Orangefan

I was on the Dec. 4,2019 Inaugural Sky Princess cruise. Our roll call was extremely active. We had 86 pages, 2,144 replies and 37,807 views. Our unique problem was because we had a short Inaugural cruise there was no time for an M & G. However, many of us always congregate  on the Lido aft  area at the sail away. We were looking forward to meeting the people we had been conversing with for over a year. The sail away was the only opportunity to get together.

All was going well until we started  to gather and we were greeted by yellow barriers and an army of waiters all decked out and waiting for the guests which we weren't part of. The sign said "Private Party ".  At that point we had no place to go.  

If my friend Cruise Critic host Carolyn reads this, so sorry  we couldn't meet up. The Naming Ceremony was awesome.

The whole thing was very classy and the Godmothers were well deserved with their massive accomplishments. We walked to the main dining roomful the Gala luncheon. The food was outstanding. Our Dec.7  Sky cruise was excellent.It starts with the great Captain Tuvo and staff.

I figure this could happen again but maybe not a private party but maybe rain.  So prior to the cruise there should be a  second meeting place planned.

Carolyn, if you read this I sure hope our paths will cross again. Some of us are hoping to be on the Enchanted  Feb. 20, 2021. Also plans for NYC  SKY repo Nov. 5 for 10 days to the Carib and end in FLL.

Sali

19 minutes ago, h-sar said:

Completely slipped my mind to ask. 
 

Static, the band, is on til Apr 4 and then are on Caribbean Princess. 

h-sar,

      Thanks for all your reporting. I was on the Dec. 4 and Dec 7 Sky.

I spoke to Capt. Tuvo and he said he will be on the ship for 3 months, then the other Captain will be back on while he is on vacation. I am hoping he will be on the Sky for 10 day reposition cruise from NYC to the Carib. Nov.5  2020. With all the pictures you take you would enjoy the sail away out of the Brooklyn Red Hook. When you approach the Verranzano Narrows Bridge  and go under the bridge it looks like the top of the ship is going to be cut off. As you are about to go under the bridge everybody looks aims their camera up toward the underside of the bridge and take pictures.

   I also love the Static band. The December cruise was the third time I had seen them and they are awesome.. I wonder if they are going to rotate back and forth from the Sky and Carib Princess.

  Beside the Nov. 5th cruise on the Sky, I have been looking for the end of March. The airfare to Fort Lauderdale is $ 800 for me.  I figure they arguing to have to lower the prices since the airplanes that I have looked at are empty.

Sali

2 hours ago, Pam in CA said:

Thank you all for the very kind words and thoughts. I’m alive and well... just busy and not spending as much time on CC. I’m now President of a women’s service organization which has kept me on my toes.

 

So many of you give such great answers to questions that I don’t feel the need to add to them. I prefer to provide additional information where I can. 
 

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday and a Happy New Year. I’m off on the Sky in about three weeks with a group of friends. 🙂 
 

As for Toto, she’s well, too. One of the reasons she left cruising (besides being hounded on that last cruise) was to spend more time with her husband and family, and to care for their farm and rental properties. He’s had some issues related to aging (which happens to us all) that’s made cruising and being with people more difficult. 

Pam,  Glad to see your post and all is okay.  I am sure you are going like  the Sky. I was on the  b2b  Inaugurals to the U.S.

           Between the 2 cruises they had the naming ceremony and Gala luncheon.They also introduced the new Captain. They had VIP's,media , travel agents and  cruisers. They put the names of the b2b cruisers in a lottery and luckily 4 friends and myself were picked. It was a beautiful, classy event.I think you are going to like  the ship.

     I never liked the fountains on the Lido on the Royal  and Regal. It was wasted space. The fountains were useless at night. Between the moving ship and the wind, they were rarely even on. Having the two pools in the middle was much improved.

    Captain Tuvo is wonderful. He is very visible and attentive to all details. I bumped into him many times.

   Enjoy your cruise !

Sali

2 hours ago, 5:00_Somewhere said:

 

I'm very sorry to hear EZCheck wasn't available for your return flight. I had heard here on CC that it also wasn't available for those on the Sky's TA sailing, but didn't know it was absent for the early Caribbean itineraries.

