Live from the Crown Princess–r/t LA-Hawai’i–March 2-17, 2023

[travelin.sisters]

Sea Day~March 15

DaVinci Dinner

Tonight we were back to waiting for our table, sigh….

 

 

 

 

Starters: bay scallop cocktail, twice-baked goat cheese souffle (excellent), cobb salad (very good)

 

 

 

 

 

Entrées: bouillabaisse fish stew with saffron aïoli crouton (good), carved beef tenderloin with romesco sauce (very good)

 

 

 

Desserts: mignardises, sea salt caramel pot de creme, chocoholic cheesecake (good)

 

 

List of my posts in this LIVE: 

• Introduction~post 1

• Pre-cruise: packing~post 10

• Pre-cruise:  booking & trip prep~post 29

• Pre-cruise: last day stuff & weather~ post 43

• Embarkation Day~March 2: good morning, looking forward to boarding~post 67

• Embarkation. Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Star (19), Sky (18) & Sport (17) decks aft~post 69

• Embarkation Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Sun Deck (16) with Sports & Sky Decks midship & forward~post 70

• Embarkation Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Lido Deck (15)~post 75

• Embarkation Day~March 2: back to the cabin~Aloha Deck (12)~post 78

• Embarkation Day~March 2:  the papers & the patter~post 89

• Embarkation Day~March 2: DaVinci dinner~post 104

• Embarkation Day~March 2: wrap up & random thoughts~post 114

• Sea Day~March 3: good (very early) morning~post 142

• Sea Day~March 3: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 147

• Sea Day~March 3: mid-morning adventures~post 148

• Sea Day~March 3: lunch & a (mostly) lazy afternoon~post 149

• Sea Day~March 3: DaVinci dinner~post 150

• Sea Day~March 3: wrap up & random thoughts~post 151

• Sea Day~March 4: a (not so early) morning & DaVinci breakfast~post 167

• Sea Day~March 4 buffet lunch & afternoon adventures~post 172

• Sea Day~March 4: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 173

• Sea Day~March 4: DaVinci dinner & evening~post 175

• Sea Day~March 4: wrap up & random thoughts~post 176

• Sea Day~March 5: another relaxing day & Salty Dog Grill lunch~post 204

• Sea Day~March 5: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 205

• Sea Day~March 5: formal night, DaVinci dinner & a show~post 206

• Sea Day~March 5: wrap up & random thoughts~post 208

• Sea Day~March 6: another beautiful morning~post 216

• Sea Day~March 6: pub lunch & elite tea, oh my!~post 221

• Sea Day~March 6: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 224

• Sea Day~March 6: DaVinci dinner~post 225

• Sea Day~March 6: wrap up & random thoughts~post 226

• Honolulu~March 7: good morning, Honolulu~post 228

• Honolulu~March 7: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 229

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~getting there~post 230

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~getting in~post 231

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~islands of polynesia~post 233

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~exploring the islands of polynesia~post 239

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~spending time in Samoa~post 240

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~enjoying the beauty~post 241

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~Gateway Buffet~post 249

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~Ha Breath of Life show, maps & flyers, thoughts~post 252

• Honolulu~March 7: onboard the Crown~post 253

• Honolulu~March 7: exploring the Crown Princess~Gala Deck (4)~post 254

• Honolulu~March 7: wrap up & random thoughts~post 261

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: adventures in Honolulu~post 263 

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 266

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: leaving for Maui~post 271

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: DaVinci dinner & a show~post 273

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: wrap up & random thoughts~post 267

• …& Not Maui~March 9: early morning sail in & whales~post 280

• …& Not Maui~March 9: patters, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 281

• …& Not Maui~March 9: unexpected day at sea~post 285

• …& Not Maui~March 9: DaVinci dinner~post 286

• …& Not Maui~March 9: wrap up & random thoughts~post 291

• Hilo~March 10: early morning, internet info, disembarkation in Hilo~post 296

• Hilo~March 10: Hilo historic downtown walking tour (part 1)~post 301

• Hilo~March 10: Hilo historic downtown walking tour (part 2)~post 307

• Hilo~March 10: Kalakaua Park~post 310

• Hilo~March 10: Mokupapapa Discovery Center~post 311

• Hilo~March 10: Pacific Tsunami Museum~post 313

• Hilo~March 10: around Hilo~post 314

• Hilo~March 10: shopping & Farmers Market~post 315

• Hilo~March 10: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 316

• Hilo~March 10: sail-away~post 319

• Hilo~March 10: DaVinci dinner~post 320

• Hilo~March 10: wrap up & random thoughts~post 321

• Sea Day~March 11: another day at sea~post 331

• Sea Day~March 11: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 332

• Sea Day~March 11: formal night & DaVinci dinner~post 333

• Sea Day~March 11: wrap up & random thoughts~post 334

• Sea Day~March 12: more moments at sea~post 339

• Sea Day~March 12: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 340

• Sea Day~March 12: DaVinci dinner & a show~post 341

• Sea Day~March 12: wrap up & random thoughts~post 342

• Sea Day~March 13: a day of surprises~post 354

• Sea Day~March 13: DaVinci lunch~post 356

• Sea Day~March 13: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 357

• Sea Day~March 13: Sabatini’s~post 359

• Sea Day~March 13: evening entertainment~post 360

• Sea Day~March 13: wrap up & random thoughts~post 361

• Sea Day~March 14: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 364

• Sea Day~March 14: formal night, captain's circle cocktail party, DaVinci dinner & a show~post 372

