Live From Discovery New Year's Cruise 12/28 - 1/7/22 10 day Sea of Cortez and Mexican Riviera

[elycelynne]

Thanks so much for this thread and the accompanying photos.  I'll be on the January 14th sailing and while I know that my sailing is only a 7-day itinerary, it helps to get a general idea of activities, food, entertainment, etc.  Enjoy!

[mjceditor]

Medallion Net, a little slow but works fine.

We were able to stream a show on Hulu so

all is good. Medallion App works but occasionally

drops the Internet connection.

 

Crooners Bar last night at 6;15 was full but we were able to get seats. Service was slow and our waitress was apologetic.

 

Skagway dining room was good. Dinner was typical and

service was very good. We asked if we could reserve our table for 7pm so the hostess put our room number down. We will see what happens tonight. In the past our request for the same table has been granted.

 

Now the VERY annoying part, our cabin midship has a constant clicking noise. When I see our neighbors on either side of us I will ask them if they hear it also. When we see the cabin steward i will bring it to his attention. I can’t believe that we are the first to hear this noise so I’m thinking it can’t be fixed.

[seagunthera]

We were invited to the 360 Experience last evening and while I can't say much (because we promised we wouldn't), I can tell you that if you are ever invited, drop what you have planned that night and go!  The food was superb as was the wine, ambiance, and entertainment. 

91341699-0380-4080-9419-45B46036D6E6.heic

[iamaqt2]

22 minutes ago, mjceditor said:

Medallion Net, a little slow but works fine.

We were able to stream a show on Hulu so

all is good. Medallion App works but occasionally

drops the Internet connection.

 

Crooners Bar last night at 6;15 was full but we were able to get seats. Service was slow and our waitress was apologetic.

 

Skagway dining room was good. Dinner was typical and

service was very good. We asked if we could reserve our table for 7pm so the hostess put our room number down. We will see what happens tonight. In the past our request for the same table has been granted.

 

Now the VERY annoying part, our cabin midship has a constant clicking noise. When I see our neighbors on either side of us I will ask them if they hear it also. When we see the cabin steward i will bring it to his attention. I can’t believe that we are the first to hear this noise so I’m thinking it can’t be fixed.

We were told upon checking in for our dinner reservation that if we liked our table to let them know when we were leaving and we could reserve it for the whole cruise.  Well, even though the service was so-so,  we liked the table,  so we stopped to do just that on our way out, and whoever left just before us gave our table number so they told us it was already taken. I'm guessing it was the couple next to us who left just ahead of us who accidentally gave the wrong table number. Or maybe not so accidentally.  It was an end table and not between anyone.  Either way I wasn't that committed to our server so better luck on my next roll of the dice.

[LACruiser88]

The Fitness Center was packed this morning.  I had to wait 20 minutes for an elliptical machine.

 

You can really feel the "full ship" feel onboard.  In our 90+ sea days since the start-up, this is the most passengers we have had onboard.

[CruiseRookieSteve]

2 hours ago, elycelynne said:

Thanks so much for this thread and the accompanying photos.  I'll be on the January 14th sailing and while I know that my sailing is only a 7-day itinerary, it helps to get a general idea of activities, food, entertainment, etc.  Enjoy!

I hope it is OK to post this link here. I post tons of photos, videos and commentary from each of my cruises, too many to post here. I have a lot of photos and comments from our first day on this cruise posted at: http://www.cruiserookies.com/photos/2022/12/2022l28a/

Despite the look of it, there have never been any paid ads on this website yet, just links to my other travel related blogs. They have all just been an unpaid labor of love. The internet speed has been good so I've been able to upload everything without a problem. If you can't view it until you get home, no problem. Every report I've posted since my first cruise before 2008 is there and will stay forever.

[julie3fan]

This is our 1st time on the Discovery, and she really is a pretty ship.  We're in an obstructed view deluxe balcony cabin on deck 8, and I don't think it's my imagination, but the bathroom seems quite a bit smaller than others we're used to.  Is it just me, or do any of you feel the same way?

[californiagirl]

CruiseRookie wow, great albums!  Thank you for sharing the link.  

[CruiseRookieSteve]

20 minutes ago, julie3fan said:

This is our 1st time on the Discovery, and she really is a pretty ship.  We're in an obstructed view deluxe balcony cabin on deck 8, and I don't think it's my imagination, but the bathroom seems quite a bit smaller than others we're used to.  Is it just me, or do any of you feel the same way?

