cruisin froggy

Does anyone know what "polar online" is? I got a message from my TA which was from Princess and our names are on the list. When I googled it, it says its a booking site. Really? What is its purpose? I haven't had any problems booking through my TA. If anyone knows what it is and whether I should be thrilled to find our names on the list, please let me know. Thanks. :D

When we would go to crown grill for breakfast every morning we rarely had more than six people in there. I guess most people have room service or go to horizon court

There are not very many suites so less passengers for breakfast at the specialty restaurants. Also, breakfast in the specialty restaurants is from about 7:30 to about 9:30 so not everyone is there at the same time.

Sabatini's breakfast is not to be missed. (y) (y)

I agree unless there is no Sabatini's on board, then it s the Crown grill for breakfast. But same thing.

Sabatini breakfast is my favorite suite perk. There are very few passengers there. The food is great and it's nice to start the day with a mimosa.

Oh yes! The breakfast in either Sabatinis or the Crown Grill when there isn't a Sabatinis. And I love the walk in shower separate from the tub! Yes, you get spoiled and we cannot cruise any other way now. Have fun!:cool:

We really enjoy the production shows on Princess. Our all time favorite is "On the Bayou". Have seen it 3 times & I really hope it will be on our upcoming November Coral sailing.

 

The Ultimate Ship Tour was the most interesting thing we have done on the ship.

 

 

Would love to hear preferences of others.

We also loved "on the Bayou"! We saw it twice on the Island and wish it were on other ships.

Wow! Been on the Crown and many other Princess ships and all I ever see is people sanding, cleaning, scrubbing and varnishing. The above seems a bit of an exaggeration.

Sometimes there are toilet problems which I believe to be caused by dingbats who flush things down the toilet that should have gone in the trash.

The Crown did have some Noro probs in the past. Perhaps that affected the all around service.

We have sailed on many Princess ships including the Crown and have always has a good time and admired the cleanliness and how pretty the ships were. I agree that we always saw someone doing everything included in the quote. Our cabin was well maintained and most if not all the crew were friendly and worked hard at least that we could see. Maybe someone had a bad experience and wanted to lash out at Princess. Have fun on your cruise and don't look for the negatives. They are always there but so are positives. Its all a state of mind. :halo:

All's well that ends well! My TA persevered and finally guest services admitted it was their mistake and credited us the $700. It was the saver rate and we knew that but we also knew we were due $700 cruise credit and this all began when I looked over the invoice and questioned why not the $700. When I saw the date of the "second" cruise cancellation, I knew it was a mistake by Carnival and they finally admitted it and we are paid in full! It just pays to be vigilant. Our TA has always worked well for us. I have no complaints. She just assumed 2 cruises and 2 cancellations until I argued it was amiss. Anyway, I'm glad it got resolved and especially that we weren't out money we didn't owe. HAPPY CRUISING! Thanks for your answers. See you on board.

We booked a cruise on Carnival, our first cruise on Carnival. Unfortunately we had to cancel because our grand daughter decided to get married then. Obviously her wedding came first. Because we cancelled, we did not get everything back and we were given $700 future cruise credit. We have now booked another Carnival cruise expecting to have $700 credited to our account. But we only had $600 credited because we had cancelled 2 cruises. Really? were both of us considered one cruise??? Sounded crazy. But our TA said no, it was because we had cancelled 2 Carnival cruises. Unless I am booking cruises in my sleep, I was pretty sure we only cancelled one cruise. To make a long story short, our TA sent me the record of our bookings and cancellations. Hmmm. There was indeed the cruise we cancelled to attend the wedding and there was the second booked cruise and cancellation, on the exact same date as the wedding. Huh? Who would do that? Unless I'm losing my mind, I know I didn't and wouldn't do such a stupid thing. I don't think I will win this argument so we are going to have to swallow $100, the cost of cancelling the cruise we never booked. All I can think is that someone elses cruise was cancelled in our name. If that is so, I hope they got it figured out and had a nice cruise. Anyway, just thought you all might enjoy a bizarre story. I'm hoping I can past this and enjoy our upcoming cruise.

I have just got off the Island Princess and really enjoyed her. Didn't find any problems. I like the smaller size ships rather than the newer mega style phones.