• Sea Day~March 14: wrap up & random thoughts~post 373

• Sea Day~March 15: one last day at sea~post 374 

• Sea Day~March 13: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 375

 

[jrobinso]

Thank you so much for taking me along on your cruise.  Your review was full of great information .

 

 

[travelin.sisters]

Sea Day~March 15

Wrap Up & Random Thoughts

 

Today, after several of you encouraged me, I went to the shore excursion desk to talk about our frustration with our excursion experience. I really wanted to address two issues with them: 1) that our driver told us to leave the show early at the Polynesian Cultural Center & 2) the selling of tours with specific things included & then later removing them with no adjustment in price. I did get a goodwill credit of $50 for each of us, which was nice, but left frustrated & feeling like my concerns were not really listened to. This seems to be a standard Princess response on ships, toss a little OBC at anyone who complains & then they will go away.

 

For the past several days, there has been a push for 10s on our post cruise surveys. The captain asked us to give his crew 10s both at yesterday’s Captain Circle party & in the Piazza tonight. Some of the dining room staff have been walking around with hats with 10s on them for days & at the presentation today they again exhorted us to give them 10s. I think if you want 10s on your survey you should spend more time giving your customers 10 service than telling them to rate poorer service as a 10. (This seems to be prevalent in many businesses now, I am tired of people telling me that they only get credit if they get the highest possible score). IMHO very little on the Crown was a 10, neither was anything (outside of our excursion issues) a very low score…this has been a solidly good but not outstanding cruise. 

 

 

Ok, this sounds really grumbly & I don’t want anyone to think this has not been a good cruise, because it has. There have, obviously, been some disappointments but most of them have been no one's fault & there have been a lot of good things about this cruise. We are glad we went & glad to be cruising. It just, in more than a few areas is not what it used to be. That said, for us, cruising is still one of the best ways for us to travel & a good deal compared to other options. 

 

List of my posts in this LIVE: 

• Introduction~post 1

• Pre-cruise: packing~post 10

• Pre-cruise:  booking & trip prep~post 29

• Pre-cruise: last day stuff & weather~ post 43

• Embarkation Day~March 2: good morning, looking forward to boarding~post 67

• Embarkation. Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Star (19), Sky (18) & Sport (17) decks aft~post 69

• Embarkation Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Sun Deck (16) with Sports & Sky Decks midship & forward~post 70

• Embarkation Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Lido Deck (15)~post 75

• Embarkation Day~March 2: back to the cabin~Aloha Deck (12)~post 78

• Embarkation Day~March 2:  the papers & the patter~post 89

• Embarkation Day~March 2: DaVinci dinner~post 104

• Embarkation Day~March 2: wrap up & random thoughts~post 114

• Sea Day~March 3: good (very early) morning~post 142

• Sea Day~March 3: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 147

• Sea Day~March 3: mid-morning adventures~post 148

• Sea Day~March 3: lunch & a (mostly) lazy afternoon~post 149

• Sea Day~March 3: DaVinci dinner~post 150

• Sea Day~March 3: wrap up & random thoughts~post 151

• Sea Day~March 4: a (not so early) morning & DaVinci breakfast~post 167

• Sea Day~March 4 buffet lunch & afternoon adventures~post 172

• Sea Day~March 4: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 173

• Sea Day~March 4: DaVinci dinner & evening~post 175

• Sea Day~March 4: wrap up & random thoughts~post 176

• Sea Day~March 5: another relaxing day & Salty Dog Grill lunch~post 204

• Sea Day~March 5: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 205

• Sea Day~March 5: formal night, DaVinci dinner & a show~post 206

• Sea Day~March 5: wrap up & random thoughts~post 208

• Sea Day~March 6: another beautiful morning~post 216

• Sea Day~March 6: pub lunch & elite tea, oh my!~post 221

• Sea Day~March 6: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 224

• Sea Day~March 6: DaVinci dinner~post 225

• Sea Day~March 6: wrap up & random thoughts~post 226

• Honolulu~March 7: good morning, Honolulu~post 228

• Honolulu~March 7: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 229

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~getting there~post 230

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~getting in~post 231

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~islands of polynesia~post 233

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~exploring the islands of polynesia~post 239

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~spending time in Samoa~post 240

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~enjoying the beauty~post 241

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~Gateway Buffet~post 249

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~Ha Breath of Life show, maps & flyers, thoughts~post 252

