skynight

It's all about the position of the sun in relation to the ship.  On west bound transatlantic cruises the sun will always be to the south which means mostly on the port side. Sunrise will be aft, sunset forward. Plot your route and you will get a good idea of how the sun will be positioned in relation to your voyage. 

8 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

In California starting July 1st, all cruise lines need to adhere to this new law designed to protect the consumer for hidden costs. What you see is what you pay. 

As I see this new CA law it is not a big change in the way cruise line pricing. Currently when you look up prices on the web site the fees and taxes are clearly shown. They are not hidden. Port fees can be subject to change and refunds as well if you miss ports. The law only concerns up front advertising. Advertised pricing has to contain the fare(s) plus the fees and taxes. Advertising will probably look something like "book fares as low as $500 per person plus $50 port fees and taxes."

1. Breakfast and dinner served each day. Lunch on sea days only.

2. Yes

3. No. The DR is closed for lunch on port days. You would have to select the World Fresh Marketplace, Grill or Prego Pizza by the pool, International Cafe in the Piazza. Alfredo's is also an option. There is no fee for those with the plus or premier fare. A fee is charged for those with the standard fare.

4. Concerto should be open from noon until 1:30 for lunch

Here is the Princess FAQ regarding power strips. Basically disallowed if surge protected, allowed if not.

*Electrical devices such as small fans, multi plug box outlets/adaptors, power strips/extension cords without surge protectors and electric extension cords with surge protectors are allowed onboard when used with proper caution and following inspection/tests from the onboard electrical department. However, if such devices are determined to pose a hazard then they will be removed and returned the last day of the cruise prior to debark.

$50 FCC is embarrassing. Probably better not to offer anything. 

Yes with approval from Princess. Princess has to make arrangements with Canada Customs. There might be specific times for those disembarking like you.

45 minutes ago, Ellipooh said:

I'm recently off the Emerald, and I was really unimpressed with the whole concept of Casual Dining.  Seemed like they were never open, and when they were open you needed to have a reservation, and when you finally got to eat there the menu was so limited ... What's casual and good about all of that??

 

Maybe I was doing it wrong

24 minutes ago, Ellipooh said:

Interesting.  My experience with Salty Dog Gastropub (located inside Wheelhouse Bar irrc) on Emerald was that they definitely required reservations at dinner.

Agree. I was on the Ruby, sister ship of the Emerald. I found the Gastropub to be just OK. You can basically get a burger which is just as tasty at the grill by the pool. I did not try Vines. I could put together a plate of veggies and cured meats the the buffet. No reservation was required at either location. Just walk in. Plenty of tables. In the Wheelhouse I heard the waiter ask if you wanted to sit at a table or in the lounge area. Princess needs to up their casual dining game on Grand Class ships. I did make this comment on the survey.

This is a tough question. Fares may go up or down. Princess only offers three Antarctica sailing dates, all RT Buenos Aires. One is in December 2025, a holiday cruise, and two are in January 2026. Most likely there will be high demand for these cruises.  Unless you live in Buenos Aires you will also have to factor in the flight cost. These costs will not be certain until 330 days from the return flight. 

I would book a cabin that is within my current budget and watch future fares. I would also use a T.A. They can watch with you. Often times TAs offer either lower fares or some additional onboard credits, OBC.

As you are new here is some additional information. If you own a minimum of 100 shares of Carnival Corporation shares you can apply for the Shareholder OBC benefit. For this cruise it would be $250/cabin. US/Canada military veterans can register for the Princess Military Benefit. This is an individual benefit for qualified veterans. This cruise it would be $250/qualified person. I believe that this benefit is also available to UK veterans. 

The partial transit transits the Aqua Clara (new) locks. It is interesting to view and listen to the commentary for various locations on the upper decks as well as the promenade deck. The transit takes around 2 1/2 hours in the 3 locks plus an approach time of maybe an hour, total 3 1/2 hours. Once through the locks the ship anchors in Gatun Lake. While in the lake those that are on Princess tours are tendered ashore. At some point during the day the Emerald will exit Gatun Lake via the same Agua Clara locks and dock in Colon.

To answer your question. You will get a good look at how the new locks operate as you go through them. You will not see the Culebra Cut, the channel that goes through the continental divide, and the Pacific locks. You will also miss the old original locks that operated since they opened in 1914 and are still in operation today. There are Princess tours which will let you see some of these sites. Some are on ferries that actually transit the locks and some are land tours. I would recommend one of these tours. Your tour will rejoin the Emerald Princess at the dock in Colon.

This will be a very long day. The initial approach to the Agua Clara Locks begins around 6am. Depending on the tour you could arrive back at the ship close to its departure time. 

Have you tried the old roll call.

