h-sar

8 hours ago, Zach1213 said:

Immigration at LGW for non-EU citizens can be all over the place. Once it has taken me two minutes, another 40 minutes. The 12:30 flight is, without a doubt, not even close to being a good idea. 

 

Are you against spending a night in London? There's always a million things to see, do, eat, drink, and buy, whether you have never been there or been there a million times. Then, you can expand your search for all London airports for the flight to VCE. On July 3, there is a nonstop VCE flight on BA from London-City airport, which is super convenient if you're in the city. 

We’re actually spending a week in London on the way back to Canada a few weeks later.

I’m hoping that those of you with first hand experience with Gatwick will be able to advise me. We are two Canadian adults who will be arriving into Gatwick at 10:30 AM on July 2 on WestJet from Canada. This ticket has already been purchased. I am now looking for a flight to Venice for the same day. My only options for a direct, nonstop flight to Venice appear to be Easyjet at either 12:30 PM or 6:10 PM. We will not have bags with us, just napsacks. No cruise until a few days later. I went through Gatwick to Rome last year, but had just over three hours between flights. For those of you who have a better memory of the immigration/customs/security protocols in Gatwick, can you please offer some insights? Thanks!

55 minutes ago, Thrak said:

I don't think I've ever seen this one here in any of the "secrets" threads. Elevators: If you hear a single "Ding!" the elevator is going UP. If you hear a "Ding Dong" the elevator is going DOWN.  I'm always amazed at how many people rush over to an elevator when they hear a sound only to be disappointed when they see the indicator pointing the wrong way. If you listen to the sound you will know in advance which way the car is headed.

First time in my 53 yrs that I have heard this. I’ve seriously been bemoaning the fact that I’ve done so much research on CC that I’m not able to learn anything new. Thanks for putting some joy back in my step 👍🏼😀. Can’t wait to test this out! 

8 hours ago, Steelers0854 said:

 

 

 

I have found the Regal and Sky cupcakes to taste less like cake and more like muffin. Have never found them to be light and airy like most cupcakes; rather, pretty dense. 
 

Confession time: on my recent two weeks on the Sky, I licked the icing off one of the daily cupcakes each day, but never ate any of the cupcakes themselves, aside from the first day. 😁. Really enjoyed the orange flavoured icing.

Six cruises on the Regal tells you that it’s one of our favourite ships 👍🏼. In fact, there were certain aspects of it that I missed during our two weeks on the Sky over the holidays. Have a fantastic respite from winter! Would do anything to be back in the Caribbean right now.

1 hour ago, Daddysbaby said:

Hi H-Sar.  I wanted to add my thanks to you for doing this "live from" thread.  I arrived home on Monday night after spending a couple of days in Key West post cruise and have enjoyed getting caught up on this thread!  Thank you for posting the price of my perfume early in your first week on board.  I was able to purchase it at the Vancouver airport for an amazing price as they had it on sale!  I am disappointed that we did not meet up at the M&G.  I think the time change that morning threw a lot of people off.  I see you have rebooked the Sky for next Christmas and New Years.  I had checked out coming on for New Years, but got a really good deal to sail on the Regal out of Sydney, Australia.  I have always wanted to "go down under" so will be spending my 61st birthday in the South Pacific!  I hope we can connect on the high seas one day.........................

 

Sincerely,

 

Sheila☺️

Would so love to spend a few days in Key West. It was a port day for us a few years back, on our one and only Holland America cruise, a substitution for not being able to get into Grand Cayman, I think. Had such a great time and would love a longer visit.

I envy you your Australia adventure! I have a first cousin who lives in Sydney and has been trying to get me to come visit her. Thinking that a cruise tied in with a land visit to her would make for a great holiday. One day soon! 
 

So, the weather back in Edmonton for the two weeks that we were gone was apparently pretty fantastic for this time of year. People said they went sledding and tobogganing, skating etc. Within a couple of days of our return, we went into a major deep freeze for over a week. So cold that we hit -50 Celsius with the windchill a couple of nights; in fact, the -32 Celsius today feels downright balmy. And did I mention that we do not have snow or cold days here? They may shut down the school buses, but the schools never close. Gives us a reason to be feel superior every time we hear about snow days in other places. We just figure we’re made of stronger, hardier, stuff, LOL.
 