The bathroom seems a bit smaller than my memory of other cruises, but my perspective may be off as we treated ourselves to a suite on our last cruise and the bathroom had a full spa tub with 2 sinks. This time we booked a Deluxe Balcony and bid $100 for an upgrade. We weren't sure if the extra would be worth it, but we won the bid and now have a huge balcony 3 times the size of the one we had with our suite cabin on our prior cruise. Definitely was worth it.

[jtcoolk]

How's the weather on your first sea day?

[iamaqt2]

39 minutes ago, jtcoolk said:

How's the weather on your first sea day?

Light overcast, calm seas, overall nice day. 60 degrees.

 

[LACruiser88]

Today we had lunch at the Ocean Terrace Seafood Bar.  It was very good for cruise ship sushi.  We will definitely have it one more time before we disembark.

[c-boy]

2 hours ago, LACruiser88 said:

Today we had lunch at the Ocean Terrace Seafood Bar.  It was very good for cruise ship sushi.  We will definitely have it one more time before we disembark.

hawt damn I like your attitude !

[iamaqt2]

I'm gonna digress from my daily post to do a critic part of Cruise Critic.

I had no plans to get off in Cabo, so I had decided to make a day of being on the ship.  I hustled to get on board to book a cabana for the day in the Sanctuary.  I had prebooked and prepaid for the Ultimate Balcony Dinner for two.  Room service had called and left a message yesterday about my reservation but the line was busy when I tried calling back. Upon calling back and trying to set up my dinner plans today, room service informed me that they couldn't do my dinner on the day I had booked for because they were fully booked that evening.  Other times and dates offered didn't work for me so I asked them just to refund it. They informed me that they couldn't and Guest Services would have to deal with it.  They told me to contact the desk.

So I called Guest Services who told me they couldn't see it on my booking, even though it was clearly on my travel summary.   So I decided to go down to the desk and deal with it in person.  

At the desk they found my reservation and all I asked for was a refund as room service couldnt accommodate my requested date. But Rahul, the agent tried to be so helpful and called to see if there was any way they could do it.  They said no as the Sky Suites had booked it for that evening.  

I then asked if they could arrange to cancel my cabana reservation as well because I had planned the whole day around that and dinner.  No problem, all canceled,  head back to room to revise and revisit that day.  I was frustrated as things happen,  but here is where things broke down.

Shortly after arriving back to the room I get a phone call from room service asking if I was able to get my refund.  I assumed this was just a follow up call, so told the gentleman yes, I had called to ask for a refund and they couldn't locate my booking, so I went down to the desk and it was all handled. End of conversation,  or so I thought.

Phone rings less than a minute later and now the same gentleman says if I want they can now somehow magically do my dinner.  I lost it.  I said, I literally just went downstairs and canceled my whole day, and now you're calling to ask me if I want it? This is unacceptable.   And I hung up. I was ugly crying at this point I was so upset.

He literally called back less than 15 seconds later and my husband had to deal with him.  He asked my husband if we still wanted to do it and I'm like absolutely not.  And my husband tells him you made my wife cry and she's not dealing with you right now and if we want it we'll let you know.  And hung up.

Now I don't get upset easily, and I want to be clear, I was angry crying, not upset crying.  I'm still sitting here fuming over this encounter 30 minutes later and venting to all of you.

I'm now getting ready for dinner and plotting how to maximize my beverage package tonight.

[LACruiser88]

@iamaqt2 Wow!  So sorry for your experience, they real effed that up.  Hope you have a better evening.  🍷

[CruiseRookieSteve]

23 minutes ago, iamaqt2 said:

I'm gonna digress from my daily post to do a critic part of Cruise Critic.

 

Sorry to hear about your difficulties. Hopefully the staff will find some way to make it up to you. I think many of us have had days like that in cruising, but hopefully not very often. 

[startedwithamouse]

3 hours ago, LACruiser88 said:

Today we had lunch at the Ocean Terrace Seafood Bar.  It was very good for cruise ship sushi.  We will definitely have it one more time before we disembark.

Delicious we love Ocean Terrace.  Pro-tip - since your cruise is crowded, they will start to run out of the popular items. Eat there as much as you can.  We have apps there, then head to dinner. 

Edited December 30, 2022 by startedwithamouse

[startedwithamouse]

33 minutes ago, iamaqt2 said:

I'm gonna digress from my daily post to do a critic part of Cruise Critic.

