sashas_mom

Pia,

Loving your reviews. Can you ask Stephanie the pop choir gal if she is aware of our Rockin Royals song? Princess was supposed to let them know about it. I'd love to get together with her about it. We have a nice group to sing it

Thanks.

Eileen

This cruise is well and truly underway. Here are a few of our impressions. The ship is beautiful and the decor while muted is certainly elegant and well appointed. Yesterday the weather was gloomy with lots of rain and the occasional thunder boomer. We had planned to take the bus to Pisa but since we lived in Europe for 8 years, we've "been there, done that" so we decided to stay on board.

 

Our stateroom (deluxe balcony) is very nice. The balcony is a bit on the small side but certainly adequate. The shower is larger than on other Princess ships but the bathroom itself is small with barely enough room for one and impossible for two, even to just stand in. No hoo hoo though.

 

The casino was good to us the first night. DW won a bit on the slots but there were not enough poker players to get a game started. On the second night the poker table (Poker Pro electronic) was full and I had to wait about 30 minutes for a seat. It turned out that the wait was worth it. On the first hand I was dealt Q J of diamonds and decided to call but after a $10 raise I waivered a bit but decided to call. The flop was 9 J J so now I had trips. I was going to slow play but decided to bet $20 to drive out the draws. Luckily there were a few callers. The turn brought another jack giving me quads. I did my best to display disgust as if my higher pair had been counterfeited. I bet another $20 and got two callers. The river brought an ace and since they called my bet on the turn, I went all-in and was called. What a great first hand! Should have known better as I went card-dead for around ten hands and decided to call it a night.

 

There was a Mara Lago demo and drawing scheduled for 8:30 pm last night but for whatever reason, the ship was late leaving and the shops did not even open till 8:45. We had a martini at crooners and wondered if the drawing would even take place. Well, DW headed to Facets and there was noone else there. She asked about the drawing and the sal3esman said that since she was the only one there, she would get the drawing prize; a pendant valued at $199. She was ecstatic and that made her day for sure.

 

Today we strolled around Civitavecchia, found a great little local restaurant. We had penne arrabiata and a bottle of the house Tuscan wine with a bottle of water as well. The total was 20 euros and the penne was spectacular; nice and spicy, just the way we like it. We stopped by the market and picked up 3 bottles of Tuscan wine for the princely sum of 7.50 euros. Brought it on board with no problem.

 

We've tried Alfredo's and the pizza was superb. We requested the Chef's Table and received our formal invitations today. We're really looking forward to that.

 

Tomorrow is Naples and we plan to take the boat out to Capri for the day.

Hope the waether is as nice as today. That's all for now. Time for a bottle of that good Tuscan wine and sailaway from our balcony.

 

Harry and Joyce

Hi,

We will be on the TA next week. You mentioned strolling around Chittivecia, is this something you think we could do if I have a mobility scooter? Did you have to take a cab or just from off the ship? We were just going to stay on the ship that day, but strolling around would be nice if I can use my scooter. Thanks.

Amelia, love your post and your attitude. We had a similiar experience in Cannes in 2011. Could barely walk on the wet cobblestone in the pouring rain but enjoyed the day in spite of it. Hope you have better weather for the rest if your excursions.

Kind of, though I was hoping for something more definite on the second's date. BUt thanks!

If you look at the itinerary on the Princess site it tells you the dates of the sea days. You'll be able to figure it out that way.

Can't wait to read about your experience and impressions. Bon Voyage! See you very soon.

Eileen

Eileen, if we are at a berth that distance from the people mover, another option would be to take a cab from the ship to P.Roma and then the Vaporetto from there around the canal.

Thanks, Julia. Had no idea i could get a cab to P Roma. Do they generally line up at the dock? That sounds the easiest of all.

Thank you all. Decided to see what else I could find out and found the disability section of CC and as always found very valuable info. Looks like we'll get off the ship after all. Seems like Venice is improving with new features for the disabled. That's wonderful because it's a gorgeous place to visit.

As I always say, gotta love Cruise Critic.

Hi sashas'mom,

 

Thanks so much, I'm glad you enjoyed the review of our trip and my writing. I'm happy to share my experiences and help others in our CC community as they have helped me.

 

As far as the people mover, it's a bit of a hike from the ship to the station, probably 20 to 30 minutes or so depending on where the ship is berthed. DW also has some walking issues and we did it with luggage, but its flat and straight forward to get to. It's 1 EU for the tram and it takes you to Piazza Roma where you can catch the Vaporetto to anywhere in Venice. The #1 can be caught here and takes you along the Grand Canal with lots of stops.

Did you happen to notice if anyone with a mobility scooter was able to get on the people mover or a Vaporetto. I'm afraid that long of a walk would do me in. What a bummer! We didn't even go into Venice in 2011 because of my limitations and I regretted it. Might have to stay on the ship again if I can't figure it out.

Thanks again

Thanks for the info on the water shuttle. Think we will use the people mover and vaporetto to get where we want to go for the time we are there on our B2B. We won't need to be going to St. Marks more than once so we will turn in the water shuttle tickets.

