Janet Foster

The bed was so comfortable and the sheets were my favorite... creamy smooth...

Nice jacuzzi tub with bath salts and bubble bath...

The bathtowels were thick and fluffy..

They had a one time bar and mixer set up...

CONTINUED

Oh? They actually put us in a line. The ship had not opened up to the passengers so we did have a few more moments to wait. Oh the suspense… so we just kept taking pictures.

It was not more than a 10 minute wait, the lines started moving and we are on the ship~

They directed us to get our individual security pictures taken, then the BON VOYAGE Photo. Would you like to see?

By the way... each picture is $20.... and no... they don't have a sale at the end of the cruise. We did wait till the last day to buy pictures... just got a few..

After everyone had completed that task we went to the Purser’s Desk so that we could sign up for the ULTIMATE SHIP TOUR. We knew that if you wanted to take that tour you better get signed up right away. They take about 15 people on the 3- hour tour later in the week and if there are more people that want to go they will hold a lottery. $150pp. While we were there we also phoned the CROWN GRILL and made reservations for MONDAY night. From there we went down to the PIAZZA DECK and purchased the UKP - ULTIMATE KID PACKAGE at the bar to the left of the International Cafe. This is a sticker that goes on your Sail & Sign card that allows you to go up to the bar and get unlimited sodas, milk shakes, mocktails, smoothies, hot chocolate, juices…. The cost for the week for this was $56.35 pp. I loved my Mai Tai's and Pina Colada's spiced up with my rum... YUMMY... No one in our group got the coffee card.

We all got the three things we needed to do out of the way so it was time to go find our cabins. We thought the ship looked beautiful. Well maintained. We were happy that we boarded early as we saw long lines of anxious cruisers that wanted to get on the ship. We always start out at 10:30 the morning of our cruise and usually always work out well for us. So within an hour we were in our cabins.

CABINS

My poor husband.. if he thinks we will be able to get me into anything less than a full suite on our next cruise he is crazy. We were spoiled beyond belief. Being that we had a line of cabins with our friends all in a row just made it all the more fun. The room attendant Edwin Bonaficiado was so helpful and made our trip just so much more enjoyable. He opened up all of our balcony partitions and it was really nice so now they all connected outside! The perks from the suites were really outstanding and I made sure I had done the research to look them all up to make sure I had taken advantage of all. Edwin took really good care of us all week and he was always attentive and enjoyable. I got out my clorox wipes I had in my purse and quickly wiped down the telephones, remote controls, light switches, doors, toilet seat.. you name it. Thinking that someone just left the cabin a few hours earlier and spent the whole week in it, I had to do it. We loved our cabin, I would never have dreamed we had something like this.

CONTINUED

We pushed and shoved our way into the terminal. Actually, we were all walking nicely. I like to convey how excited we all were.

At this point you will want your boarding docs and passport in your hands as they check them at the door. We got into the terminal and there were disney-like ride lines that weaved in and out but the time was approx 11am and there was hardly anyone in the lines. We rode up the escalator and proceeded to go through security.

At least you don't have to take your shoes off!

I had a small backpack with little pineapple juice cans and other items we used in our hotel, I also had another carry-on type tote. Others in our crowd had wine in their bags, soda and the like. None of our bags were opened, searched or given a second thought. My husband had one of the small 8oz rum runners in his pocket.

We were then directed to another area where we did the actual check-in. The line was not long at all. Being that we were upgraded to suite status they took us to the “preferred line”.

The preferred line probably takes longer than the regular line. Either that or they just didn’t have anyone working the line when we arrived. Nonetheless we checked in very quickly and got our Sail and Sign cards.

I had brought a hole puncher so we all punched our cards and put them on our lanyards that moment. You could go to the front desk or the casino to also get your card punched but we always do it right away and end up making friends with others who ask to use our hole punch. Just make sure you punch the hole on the opposite end of the arrow, as you will need that end for your cabin key. We were then directed to the ship. Just a few more steps!! OH THE EXCITEMENT....

CONTINUED

BON VOYAGE!!!

Saturday morning we were all up bright and early. Had a bit of the weak continental breakfast, knowing we would soon be eating a nice lunch. We had pre-arranged for SHUTTLE EXPRESS to pick us up at 10:40am.

