flamomo

I stayed at the Hotel Olimpia, a Best Western, property a few years ago. It's located on a small canal close to the Piazzale Roma, which is where the transportation hub for Venice is located and where the buses to/from the airport arrive/depart. It only required toting our luggage over 2 smaller bridges. One of the plusses is that it is also close the People Mover that transports people from the Piazzale to the port. We were boarding a Princess ship, and once we arrived on the People Mover, they had a truck waiting to take our luggage to the ship, and a bus to transport us shipside. I have no idea whether other cruise lines offer a similar service.

The hotel isn't huge, but the rooms are comfortable, the bathrooms very modern, and it has an elevator. (I have heard that some of the smaller hotels don't have elevators, which would be a definite inconvenience for many of us.) They offer a very nice breakfast buffet with a good selection of items.

It wasn't cheap, but getting to stay right IN Venice was wonderful, so it was worth every penny. My 3rd floor room overlooked the canal, and it was delightful to stand at the window and look out over the city.

I read on Cruise Junkie this morning that a female passenger died onboard, reportedly of complications of norovirus, while the ship was traversing the Pacific Ocean.

16 hours ago, LarryL said:

 

We were just on the Pacific Princess (Dec TA) and they did install the handheld shower attachments. Our balcony stateroom also had the new bed and other improvements. Very comfortable. I think Princess updated the little ship while keeping it's old style charm.  

That's excellent news about the shower attachment. We have 2 cruises booked on her for this year, and that will be a welcome change.

1 minute ago, riffatsea said:

We are not interested in sailing on any mega ships!

We really enjoyed being on the Coral in December and thought that the decor was just fine.

I don't completely understand how "modern decor" changes the experience on board a ship??

I am much more interested in good service, good food, and fun activities.

It changes the "feel" …. at least to my eyes and mind. Disagree with me if you wish, but I've cruised exclusively with Princess for the past 15 years, and have a strong mental image of what I expect to see when walking around on one of the ships,  based on what I have been accustomed to seeing when I am onboard. 

Some of the décor changes in some public areas on the Crown have gotten a gaudy look, ala Carnival. So not in keeping with the classic, low key Princess décor that I far prefer.Having done well over 40 cruises with Princess, on most of the fleet (but none on the new "mega-ships"), I am well accustomed to the light woods and pastel color schemes that Princess has always had, and don't care for changes of that interfere that relaxing aura of being on a Princess ship. 

I usually tip $5 to the guide and also $5 to the driver on a half day, and$10 to each for an all-day tour. 
Occasionally a guide is truly exceptional and I may bump it up to $20.

Once, the guide was just so-so, but the driver was exceptionally helpful and the roads he took us over were very steep and winding, so he got the $20 and the guide got the $10!!

My first was in 2004, on the Coral to the Panama Canal. I was hooked the moment the transfer bus pulled up alongside the terminal and I saw that gorgeous ship!

40+ Princess cruises later, after traveling on most of the ships in the fleet (I loved each and every one!), my absolute favorite ship is the lovely "Little White Lady:, the Pacific Princess. 💗

Sounds more like they are Carnivalizing that ship. UGH!! 

IMO, forget about competing with the other cruise lines that offer this sort of thing, and let Princess be what she has always been … a mid-range priced cruise line with some quiet class.

If they go fleet-wide with "innovations" of this sort, after 40+ Princess cruises, I will sadly have to find a better fit for the style of cruising that Princess has made me come to expect. 

I have done a number of transatlantic cruises with Princess cruises, and always book my flights thru the cruiseline. The fares have been really great. We're flying to Venice in the Fall to board the Pacific Princess for a 29 day cruise thru the Med and then crossing the Atlantic to FLL, and our one-way flights to Venice are costing us about $370 each. I researched the same flights if  booked directly with the same major U.S. airline and those fares was over twice as much! Also, Expedia, and like booking sites, can't begin to match the fares we got.

This is very true. I've been there when there are other ships in port and it can get crowded. But we always have enjoyed being there even so. The same has happened when on a port stop on Mykonos.

I use my sleeves over and over until they fall apart. And I keep saving new ones so I have a stockpile.