Yes, can’t even begin to tell you how much of a mess up I made of at least three events the second week due to time changes. One was not my fault as we had our card for the time change placed on our bed one full night before we were supposed to get it. Meant I was almost one hour late for my massage the next morning, thinking, in fact, that I was actually quite early. I was a little bit put out that my masseuse, the lovely Amy, tracked me down in the enclave while I was having a leisurely pre-massage aromatherapy pool dip. Yup, with those medallions, they can take you anywhere! I thought she was trying to get me to come in half an hour early and here she was probably wondering why I was being so lackadaisical about being over half an hour late. She didn’t say anything about me being late and I did not discover that the time change had not occurred the night before until a good couple of hours later. Went down immediately to the spa to apologize. Have to say, given that she thought I was deliberately 45 minutes late, she still gave me an amazing massage and the best service ever. Did anyone else receive their time change card one night early for the second time change during New Year’s week? My family is convinced that I dreamt up the card being on our bed one night too early, but I am positive it was there. 
 

That's exactly what my bites from 'no see-ums' on Princess Cays looked like last year. Not saying that's what this is, but just wondering if she ended up at a beach with an infestation of them. Mine didn't really show themselves until a few hrs after I'd left the island while my husband's bites manifested immediately.

After last year's horrendous experience, I doused myself with bug spray before heading to PC a couple of weeks ago!

Can only comment on the two ships we've sailed on our last 8 Princess cruises, Regal and Sky, and nearly always at Christmas and New Years these past 6 years...

Both have had MDR tea every day, except embarkation day. You can ask to be seated with others at a larger table or request a small table for your party. We always go at 3:15 and are able to be immediately seated. There's a bit of a line up if you arrive right at 3:00.

Love the level of service and variety of sandwiches and pastries. Of course, I'm really only going for the scones (raisin or plain) with cream and jam 🙂. We had multiple generations this last holiday cruise and it was a nice way for everyone to get together in a low key way in the middle of the day on a couple of occasions. Made the grandparents happy to have all the grandkids there as our party was too large to do dinners together. Made the grandkids happy as they didn't have to get changed or take a lengthy amount of time out of their activities. It's one of the many things Princess does that keeps me coming back; hopefully, it never falls to budget cuts.

OP, very interesting and informative for someone like me who’s always wondered what a ‘free’ cruise might actually cost. Thanks for the breakdown. As a non-gambler, will most likely never be on the receiving end of such a gift 😁.

I took a 24 pack of Diet Pepsi on the Sky Princess three weeks ago for our two week cruise, for the first time. Got frustrated with the ever increasing prices of the soda/more card which was over $15 Cdn per day this time. I put it in a very durable, sturdy grocery store reusable bag and tied a knot with the handles. Stuck a luggage tag on it and it was delivered to my room with my bags. 

In case anyone’s still shaking their head over our decision to cram our family of 4 adults into a quad balcony to escape some of our winter...here’s the forecast for Edmonton this week. At this point, I’ll cram myself into a quad interior with a small village if it gets me out of here for this deep freeze! 🥶🥶. The memories of the last two weeks will get me through the next two months of winter.

And, yup, that IS -42 C with a windchill next Monday!

8 minutes ago, gotta cruise again said:

We were on New Years week.

 

Club Class was Estrella on deck 6, starboard. When that dining room was open, for example embarkation luncheon and sea day lunch, the only doors open were on port side however they had created separate sides for Club Class and everyone else.

 

We had Chef’s Table on 1/1 but our server had been called away to help with CT on 12/30 (she helped with ours too). So there were at least two that week. I had already accepted CT and then got a later phone call regarding winemakers, which we turned down because it was also being held on 1/1.

Hah! We walked by your chef’s table on the 1st and, through the curtain, saw the flourish of coverings come off one of the dishes. Our table was just left and toward back of the CT.

