rbtan

We don't mind large ships as well. 6 cruises on the QM2. It's certainly true how difficult it is to have really personalized service. This is why on our occasional Princess cruise, we book in the Club(now Reserve Class) The attention to detail is much better. If only the food was LOL!

Our insurance was nearly $1500. This covers me in the event of cancellation due to transplant issues I may have.

On our Jan. trip last year they Hauled A$$ to get to the Caribbean & then putzed around the islands. They used this lame "Save the Seas" environmental garbage. The port times were shortened by several hours & a few got skipped. We're on Vista this Jan. Going down along the Mexican coast to Panama & Colombia. I just hope this is not becoming the norm. If it's the same we'll then consider the New Princess Sphere class. We have a 14 day trip in 2025 already booked. We're in a Reserve Cabana minisuite. These cabins are between a balcony & PH in overall size.Our upcoming trip will decide how we proceed. We've done 4(soon to be 5)trips on O & would hate to jump because we feel we're getting a short shift. We did notice some culinary cutbacks, but overall the food is still the best with the exception of dining in Queens Grill on the QM2.

Sorry that happened. We never use a credit card offering of insurance policies as they are full of "holes". I'm not sure I can name an insurance co. as Cruisecritic seems censor happy at times. I would use your TA agent to find a good company. Due to my being a transplant recipient(and needing another one fairly soon) Insurance is very costly for "Cancel for any Reason" policies. We're hoping no issues arise near the Jan. cruise coming up. Obviously if a new Kidney becomes available, we'll cancel the cruise. I just know an insurances co. goal is not to have to pay out a claim. I'm sure many can testify to that as well.

Though my spouse hates Lamb, I think it looks pretty tasty. I just need the mint preserves(not the gross emerald green stuff)

We paid 25 for 4 hrs & 40 per day(Lounger) I my self stay out of the sun. We book only sea days.

They taste similar to Chicken. You need to try expanding your culinary horizons.

No, except Lamb.We see items such as Dover Sole/Foie Gras/Maine Lobster etc. on Oceania.Lamb should be available in the specialties on Princess.We've doing Oceania the last few years, but booked a Cabana Reserve mini suite on the Sun. I want to see if the food is a step above the rather poor food I've seen on Princess as of late. Reserve & the full suites have their own restaurants & we hope the food will be better. It should be for the considerably higher price.

Probably right.

We do basically the same. If we do know the island well, we may do our own excursion or do as you do as well.

We had this happen in Jan. They used the "Save the Seas hogwash as an excuse or windy weather(another excuse) Basically it was to save on fuel. We hightailed it to the Caribbean then putzed around. We got into a number of ports at 11:00 to 1PM. Short stays I'll admit. The missed ports we were refunded the port charge(which they HAD to do) If it is the same this Jan. on the Vista we may choose another line. We'll not grip. We'll just vote with our feet.

This happened to us last Jan. We just could not get into Toscana at anytime(we prefer table for 2) Once on board we found a few times became available & chose one. You may find this as well.

One should remember that SS is considered "True Luxury", while O is considered "High Premium". Overall prices will reflect that. Perhaps the closest thing to O would be Viking. Azamara used to be, but has diminished in quality as of late.

It's possible. I'm not familiar with the upgrade system you mentioned. What will happen is that if up to 4 upgrades become available you will likely receive a call(first come first serve) We had this set up. The cabin upgrades are not free(at least they haven't been) They'll ask you what level you want & will give you a price. With us it was always lower than if you had booked the higher level on your own. It's your choice if you want to pay it. We went from a B-2 to an A-4. It cost us $500 total for this upgrade. Now this was only available as the ship was not full.

Kind of like Buick/Cadillac/Oldsmobile in the 1980s

Unfortunately O is not noted for good entertainment. The food is the entertainment.

Most young pax(not me!) would refer to that he was the bomb!(which means a good compliment) though I think that's not what you meant.Really looking forward to the new ship. Also like the Alura coming out later.

Generally I agree. A Princess Club Class mini suite is surprisingly close in price to O. The food quality & ambience is not.You will find a lot of pax have jumped ship to O as they want a more classy trip for their buck. I do have a cruise in 2025 on the new Sun Princess. We've no problem with Large ships. The QM2 is still our favorite. With dedicated restaurants for the Reserve Class (Club Class) & full suites, we want to see if Princess is trying to offer a more upscale package.We'll see. I wasn't too impressed with this "Save the Seas" garbage that O dumped on us Last Jan. This resulted in cancelled ports(the weather was NOT an issue no matter what they claim) & delayed port entries which resulted in shorter stays. There's enough posts on that subject. We all pay a pretty high price for what we get. I don't like when lines use smoke & mirrors to try & fool pax.

It may be a price increase as some have said, but with O life, you could choose it or not.As one person stated Celebrity had something similar & a lot of Pax walked. So they went back to before. We have a Princess Cabana Reverve on the New Sun Princess in 2025.It does have a dedicated rest. for Reserve class. We'll see how our Jan. Vista ship cruise goes. If we're unimpressed then Princess may become our line of choice. We'll just wait & see.

Basically we booked an A-3(with the expanded balcony on the Vista)This is the Jan.19 12 day trip. We do not use O life. Our trip is about $4300PP. with $300 OBC PP. That same trip now with Simply More is over $1200 more PP. The flight we can get for less than $800 total direct.We do most excursions by taking an often shared taxi. We normally just do beach trips. We're not big shoppers. Costa Maya we'll walk to town & have a big beach Lobster fest at the Crazy Lobster. For drinks..My spouse doesn't. I'll purchase about 2 bottles of wine & they'll last the bulk of the cruise. Whether we do Le Bourgeoise dinner in La Reserve remains to be seen. We've done it 3 times, but the menu doesn't change & we skipped it last year. We are looking forward to Vista as we've been on Riviera 4 times & want to see the new ship. We've gotten flyers & cruise info. already about the Allura coming out as well.Just a generalized listing of our upcoming cruise.

We'll ask once boarding. In most cases it has not been determined until close to departure. It's quite amazing how many cancellations may come through. A good tip is(if you want a upgrade or cabin change is the the guest desk know your wishes & have them leave a message on your room phone. Some cruises do actually say at about 100% capacity so moving around may not happen. Those that get on board are the first at the guest desk, so they may get first choice & consideration.The amount of cruises on Princess(and accommodation level) helps, too

Use the Princess website for this info.

LOL! agreed. Or disposing of a body(if they were larger)

Best to just request from you cabin attendant.