blloydtbird

3 hours ago, skynight said:

I was on a Princess ship with two overnights in B.A. It was the end of one cruise and the beginning of another. We were already on board when the ship arrived. We used it as our hotel to tour for two days. The reason for the overnight is to allow time for passengers to arrive from many locations around the world and to allow passengers time to visit B.A. Fairly certain passengers were able to initially board on either day as well as during the overnight hours. The gang plank was always open. I don't see any reason why not.

Strongly suggest that you book flights that arrive at least one day early and overnight at a B.A. hotel.  

Thank you!

3 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

I have heard (secondhand) that yes, you could board the next day...but I would not put ANY faith in answers that you get in a forum for something this important!  CALL PRINCESS!

Thanks.  Will of course get the final answer from Princess. Given the length of time it takes to get a hold of them, figured to get a sense, even anecdotal, from experienced cruisers here.  

Hi folks,

We are looking to do an Antartica cruise with Princess, one that begins and ends in Buenos Aires. In looking at the itinerary, I noticed the ship stays overnight on embarkation day.  Does an overnight embarkation day generally provide an additional day to board the ship, i.e. if flights are delayed? If not, is there a reason the ship stays in port overnight?

Thanks 

Hi folks,

My wife and I are still somewhat new to cruising, having done 3 thus far, all with Princess. We are looking at another cruise and are thinking Alaska this summer.  There are a few options in terms of itineraries, round trip inside passage options versus one way north/south that travel much farther north in Alaska. 
 

Are there any key pros/cons for the round trip itineraries versus the one way options that we should consider? No concerns with perhaps higher airfare for the one way option. We did notice the Discovery is doing round trips this summer and we do like its sister ship, the Enchanted. But we don’t want to decide based on ship and think northern Alaska may be great to visit. 
 

Thanks much 

1 hour ago, paradiselivin1 said:

Haven't used these in years since you were able to get a BOGO in the specialty restaurants on your 1st night... 

My coupon book from a March 22 cruise on the Enchanted had this offer included. There was pretty good value in that particular book. 

We had lunch at the Gastropub on the Enchanted several times earlier this year. Each of the dishes we tried were fantastic and the signature alcoholic beverage, the Salty Dog Smash, was fantastic. I guess it depends what kind of fare folks are into, but for a nice spin on bar-like food we felt it an excellent value and quite tasty. Would not hesitate to grab a bite there again. 

Booked an interior and placed a bid for an ocean view cabin on the Sky. Won the bid today, $175 PP. we were upgraded to a balcony instead of an ocean view. We’ll take it! 11 day cruise. 

This is excellent feedback, thank you all so much.  Given what I have seen, the Pacific princess appears to be a favorite of many while a bit small for others.  While it does not have an International Cafe, it does have the Club Bar which may work for us.  Also, it does not have as many entertainment options as the larger ships, but has a few options and thus should be okay. My wife and I do a reasonably good job at entertaining ourselves, I think we'll go ahead and book the 14-day option to Australia & New Zealand.  Covid related restrictions were mentioned, this cruise is scheduled for February of 2022, I hope we have all in order by then.  

I'll try to get to Papeete a few days early, tough with work to take too may days off in a row but I suspect I'll be able to make it happen.  

I am curious about motion sickness as was mentioned up thread.  I have a huge problem with motion sickness, I have to take dramamine when driving as a passenger in a car.  Has anyone taken dramamine/bonine and still had an issue?  I need to take meds regardless of the size of the ship.  

And we do enjoy sea days, albeit we have had one cruise thus far.  This is probably a good step before a transatlantic. 

Thanks, really I appreciate all of the help!

Hi folks,

My wife and I are booked on a 14-day East/West Caribbean cruise on the Enchanted over the Christmas holiday later in the year.  There is a good chance the cruise will not happen, thus I'd like to get something else on the books.  We have only sailed once before, last year on the Caribbean Princess over the Christmas and New Years holiday via the 14-day Circle Caribbean.  We had such a good time, we booked the Enchanted a week after returning.