5 hours ago, 1emerald1 said:

Did you happen to notice what restaurant Club Class was in?  Thanks.

Unfortunately, all I can tell you is that it definitely was NOT on the left side of Cielo (6 Aft) where we were.
 

Maybe Colo Cruiser noticed??

PS: Just as an FYI, the Chef’s Table was located in Cielo. Was as beautiful as on Regal, but I think I preferred the Murano centrepiece on Regal. I recall at least one Chef’s Table occurring each of the two weeks; might have been more.

6 hours ago, steelers36 said:

Why didn't you ask someone with Princess when you were there?

 

Because that would have been far too easy and way too logical...

Actually asked a couple of crew members on PC, but, of course, this wasn’t their area of expertise, and never seemed to remember when I walked by the Internet Cafe.

On 12/27/2019 at 3:10 PM, kywildcatfanone said:

Hey, I'm in one of those pics, lol.

That's awesome! 

The last three yrs or so, we've had excellent free wifi on PC. This past New Yrs, it was not available, even with my unlimited medallion wifi. Did not lessen my enjoyment of the day at all, but just curious if anyone knows why it wasn't working this time. Or was it always meant to be a temporary gift?

As there have been a few queries on this board in the past about the impact of being in a cabin close to the laundry room, I thought I'd mention my experiences on the Sky Princess over two weeks this Christmas. We were in a balcony cabin directly, and I do mean directly, across from the Caribe self serve laundromat. I did have some trepidation when we first booked, but wasn't able to find a similar available cabin in a different location. Glad I wasn't able to make the change as it couldn't have worked out better. Not sure if it's just the Sky's soundproofing, but we heard absolutely no noise or banging doors coming from the laundry room into our cabin. In fact, even standing in the hall, just outside the laundry room, one couldn't hear a sound from within. The laundry on our deck didn't appear to be locked up at night, but again, no issues at all. In fact, it was very convenient having it right across, as I could go drop off a load early in the AM in my pj's and not worry about running into people as I trekked down a long hall. Also, very convenient if I forgot my  token or Tide pod in the cabin, etc. Given the opportunity to have this type of location again, I would totally pick it. I think having an actual cabin right across from us might have resulted in some voices coming through as people came and went from their cabin. However, do have to say that the Sky had some of the best sound proofing I've experienced on board a ship. 

On 1/6/2020 at 9:25 AM, BrennerM said:

 

Not sure if anyone responded to this but I've eaten at the Crown Grill several times over several cruises and I can state definitively that it is better than the Keg (which I also enjoy very much BTW).  The tenderloin steak (filet mignon? can't recall exactly what they call it at the Crown Grill) is fantastic quality, and it's quite big.  I think they call it 7oz on the menu but mine have always been bigger than that, more like 10oz.  One of the best steaks I've ever had.  The rest of the menu is very good too (French Onion soup is decadent, tasty desserts, etc).

 

I've also ordered a Crown Grill steak in the MDR (for an extra fee but less than the full Crown Grill fee) and it was very good as well, and you can get the side dishes from the Crown Grill as well.

The waiter convinced 4 of our party of 9 to have the Sterling beef chop, something that was not on anyone's radar. They deemed it one of the best steaks they've ever had. Bear in mind that most of us grew up raised on Alberta beef, so we know of what we speak 🙂.

On 1/6/2020 at 9:25 AM, BrennerM said:

 

Not sure if anyone responded to this but I've eaten at the Crown Grill several times over several cruises and I can state definitively that it is better than the Keg (which I also enjoy very much BTW).  The tenderloin steak (filet mignon? can't recall exactly what they call it at the Crown Grill) is fantastic quality, and it's quite big.  I think they call it 7oz on the menu but mine have always been bigger than that, more like 10oz.  One of the best steaks I've ever had.  The rest of the menu is very good too (French Onion soup is decadent, tasty desserts, etc).

 

I've also ordered a Crown Grill steak in the MDR (for an extra fee but less than the full Crown Grill fee) and it was very good as well, and you can get the side dishes from the Crown Grill as well.

