Ombud

International Cafe is open 24 hrs, yes I'm picky. Like good brewed coffee

And read somewhere that there is a disembarking tour that goes from Quebec to Montreal. Does anybody know how much it is? Can I then spend the night in Montreal? I'm going next July and there are no tours up yet

No .... at 3pm a guy I met at Shabbat services & I decided to do it at 5pm. He had the menorah so we used his stateroom -- too late to do it elsewhere -- and we got 7 there. The next night it was in Skywalker with 25, then it moved to Club Fusion

Posting from the Sapphire Princess:

They were a little confused, kept saying there wasn't a Rabbi onboard so it was set up at the Passenger Services Desk (flowers / menorah). So Day 2 I asked the International Cafe for a dozen "filled donuts" (sufaniyot) and they eagerly complied. Then I asked the Cruise Director Marcus for the Shabbat set up in the stateroom. Not only did he get it for me / us, he also got us a dedicated site, another menorah, 2 platters of sufaniyot, 1 platter of latkes, juice / water for each subsequent night. Night 3 the Entertainment Mgr, Marcus, and a Head Waiter visited us to make sure it was good. The next might Marcus and another officer came. After that it was just a staff member. 

Yes, the ship has Hanukkah. it was even explained on the Wake Program and in the Patter every day

FWIW: our group grew from 7 to 25

Thx .... will check out Au thread once off the Sapphire

FWIW: Sapphire has Sandman 30yr port in MDR

NZ roll call has 2 members --- 1+ me

Malaysia got 53 + 11 pages

Go figure!

ya see that looong line? 

Per their FAQ website:

Should you have a credit balance on your folio at the end of your cruise and the balance is less than $25, you will be provided a refund in the form of cash upon request.  If the credit balance is greater than $25, upon request, a check in the amount of your remaining balance will be sent to you after you return from your cruise. 

3 hours ago, SRF said:

Not required for closed loop cruises, except going to Cuba.

 

A passport is good for entering the US up to the day it expires.

True for closed loops and those that only go to Mexico / Caribbean.  Not true if going to many other countries  .... most require 2 blank pages + 6 months left. 

Can I take cut flowers on board ship in Singapore?

2 hours ago, tothemall&beyond said:

Why do so many people feel obligated to defend Princess when they do things like this without notice?

Princess is a BUSINESS with stockholders not a club that you join

3 minutes ago, Flafun888 said:

 

When the cost of the room has risen significantly, with lower value perks since initial booking, it isn't that straightfwd. 

So keep it & don't transfer. Whatever makes sense financially. After all your TA didn't do anything on it yet

It's not that difficult to cancel, free up the room, and rebook hopefully in the same room. Frankly as someone who is only 'room guaranteed' bc all the available rooms in the category I wanted (B2) I appreciate the new rule

9 minutes ago, chamima said:

I usually book directly with Princess and then transfer to my TA when we're positive we're taking the cruise.

Why don't you just book with her in the 1st place?  Doesn't she know how to book / cancel an itinerary? 

Another question: why would someone book it one place and then send it to another agent so that the 1st one loses commission? Why wouldn't they just put it on hold and then send that  hold number to the person I actually wanted to get the commission? Or just work with only one person that they want to get the commission? Let them put it on hold for you

My TA is a Princess Cruise Consultant who gets me extra OBC.  So I'm a little bit confused, maybe somebody there can clear this up for me. Let's say I booked a cruise for November 2019 for Melbourne to New Zealand. Now I booked that cruise back in September. So it's obviously 60 days later. But now I've decided instead of going Melbourne to New Zealand I would rather go Sydney to New Zealand. Does that mean that my PCC cannot modify it and get me out of Sydney instead? That's just an example .... anxious to return to Melbourne 

My last EZair was a nightmare and I thought I'd never booked with them again. My flight from SFO to Heathrow was a nonstop. And I paid for upgraded seats. However when I got to SFO they stated that the flight was delayed 8 hours. Then it was delayed 10 hours. So instead of leaving at 2 in the afternoon I was supposed to board at 12 a.m. this meant I would get into Heathrow 10 hours later. But I only had a 6 hour window between landing and the ship leaving the port. So I called EZ Air and they said would you like to have us refund your cruise? I stated no I just wanted to know what to do. They said well we have no idea. Wasn't that lovely. I'm a one world frequent flyer so I went up to the desk and ask them what I was supposed to do. Mind you this was a United desk that I went to because BA wasn't even opened. They suggested I checked with one of their partner Airlines, which United was not one of. So they told me how to get to American Airlines. I go running up to American Airlines who fixed it. When I got back I contacted princess and told them of my nightmare. They said well you made the ship right? Yes some service

I'm happy with my solo 3forFree bookings:

1. Melbourne to NZ BB category under current OZ pricing

2. FL to Quebec OC with air 2×that 😞 USA is expensive 

I refared a Spring cruise & now I'm guaranteed a cabin ... no idea where

3 hours ago, chamima said:

As far as the candles - I saw these on Bed Bath and Beyond and am going to get them for myself.

You could use a regular Chanukiah with them.

https://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/led-hanukkah-candles-in-blue-set-of-9/5189206?categoryId=12807

Love LOVE it! I. On hold in SF & kid will pick it up on his way over from SFSU today. 🙂

I ordered flowers for the stateroom so it will feel like Hanukkah 

I was the ombudsman for Contra Costa County Health Services and just kept that handle thru my next job ...

52 minutes ago, Shmoo here said:

The OP reported that the driver's license has arrived.

Still think that's valid info incase someone tries to go abroad with a passport that'll expire in less than 6 months or without blank pages (many countries want that now)

OP here: I'm vegetarian so can go lite on kashrut when traveling. Basically thats fine IMHO. I will bring my siddur because what they hand out for a Friday night service is woefully inadequate. I will go to Target tomorrow after minyan to see if I can find a battery powered menorah.

1 hour ago, Micah's Grandad said:

For a short service like this just need one sheet of paper. Would be nice if they made jelly donuts and latkes at least for one night. We will be on Princess ship for Chanukah next month for first time 

Yes but the Siddur will come in handy on Friday night. 

Thank you. I'll pack my Siddur. Easier to use mine than one I'm not that familiar with & theirs was incomplete on the last cruise (just papers stapled together) 🙂

Not sure where you are in California but in SF you can get a renewal in 2 days from the passport office -- $60 expedite fee (submitted Friday, had it Monday)