jsn55

Thank you for this post! For the life of me, I could not express my thoughts about how your luggage could disappear when you did something 'out of the norm'. the crew is dealing with a huge monolith of activity, schedules and checklists ... 'incoming luggage' may not appear anywhere. I only know it could happen, it has happened. I passed this on because wouldn't want it happening to me!

The issue at CR that I referred to was in Seattle.

You are so clever to deal with your auto-immune issue now so you both get the most enjoyment possible out of your trip. I think being pro-active will result in a really great cruise for your birthdays. I so admire people who take care of themselves and don't expect any 'special treatment'. CC is a vast horde of info, but I'll address meals. Princess has a system called Medallion, you can read all about it on their website, then come back to the Princess forum to get explanations. Princess is a a bit shy when it comes to communicating. What you will love is that you can order food and drink (and a bunch of other stuff) with this Medallion. It tells the crew where you are. So you can have drinks in the library and dinner in the atrium or cuddle up in your cabin with a movie and have it all brought there. You could sit outside on the pool deck and have a very nice meal. When you wish to dine 'out' in any of the restaurants, just speak to the DR manager and ask for exactly what you want for seating. Be considerate and dine outside of the main rush. Any of your meals can be served on your balcony. So I think you'll really like this. And if all the jargon gets to you, come back here and we will be happy to explain the whole picture. Oh my, I almost forgot ... the Medallion works pretty well on the ship (you have to double-check everything) but it's worse than useless pre-cruise. Princess has known about this for years but does nothing to improve it. So you may have come challenges getting everything entered on your computer (it's even worse on your phone). Be patient and don't think it's 'you', it's 'them'. I remember trying to upload our photos about 19 times ... finally the system accepted a photo that was at least 20 years old ... and I didn't care. And of course they took my photo when I boarded. I refrained from screaming.

Check the schedule of the cruise that will be arriving for you. Probably an hour after their disembarkation time, you should be able to drop your luggage at Reception on the ship.

Just to be clear, I don't think luggage would be unsafe, I think luggage could get loaded on to the wrong ship. Consumer Rescue just had a case about luggage cruising on its own because it had been loaded on the wrong ship.

Ah, finally a solid suggestion that addresses my issue. THANK YOU!! I'm not sure there's anything more annoying than asking a question and reading multiple posts from people who don't have the issue. I'm going to run right out and do some experimenting, SeaStar. I really appreciate this.

Wow, consider me educated! Have you done this in Europe?

My automatic 'disaster meter' just went off the scale. Seems that dropping luggage when there's so much going on at the port means that your luggage might end up anywhere. But maybe I worry too much. It would be wonderful to be free for several hours after a long flight but not at the cost of never seeing my bag again. If you depart at 4, you'll need to check in before 2, and you may be held up by the formalities when you land. So you really might be talking about a couple of hours. One solution is to hire a car and go for a sightseeing trip with your luggage safely stowed. My take on this is that I've paid thousands for a cruise, what's a few more hundred dollars.

Well, I don't wear sunglasses when taking a photo, there's no point in putting a photo into PhotoShop if the top of the building is cut off, I don't have an Iphone. Maybe if I wear a visor ... I'll do some experimenting. Seems odd that all of you can see the display in bright sunlight, so I'll keep looking for a solution. Thanks for the input ... I never give up.

And some of us have a cell phone but don't really know how use all its features. We talk about it often, but rarely do anything to enhance our knowledge. But my big question is "how do you compose a photo if you can't see the display in bright light?" That's why I bought the camera.

It's all a bunch of baloney to make you think you need two products instead of one. Night cream is usually a little heavier, might leave your face shiny. It all rubs off in the night onto your pillowcase anyway. Just use whichever cream you feel is 'comfortable' for your face.

Well, Mick, I have a theory that 30% of any population are idiots. That allows me to just laugh at their antics too. All the time. I pay good money for a cruise and no idiot is going to upset me on my holiday. I board a cruise expecting little and being delighted with anything positive. Much better for my mental health.

I would assume the smoking area would not affect the rest of the ship while underway ... isn't that why they put it aft?

eeden, I am finalizing my packing list for 3 weeks in France at the end of the month for a river cruise. I've always taken whatever I want, I'm a clotheshorse ... but getting tired of wrangling that big bag. My bag for a two week Med cruise last fall weighed 30 pounds (astonishing for me) and that was fine. This France trip I'm shooting for 25#. I've really pared down the wardrobe, everything works with everything else, all hand washable and needs no pressing. I won't bring any special clothing for dinner this trip, but a nice scarf and pretty earrings. 2 pairs walking shoes, sandals and flippers. But I can't live without my feather pillow, an unlined windbreaker, a heavy silk cardigan, lightweight travel vest and a day pack for Shore Exs. A baseball cap if it rains, my lounging outfit ... L/S shirt & pants in very lightweight jersey (Virgin Atlantic jammies that they give away), good enough to wear around the ship. Just bought a very small camera with a viewfinder and good zoom. Phone takes fine pictures, but I want a little more finesse, esp in bright light. No swim suit, you couldn't ever get me into those hot tubs or pools on cruiseships. Pack light and enjoy the journey as well as the cruise.

