Aboard the Island now 9/22 - 10/4 Oktoberfest European Capitols from Southampton

[Paula_MacFan]

Final thoughts and random misc:

 

• As stated in my prior comments we found the ship to be in good overall condition.  Is it an older ship?  Yes  Is she ready for the scrap heap? No      We saw ongoing maintenance every day around the ship as well as furniture replacement.  Sure there are some dings and bumps, but nothing that impacted our trip or enjoyment.  
• We loved the bed!  Slept great and no complaints there.
• Also loved the app for onboard features.  So nice to monitor the account and look at photos without schlepping down to the purser desk or searching through hundreds of printed photos in person.  Also like the ease of ordering room service and the crew chat function.  I only used crew chat once but the response was professional and prompt.
• We saw one example of the dreaded table in the hall outside a cabin door.  Not sure if it was a quarantine situation but we didn't observe any enhanced protocols during the 13 day cruise.   
• All our excursions matched the description exactly for locales visited, time at each location, activity level, and meals.  Yet we heard some complaints from others and also some bewilderment about where we were going or what meals were provided.  It's not Princess' fault if people can't bother to read the descriptions or know what they are buying.  This was just a SMH observation.  
• Every bus we were on, from the initial transfer with International Friends, to every ship-sponsored excursion, was on modern buses with restroom facilities.  All buses had 2 entry doors, with one door at the mid-entry point by the restroom.  I mention this because during our planning process I read some comments from people who said excursion buses never had restroom facilities.  I also read some negative comments about bus group sizes and the loading/unloading process.  Having 2 doors greatly improves this process.  Also every Princess excursion we took was 'sold out' yet our buses were never full to capacity.  
• Foreign currency -- we took about $200 each in GBP and Euros.  I read some conflicting advice on this prior to the cruise but wanted to be prepared so I ordered the currency in advance.  We used our credit card with no problem in all countries visited, but we also had no problem spending all the currency we brought.  I was glad to have it for tips and other incidentals.  I also like having some currency just in case the credit card wouldn't work for any reason.  I work in the financial/banking industry and know how often this happens 🙂
• Public restrooms -- this dovetails with the foreign currency point above, but public washrooms in Europe often charge a fee so it's a good idea to have some coins at least.  For most of our ship-sponsored excursions we had stops at free facilities, but not all.  It was common to see .50 charges and we observed both a turnstile operation where you insert coins and also manned doors with a person collecting the fee.  
• We didn't see any children on the cruise.  That doesn't mean there weren't any, but we didn't see them 🙂  The youngest people we encountered were a few 20-somethings who were on multi-generational family trips.  
• This cruise is port-intensive.   It's 12 nights, with 8 ports in 7 countries.  All the port days were long.  We had a wonderful trip and used our time to the fullest.  Now we are glad to be home and a bit worn out 🙂 

 

 

If anyone has any questions I'm happy to try and answer.  

[Host CJSKIDS]

It was great to follow along on your sailing and I throughly enjoyed reading your thoughts.  Glad you got home safely.  

[SargassoPirate]

Thanks for your observations about the ship.  I chose the itinerary, and even though it has its detractors it looks lovely.  90 days to the WC!  Wahoo.

[KKB]

23 hours ago, Paula_MacFan said:

Final thoughts and random misc:

 

• As stated in my prior comments we found the ship to be in good overall condition.  Is it an older ship?  Yes  Is she ready for the scrap heap? No      We saw ongoing maintenance every day around the ship as well as furniture replacement.  Sure there are some dings and bumps, but nothing that impacted our trip or enjoyment.  
• We loved the bed!  Slept great and no complaints there.
• Also loved the app for onboard features.  So nice to monitor the account and look at photos without schlepping down to the purser desk or searching through hundreds of printed photos in person.  Also like the ease of ordering room service and the crew chat function.  I only used crew chat once but the response was professional and prompt.
• We saw one example of the dreaded table in the hall outside a cabin door.  Not sure if it was a quarantine situation but we didn't observe any enhanced protocols during the 13 day cruise.   
• All our excursions matched the description exactly for locales visited, time at each location, activity level, and meals.  Yet we heard some complaints from others and also some bewilderment about where we were going or what meals were provided.  It's not Princess' fault if people can't bother to read the descriptions or know what they are buying.  This was just a SMH observation.  
• Every bus we were on, from the initial transfer with International Friends, to every ship-sponsored excursion, was on modern buses with restroom facilities.  All buses had 2 entry doors, with one door at the mid-entry point by the restroom.  I mention this because during our planning process I read some comments from people who said excursion buses never had restroom facilities.  I also read some negative comments about bus group sizes and the loading/unloading process.  Having 2 doors greatly improves this process.  Also every Princess excursion we took was 'sold out' yet our buses were never full to capacity.  
• Foreign currency -- we took about $200 each in GBP and Euros.  I read some conflicting advice on this prior to the cruise but wanted to be prepared so I ordered the currency in advance.  We used our credit card with no problem in all countries visited, but we also had no problem spending all the currency we brought.  I was glad to have it for tips and other incidentals.  I also like having some currency just in case the credit card wouldn't work for any reason.  I work in the financial/banking industry and know how often this happens 🙂
• Public restrooms -- this dovetails with the foreign currency point above, but public washrooms in Europe often charge a fee so it's a good idea to have some coins at least.  For most of our ship-sponsored excursions we had stops at free facilities, but not all.  It was common to see .50 charges and we observed both a turnstile operation where you insert coins and also manned doors with a person collecting the fee.  
• We didn't see any children on the cruise.  That doesn't mean there weren't any, but we didn't see them 🙂  The youngest people we encountered were a few 20-somethings who were on multi-generational family trips.  
• This cruise is port-intensive.   It's 12 nights, with 8 ports in 7 countries.  All the port days were long.  We had a wonderful trip and used our time to the fullest.  Now we are glad to be home and a bit worn out 🙂 

