First Impressions of Emerald…Not Great :/

[krufrank]

On 5/23/2023 at 10:47 AM, mamamusings said:

 

Clearly you feel this is our fault, and nothing I say will convince you otherwise. 🤷‍♀️ So I won’t try rebutting point by point. 

 

However, I still think that this is not a great  way to welcome first time cruisers on the line. 

I can remember quite clearly our FIRST cruise - it was daunting! So I appreciate all that you have shared on here. I don't want to come across as judgmental on anyone but sometimes those who post on this site forget what their first time cruising was like.  I apologize for any snide comments that you may have received. 

 

Our FIRST cruise we knew nothing - and I am a planner and read up on tonnes of stuff. But still, felt like fish out of water. Luckily for us, we sat at a large table of 8 (at supper) with 6 other experienced cruisers so by Day 2 we were sort of caught up to speed.

 

I haven't finished this entire thread yet but I hope you ended up having a good time and will cruise again - if not Princess then someone other cruise line. For us, despite all the headaches and mistakes Princess (and others) make, we still find it to be the best vacation choice.

[capriccio]

For those mentioning fewer production shows and fewer daily activities such as trivia, could some of the cruise director staff and/or performers been quarantined with Covid?  I know we have been on a cruise or two in the past year and a half where that has been the case. 

[PescadoAmarillo]

I’m 5’11”, and have never had an issue with Princess showers. I’ve had to get creative with leg shaving, but, other than that, they work fine for me. However, I’ll admit that my first shower when I arrive back home is always a thrill, and I’m kind of like a baby who’s just been unwrapped from a swaddle.

 

I’ve had more issues with the height of the shower in a mini suite than in an inside, OV or balcony cabin. And I’ve been honest with my brothers who are 6’6” and 6’8” that there is really no part of a cruise ship cabin that is designed for their comfort. 
 

When I have traveled with a girlfriend on Grand class ships, one of us frequently used the showers in the spa/fitness center area, and that provided a degree of separation and privacy that was welcome. 

[LACruiser88]

17 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

I’ll admit that my first shower when I arrive back home is always a thrill,

Amen sister!!!

[Napagirl]

9 hours ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

And I’ve been honest with my brothers who are 6’6” and 6’8” that there is really no part of a cruise ship cabin that is designed for their comfort. 
 

My husband is 6'6" and when we cruise he says he has to shower in shifts. haha! Let's face it, not much of anything is designed for tall people. Flying coach is interesting. 

[cr8tiv1]

For once, being “short” has an advantage.  Thank you to all for bringing that to my attention.  
 

@mamamusings, I do hope you found some aspects of the cruise to be good.  The weather was perfect in San Francisco and San Diego, but Princess had nothing to do with that.  

[Kellyansapansa]

18 hours ago, krufrank said:

It is unusual, to stay the least, to only have ONE trivia event per day. We've traveled on this exact ship and sailing before and I can honestly say they had multiple trivia nights (especially on sea days) - up to FOUR a night.  Maybe customer feedback has been they are getting tired of trivia?? I dunno. Thanks for sharing!

We were on Coral in February and not all trivia sessions were included on the notice formerly known as the Patter. There were so many different activities they wouldn't all fit on the 2 page Princess Event Listings flyer, so it was really just a highlights listing.

[love to cruz]

We were on the same cruise. It is different now cruising after Covid. We just got home from a 28 day Sydney to San Francisco cruise 19 days before this sailing. There were only 2 production shows in the entire 28 days. All but a couple of guest entertainers were mediocre at best. Food was great, & staff could not have been any better.

The shows & entertainers on this ship were great. Food again good. However, 2 days after we disembarked my husband ended up in the hospital with Covid. 4 days after disembarking I became victim to Covid. We were on another ship 28 days & never got Covid. You just never know.

[cr8tiv1]

10 hours ago, love to cruz said:

We were on the same cruise. It is different now cruising after Covid. We just got home from a 28 day Sydney to San Francisco cruise 19 days before this sailing. There were only 2 production shows in the entire 28 days. All but a couple of guest entertainers were mediocre at best. Food was great, & staff could not have been any better.

The shows & entertainers on this ship were great. Food again good. However, 2 days after we disembarked my husband ended up in the hospital with Covid. 4 days after disembarking I became victim to Covid. We were on another ship 28 days & never got Covid. You just never know.

 

Just for clarification:  Same cruise as on the Emerald or the Coral?  Sorry about Covid, but it seems to be reported more on longer cruises. My sister just returned from a land vacation...with covid.  Not plane, not ship, but from her grand-daughter.  Covid free since the beginning.  You never know.

[theloo]

11 hours ago, Kellyansapansa said:

We were on Coral in February and not all trivia sessions were included on the notice formerly known as the Patter. There were so many different activities they wouldn't all fit on the 2 page Princess Event Listings flyer, so it was really just a highlights listing.

Were they listed in the app?  How else do you learn about them?

[Kellyansapansa]

52 minutes ago, theloo said:

Were they listed in the app?  How else do you learn about them?

Yes, the app had lots of additional events that were not included in the paper event listing.