• Honolulu~March 7: onboard the Crown~post 253

• Honolulu~March 7: exploring the Crown Princess~Gala Deck (4)~post 254

• Honolulu~March 7: wrap up & random thoughts~post 261

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: adventures in Honolulu~post 263 

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 266

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: leaving for Maui~post 271

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: DaVinci dinner & a show~post 273

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: wrap up & random thoughts~post 267

• …& Not Maui~March 9: early morning sail in & whales~post 280

• …& Not Maui~March 9: patters, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 281

• …& Not Maui~March 9: unexpected day at sea~post 285

• …& Not Maui~March 9: DaVinci dinner~post 286

• …& Not Maui~March 9: wrap up & random thoughts~post 291

• Hilo~March 10: early morning, internet info, disembarkation in Hilo~post 296

• Hilo~March 10: Hilo historic downtown walking tour (part 1)~post 301

• Hilo~March 10: Hilo historic downtown walking tour (part 2)~post 307

• Hilo~March 10: Kalakaua Park~post 310

• Hilo~March 10: Mokupapapa Discovery Center~post 311

• Hilo~March 10: Pacific Tsunami Museum~post 313

• Hilo~March 10: around Hilo~post 314

• Hilo~March 10: shopping & Farmers Market~post 315

• Hilo~March 10: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 316

• Hilo~March 10: sail-away~post 319

• Hilo~March 10: DaVinci dinner~post 320

• Hilo~March 10: wrap up & random thoughts~post 321

• Sea Day~March 11: another day at sea~post 331

• Sea Day~March 11: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 332

• Sea Day~March 11: formal night & DaVinci dinner~post 333

• Sea Day~March 11: wrap up & random thoughts~post 334

• Sea Day~March 12: more moments at sea~post 339

• Sea Day~March 12: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 340

• Sea Day~March 12: DaVinci dinner & a show~post 341

• Sea Day~March 12: wrap up & random thoughts~post 342

• Sea Day~March 13: a day of surprises~post 354

• Sea Day~March 13: DaVinci lunch~post 356

• Sea Day~March 13: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 357

• Sea Day~March 13: Sabatini’s~post 359

• Sea Day~March 13: evening entertainment~post 360

• Sea Day~March 13: wrap up & random thoughts~post 361

• Sea Day~March 14: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 364

• Sea Day~March 14: formal night, captain's circle cocktail party, DaVinci dinner & a show~post 372

• Sea Day~March 14: wrap up & random thoughts~post 373

• Sea Day~March 15: one last day at sea~post 374 

• Sea Day~March 13: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 375

[Happiest when cruising]

1 hour ago, travelin.sisters said:

Sea Day~March 15

Wrap Up & Random Thoughts

 

Today, after several of you encouraged me, I went to the shore excursion desk to talk about our frustration with our excursion experience. I really wanted to address two issues with them: 1) that our driver told us to leave the show early at the Polynesian Cultural Center & 2) the selling of tours with specific things included & then later removing them with no adjustment in price. I did get a goodwill credit of $50 for each of us, which was nice, but left frustrated & feeling like my concerns were not really listened to. This seems to be a standard Princess response on ships, toss a little OBC at anyone who complains & then they will go away.

 

For the past several days, there has been a push for 10s on our post cruise surveys. The captain asked us to give his crew 10s both at yesterday’s Captain Circle party & in the Piazza tonight. Some of the dining room staff have been walking around with hats with 10s on them for days & at the presentation today they again exhorted us to give them 10s. I think if you want 10s on your survey you should spend more time giving your customers 10 service than telling them to rate poorer service as a 10. (This seems to be prevalent in many businesses now, I am tired of people telling me that they only get credit if they get the highest possible score). IMHO very little on the Crown was a 10, neither was anything (outside of our excursion issues) a very low score…this has been a solidly good but not outstanding cruise. 

 

 

Ok, this sounds really grumbly & I don’t want anyone to think this has not been a good cruise, because it has. There have, obviously, been some disappointments but most of them have been no one's fault & there have been a lot of good things about this cruise. We are glad we went & glad to be cruising. It just, in more than a few areas is not what it used to be. That said, for us, cruising is still one of the best ways for us to travel & a good deal compared to other options. 

 

List of my posts in this LIVE: 

• Introduction~post 1

• Pre-cruise: packing~post 10

• Pre-cruise:  booking & trip prep~post 29

• Pre-cruise: last day stuff & weather~ post 43

• Embarkation Day~March 2: good morning, looking forward to boarding~post 67

• Embarkation. Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Star (19), Sky (18) & Sport (17) decks aft~post 69

• Embarkation Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Sun Deck (16) with Sports & Sky Decks midship & forward~post 70

• Embarkation Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Lido Deck (15)~post 75

