StrawberryHill

I frequently pick up two drinks at a bar. I am guessing they credit my account for two drinks I have never tried to get more than two

We took the Princess transfer for VCS last year. Once you walk in the main lobby, look at the train board and it will say Sky Princess and then tell you what lane to go to. Princess will have someone there with you name on a clipboard and give you a numbered sticker. When its time to board the coaches, they call you out by numbers. Your bags are loaded on the coach and delivered to your room. You should have your luggage tags already attached. There were two coaches that left from VCS last year, neither was full. When we got to the cruise terminal, we were the only ones inside. 5 minutes to check in and got right on board.

Coral, Coral, Coral, Coral Island only as a last resort. Smaller ships give you a better experience. Island got "re modeled " a few years ago.

We have been on the Island Princess twice, once thru the canal and once in Norway. We still prefer the Coral Princess because it seems less crowded and there are more public spaces. The Island is still a nice ship because of its size. Beware of the added cabins. They are "additions" and not part of the original ships structure. The walls are much thinner and they tend to allow more noise from the adjacent area thru. You can compare the Coral and Island deck plans to see which cabins were added to the Island.

Have not cruised since last summer (sad). We used to be able to just go to the princess app on out Iphones and do whatever. I got a new phone and had to reload the app. Tried to log in with our Princess website username and password, no luck. Wifes old Iphone has the same issue after downloading the "new" app. Does the app need a separate username and login ?

I print out the "boarding pass" just to have written documentation to show that we are on this cruise. You never know, medallions can get lost, phone batteries can die, internet may be down etc. Also it show what you have paid for incase there is an issue on board with drink packages, excursions etc. Showing up with only a "boarding pass" and a passport in hand and not having done ANY pre cruise checking in stuff on the app or on a computer will still get you on the ship. It just may take a few minutes longer.

Coral 100 % Been on the Coral and Sapphire. Coral is our favorite ship

agreed

Hi, Its just an office building. You have to have a reason to get in. There is a modal of a Princess cruise ship in the lobby and not much else.

We disembarked in Vancouver once ( with a Princess transfer ) with two other cruise ships. It was a disaster in the bus loading area. No organization from Princess at all. The other two ships had people with signs and organized bus loading lines. We ended up walking to the sky train station in the rain. Emailed Princess afterward and they sent us a refund for our post cruise transfer. When we got to the airport we checked in with people who took the Princess bus and had gotten off the ship an hour before we did. They got to the airport after we did. The train is so much easier.

What happened to " Chocolate Journeys" ? I have been watching menus that have been posted and do not see that option anymore ? The chocolate pistachio dome was to kill for. I did see it listed as on one menu although it was not a chocolate journeys listing ? Oh well, the other desserts are still pretty good and you get a choice of things we would rarely try at home.

We used EZair for our last years and this years trip to London. The tickets were "issued" approx. 60 days prior. EZ air fares were comparable with AA premium economy fares. When we book AA flights separately, we always pay for the flight insurance, so it adds cost. When you use Princess, your princess insurance covers your flights ( Spoken from experience ) . HOWEVER if you choose EZair way in advance and your flight tickets have not "ticketed" and you try to rebook a cheaper cruise fare your entire cruise may be rebooked including your flights, and you may have to rebook EZair at the current cost which will be higher in most cases. As was said above, you can always cancel your EZair tickets prior to issuing and book separately at a cheaper fare if you find one.

We bring along a wall clock that has a magnet on it and sticks on the wall. It is always set to the time on the desk phone or " ships time". Rememer ships time is the standard. Local time mean nothing. People have been left behind because they are not on "ships" time.

Same as mreasier post: Coral - Smallest and least crowded ship with almost all the Princess features we like including the International Cafe. Lacks Skywalkers but has the Universe Lounge.

I am still baffled why people worry about arrival times, especially when one has a pre cruise Princess transfer. When one arrives at the pick up location, the bus driver does not ask you about your arrival time. When one arrives at the cruise port, the luggage porters or the people checking you in have never asked us aboout our arrival time. Sure you may have to wait a bit if they are regulating the amount of people getting on the ship. We have never been turned away from a check in because we were too early. When 1500 to 2500 people are getting on a ship in a 4 to 5 hour window, they are processed as they get there and board when they are allowed to.

Thank you all Maybe we will wait for the upgrade fairy the day of the cruise 🤞

Sorry if this has been covered before, did not want to look at all 55 pages. if your bid is acceped are you automatically moved to that cabin and lose your exisiting cabin? On the Island in a month and have a nice mid ship large balcony cabin. Thinking about puttting in a small bid ($135) for a mini suite and want a chance to say yes or no depening upon location ( dont want an aft one ). It used to be the upgrade fairy would send an email and give you 24 hrs to accept or reject without losing your current cabin.

We went thru the canal ( west to east ) on the Island and spent the time going thru the first set of locks ( west side ) in the very front of the ship on deck 9 or 10 as was metntioed above. There are crew doors there that were unlocked. It was not "announced". Be prepared to be in the sun the entire time. You can take a chair with you. The view is amazing watching the ships in front of you go thru the locks. You do not get a sense of the ship going up and down as you are too high to feel it. You need to be on deck 7 or lower to get the real feel of the locks. We were in sanctuary ( open to all ) for the second set of locks( west side ) watching the ships behind us go thru. You need to be up early befor sunrise to see the myriad of ships waiting their turn and to watch Panama City " wake up". The day before there were large colored poster boards in the photo studio area with colored markers to make signs for you to hold up from your balcony as the ships photographers were mostly on shore taking phtotos. Dont know if they do that anymore. Lots of people brought their own stuff to make signs and hang them from their baconies also. Going thru the lake was like a sea day, eat lunch and enjoy the views from your baclony of the pool deck etc. Its a 12-14 hour event depending upon lock traffice etc. We hung out on our balcony for the eastern set of locks.

You should get an email from princess shortly ( 1 week ? ) before you cruise with some basic show info, like the what production shows will be featured. Individual entertainers wont be annonced until the cruise starts and can change during the cruise.

Its been like that most all the time in Maui. Everyone is on "Hawaii" time

No They should be in your cabin in an envelope. Have fun !

Lets see...... First thing we do is head to a MDR for lunch - avoid the buffet at all costs After lunch our rooms are usually ready and we unpack carry on stuff / luggage Hang paperwork on the wall ( magnets ) Put the clock / temp / humidity read out on the wall Find our excursion tickets and clip those on the wall in the order we need them ( magnetic clip ) Hang our daily event calendar and cruise itinerary on the wall ( magnets ) Watch the safety video at the same time as doing above Put stuff in the safe ( including my phone - dont need it on board ) unplug time Read the Patter and mark up the things to do that evening Go to the muster station Explore the ship - or Watch the cargo being loaded on the ship ( it is fun counting the stack of beer cases ) If in L.A. watch the container ships being loaded and loaded

Get some exercise. Walk by the dining room in the morning. They are posted outside on the wall

Nope never tried after final payment

We have rebooked our June cruise three times sine last June However..... Once you add EZair, you cannot rebook without loosing your airfare, so that sort of locks you in unless airfares go down ( not usually )