 

But, I can confirm that EZCheck was available on the Sky the following week.

 

We were on the 12/14 sailing of the Sky Princess and used it for our return flight.  However, when I hadn't received the EZCheck information by day 3 (as has been the case in the past) I went to Guest Services to inquire and was told that, because they had no record of my return flight information in my Cruise Personalizer, they did not flag me to receive the EZCheck information. I would note that I subsequently confirmed that my flight information was actually in my Cruise Personalizer, but perhaps the 3rd party you mentioned didn't have access to it.

 

In any event, they provided me with the EZCheck form which I promptly filled out and returned.  We received our EZCheck package, including luggage tags and airline boarding passes, the morning of the day before disembarkation. In the EZCheck package it indicated the service was available for all major carriers, including American, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest flying from FLL and MIA.  In order to qualify, flights from FLL had to depart on or after 11:30 a.m. and flights from MIA had to depart on or after 12:30 p.m.

 

In order to help assure you have access to the service, I would recommend BOTH including your return flight information in your Cruise Personalizer AND, if you don't receive the form to sign up for EZCheck by at least day 3 of your cruise (or day 3 of the 2nd half of a B2B) go to Guest Services to sign up.

 

I have used EZCheck multiple times on the Regal, Royal and other ships in the past when our cruise ended in Ft. Lauderdale and don't know of any reason it wouldn't still be available. We have friends who just disembarked from the Regal last Sunday and I have asked them if they can confirm one way or the other, but haven't had a response yet. I'll follow up here if I get confirmation one way or the other.

 

I hope this is helpful.

I am glad EZCheck is back. I actually do check the second day of the cruise for EZ Check. I also bring an extra copy of flight itinerary. They need the week to  co-ordinate with the airlines.  I like that they get the boarding passes for you.

  Thanks for the update.

Sali

6 hours ago, CountryCruiser said:

Does anybody know if Princess still offers EZCheck on The Regal in Fort Lauderdale for Southwest Airlines?

I was on the Sky Princess b2b in December and flew home Dec.14, 2019. I use  EZCheck on a regular basis. During the beginning of my second week  when  no paper work came I went to guest services. I was told that EZCheck was handled by a third party  not Princess and they weren't set yet for the season. I said it was December and we were  already in the season. 

   When you board the ship, go right to guest services and ask them. I wouldn't bother  calling Princess stateside since they really don't know the details the ship knows and I have been given wrong answers in the past.

Sali

h-sar,

      Thank you for sharing your wonderful pictures.   I was on the Dec.4 and Dec.7 Inaugurals. I have been on cruises near Christmas a few times.  What has happened in the past was when the ships docked in FLL, a team boarded the ship with trees and decorations . They did a great job of decorating the ship. Then the team left  before we sailed out of FLL.

     This time it was much different. I don't know if it is a new system or just because so much was going on between the two cruises. Because there were a lot of people doing the b2b.The naming of the ship ceremony , speeches and entertainment was quite the production in the Princess theater.

   VIP's, media and travel agents were invited to the ceremony. For those passengers on both the above cruises  , they did a lottery and some friends and myself were lucky enough to be selected. We were the last group to disembark and then we went to the Princess theater. The people who were going to board knew there would  be a delay  of a few hours . After we had the ceremony and then escorted to the Gala luncheon in the MDR, was when the cruisers were allowed to board.

   At this point no holiday decorations were put up . The next morning about 6:30 am I walking through the piazza and headed to the gym.  I noticed workers in green t-shirts who had been working through the night putting up decorations. It was fun watching new things being put up every day and night.

    I was not aware of something else that was happening on a few other Princess ships. Some people bought little plastic ducks from Oriental Trading company and placed them in different areas of the the ship. The idea was to have your picture taken with the duck, post it and you hide it for someone else to find it.  My friend found a duck. I looked all the time but  I didn't find any. But I will look into buying some myself.

  Enjoy the Sky Princess. I did and looking for a quick return to the ship.

Sali

I just saw this  article about flooding at the FLL airport today ( Dec. 23.)  Glad I didn't have that experience . My 14 + hour return  to Syracuse was bad enough.