• Embarkation Day~March 2: back to the cabin~Aloha Deck (12)~post 78

• Embarkation Day~March 2:  the papers & the patter~post 89

• Embarkation Day~March 2: DaVinci dinner~post 104

• Embarkation Day~March 2: wrap up & random thoughts~post 114

• Sea Day~March 3: good (very early) morning~post 142

• Sea Day~March 3: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 147

• Sea Day~March 3: mid-morning adventures~post 148

• Sea Day~March 3: lunch & a (mostly) lazy afternoon~post 149

• Sea Day~March 3: DaVinci dinner~post 150

• Sea Day~March 3: wrap up & random thoughts~post 151

• Sea Day~March 4: a (not so early) morning & DaVinci breakfast~post 167

• Sea Day~March 4 buffet lunch & afternoon adventures~post 172

• Sea Day~March 4: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 173

• Sea Day~March 4: DaVinci dinner & evening~post 175

• Sea Day~March 4: wrap up & random thoughts~post 176

• Sea Day~March 5: another relaxing day & Salty Dog Grill lunch~post 204

• Sea Day~March 5: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 205

• Sea Day~March 5: formal night, DaVinci dinner & a show~post 206

• Sea Day~March 5: wrap up & random thoughts~post 208

• Sea Day~March 6: another beautiful morning~post 216

• Sea Day~March 6: pub lunch & elite tea, oh my!~post 221

• Sea Day~March 6: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 224

• Sea Day~March 6: DaVinci dinner~post 225

• Sea Day~March 6: wrap up & random thoughts~post 226

• Honolulu~March 7: good morning, Honolulu~post 228

• Honolulu~March 7: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 229

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~getting there~post 230

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~getting in~post 231

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~islands of polynesia~post 233

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~exploring the islands of polynesia~post 239

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~spending time in Samoa~post 240

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~enjoying the beauty~post 241

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~Gateway Buffet~post 249

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~Ha Breath of Life show, maps & flyers, thoughts~post 252

• Honolulu~March 7: onboard the Crown~post 253

• Honolulu~March 7: exploring the Crown Princess~Gala Deck (4)~post 254

• Honolulu~March 7: wrap up & random thoughts~post 261

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: adventures in Honolulu~post 263 

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 266

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: leaving for Maui~post 271

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: DaVinci dinner & a show~post 273

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: wrap up & random thoughts~post 267

• …& Not Maui~March 9: early morning sail in & whales~post 280

• …& Not Maui~March 9: patters, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 281

• …& Not Maui~March 9: unexpected day at sea~post 285

• …& Not Maui~March 9: DaVinci dinner~post 286

• …& Not Maui~March 9: wrap up & random thoughts~post 291

• Hilo~March 10: early morning, internet info, disembarkation in Hilo~post 296

• Hilo~March 10: Hilo historic downtown walking tour (part 1)~post 301

• Hilo~March 10: Hilo historic downtown walking tour (part 2)~post 307

• Hilo~March 10: Kalakaua Park~post 310

• Hilo~March 10: Mokupapapa Discovery Center~post 311

• Hilo~March 10: Pacific Tsunami Museum~post 313

• Hilo~March 10: around Hilo~post 314

• Hilo~March 10: shopping & Farmers Market~post 315

• Hilo~March 10: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 316

• Hilo~March 10: sail-away~post 319

• Hilo~March 10: DaVinci dinner~post 320

• Hilo~March 10: wrap up & random thoughts~post 321

• Sea Day~March 11: another day at sea~post 331

• Sea Day~March 11: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 332

• Sea Day~March 11: formal night & DaVinci dinner~post 333

• Sea Day~March 11: wrap up & random thoughts~post 334

• Sea Day~March 12: more moments at sea~post 339

• Sea Day~March 12: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 340

• Sea Day~March 12: DaVinci dinner & a show~post 341

• Sea Day~March 12: wrap up & random thoughts~post 342

• Sea Day~March 13: a day of surprises~post 354

• Sea Day~March 13: DaVinci lunch~post 356

• Sea Day~March 13: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 357

• Sea Day~March 13: Sabatini’s~post 359

• Sea Day~March 13: evening entertainment~post 360

• Sea Day~March 13: wrap up & random thoughts~post 361

• Sea Day~March 14: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 364

• Sea Day~March 14: formal night, captain's circle cocktail party, DaVinci dinner & a show~post 372

• Sea Day~March 14: wrap up & random thoughts~post 373

• Sea Day~March 15: one last day at sea~post 374 

• Sea Day~March 13: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 375

 

1 hour ago, travelin.sisters said:

Sea Day~March 15

Wrap Up & Random Thoughts

 

Today, after several of you encouraged me, I went to the shore excursion desk to talk about our frustration with our excursion experience. I really wanted to address two issues with them: 1) that our driver told us to leave the show early at the Polynesian Cultural Center & 2) the selling of tours with specific things included & then later removing them with no adjustment in price. I did get a goodwill credit of $50 for each of us, which was nice, but left frustrated & feeling like my concerns were not really listened to. This seems to be a standard Princess response on ships, toss a little OBC at anyone who complains & then they will go away.

