bbum

Best way to prolong that nasty junk mail in your mailbox is to book back to backs. Although it just prolongs the enviable, it is a very nice feeling on disembarkation day of the first cruise when you can sit back relax and watch all the cruisers scurrying off the ship, and just sigh and think about where you are going on the next leg of your cruise. As I said it's a great feeling knowing they aren't booting you off the ship, but unfortunately it only postpones things until it's your turn, and then there will be someone else on a back to back watching you leaving the ship thinking the same thing, where they are going on the next part of their cruise. It's a cruel world sometimes :rolleyes: I am also just kidding, we are pretty privileged to be able to kid about leaving a cruise ship after a nice cruise holiday.

Ah shucks I see Ron the Rev beat me to the punch by 10 minutes on his post with the same suggestion. Oh well... that's me, a buck short and a day late.

We were in A726 in April and it's a great suite. It is one of the new added on suites and it is of the new configuration and it does wrap around so you have wake views as well as side views.

On our last cruise we took an upsell to a suite and I just went and saw the captains circle rep on board and told her we were in a suite and had taken an upsell, not an upgrade, and she made the changes right there and gave us the extra credit. The really good thing was the cruise was a 21 day Panama Canal which could have been booked as a 15 day and a 6 day, which I also mentioned and she worked her magic and we got credit for 4 cruises. We have also taken an upsell for our next cruise to a suite and I have noticed we are only credited for 1 cruise on our cruise history so I will be taking another trip down to see the captains circle rep again on a sea day, seeing how it worked so well last time. Good luck, but you should get the credit. ;p

I've watched a few on board, and it is super fun, but if you want to watch it on MUTS get out there early if you want a good chair. Honestly I'm talking 3 to 4 hours before kickoff.

If you are using a free wifi, it is unlikely to be secured and subject to middle man hacks. VPN will save you some worries, especially when traveling.

 

 

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Just a little info on using a VPN. They are great if you have a very good high speed connection and the VPN company you are using has multiple servers in lots of countries. I use a VPN at home with a broadband 150 connection and while using it my speed is usually around broadband 50 depending on which country i choose to route through. Using a VPN on a ship would be totally useless as you would likely not be able to connect to any servers, and if you could the connection would be so painfully slow, if you can imagine the ships internet being any slower than it already is. I was chatting to an internet manager on one of the ships about using a vpn and we both had a good laugh. Now if you log onto a site that is an 'https' site it should be secure as what happens in that case is a handshake happens between your computer and their system and everything is encrypted with the keys only sent to you computer to unencrypt the data being sent and received. If you are on land, in port and find free wifi by all means use a vpn and try to find a server which is close as that will be result in the best speed, or be very careful about what you are doing. I think this info is fairly correct but I certainly stand to be corrected.

I fill them out before boarding so I can by just go past the little table. Here is the form in .pdf. Not sure if it's the latest form but it seems to still work for us. Perhaps someone who's filled one out recently can let us know if it's the most recent.

Pre-Boarding Public Health Questionnaire - USA - 06-10-16.pdf

Your question is not trite!!! We like to watch TV at nite for a little while before we go to sleep! We were not able to hook up anything on the Emerald Princess TV or on the Regal or Royal Princess in the last 2 years. In mini suites, TVs are flush wall mounted and you can't get behind them or jack anything in to them

 

So, we gave up and started watching the movies that Princess offers on the TV and they were great. I think we watched about 20 movies on our last 10 day cruise, many of them were recent releases. Generally, when a movie plays on the MUTS screen, it is available on your TV the next day.

Not sure if it's the same on all Princess ships but when we were on the Island in April, we were in one of the new suites and the tv's were wall mounted and as I was trying to plug in an HDMI cable I noticed if you lifted the tv a bit, the bottom swung out, then I noticed that I could lift the tv up and off the wall. The flat screens are very light and easy to handle, so while I held the tv my wife plugged in the cable then I simply put the tv back on wall mount. The second tv in the room was even easier as I knew what to do ;p. Don't blame me if they're not all mounted the same, but that worked like a peach for us.

