Are You There Princess?

[truckmaker]

Now here’s something to think about that might not cost anything but passengers might find very interesting. For passengers doing a B2B only, offer a behind the scenes tour on turn-around day. It could start after debarkation is completed and run for a couple of hours or so. My thinking is that the Princess ship’s person is already being paid and surely there must be someone whose day is not completely filled with turn around activities. I have no data for this but this seems like a reasonable assumption to me. This may result in an increased revenue opportunity and may increase our knowledge of the massive effort required to keep us all safe, clean, fed, and comfortable while we’re onboard.

I offer this after more than 30 perfect cruises on various lines. NONE of them sank!

[Pam in CA]

Nice idea but I'd assume that there would be few staff, if any, available to conduct such a tour. It's the only time the CD's staff has without passengers to meet and plan for the next cruise, CD's often use that time to also catch up on mail and email, kitchen staff are busy loading and storing new supplies, the hotel staff are busy preparing cabins for new passenger's, the Maitre d' is probably planning last minute table arrangements and assignments, etc.

[Loonbeam]

I've seen 'belowdecks' on turnaround day. Think Grand Central station at Rush Hour during a Luggage Convention.

 

It would be completely unsafe to be in most of the interesting areas at worst and disruptive at best. Turnaround day is probably the day the housekeeping team works the hardest all cruise.

[BruceMuzz]

It is always a good thing to look for new activities and revenue opportunities. Please do not stop.

But for this one, it just would not work.

A typical land-based hotel seems to have problems when more than 10 rooms leave on the same morning. You show up several hours later and your room still is not ready.

 

A Princess ship typically has 1500 rooms checking out in a period of 90 minutes.

90 minutes later those 1500 rooms MUST be ready for the new passengers.

Every available crewmember on the ship is running like a madman. Many of those back of house areas for the tour are hardhat areas on turnaround day.

Many of the things going on back of house that morning are not things the company really wants you to see.

 

The Chief Engineer and his people are meeting all the service engineers who are on for one day only to make critical repairs.

The Captain and Staff Captain are tied up with port officials, exterior repairs, end of cruise paperwork, and crew turnover.

The Hotel Manager is meeting the 200 to 500 travel agents who are visiting for their free lunch and ship tour. Then he escapes them to have meetings with group leaders and cruise line corporate staff visiting for the day.

 

A back of house tour on turnaround day would be fascinating - but not fun nor feasible.

[Vexorg]

There's also the fact that even B2B passengers still need to disembark and clear customs before being allowed back on the ship, so it's not clear that there would be time to do this in the first place.

[rdsqrl]

If you want the real scoop on backstage stuff, here's what they should offer. B2B passengers could actually help out doing turnaround duties. Some could work with stewards, making beds and vaccuuming, some could help stock the bars (I would graciously volunteer for this team. *hic*), some could offer to polish handrails and arrange deck chairs. Heck, charge 'em $75 a head and call it Crew For a Day. They'd get a little Princess nametag all their own to keep.

 

I should work for Princess; clearly, I'm a marketing genius.

[mr green]

IMO the termination port of any cruise, would be the busiest of all cruise days for the staff.

 

john

[Loonbeam]

Oddly enough, I'd probably do this if offered just to see what it was like :)

 

If you want the real scoop on backstage stuff, here's what they should offer. B2B passengers could actually help out doing turnaround duties. Some could work with stewards, making beds and vaccuuming, some could help stock the bars (I would graciously volunteer for this team. *hic*), some could offer to polish handrails and arrange deck chairs. Heck, charge 'em $75 a head and call it Crew For a Day. They'd get a little Princess nametag all their own to keep.

 

I should work for Princess; clearly, I'm a marketing genius.

[jbu]

If you want the real scoop on backstage stuff, here's what they should offer. B2B passengers could actually help out doing turnaround duties. Some could work with stewards, making beds and vaccuuming, some could help stock the bars (I would graciously volunteer for this team. *hic*), some could offer to polish handrails and arrange deck chairs. Heck, charge 'em $75 a head and call it Crew For a Day. They'd get a little Princess nametag all their own to keep.

 

I should work for Princess; clearly, I'm a marketing genius.

 

Oddly enough, I'd probably do this if offered just to see what it was like :)

 

Nope! NOT for me! Cruise ships are where I go to relax and escape. If I want to make beds, vaccuum, polish banisters and arrange furniture, I'll stay home. I can't imagine that very many passengers would be interested - even if they got a name tag!

 

...Not to mention how difficult it would be to administer such an activity...

[pms4104]

If you want the real scoop on backstage stuff, here's what they should offer. B2B passengers could actually help out doing turnaround duties. Some could work with stewards, making beds and vaccuuming, some could help stock the bars (I would graciously volunteer for this team. *hic*), some could offer to polish handrails and arrange deck chairs. Heck, charge 'em $75 a head and call it Crew For a Day. They'd get a little Princess nametag all their own to keep.

 

I should work for Princess; clearly, I'm a marketing genius.

Do you think those pax would get a share of the tip pool for that day's labor?:)

[G8RH8R]

There's also the fact that even B2B passengers still need to disembark and clear customs before being allowed back on the ship, so it's not clear that there would be time to do this in the first place.

 

That's not always the case. We did not disembark in San Juan, we just met in Club Fusion went through the "out" scanner with our old cards, then had a new picture taken and went back through the "in" scanner with our new cards. Total time; 10 minutes.