 

For the past several days, there has been a push for 10s on our post cruise surveys. The captain asked us to give his crew 10s both at yesterday’s Captain Circle party & in the Piazza tonight. Some of the dining room staff have been walking around with hats with 10s on them for days & at the presentation today they again exhorted us to give them 10s. I think if you want 10s on your survey you should spend more time giving your customers 10 service than telling them to rate poorer service as a 10. (This seems to be prevalent in many businesses now, I am tired of people telling me that they only get credit if they get the highest possible score). IMHO very little on the Crown was a 10, neither was anything (outside of our excursion issues) a very low score…this has been a solidly good but not outstanding cruise. 

 

 

Ok, this sounds really grumbly & I don’t want anyone to think this has not been a good cruise, because it has. There have, obviously, been some disappointments but most of them have been no one's fault & there have been a lot of good things about this cruise. We are glad we went & glad to be cruising. It just, in more than a few areas is not what it used to be. That said, for us, cruising is still one of the best ways for us to travel & a good deal compared to other options. 

 

List of my posts in this LIVE: 

• Introduction~post 1

• Pre-cruise: packing~post 10

• Pre-cruise:  booking & trip prep~post 29

• Pre-cruise: last day stuff & weather~ post 43

• Embarkation Day~March 2: good morning, looking forward to boarding~post 67

• Embarkation. Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Star (19), Sky (18) & Sport (17) decks aft~post 69

• Embarkation Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Sun Deck (16) with Sports & Sky Decks midship & forward~post 70

• Embarkation Day~March 2: exploring the Crown Princess~Lido Deck (15)~post 75

• Embarkation Day~March 2: back to the cabin~Aloha Deck (12)~post 78

• Embarkation Day~March 2:  the papers & the patter~post 89

• Embarkation Day~March 2: DaVinci dinner~post 104

• Embarkation Day~March 2: wrap up & random thoughts~post 114

• Sea Day~March 3: good (very early) morning~post 142

• Sea Day~March 3: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 147

• Sea Day~March 3: mid-morning adventures~post 148

• Sea Day~March 3: lunch & a (mostly) lazy afternoon~post 149

• Sea Day~March 3: DaVinci dinner~post 150

• Sea Day~March 3: wrap up & random thoughts~post 151

• Sea Day~March 4: a (not so early) morning & DaVinci breakfast~post 167

• Sea Day~March 4 buffet lunch & afternoon adventures~post 172

• Sea Day~March 4: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 173

• Sea Day~March 4: DaVinci dinner & evening~post 175

• Sea Day~March 4: wrap up & random thoughts~post 176

• Sea Day~March 5: another relaxing day & Salty Dog Grill lunch~post 204

• Sea Day~March 5: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 205

• Sea Day~March 5: formal night, DaVinci dinner & a show~post 206

• Sea Day~March 5: wrap up & random thoughts~post 208

• Sea Day~March 6: another beautiful morning~post 216

• Sea Day~March 6: pub lunch & elite tea, oh my!~post 221

• Sea Day~March 6: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 224

• Sea Day~March 6: DaVinci dinner~post 225

• Sea Day~March 6: wrap up & random thoughts~post 226

• Honolulu~March 7: good morning, Honolulu~post 228

• Honolulu~March 7: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 229

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~getting there~post 230

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~getting in~post 231

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~islands of polynesia~post 233

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~exploring the islands of polynesia~post 239

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~spending time in Samoa~post 240

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~enjoying the beauty~post 241

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~Gateway Buffet~post 249

• Honolulu~March 7: Polynesian Cultural Center~Ha Breath of Life show, maps & flyers, thoughts~post 252

• Honolulu~March 7: onboard the Crown~post 253

• Honolulu~March 7: exploring the Crown Princess~Gala Deck (4)~post 254

• Honolulu~March 7: wrap up & random thoughts~post 261

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: adventures in Honolulu~post 263 

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 266

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: leaving for Maui~post 271

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: DaVinci dinner & a show~post 273

• Not Kauai; More Honolulu~March 8: wrap up & random thoughts~post 267

• …& Not Maui~March 9: early morning sail in & whales~post 280

• …& Not Maui~March 9: patters, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 281