We were all outside with our “tons” of luggage by 10:30am. The driver had a shocked look on his face as he saw all-of-the luggage but somehow it all fit-in-the van. We got to the pier and we were dropped off at the furthest part of the parking lot, I guess the SHUTTLE EXPRESS has to drop you off at this location.

The ship looked so pretty sitting there. Remember this picture because it will look quite different at the end of our cruise!

The driver proceeded to unload our hundreds of bags. We actually looked like we were stranded on the roadside and it was great because hardly anyone was there. I had read a previous review where it was mentioned that there were no porters to help you with your bags. I had read another notation that you HAD to search for the porters. So my husband went one way (into the terminal) and I went the other way (across where HAL customers were getting loaded up after their cruise). We each found a porter but I am not kidding when I say this took about 15 minutes. It was crazy that they didn’t have more porters. I just don’t get that. Wow, then all of the sudden the buses start arriving and swarms of people. The terminal is straight ahead. Golden Princess is on the left and the HAL ship is on the right. Our porter is in the lime green vest pushing the cart. The other porter is way ahead on the right. So when you go, look for these lime green vests!!

CONTINUED

After our tour, some of us walked back to the hotel to get settled and another group walked to the liquor store to buy a car. OOPS… I mean to buy some booze. The cost of the liquor in Washington State is expensive!! After we got the liquor back to the hotel we transferred the booze into our RUM RUNNERS that we brought with us. http://www.rumrunnerflasks.com/ .. For our group of 10 I am not kidding when I say we had about 18 of the 32 oz rum runners and about 11 of the 8oz. We then place the rum runners in zip lock bags and then distributed them throughout our luggage. Never putting them all together. WE WERE READY!!

For dinner that evening we took two (2) cabs to Elliot’s Oyster House. http://www.elliottsoysterhouse.com/ Very - good food and atmosphere. We tried to inform the hostess that we were a loud group and would need to be sequestered. The hostess proceeded to seat us in a private room with a group of Japanese businessmen which looked like a business dinner. We quickly informed her we should not be in here and we were reseated. They put us in the back corner of the restaurant but to no avail we were still loud. We hadn’t seen each other in a long time… and well.. we are loud.

The next morning was Friday and we had a full kitchen in our hotel room so we made a huge breakfast for everyone.

We had a scheduled tour up to the Boeing Factory in Everett. http://www.boeing.com/commercial/tours/index.html A bus picked us up promptly at our hotel. We made the reservations through reading notations from a CRUISE CRITIC thread. http://www.ourtoursrock.com/

It would be about 6 hours before we got back to Seattle. I enjoyed this tour of how planes were built. My husband.. not so much. It was an assembly line of planes being made and quite interesting. My husband had mentioned that he would have rather gone on the tour of the MUSEUM OF FLIGHT http://www.museumofflight.org/ which was in Seattle. But majority ruled. There is also a DUCK TOUR in Seattle that got rave reviews. http://www.ridetheducksofseattle.com/ Just not enough time~~.

For dinner on Friday we chose to go to SALTY’S on ALKI BEACH. http://www.saltys.com/seattle/ This was another excellent choice. Salty’s will arrange for free limo service from most downtown hotels in Seattle.

The restaurant is across the bay and you get an excellent view of Seattle downtown after the sun sets. Just beautiful! Food and service were outstanding. A good positive note is that the weather was just excellent the whole time we were in Seattle. I was expecting rain and clouds~~ Hope your trip is just as nice!

View from Salty's

BON VOYAGE!!!

Saturday morning we were all up bright and early. Had a bit of the weak continental breakfast, knowing we would soon be eating a nice lunch. We had pre-arranged for SHUTTLE EXPRESS to pick us up at 10:40am. We had taped copies of our luggage tags onto our water so that it would be delievered to our cabin.

CONTINUED

Golden Princess

June 11th - 18th

Alaskan Inside Passage from Seattle

We sailed with a group of 10 people. All in our 50’s.

Coming from: Nevada, Colorado, Texas and Oregon

Cabins: C401, C409, C415 and C421 - DECK 10 CARIBE

Cabin: E401 – DECK 8 EMERALD

This has taken me awhile to do but here it is~

I like to use my pictures as my visuals in my review so this will be long but hopefully fun!

