Ethel5

...........................................SNIP..............

 

(And as far as I know, there is no Curtis Stone meatloaf, thank goodness.)

He would probably serve it with Ketchup Foam!

Just to let you know...I stayed in the Porthole cabin A747 on the Star and loved it! Easy access to the Horizon court and aft pool. Yes, the door to the outside deck did slam, the piston thingy was broken, but I called the front desk and it was fixed within a half hour! I can't understand why it was not reported before! :)

How "forgiving" are they when looking at casino play? I was given a casino rate for two cruses but on the last cruise, due to illness, I didn't play as much and now I'm not getting the casino rate.

Good for you in doing that. Someday I hope the cruise lines will value their customers rather than treat them like you were treated.

 

More people need to do what you have done. I applaud you for taking a stance where Princess easily could have fixed their error and kept a very profitable customer happy.

He's not a "profitable" customer until he actually TAKES the cruises.

Now that I know I can argue with Princess and get a credit for a cancellation fee I don't need to buy insurance. Thanks for heads up. :D

Wish there was a "LIKE" button.

...........................SNIP..............................

I'm curious which cruise lines you were on--and how long ago. Every Carnival Corp-owned line except Princess has required pre-payment since at least Spring 2013. And I had to pre-pay on Celebrity back in February 2012.

I was going to ask the same thing. Other lines require payment at the time of booking.

I always considered pre-booking without pre-paying a great perk for cruising with Princess. I really don't want to prepay for excursions.

First let me say that the Princess Patter states "The dress for the evening is Formal/Smart casual etc." It does not say "dress for the Dining room...."

I vote to keep the formal nights and enforce them. No shirt and tie only business...No Jacket/No Eating in the MDR.

Yes, you paid for your vacation but I paid for mine as well. Yes, you have to fly, well so do I. Learn how to pack. I just went on a 7 night cruise with 2 formal nights with a regulation sized airline roll aboard and a large purse. It can be done. Women don't need to take up luggage space with 21 pairs of shoes.

My fear is that if they do change and allow casual all the time, there are those who will start wearing shorts and wife beater shirts in the dining room for dinner. I don't want to sit next to a hairy guy for dinner.:eek: And of course, the long past cheerleader sized women, will push for the Daisy Dukes. :eek::eek:

SNIP..........................................................

 

And thanks to the other two who offered where sheets can be found that are not already a set. My very elderly mother-in-law once asked for a queen top sheet for her double bed because she likes the larger sheet to cover the bed completely. Now it's good to know where I can find the mix-match sizing options.

I always buy a queen flat sheet and a double sized fitted bottom sheet. It makes the bed feel nicer. :)

Question for all of you who sleep without a top sheet. Where do you buy your linens at home without the top sheet already packaged with the bottom?............................................SNIP

Even Wal Mart sells top and bottom sheet separately. Almost any store that sells linen will offer sets and individual sheets.:)

Zero and they would put you off that ship faster than you can say "boo". They can give basics for sea sickness or ban you to your cabin... Pretty much useless after that!

After reading many reports of excellent medical care in some pretty dire circumstances, I feel your assessment is very harsh and unfounded.

Clothes?

LOL....I have clothes-just not many with pockets!

I don't wear a lanyard and I don't have clothes with pockets. I just tuck the card into my bra!!!:D

I bought one of these bags and found the wheels to be totally useless! I couldn't roll it anywhere at all and it didn't even want to stand upright. YMMV.

I heard some ship (not Princess) used to change the carpet on the elevator floors each day of the week with a sign on it to indicate the day of the week, as a nice little service for passengers. That would be good for me too! But I wouldn't push Princess to do that too.

On the Brilliance of the Seas, it was a metal plate at the entrance to the elevator car that had the day of the week. I got a kick out of that!

A 5 year old in a shirt and tie will almost certainly be treated like a king by the dining room staff. They love to spoil the young ones.

 

Note: Be sure to have him order the Volcano for desert. :)

You're evil!!! :D

As Essiesmom suggested, try your local thrift stores. I got my then 7 year old grandson a dark suit for $15. bought a dress shirt and tie for little money and he looked very handsome.:)

It's a shame that you've had over 25 cruises and just now joined Cruise Critic. You missed a lot of valuable information including that shorts are not allowed in the dining room for dinner. Thank you for reporting that they are enforcing the formal night requirement of jackets for men.

I think Princess needs to tread carefully here. There's a difference between perks that are neutral and perks that take away from and/or give the appearance of lessening the experience of those who don't receive the perks. It doesn't impact my vacation in any way if those in suites get unlimited internet or a specialty dinner one night or a bottle of Opus One and a butler to draw their bath. However, if the best seats in the theatre are reserved for those in suites or if prime venues at prime times are reserved for suite people or the best waiters/best tables in the dining room are cordoned off, then I think that's problematic on a mass-market cruise experience. When we sign up for Cunard, we know going in what to expect. Princess, however, is no Cunard.

 

P.S. And if Bhopal21 gets his eucalyptus stuff back, then I want some, too! Otherwise, To The Barricades!!

Totally agree! Those who stay in suites are paying for real estate and some nicer benefits (Sabatini breakfast etc). It should not create a "class" distinction.

I guess everyone has differing opinions on shuttle services. I have never had a problem with Princess transfers. I have used Super Shuttle twice-the last being last month in LAX-and twice they have screwed up with no apology!

Not on every ship.

Interesting. I've been on most of the ships and now I'm curious to which are not attached to the cabinet.

On our last cruise the refrigerator was not cooling for beans. After a couple of days it occurred to me to see what number the coolness regulator was set on. Turns out it was set to the least cool setting that it could be set on. I cranked it down a couple of notches (not all the way to the coldest setting btw). And, what do you know? Everything we put in the refrigerator was suddenly nice and cold for the remainder of the cruise.:cool:

I don't know why people don't do this! I always check the settings and never had a problem with things getting cold.

The fridge door is attached to the cabinet door so you can't leave it open.

Elites do not get preferred dining times-they used to a long time ago. We are wait listed just like everyone else. On the last cruise I bounced from 14 to 20 but did clear after final payment. Suites do bump people to a higher number.

You cant compare the 2 , at least you don't pay double with Princess. Like Pam said find a good TA.

They charge double on most of their cruises. Once in a while, you might get one at 75% more but rarely.

We did this tour last month and at the top, we flipped the seat backs AND changed sides. good trip and quite beautiful.