Jeter02

She was on the Regal when the medallion soon came out when it was testing mode

6 hours ago, Kingofcool1947 said:

Yes.  It is on board now.

Which Princess ship has if now?

I've done it before. Definitely not z problem at all. Always best to safe then sorry.

On the Golden this summer, they held the plat/elite lounge in crown grill, and they highlighted you off in a sheet.

4 hours ago, philwill said:

I have seen this topic discussed on this forum many times, but I do not recall seeing this question asked.

Furthermore there does not seem to be any reference to this on Princess web site.

Is the elite complimentary drinks bar set up only for consumption within your stateroom, or can it be consumed anywhere onboard. 

Thoughts appreciated.

Anywhere.

Yes. However my only complaint with the on-demand TV's it's been the same 3-4 episodes forever. They more episodes. I think j can repeat each line in each episode.

29 minutes ago, RRFan said:

Skynight's post #17 is a very comprehensive list.  I would add that gratuities are higher, but beds are GREAT and TV's much better with movies you can stop and return to later without having to search.  As far as food, I think the quality of PCL's food is still about the same, but the quantity has certainly been slashed.  The portions are much smaller than the last time you cruised; however, you can always ask for another entree or an additional serving of something.  I've heard they are limiting passengers to only 2 lobster tails per person, but I can't say that with certainty.  They have eliminated bread sticks from the standard bread basket on the MDR tables, but you can ask for bread sticks and tell your waiter that you would like bread sticks every night and you won't have to ask again.   The Horizon Court on the Royal class ships is a huge improvement from the older ship's HC offerings and all coffee up there is brewed coffee rather than the "syrup" type coffee on some ships. 

Funny you should bring up the bread sticks. My dad and I were thrilled they away with them (yes you can request and they will get). We always said it wasted calories, as it was tasteless. We do live ourselves some yummy ship rolls though.

10 minutes ago, Alaska05 said:

Can more than one big ship dock in Whittier?  If not, Whittier will be busy more days.

No. Only can handle one ship at a time. It's great for those who are seasonal workers in Anchorage and Whittier. Woohoo on supporting the economy.

2 hours ago, JF - retired RRT said:

Improvements made since the initial installation?

I had a sensitivity problem on my last Regal cruise in the spring, just to find out it was what expected which was the battery was dying on my Medallion. Not sure on CB if it was the battery, or this was indeed the sensitivity level that was set on this particular ship. Regal, you could hear your cabin unlock while your 1-2 cabins away. CB you had to stand in front of the door and wait awhile to have it be acknowledged. Sometimes had to physically tsp my medallion on the tablet 

I don't see why it would be a problem considering you would meet at the meet-up spot where the transfer will then transport you. I flew in the night before to Anchorage to take the transfer to Whittier the following day. I think there might have been some miscommunication because that doesn't make sense to me.

1 hour ago, SJSULIBRARIAN said:

Can you carry the medallion in a pocket or must it be worn?

Yes. I actually keep mine in my little clutch bag that I carry with me. And it depends which ship you're on because the comparison between the Regal and the CB I noticed that the sensitivity was difference with The Medallion on opening of the cabin door. With the Regal I never had to take it out of my bag but on the CB I had to take it out of my bag for it to sense it. 

OBC can be used for anything. Considered as money sitting on your stateroom account. So anytime you go to the spa at the casino or to the shops or get some drinks whatever it may be when they charge your room the OBC is the money that gets used up first. And once you go through all your OBC then it will be your credit card that will get charged at the end of the cruise.

Personally I find those tables adjacent from the IC to be in a much too crowded area. something about people on top of me while I'm enjoying a snack or whatever it may be that you're doing there. I'd much rather sit somewhere where there's a bunch of tables where there is no line building up on top of me, courtesy of the coffee bar or the cafe itself. Which is why I usually choose to Piazza area or Vines. And there are plenty of times I'll just take my snack upstairs buy the princess live outside or by the explorer's lounge on the sofas over there. Lots of seating options throughout the ship. Like I said earlier, no fuss really needed, as long as I can plop down somewhere within the 19 decks on board this ship to nibble, read or just simply people watch I'm good. as I always tell people in life a cruise or vacation is what you make it to be. So if you find something negative, find a way turn it into a positive. 

The seawalk has definitely been a fan favorite on the royal class ships. I can't see them ever doing away with it. Plus I believe princess was the first ones to have seawalk like that.