• …& Not Maui~March 9: unexpected day at sea~post 285

• …& Not Maui~March 9: DaVinci dinner~post 286

• …& Not Maui~March 9: wrap up & random thoughts~post 291

• Hilo~March 10: early morning, internet info, disembarkation in Hilo~post 296

• Hilo~March 10: Hilo historic downtown walking tour (part 1)~post 301

• Hilo~March 10: Hilo historic downtown walking tour (part 2)~post 307

• Hilo~March 10: Kalakaua Park~post 310

• Hilo~March 10: Mokupapapa Discovery Center~post 311

• Hilo~March 10: Pacific Tsunami Museum~post 313

• Hilo~March 10: around Hilo~post 314

• Hilo~March 10: shopping & Farmers Market~post 315

• Hilo~March 10: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 316

• Hilo~March 10: sail-away~post 319

• Hilo~March 10: DaVinci dinner~post 320

• Hilo~March 10: wrap up & random thoughts~post 321

• Sea Day~March 11: another day at sea~post 331

• Sea Day~March 11: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 332

• Sea Day~March 11: formal night & DaVinci dinner~post 333

• Sea Day~March 11: wrap up & random thoughts~post 334

• Sea Day~March 12: more moments at sea~post 339

• Sea Day~March 12: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 340

• Sea Day~March 12: DaVinci dinner & a show~post 341

• Sea Day~March 12: wrap up & random thoughts~post 342

• Sea Day~March 13: a day of surprises~post 354

• Sea Day~March 13: DaVinci lunch~post 356

• Sea Day~March 13: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 357

• Sea Day~March 13: Sabatini’s~post 359

• Sea Day~March 13: evening entertainment~post 360

• Sea Day~March 13: wrap up & random thoughts~post 361

• Sea Day~March 14: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 364

• Sea Day~March 14: formal night, captain's circle cocktail party, DaVinci dinner & a show~post 372

• Sea Day~March 14: wrap up & random thoughts~post 373

• Sea Day~March 15: one last day at sea~post 374 

• Sea Day~March 13: patter, weather, progress & photo of the day~post 375

It doesn’t sound grumbly at all. It sounds honest. When we board the Crown next week, I will have my eyes wide open because of your review. 
I do understand things don’t always go well, but I do reserve my 10’s for only the best. I feel bad for the crew having to wear those silly hats, too. 
 

Edited to add that seems that it’s looking like those hats are something you might see on a Carnival cruise. I’ve seen more pictures in the last couple of months with people showing off their towel animals, too. I think over the 17 years we’ve cruised with Princess,  we had one, and it was our 25th Anniversary. I don’t love them, and would rather the crew get those extra few minutes off just to relax or do something they enjoy..like a nap. 

Edited April 4, 2023 by Happiest when cruising

[gottagoacruzn]

Enjoyed reading your posts & etc, do hope you had a wonderful cruise!!!!

[warren buffet]

re the excurstions, I think the problem lies with the IT dept for not updating the website. When they raised the plus price 10 dollars to 60 a day, I noticed it still said that drinks were covered up to 12 dollars. when it very clearly said in their press release for the price increase it was raised to 15. their IT dept is understaffed and has a hard time keeping up when leadership makes changes. I Suspect the polynesian center prob did tell them  a couple of months ahead of this change. As to the driver, he prob is told by princess to do this. i am sure cruise lines do not like to leave people on shore and leave them when they don't return on time. the way to mitigate that is to tell them to return earlier than they really need to, making that less likely to happen to get back to the ship on time.  don't cruise lines do the same thing at the start of the day. telling people to gather at the meeting place, significantly earlier than necessary to leave a cushion so late arrivals are on time 

[warren buffet]

everyone put on the reviews that it's really tacky and discomforting for the staff to walk around with 10 hats.  because it is.    in the days before auto tipping the crew dropped not so subtle hints about tipping a few days before the cruise ends. now, they just replaced 1 think with something very similar. you better believe the crew and the captain's direct staff get potential bonuses if they beat out some percentage of other ships in the fleet. that is in addition to the gratuity payments that we make. 

[travelin.sisters]

7 minutes ago, warren buffet said:

re the excurstions, I think the problem lies with the IT dept for not updating the website. When they raised the plus price 10 dollars to 60 a day, I noticed it still said that drinks were covered up to 12 dollars. when it very clearly said in their press release for the price increase it was raised to 15. their IT dept is understaffed and has a hard time keeping up when leadership makes changes. I Suspect the polynesian center prob did tell them  a couple of months ahead of this change. As to the driver, he prob is told by princess to do this. i am sure cruise lines do not like to leave people on shore and leave them when they don't return on time. the way to mitigate that is to tell them to return earlier than they really need to, making that less likely to happen to get back to the ship on time.  don't cruise lines do the same thing at the start of the day. telling people to gather at the meeting place, significantly earlier than necessary to leave a cushion so late arrivals are on time 

I understand that what they are selling now for the price I paid is less than what they sold me (the PCC does still offer what we were sold) AND that they know that because for one excursion they emailed my TA with notice of the change & for the other they sent a letter to our rooms with notification what I do not think is right is to sell me something, have me pay the price they set & then change it with no reimbursement. This is not they accidentally sold me the wrong thing (which a good business will give you the advertised price even if it is their error) at the wrong price, but that after the transaction they changed the offering. In fact, when I talked to them before the excursion about canceling they told me that there was a price adjustment because of the change (which they did not do).

 

I do not doubt that Princess puts pressure on their tour operators to make sure that people are back on time (although the shore excursion people said he should not have done this), since they have committed to not sailing without you if you are on a Princess tour, which was actually part of what I was trying to address at the shore excursion desk (but they didn't actually want to listen to my points) however since we were staying overnight this was entirely unnecessary AND we (even after staying for the people who didn't leave early & then waiting for the driver to visit with people) were back an hour before the ship would have departed anyway. 

