San Diego Ellie

If you are bothered by motion, that would not be a great cabin for you. High and forward you feel the most motion.

I was on ruby from Jan. 9 to Jan. 18, and I thought the food was very good. We ate in both the main dining room and the buffet. To show that I do not just think all food is ok, want to see that we boarded Coral the day after we disembarked Ruby, were on Coral from the 19th to the 30th of January, and thought the food on Coral was much, much worse than on Ruby.

Thanks so much marazad16 for the copy of the letter in this thread, and also to caribill.

Ellie

Princess pays full commission when the goodwill credits are used, so there is no reduction in commission to the TA.

 

 

But, as a general rule, never use a travel agent that charges more than Princess does.

Carbill, are you sure that the TA get commission on the part of the fare that is in your Princess account from the free cruises? How do you know this? My travel agent says it is not true, and she has been good and honest with me, discounting all cruises, etc. in the past.

I read it wrong, my mistake. Glad it is not on current sailing.

to the original poster, wineart: We were on Coral Jan. 19 to Jan. 30 and noro was prevalent enough on that cruise for code red to be implented and for DH to catch it (and yes, we wash hands repeatedly and for 20 to 30 seconds, both of us). He was very sick, quarantined for two days. Even after he was better and up and around, he was lethargic and had no appetite for several days. If Coral has it again on the current sailing for code red again, this is a big problem IMHO.

We were on the Jan. 19 to Jan. 30 Coral sailing RT out of Fort Lauderdale, and the incidence of noro was bad enough on the ship for all the precautions to be implemented and for DH to get it. By the end of the cruise, they were back to salt shakers, rolls, butter, etc. on the table, so hopefully the next cruise was not a problem.

BUT, WE USED THE PENS THEY PROVIDED IN FORT LAUDERDALE FOR FILLING OUT THE "required sickness forms". I WILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN, AS THAT COULD BE A CULPRIT. I ADVISE EVERYONE TO BRING YOUR OWN PEN, HAVE IT HANDY, AND USE IT IN THE CRUISE PORT.

On our last few cruises as elites, we were given the good kind of lotion, the lotus spa type at the beginning of the cruise. One room attendant left a few tubes of it during the cruises, and the others did when we asked for it

Last year I believe they first offered them as 14 day cruises early in the spring. There was a brief period of time they offered the 14 day bookings including prepaid gratuities and onboard credit from Princess, and we booked a 14 day in early July. There seem to be less ships totally doing Alaska this year, so not sure such great deals will be available, but I, for one, am waiting to see what spring brings.

We are just off the Coral, which based on a 14 day Alaska experience early in July of 2013, was one of our favorite Princess ships. I cannot believe the decline in food quality. the buffet was so bad for every meal, that we gave up on it. The main dining room was hit or miss, mostly miss. Lest you think I am a fussy eater, we had disembarked from nine days on Ruby one day before we boarded Coral, and Ruby food, buffet and all, was very good to excellent. Also, we liked the Coral food in the summer. We ran into passengers constantly who were disappointed in the food this trip on Coral, all of them seasoned cruisers like us. I know they have changed chefs since summer, and this one has got to go! As an example , wecould not even eat the shrimp cocktails, which we love, as the sauce tasted so odd and the shrimp texture was meally. (We ate and enjoyed them every day on Ruby.) all food was way oversalted, especially soups, which is always a risk on Princess, but to such unbelievable excess this cruise. many days we would look at the lunch menu outside the restaurant along with others, and we would just all shake our heads and say we could not believe how bad it was.

I have never been on Island, but would certainly choose that over Coral based on our eleven days aboard which ended just two days ago.

You can take every precaution mentioned here and still get noro. I always wipe down the cabin; we are the most cautious hand washers imaginable; do not use the public rest rooms, etc. etc. etc. As a case in point, my DH was one of those affected on the Coral cruise we just disembarked on Thursday. One minute you are fine, and the next you are unbelievable sick with repeated sudden vomiting and diahrrea. (My husband compared it to your status after taking a colonoscopy prep). The captain had reported earlier that day that the incidence was high enough for all precautions to be in place (no self service in buffet, no salt shakers, etc on table, and so forth). DH went to sleep at 10:00 PM feeling fine, and woke an hour later with vomiting and diahrrea (sp). The captain had sent literature saying to call 911 as soon as systems appeared. We did, and they provide medication and whatever puts electolytes back in your system immediately. He was quarantined for two days, and was called many times a day by a nurse, and our cabin was serviced and linens changed several times daily by a team wearing gloves and masks. I cannot fault Princess for their handling of both affected and unaffected passengers, except that in the International Cafe, they seemed somewhat clueless and the servers used no gloves and would sometimes pour a coffee refill directly into a cup passenger had already been drinking from, instead of providing a new one. I am writing a mini review of Coral later today, but wanted to respond on this thread now. I do understand that norovirus is rampant through the country right now and on lots of ships. I do think they should have precautions in place as if it were a high incidence already at the beginning of a sailing, during a season like this, and they do not (at least Princess does not).

