skynight

International Cafe is very nice. No charge for food. The Caribbean Princess has a nice lounge area on Deck 17. It is for youth/families. But, if there are not many children on board and you enjoy a peaceful location take a look. We always enjoyed Crooners in the evening. Piano entertainment there usually begins around 9pm. The best place to view the P.C. lock transit is on the upper open decks where you can move around and get 360 degree views. Be prepared to wake up early on the lock transit day. Approach to the locks usually begins around 6am.

You trade the entire mini bar for two coffee packages. Half trades are not allowed.

Just show up slightly early. If like most sailings there will be plenty of space for you. Have a number songs/artists ready in your mind. There are no books or lists to go through.

Yes, 9ft x 4ft and covered. Exceptions are the few mid ship angled balconies and the aft facing balconies which are larger and partially covered. You can see these on the deck plans as well as photos of the ship.

Yes and no. There are standard menu items that always appear, and the head chef has some freedom to adjust the menus. The days they appear varies based on itinerary and length of cruise. A 10 day cruise will have ten different dinner menus while a 7 day one will have 7 different menus. On longer cruises such as a transatlantic each evening will be different, but items may and do repeat. Certain menu items are itinerary specific.

-Accounts must be linked to the same credit card and should be done before boarding -Always frequently check your accounts on board. You can more easily correct errors on board than after disembarkation. Hard copy print outs are good to have.

There are no karaoke books. Tracks are all loaded into each ship's karaoke software machine, they are not on line. The selections are not unlimited. Make a list of the songs & artists you enjoy and if you raise or lower the backing tracks to match your vocal range. Believe I have heard Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah, but I don't know which artist Princess has. The key can change depending on the artist.

Crown is an older ship so it does have a library mid ship deck 7 by the Wheelhouse Bar. I have seen people making puzzles in the library. I would bring my own cards. Don't know about other games. In the past have seen passengers playing mahjong, dominos with their own travel sets. Observed over the years that book exchanges are diminishing as more and more people read electronic books.

Some other tips not related directly to snorkeling. Bring water/beach shoes. Entry into the water from the beach is full of coral pebbles, not sharp but difficult on bare feet. Clam shells can get hot. The beach to the north as you exit the tender is nicer than the one across the bridge. Arrive early if you wish to have a nice spot on the beach. There are quite a few shady areas under palms but the fill quickly. Drink package works on Princess Cays, but there is no fountain soda available.

Only if you have the standard fare. Gratuities can not be adjusted with plus and premium fares.

Depends on how many elite and platinum are on board. Sometimes it is held in Skywalkers and sometimes in Club Fusion. Timing is normally 5 to 7pm. If you are an early diner it is difficult to attend during that time.

Possible, yes. But the child's passport or birth cert. had the correct information which should have been noticed by the staff when boarding. If Princess does not have an eyes on review that is a flaw in their system.

Not correct. Cash can be used. Casino slot play is connected to a casino account. Casino table play is cash value chips that are traded in for cash at the cashier. The only connection to your on board account is when and if you charge play to that account.

Yes you can. For table games just drop cash on the table and ask for chips. For slots use your medallion to set up a casino account and then follow the directions to insert cash. Payouts on slots are to your casino account. You then need to go to the cashier to obtain the actual cash payout.

Each voyage has it's own feeling. Places that would be crowded on one voyage are empty on the next. I have seen this doing b2bs to Hawaii. Here are some places to search out. -Skywalker's on deck 18 all the way aft. Access by the far right or far left aft elevator to deck Skywalker's or take any of the four aft elevators to the highest deck and walk up the stairs. Great views. Can get rocky. Low tables and some backless seating. May have a smoking area on the starboard side. -Adagio Lounge, deck 16 starboard aft. Quiet during most of the day. Low tables. Comfortable sofas. Not much of a view. at times there may be Hawaiian craft sessions in Adagio. -DRs. Check the daily activity schedule. Some days a section and time for one of the DRs is designated for cards and games. -Tables around Neptune's Reef pool. May be cooler weather the first two or three sea days before the weather turns tropical. On these days the pool area is not that crowded, but gets crowded once the weather turns hotter. You will see people playing cards and games at some tables, usually the ones furthest from the forward grill and bar area. These tables are also used by passengers for outside dining. -Wheelhouse Bar, deck 7 mid ship. Has both high and low tables. During the day the area may be used for ukulele lesson sessions, about 90 minutes each sea day. The area is also used for talks given by the spa and shops on board. -Club Fusion, deck 7 aft. Find a table in the rear, over by the windows. The lounge may be used for hula sessions, ballroom and line dance sessions, Zumba, trivia, bingo. It's a busy place. -Horizon Terrace, deck 15 aft. Used for buffet dining. Limited seating and tables.

