tourismtessy

If you had scrolled to page 2 of the form rather than stopped reading after the first paragraph you would have found the following:

Thanks for clarifying this. I would hate that my misinformation denied someone a credit. I will read in full next time!

According to the Princess website:

"Princess is pleased to offer a special military personnel onboard credit program. This program is available to active military,retired military and disabled military veterans with proper identifcation in the following service divisions: United StatesArmy, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, National Guard or Reserves, Canadian National Defense and the British Army,Royal Marines, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force or Reserves."

Therefore if he is a Veteran with less than 20 years of service (Retired), he is not eligible for this promotion. At least that is what I read. Active Duty, Retired and Disabled only qualify.

Princess does have the formal nights for dressing up for dinner and photographers every night for picture taking as well. I feel like Royal Caribbean is more marketed to "active families" and Princess is targeted to "relax and just get away". Hubby and I are in our mid 50's and cruised royal caribbean our first ever cruise but have stayed with Princess now for 8 total cruises. We love the mellow vibe on Princess and the dining is great. We love the buffet as an alternative to the Main Dining Rooms. We opt to not dress up and just dine in the buffet or get pizza or a burger at the grill. We like to pack lighter and have had recent pictures done on a cruise where we were dressed up. They have several bars and lounges with different types of music to listen to so you will have many choices there. I would say most of the passengers on Princess are in their 50's or above. We sail during the school year so not many kids on our cruises. There are multiple pools on the Princess ships too. We love the MUTS (movies under the stars) where they play a nightly movie on the big screen on the deck (providing blankets, popcorn, and warm chocolate chip cookies). One of our favorite areas onboard is in the Piazza near the International Cafe. Here you can get specialty coffee drinks and donuts/pastries in the morning and light lunch and supper as an alternative to the dining room or buffet. You can sit in the Piazza and just people watch or listen to the music usually provided by a piano player. I think you and your Husband will definitely enjoy Princess.

We will probably keep our Sip-and-Sail.... Because, after we buy coffees, water, drinks, etc.. Probably comes out about even for us.

 

I have a question...

Has anybody had any luck with getting a new cabin assignment, for example, from a balcony in the forward section to one in the mid-ship category? They are the same price now. But, I wonder if a full re-booking would be necessary, so that we would lose our original booking with the AIBP.

I called Princess this morning to add the 3 for free promo to our already booked cruise for Nov 2018. Was able to change our deluxe balcony location to a different deck and different location (forward to mid aft). Could not go from forward or mid forward to mid ship though. (If it is the same price for your cruise you probably can do it) We are pretty close to mid ship though with our new mid aft deluxe balcony. The total price per person went down just a wee bit and deposit stayed the same so no money out of our pocket. Matter of fact, we have a little less due on final payment now. Happy Camper here!

Thanks everyone for the quick replies! We will probably rent one for a half day just to experience it :D

Do you have to pay and book the cabanas at the Retreat pool or are they free and first come, first serve? If you do have to pay, how much and where do you book them at? Thanks!

Are the Caribe deck balconies on Royal partly covered like on the Emerald and Ruby? Looking at a Balcony Deluxe on this ship on Caribe deck and wondering about the balcony. Thanks! Also, anyone else that has booked a balcony deluxe and can tell me for sure it is a bigger balcony.

Yes, you can add the 3 for Free promotion but if the cruise fare increases it might not be beneficial for you. Only one of my three booked cruises are better with 3FF.

Thank You Astro Flyer! Right now the cruise is listed as the same price (I just booked it yesterday). I'll check again online before calling in Tuesday morning.

This question may have already been answered but I want to clarify. I just booked a Caribbean cruise for Nov 2018 and we had no promotion for it. If I want to take advantage of the 3 for free deal, I simply need to call Princess on or after Sept. 5 and ask them to apply it to my already booked cruise? We have only paid the deposit so far. I checked on the link for the promo and my cruise does show as one that qualifies for this promotion. Hate to lose out on this deal because we already booked the cruise. I did not use a TA but simply booked online (and then actually switched the cruise over the phone with Princess). Thank You in advance!

Great pictures! We did the British Isles Cruise two years ago in May and it was our favorite cruise too! Loved every port and really fell in love with Scotland. I could easily do a back to back on this itinerary because of the port intensive nature of it. So much to see and do in each port.

I booked a cruise for Feb. 2018 and was not able to select our cabin. The verbiage stated that a cabin will be assigned prior to sailing (even though I selected "choose your own cabin"). Looking at our cruise now shows our category as sold out so I am wondering if it is overbooked and they are hoping for cancellations. Anybody without a specific cabin assigned ever get "bumped" and had cruise cancelled or offered a different category? Also, do you know when I can expect to get our cabin assigned (how far before cruise)?

