zestyzorra

Yes, on Edge for 2 B2B cruises around NZ then the Australian wine. Thought it might be nice to switch to Princess for the TP because it goes back to Seattle 24 days later. But the only way to swing that is by accessing zoom at least on sea days. Thanks for letting me know about your experiences. I will have premium internet on Edge but Princess is the greatest unknown... if I knew I could count on Edge having solid internet through to Vancouver, I would consider staying on for another 2 B2Bs.

Speaking of Zoom calls, did you have any trouble connecting during your cruise? I will be sailing next year around New Zealand and then the TP to Tahiti - Hawaii - Vancouver. I'm trying to figure out if I can work during sea days. TIA! Sorry to interrupt your thread, Ken!

Just an FYI: I signed up for the World Wine Tasting before my January 28, 2023 Apex sailing. When I got onboard, I had a paper in my room with the date and time for the Riedel wine tasting workshop. I contacted guest services and they said the World Wine tasting would not be offered. Usually when this happens, they say so and offer an alternative instead of automatically shifting the booking to another tasting. I didn't want to do the Riedel workshop (I have too many glasses as it is), so I canceled and requested a refund. Bit of a bummer.

They did give us a really nice lanyard and luggage tag, plus a rope to practice sailing knots and the French onion soup recipe from La Petite Chef 😅

I just did this tour a few days ago. Long pants and close toed shoes were required but one woman (a suite guest, not sure if it mattered?) wore a dress and sandals while her husband wore shorts. No one said anything to them. Masks were not required. The tour was very interesting and lasted about 2 hours. As to the accusation above about opening cans and institutional casseroles, that was harsh and untrue. I saw tons of fresh food and the kitchen staff making nearly everything themselves. In fact, the food on Apex was the best of any cruise I've ever had (and I ate in the MDRs/buffet and some specialty restaurants, no access to Blu or Luminae). All of the crew and officers were friendly and welcoming, and they were more than happy to answer questions. I never felt rushed.

What if you have to go to the bathroom when you're on it? You just have to wait?

I seem to recall some dining times as early as 5:30pm, but I'm sure it depends on staffing and demand. I recommend heading directly to the specialty dining table near guest services or to Tuscan Grill or Murano (my preference) first thing, and book reservations for the week.

There are some reservations available on board because those with dining packages cannot make reservations until they are on board. I would say you do have hope, as long as you are flexible.

I don't know why they choose Hubbard but I definitely think all sites are beautiful. However, I did 2 cruises to Alaska in 2022, one on Celebrity to Hubbard and one on NCL to Glacier Bay. While Glacier Bay was amazing and had multiple glaciers to see, I was more impressed by Hubbard. We got SO close, less than a mile. It was enormous and we saw calving and had perfect weather in July. I don't think you can go wrong either way, but it is fun to see something different and then figure out what you like best!

Anyone head from the Port of Miami to Port Everglades? We are doing a side by side (4 of us). Thinking of taking an Uber or Lyft but would love to hear from anyone else who has done it. TIA!

Was there any difficulty booking the Hibachi experience? I've heard that if you don’t board before 11am and high tail it down to Izumi to make the reservations, you are S.O.L. I'd love to hear your experience. I'll be sailing on Symphony on the 21st. 😀 Thanks!

I live 30 minutes from Seattle and have taken most of my Alaska cruises from there. I really disliked my experience sailing from Canada Place (as referenced above, the serpentine lines were a pain and took 1 hour + because there were 3 ships in port). BUT I would rather take the time to drive up there and wait in line because the scenery was outstanding and the seas much calmer out of Vancouver. I also enjoyed that we had more time in each port overall. The Eclipse 7 day last July was the best Alaskan cruise I've been on, thus far. I haven't sailed Royal to Alaska yet.

I've done the food and wine pairing and the champagne tasting. The food and wine one was my favorite. We tried 5 different wines with about 15 different bites of food, from the usual cheese and chocolate to surprising ingredients like raw and cooked tomatoes and grilled chicken breasts. It was rather surprising how some foods worked with the wines. I never cared much for fortified wine until I had it with blue cheese. The champagne tasting was also nice but we couldn't really hear or understand the somm. The group of us all got along and had fun chatting, so that was the best part, to me. I'm doing the world of wines tasting on my cruise later this month, so I appreciate everyone's comments about that. Sounds like fun 😀

Thanks very much, I will definitely book it separately before the cruise as I really want to dine there. Just curious, what did you say to the manager of the restaurant when requesting the refund?

Were you able to get the Hamachi restaurant? That's the one I'm hoping for most, and I don't board until 11:30am. Like you, I've been stressing about it. But my sailing is 1/21. Thanks!

The worst wait I ever had to board a cruise was this past July on Celebrity going to Alaska out of Vancouver. We arrived around 1pm and it was organized chaos. I'd say it took over an hour with many different lines on different floors in Canada Place. Unfortunately, there were 3 ships leaving that day and they were still checking covid test results.

I stayed in an inside on Eclipse this past July to Alaska. It was the same size as a balcony room, just minus the window or balcony, obviously. It was quiet and perfect for us because we were never in the room during daylight hours, so we didn't need a window. The price was half a balcony cabin, so it was definitely worth it

I had at least 2 bottles of Cattier this past week on the Eclipse. Best places to get it were Cellar Masters, MDR on lobster night, and Murano or Tuscan Grill

No enforcement anywhere on the Eclipse last week. Very few people wore them but my DH and I did.

On the Eclipse, they did demonstrations and answered questions for a few hours on embarkation day. I would consider that a show...

Got my covid test at Walgreens today outside Seattle. No charge, but did have insurance. I reported no symptoms, just travel. I made the appointment a week ago. Everything was smooth and easy. I guess it really does depend on the location.

I sailed on 5/23. My boarding time was 11am. I wasn't sure how traffic would be, so the car picked my group up in Manhattan at 10am. We had no traffic at all and arrived around 10:25am. There were already people inside waiting to board, probably 100 or so. We checked in and sat down for 10 minutes, then they let us on the ship. It was smooth and pleasant!

Deckhand Dave's in Juneau is awesome!

I was on the Summit 5/23 to Bermuda, Newport and Charleston. My group had a fantastic time. We were not suite guests. There were times that the MDR was slow but we dined late and packed our patient pants, so that didn't bother us. Our servers always apologized and made up for the delay. We really enjoyed the food, especially at the buffet. We only did one excursion through the ship, and other than some delays getting loaded, it went well. I did notice very few bartender/servers in the buffet (and at times at Cafe al Bacio), but with the option to order at the counter, it wasn't an issue. Otherwise, none of us experienced staffing issues. I realize that not everyone has the same experience... whether due to cabin class, luck, attitude, expectations or overall timing. But we were all pleased and are looking forward to cruising next month.

I'm very sorry about your wife's Covid diagnosis. I just wanted to add for anyone who is discouraged by your experience that I was in Bermuda 5/26 - 5/28. None of the beaches were closed to my knowledge and we were able to enjoy Horseshoe Bay without any Portuguese Man of War sightings. (Annoying crowds from the other ship in port is another story...) We also docked late and missed the Hamilton ferry so we took a crowded minibus into town, as well as to the beach the last day. We also wore masks and we did not catch covid. We were lucky and we had a fantastic time in Bermuda.