[BassettMom]

If you want the real scoop on backstage stuff, here's what they should offer. B2B passengers could actually help out doing turnaround duties. Some could work with stewards, making beds and vaccuuming, some could help stock the bars (I would graciously volunteer for this team. *hic*), some could offer to polish handrails and arrange deck chairs. Heck, charge 'em $75 a head and call it Crew For a Day. They'd get a little Princess nametag all their own to keep.

 

I should work for Princess; clearly, I'm a marketing genius.

 

Oddly enough, I'd probably do this if offered just to see what it was like :)

 

What the heck, I'd probably do it to. There are people who pay for the priviledge of working on their vacation such as people who go dig in the dirt for days as an archeologist's assistant, or people who pay to go to work on a dude ranch. If I wanted to go to work during my vacation, I'd definitely pick a day working on a cruise ship than digging in the dirt, or cleaning up after cows or horses :eek:.

 

Yup, call me crazy, but I'd sign up to be "crewmember for a day" although I think I'd rather work with the pursue or cruise director.

[jeromep]

Nice idea but I'd assume that there would be few staff, if any, available to conduct such a tour. It's the only time the CD's staff has without passengers to meet and plan for the next cruise, CD's often use that time to also catch up on mail and email, kitchen staff are busy loading and storing new supplies, the hotel staff are busy preparing cabins for new passenger's, the Maitre d' is probably planning last minute table arrangements and assignments, etc.

 

I can both agree in full with Pam and share this observation. On disembarkation day my wife and I went down to the MDR for breakfast as we had chosen a late disembarkation, we wanted one more MDR breakfast before we left. In the middle of breakfast we saw the Execuitive Cheff walking through the dining room wearing what appeared to be officers work clothes, a quilted jacket and a safety vest. He was obvoiusly an active part of the reprovisioning of the food stores on board.

 

Based on that observation, I don't see how it would be possible to find a staff member to guide a number of lookiloos around the bowels of the ship when it is being stuffed to the gills with supplies for the next sailing.

 

Like many things, in this instance a virtual tour might be a better thing. It would be easier to ask one of the CDs that has a good personality on camera to take one provisioning day and a cameraman from the photog group and to a video tour of the ship while it is provisioning between sailings. Then Princess could post that online and we could all see how it all works from the safety and comfort of our homes.

[BassettMom]

... a virtual tour might be a better thing. It would be easier to ask one of the CDs that has a good personality on camera to take one provisioning day and a cameraman from the photog group and to a video tour of the ship while it is provisioning between sailings. Then Princess could post that online and we could all see how it all works from the safety and comfort of our homes.

 

Or, since the OP suggested the tour for B2Bs, it could be played in the theater or MUTS or staterooms on board. Great idea jeromep!

[EddieCruzer]

For someone who says they have been on 30 cruises, do you not realize what needs to go on during turn around day????? :rolleyes: Who would you propose give the tour? There is so much that needs to go on behind the scenes, the last thing they would want is a tour passing through.

 

Liability issues would prevent any passenger at any time doing a crew members work.

 

Honestly, don't some of you think before you speak?? And you wonder why Princess pays little attention to these boards. :eek:

[truckmaker]

Hi Eddie. While we've been on lots of cruises we've only been on 2 or 3 B2B's and yes I did think about this question quite a bit. In my working life I led an organization of over 2000 people. While I would like to believe that during times of stress everyone last one of them was totally focused on the goal. Sadly I am also a realist and recognize that people are people and there are some who like to appear to be very busy but are not. Those would be the folks that in my thoughts would be available. If the senior people of the ship are typical they could give you this list of names. They know who they are. I've worked with enough different people in different organizations to know this to be a fact.

 

I merely thought this would be interesting and collectively it sounds as though others agree.

 

The other cruise I've always wondered is a cruise into the North American Great Lakes. I made a list of ports with some interesting excursions and sites to visit. But there is a physical problem. Even the 'small ships'of Princess are too wide for the locks in the St Lawrence Seaway and the Welland Canal. So I don't think we'll be seeing the sea witch cruiseing through the Detroit River.

 

Safe journeys Eddie.

[Northender]

If you want the real scoop on backstage stuff, here's what they should offer. B2B passengers could actually help out doing turnaround duties. Some could work with stewards, making beds and vaccuuming, some could help stock the bars (I would graciously volunteer for this team. *hic*), some could offer to polish handrails and arrange deck chairs. Heck, charge 'em $75 a head and call it Crew For a Day. They'd get a little Princess nametag all their own to keep.

 

I should work for Princess; clearly, I'm a marketing genius.

 

I'm with you as long as we can bartend too.:D One for the passenger, one for you and me. One for the passenger, two for you and me.:D:eek:

[Iamcruzin]

If you want the real scoop on backstage stuff, here's what they should offer. B2B passengers could actually help out doing turnaround duties. Some could work with stewards, making beds and vaccuuming, some could help stock the bars (I would graciously volunteer for this team. *hic*), some could offer to polish handrails and arrange deck chairs. Heck, charge 'em $75 a head and call it Crew For a Day. They'd get a little Princess nametag all their own to keep.

 

I should work for Princess; clearly, I'm a marketing genius.

They would have to throw in a vest and an 8x10 photo to make the package worth it.

[BassettMom]

Liability issues would prevent any passenger at any time doing a crew members work.

 

Honestly, don't some of you think before you speak?? And you wonder why Princess pays little attention to these boards. :eek:

 

Geez, lighten up. Do you really think we don't know about liability issues? A lot of the posts are just for fun....