In terms of the "next" cruise, my wife would like for us to explore the South Pacific.  I came across an interesting itinerary (for us) on the Pacific Princess 14-day South Pacific and New Zealand cruise.  While the itinerary looks to be suitable for us, I'd like to understand more about the ship.  On the Caribbean Princess we really enjoyed the International Cafe.  we'd sit and drink tea during sea days while people watching.  We also spent quite a bit of time in the various evening venues with the ship's Caribbean band.  Every now and again we chose to visit Skywalker's at night.  We are not "young", being in our mid-upper 30s.  We don't crave a lot of activity on the ship but do enjoy a couples evening "out".  

So, what if anything does the Pacific Princess have that would compare to what we enjoyed on the Caribbean Princess?  During the cruise, I spoke with a crew member to inquire about a pacific cruise.  He told us to stay away, we would be bored out of our minds.  Literally, a crew member told us this.  Maybe he was right?  We only have one cruise under our belts, over the winter holidays none the less.  

One more thing, while we are considering this cruise that ventures down to New Zealand and Australia, there is another cruise that I am looking at, the 10-day Tahiti and French Polynesia.  Which would be more ideal if any?  I've never been to New Zealand or Australia, thus this would be a great opportunity to see a little bit of both.  Still, I hear French Polynesia is nice.  Is a full 10 days warranted there?

I'd love to hear thoughts on the ship and the itineraries.

Thanks so much

6 hours ago, Ombud said:

Did you find any recourse?

 

I was 'upgraded' from an DB to an MC. Technically an upgrade. But I went from Dolphin deck to Marina deck.  I stick to Plaza - Promenade Decks, never go to pools or buffets so being way up there is a 'negative' to me. 

I ended up leaving the cabin upgrade as is, holding out hope for another. 

12 hours ago, jennybenny said:

IB Is considered a better location. IA would be your best inside category. ID is lower than IB

I took a look this morning, you were indeed correct, IB is more pricey than ID.  Still, I prefer the aft location. My TA sent an email this morning confirming the upgrade. I hope I get another!

2 minutes ago, jennybenny said:

IB Is considered a better location. IA would be your best inside category. ID is lower than IB

Interesting. I know I paid more for ID as I wanted a location in the back of the ship. When I booked the cabin, IA/IB were a bit cheaper but they were up front, which we did not want. 
 

So it goes. I’ll leave it as is for now, hope they “upgrade” me once again 🙂. 

After watching this thread for a while and waiting patiently with fingers crossed, I logged into my booking a short while ago and finally saw a change in cabin! A DOWNGRADE it seems from and ID interior to an IB interior. I paid slightly more for ID, not sure why they’d move me to a cheaper room. 
 

What gives? Any recourse at my disposal?

2 minutes ago, ChattTenn said:

My booking with TA.

Thanks!  Perhaps there is hope for me yet 🙂

I'm curious, for those who have received upgrades, did you book directly with Princess or with a TA?

1 hour ago, Rigby the Dog said:

Except that it cost you $500 to get the $250 OBC.  The stock has dropped approx $5.00 a share since Monday.  But I guess as long as you are good with it . . .

Hasn’t cost me anything actually, I only lose if I were to sell, I’m sure you are aware of that though.  I am confident that the stock will bounce back well before I reach retirement age, more than a quarter century from now.  As part of my ira portfolio, I chose this stock. If you are closer to retirement age or in desperate need of cash, avoid it no question. For me, I am fine with the investment. If CCL goes bankrupt, so be it. I’ll lose $3,200, I’ll be fine. If they don’t, I’ll be fine as well. If they continue paying the OBC and the dividend, I’m in a net positive situation unless I need to sell right now. I don’t and I can’t touch these funds for a long time. 
 

Finally, I’m not encouraging anyone else to buy the stock, merely showing that the OBC is still in effect as there were questions raised about that. 

So yes, I’m good with it. 
 

Cheers 

9 minutes ago, jp2746 said:

How many shares do you have to buy in carnival to get OBC?

100

10 minutes ago, blondee419 said:

Is there always a cut off date in that letter?  according to the link, https://www.carnivalcorp.com/static-files/50351a91-4dc0-4f6b-bfec-684647e6129f

"Reservations must be made by February 28, 2021."

Yes. 

Purchased 100 shares on Monday, faxed the required information over to Princess at 2:32pm today, $250 OBC now posted to my account. I’m good with it. 