We will be going back to Grand Turk on a cruise next Feb. I was wondering if anyone has gone to the lighthouse and could share if it is worth the trip. I would get a taxi (not interested in a golf cart) and just go to the lighthouse and back to port. Do you know how much this would be and how far? Thanks in advance for your replies!

We just did that exact cruise in April and it was very windy and cool (dare I say cold---I live in Central Texas so am used to warm weather). Wore long pants and sweats during the crossing (all sea days-going and coming back) and really couldn't enjoy our balcony too much because the wind was so strong and COLD! That being said, Hawaii was beautiful weather and shorts and sundresses are fine. Love the self serve laundromats on Princess and I always bring my own detergent pods and dryer sheets in a ziplock baggie. They have replaced the coin machines with room card for payment.

Thanks! That is just the info I need :)

Has anybody used the princess@sea messenger app on board the Grand? It says it is available on some ships and I was wondering if it is available on the Grand. Thank You.

I don't recall any shuttles to Waikiki & hopefully someone can give you an estimated cab fare but have you considered using their great public transportation system The Bus.

 

http://www.thebus.org/

 

For $2.50 one-way you can go anywhere on Oahu & arriving on Princess you'll most likely berth at Pier 2 Cruise Terminal like we did in January on the Star. If you add that name to Google Maps you have the option to view available bus routes & times to the HHV hotel in addition to walking, driving & even bicycling routes all with times & distances.

 

That shows a 47 minute (2.4 miles) walk, 12 minute (2.4 miles) car ride or 16 to 21 minutes using The Bus. Using The Bus it's a 0.2 mile walk to the bus & also to the hotel with an 8 minute bus ride in between for a 16 minute trip. Currently it shows a bus departing from near the ship at 0803 & at 0810 local time so apparently there are frequent buses along the main Ala Moana thoroughfare.

 

The Bus would be my best option although since it passes the large Ala Moana shopping center midway to the hotel my wife might want to stop there to spend money so a cab might be a cheaper option. ;)

 

If you're on the ship in the evening, I'd highly recommend the great Halau Hula Olana performance in the Princess Theater. It was at 7:00 & 8:45 on our cruise & we always go to their performances on each cruise in Honolulu. Adult musicians/singers provide the mele (music) for the keiki (kids 6-16) dancers and all of them are very talented. :)

Thank You for this great info. I have actually (since posting this question) been on google maps and used the transit option for the bus info. I have been to Honolulu before and took the bus pretty much all around the island. I prefer local bus travel when visiting new places versus cabs. People are generally friendly and the bus drivers very helpful and polite. Plus you get more of the local flavor on the city bus than in a cab (my opinion). Thanks for the info on the shows in the evening. We plan to be back on the ship by dinner so we will make the show for sure.

Is there a shuttle bus from where the ship docks in Honolulu to Waikiki beach? If not, what is the approximate cost of a cab to go to Hilton Hawaiian Village on Waikiki Beach? Thanks in advance!

Anyone taken the hoppa on hoppa off bus in Hilo? It looks like a great deal and a way to see much of the island for a good price.

Anybody recently off the Grand Princess that can tell me if the self service laundromat takes quarters or room card? I always bring my own detergent and dryer sheets and usually bring a bag of quarters but not sure if they have changed over to room card payment or not. Thanks in advance for answers.

We will be docking at Nawiliwili in Kauai for the day and wonder if there is a beach within walking distance of the port. The ships excursions don't include a beach day and we would like to spend the day at a nice beach. If there is not a beach within walking distance, how far by cab to closest beach? Thanks for your help!

Thanks everyone! I think we will just go on our own (taxi). I read somewhere on here that there is also a shuttle bus from Lahaina to Kaanapali as well.

How far is it to Kaanapali Beach from where the ship docks in Maui (Lahaina)? I'm looking at the cruise shore excursion for transportation to this beach for the day and it is $70 per person. Im guessing we could get a cab for significantly less. We will actually be in Maui on Easter 2017 so don't know if this will pose a problem for cab or not (holiday). Any info to help in planning this beach day would be appreciated.

Thanks everyone for your input and help. I booked directly with Princess so there was no TA involved. The family emergency is under control and it looks like we will be cruising after all! I did go online and review all the terms of our platinum protection plan. I appreciate all the feedback.

Anybody have experience cancelling a cruise short notice with platinum princess vacation coverage? We have a family crisis occurring that may require us to cancel our 6 March Cruise. Not sure how much notice must be given and if it is not for a medical emergency.

I'm curious too. Last year on the Emerald it was quarters. We are sailing the Caribbean Princess in a couple weeks and wondering what their machines take. I usually bring a bunch of quarters in a baggie (along with my detergent pods and dryer sheets) but don't want to bring the quarters if they aren't used any longer. Hopefully someone that recently got off the Caribbean can give an accurate answer here.