 

 

If anyone has any questions I'm happy to try and answer.  

Great tips.

I relate to that port intensive cruise. Did 10 day Italy/Greece cruise in August & original itinerary had ONE sea day (1st full day). Luckily a port got cancelled in the middle. But 2 long excursions the last 2 days was tough.

We just decided to cancel our excursion on the last day of our upcoming Island cruise; we may spend a few hours wandering Le Havre, or just make it a sea day since we are back there next year (last day of that cruise too...)

[tml1230]

we have followed your reports very closely ,as we board the Island next month.

Thanks VERY much for the very well written and entertaining reports!  Your words are very encouraging! 

2 pick questions....can you recommend the best place for early morning coffee?

And...based on your excursion...will you be returning to Paris?

All the best!

[Paula_MacFan]

5 hours ago, tml1230 said:

we have followed your reports very closely ,as we board the Island next month.

Thanks VERY much for the very well written and entertaining reports!  Your words are very encouraging! 

2 pick questions....can you recommend the best place for early morning coffee?

And...based on your excursion...will you be returning to Paris?

All the best!

I'm sorry -- we don't drink coffee so I can't speak from personal experience, but I'd probably recommend the Good Spirits bar on deck 5 just based on what we observed.  

 

Yes, we would love to return to Paris based on our initial visit!  The day we spent there was fabulous and we're so glad we took the excursion.  

 

 

[KKB]

20 hours ago, tml1230 said:

we have followed your reports very closely ,as we board the Island next month.

Thanks VERY much for the very well written and entertaining reports!  Your words are very encouraging! 

2 pick questions....can you recommend the best place for early morning coffee?

And...based on your excursion...will you be returning to Paris?

All the best!

My understanding is that there is coffee (the good stuff!) at the Good Spirits Bar as well as the buffet. 

Of course, there is always self serve at the buffet too--not a fan.

[sultan_sfo]

22 hours ago, tml1230 said:

...

2 pick questions....can you recommend the best place for early morning coffee?

...

 

1 hour ago, KKB said:

My understanding is that there is coffee (the good stuff!) at the Good Spirits Bar as well as the buffet. 

....

 

Yes to both KKB replies. But at the Amuleto Bar in the buffet (not the self serve).

 

Also, early in the morning the Casino Bar has coffee and some pastries. The Casino Bar faces both the lobby and the Casino and there are couches in the lobby where one can also sit down.

 

 But remember like in all the ICs, unless one has one of the packages, there will a charge for the good coffee.

Edited October 8, 2023 by sultan_sfo

[tml1230]

Paula, KKB and sultan....thanks very much for responding! GREAT information all! all the best and safe travels

[KKB]

@Paula_MacFan

So my friend reads ALL the fine print…

she just read masks r required outside stateroom/on port. (She screenshot it—it DOES say that)

Been cruising since 6 weeks after start up 2 yrs ago…haven’t had to wear masks anywhere on any line.

Your experience?

[Paula_MacFan]

20 minutes ago, KKB said:

@Paula_MacFan

So my friend reads ALL the fine print…

she just read masks r required outside stateroom/on port. (She screenshot it—it DOES say that)

Been cruising since 6 weeks after start up 2 yrs ago…haven’t had to wear masks anywhere on any line.

Your experience?

 

I'm not aware of any mask requirements, and we didn't see any signage or announcements regarding that while onboard or at any port.  

 

Where is this coming from?  Is the information current or is it something that is outdated? 

[KKB]

Just now, Paula_MacFan said:

 

I'm not aware of any mask requirements, and we didn't see any signage or announcements regarding that while onboard or at any port.  

 

Where is this coming from?  Is the information current or is it something that is outdated? 

I assume it got put in after start up 2 years ago...they probably leave it in JUST in case...