In over 30 cruises with Princess we've had 3 towel animals, and 2 of them were on the last cruise which we were in a suite, not sure if that makes a difference. We've never asked for them, never will, but I have to admit that when we return to the cabin at the end of the day and see one it usually brings a smile to our faces. I've always commented to the cabin steward how they have put a smile on our face, and they always seem to smile about it as well. I'm thinking the guys and gals who are cabin stewards, are stuck on the ship for up to 7 months at a time and it must get pretty mundane, so it they make a towel animal especially for a young child and see them get excited about it, I'm sure it makes them feel good as well, so win, win.

I too bring a long (10ft.) regular household extension cord for my cpap machine. 31 cruises on Princess and no problems with machine not being surge protected. On the subject of cpap machines, I also bring a small roll of duct tape in case the hose springs a leak, and I also bring along an extra mask and headgear in case one of those little clips decides to break. Saved my butt on one cruise. :o

We've been offered 4 upsells. One I slept in and missed it :(, one was too expensive, and the last two we've accepted. I have noticed the last two upsells came the day after final payment and were from mini suites to full suites. I don't use a TA and book direct with Princess, so I can make the call myself when the email arrives, and as was previously posted don't hesitate if you think you might like to take the offer, as when you call, you leave your information on an answering machine and calls are returned in the order they are received. The information you will need to leave when making the call will be indicated in the email. And as was previously posted, go online while you wait, and see which cabins are available in your upsell category so you will be prepared when Princess calls you. Even if they sell all the upsells they will still call you to inform you that they have sold out (know that from the one that I slept in on and called in late, once again :() Also when I book I always book a cabin I will be happy with, and tell them to mark it as META upgrade only, so the only upgrade would be up an entire stateroom category(mini to full suite, balcony to mini, inside to balcony, etc.), and I also ask them to note on the booking that we would be interested in an upsell. Not sure if that helps, but I have called in after booking to link to another booking and asked the CSR to review the booking and it was noted on the booking. Hope the info helps. Good luck, hope you get your upsell offer.

Bbum

We had one of the new aft suites on the Island in April for a 21 day panama canal cruise, and had no problems with it. We found the ships crew to be one of the best we've had on Princess, very well run ship, at the time. We had no problems getting a seat in the theater, and didn't feel like the ship was overcrowded with people. We had traditional dinning, so I can't comment on what the anytime dinning was like. We always choose traditional because I don't like any kind of line up if I can avoid it, and it's one less decision to make. I really liked what they have done with the Horizon Court. I certainly wouldn't hesitate sailing on the Island again. We went on this cruise with an open mind, and glad we did, as there were so many negative reviews of the ship after the reconfiguration that I was a bit worried, but it was a great cruise, a well run ship, and ranks right up there with the best of the cruises we've had.

We got ours in about 2 to 3 weeks and as was posted earlier the envelope it comes in does indeed look like junk mail, so carefully check your mail until you receive it.

I use a lanyard and loop it through a belt loop on my pants and the card goes in my pocket. Easy to get out when going into the room and not too hard to use when making a purchase in the shops, not going to lose it, and it's not hanging around my neck.

Cruise cards were paper, and room keys were a thick plastic with holes in them, if I remember right. Attached is a cruise card from the Original Royal Princess from 2000. Bbum

Just returned recently from a full transit 21 day Ft. Lauderdale to Vancouver on the Island and besides a couple days of rough weather coming in to Victoria it was a great cruise. The Island doesn't have an International Cafe but it does have the Amelleto Cafe in the Horizon Court where you can get specialty coffees and sweets. I really liked the revamped Horizon Court. Much more civilized and much easier to find a seat. My wife is the walker and she didn't mind turning around on the promenade deck when walking. I did like that things are split up between decks 6,7 and 8, like the photo gallery, and casino on 6, restaurants on 7, Internet cafe and library on 8, and not everything on one level. We were traveling with friends and never had a problem finding 4 seats for shows if we showed up 10 to 15 minutes before showtime. We had traditional dining, so I can't comment on anytime dinning. What I did did find is that the ship was very well run, the staff was very friendly, we never felt overcrowded, if anything just the opposite. We've done over 30 cruises with Princess and this cruise was one of the best, and I too was a bit leery after reading all the negative comments about the ship, maybe we just hit it lucky, but I wouldn't hesitate to go on the Island again.