There is one "small ship" in the Princess fleet, the Pacific Princess, and she is pure delight. Only 670 passengers, and the ship itself is lovely, and we've always found the service to be excellent. I've done several cruises on her and will be doing 2 more this year. If OP can find an itinerary on this little gem that includes some Greek islands, I think they'd find it a very pleasant experience. Pricing is mainline, not luxury, so it's pretty affordable, IMO.

I do wish Princess would offer a choice of pillows to the rest of us who can't afford to travel in a full suite.

I personally HATE the fat, pouffy, too-soft pillows that they started supplying when they changed to the new mattresses …. way too soft and thick for a side sleeper. Apparently they are the only kind of pillows they stock, because my cabin steward hunted high and low to try to find one that was thinner and firmer, without success. In desperation I finally had to resort to buying a MyPillow travel pillow that rolls up for packing, because, while it's smaller than a full size pillow, it's not too soft or thick for my needs. It takes up more space in my luggage than I would like, but at least I don't feel like I am being smothered by their pillows. To me they are not even comfortable as something to put behind my back to lean against while sitting on the bed to read or watch TV. 

Or at least I wish they would put one fat pouffy and PLUS one thinner, firmer one, on each bed, instead of two of the overly fat and soft ones. That would at least give all passengers a choice of which type suits them best.

I tried the rolling method for my clothes and found they were quite wrinkled when I unpacked. I read here on CC that using 2 1/2 gallon Ziploc bags was a better way to go, and I found that is true. I like that method best and have been using it for over 10 years, anytime I travel. It is extremely rare that I have iron anything before being able to wear it. Packing cubes are an unnecessary expense. IMO. I've used the same Ziploc bags over and over for years. The key is to fold things VERY carefully to prevent any wrinkles from forming while folding, don't stuff the bags overly full, and be sure to "burp" as much air as possible out of each bag before sealing it, so clothing items in them can't shift when the suitcase is being manhandled by airport and airline luggage handlers. For things like long pants or dresses, which I do not put in  Ziploc bags,, layer each item with a large plastic bag before folding to reduce the chance of creases forming at the fold lines. These are laid atop the stacked Ziploc bags in the suitcase. Socks and other small items are tucked inside shoes. Each pair of footwear is put in a plastic sleeve (saved from my daily newspaper delivery) so no dirt rubs off on anything in the suitcase.

Get yourself a travel luggage scale so you can be pretty sure that your luggage won't be overweight when you check in at the airport. That's another thing I have used for many years and since I  started using it, have never been required to pay an overweight bag fee. Paying that $100 fee once was enough for me. LOL

Happy Cruising!!

1 hour ago, GottaLuvCruising said:

 I printed luggage tags just a couple days ago for two upcoming cruises.  On the printer screen I changed the setting from "fit to page" to "100%" and luggage tags printed correctly (print page one only.)  

 

I found I had to make the same change the last time I printed tags. It had never happened to me before, in 14 years of cruising with Princess, and have no idea what caused the change to my settings because I sure didn't do it.

 I personally prefer to figure out how much know for sure that I'll need for private tours, tips for ships-tour guides, tips for cabin steward and other crew (extra tips for extra good service) and add another couple of hundred euros for souvenirs, food if we choose to have a meal in a port, and other miscellaneous expenses, and have my bank order it. There is a one time service fee, but I'd rather pay that then have to use my debit card in an ATM in Europe. So far I've never needed to get more euros while over there. If I did, I would use the separate "travel" checking account with a separate debit card that I maintain for that purpose, so I would not have to access my main checking account while out of the US.

If we're staying a night or two or three pre or post cruise, I'll take a bit more for walking-around expenses, and pay for the hotel with a credit card with no foreign exchange fees.

I made the mistake of wearing shoes that had rubber soles but did not tie, and because my foot slipped around in the shoe when I happened to step into an unseen hole between the underwater rocks, I ended up with a sprained ankle and a gouge on my shin that got infected. The infection was bad enough that I had to go to the ship's medical center to be treated. That water looks sparkly and nice, but it's NOT clean!! The ankle got hugely swollen and was very painful for several days, and my cabin mate had to push me around the ship in a wheelchair.