Wow, Kristelle ... NAVY BLUE! You're such a rebel.

I became a TV watcher during the virus disaster. I recently saw a promo for a show abut women who gave birth without knowing they were pregnant. I find this both hilarious and downright scary.

What an interesting thing to learn!

OMG, this is an astonishing story! Shows why large corporations are so wary of giving employees discretion to deal with the customers. I would have been tempted to find a Sharpie. paint some Mary Janes on a pair of white socks and return to the party. Of course it's not the reason you no longer sail with Celebrity, but it surely affects their standing when you are comparing future cruises. I once got ripped up for $50 by an agent at Grand Circle Cruises. I had paid using the offered discount, but she said I didn't qualify. After a bit of discussion on the phone, I asked her if she was going to cancel my $17K cruise if I didn't cough up the $50 and she said yes. We were very happy GCC customers but, gee whiz, we've never found another trip to book with them.

YUP, you are so right, and I think 99% of adult cruisers will agree with you. Easy to solve this problem. Every ship needs an 'enforcement officer' who sweetly strolls around informing the dopes of the rules and taking action if they don't comply. Hopeless to think that crew members, who are trained to please the pax, will enforce anything. The job is their tix out of poverty, as well as their family's source of income back home. But what mass-market cruiseline is going to add a crew member like an enforcement officer? The job produces no revenue for the cruiseline.

You are so right about ship's excursions. I had my first 'gather in the theatre' experience last November on NCL's Epic and it was horrendous, I just hated it. I'll be much more careful on my next ocean cruise.

I just booked 'your cruise' for November, reverse direction, no solo supplement. I love Avalon and still marvel at their quality ... I read a lot of reviews and nobody ever has anything negative to say about Avalon. I'm sailing with them in France at the end of the month and have booked the new Bordeaux cruise a year from now. But I was quite amazed at the cost of the Como/Lucerne extension compared to what's being offered. $2400 for a couple of tours, hotels (rack rates of $200 or so) and transfers. Other than breakfast, I don't think there are even any included meals. I'm hoping that the actual experience is a better value than it looks. Please come back after your May cruise with a report ... I can almost guarantee you'll have a great time!

Well, finally I know who "Connie" is!

My only experience with Princess was 'your cruise' a couple of years ago but out of San Francisco. The cruise itself was OK, we sailed at Christmastime. We're very low-key travellers, like some entertainment and good ports but enjoy just being on the cruiseship equally. But the lead-up to get everything in order was an absolute nightmare with the medallion system Princess insists on using. I'm fairly computer literate, but I couldn't get that thing to work properly ... I banged around for weeks. Then I discovered (grateful for CC forums!) that the medallion system has been a disaster for YEARS and Princess does little to fix it. Some people have no problems at all, but LOTS of people find it frustrating. Princess pax just assume it's 'them' and continue to try over and over to accomplish the smallest task. I find this attitude trickles down a bit while onboard. While at sea, a large section was without water one day for 8 or 9 hours. We received no notice, no information, no explanation, no apology. So I was sad, but not surprised, to read about your food challenges on your last Princess cruise. Medallion works a little better once on board. It was kinda fun, actually. To prove my point about user-unfriendly, during the first 3 days of the cruise the internet center was open most of the day and staffed with literally dozens of people (my first helper was a dancer). So there was little waiting; good because I had to go back about 6 times to get in gear. People just couldn't make the system work. So I'd go with HAL.

To me, an aft balcony is a necessity. Once you've cruised in one, you're spoiled. As for the need to pick between NCL and Celebrity ... you're smart to ask. I book by 'ship', itinerary and value. The cruiseline isn't all that important ... well except for Carnival which is avoided at all costs. I just booked a Princess cruise because it was all-around exactly what I wanted. My only other experience with Princess was negative, very negative. But mostly about their eternally- broken medallion baloney. I know I don't like huge ships or tiny ships, 2K pax is my sweet spot. I don't want many tender ports. I don't care about the dining. I want friendly, professional crew. Value is a very important factor. You see what I mean? Read everything you can get your hands on. Use your personal criteria to choose. Set a deadline so you don't drive yourself nuts.

What a shame that an OP feels the need to state 'please be kind' with their question. I realize that there are jerks out there who delight in hurting other people. But I sure wish they'd all just go away and leave us normal folks to our helpful communications.