We (I) had made our reservations direct with Princess back in May 2010 when the book was first open so that we could get cabins all in a row. We had selected Mini-Suites AA Category - D501, D503, D505, D509 and D517 (Inside Category J) . About 10 days before we sailed, Princess called me to offer our group all upgrades. The AA Category Mini-Suites were upgraded to PENTHOUSE Category PH Full Suites and the couple with the inside cabin were upgraded to OUTSIDE STATEROOM category E. Needless to say we were all thrilled.

SEATTLE

Most of us got to Seattle on Thursday pre-cruise so that we could have some sightseeing time and pre-cruise excitement. We all stayed at the HAMPTON INN – DOWNTOWN. http://www.hamptoninnseattle.com/images/hampton_seattle.pdf

The location was perfect, right by the SPACE NEEDLE and SEATTLE CENTER.

The monorail was accessible to take you to PIKE PLACE MARKET if you wanted to go. $2 pp each way. There also was a great 24-hour grocery store one block over called QFC which had great deli and a Starbucks. We stopped in here frequently for items and picked up a case of water to take on the ship.

We used SHUTTLE EXPRESS , http://shuttleexpress.com/seatac-airport/cruise-transfers/default

For our mode of transportation from the airport to the hotel and from the hotel to Pier 91. They were reliable and we booked early in February. This is their check in desk at the airport.

The hotel was going through renovations and I found this out about a month before our stay. I really didn’t think it would be a big deal but really, I was surprised they didn’t start their renovations process prior to cruise season. They temporarily discontinued their full breakfast, which we were not aware of, because of the renovations (had a very weak continental breakfast) and there was a smell of caulking and cement. Construction was limited to the hours of 9:30 to 4:30pm. Hard to describe but I had a room freshener that served its purposes. The room was clean and the linens were comfortable, the towels were thin. Walking the streets around the hotel were easy and we felt very safe. The rooms were not ready when the rest of our friend arrived on Thursday. My husband and I had arrived the night before so our room would be the luggage drop off location for everyone. Not sure if it was due to the construction or not but it did seem a bit chaotic at the front desk and the rooms would not be available until after 3pm. We later found there were some high school graduations at nearby Memorial Field which made the hotel busy.

Thursday afternoon we strolled over to the EMP Museum, about a seven minute walk. http://www.empmuseum.org/index.asp

This was something my husband really enjoyed. Me, not so much. It was a museum of rock and roll named for the band of native son Jimi Hendrix. I did enjoy the Jimi Hendrix exhibit.

CONTINUED

So, you leave this with your luggage and its delivered to your room? Or do you carry it on?

Yes I do. However on Carnival, they require that you carry this on the ship yourself. So for this reason if I were you I would get a rolling duffle bag and put my soda in it because carrying it could get very tiring...

When we travel on Princess and RCCL, we just check it in with our luggage and it is delivered to the room.

Happy Cruising!!

Thanks for the feedback NEWBIE CRUISER GA... Glad that the shoe holder worked well for you. Especially with two teenage boys..

Oh yes.. Carnival will not let you check in a case of water, they require you lug it with you. So if I were on Carnival and really wanted to bring a case of water, I would put it in a rolling duffle bag. Security sure is checking closely aren't they.

Also, it is nice that the room steward is keeping their eyes on things. That is kind of strange but again about the power strip and extension cord, they are just looking out to keep things safe.

Glad you had a fun time!

The list was great some good ideas there for me ..iv'e been buying stuff since January although not going till Sept:D i have the cases in the bedroom & just add stuff , i always do it even though we are campers with our own old camper van :confused:.. but it's our first cruise & i would rather take too many clothes etc & not use them as not taken something & wished i had ..wer'e not flying so it doesn't matter & going to use the bags that have the air sucked out for the stuff that doesn't crease ..but my little list for things i would never have thought of is growing all the time :)

Have fun on your first cruise. How nice you don't have to fly anywhere!!

Glad you liked the list.. In answer to your question I get what you are saying but I can not confirm or verify a positive response. If I were you, I would post this question over on the P&O Cruises Board and see if someone will respond.. or unless others that read this can help...

Hope you get your answer!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=431

CLICK ON NEW THREAD and then ask your question...

