snoozecrooze

Love the crafting sessions as well @trinitygirl and am glad to see you share them with us here. They're an oddly nostalgic feeling for me and I'd encourage anyone else to join if they're even a little bit interested.

31 minutes ago, CruzenDoc said:

Allison on "Let's Go!  Travel Tips" on YouTube.

This might just top the list of the Things Allison Says...

You know what, anything can happen in this industry, but I'm really not feeling this rumor at all right now. The World Cruises and all...

If she's right, I'll give her some credit but, I mean...

@dides just realized I had a brain fart the prior day and totally confused Dan France's name with that of Dan Falconer so if anyone read what I wrote about Dan France probably going more "behind the scenes over time", scratch that because that would only make more sense with Falconer lol. Looking forward to seeing what Dan and Corinne do together!

33 minutes ago, cruiseypop said:

They upgraded the medallion door screen this morning.  New fresh look and they no longer display last name, just initial.  I previously saw a lot of complaints on this privacy issue, so Princess listens!!  

Cruisey, you're leaving us hangin here. Did you happen to get a picture of said new screen before disembark? Safe travels back home and many thanks for the fun live blog of your cruise! 

3 hours ago, beshears said:

So the tacos (burritos???) are in the buffet area, or another place? Do they have hand sanitizer stations to use as you walk into the buffet area?

Yes, the buffet. Usually the Mexican food is in the section of the buffet closer to midship (open for breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack, but not dinner) than the half that's closer to the aft (breakfast, lunch, dinner, but not afternoon snack).

3 hours ago, beshears said:

Do they have many/any photographers going around very often taking pictures of the guest on the ship? I am different from most people. I LIKE taking pictures, as they are MY memories. 🙂

Many photographers still roam the ship. Backdrops aplenty as well.

2 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

Did we miss where Captain Gennaro Arma went?  Thought he was overseeing Sun Princess.    

1 hour ago, that said:

Yes

where is Captain Arma?

Yep, last time he appeared (that I saw), it was in a Princess press video about helping lead (or be a part of) the newbuild effort for Sun. Pretty sure he's been promoted to a corporate managerial position at this point.

12 minutes ago, dides said:

Oohh just seen a FB post which says two Cruise Directors on Sun - Corinne Steel and Dan France??

Please do share if you see more details! Very interesting concept. Although I could see Dan just there for the ceremonial aspects and then gradually move behind the scenes over time.

27 minutes ago, Justpackingmybags said:

Currently on Sky & Corinne told me she’s going to Sun as CD

Cc: @dides!! How exciting for Corinne! Love her!

I really enjoyed the chilled soups in the MDR when I first spotted them on the menu, but if you interpret them as just a fruit smoothie, that might turn you off their initial allure. I still really enjoy having them, though, as I do not drink smoothies at home.

For some reason, the only meal item I can really remember from my Princess cruises has been salmon. They tend to make good salmon. The (I believe?) mango salsa that goes with some of the salmon (or other fish?) has been great. Apologies for the mundanity.

6 minutes ago, CruisinNewb said:

1) Is there any place onboard where they have ballroom dancing in the evening? On Celebrity they has a lounge on one of the upper decks which had a sizable dance floor and a DJ several evenings during the cruise. From reading old threads it looks like on Princess most of the dancing occurs during dance parties on the promenade or by the pools. Are there any lounges where there is dancing?

For Regal Princess, most ballroom/ballroom-ish dancing tends to happen on the floor of the Piazza (deck 5) when a band or other guest musician is playing. It's a type of marble/tile. There is also a very small area by the Wheelhouse Bar (really just for slow dancing). Additionally, the Vista Lounge and/or Princess Live could be open for ballroom dancing during dinner-ish hours with piped in ballroom music and the empty floor for ballroom dancers. Your circumstances may vary.

16 minutes ago, OfTheSeasCruiser said:

"Iceland: New Round-Trip Sailings"

According to https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2023/11/celebrity-cruises-announces-2025-26-season/ - "For the first time, Celebrity is offering four new seven-night itineraries circumnavigating Iceland in July and August 2025 onboard the Celebrity Silhouette."

I recently learned that the website's live chat feature can help you execute quite a few things as per the concerns you listed re: specialty dining when the app does not budge (cc: @TxTeach79!)

SVP threw us a bone when she said she'd also be previewing all West Coast/Mexico/Hawaii cruises for 25-26 in the same seminar for AU/NZ so expect that to be the next deployment drop. Caribbean will have to be some time later.

3 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

*Unless* you have purchased the Plus or Premier fare package.

Great key point that I somehow omitted. Yes, the packages cover the cost of the medallion delivery.

Highly recommend following at least Saint Greg's live blog ongoing right now for play-by-play commentary since he has also frequented Carnival many times.