The lanyard is free regardless. If you want a clip or the silicone wrist watch looking type device. You have to pay extra for that same goes for the female bracelets and necklaces.

Just now, Italy52 said:

We have sailed out of Whittier quite a few times and 5 PM is too early in my opinion.  Hopefully, HAL has thought it all out and has worked with all those concerned to make cruising worthwhile for people.  We were thinking of a HAL/Princess combo but not sure it will work --- will have to wait until Princess schedules come out.

If HAL is smart they will change departure to a later time. In some locations a 4pm departure is fine, for example FLL. So many flights coming and going from there. Anchorage, I feel like flight choices are limited. Grant you I fly in the day before when traveling out of Whitier, but I'm still trying to figure out how they're going to fuss a ship full of passengers down there in time.

2 minutes ago, Pansy2801 said:

I did ask our head waiter after not seeing them and was told that these are part of the changes made by Princess recently. I also asked our steward about balloons as I did not see any at doors.  Today I received a paper straw when I requested one.  

I had balloons  on my cabin door, during my CB sailing 3 weeks ago.

5pm seems like a bit early for departure from Whittier. I sailed out Whittier this past summer on the Golden. Departure I wanna say say was 8pm. They have to bus in a majority of the passengers through that one way tunnel. Or passengers can take the train. Therefore the 8pm departure sounded conducive. 5pm will be interesting.

I've been cruising with Princess for over 12 years now. I have never once had the room number on the room key. The reason they do not put them on your room key is simply because if someone picks it up they don't have access to get into your cabin.

If you think about it, if there's an event going on in the Piazza most people look around to grab a chair to sit down so they can enjoy themselves with whatever activity is going on there at the moment. So as some have already said, you kind of can't judge others and what they're doing. As really everybody is a paying customer to be on board to use the same venues and amenties. I'll be honest I sit around the Piazza area or in Vines just to sit down and read or even at crooners, and I don't order drinks. if there's an open spot next to me or within the area I'm sitting and people ask if I'm using the chair, I tell them they're more than welcome to it. So in my honest opinion, I feel like you can't judge someone based off of how they would like to relax and enjoy themselves.

1 hour ago, CruiseVA said:

We caught some most ot the tecincal presentation by an engineer, quite interesting.He took questions at the end, guess what the 1st question was. He started by saying, "There was no murder!" LOL, there was a 'critical matter', something (he explained in detail what that something was) caused an engine misfire, which cause an unknown (at the time) source of smoke. Thus the announcement. Once they discovered the cause, they announced all clear.  Contrary to someone who couldn't wait to post something over the Facebook Princess Elite page, there was no loss of power.  That group get's out of control, there is some woman on there that really really hates the CB, she took that as an opportunity to most more about CB & constant power outages, how we're lucky we're still moving, blah, blah, blah...

An engineer q&a sounds cool. I still like the idea of the murder mystery cruise though 😂

21 hours ago, steelers36 said:

Same ambiance and service levels IMO.  Internet will be way fast for you compared to the old one (you will have Medallion Net).  You are on a OCEAN Medallion ship, so that is an interesting experience.  Yes, the menus are redesigned, but still lots of choices.  The "Always Available" has been down-graded and they don't even mix that up.  Steak replaced by hamburger - however on our most recent cruise the burgers did change as they were variations on gourmet burgers such as "the Ernesto".  That said, something like the salmon is exactly the same every night when they could change that up  bit.  The lido buffet on your ship will be huge with lots of food stations and choices.  You are on a brand new ship so no one has experienced it yet.

 

As long as they keep my fettuccine alfredo, I'm good!

2 minutes ago, CineGraphic said:

Here’s the breakdown for this sailing.

 

Blue: 868

Gold: 371

Ruby: 377

Platinum: 815

Elite: 556

Funny how when you change length and itinerary, the numbers change greatly. During most of those caribbean sailings this summer it was mainly filled with around 2,800 blue / first timer guests.

Was on a few weeks ago. Yes, they still have the Platinum and Elite longer nightly up in Skywalker's. I personally don't find the captain circle onboard the CB to be that great, personally.

Didn't you guys know?!?! You signed up for a murder mystery cruise!!! My guess is, it's the colonel in the explorers lounge, with the custard donut. 🍩 Hahaha 😂. I can attest that the captain currently onboard the CB does in fact have a thick accent, making it very difficult to understand him.