Our waiter convinced at least 4 of our party of 9 to have the Sterling beef chop, something that wasn't really on anyone's radar. They all deemed it one of the best steaks they've ever had. Bear in mind that most of our party grew up raised on Alberta beef, so we know of what we speak 🙂.

I found the quietest times for the Enclave were between 8-9 AM during my 2 week cruise on the Sky over this past Christmas. Often, I was the only one in there. 

On 1/4/2020 at 11:16 AM, Heidi13 said:

As the Chief indicated all cruise lines will have different standards. My experience is all with Princess.

 

 

Some very good and interesting first hand information. Thank you!

Organizers were bought at a dollar store for about $3.50 each.

Yikes, excuse the large font. Gremlins again.

Came back with a bit of a nasty cough. DD was sick prior to the cruise and I think she gave DH and I whatever bug she was still carrying around. Kids claim it’s another reason why we should never again share a cabin. Health reasons 🙄🙄. Can’t remember if I mentioned this or not, but we are actually booked for 16 days on the Sky next Christmas in two interiors. Not sure the kids would have come along, otherwise!

Have to say, I am quite proud of us for getting through 14 days in the quad and nobody getting thrown overboard from the balcony. Helps that DH and I did the Enclave in the mornings and got ready down there as well, and most evenings, too. None of us really like to spend much time in the cabin, so that helped as well.
 

Not going to lie, would rather have been in our typical two cabins, but being on the Sky for two full weeks was well worth the cramped quarters. We really tried to make good use of the space. I had purchased about a dozen pretty hefty magnets, and brought along two over the door organizers, which between the two of them, didn’t weigh half a pound. Magnets were great for hanging up all sorts of items and if we wanted to hang up something heavy, like a full backpack, sticking the magnet to the ceiling kept it from sliding down.
 

We had Jhoy push the two twin beds together into the far left corner for my husband and I, and this really cleared up a lot of space in the middle of the room. DD slept in the bunk which went flush into the ceiling when closed, and son who at 6’1” was too tall for the bunkbed, scored the pullout loveseat. Both said the mattresses were extremely comfortable.
 

It was a bit of a hassle having the sofa bed pulled out from approximately 8 PM until the room is done the next at around 11 AM. Impeded easy access to the balcony doors. Sometimes we would just push up the loveseat ourselves after DS woke up. Very easy to maneuver. Other than that, we loved the configuration of the room. Would not be eager to do a quad again, but we made it work. And if it is a matter of cruising in close quarters in a quad over Christmas break or not cruising at all, no question I will make the sacrifice.
 

We kept our suitcases, three large ones and three carry-ons, under the bed with the small ones tucked inside the larger ones. Some of the shoes that we did not wear too often also went under the bed. There was ample space. 
 

Pictures of our two organizers on the last day, hence emptied for packing. One was hanging on the very sturdy hook that is on the wall behind the entry door. The second was hanging from a magnet that I had put on the ceiling. Those organizers were a lifesaver!
 

Pic of a magnet holding some odds and ends.

Note that the ones I bought (see Amazon pic - 7 pack for around $22) supposedly have the capacity to hold 80 pounds each if placed on the ceiling. They were strong enough to hold whatever I needed to when placed on the cabin walls. Some of the less strong ones have a tendency to just slide right off the wall. We put them in our carry-on luggage to reduce weight in the checked bags. Security scanners didn’t flag them at anytime as some posters have worried about.

12 hours ago, MJSailors said:

    Thank you for taking the time from your vacation to write interesting posts and share photos of the Sky. 

My DH and I are also booked on the Nov.5th repositioning cruise that Orangefan has mentioned in her post.We are looking forward to sailing on a new Princess ship. We are also hoping that Captain Tuvo is on that cruise. 

I am reading everything that has been posted by CC folks  who have already experienced the Sky in preparation of our cruise. So far, most posters have enjoyed the ship.

     Wishing you and your family many good days and pleasant travels in 2020 !

      

Have you had a chance to watch any of the YouTube videos by the bloggers from the very first three day Mediterranean cruise? There is some amazing footage in some of those videos.