Otherwise, you'll need to be more specific with your inquiries for us to give you more direct tips.

37 minutes ago, beshears said:

Did I read some place that "IF" we wanted to make sure we received the medallion in time, we NEED to pay $10.00 for them to ship it to us? If so, did you find it worth it in the long run? I figured I put out enough for everything else on Princess, let alone "another" $10 to be putting out.

Yes, the $10 is now required if you want it ahead of time. Galveston has seen some long lines - check out Saint Greg's current live trip report; getting the medallion ahead of time saved him from additional hassle.

But the circumstances also depend on the port and it's not always necessary to get it ahead of time. Your experiences may vary.

37 minutes ago, beshears said:

do they charge for a person to do this (if so, how much), or if a person wants to do it, they will let you do it?

This is still free, I'm pretty sure. If you want to purchase the photo, that's the only cost you incur.

Never apologize for the redundancy! The more, the merrier (info, tips, feedback, photos galore). Welcome back and hope you have a fun time!

10 hours ago, dides said:

Sphere class won't be for everyone but hopefully enough positives in the end.

Very well said and that's the best we can all hope for; she'll be around for a while, whether we like it or not, and it's still a holiday after all.

1 hour ago, dides said:

Hey, missed you @snoozecrooze lol!  On the balcony question - did you mean they the Sun balconies are deeper?  It's hard to find a great comparison with the same angle but they do look a little deeper . But cruisemapper says Sun balconies are 3 metres squared compared to 4 on Royal Class. So does that mean they are narrower lengthwise?

Hey hey, missed catching up on the Sun as well! So glad you're always holding the fort down for the rest of us!

Yes, I definitely meant "deeper"! The word escaped me for a bit there. But wow, thanks for sharing that statistic because I was really just going by eye and now I'm questioning everything.

I really want the best for Sun but my gut feeling is that we'll be getting a pretty polarized reaction to everything for the first few months...or year (a la Royal in 2013, perhaps?) -- ie. the radical change in the design language for the cabins and more possible balcony size kerfuffles leading to further inevitable discourse about the "new direction of Princess" and the like.

7 minutes ago, marypat01 said:

Corinne says Aaron Hawkins (he's already listed on the officer table).

Oh yes, I totally forgot we've already had him listed.

8 minutes ago, marypat01 said:

Kaitlyn (didn't get a last name)

The only Caitlin ED I know of is Caitlin Messerschmidt so I'll informally/tentatively pencil her in! Thanks for all the info!

On 11/12/2023 at 2:51 AM, dides said:

Odd not to see balconies all along the back of a ship - such a strange design choice to have a series of staircases using up that prime space!

Thank you @dides for continuing to keep up with the scoops and updates 🙏👐

I've looked hard and I do think the balconies on Sun are definitely wider than on the Royal-class, but...what do you think? Wide enough to properly stretch out like before? Me thinks still not quite.

Also, your astute observation of the aft outside staircases leapt out at me as I hadn't noticed this would be the case prior as well. And the public deck plan really confirms this to be the case. What a peculiar move; we'll see if the stairwells will even be for public access or if it's just one of those for emergencies!

36 minutes ago, marypat01 said:

Matt and Corinne have both told me they are getting off before the month is gone

Thanks for the warning. Please ask them for the intel about the successors if you can! (assuming you are on the TA?)

I've seen Fantastic Journey before so I thought I'd share. Disclaimer that it was on Majestic so the stage and theater were grander than on the Caribbean. I mention because the whole production somewhat demands the larger size because the whole thing feels like a spectacle. As in, it's just a bit much and seems to try really hard into cramming a lot of "of the digital age"...things into it. Or at least that's what I feel. I recall lots of uses of emojis. Flashing lights and big moving production pieces. No storyline either. Just very busy. It's one of Princess's more polarizing shows in terms of its reception, I believe; it really might not make any sense for some or be just the right kind of weird for others. Maybe sit around in the back and give it a try so you can... say you gave it a try? Lol, sorry if this does not help much.

Love Bravo; I always give that a go whenever onboard. Also enjoy Whitney plenty so I'd go, though I'm curious to hear who the tribute artist is; is it perhaps Cheaza? (have seen her Whitney act before and also enjoyed it)

46 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

The interior rooms look tiny. This one might have been a modified cabin.

The one you captured is known as a "sideways" interior (unofficially termed). Believe it or not, though, they're actually roomier than the standard interior, especially once you separate the double into 2 twins). Very practical layout for an inside.

We will pretend to not see the chili cheese dog 🫣

NOTE the change to ED (now Matt Thompson instead of Matt Barnard)

The above image is credited to @trinitygirl who is currently posting from her ongoing LIVE (the comment from which this image originates is linked below):