sparks1093

I've worn my tux on Carnival, I believe that I'll be fine on Princess 😀. There is something that cuts against the grain when a company publishes rules just to impress customers but has no intention of enforcing them. I am used to this on Carnival as well (and NCL, and Royal). (And there is also something that cuts against the grain when a customer agrees to abide by the rules with no intention of following them. Such is the world we live in.)

It doesn't exclude other "formal" wear but it does seem to exclude someone wearing nice pants and a nice shirt. While the FAQ title says "Clothing Recommendations" the FAQ for formal night actually says: When formal nights are held, please observe the dress code in the dining venues for the enjoyment of all our guests. Evening gown, cocktail dress or elegant pant suit for women Tuxedo, dark suit or dinner jacket and slacks for men That sounds more like a requirement then a recommendation. And I reiterate that I am fine with the way it is done, but this could be a dis-satisfier for some others sailing Princess for the first time.

As my parenetical comment shows that is exactly what I will do, but there are some who would read Princess's requirements and would be upset to find out that the reality is different than what the website states. It's not a good way to start out a relationship with a customer.

I have no problem with this, but Princess needs to adjust their policy to match the practice. As a first time cruiser with Princess I would follow their guidance to a T and bring my tux. It could be a little off-putting for a first time Princess cruiser to find out once onboard that they didn't mean it. (For me personally I always wear what I wear and don't really care what others choose to wear and I'm likely to bring my tux anyway, since I need an excuse to make sure it still fits, but people sailing for the first time do have expectations based on what the website says.)

So you aren't against travel insurance per se, you've been fortunate to be able to obtain coverage for what you want covered from other sources.

While the Royal Caribbean board is the best place to ask this (and this thread may be moved there) when we were onboard Royal a couple of years ago mixed drinks were $11 to $12 each. but they may have gone up since then because of inflation. At that price point you would need to consume about 7 drinks a day in order to break even, or a combination of mixed drinks and other included beverages. You would also need to consume this each day of the cruise, including of course when in port. Only you can answer if you would drink enough to justify the cost. You can bring your bottle of wine to the dining room but if you do then you may be charged a corkage fee (whether or not the staff opens it for you).

Since I mentioned Alaska I'll point out that I thought it more helpful to mention when you might need a passport on a shore excursion than to say "some excursions do require a passport". A lot of people have said that some countries/ports do require cruise passengers to have a passport and that is certainly true enough, but it's more helpful (in my mind) to mention that only two countries in the Caribbean require passports of cruise ship passengers on a closed loop cruise to have passports- Cuba and Martinique. Specifics are more helpful than generalities.

That's certainly fine, but everyone looks at things differently. I know that when we started cruising it would have set us back around $850 for passports for everyone, so we decided to wait to get them until we actually needed them for the travel. (and the arrangements are made between the port agent and the authorities, you wouldn't have anything to do with it.)

There is something to this but in many cases the traveler would have access to medical treatment relatively quickly unless they are really out in the boondocks (which is more within the control of the traveler on a land vacation since they can determine how far they are willing to stray from a city center). On a ship treatment can be many hours away, if not days in some cases. I suspect that the gentleman on the Princess cruise would have survived his heart attack had he been closer to a hospital, or at least had a much better chance at survival. I don't think that this should prevent someone from cruising, but it is something to consider and if someone does have a known health risk then they would want to choose an itinerary with minimal sea days.

They are okay as long as one keeps in mind that the short cruise is not representative of the longer cruises with the line. Princess's loyalty program is based on number of cruises and taking a short cruise moves you up the same as taking a longer one would.

DW and I are looking seriously at booking with Princess (just waiting for the 2025 itineraries) and in all of the research that I've done so far if it is just DW and I and a few other adults Princess might be the choice, but if there are any kiddos in the party then it's more likely to be Carnival. Even the smallest Carnival ship has at least a splash zone and water slides. Attracting families is more than just running ads, there needs something onboard to keep their attention.

Thank you. I saw a similar thing in use on Royal and in order to buy anything the user had to remove it from their wrist, which looked inconvenient enough to shy me away from using one.

It is something that people need to think about and I'm not sure that many actually do. The medical staff onboard can handle routine things but if it is something serious they need to evacuate the passenger to a hospital with full equipment, etc. Depending on the itinerary this might be delayed for several days (think in the middle of the Atlantic on a trans-Atlantic crossing). I was just reading a thread on the Princess board where the poster's husband had a heart attack and passed away before they could reach port. Fortunately your husband was cleared and you were able to stay with the ship.

The regulations that give us the closed loop exception also give the authorities the ability to waive the passport requirement in an emergency and for humanitarian reasons. Federal Register :: Documents Required for Travelers Departing From or Arriving in the United States at Sea and Land Ports-of-Entry From Within the Western Hemisphere 9) When the Department of State waives, pursuant to EO 13323 of December 30, 2003, Section 2, the requirement with respect to the U.S. citizen because there is an unforeseen emergency; or (10) When the Department of State waives, pursuant to EO 13323 of December 30, 2003, Sec 2, the requirement with respect to the U.S. citizen for humanitarian or national interest reasons; or

Interesting thread with a lot of good info (and the usual kerfluffles between members, of course 😉).

A lot of good information here, but it doesn't address the OP's question. OP, you do not generally need documentation for excursions other than what you need to leave the ship in port (typically the cabin card and a photo ID for passengers 16 and up). The only time that you would need passports for an excursion would be if the excursion actually crossed into another country or if the local government requires the documentation. There is a train excursion in Alaska for example that crosses from the US into Canada and there is an excursion in the Caribbean that goes from one island to another (and hence from one country to another). So as long as your documentation allows you to board the ship you will be fine not having it with you on the excursions that you list (although some people do like to take their passports ashore regardless, but that is another discussion in and of itself).

And thank you for your details as well!

Thank you for the detailed description! My fingers hurt for you 😀.

I have imbibed everything from soda to coffee and even a mixed drink (or two) during a meal (presuming evening meal here). What I have depends on what is available and what I feel like.

Pardon my newbie question, but I presume that UBD may be ordered either before the cruise or while onboard. I went to the Princess website to look for details but since we haven't booked yet we can't see what is offered. So, how much is this and what is included in the price? This sounds like something DW would like to experience at least once during the cruise.

Excellent, thank you! They had a similar gadget on Royal and it needed to be removed when making a purchase, which seemed like a huge PITA (and they charge for the device, as well).

Please allow me to piggy back on this, will be first time on Princess and wondering if you are wearing the medallion on your wrist if it needs to be removed when you make a purchase?

I started reading this thread because we may be booking Princess for 2025 and I'm gathering info in the mean time. I have to admit that Ultimate Balcony Breakfast and Ultimate Balcony Dinner caught my eye!

Thanks for the thoughts. Everyone certainly has different spending habits. Once we've settled on the itinerary and ship studying the deck plans and reading reviews will be the order of the day (and I will of course be reading negative reviews with a grain of salt).

The main safety benefit to the passenger is that the entire crew gets to participate in the process as well and they get to practice their assignments in a realistic way and that experience could prove to be invaluable in an emergency.