Paula_MacFan

I always check the port schedules for several reasons. If we're doing independent tours or on our own it's important to know where we're docked. Also depending on the number and size of ships, that may impact our excursion choices. Case in point we're on our way home now from getting off the Regal this morning. There were 7 huge ships in Cozumel, so we chose a quiet beach day on the east side away from the masses on the west side. Lastly, by looking at the port schedule we knew our Mahogany Bay stop would be changed weeks prior to the official Princess notification. That was valuable info for planning.

We lined up for walkoff at 7:15 on deck 7 by the Wheelhouse. Line started moving at 7:25. In our car heading home by 7:37. Easiest and quickest disembarkation from Galveston ever. We left from pier 25 and returned to pier 28 but they are right next to each other so it was fine. Two minute walk back to car.

We haven't docked yet but have already received our post cruise surveys. Hoping our disembarkation goes smoothly. That's been a criticism noted in recent reviews. We always do express walkoff. We had a fun week but are ready to head home. Looking forward to our next Princess adventure in 3.5 months.

Yes. They opened up the cardboard 12-pack box and took out every can and looked it over. Then put them back in the box and taped it back up.

They said the name but I didn't catch it. After the 'behind the scenes' talk put on by the cruise director we stayed for the 2nd officer's navigation talk. He reiterated the current captain was leaving as well. He further said all ships have 2 captains since they all do 3 months on and 3 months home. So for the 17 Princess ships the company will always have 40 - 45 active captains under contract. Even after 20 years of cruising I learn new things from these talks and enrichment speakers.

We're attending the behind the scenes talk with staff, and they announced today is captain's rollover day. Two captains onboard, prior one leaving tomorrow and new one taking over on the next sailing. Also mentioned some system training being done here to test some things for upcoming Sun deployment. No mentions of the inaugural delay. Side note we've seen many medical staff attend to passenger mishaps on this cruise. We've seen 4 people fall, 2 on the ship, one at the Cozumel pier, and one getting on tender. Each time medical response was swift.

I get the '20% off Alaska Excursions' banner when I log in, but the prices have all increased so much they exceed what we originally paid months ago.

We still have the nice thick canvas ones given away in suites years ago. Also have the nice drawstring laundry bags which we use frequently for travel. We keep the old lightweight blue ones in our suitcases and use them in a pinch for various things. We're on the Regal now and have used them to bring a few beers back to the room for balcony sail away and to carry beach towels. We've seen a few other people using them too, but obviously they were carried on like ours as they aren't giving them away onboard.

Wow! Hope your disembarkation goes smoothly today. Appreciate your insight as we are crossing the Gulf today. We've had high winds throughout the trip but did have a lovely day yesterday in Cozumel. Finally got our beach day. I've never been sent to cabins either in my many years of cruising, but they did advise caution on the open decks and closed off the pools and some walking areas.

I suppose some people try to smuggle in booze that way. We have the drink package so no reason to smuggle. We just like pepsi better than coke and since we drove to port there was no reason not to carry on.

First formal night was Monday (sea day) and second 'dress to impress' night is Friday (Cozumel). The Captain's Circle party is Friday as well. Our steward just delivered our invitation for tomorrow 🙂 The champagne tower was the first formal night.

Hey neighbor! 🙂 We too are feeling the movement back here on the aft. It's been our experience this itinerary can be bumpier than others for sure. While we're definitely moving this isn't the worst I've felt. My first ever cruise from Galveston 20 years ago was on the Grand and they put barf bags out along all the walkways! That was a real experience. I think the wind is really pushing us around, hence the missed port day today. Hopefully it gets better tomorrow, but the Belize forecast said 31 wind gusts so I'm not super optimistic.

