Just off the Diamond Princess in Japan- AMA!!

We are here now and to be honest I have not looked at news at all. Watched the ship back in this morning. Excellent visit in the Tokyo and Yokohama areas so far!!!

 

 

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Thanks for posting, just seeing your pictures gets me excited. :D

Hello! Just returned from 13 days on the Diamond Princess cruising Japan. I don't see the exact cruise I did but its very similar to this one:

 

http://www.princess.com/find/cruiseDetails.do?voyageCode=M818A

 

Since there's not a lot about these cruises on here, I wanted to open myself up for questions. A few things to know:

 

-I don't gamble or drink so I can't really speak to those.

-This cruise is 90%+ Japanese cruisers. On our trip IIRC there were over 2100 Japanese & the ship holds about 2600 passengers. I don't have a complete passenger breakdown but I do remember about 160 Americans and between 250-300 Australians.

-We only took Princess excursions.

 

So, ask me anything!!

We are travelling from Yokohama to Sydney on November 19th. I have two questions. The first is we would like to take a usb stick to play some movies in our stateroom. Is this possible, do the tvs have usb ports? 2nd question I was told that we get charged a daily service fee that adds up to quite a few hundred dollars each but you can cancel this charge if you notify the purser on the first day.? Do you know if this is true?

We are travelling from Yokohama to Sydney on November 19th. I have two questions. The first is we would like to take a usb stick to play some movies in our stateroom. Is this possible, do the tvs have usb ports? 2nd question I was told that we get charged a daily service fee that adds up to quite a few hundred dollars each but you can cancel this charge if you notify the purser on the first day.? Do you know if this is true?

I believe Princess now includes the daily gratuities in the fare for all cruises to or from Australian ports - which would include your cruise. They changed that last year and I do know that the Beijing to Sydney Golden Princess cruise last October did not have added gratuities. We were on an earlier cruise, Sydney to Hong Kong, which did have added gratuities and they brought in the change just after that cruise. Another way to check is if the onboard costs are in AUD then the gratuities should be included.

Are you expecting the service onboard to be so poor that you think you would want to remove the daily gratuities?

No I don't expect bad service, but we don't have gratuities in Australia and feel that this should be included in the price, however in saying that, I was just curious to know if this was true or not. I would prefer to thank the staff looking after us in person rather than the company itself.

Thank you for replying.

Also, for those spending time in Japan pre or post cruise, I HIGHLY recommend that you learn about and use the public metro and rail system. Go to Japan Rail for details. You can buy an unlimited rail pass prior to your departure that can whisk you literally anywhere in Japan.You exchange it for your actual tickets either at your arrival airport or at any of the rail stations. The metro signs are in English as well as Japanese. You can purchase a discounted metro pass at one of the BIC Camera stores in Tokyo. Just bring your Passport. The best Wi-Fi value out there in Japan is Ninja Wi-Fi. It's a pocket wi-fi device that cost us $100 USD for almost 3 weeks of usage! Saved a bundle on Verizon fees. There is typically a brochure in with your Japan Rail voucher pack. Google Translate is an essential App for your phone.

 

In Tokyo, don't miss going to the Asakusa Temple complex for a real taste of local culture. You can also do the free walking tour of the Imperial Palace grounds. And go eat at a real Ramen-Ya. Yum!

Completely agree. We were a little nervous of DIY and the language barrier but it has been super easy and the people are lovely. Sitting in the sun in the Lotus Pool as I type! (Akita)

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Do they serve any sake and other Japanese beers in the bars?

Do they serve any sake and other Japanese beers in the bars?

Yes - quite a few Japanese beers....here's some Live Photos [emoji12]

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I was watching the news that a super typhoon is heading towards Japan. Hope this is not going to affect your cruise. :eek:

It is [emoji33][emoji33][emoji33][emoji33] no word on board if we will sail as normal after today. In Aomori today and then due to sail to Busan but Typhoon is pushing north ... so we'll see![emoji40][emoji40][emoji40]

Was speaking to a waiter this morning who said another ship just stayed an extra day in port. We don't mind, as long as everyone is safe.

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Thank you for all this great information. Did you notice if any men tourists wear shorts at all in the cities? DH is considering what to pack for August - hot and humid so jeans might be uncomfortable. Any impressions would be most helpful.

Loads of shorts everywhere. We're wearing shorts and there's no issue.

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I may be doing a one week out of Singapore on her next February.

 

Was there trivia? :)

Yes - 2-3 trivia a day. On this ship it's done in English and Japanese.

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How was embarkation? Did they actually enforce staggered boarding times?

Embarkation was super. We arrived at 12 and they had already started. Gave you a 'ticket' with a number on it. Then called the numbers in sequence. One number every 4-5 minutes. Super organised and we were on word within 30 mins despite being ticket 10. They scanned your passport and handed you your room cards then you were free to board. The cases even arrived at the room before we did!