Eat your heart out;p Worst thing was his head was taped on and one day it fell off. Very traumatic. Try explaining that to the medi center!

Originally posted by suexxx Thanks everyone for your replies. Where can I get Strong hooks & clips in Melbourne Australia? Bought some the other day but not strong enough. Suexxx

Can you order from amazon.com? I bought hooks there.

If you can order from Amazon do a search for rare earth magnets. They are very strong and I think they have some that will hold up to 50 lbs, hmmm good way to keep track of a small child.. :p Don't flame me I'm just kidding..

Sign in to Princess, scroll to bottom of main page, under More Information click on Captains Circle, then on the right hand side of next page click on Member Profile, then Cruise History.

Bbum

Has anyone received the new cruise atlas for 2015-2016, I have not received the new one. Last year I received the 2014-2015 in August. Just wondering what has happened.

Yes got ours last week

For those who are ice cream junkies, try ordering the 'Volcano' for desert. It's not on the main menu, but on the kids menu, but they will make it for you if you ask. It's an ice cream sundae with pretty much everything you can dream of on it. Chocolate and caramel sauce, nuts, sprinkles, whipped cream and a cherry on top. I'm sure there is other stuff in there as well but can't remember all of it. If ordering, leave lot's of room for it, it's huge. I have fun talking table mates into trying it and watching them try to finish it :D. I've heard there is a 'Cruise Ship' on the kids menu as well, which was explained to me as a banana split.

Beachbum

Hi Pam,

What I was trying to get across, is make the card priced at a discount vrs buying drinks separately. I'm really not up to speed on what drinks cost as I don't drink much on a cruise. Sorry I should have done my homework first.

Beachbum

Are the demographics on Princess so different than Celebrity because I haven't read of any problem with drunkedness there with people who have the alcohol package. They seem to use it for alcohol, yes, but also specialty coffees, waters, sodas, juices, etc.\

I'm not sure about demographics, but there are Princess cruisers who seem to have a concern that people might over indulge. Personally, on over 20 cruises with Princess I have never seen anyone overly intoxicated. I also think that a 15 drink a day limit is a bit high as some of the alcohol packages from other cruise lines state. I know if I consumed 15 drinks in a day, I wouldn't be on my feet, but that's just me, others may have no problem with it. Once again I have no dog in this discussion, just offering my opinion ( and you know what they say about those).

Beachbum

Although I really don't have a dog in this fight ( I don't drink and my wife might have a glass of wine occasionally at dinner), I would vote for an alcohol punch card. Say charge $100 for 15 punches, where a glass of wine, a beer, or a mixed drink would be 1 punch and a bottle of wine could range from 3 to 6 punches or more depending on the wine. That would stop people from trying to get their moneys worth from a $45 dollar a day charge for an alcohol package. As with the coffee card unused punches could be carried over to the next cruise (within a reasonable time, as liquor prices would likely go up over a long span of time)

Beachbum

The key here is if another passenger should feel they are inconvenienced (sorry, I know this isn't the exact wording), the "smoker " should refrain...which goes to my original point...if someone asked my husband not to smoke on the balcony when they were out on theirs, he wouldn't. All moot at this point.

Agreed. That is the smoking policy as stated on the Princess website, if you're smoking an e-cig and it bothers someone they will be asked to not use it. They will not incur a fine as they would smoking an actual cigarette. Personally I don't find it too inconvenient to go to a smoking designated area where I can spark up and not bother anyone. I have used an e-cig in the cabin and on the balcony on occasion and no one has complained. No smell, no second hand smoke.

Beachbum

What would be good and would put peoples concerns to rest is to try to compile a list of where the smoking areas are on the various Princess ships. This would help both smokers and non smokers to know where or where not to go. I'll start it off, and if you have been on a Princess ship and have noted the smoking areas please add to the list or in the case of a change, update.

Golden Princess as of Feb.13/13

Smoking permitted:

Port side of open pool on deck 14, about 8 large tables

Deck 15 - port side beside bar, about 4 large tables

Promenade - Starboard side. Ashtrays bolted to ship.

Casino - Small section at entrance

Sports Bar