Just off Royal Princess 4/13-4/20

[caribill]

A DJ playing music with music videos showing. I can stay home and watch MTV videos.

 

Not anymore. MTV has had few, if any, music videos for a couple of years.

 

You need to go on the Royal for this.

[caribill]

We had second dining in the Alegro Dining Room. Very strange getting to this. Who designed this ship? It was on deck 6. By itself. You had to use the elevator. Or walk down the stairs to it.

 

Princess has 9 other ships with this design (plus the upcomoing Regal).

[GottaLuvCruising]

The first and second pictures are from our stateroom E438. You can see straight out (no obstruction) but looking down you see a smaller lifeboat.

 

[westendgirl]

The first and second pictures are from our stateroom E438. You can see straight out (no obstruction) but looking down you see a smaller lifeboat.

 

 

Thanks for sharing your photos Janet. Looks like you had a great time! We board her on Sunday and are really looking forward to it.

 

(Another) Janet :D

[GottaLuvCruising]

Thanks for sharing your photos Janet. Looks like you had a great time! We board her on Sunday and are really looking forward to it.

 

(Another) Janet :D

 

Janets know how to have fun! Enjoy your cruise!

[westendgirl]

Janets know how to have fun! Enjoy your cruise!

 

Thank you! And yes, we certainly do. :)

[dmwnc1959]

We had second dining in the Alegro Dining Room. Very strange getting to this. Who designed this ship? It was on deck 6. By itself. You had to use the elevator. Or walk down the stairs to it. Very tight crowded space in the entrance. Got really jammed waiting for it to open. Also just by the entrance was the most horrible looking statue. It was a peacock. Made up of twisted steel that looked like it was from the junkyard. What a lovely idea walking in your formal clothes for a nice dinner experience!

 

 

I actually liked the peacock statue, and if you had read the name plate on the artwork, you would have seen that it was indeed made from scrap metal.

 

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5499/11566047343_8c139388d6_c.jpg

 

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5535/11566052266_c87f5743be_z.jpg

 

 

And as Caribill said, the Grand-class ships are all designed the same way as far as the location and access to the Allegro Dining room. I overheard one woman aboard Royal Princess, on her first Princess cruise ever, proclaiming it her last because of this very 'design fault'.

 

;)

Edited April 26, 2014 by dmwnc1959

[dmwnc1959]

I agree with the problems with the production shows. Way too short only 30 minutes.

 

Aren't the main production shows now 30 minutes long on all Princess ships. They were when I was on Ruby Princess last year.

[caribill]

Aren't the main production shows now 30 minutes long on all Princess ships. They were when I was on Ruby Princess last year.

 

Unfortunately, almost all, and not just production shows, all the Princess Theater entertainment.

 

And the excuse that they made them shorter so that they could fit in three shows an evening so more people could see them does not fly. On my 7-day CB cruise this year, there were only two performances on 3 of the evenings.

[GottaLuvCruising]

Unfortunately, almost all, and not just production shows, all the Princess Theater entertainment.

 

And the excuse that they made them shorter so that they could fit in three shows an evening so more people could see them does not fly. On my 7-day CB cruise this year, there were only two performances on 3 of the evenings.

 

I prefer the 45 min shows we used to enjoy. The worst thing about the short shows is that you must get into the theater early to get a seat, so you sit for an extended time just waiting. We - and many other guests - got into the routine of bringing a book or tablet with us to keep busy while waiting (in those cramped seats). On other Princess ships, we always ordered a drink before the show, but there is absolutely no place to put your drink on the Royal and unless you are close to the aisle, server can't reach you anyway.

[kendon]

I actually liked the peacock statue, and if you had read the name plate on the artwork, you would have seen that it was indeed made from scrap metal.