This sounds like what we should do as well. Don't need to see St. mark's again, been there 3 times. Just want something easy so we can see a little of Venice

again. So, since we also have never used the people mover can you spell out directions for me please if we wanted to get on a Vaperetto and just ride around the canal? Would there be a lot of walking to get to the people mover from the ship?

I just love Venice, but it's the most difficult place to visit when you have mobility issues.:eek:

I loved your review and must say, you are an excellent writer. I loved your word pictures and felt I was there with you enjoying the whole experience.

We have never used the shuttle from the ship into St Mark's Square before, but are seriously considering it in October. Your description of thoe wait time and how far it was from the ship nowconcerns me. I have limited mobility. Can someone else comment on this who has also recently been on the Royal? Did you have the same experience? It would be very helpful to know ahead of time.

Thanks again for taking the time to write a wonderful review. Can't wait to be on the Royal in October.

We live in a townhouse where we hear our neighbors, their kids playing, etc. if I'm sitting on our balcony on the ship it is so refreshing to hear the sound of silence. I agree with the other posters.

Thank you for sharing your experience with us. Can't wait to board her in October.

Thanks again, Dave. Can't wait to be on this gorgeous ship. For us, we are excited about being on a new Princess ship. Although my husband is disappointed about no central staircase, the ship looks so gorgeous and the new features so desirable (thanks to all the pics and info you found and shared), we can't wait to experience her for ourselves in October. It's hard to believe it's almost here. I remember so clearly the mad dash to book a cabin without even knowing what we really were getting. I just went with what we always get and hoped for the best. Turns out I'm so glad I didn't upgrade to a deluxe balcony, since I use the drawers in the desk so much and don't like what they did with it to make room for the sofa.

I'm looking forward to your review once you are actually on the ship and can experience it for yourself.

We have a Baja balcony midship on the Royal. Just curious if the lifeboats will afffect our view?

Thanks, and thanks Dave for all your help and insight this past year.

Are walls in the shower magnetic too? I was thinking of putting magnets on my shower caddy.

 

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The cruise shower caddy from Favors By Serendipity has three velcro straps that attach to the bar in front of the soap alcove. It's perfect for cruising because it doesn't take up any room in the tiny shower. Plus it comes with strong suction cups if you want to use those. I love mine.

I had a molar tooth break when we were crossing the Atlantic on a TA. Fortunately, i didn't experince any pain but I was very careful not to chew on that side or use ice in my drinks. When i got home After visiting my dentist to get my tooth fixed I immediately bought a tooth filling repair kit and put it with all my other cruise necessaties.

I have a shower caddy and soap pocket on a rope from favors by serendipity website that is a MUST when I cruise, especially on Princess. It can be used in any shower, but on Princess it's perfect because it has three velcro straps that attach to the bar where the soap dish is, and doesn't take up any space in the shower (which is a good thing, because the shower is famously small). The soap pocket keeps the soap from dropping, which I am apparently really good at :)

What is the item specifically that you buy from Serendipity to enclose your Princess luggage tags? What is their web site and can the item be purchased on their site? Thanks

Just do a search for luggage tag holders. I can't imagine a cruise without their shower caddy and tag holders. My daughter recently did a Princess cruise and forgot the mesh soap pocket and every time she dropped the soap she wanted to kick herself (not possible in the shower, of course:D) Now they do personalized magnets to decotate the door.

Wow! There are a lot of very creative, festive people on this board. Thanks for sharing the pics. If I had more time it would be fun to see what I could come up with, but for me, it's the easiest to get the magnets from Serendipity Favors. If I ever have time to do my own I'll be sure to share my pics.

I like the full size magnets I just found on favors by serendipity. They are personalized, reasonably priced and they have cute designs.

We were on the Golden with Elua in October of this year. Leialoha of Elua seemed to think they would be on the Star in the 2014 season. I hope they and David Cole would be together again whichever ship it is and keep us informed of which ship it is in 2014. I like to book our Hawaii cruises based on where they are, just love them. If you are reading this Dave of Elua, please use those email addresses you collected on our last cruise with you to keep us informed.

Thanks.

I do hope the holders you are making yourself will be strong enough. What i like about the ones from favors by serendipity is the grommet. Have you seen the luggage handlers working? They are not very careful, they have a job to do, and do it quickly. I do suggest you put your information inside your suitcase as well, just in case your tags get torn off.

Aloha Kakou,

As far as I know, David will be on the Sapphire after drydock. Leialoha and I will be on the Golden for the remainder of this season. We look forward to having you with us onboard.

 

A Hui Hou,

Dave "Kawika" Soreff

(of Elua)

Dave, do you have your 2012 schedule yet? I'm so disappointed we won't have Dave Cole on the Golden next Sept/Oct. Itinerary. I hope the two of you will be there.

Don,t forget the cost of the BVE is credited to you when you book a cruise, even if you are a past passenger. Remind your TA or Princess.

I've used Carevacations.com and it is pricey, but a life saver to those with limited mobility and helps enjoy the cruise so much more.