SargassoPirate

Complainers, zealots, and braggarts can suck the energy right out of me, so I avoid them on land, on a cruise, wherever. I have no need to compare checkbooks with anyone. I'm consider myself the richest guy in the room since no amount of money can buy what I have. I'm in my 70s with no health issues and I saved all of my life and lived below my means so that now I can do whatever I want and go anywhere I want and I wake up to a good day every day.

I hear you. Since a couple of "upgrades" I only book cabins with cabins above, below, and across the corridor and haven't been disappointed by the location.

I just checked the deck plans and from what I can tell, it looks like your cabin will be under the seating area for the Horizon Court. The floor there is carpeted, which would be better than under the Melanoma Deck with loungers being dragged about. It sounds like you have little choice about your location, so make the best of it and hope that your neighbors can close their balcony door without slamming it. That could be a bigger issue than someone above moving a chair on a carpeted floor. Good luck. The captain and crew on the Regal is one of the best!

I did a moderate amount of research before booking a WC for 2021. You can figure out how that one went. After at least one more try, I finally got one booked that is a go for 2024. Conventional wisdom is never book a WC on a line on which you have not sailed previously. I often sail solo and just bite the bullet on the double fare, but I offset that by booking an inside, which I call Luxury Inside Suite. I'm hardly ever in the cabin, and once I step out I'm on the same ship as those who paid a lot more. Some cruise lines offer free laundry to their upper tier loyalty members, but in the mass market, I believe Princess is the only line that offers guest laundromats where you can take care of your own laundry needs. Important for a long cruise. WCs are by their nature expensive, but my upcoming WC ended up at just over $36K, solo inside, 111days. Good luck on your WC. Half the fun is planning. Also, as you retire, start a written bucket list and keep adding to it.

Oh, ye of little faith. Just drink the Kool Aid and trust in Princess.

On the Regal the Chef's Table was at the back of the Allegro dining room. It was enclosed with some sort of shiny, hanging bead curtains that were open when it was not in use, but drawn closed when it was. That area received a lot of extra attention from the nearby waiters, but even more from the supervisors when it was in use.

Thanks. Just the info I was hoping for We were on the Regal Princess recently and the Chef's Table was in the Allegro dining room - the one that's on deck 6 aft and, what some may say, is hard to get to.👍

SWMBO is considering a cruise on the Emerald Princess with a small group of friends. We haven't been on the Emerald for 15 years. SWMBO is wondering: Are there any differences amongst the three MDR that would result in a preference of one over the others? Where is the Chef's Table experience located? Appreciate your opinions.

I researched C710 before booking it for a cruise. One cruiser here on CC replied to my inquiries that they had booked C710 and were never bothered by noise from whatever is in that mystery white space. Looking at the deck plans there seems to be a white space aft of the aft elevators on every floor and if you look a photos of the ship, it looks like that's where the smokestacks run from the engine room upwards and out. C710 has it's own little corridor and is close, but not too close, to the laundromat.

It's another game of Three Card Monte, enhanced with smoke and mirrors. I just checked a 2025 cruise that I booked when it was first released. It's gone up since I booked.

Even better is a FREE gift. 😆

On a couple of pre-pandemic cruises out of Vancouver, we stayed at a Days Inn on Pander Street in downtown. Everything downtown was walkable from the hotel. On embarkation day we just rolled our bags downhill to the cruise terminal.

For your consideration, if you wear sneakers pack a tube of either Shoe Goo or Loctite Shoe Glue for your world cruise. On a recent cruise I had a sneaker that started to separate the upper from the sole. Left unattended it would have become a flapper. In my standard travel tool kit was a brand new tube of Loctite Shoe Glue. I repaired the separated area, and over the course of the trip had to do two more repairs.

It's too bad there's not a website like seatguru.com for ships. I always use seatguru.com when booking flights just because of their advisories about the drawbacks of certain seats. On ships, we stay away from the very aft or forward cabins, those under the Melanoma deck, and those above a venue such as BBKings. Passengers above, below, and across the corridor works well. We also avoid "upgrades" since they are upgrades in category and not necessarily in location.

CJ....Crew chat is a great improvement for reporting issues, especially safety hazards, since it's easy to take a screen shot to document your complaint. In the past, reporting issues to guest services resulted in blank looks, something written on a piece of scrap paper, or the crew typing something on a screen visible to them only. If the situation wasn't remedied, one had to start the process all over again. Valuable time wasted and no remedy. One thing that organizations hate is documentation, especially when the document notifies them of a hazard. Failure to take action on known hazards are fodder for the sensationalizing press.

Would those double doors be marked as an exit, by any chance? I see a fire alarm pull station next to the doors.

Well, I keep getting invited back. 😁

Not only do scooters parked in exit corridors impede able bodied people, but they also can also impede other mobility device users. I assume people park their scooters in the exit corridors out of ignorance, but it's the job of the crew to enforce safety standards. I urge anyone who encounters a scooter - even a baby buggy - parked in the corridor to report it. See something, say something.

On past cruises, when I followed up with the hotel director, if the scooter didn't fit in the cabin, the passenger could arrange for a crew member to store it elsewhere and bring it back in the morning when the person is ready to leave the cabin in the morning. Valet parking. What baffles me is why anyone would think it's ok to park a scooter in the corridor overnight, but then I've seen worse and the results when Murphy's Law kicks in.

I found another good use for the Medallion Net app. While on board some recent cruises this year, I used the Crew Chat feature to report passenger mobility devices that had been stored in the corridors and/or stairwell lobbies. In other words, paths of exit travel in case of fire or other emergency. I've even encountered scooters stored in little alcoves right under the firehose cabinet. I did screen shots of the chat and if the crew did not take action in a day or two, I asked to see the hotel director and showed him my screen shots. If they seemed reticent to take any action as one did by making excuses, I informed them that by failing to enforce SOLAS fire safety standards, they were taking full personal responsibility should something untoward happen. That did the trick and I no longer waste my time stopping by guest services to report mobility device issues. They must love me. 🚒

Let us know how it turns out for you. Best of luck to you.

Interesting. Never thought of that since those aren't on my radar. Another way to separate cruisers and their money. 😁

How exactly is Princess making money off White and Gold nights?

Matt, if I were you, I would leave that now-half-price cruise alone and then set about booking the a land tour on my own. SWMBO and I did that several years ago and we were able to experience a lot more of the real Alaska than we could've with the Princess land tour and at quite a savings. Think about it. Alaska has rental cars, motels, paved highways, and you can book your extras right from the operator. You are on your schedule and with a car you can go where the tour buses can't. JMHO.

Personally, SWMBO and I cruise for the itinerary and cost per day. We have accumulated some loyalty status with RCI and Princess, but as the cruise lines continue to trim inclusives and loyalty benefits erode, our loyalty to any one cruise line erodes as well.