We were on a b2b on the Island through the Panama Canal and we loved the ship! We didn't sail on her prior to the renovation so I cannot compare that. The only draw back that we found was having to pass through if you want to walk the promenade deck and no International cafe. I love the Intl' cafe so I really missed it. However, the Bayou Cafe was outstanding, the food great and the show on the Bayou was the best show I've seen on princess. Our cabin was mid ship so no rattles etc. So, being on hert for 30 days, we really felt we "knew" her and I would sail on her again.

I have not been able to access anything except the home page for 10 days. Other computers in our house are able to but not mine. I have tried several suggested fixes to the problem but still no luck. I emailed Princess about 8 days ago but never got a response. We have two current cruises booked and I am the one in our household that manages them. At least now I know I am not alone. My problem began when they updated the My Princess page. I would love to hear if anyone else had this problem and was able to fix it. I either get an Error 400 message on some of the links or "We are experiencing technical difficulties"

I can access princess, the web cams and my personalized on Safari but not Firefox. Weird.

Each cruise line has its own strength and weaknesses - in varying degrees in the eyes of individual cruiser. A low rank given by one, may be higher by another. I don't really rely on ranking when booking.

I agree with easyboy. We have only cruised on Princess, mainly because we hate to go through all the airport fuss to go on a cruise and we can drive to take a Princess cruise. And we book suites because I injured my leg and its very difficult getting in and out of a tub. Princess has separate showers in their suites. We are going on our first Carnival cruise to Alaska because it leaves from Lon Beach and usually in order to go on an Alaska cruise we had to fly (and go through airports). We booked a suite thinking there would be a separate shower just like on Princess but I understand it is a tub shower combo. I'm obviously gong to have to adapt but as far as it being Carnival, we're just happy to be on a cruise and we're anticipating it to be just as pleasurable as all our other cruises.

psvtrvlr - I like your thinking. Although our suite was nicely apportioned, the suites on Princess are larger easily by at least a third and include clearly separated living and sleeping areas. Then again, the differences are reflected in the prices, too. But the perks and amenities on Princess are worth quite a few of those delta dollars!

 

 

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We book a suite on Princess for two reasons, I had an injury and getting into and out of a tub is a challenge so I love the separate step in shower on Princess and we love the specialty breakfasts.

Hmmm. Dang, I feel slighted. We didn't get one, right names or wrong names.

Oh that's too bad you "lost" your things. I'm so sorry and I can empathize. I lost a favorite shirt in the laundry room on a recent cruise and despite numerous trips to lost and found, I never got it back. Another passenger said she "lost" a dress and saw a passenger actually wearing it on board. Go figure.

And one big reason for me to book a suite on Princess is the separate shower since I injured my leg and its hard getting in and out of a bath tub. And my husband loves the breakfasts in the specialty dining rooms. Ordering from the MDR menu for room service, is another perk we like too.

I agree. We will be on Carnival for the first time and am dismayed at the lack of perks in a suite. Oh well, its not forever. Just 14 days.

We will be sailing on Carnival for the first time in a suite. We like being in a suite. I am happy to be in a suite but I don't see a lot of perks compared to suites on Princess, which is all that we are used to, such as priority embarkation and de-barkation (same on both?), priority tender (same on both?), champagne on arrival, flowers in cabin, room service 2x day, room service from MDR if desired, separate shower from tub, mini bar setup 1x. and specialty restaurant breakfast to name those I remember. Any of the others the same? Just wondering what to expect. Thank you so much!

They still want you to select a time, but you can show up whenever you choose.

 

 

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Thank you. :)

Staggered check in does not apply to Diamond, Platinum, Suites, FTTF, or guests with Airport Transfers. You can show up at anytime and you will be allowed in.

So, since we are in a suite, we do not have to pick a check in time? :confused:

What time did you typically eat? Did you make reservations each morning?

 

We have Anytime Dining in February and we are typically early eaters.

Interestingly, the first night, the restaurant called us and asked if we would like to make a reservation. Maybe because we were in a suite? Yes, we called each morning and asked for a 6PM seating and a specific table as well, which was nice since we got to know our servers. If 6 is too late, I'm sure 5:30 would work as well. Enjoy your cruise!

Thank you for coming back on to post a clarification. It makes more sense to me now. I am glad you are able to drive to Vancouver AND cruise in a HA suite. Enjoy your time on the Island. I would be interested in hearing, from your perspective, how the changes from your Hawaii Cruise to the Alaskan Cruise compare.