It's wise to wear a type of shoe that can't allow that  to happen! 

Haven't sailed on that particular ship, but I have found that it's wise to bring something with you when going to the various onboard venues because often enough they are a bit too chilly for comfort, or where one unwittingly winds up seated in a drafty area.

I usually take a pashmina with me when going to the dining room, theater, etc. IMO  they are less bulky to tote than a sweater or jacket.

On ‎1‎/‎7‎/‎2019 at 11:44 AM, JF - retired RRT said:

Also, near the Panorama Buffet on Deck 9.

 

I don't know what time the one on Deck 5 opens in the AM, but, in my past experience, the one near the buffet opens at 6AM.

I concur with those who give Euros, if: 1. the ship is remaining in Europe; or 2. if I want to get rid of remaining Euros AND am not planning another cruise in the near future where Euros will be needed. 

No one has ever complained if I tipped them with USD either, no matter where I am disembarking!!

3 hours ago, GUT2407 said:

I always take spare glasses,

 

AND

 

a copy of my script, even if just on my phone 

Same here. If I don't have a 2nd pair of glasses with lenses of the most recent prescription, I pack a pair of glasses that were from the prescription immediately prior to the newest one. While they may not be quite as clear as the most recent prescription, they would suffice for everyday purposes, like reading the dinner menu, for the remainder of the cruise. 

Taking a photo of your prescription with your phone is a great idea …  one less piece of paper to keep track of!!

Just this past October we stayed at the Hotel Lleo, and were very pleased with it. It's just around the corner from the upper end of Las Rambla, which was very convenient for us in terms of ease of getting to La Rambla to enjoy meandering, and to dine. The room, beds, linens and towels, and bathroom were all very nice, and the staff very helpful. Also, since it was not right on Las Rambla, it was very quiet, which was important to us.They had an excellent breakfast buffet in the lower level, and it was included in the cost of our reservation. The total cost of the room for the two of us was about 120 euros, including the city tax. The taxi ride from the airport to the hotel was 35 euros and took about 20 minutes. The taxi to the port from the hotel was 19 euros and was shorter. Fortunately there was a taxi stand almost right outside the entrance to the hotel, so there was no wait whatever for the one to the port.

If we ever begin another cruise in Barcelona, we'd definitely stay there again.

I've cruised to AK at both ends of the AK cruise season, and I definitely prefer doing the Autumn end, even though the rain chances may be stronger. However, I will say that my family and I did one in early September 2018 and had gorgeous warm sunny days every day!!, and a friend had done one in early June a couple of years ago and it was just plain HOT!! You just never know what it'll be like. On any AK cruise, you need to pack for a variety of weather possibilities as the temps up there can be unpredictable. That means taking some items for warm days, as well as some that you can layer with in case of chilly outdoor temps. A waterproof lightweight windbreaker, with a hood, is really important. It's something that can be worn most anytime, whether with a warmer layer for a chill in the air or just the jacket for warmish temps but rainy.

If you're properly prepared with the types of clothes you take, the weather really shouldn't matter all that much.

As for the cruise line …. I always recommend Princess to my friends, based on my many experiences cruising with them to many parts of the world. The descriptive words I words I would use to explain how I see Princess are  "classy without being snobby". Plus, in the cruise industry Princess has a reputation for "doing" AK really well.

I'm in my late 70's too, and Princess is my cruise line of choice, and has been for the past 15 years. 

(And, no, I do NOT work for Princess! 🙂

Princess guidelines  re: shorts ("dress" or otherwise) have not changed. Shorts are not supposed to be worn in the dining rooms at dinnertime. No exceptions made for CC passengers that I have ever heard of, and I have cruised many times on Princess ships in the past 15 years.

In addition to the Princess insurance, which I have had cause to use on a couple of cruises and was reimbursed by them for every cent of my onboard medical expenses, I purchase an annual membership in MedJetAssist. The latter covers members when they are 150 or more miles from home. I'm well into my 70s, and like that feature because I usually travel domestically as well as internationally several times per year. I feel more secure, especially when out of the country, knowing they can bring me to my preferred hospital at home and near my family if needed.