Ellie

I am trying to print boarding passes and luggage tags for a cruise that is in 18 days and am constantly getting the screen that says "this page cannot be found", etc. I have never had this problem after final payment before.

my computer and printer are both working for every other site. I have been able to go to and print various confirmations, etc. today, so I do not think it is a problem with my computer. I wondered if anyone else is having this problem?

Ellie

Last year it paid to wait. They had a special sale for the 14 day version of the Vancouver to Anchorage and Anchorage to Woodier that included prepaid gratuities, an onboard credit, and very reasonable prices. I would gamble waiting. Also, just learned from my TA that on Dec. 27 there will be a special sale that includes Alaska cruises.

You do not EVEN have to go to "getaway sale." I tested not even signing in and got there by picking CARIBBEAN, JANUARY, RUBY, AND 1-5 DAYS. THE FREE DEAL IS RIGHT THERE NEXT TO ALL THE CRUISES THAT OFFER IT.

I believe as I read it, it applies to designated five day cruises out of Fort Lauderdale also, (as well as 3 and 4 day getaways) such as Ruby Jan. 13 departure. Could someone verify that?

Another vote for closed captioning from me. I have a profound hearing loss and have had many kinds of hearing aids. My high frequency is totally dead, but one company has aids that turn high frequency to mid frequency, so they work for me somewhat. I have tried FM and all other ancillary type devices to my hearing aids and none work for me. I can never understand any movie without captioning. I have often wondered why the stateroom movies do not have captioning. I am an elite Princess cruiser and have NEVER been able to watch MUTS as I cannot hear any of it, and captioning would be wonderful.

I found the website changes for the worst also. The site is harder to use, and more cumbersome.

I was on the same sailing. Do not miss the children's hula show in the Princess Theater in Honolulu. It is outstanding! The youngest child is seven, and the oldest is 17. They were totally wonderful. I have been on five Hawaii cruises and have seen the children's hula show before. I still would not miss it for a luau.

If you prefer traditional dining, and there are still openings, take that. When onboard, try to get a table for two. If you cannot, you can always change to anytime dining. If you are an experienced cruiser, I am sure you know that traditional to anytime can always be obtained, but the reverse, almost never.

Over a period of eight years, DH and I had to cancel three cruises for medical reasons after final payment. I also have had to visit the medical center on three cruises and my husband on one, and all of these visits were necessary and valid. We just disembarked a cruise a couple of weeks ago, and my one visit to the medical center for a severe upper respiratory infection I got on board cost $171 total, including an antibiotic. I have never gone on a cruise without insurance, and I cannot imagine doing so.

Incidentally, if your cruise embarks or disembarks in a foreign port and you spend any time there, Princess insurance will not cover you for anything that happens before or after the cruise. For that reason, I always get a different insurance when spending pre or post cruise days in a foreign port, and I have the insurance cover me from the date I leave home until the date I am due back home. For cruises that start and terminate in the US I do get Princess insurance, as we get the complimentary upgrade to Platinum.

I think they may have given up on keeping it quiet that a main dining room is open on embarkation day, and not just for B2B cruisers. It was listed in the venues open for lunch on embarkation dat in the Patter you get in your cabin when you first get onboard, at least on Golden Princess.

Sapphire and Diamond were built by a different, more upscale builder than the rest of the Grand class ships, and have a promenade deck with true lounge chairs.

This, a 14 day from LA to Alaska round trip, would be a fabulous itinerary for those throngs of us in southern California who, either for health reasons, or for preference, do not want to fly. I would be the first one to sign up for such an intinerary and I know loads of people who would also rush to book it.

Ellie

I never smelled smoke anywhere in the atrium, and I was on Sapphire for two weeks February/March. The library is a different story; it is located near the casino, and if I recall directly, also the cigar lounge.

I am not sure about the brand, but I AM sure that they have recently (within last year or so) changed brands for the worst, and I am talking about the brewed coffee that you get with the coffee card. It used to be quite good; now it is barely mediocre. At least that is my opinion.