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

[LACruiser88]

Error...

 

Edited December 28, 2022 by LACruiser88

[nini]

12 hours ago, iamaqt2 said:

Travel today was unpleasant to say the least.  I won't bore you with the small details, but will say that SeaTac airport was a mess at 2:30 am.  I can't imagine how much worse it got throughout the day.  Southwest really messed up peoples plans for travel.
First leg of flight SEA to SFO hit the weather band NorCal was getting and caused quite a bit of turbulence.  No FA cart service.  And a bumpy descent and landing.  SFO to LAX was a short hop but pretty bumpy as well.  Captain came on and said we found a pocket of calm air you have 3-5 minutes to use the restroom.
All luggage arrived quickly, even our carryons we had to gate check in Seattle.  But the bags were really damp.  Makes me glad we use packing cubes.
The taxi/rideshare situation at LAX was a new one to me.  They shuttle you to a different location where you get your transportation.  UBER from LAX to Crowne Plaza was around 80 with tip.  Our driver was very pleasant and handled a scary situation on the freeway flawlessly. He had over 18000 rides.. this guy was a pro.
I had done pre check-in for Crowne Plaza the day before and received an email at 7 am that I was all checked in and keys would be waiting for me at the desk. We booked a King Harborview room. But upon arrival at 11 am I asked if there was a possibility to upgrade to a King Jr. Suite Harborview. They upgraded my room to a corner suite!  As an added bonus I'm Platinum Elite through my credit card so they gave me 2 free drink vouchers.  Those will come in handy after today.

 

 

 

We were pretty hungry by this time so decided to wander out and grab a bite to eat.  We've eaten at the San Pedro Brewing Co. before and they were opening at 11:30 so the stars aligned and that's where we landed.  They're a very short 2 block walk from the hotel. Ordered up a round of celebratory brews for surviving SWArmageddon and then grabbed some hot wings and split a Smoked Brisket Sandwich.  Now I'm ashamed to say I was really hungry and forgot to snap a pic, but that sandwich was GOOD.  Super tender brisket with caramelized onions and melted jack cheese on a toasty roll with au jus for dipping. And the au jus was really good, not overly salty. We got our fries Gaffey style which has melted cheese, bacon bits and green onions with ranch dipping sauce.  I have to say, I had both the blue cheese with the wings and the ranch with the fries and this is where they failed me.  I never thought of myself as a sauce connoisseur,  but these just had no flavor and were pretty runny. 

 

 

After lunch we found a small mini mart around the corner selling bottles of wine and hard liquors called the 7 Days Food Store. The wine selection actually surprised me, and the pricing wasn't too bad.

After this we headed back to the room because a carb coma was kicking in. Took a 3 hour nap and felt much better.

 

I'm a sucker for a good happy hour, so in searching restaurants nearby for dinner I came across Kalaveras.   I had sworn I wasn't going to eat Mexican food pre-cruise because of all the good food I planned to get off the ship.  But this place was sending out all the vibes I was looking for. And it was only 3 blocks away.  It had rained earlier, but was not raining when we walked over.
The cocktails were really good and the happy hour tacos were amazing.  And a steal at 3.50 each.

 

 

 

 

Chamoynada and Tamarind margarita.  

 

Mezcal margarita with jalapeño and pineapple.

 

Paloma Negro

 

Esquites was so good.  It was fresh shaved off the cob not frozen corn.

 

Shrimp Taco, Mushroom Taco, and Pork Belly Taco.

 

2 Barbacoa Tacos and Mushroom Taco.

 

Dolly Parton never promised you a rose garden, but this place does......

In the bathroom.

 

Walked back to the hotel in light rain and used our free drink vouchers in the bar. There were a few fellow cruisers chatting away.
Headed back to the room for an early night.
Getting up early to go eat at a cute little place we walked by called Happy Diner.  I like the name, so decided to have breakfast there.

 

 

Fellow Washingtonian- I am so glad you arrived safely and in a timely manner! We also took an Uber from LAX (2018) and our driver was fantastic (cheap then at $35.00) .We chatted about things we had in common after being born and raised in S. CAl. We also stayed at the Crowne Plaza.

 

Ugh... you did great on the restaurants. Especially the Mexican food.

[KLM3164]

For those recommending Pipi’s and Joe Jacks in PV, are you able to walk to these restaurants from the ship or do you need to take a taxi? We will be in PV in February and would like to try one of these recommendations. TIA.

[mjceditor]

You will need a Taxi for Pipi’s. Don’t let the taxi driver talk you out of going there. Last year the Taxi driver said Pipi’s has gone downhill, not true!

[LACruiser88]

26 minutes ago, KLM3164 said:

For those recommending Pipi’s and Joe Jacks in PV, are you able to walk to these restaurants from the ship or do you need to take a taxi? We will be in PV in February and would like to try one of these recommendations. TIA.

Pipi's is in the old town of PV.  A few blocks in from the Malecón.

[AngryDog77]

 

Good morning from Palos Verdes, where it's clear, wet  and 60 deg.   The ship is

in port, looks a little overcast. 