I had no plans to get off in Cabo, so I had decided to make a day of being on the ship.  I hustled to get on board to book a cabana for the day in the Sanctuary.  I had prebooked and prepaid for the Ultimate Balcony Dinner for two.  Room service had called and left a message yesterday about my reservation but the line was busy when I tried calling back. Upon calling back and trying to set up my dinner plans today, room service informed me that they couldn't do my dinner on the day I had booked for because they were fully booked that evening.  Other times and dates offered didn't work for me so I asked them just to refund it. They informed me that they couldn't and Guest Services would have to deal with it.  They told me to contact the desk.

So I called Guest Services who told me they couldn't see it on my booking, even though it was clearly on my travel summary.   So I decided to go down to the desk and deal with it in person.  

At the desk they found my reservation and all I asked for was a refund as room service couldnt accommodate my requested date. But Rahul, the agent tried to be so helpful and called to see if there was any way they could do it.  They said no as the Sky Suites had booked it for that evening.  

I then asked if they could arrange to cancel my cabana reservation as well because I had planned the whole day around that and dinner.  No problem, all canceled,  head back to room to revise and revisit that day.  I was frustrated as things happen,  but here is where things broke down.

Shortly after arriving back to the room I get a phone call from room service asking if I was able to get my refund.  I assumed this was just a follow up call, so told the gentleman yes, I had called to ask for a refund and they couldn't locate my booking, so I went down to the desk and it was all handled. End of conversation,  or so I thought.

Phone rings less than a minute later and now the same gentleman says if I want they can now somehow magically do my dinner.  I lost it.  I said, I literally just went downstairs and canceled my whole day, and now you're calling to ask me if I want it? This is unacceptable.   And I hung up. I was ugly crying at this point I was so upset.

He literally called back less than 15 seconds later and my husband had to deal with him.  He asked my husband if we still wanted to do it and I'm like absolutely not.  And my husband tells him you made my wife cry and she's not dealing with you right now and if we want it we'll let you know.  And hung up.

Now I don't get upset easily, and I want to be clear, I was angry crying, not upset crying.  I'm still sitting here fuming over this encounter 30 minutes later and venting to all of you.

I'm now getting ready for dinner and plotting how to maximize my beverage package tonight.

They are understaffed.  They also don't want to refund your money.  Ridiculous. Sorry this happened to y'all. It's not room service fault, nor guest services. It's a higher up behind the scenes who doesn't want to refund. 

[suekel]

17 hours ago, iamaqt2 said:

Woke up to sunny skies after a rainy night.  Headed over to the Happy Diner for breakfast for a real locals experience.  Had the ILWU (Longshoreman Warehouse Union workers) breakfast special.  Way too much food but I just had to go for it.

 

 

 

Shuttled over to port at 9:30. Checked in at 10. Waited in Platinum seating area and onboard just around 11.  Very smooth. Popped up to the Sanctuary to make chair and cabana reservations.

Dropped smaller bags in room then off to muster.  Had lunch at Gigi's which was absolutely fantastic.  The Agnolotti (lamb ravioli) is out of this world good.

 

 

 

 

After lunch headed back to room as it was ready, and founs this great photo album waiting for us, as well as the daily planner.

 

 

 

 

 

Chilled out on our huge balcony for a bit, and bags arrived at 2:45. Unpacked and bags stowed by 3:15.

 

Headed out to Lido for sailaway as it just gets me in a great mood for the cruise no matter how many times I've seen it.  And love the Love Boat theme playing on the ships horn.  

 

 

Decided to check out the Platinum, Elite,  Suite lounge this sailing, as I hit Platinum 2 cruises ago and have yet to attend.  Having heard that not many go I was shocked that close to 100 people must have shown up.  It is from 4:30 - 6:30 in the Vista Lounge.  The snacks were good and there was a pianist.

 

 

 

We had a 6:00 dinner reservation in Skagway so didn't eat much and headed off to Good Spirits to grab a drink before heading to dinner.

The starboard side of Skagway was for Club Class and port side had 2 lines, one for those with reservations and one for those without.  Neither line was very long just before 6, but was insanely long when we left at 7:45.  I had checked the menu on the app ahead of time to figure out what I wanted, and this is where Princess let me down.  2 items I had preselected to eat were described differently in the app vs. the actual menu.  I was really looking forward to the app version of the Marinated Goat Cheese Antipasto as the app describes it as coming with spinach and beets.  And the Salmon was described in the app as having a red wine reduction with Mashed potatoes and collard greens and leeks.  I just asked for no rice and sub Mashed potatoes, but they were just bland.