What post #2 said. Usually this lounge is used in the evening for ballroom type dance music by two or three musicians. The party band seldom if ever performs there. There is a dance floor for ballroom type dancing. There can be other musical groups that will perform on a one time bases. With musical groups it is the bass that carries. The groups may use a real bass player, or they might use recorded background tracks. It all depends on the group. During the day the lounge is used for daytime activities.  

On the Ruby the 2 people handling dining line calls were at a desk at the entrance to the deck 6 aft DR. Try looking there once on board. 

10 hours ago, eclue said:

They need to abolish the PVSA  - it is outdated and serves no purpose today. I have had two trips ruined because of it.

 

I don't see this happening anytime soon, and there is still a purpose. There are a number of American Flag cruise lines that advertise both U.S. coastal and river sailings. Believe Congress would continue to protect these lines as well as the crews. 

I never heard of actually purchasing Future Cruise Credits, FCCs, on board in the amounts you are mentioning. Future Cruise Credits are usually provided by Princess for some error or problem. Sometimes passengers charge amounts to their credit card for a booked cruise to be deposited into their on board accounts. This amount becomes refundable OBC. 

I have, and always purchase myself, Future Cruise Deposits, FCDs. In the U.S. they are $100 each, which is around GBP75. They are valid for one year from the date of purchase and fully refundable. They are used to make the full deposit on a new booking (world cruise has some special terms). The $100 becomes the full deposit. When used non refundable OBC is applied to the booking depending on cabin category and length of cruise, see chart below.

What I am thinking has happened is that you made the regular deposit. You or your TA then added the GBP75 after the deposit was made. Thus, no additional OBC because the FCD was not used as the deposit. It was just used as cash. The GBP75 should become refundable OBC.

Future Cruise Length Per Person Shipboard Credit*

17 - 44 Days $125 Inside, $125 Outside, $150 Balcony, $150 Suite

11 - 16 Days $75 Inside, $75 Outside, $100 Balcony, $100 Suite

7 - 10 Days $25 Inside, $25 Outside, $50 Balcony, $50 Suite

3 - 6 Days $15 Inside, $15 Outside, $25 Balcony, $25 Suite

On 5/12/2024 at 3:46 PM, wallyj said:

One exception, I know of personally is the port of Whittier in Alaska.
 

B2B passengers from YVR going back to YVR from Whittier, do NOT go thru immigration/customs as you did this in YVR, so on turnaround day, you do not need to get off the ship.

 

This is correct, and I believe it is the only exception. The reason is that passengers have already gone through U.S. immigration in Vancouver when boarding so that there will not be any immigration procedures when the ship reaches its first U.S. port in Alaska. I did not mention it initially because the OP was not sailing this itinerary. 

The deck plans do not show what you mention. It is a category BE balcony category cabin, standard size with the standard 9ft x 4ft balcony.

I sailed on a recent ruby Princess cruise with the plus fare. When soda was ordered, cans were provided. I'm sorry I don't know the full menu of available sodas. 

30 minutes ago, suzyed said:

Right now I have all my dining reservations in place for our Oct.17th sailing...nothing as changed so far.

My original January ones were removed.

1 minute ago, sippican said:

Is the mini-bar set up standard, or can you request certain items?

 

It is standard at first with10 alcoholic and 10 non alcoholic beverages. Once in the cabin you can call room service and trade. It's one for one alcoholic for different alcoholic or non alcoholic, or one for one non alcoholic for non alcoholic. You can also trade the entire mini bar for a bottle of wine.

1 hour ago, HaveDogWillTravel said:

I’m elite and can (and do) make my reservations as soon as I make a deposit. I can also add non elite friends who are sailing with me to my reservations. 

This is/was correct. As an elite right now I have January cruises booked. I can not access MDR dining reservations. They are blocked. Assume they will open June 17th. 

1 hour ago, clm101798 said:

They don't set embarkation time windows to keep the time in line shorter?

No specific embarkation times. Embarkation usually begins somewhere around 10:30/11:00. Once it begins it goes fairly quickly. Cabin access available around 1pm.

One DR open noon to 1:30.

I'm not certain about Boston, but in Ft. Lauderdale the slowest part of the embarkation was passing through security. 

Some of these postings are mixing up elite loyalty benefits with plus/premier fare benefits and benefits available at the platinum level.

Elite benefits are detailed in the Princess site referenced in my post no. 2.  Elite benefits include all those for the gold, ruby and platinum levels plus some 10 additional ones. 

If you wait until you board the charge will net against any OBC. 

Service and crew appreciation is included. No further tipping necessary. I don't carry cash anywhere around the ship. I do have some cash in the cabin. If you order for cabin delivery you might want to provide a few $$. It's up to you. 

The way I understand the current situation you will have to wait until June 17th assuming the program is up and running. Previous to this change certain loyalty levels were allowed to select dining when booked. I have not seen rules for the new dining regarding priority or if priority will even be necessary. 

Let us see what happens from June 17th forward.