 

Whatever the reason, they sold me something which they did not give me & I find this bad customer service.

[travelin.sisters]

24 minutes ago, warren buffet said:

everyone put on the reviews that it's really tacky and discomforting for the staff to walk around with 10 hats.  because it is.    in the days before auto tipping the crew dropped not so subtle hints about tipping a few days before the cruise ends. now, they just replaced 1 think with something very similar. you better believe the crew and the captain's direct staff get potential bonuses if they beat out some percentage of other ships in the fleet. that is in addition to the gratuity payments that we make. 

tacky is a good word for it...I will happily write commendations for those who do a good job & start collecting names the first day...but I will not be telling you something is superb when it is not...& I did mention the whole push for 10s in my survey

[travelin.sisters]

2 hours ago, Happiest when cruising said:

 

It doesn’t sound grumbly at all. It sounds honest. When we board the Crown next week, I will have my eyes wide open because of your review. 
I do understand things don’t always go well, but I do reserve my 10’s for only the best. I feel bad for the crew having to wear those silly hats, too. 
 

Edited to add that seems that it’s looking like those hats are something you might see on a Carnival cruise. I’ve seen more pictures in the last couple of months with people showing off their towel animals, too. I think over the 17 years we’ve cruised with Princess,  we had one, and it was our 25th Anniversary. I don’t love them, and would rather the crew get those extra few minutes off just to relax or do something they enjoy..like a nap. 

thank you...it is a good ship & a good crew, but it feels like the crew is under a lot of pressure, either because there are not enough of them or someother reason...

 

I have only had one Stateroom steward who made a couple of towel animals on a Princess cruise...he made them to hang out with the Stanley Bears, they are cute, but then do you keep them for the cruise or make them back into towels or? ...I would like them to have those extra minutes for a rest or nap or snack (our steward had 19 rooms on the Crown which seems like a lot)

 

hopefully we will have sunny weather for you to sail away

[travelin.sisters]

2 hours ago, gottagoacruzn said:

Enjoyed reading your posts & etc, do hope you had a wonderful cruise!!!!

it was good! thank you

[georgiacat]

I have really enjoyed reading about your cruise.  Thank you for taking the time and effort to report this.

 

As to the 10's (from someone who used to work in a business that 10 or fail were the only options), this comes from headquarters.  Not even the captain is in charge of pushing this.  They are told what to do and what to make or else.  If I can't give them a 10, I skip the survey.

[EAC]

Thanks so much for sharing during your trip!  It was very helpful as we are looking at resuming cruising later this April from SF.

[EAC]

Also, Could you tell if there were any Covid precautions during the trip?   Thanks.

 

 

[travelin.sisters]

17 hours ago, georgiacat said:

I have really enjoyed reading about your cruise.  Thank you for taking the time and effort to report this.

 

As to the 10's (from someone who used to work in a business that 10 or fail were the only options), this comes from headquarters.  Not even the captain is in charge of pushing this.  They are told what to do and what to make or else.  If I can't give them a 10, I skip the survey.

thank you for your kid words.

 

I do know it is a corporate decision to make a 10 (or whatever is the highest rating the only acceptable one) & so many businesses do that...I just think it is wrong, it pushes the customer to say that good enough is excellent & leaves no room for rewarding & remarking on true excellence, which we do see sometimes...it also lets the corporation "off the hook" as it were as they can say see our customers think we are excellent so we are fine with much lower staffing numbers & a poorer level of service than we used to provide so why should we work to get back there...but I know I am tilting at windmills as it were & this is the way things are done now (sometimes I really feel like those very old people who can't keep up with the changes in the world around them)

[travelin.sisters]

13 hours ago, EAC said:

Also, Could you tell if there were any Covid precautions during the trip?   Thanks.

 

 

having cruised 3 times last year with increasingly fewer precautions & then this year it seems like most precautions have vanished...no pre or mid cruise testing requirements, no mandatory masking (& we were among the rare passengers who masked) for passengers, some crew but probably not most masked (apparently during the cruise before ours the infection rates were up & crew did have to mask some of the time),no limitations on # people in venues or mandatory spacing, back to twice daily stateroom service, the individual servings of foods in the buffet were replaced with large serving dishes & it was all self serve, no monitoring of hand sanitizing, 

 

maybe there is still more cleaning but I am not sure...I think, like much of the country, they have decided to just let whatever happens happen...I don't know if there is still regular testing of crew...it was so different from our Hawai'i cruise last January...they had so many precautions as we were the frist cruise back to the islands since the shut down & we were maybe 1/2 full...in Sept/Oct there were still precautions but way fewer & now it feels like they are really none that are visible

[#55worktoplay]

I really enjoyed your review, thanks for sharing. 
 

I have not been on Princess or Hawaii however visiting there is certainly in my next few years plans so I am reading all I can on it. 
 