We also had the Garlic Prawns, and while mine were cooked perfectly, there wasn't even a hint of garlic, and my husband said his prawns were shrimp cocktail cold.  It wasn't a terrible dish, just not what was advertised. My salmon and the pork tenderloin that my husband ordered were cooked perfectly though. The best thing that landed on the table was the Pina Colada soup.  We joked about ordering it again for dessert, but got the souffle and Creme Brulee instead.  Service was disjointed at times, with new dishes being delivered before replacement silver, and then the new silver was just plunked on the edge of the table. Definitely not something I've experienced before and our server didn't seem new, just very disorganized. And we only saw our assistant waiter twice.  Once to order wine and once to ask for coffee. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had planned to try and make it to the 9:30 comedy show but decided to call it an early night.

If this post loads, the internet is working great. 

I'm on her a week from Saturday.  So happy they haven't changed the menu yet.  On the Regal later in the month and they have so I better load up on Onion Soup and Fettucine!

[XBGuy]

3 hours ago, LACruiser88 said:

Today we had lunch at the Ocean Terrace Seafood Bar.  It was very good for cruise ship sushi.  We will definitely have it one more time before we disembark.

 

 

A few years ago we took our first cruise on the Royal Princess--a nice 14-day Los Angeles-Alaska round-tripper.   We were pretty excited about being able to order Oysters on the Half-Shell at the Ocean Terrace seafood bar.

 

It took a couple days for us to get to it, but we found seats at a table and settled in.  I ordered a bottle of Albarino, which I noticed is not currently offered on the Discovery Princess ☹️, and Mrs. XBGuy asked the server where their oysters were from.

 

"Texas"

 

I quickly thought to myself, "This is September.  September has a 'R' in it."

 

No dice.  Mrs. XBGuy is very leery of Gulf oysters.  Apologies to readers who enjoy Gulf oysters.  She could not believe that Texas oysters were being served on a West Coast cruise.

 

We found something else to order, and very much enjoyed our wine.  The Ocean Terrace is a very nice venue.

 

We were also able to enjoy Alaska oysters in Ketchikan and Skagway.

 

 

 

We are big fans of the Ultimate Balcony Dinner.  I am really sorry that @iamaqt2 and her husband encountered their difficulty.

[iamaqt2]

1 hour ago, LACruiser88 said:

@iamaqt2 Wow!  So sorry for your experience, they real effed that up.  Hope you have a better evening.  🍷

I'm out enjoying the ship and drinking the bars dry.  I'm exacting my revenge lol. 

 

1 hour ago, CruiseRookieSteve said:

Sorry to hear about your difficulties. Hopefully the staff will find some way to make it up to you. I think many of us have had days like that in cruising, but hopefully not very often. 

It happens.  I wasn't even mad til the phone calls.  I don't expect anything except my refund and not to get any crap about canceling my Sanctuary reservation.   The guy running it made sure to tell me they'd charge me if I was late or a no show.  Guest Services was great about making sure to kick any issues back to them.

1 hour ago, startedwithamouse said:

They are understaffed.  They also don't want to refund your money.  Ridiculous. Sorry this happened to y'all. It's not room service fault, nor guest services. It's a higher up behind the scenes who doesn't want to refund. 

I don't doubt it.  I even felt bad for hanging up on the guy after I calmed down.  But at least I didn't say anything I'd regret later.  

[iamaqt2]

ANNNNNDDD.. now for HUGE PROPS to Princess on service recovery.   Because if I'm going to complain, I'm also going to compliment.  

I'm sitting in Good Spirits enjoying some 🍸  and 🎶 and waiting for the Captains Gala introduction of all the officers by Armondo the cruise director. And who should pop by my table but Rahul from guest services in his formal uniform for the evening.  To tell me that he emailed everyone higher up and made sure that my dinner was going to happen and to not worry about a thing.  What time did I want it?  And he'd try and make sure I could still have my cabana reservations.  

You're all getting this in real time, so my emotions are all over the board here.

And who the hell is cutting onions in here?

[c-boy]

Just remeber karma

[startedwithamouse]

10 hours ago, iamaqt2 said:

We were told upon checking in for our dinner reservation that if we liked our table to let them know when we were leaving and we could reserve it for the whole cruise.  Well, even though the service was so-so,  we liked the table,  so we stopped to do just that on our way out, and whoever left just before us gave our table number so they told us it was already taken. I'm guessing it was the couple next to us who left just ahead of us who accidentally gave the wrong table number. Or maybe not so accidentally.  It was an end table and not between anyone.  Either way I wasn't that committed to our server so better luck on my next roll of the dice.

Go there tomorrow and ask for the same table. Show up a little early. 

[LACruiser88]

Tonight our granddaughter found a cruise duck in the Piazza.  She had fun finding a new hiding place. 🦆