I picked up 100 shares today, cost me roughly $3,200.  At that rate, my minimum annual return will be 7.8%, as my wife and I will take at least one 14-day cruise per year.  Further, with a $2.00 dividend per year (paid @ 50 cents quarterly per share), the dividends will pay $200 per year.  In total, at a minimum, my overall annual return on investment will be 14%, perhaps higher if we cruise more.

All of the above is only possible so long as the cruise line continues to offer the shareholder OBC benefit and continues paying dividends at the same rate.  Good enough return for me :).  

Cheers 

1 hour ago, SDWalt said:

So I'm thinking of taking the stock plunge if the price continues to drop into the 20's.  What's everyone's experience with different online brokers?  Or are they all about the same?  Currently I only have a 401(k) which doesn't allow for individual stock purchases so I'd need to use an outside broker.

Perhaps you want to consider opening an IRA? You’ll have the ability to choose individual stocks while also putting away a bit of cash for retirement. Also, depending upon your level of income, you may receive a tax benefit for the amount contributed to account ($6000 max for a regular IRA of I am not mistaken). 

https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/081414/can-i-deduct-my-individual-retirement-account-ira-contribution-my-tax-return.asp

 Good luck!

51 minutes ago, jparker10508 said:

Just call Princess with your booking number and they will be able to send you a copy of your final bill.  I was told last week that it could take up to 15 business days to get it. 

I can confirm that Princess will email a copy of the final bill.  I had to contact them in January in order to obtain the final bill from my cruise during the holidays.  It took about three business days for them to send it.  Easy enough.  

Just to add a bit of clarity concerning alcoholic beverages in the package, the limit is 15 per day. 

8 minutes ago, Wisconsin Travelers said:

As far as I can tell, all ships in the Princess fleet offer the same MDR menus, although a regional specialty might be added on various itineraries.  Having taken different ships in "back to back to back" cruises, I've seen menus repeat often.  And sometimes my favorites on one ship don't taste nearly as good on another, even though they look the same.  

 

I'm pretty sure the food is from the same suppliers.  But the kitchen staff on each ship is different, and I think some are better than others.  You would think that the food would taste the same - kind of like visiting Olive Garden anywhere in the U.S. and finding menu items that taste exactly the same no matter where you are in the country.  My guess is that the executive chef on each ship tries to put their own "touches" on the identical menu so some food tastes "better" to you than others.  Don't forget that taste is very subjective!

 

And yes, I've had the exact same items taste differently on the very same ship from one month to the next, so saying that the food on the Regal is better than the food on the Caribbean might be true today and might be totally false a few weeks from now.  You need to remember that crews change on ships all the time, and that includes their bosses.  Some might tell their cooks to use less salt and seasonings because they believe that's what is preferred by the guests on a particular itinerary.  Others might tell their cooks to ramp the seasonings up for the same reasons!

 

Here's my philosophy:  if I'm not crazy about the food I'll probably lose a few pounds on a cruise, and that's always a good thing!  One thing is for sure - I don't have to go to the grocery store, prepare the meal and clean up afterwards!  Focus on the great things about cruising and enjoy them to the fullest - if one of them happens to be the food, savor every bite and plan to diet when you get back home.

 

 

Thanks for the detailed reply, this makes sense.  I'm new to cruising and have thus spent a lot of time reading here on CC.  I have noticed many posts linking meal quality and taste to specific ships, ie I won't cruise on Ship A as the food is terrible, Ship B is so much better.  My one and only cruise was on the Caribbean Princess over the recent holiday season.  While the meals were far from extraordinary, they were entirely suitable for our needs. 

Cheers!

2 hours ago, MissP22 said:

Caribbean Princess - Food is just so-so.

Regal Princess - Food is outstanding.

Of course this might not be all that important to your trip. 

I must ask, do the meals really vary from ship to ship?  If so, why would this be.  

I would expect a cruise line to partner with a set of vendors, providing produce and other food & beverage options for their entire fleet.  Do cruise lines really provide better cuts of meat or enhanced meal options on some cruise ships specifically?  I understand if certain itineraries would offer different fare, ie. sailings in the Caribbean offering meal options that differ from those in the Mediterranean, likely more similar to regional offerings.

I can't fathom why the same itinerary on a different ship would have different meals.

Tell me more, thanks!