 

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5499/11566047343_8c139388d6_c.jpg

 

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5535/11566052266_c87f5743be_z.jpg

 

 

And as Caribill said, the Grand-class ships are all designed the same way as far as the location and access to the Allegro Dining room. I overheard one woman aboard Royal Princess, on her first Princess cruise ever, proclaiming it her last because of this very 'design fault'.

 

;)

 

This one "design fault" really ruined her cruise? Geez... bye bye

[kendon]

I prefer the 45 min shows we used to enjoy. The worst thing about the short shows is that you must get into the theater early to get a seat, so you sit for an extended time just waiting. We - and many other guests - got into the routine of bringing a book or tablet with us to keep busy while waiting (in those cramped seats). On other Princess ships, we always ordered a drink before the show, but there is absolutely no place to put your drink on the Royal and unless you are close to the aisle, server can't reach you anyway.

 

Some theaters where I live don't allow food or drinks so for the 1/2 hour or 45 minutes in the Princess theater without, it's no big deal. Bring a book or tablet, or engage in conversation with those around you to kill time. It's really only minutes...

[bluesea321]

Some theaters where I live don't allow food or drinks so for the 1/2 hour or 45 minutes in the Princess theater without, it's no big deal. Bring a book or tablet, or engage in conversation with those around you to kill time. It's really only minutes...

 

Apples and oranges... The theaters where you live have assigned seating. You can get there 1/2 hour to 45 minutes early, linger around the lobby, get a drink or snack, people watch, chat if you wish, and then go in 5-10 minutes before the show and read the program. No such choices in the Princess theater. In addition, the shows in NY, be it Broadway, Symphony, Opera, etc usually last 2 hours or more. On the Royal getting there 30 minutes early for a 30 minute show is quite a different experience.

[caribill]

Some theaters where I live don't allow food or drinks so for the 1/2 hour or 45 minutes in the Princess theater without, it's no big deal. Bring a book or tablet, or engage in conversation with those around you to kill time. It's really only minutes...

 

A difference is that Princess likes to sell drinks to those waiting in the theater for a show.

 

With no place to put a drink, sales must be way down.

 

Whatever $$$ Princess saved in not building in a place for drinks is probably outweighed in the long term by lower profits from beverage sales.

[yenta]

"Go with the flow or don't go". There a lot of other things to do on the ship if you don't like waiting.

[caribill]

The worst thing about the short shows is that you must get into the theater early to get a seat, so you sit for an extended time just waiting.

 

When we exit the theater after attending an early show, we pass a long line of people who have been waiting on that line just to get into the theater so they can then wait 30 minutes or more for their show.

[janetz]

A difference is that Princess likes to sell drinks to those waiting in the theater for a show.

 

With no place to put a drink, sales must be way down.

 

Whatever $$$ Princess saved in not building in a place for drinks is probably outweighed in the long term by lower profits from beverage sales.

 

 

That is exactly what I was thinking.

[Woobstr112G]

Apples and oranges... The theaters where you live have assigned seating. You can get there 1/2 hour to 45 minutes early, linger around the lobby, get a drink or snack, people watch, chat if you wish, and then go in 5-10 minutes before the show and read the program. No such choices in the Princess theater. In addition, the shows in NY, be it Broadway, Symphony, Opera, etc usually last 2 hours or more. On the Royal getting there 30 minutes early for a 30 minute show is quite a different experience.

 

 

I agree.....:):):)

 

Bob

[kendon]

Apples and oranges... The theaters where you live have assigned seating. You can get there 1/2 hour to 45 minutes early, linger around the lobby, get a drink or snack, people watch, chat if you wish, and then go in 5-10 minutes before the show and read the program. No such choices in the Princess theater. In addition, the shows in NY, be it Broadway, Symphony, Opera, etc usually last 2 hours or more. On the Royal getting there 30 minutes early for a 30 minute show is quite a different experience.

 

Yes, but the theaters near me won't allow entry if you're one minute late, so it's best to be at least 15 minutes early to prevent being shut out.