 

Kudos to iamqt2 for finding good restaurants in downtown Pedro.  Kalavaras is in

the old Neil's space and is doing well.    Lots of history in old town San P.

 

Andales is an OC housewives favorite in Puerto Vallarta.   It's near Joe Jacks. 

 

See you on board!

[LACruiser88]

We are onboard!  We arrived at 12:45 and we were in our cabin 20 minutes later.

 

This is our first time on the Discovery and so far we are impressed by how new and clean the ship looks (it should right?). 

 

We had a very nice lunch at Gigi's and then went along with our DD, SIL and 8 yr old granddaughter to register her at the kid's club.  We were told that there are 300 passengers under 18 on this voyage.

 

Our luggage was waiting for us upon our return to the cabin.  Unpacking...

 

 

 

 

Edited December 28, 2022 by LACruiser88

[that]

[LACruiser88]

Here is the passenger count for this cruise:

 

Blue-           1036

Gold-           624

Ruby-          351

Platinum-  764

Elite-           686

 

Total=         3,461

[mjceditor]

At the Port at 11:20

On the ship at 11:45

In our Cabin at 1pm

It’s 3:45pm no luggage yet .

 

[goneracin22]

Very smooth boarding. Room was ready when we boarded at 1 pm. Waiting for 1 bag.

[c-boy]

Marine Traffic shows your pushin' water... happy caaarrrruuuisin.

[LACruiser88]

4 minutes ago, c-boy said:

Marine Traffic shows your pushin' water... happy caaarrrruuuisin.

Thank you.  We are moving very sloooowly!

[c-boy]

19 minutes ago, LACruiser88 said:

Thank you.  We are moving very sloooowly!

I'm talking about the ship not you  ..... 🤣

[mjceditor]

1 hour ago, mjceditor said:

At the Port at 11:20

On the ship at 11:45

In our Cabin at 1pm

It’s 3:45pm no luggage yet .

 

Luggage arrived at 4:30…. 

[Scores11]

Having a hell of a time with the app.  Do I use the app or the medallion.net?   The app just spins when I click on stuff.  I’m extremely computer savvy but this is frustrating. Just want too see what entertainment is happening tonight.   . 

[startedwithamouse]

54 minutes ago, Scores11 said:

Having a hell of a time with the app.  Do I use the app or the medallion.net?   The app just spins when I click on stuff.  I’m extremely computer savvy but this is frustrating. Just want too see what entertainment is happening tonight.   . 

Log in with your cabin number and name, and it will work. You can also ask for a patter at guest services, or use the information boards around the ship.

[startedwithamouse]

55 minutes ago, Scores11 said:

Having a hell of a time with the app.  Do I use the app or the medallion.net?   The app just spins when I click on stuff.  I’m extremely computer savvy but this is frustrating. Just want too see what entertainment is happening tonight.   . 

Just reread - the internet is probably overloaded and will be subpar, at best, with your passenger count. 

[CruiseRookieSteve]

2 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

Just reread - the internet is probably overloaded and will be subpar, at best, with your passenger count. 

App and internet working fantastic for me! My wife's app got stuck. I had to delete it and re-install it and set it up from scratch to get it working properly. Works fine now. I have 3 devices logged onto my 4 device internet plan and 2 on my wife's internet plan. I tried to get our Kindle Oasis connected but it refuses to come up with the logon screen.

[LACruiser88]

6 minutes ago, CruiseRookieSteve said:

App and internet working fantastic for me! My wife's app got stuck. I had to delete it and re-install it and set it up from scratch to get it working properly. Works fine now. I have 3 devices logged onto my 4 device internet plan and 2 on my wife's internet plan. I tried to get our Kindle Oasis connected but it refuses to come up with the logon screen.

Same here, no issues with either.  

[CruiseRookieSteve]

Any wine lovers onboard? Please post if you hear of any wine tasting events. They have many good wines by the glass,  especially for the Premier Drinks Package, but the wine lists at every bar and restaurant is totally inaccurate. We ate at Gigi's and figured we'd order Chianti to go with our Italian dinner, but they don't have any. Instead we went to the Crown Grill Bar which lists they have Chianti, but they don't. But they do have Amarone, our favorite Italian wine, but it is not on their wine list. You just have to totally ignore the wine list at every bsr and restaurant and just ask exactly what they do have by the glass. Also Premier Drinks Package only covers drink costs up to $18 per glass. It doesn't go up to $20 per glass until the new Premier price of $75 per day goes into effect.

[CruiseRookieSteve]

I vote for Vines rather than having replaced it with Salty Dog Gastropub. But then I'm a wine lover and not so much into fried fast food. I miss the wine flights and extensive list of wines by the glass at Vines.

[iamaqt2]

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. 

[iamaqt2]

23 minutes ago, CruiseRookieSteve said:

I vote for Vines rather than having replaced it with Salty Dog Gastropub. But then I'm a wine lover and not so much into fried fast food. I miss the wine flights and extensive list of wines by the glass at Vines.

I second that sentiment.  Salty Dog Gastropub just isn't all that. 

[LACruiser88]