Me too! Therefore, I think from now on, I'll pack nothing and just make sure I cruise next door to you! :D:D:D:D:D I love your list!

Ok... sounds good.. come join the fun!!!! Thanks for your nice comment!

Love all the ideas... It is really a challenge when you have a whole family to get ready... I have my hands full just with my husband.. LOL

Enjoy!!!!!

We also have one on the back of the laundry room door. Holds gift wrap, bows, ribbons and tape. I have several as well~

Joe:

LOL

I don't bring that many shoes... the shoe organizer is for all the little things that clutter up the bathroom... It also helps my husband find things because of the clear pockets.

Wow. I learned a lot from everyone's point of view and really appreciated all the opinions and advice and lists! I certainly could've done without the snarky comments and ridiculous defensiveness. Who knew packing was such a controversial/confrontational topic? But, a huge thanks to everyone who took the time to provide packing advice to first time cruisers.

Welcome to Cruise Critic...

Hope you have a great time on your cruise!!

There was a post about bringing a cooler aboard....I can't find any information on the NCL website about this *shrug*

 

It just says 2 suitcases and a carry on....?

While NCL states only 2 suitcases and a carryon, no one ever checks or goes by this you can print as many luggage tags as you wish. Soft sided ice chests are great. I have also seen inflatable ones at Party City. Check the NCL boards for further clarification. Have a great time!!

Yikes!! I don't even like saying the word "LL"... Thanks for your story Joe..

We cross pack also... not to be confused with CROSS DRESSING... LOL..

Have a good day!

We just have never been light packers and we never will be, no matter where we go.

Especially going to Alaska.

But this is what works for us too

Happy Sailing!!

bump

Not sure if anyone has mentioned but same as going on any trips (or even at your hometown), always a good idea to have a small flash light with you, or at least leave it somewhere that is easily accessible especially if you have an inside cabin. There was a short outage on my last cruise and the entire room was pitch black.

 

Also if you are planning to fill your bottle with water from the buffet restaurant, remember to squeeze some lemon juice in. The chlorine smell gets even stronger when the water turns warm as you go ashore so it is close to undrinkable.

if you are planning to fill your bottle with water from the buffet restaurant, remember to squeeze some lemon juice in. The chlorine smell gets even stronger when the water turns warm as you go ashore so it is close to undrinkable

Just bring bottled water... :-)

Enjoyed reading your tips and secrets...

I had "heard" that Princess no longer accepts faxed request for egg toppers.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1396501

#15 April 12th, 2011, 03:44 PM

Stephy0519

Cool Cruiser Join Date: Feb 2010

Location: CT

Posts: 15

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For our upcoming cruise, I booked directly with Princess--and asked about the egg crate option as we did have to fax that form in last time. However, the very friendly agent said they no longer take fax forms and that she could add it over the phone, as a special request.

I am sorry to say that most of the stuff on these lists you will never use and/or might use once.. A scale packed in your luggage?? Come on..

We have been on 3 cruises so far and will be on our 4th later this year.. We took a great many of the items on these lists for our first cruise and never used any of them, did not need to.. Don't get me wrong, there are some good suggestions here as well.. Just think before you pack..

Now for my travel tip.. As you know, you can't bring beer on board as they will take it from you.. Here is a little trick to get 10 cans of beer on board and have THEM deliver it to your cabin.. Take one of those 12 pack soda boxes and very carefully open the end.. Remove the soda.. Put 10 of the beer of your choice back into the box and just put 2 cans of the soda where they can be seen through the handle holes.. Use a glue gun to reseal the box and you are set.. They look and see soda...

You can also put clear booze into water bottles as well.. Vodka, gin and some rums. The cruise lines are getting wiser to the "rum runners" and are starting to look for them..

Once again... as most of you will read over and over this thread, this list is not a must have must pack. This is merely a trigger point for things you "might" need.

Just like you "might" need that hot glue gun to seal the end of your soda boxes.

A scale packed in your luggage?? Come on..

Bump

I have not cruised on NCL so I can't say for sure but being that you have a balcony cabin one would think that yes bathrobes would be available. I would also think if you ask the cabin stewards they should provide them on request.

I also love sitting on the balcony prior to dressing. I would hate to have to pack my robe, just takes up too much room. Hope others will respond and that you get confirmation. Have a great time!