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Oh, that’s amazing! That gives me hope.

Thanks for all your stories. I appreciate them. I am optimistic that I can go.

Thank you.

I think you’re right. 🙂

Thank you. It’s just a 7 day cruise. It should be an easy one. I just don’t even have to get off the ship. I’ve been to all the ports before. I don’t know about the PT, but I will work hard. I’ve already had two hips done, so I know the drill. 🙂 It’s too late to get insurance. I just might go for it.

I have 4 HAL cruises booked between now and March. I need a knee replacement and I wondered if anyone has cruised shortly after knee surgery. How long after surgery did you go and how did you do? I plan on talking to my ortho about it next week, but am looking for personal experiences. I only have a window of 6 1/2 weeks before my first cruise this September and I just wonder if that is too ambitious. Otherwise it looks like I will be waiting until next March. Thanks.

We’ve sailed with Betty Ann before and were underwhelmed.

I look forward to your report. We just booked a cruise on Sapphire for next year, so I am curious to hear the good and the bad. Thanks.

Do they do Voice of the Ocean on this ship?

I wish they would spend their money on upgrading their entertainment.

Thanks!

Yes, I like how Princess does that.

Once one has been verified as a veteran, will the $100 OBC be automatically applied to eligible future bookings automatically? I noticed we have an extra $100 OBC on a booking I just made. I’m thinking it is the military offer. Does anyone know?

This has been my biggest gripe with HAL lately. Their entertainment has really gone down the tubes. I just got off a Princess 10 day Mexico cruise and their entertainment was FANTASTIC and put HAL to shame! HAL really needs to step it up. I was on NS in December and the entertainment was pretty dismal. I’m going to be on the Koningsdam for 35 days next month, and I admit that I am concerned about what the entertainment choices will be in the main showroom. I may start cruising more with Princess if things don’t improve and I’m a diehard HAL fan.

Can you tell me who the cruise director is?

We went to the MDR again last night at our reserved time of 6 pm and were seated immediately with three other couples. The experience was a bit better this time, although it still took 2.5 hours for the complete meal. We waited about 2O minutes before our orders were taken. Things were moving right along until the main course. We waited for a long time between appetizers and the entree. At least this time we all got our meals at the same time. Again, our waiter apologized and told us it was due to trouble in the kitchen. Our table mates were very nice and we had good conversations, which made the time going by seem faster. The food was very good.

I hate journey view.

Yes, I agree with you here, too. And don’t forget the shower on the Crown. It’s the smallest shower I’ve ever had. I don’t know what the newer Princess ships showers are like. I do love this ship, though. It’s so beautiful and elegant.

My thoughts, exactly.

As a very seasoned HAL cruiser, I agree with what you are saying. We have been very disappointed in our last 3 cruises with them. The cost cutting is so evident. If one was new to HAL, they might not notice, but we have sailed with them for many years and things have really changed! I have really enjoyed this Princess cruise so far, even with the long dining experience in the MDR last night. I would also like to try Celebrity. Thanks for your comment.

It’s funny you bring that up. We noticed on our last cruise on Holland that they were being really stingy with the food in the buffet. I always had to say, “um, a little more, please.” That is one nice thing about serving yourself.

We will probably try the other dining room. Thanks.

We finally tried the dining room last night. I had made a 6pm reservation. At 5:50 we bypassed the non reservation line (about 10 people waiting) and walked directly to the desk in the reservation line, where there was no one waiting. We had requested a shared table and they seated us immediately with no wait at all. This was a table for 8. Two couples were already there and another arrived shortly after we did. We did our introductions. The waiter handed us our menu. After about 10-15 minutes, he came back for our orders. This is where it started to go downhill. Service was dismal. It took a long time to get our appetizers and they arrived one at a time for each guest. One here, one there. It was weirdly random. When everyone was done with their appetizers, they cleared some (but not all; they left a few) of the dishes in preparation for the main course. This was another wait of about 40-45 minutes. Our waiter apologized and said there was a problem in the kitchen. One of the couples got up and left, as they had an early excursion the next morning. The food finally arrived. Mine was good. When the main dish was finished, it took some time for the dishes to be cleared. Finally, the maitre-d came over, cleared the dishes and gave us dessert menus. Everyone ordered, and dessert came pretty quickly. The whole experience took about 2.5 hours. According to our tablemates, this has been an ongoing problem on this cruise. The waiters were working hard, so I can’t fault them. It’s a kitchen problem. Maybe they don’t have enough cooks. I have heard the other dining room is faster. Maybe we will try that, but our inclination is to not eat in the MDR again. Tonight we are eating at the Crown Grill again.

Yes, you are correct. LOL

Today is Day 5 of this 10 day cruise. Here are my comparisons between Holland America and Princess so far. Food: I think Holland wins this one. Of course, food is subjective. We eat a primarily low carb diet and Princess doesn’t have as many options that we like. I think the Holland buffets have better selections and they serve you instead of everybody touching the utensils to feed themselves. The food in the buffet on this ship has been kind of dry and overcooked. I think the specialty restaurants on Holland have better selections. Entertainment: Princess wins. They have more entertainment options. Games, karaoke, live music all over the place, movies by the pool, production numbers with singers and dancers, comedians, ventriloquists…… The last Holland cruise I was on was a 17 day cruise, and on four of those nights they showed a movie in the main showroom. Two comedians did two shows on different nights with a lot of the same material. Two nights when we were in port late there was nothing. One night was a pretty bad singer. I felt embarrassed for her. She must have been related to somebody on the ship. LOL Holland has REALLY cut back on their entertainment, Pools: Princess wins. This ship has about 4 or 5 pools and several hot tubs. We spend a lot of time by the pool. Princess still has an adult pool. Holland doesn’t anymore. The midship pool is fresh water and heated. Very nice. Staff: It’s a tie. The crew on Holland is amazing and so is the crew on this ship. Service seems a bit slow, but they are understaffed and still coming back from the pandemic. We had the same problem on our last Holland cruise a few weeks ago. Passengers: We always meet nice people and this cruise is no exception. We have met so many people. I don’t know if it is just this particular cruise, but everyone is so friendly. I think the passengers are just a touch younger that on HAL. All in all, this cruise has been amazing so far. We have had a couple of minor problems that were fixed immediately. It is nice to try something new. I still love Holland America, but I have seen their shows so many times because we cruise so often. Holland is a comfortable fit for us, but we are really enjoying Princess. This won’t be our last Princess cruise, for sure.