CruizinSusan70

We're not getting our own coffee in the MDR or anywhere. We go to the International Cafe and let the barista there take care of us.

We don't wait on the server to ask us. If we want to get an espresso for after dinner, we just go to the IC and get it and of course have more options than they have in the MDR.

Bookings for the initial European season have been open for a few months and bookings for the first Caribbean season opened up a few weeks ago.

Have to agree. That's how it's done on Carnival and works out very well except if you wish to eat at the most popular times around 645-730, if you don't check in early your wait could be substantial, especially on cruise elegant nights.

Duplication of already posted info.

As a follow up. I just checked the inventory for our 7/16/23 sailing of the Meraviglia. There are 37 YC1 cabins sold and 41 currently available.

Cruising from NY is similar to cruising from Galveston in that the majority of people on the ship drive to the cruise. Because of this fact, the ship might not be at full capacity year round or if it is will fill up with last minute sales. There are only so many retirees that can drive to one of the ships embarking from Miami, Ft Lauderdale or Port Canaveral, so many cruisers fly to these embarkation ports and since they're flying they reserve their cruise further out than those that drive.

On our B2B last year on the Discovery, we went to the MDR 12/14 nights and had the same server at a two top that had enough room for me to stay in my scooter at. It helped of course that we promised we would be at the table by 545 each evening so they could easily turn it by 715 for another couple.

Totally unacceptable. If we have a reservation for a table for two and they don't have it, I would ask the desk to contact the other two dining rooms and see if we could be accommodated. Luckily we never had problems during the 12 times we ate in the MDR on the Discovery last year. Hopefully we won't have any problems this year on our 14 nights on the Majestic.

A suit is no longer needed. A pair of Dockers and a collared shirt is OK. Doesn't even need to be long sleeved with a tie. Things are much more casual these days.

All three of the dining rooms on your ship are YTD since Princess only offers that. You can go onto the app and make your reservations for whichever dining room you want and see what times would be available for the size of your party. If you want Marco Polo every night and it's available at the time you want, then just confirm it. The elegant nights are usually nights 2 & 6 on a 7 night cruise, but that's not set in stone. If you are cruising in Europe I believe that more people dress up as opposed to a Caribbean or Alaska cruise.

When it comes to MSC, never assume. They have been sailing on this side of the pond for 10 years and they still don't understand all of the nuances on this side of the pond to please Americans and many that love to cruise on them like it that way. They like that it's different and European skewed.

If you booked through your PVP, contact him or her. If you booked through Carnival without a PVP, call the general phone number, give them your reservation number and ask to be placed on the wait list. If you booked through an outside travel agent or agency, you will need to contact them to get you placed on the wait list.

Only knew about the lines we've sailed on. 😉

Back in the day we used to eat at 815, had late sitting and had a few drinks beforehand. At 1000 post dinner there wasn't a whole lot to do except see the late show, maybe grab or drink or go to the casino, which we didn't do since we don't gamble. With the ships getting larger over the past 15-20 years, there are many more options post dinner and we prefer to take advantage of these options starting around 700 instead of 1000.

Never had to wait at all last April and the Discovery was pretty close to full capacity. We'll see how it is on the Majestic in a few weeks. Have 540 reserved for 12/14 nights.

Not really. It's still an option on Celebrity, Carnival, MSC and Royal. NCL of course hasn't done it for years.

Thank you for educating me today. I thought that the finger lakes area of NY was the pirate infested area of the region. If they are now spreading out into Vermont, then that just crosses off one more area that we will not be able to cruise. 😔

That was our preferred method back in the day. Happy hour at the bars and 815 late sitting dinner. But as the years progress and the ships offer more choices, we decided to eat a bit earlier and then take advantage of options post dinner. Whether that be sitting at Good Spirits, listening to music or whatever. We can now start these choices at 700 by eating at 545 instead of 1000 by eating at 815. There is no right or wrong choice, it's just personal preference.

We were on a 14 day B2B on the Discovery in April of 2022. Had 545 reservations and was out most nights by 700 for the 730 show. We sat at the same two top with the same servers.

We cruised on the Discovery for 14 days in April of 2022. We ate in the MDR for 12 of those nights and arrived around 545. We were usually out just before 700 most nights so we were able to catch the 730 show if it interested us. Then we spent most of the night at Good Spirits. Had the same wait staff for every meal and sat at the same two top. Obviously it was because we ate so early compared to having dinner at 8:00. Having sailed on Celebrity, RCI and Carnival besides Princess, I had just mistakenly assumed that the old two seating method was still an option on Princess.

But if I'm not mistaken, there is no Havana area on the Venezia. It goes by Terrazza Carnavale (sp). I know there's no pool, and I think only two small hot tubs. The spa balcony might have been a better value.

That's what NCL did with their Vibe Beach Club. It was originally about 59-79 for the one week pass pp and now is about 239 or more depending upon the length of your cruise. It used to be a first come first served race on embarkation day and now can be purchased ahead of time online. There is no easy answer.

We prefer to be in and out of the MDR in 60-75 minutes. The two hour dinner of 20+ years ago might be the preferred method of those on the other side of the pond, but not us. Back in the day your choices after dinner was 1 show, the casino, maybe a single music venue and maybe two bars to grab a drink. Nowadays the larger modern ships have many more choices post dinner so we would prefer to be done in just over an hour instead of spending two hours in the MDR. That extra hour can be spent more productively in our opinion out and about instead of dwelling over a prolonged dessert and an extra cup of coffee or two.

If you have early or late set time dining, then you will have the same wait staff and table each evening. If you have YTD, then you may or may not have the same wait staff or even the same table. You can request the same staff but it's not always guaranteed.