Sample menu here https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/Onboard_Experience/Crown-Grill-Menu-Sample.pdf

There may be an intra garage shuttle run by the port. If not you can just take a cab. Cabs are on the ground floor of the pier 2 garage. Off site parking is also a good option.

Seems to me that the child should not have been able to board. The information was all with Princess prior to boarding. Once on board the child should have been allowed to stay on board.

I would call Princess and request that you wish to prepay gratuities for your two children. While the option is not available on line you should be able to do it with a phone call. If you are able to prepay now you should receive the current cost rather than the increased cost. Will save you a small amount. As mentioned in the previous posting if you do have OBC when boarding the daily charges will net against any amounts you may have. Other options are to bring along cash in the amount required and deposit the cash once on board or you can pre-purchase OBC in the required amount.

Place your medallion on the table and ask the dealer to purchase chips, example $200, and charge to your on board account. The pit boss will process the charge and the dealer will provide you with the chips. For roulette you will have to indicate the chip's value. For roulette when you cash in you hand over your color chips to the dealer for cash value chips, the white, red, green and black ones. You then can take the cash value chips to the cashier for cash. A $200 casino charge will show in your on board account. It is the same at other table games except unlike roulette you play with the cash value chips.

Crew appreciation would only be included if you upgraded the 3rd and 4th passengers to the plus fare. This is also true with internet access, although with internet access the teen can use one of your log packages. Your account will be charged daily crew appreciation for both children. If you have any excess OBC, military, shareholder, travel agent or other daily charges will net against the OBC.

The Discovery is not designed like the Crown and other Grand Class ships. Almost all balconies are fully or partially covered. Most balconies on the ship are small 9ft x 4ft and covered. An example would be D512. Some cabins under the sea walk have larger angled balconies a portion of which is not covered. An example is D428. Other cabins have extended balconies which have 4ft of cover from the deck above. Example is D710. Aft facing balconies have various amounts of cover depending on the deck. Forward facing cabins on the Marina and Lido decks are basically uncovered. Search the deck plans deck by deck. You can easily see which cabins are extended with the extended section not covered.

Does not begin until February 20th. No first hand experience. Princess is moving to a classed system. Not to my liking even though I have never been a lowest cat. passenger. Another way of implementing the phrase of "nickel and diming" taken to a higher level.

1. Where exactly does the ship dock along the Panama Canal? The ship passes through the Aqua Clara (Atlantic) locks early in the morning starting around 6am. Once through the locks it anchors in Gatun Lake. Only those passengers on Princess excursions are tendered ashore to a yacht club dock. No private excursions, and no tendering unless you are a Princess excursion. The ship then waits in Gatun Lake until the authorities give permission to exit the locks into the Caribbean. The wait may be an hour or two maybe longer into the afternoon. In March expect it to be very hot, humid with strong sun while the ship is stationary in the lake. 2. If you're not taking a shore excursion, is it possible to disembark there just to walk around the port area? No as mentioned above. Plus there is nothing at the yacht club dock other than a building and a parking lot. 3. When (what time of day, roughly) does the ship traverse the new Gatun locks? We'll have a balcony room and are wondering what we'll be able to experience on board the ship. Every time we have done the transit the initial approach to the locks is around 6am. There will be a published schedule. As mentioned the ship could exit late morning or into the afternoon. It depends on the traffic and the authorities. Once the ship exits it docks at Cristobal. At that point you can disembark the ship and walk around the dock area. There probably will be vendors on the dock and there might be some local folk entertainment. The best views going through the locks is from the upper open decks where you can walk around and get 360 degree views. There are also nice views from the promenade deck and all the way up front up the stairs to the bow on the promenade. The Horizon Terrace also offers nice aft views. The morning transit is narrated. The exit is not narrated. If you remain on your balcony you will miss half of the transit views. I don't recommend it. You will also have to tune your TV to the special channel to hear the narration. While anchored pools, bars, buffet and other food locations are open. There may also be some standard activities like trivia and others run by the cruise staff. It is very peaceful on board. If you have never been ashore in Panama you might want to book a shore excursion. There are interesting sights.

You can use a device (cell phone) to order food and drinks on board delivered to wherever you are on the ship. That is one option. You can also place Ocean Now orders via your cabin TV or from the screens around the ship. Another option is to just ask a waiter or bar tender for your drinks. The waiter will remotely read your medallion and charge the drinks to your account. You can also show up in person at food locations like the International Cafe, Salty Dog Grill, Slices Pizza to just order and pick up what you like. You need to carry your medallion with you. You do not need to carry a cell phone around with you if you don't wish to.