Sali

https://www.yahoo.com/gma/storms-causing-travel-headaches-both-coasts-ahead-christmas-115600996--abc-news-topstories.html?err=404&err_url=https%3a%2f%2fsports.yahoo.com%2fnews%2fyogi-berra-funeral-televised-yankees-tv-network-111329296--spt.html

If you use bar soap, I suggest you bring your own. They now have a bottle of liquid soap and hand lotion by the sink.

I just sailed b2b on the Sky in Dec. didn't have bar soap and I believe that is the case on all Princess ships.

I bring my own shampoos, soap and lotions.

Sali

I just sailed  b2b on the Sky Princess Inaugurals in Dec. and it  was on the menu .  The twice bake  goat cheese soufflé 

was delicious as usual.

Sali

12 hours ago, phred119s said:

Hi Sali! 
 

we didn’t get to meet (at least that I’m aware of).  We had all kinds of crazy stuff going on while on board. But I share your feelings on all from the roll call. 😁

 

Our family is about to head to the Canadian Rockies. Talk about a swing in temperature!!! 
 

Our daughter reminded us this morning that it’s almost time for us to go to Copenhagen to sail on Sky again. It is almost 2020 after all. 😂😂
 

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday season. 

You will enjoy the Canadian Rockies. I loved it out there.  I don't need to go to cold climate I am already there. This morning it was 8 degrees  with - 2 degrees windchill.  I have had  much lower temps but still a big drop from the Carib.

Glad you will be on the Sky again. I want to head back also before my Nov. 5 2020  10 day repo cruise out of NYC to the Carib. on the Sky.

What date are you going to Copenhagen ?

Enjoy the holidays !

Sali

Hello to all of you. I enjoyed interacting with you prior to the cruises on CC, meeting you on the Sky and attending the M& G. What a friendly, caring group ! While I already knew people prior to the cruises, I loved adding new people  I now consider friends. What was so unusual was the willingness of all to share knowledge and news. We were all looking for price drops  and those who noticed it first posted for all to take advantage of.

No matter where I went I found friendly people. Whether I met you at zumba, line dancing, or dancing at night to the live band. I loved stopping by and talking to you and sharing a meal. I miss seeing you daily.I hope our paths will cross again. If you see me posting on CC, chime in on that roll call and tell me about your future cruises.

While we experienced a few negatives along the way but the positives far outweighed any negatives. I wished Princess had let us know they made the Wakeview bar area into private area for Cruise Planners at sail away. Then Dec.4th roll call had no place to meet and no more days to meet.

Since I returned home, we have had snow, wind and cold with more to come.Besides going to the Y daily, shoveling snow is helping me burn more calories of the few pounds I gained on the cruise.

Sali

Thank you for starting this. I hope  people will also post pictures .

Sali

I am heading there also.  I guess I am not going to do my laundry  during that time. This sounds like much more fun.

Sali

FYI   video   Sky Princess Complete Dining Guide

         Sali

I have waited 4 weeks already. I used to get them in August.

Sali

26 minutes ago, islandwoman said:

Can someone please tell me how I missed this coming?  I've been checking princess.com almost every day for months, waiting for them to release the 2021 May - September World Cruise.  I even called Princess three days ago to ask if/when it would be released and was told nothing.  Yesterday, it appeared online.  But to my chagrin,  two of the segments were already marked " This sail date is SOLD OUT "  and I haven't been able to find any availability for suites, mini-suites, or deck 9 or 10 balconies.  Yesterday afternoon, my TA told me that "Space is becoming very limited".  I checked segments and embarkation ports until I got a headache, thinking that Princess might be holding cabins for that part of the cruise, but I still couldn't find the "sold" cabins. I know that Elite passengers are supposed to get first dibs on new cruises - hey I'm Elite and no one told me anything.  

I will probably not be booking this cruise because the cabins we would have wanted were gone before I had a chance.

Can someone please explain to me where all of these cabins went so fast?

Is there anything I can do at this point?