It sounds like things were a hit and a miss which I believe is probably the norm for all lines now. 
 

I just returned from a Carnival sailing for the first in many years. I can honestly say I was quite pleased with the lack of sales pitches and there was zero asks for 10’s from staff. Food was hit or miss but generally good.  Ship seemed to be less maintained then pre Covid times though. 
 

I agree with you cruising is a good value travel option. 
 

Thanks for all the time and effort you put into this. 

[Coral]

4 hours ago, travelin.sisters said:

having cruised 3 times last year with increasingly fewer precautions & then this year it seems like most precautions have vanished...no pre or mid cruise testing requirements, no mandatory masking (& we were among the rare passengers who masked) for passengers, some crew but probably not most masked (apparently during the cruise before ours the infection rates were up & crew did have to mask some of the time),no limitations on # people in venues or mandatory spacing, back to twice daily stateroom service, the individual servings of foods in the buffet were replaced with large serving dishes & it was all self serve, no monitoring of hand sanitizing, 

There are some precautions I wish they would have kept. I liked when things in the buffet were individually plated, etc.... And staff served food. That will definitely cut down on norovirus and other illnesses and was good practice IMO.

[travelin.sisters]

8 hours ago, Coral said:

There are some precautions I wish they would have kept. I liked when things in the buffet were individually plated, etc.... And staff served food. That will definitely cut down on norovirus and other illnesses and was good practice IMO.

yes, yes, yes to all of the above! 

[warren buffet]

Just now, Coral said:

There are some precautions I wish they would have kept. I liked when things in the buffet were individually plated, etc.... And staff served food. That will definitely cut down on norovirus and other illnesses and was good practice IMO.

to cut down on respatory illnesses generally, covid and the regular colds for the buffet. all people have to do is take a paper napkin when they touch the utensils on the buffet. even people who are paranoid about covid, don't do this. I am always amazed. Same thing for doorhandles. People should use a napkin or sweater to open them.  15 very well researched scientific studies have shown conclusively that things like this cut down on illnesses and wearing cheap paper masks do nothing. there was zero correlation in covid hospitalzations per capita (adjusted for age), between states that forced people to take shots and mask and those who let people have control of their own lives.        As to norovirus. my understanding is it mostly is contracted from germs from contaminated food. mostly, i think, you can get a lot of cases on one cruise, but it's because a lot of people ate that same food. it happens with fruit more often than not. if the ship buys bad fruit, it can get into both table food and fruity drinks. 

[warren buffet]

Just now, travelin.sisters said:

yes, yes, yes to all of the above! 

to have table service to each table in the buffet would cost at least 50 dollars extra for a 7 day cruise probably. most people (myself included) already grumble about the inflationary spiral. the lines did it for a few months operating at a loss in order to get people back in the habit of cruising. its only sustainable for viking/seaborn prices

[Happiest when cruising]

8 minutes ago, warren buffet said:

to have table service to each table in the buffet would cost at least 50 dollars extra for a 7 day cruise probably. most people (myself included) already grumble about the inflationary spiral. the lines did it for a few months operating at a loss in order to get people back in the habit of cruising. its only sustainable for viking/seaborn prices

I don’t think they meant table service, just the food served onto your plate by the crew. The individual cups of veggies and single plated desserts, that kind of thing. In other words..passengers don’t touch the tongs. We got to cruise like that last fall, and I liked it.  

[warren buffet]

Just now, Happiest when cruising said:

I don’t think they meant table service, just the food served onto your plate by the crew. The individual cups of veggies and single plated desserts, that kind of thing. In other words..passengers don’t touch the tongs. We got to cruise like that last fall, and I liked it.  

it takes significant time for the crew to do even that. If people are not using napkins as tong shields and touch them for the other types of food, it doesn't help much health wise, right?  They could throw people off the ship on the next port, if they refuse to use napkins as shields when touching public utensils. that would be the option to not raise prices. 

[Happiest when cruising]

1 minute ago, warren buffet said:

it takes significant time for the crew to do even that. If people are not using napkins as tong shields and touch them for the other types of food, it doesn't help much health wise, right?  They could throw people off the ship on the next port, if they refuse to use napkins as shields when touching public utensils. that would be the option to not raise prices. 

Well, there are no paper napkins at any buffet, that I have noticed. The v can both o Ed would be too large and probably dip into the food. Another yucky situation. 
I think we all just have to do our best to think of others. I am pretty careful if we do end up at the buffet. We typically take our meals in the MDR, when we can.

[travelin.sisters]

29 minutes ago, Happiest when cruising said:

I don’t think they meant table service, just the food served onto your plate by the crew. The individual cups of veggies and single plated desserts, that kind of thing. In other words..passengers don’t touch the tongs. We got to cruise like that last fall, and I liked it.  

that is exactly what I meant, & currently even the things that traditionally (precovid) were served in the buffet were not being served in the buffet on the Crown...I did like things in small single serving portions last year as well

Edited April 6, 2023 by travelin.sisters