I'm on the Regal now. Overall the ship is in good condition. There are some things in our cabin that need attention from general wear and tear, but nothing that is a deal breaker. We've sailed on her twice before so this is our third time in three years. We've noticed more dings and wear from our last couple cruises but that comes with age on any ship. I've taken pictures of the issues in our room for reference but we're not letting it overshadow the trip. We have an aft balcony room. We haven't eaten in the MDR yet but the Crown Grill and Alfredo's have been excellent. We had CG reservations for 5pm Monday for hubby's birthday and there was a line to get in even that early. Usually we go early and have the place to ourselves but not this time. Every table was full quickly. Last night we were sitting in the Wheelhouse having a pre-dinner drink and again the line was huge to enter at 5pm. We both had surf and turf and it was excellent. This was our first time eating the Nolan Ryan beef products now offered in the CG from Galveston. Lunch in Alfredo's was also delicious. Again, every table was full at 12:15 and people were waiting to enter. We have MDR reservations for Friday but haven't eaten there yet. We've enjoyed the comedian show and illusionist, as well as the house band and various musical acts. There is also an acrobat couple doing shows in the Piazza with feats of strength and juggling. We missed Costa Maya today due to winds and are hoping to make Belize tomorrow but we'll see since it's a tender port. We were supposed to originally be in Mahogany Bay tomorrow but got bumped by a larger Carnival ship. Last night we made a pit stop in Cozumel to take off a critically ill passenger. So far it's definitely warmer than home which is currently 0 degrees, so another sea day at 80 degrees isn't so bad 🙂 The Regal has been our favorite ship but after a recent fantastic European cruise on the Island we're doing more comparing between the two. I know lots of people hate the Island but there were many things we liked about her better than Regal.

MB is in Roatan. We were supposed to stop there originally but were bumped by the much larger Carnival Jubilee a few weeks ago and Princess replaced that port day with Belize for tomorrow. We'll see if we actually make that port since it's a tender and winds have been high. At least the temps are good with mid 80s today. The pool decks are jam packed. Our comedian was supposed to disembark at Coata Maya today and another one join us there. They had to re-print the Patter for today since everything changed and the comedy shows scheduled for tonight can't happen now. We enjoyed the illusionist last night. It was a good show.

They just delivered these letters. So after Mahogany Bay was swapped for Belize tomorrow and today was cancelled at Costa Maya the best we can do for our original itinerary is Cozumel Friday. We stopped at Cozumel last night for the ill passenger and it's too bad we couldn't have stayed there for today. Oh well, a day at sea is better than a day at work.

The captain announced at 7:30 that our planned stop in Costa Maya has been cancelled due to high winds at the dock. The two other ships scheduled to dock there today have also cancelled.

The captain just announced we have a medical emergency and are diverting to Cozumel to disembark a critically ill passenger. He said we should resume our scheduled itinerary after the passenger is taken ashore for treatment.

Here's a pretty shot of the full moon from our aft balcony. Smooth sailing now 🙂

The weather has vastly improved from when we left Galveston and the pool decks are crowded. Seas are a bit calmer but still heard some folks seeking Dramamine. Pretty windy but the temp is around 80 so it feels pretty good after leaving snow and cold at home 🙂 Even the comedian joked last night about cruising from Galveston in the cold.

It is noon and we're having lunch in Alfredo's. Every table is full and there is a line waiting. Last night the Crown Grill was packed as well.

Here's the daily buffet themes.

We are from Salina and first sailed from Galveston on Princess in 2004 on the Grand. We've been hooked ever since and have done many Caribbean trips from Galveston, Houston 2x, and Ft Lauderdale over the years. We've also done Alaska from Seattle, New England from NYC, and most recently a 12 night European from Southampton. Next we have a 14 night Alaska cruise tour and then Panama Canal. So we obviously like Princess. I've said on this forum the Regal was our favorite ship and we are having a good time. Just pointing out a few disappointments doesn't mean we're totally unhappy, just keeping it real. We usually drive to Galveston as it's comparable travel time for us vs flying logistics. We always get an aft room if it's available. We love the quiet location and spending time on the balcony. Yes the weather was colder than normal in Galveston but still nicer than home. We've had 3 weeks of sub zero temps, snow, and ice. We usually sail this week every year for husband's birthday and to escape the cold. Today's forecast looks better with 70s. The next 3 port days look to be in the 80s, so yay 😀 If you have other questions I'm happy to try and answer. We typically don't do the MDR much nor attend production shows. Last night we enjoyed the comedian and several music acts. There is also a acrobat couple who have done shows in the piazza with feats of strength and juggling.

I took your advice and asked our steward for better/fluffier/non feather/whatever pillows. After a deer in the headlights response to 'see what he could find' I'm happy to report we now have 2 additional flat pillows 😄 It's fine and we will survive.

Yes, it's $10 extra. The lobster is huge though 😊

We had a wonderful meal tonight in the Crown Grill for my husband's birthday. We both had the surf and turf and it was delicious. This was our first time trying the Nolan Ryan beef products now offered on the Regal. Our last experience in the CG was on the Island a few months ago and this was better. Our filets on the Island were bigger but tonight's were better. Absolutely melt in your mouth. Our neighbor diners commented that our meals looked so good they were coming back later in the week to order what we had. The service was excellent and we didn't receive a bill for the 18% charge as we had prepaid prior to the change.