic-ups to be sure ---  On boarding day all Anchorage groups bused to the ship and all Fairbanks groups trained to the ship, with arrivals in Whittier staggered through out the day.

We just returned from the NA land first from Anchorage "Double Denali", no pre-test for the land portion in Anchorage, we were only tested on day 3 the day at the McKinley Lodge in Denali the day before heading to Whittier to join the ship. As far as I heard (rumors) 7 people tested positive and were returned to Anchorage, and not allowed to join the ship in Whittier.

2 hours ago, Lalof said:

Am I misunderstanding you? We are doing the land/sea tour, with the land part first. I talked to a HAL customer service rep to ask about testing before we get on the cruise ship. I was told that since we are on the HAL land tour immediately prior to the cruise, they (HAL) will provide a test for us just prior to the cruise.

You are correct.. Land first tours receive a provided test from HAL just prior to boarding after your land portion - This information is posted directly on the HAL site

Delta has already extended their air E-credits through 2023 

8 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

Nothing to upload.  Just answer yes or no.

 

What about the 14 day quarantine plan ? What address is a disembarking cruise passenger in Vancouver suppose use for that requirement ?

20 minutes ago, AE_Collector said:

 I haven’t posted on here for years and our last cruise was October 2019 after so much cruising the last 10 years, almost exclusively on Princess. Just now starting to re-learn everything I forgot. 
 

I had heard rumours that the free internet perk was gone with the medallion introduction. We were in Caribbean Princess just after it became the first ship to fully convert to medallion and I have to admit, what a mess the free internet by the minute was. Printed instructions given out made no mention of loging in and out just played up the benefits of the new medallion internet. The lineup for help at the internet cafe stretched half way around the ship.
 

Our first push to get to Platinum back in 2009 was to get free internet to make it easier to ensure nothing at home had derailed. Now at over 40 cruises on Princess we are about to start paying for internet again? I really thought that by now they would have come up with an Elite Plus category so that eventually internet can be free for some again.

 

The Loyalty Perk is gone too? I assume that is the $25/50/75/100 credit that we just completed our last $50 cruise in 2019 and we were moving on to $75 for our next cruise.
 

Since the Shareholder Credit is still in existence, have they finally fixed the loophole allowing two shareholders with different last names to claim the credit while no matter how many shares a couple using the same last name own, they only get one credit per cabin? That never seemed right to me.

 

Still looking forward to getting back on board sometime soon, we really have missed to interruption to our world travels. But I have to admit to feeling a little depressed about some of the changes and I haven’t even mentioned the loss of our favourite ship, Pacific Princess. 

We did win 10% discount on shore excursions   (Whoop Hee !!)

6 hours ago, Jadn13 said:

If thats the itinerary you like.

You can sail to Europe and stay for 2 weeks on B2B2B

or you can sail on  multiple 20 day cruises in the Caribbean. A few weeks in Alaska was also on option.

So, you can pick a week cruise or other itineraries and play with a lot less money. Remember the money rotates so just because you play say  $500 doesn’t mean that a good portion of that wasn’t from winnings.  

 

Yeah I got that offer too, and in fact, could sail the Sky, and Regal in europe for over 40 days on a B2B2B with Princess Plus included,  but that brings me back to my previous question, on 40 days of free cruises HOW much casino $$ play is expected by the casino from the passenger over those 40 days of free cruising or simpler yet even over a 7 day free cruise ???

There has to be some minimum casino expectation, right ?

59 minutes ago, PatriciaF said:

We sailed in August 2021 with Princess.  We got a rapid PCR test on Friday afternoon, got the results before we got home (10 minute drive).  Left Saturday AM for Seattle.  Boarded Sunday. around noon.  No problem.  

Please in the future read the posts correctly before responding... 

The comments you quoted were relating specifically to Alaska Cruise Tours and the land portion before the cruise , and not the cruise only portion.which I'm sure this thread has covered the testing requirements countless times

47 minutes ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

Oh no, you’re not missing anything. I wouldn’t spend that much money.  I’m not seeing seven day cruises for $299. Which ship?  🏃🏻‍♀️ to book another cruise, lol. 

The April 2nd Majestic is listing at $399.00 right now, but when I log in my Personalizer it's currently $299.00.

I saw the 7 day Majestic as low as $179.00 in January 🤡

7 minutes ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

I’m not sure what the expectation is but if you do not gamble enough while you’re there you probably would not receive another offer.

LOL.. Obviously

Up thread someone posted that they play between $100 & $300 a day, and repeatedly receive free cruise offers.

But ... Since you can currently book a seven day Mex Rivera cruise for around $299, playing $1500 or $2100 just to justify a free $299 cruise doesn't make much sense IMO

Just curious, am I missing something ??