[dmwnc1959]

When we exit the theater after attending an early show, we pass a long line of people who have been waiting on that line just to get into the theater so they can then wait 30 minutes or more for their show.

 

Had the exact same experience on Allure of the Seas; people who had reserved their show times weeks, possibly months in advance, to stand in line 30 minutes waiting to get in, then wait another 30-45 minutes or longer for the show to begin. And then there were those in the Stand-By line. Yikes!

 

Unfortunately there are no mass market ships that can fit everyone into a particular venue that all want to get in to the same show at the same time, and that's why the most popular show times have wait lines or early crowds.

[caribill]

Had the exact same experience on Allure of the Seas; people who had reserved their show times weeks, possibly months in advance, to stand in line 30 minutes waiting to get in, then wait another 30-45 minutes or longer for the show to begin. And then there were those in the Stand-By line. Yikes!

 

 

Right. Booking a show in advance for the Displacement of the Seas just means you will get a seat (if there at least 10 minutes before the show), but not necessarily the seat you would like. Thus the lineup just as if you had never made a reservation.

 

I do not see the sense of committing to a particular show time weeks in advance of a cruise when you have no idea what else might be offered at the same time as other activities may be what you would be more interested in doing that evening.

[yoyosma]

Right. Booking a show in advance for the Displacement of the Seas just means you will get a seat (if there at least 10 minutes before the show), but not necessarily the seat you would like. Thus the lineup just as if you had never made a reservation.

 

I do not see the sense of committing to a particular show time weeks in advance of a cruise when you have no idea what else might be offered at the same time as other activities may be what you would be more interested in doing that evening.

 

Displacement of the Seas - perfect! I just tend to call those ships Otis.

[dmwnc1959]

Right. Booking a show in advance for the Displacement of the Seas just means you will get a seat (if there at least 10 minutes before the show), but not necessarily the seat you would like. Thus the lineup just as if you had never made a reservation.

 

I do not see the sense of committing to a particular show time weeks in advance of a cruise when you have no idea what else might be offered at the same time as other activities may be what you would be more interested in doing that evening.

 

 

NCL's new Breakaway-class, similar in size to the Royal-class ships, also have a reservations system for shows, dining venues, etc. So it's not just the Oasis-class. I just used that as a reference to an experience I had had on another cruise line.

 

I guess my point was that people will line up for a show early, regardless of whether or not they have made a reservation, at venues that do not offer specific assigned seating in order to get a good seat.

 

.

Edited April 27, 2014 by dmwnc1959

[caribill]

NCL's new Breakaway-class, similar in size to the Royal-class ships, also have a reservations system for shows, dining venues, etc. So it's not just the Oasis-class. I just used that as a reference to an experience I had had on another cruise line.

 

I guess my point was that people will line up for a show early, regardless of whether or not they have made a reservation, at venues that do not offer specific assigned seating in order to get a good seat.

 

.

 

RCCL also issues tickets for their ice shows, but this is done onbaord when passengers can know what other activities are scheduled at the same times as the ice show performances.

 

The lines for these performances are there before the show, but not very large as many seats around an ice rink have a good view and there is not as much of a need to be first into the seats.

[dmwnc1959]

RCCL also issues tickets for their ice shows, but this is done onbaord when passengers can know what other activities are scheduled at the same times as the ice show performances.

 

The lines for these performances are there before the show, but not very large as many seats around an ice rink have a good view and there is not as much of a need to be first into the seats.

 

 

My week aboard Allure of the Seas was probably the most in-advance structuring and scheduling I've ever had to do, yet I personally didn't mind and found it to be part of the fun of making sure I did everything I wanted to do, when I wanted to do it. But it still allowed me to have some 'time off' for other activities when I wasn't headed for one of my dining or entertainment reservstions.

 

However, I'm just grateful at this point that Princess Cruises hasn't gone to any type of advance reservations system for their alternative/casual dining venues and various showrooms. :D