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Posting error!

Do they serve Shochu ? I prefer it over Sake .... And did you happen to know if they let guests bring it onboard after visiting Shochu factory (its one of the excursions for Miyasaki)

1. Was there any private tours on the ports in Japan? We're gonna be going to Aomori, Akita, Toyama, Busan and Kagoshima.

2. Has anyone tried the onsen on the ship? My travel mates have tattoos so I don't think we can do the onsens off ship.

TIA!

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Do they serve Shochu ? I prefer it over Sake .... And did you happen to know if they let guests bring it onboard after visiting Shochu factory (its one of the excursions for Miyasaki)

Yes, in most bars and restaurants and Yes. We bought sake and weren't stopped.

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1. Was there any private tours on the ports in Japan? We're gonna be going to Aomori, Akita, Toyama, Busan and Kagoshima.

 

2. Has anyone tried the onsen on the ship? My travel mates have tattoos so I don't think we can do the onsens off ship.

 

TIA!

 

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Hey,

We did ship excursions in Akita and Aomori which were good (sailing to Busan now where we will do one there too). Akita there were loads of offers about and it wouldn't be too hard to do on your own (shuttle for $10). Aomori would be a bit more complicated and didn't find too many taxis etc about - would prebook a tour for here as a lot of the sites are further away.

Will let you know about Busan.

Onsen/Izumi looks great - did a tour of it and will try the outdoor part. Will try to remember to ask about tattoos for you!

B

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1. Was there any private tours on the ports in Japan? We're gonna be going to Aomori, Akita, Toyama, Busan and Kagoshima.

 

2. Has anyone tried the onsen on the ship? My travel mates have tattoos so I don't think we can do the onsens off ship.

 

TIA!

 

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Asked at the Izumi - tattoos no problem. They said that a lot of their guests have tattoos.

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Asked at the Izumi - tattoos no problem. They said that a lot of their guests have tattoos.

 

 

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Awesome! Thanks for asking for me. Which port was this?

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Awesome! Thanks for asking for me. Which port was this?

 

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Live from Nagasaki!

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My wife and I are on Diamond leaving Yokohama on Sunday 20 August for an 18 day trip around Japan including Russia and South Korea.

Can you tell me if a kettle/electric jug is available in the staterooms?

This was available on Sapphire a couple of years ago on Asian cruises.

Thank you.

John & Dale Tait

Bendigo VIC

Australia

Thank you for all this info, we are on a spring flowers cruise next april and have been able to find out very little about it. I am sure I will think of lots of questions!:D

Thanks

My wife and I are on Diamond leaving Yokohama on Sunday 20 August for an 18 day trip around Japan including Russia and South Korea.

Can you tell me if a kettle/electric jug is available in the staterooms?

This was available on Sapphire a couple of years ago on Asian cruises.

Thank you.

 

John & Dale Tait

Bendigo VIC

Australia

There was one available in the full suite on the Diamond Princess last July around Japan, but on recollection from when I have been in the standard cabins there was none.

My wife and I are on Diamond leaving Yokohama on Sunday 20 August for an 18 day trip around Japan including Russia and South Korea.

Can you tell me if a kettle/electric jug is available in the staterooms?

This was available on Sapphire a couple of years ago on Asian cruises.

Thank you.

 

John & Dale Tait

Bendigo VIC

Australia

When we sailed on the Diamond in 2014 there was no kettle. I believe it is deemed a health risk. We are on the Diamond again 1st Oct. Can get boiling water from the MDR. People say the ship coffee is week?? Can't remember. Thinking about bringing a bag of instant from home. Big coffee drinkers here

 

Live from Nagasaki!

 

 

 

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Such a great sailaway gesture!!! We loved all four ports on this Aug 4-12 festivals cruise. I was low on phone memory but doing lots of social media live videos to capture the memories.

Btw - we did our own touring in all ports except Busan which we did the fish market and temple (through Princess - $35/adult and $25/kid). We only booked the cruise July 21 so had a short interval of time to research and plan - did fine. Purchased the Princess shuttle tickets at first two ports and used the trolley for Nagasaki. Appreciated the free port shuttle to nearest JR train station morning of disembarkation - easy getting our return Narita Express tickets assigned to get seats on train to airport when changing at Yokohama station (ticket counter where shuttle dropped us off)

Can highly recommend the Yokohama Intercontinental hotel.

Excellent cruise for all four of us. Kids now have about 138 nights onboard ships and loved it as well (both are in elementary school but give me their feedback and compare ships from their perspectives!). Very impressed with all aspects of the cruise for sure - from all four of us!

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