We were recently on the Island, a b2b through the Panama Canal, 30 days. We really liked the ship. It was a pretty ship and the crew were great! We had no problems with any time dining in that we made daily reservations and were seated immediately. The only problem of course was having to come through to the other side to walk the promenade deck and I missed the International cafe. Aside from those few things, we loved our cruise.

That has not been my experience. I have Grand Suites booked on 2 upcoming RCCL cruises in January 2017 and January 2018 on the RCCL Liberty of the Seas. The cabins are more luxurious and are 401 sq ft. + the 104 sq ft balcony, which is larger than a GS on Carnival. I priced the Breeze for the same dates and a GS on Carnival was $500 more per person. Plus, the Diamond Discount on RCCL knocks another $225.00 off the cabin, making it $1225.00 cheaper for us to sail RCCL in a GS than sail Carnival in a GS.

 

We sailed Princess the past 3 years in January and paid $600.00 per person less than Carnival for a great aft facing suite with a huge balcony on Princess. And we got tons of perks for all, including a free Crown Grill dinner the first night and breakfast at Sabatini's every morning and a free bar set up and ability to order a full hot breakfast via room service and order lunch and dinner off the MDR menu.

 

Over Labor Day 2014 we got a 2 bedroom 2 bath Royal Family Suite with a huge aft facing balcony on RCCL Navigator of the seas for 3 people for $2800 total. The 3rd person sailed free. We priced the Magic for that same date and the cost for a GS was $4200.00 for the 3 of us. They wanted $699 for the 3rd person.

 

Carnival's pathetic past guest rates can't compete with the $225.00 that RCCL knocks off the best price we can find on a balcony or suite. I am Diamond on both lines.

 

When I get off RCCL I hardly have any bar bill. They have free nightly cocktails and appetizers in the Diamond Lounge and Suite Lounge (I can access either or both) and they load 3 free drinks on my Sea Pass card that I can use at any bar between usually 5 and 8pm (another Diamond perk on RCCL).

 

We have sailed in Grand Suites on Carnival in the past, but actually prefer the OS layout. At one time I thought Carnival had the best deals on suites, that is until my travel agent presented suite rates on other lines and we found them to be very competitive and in many cases cheaper than Carnival.

 

I do have to point out that if you want a GS on RCCL on any date, you need to jump on them when they announce the deployments. The price rarely gets cheaper than that and the suites on RCCL sell out really fast. On the cruise we booked for Jan 2017 the GS category was sold out by November 2015. It jumped from $1339 per person at deployment ( before the Diamond discount was applied) to over $2200 per person before selling out.

 

You are right mini suites are not suites, but I don't book them. But at least RCCL gives double points on them making it easier to reach Platinum or Diamond fairly quickly. 80 days for Diamond which brings some nice perks in itself.

In addition on Princess, in a suite, there is a separate glass enclosed shower, the deck furniture is wood, an orchid in the room, chocolate covered strawberries. My husband likes the suite for the breakfast in the specialty restaurant and I like the suite for the walk in shower since its easier for me.

I do independent insurance thru insuremytrip.com also instead of Carnival's insurance and we purchase it every time. A few years ago we were delayed coming back into port and didn't debark til 9 pm. We're facing 10+ hour drive home. Only drove around 3, pulled off and got hotel for night. We're reimbursed that expense due to travel delay. That is a small illustration. Last year a couple we knew, husband passed a kidney stone 2nd to last night of cruise, was in the infirmary for a while with fluids and pain meds. Without insurance would hate to know that cost, regular health insurance wouldn't cover it. Too many possibilities to not be prepared. That is us. I know folks who never get it but it's worth it for my peace of mind

 

 

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We were on a cruise to Hawaii with friends when she developed kidney stones and had to leave the ship and return home. They said it was an incredibly expensive lesson. We also get insurance now...just in case. BTW, they also had to pay something for home land security for leaving the ship. It would have been more had they no had the ship's doctor's blessing.

This will be our first Carnival cruise but the feeling is the same for every cruise, no matter the cruise line. So many things never get old.

We could book our cruises our selves but we really love our TA. She has always gone above and beyond, answers questions right away and has never been a problem. I feel she takes any potential hassles out of booking cruises.