I have no knowledge of this situation but it reminds me of signing up for the Sky Princess Inaugurals.  Luckily, I booked as soon as available and under 3 for free.Then a lot of the categories had sold out signs for weeks. Then the bookings were open  and listed as sold out again.This happened all year until the final payment. By this time people had made other cruise plans. Then all of a sudden every category was open with tons of rooms left.  Many of us felt that rooms were being held by travel agencies. You could look at a category and find a whole row of empty rooms. Then they added ANOTHER 3 day cruise before the original  Sky Inaugural. Made a lot of people angry  and month before the Dec.1st cruise is empty. They are selling inside rooms for $ 229 pp.

Sali

Dides,

        Thank you  for spending so much time gathering  information and  taking pictures of every nook and cranny on the Sky.  Always fun to see the food pictures and other activities around the ship. It was a lot of work  for you  and much

appreciated by all of us.

       Now I just have to wait  39 days  to welcome and sail on the Sky.

Sali

Soleil  is the Anytime dining on deck 5.

Sali

2 hours ago, Vic The Parrot said:

Hey gang.

 

I caught a post a while ago that the new Destination Collection is available. But Platinum and Elite get a copy delivered off the bat.

Can a lowly Gold (going on Ruby) member like me call and request one?   😱

I don't find this to be true anymore.  I used to get it in August. I have called Princess several times each month and they say the brochures are being sent out as soon as they are published.  I did request it at the Princess site  brochure section and I have been Elite for awhile and still no brochure.

Sali

. 

50 minutes ago, VersaliusPrimus said:

Thank you for continuing to post menus!  Glad to see Curtis Stone options are still present, even if availability seems more limited than previous sailings.  I don't recall ever seeing a Curtis Stone starter option; something new to debut on the Sky before fleet wide rollout perhaps?

 

Minor question concerning Gelato:  On the Royal a couple years ago, we were able to order the 3 scoop sundae in the form of a banana split.  Could you see if that is still an option if you feel like stopping there again?  

 

Hope Chris feels better to get back to enjoying the vacation soon!

I have a friend who orders the banana split in the MDR at least once a cruise.  Ask the  waiter  when you are ordering to order the banana split off the children's menu. Choose your ice cream and toppings.

Sali

The Twice baked goat cheese souffle   is a favorite of mine also. I am hoping it will be on my  Sky Princess b2b coming up !

Sali 

  I find my computer decides it knows what my next word is and doesn't accept my input.  They create awful words and most don't even resemble what I have typed in. I find I have to read it several times.

  The computers also butcher names to what they think it should be. I had to input and correct my first name  many times. The computer didn't like my birth certificate version   "  Sali  ". It always put in  "Sally " ! I mumbled and grumbled all the times I had to change it. Happily  the computer now embraces " Sali  " !!!  

8 minutes ago, dides said:

 

I sent Chris off on a mission to check the sports area this morning while I was in the spa. He didn't spot the exercise equipment (could still be somewhere) but the table tennis tables are now a deck lower on 17 at the side. 

 

 

Here is the basketball court:

 

 

Sandra and Chris

Is this  hot basketball  where they are going to fry us during our  zumba classes ?

Sali

1 hour ago, hpeabody said:

I am booked on the World Cruise 2020.   I have discovered that I do not have a plethora of blank pages, maybe 5 (which some countries require a full blank page) remaining in my passport which is not due to expire until 2024.  They NO LONGER add pages to passports.  I could forfeit the remaining years and request a passport renewal .... BUT, I have another 1 week closed loop Caribbean cruise on Dec 1st.  I have checked with cruise line and I can get by with real id and original birth certificate. So, I could send in the passport renewal request ASAP and get it back in plenty of time for the World Cruise.  I suspect the stamping requirements might be a little looser being on a ship, than arriving by air.  Am I being overly concerned?  Would you send in the passport renewal request?

I don't know where you live.You might  be a few hours away from a passport office. I know someone who had needed a passport renewal immediately. He found and called the Buffalo office and drove to Buffalo to get it done that day. I don't know if it cost extra but it might have.

Sali

12 minutes ago, LadyElle said:

Hi Dides,

Thanks for the photos. Will the Sky Princess be decorated for the Christmas Holiday for the December 1 and 4, 2019 sailings?

In the past I have been there when the decorations went up. When they docked in FLL a whole team came on board and had it all done  in time  to leave before the ship left the port. I assume they are still doing it the same way.

Sali