conifercruiser

1 hour ago, MacMadame said:

How did you know which side to book on or was it just luck you could see it from your balcony? (Asking for 2026 planning.)

It was just luck for us that our cabin on the Emerald is on the starboard side (odd-numbered staterooms) where we could see the eclipse from our balcony.

Since the ship has to hold her position with the bow into the wind, and the Mediterranean or North Atlantic are different than the Pacific, YMMV.

We're also currently on Emerald Princess, first time with a Plus package. It is SO MUCH FUN. We only get about 4 alcoholic drinks per day, but we love the bartender/server Joe in Crooners and sit in there for a while trying a few different drinks before dinner. Ask for a martini and Joe can carry a completely full one without spilling a drop. We never hung out in any bar before but feel free to do so now.

We also get a few cappuccinos every morning, bottles of water (sparkling or still), and wine if we eat in the dining room. Just a whole different cruise vibe for us. We're having a ball!Of course, the high from seeing a fantastic eclipse at sea hasn't worn off yet 🙂

11 hours ago, MissiCruzs said:

Does anyone have any current info?  I emailed grouponboardservices@princesscruises.com asking to set up M&Gs for 2 Emerald cruises in April on January 24, 2024 and no one has responded to me.  Thanks.

MissiCruzs, you're not the only one waiting for a M&G request for the Emerald! I sent a request on Jan 30 to set one up for my April 5, 2024 cruise and haven't heard back yet. I'm glad it's not just me!

There's an old thread on page one of the Princess boards with names of people for the specific ships but the operative word is "old". I figure I'll give them to the end of the week and then try again and send to both the grouponboardservices email, the names listed here, and the old name for the Emerald contact from the old thread. If these folks are based in California, they've had some wild weather so not sure if that, or layoffs, or cutbacks, or whatever might be the reason.

Wow, HAL’s revised world cruise is at least making it interesting - Maldives, Seychelles, Zanzibar, etc:

Looks like Princess is just trying to get it over with. Sad for the passengers!

Another workaround (mentioned on the longer thread about the app) that I used was to put in a Visa gift card (mine said only available for use in the United States) of any amount (someone had one with $5 on it). App will accept it and you're in the green lane. Seems like a ridiculous game but it works!

Whew! Thanks for the reassurance!

On 7/15/2023 at 7:08 AM, skynight said:

One device at a time. To change log out and log in. If you really require additional devices at the same time there is a 4 device package offered. 

Just checking if this is still true in 2024 for Princess Plus WiFi with one device. I have both an Android phone and an iPad that I use for different things, and DH has similar and we have Princess Plus. I'll never use the phone and iPad at the same time, so want to be sure I can switch between them with the "one device" plan.

Thanks!

I bought a $100 Visa gift card, says "only valid for use in the United States", put it in the shoreside area and now we're in the green lane. Seems like a simple solution. 

Do they still post the day’s menus (lunch and dinner) outside the MDR’s in the late morning every day so you can decide if it’s worth it that day?

We always stay at the Premier Inn West Quay. Cheaper than the Holiday Inn, breakfast is good, they have a phone dedicated to calling a cab for transport to the cruise terminal (or did precovid, haven’t been there since), and close to lots of good restaurants and a short walk to the train station.

1 minute ago, AbbyGirl said:

There are screws on the back that you need to take out first

Ah, good to know. Thanks!

On 3/13/2023 at 11:07 AM, AbbyGirl said:

I have holders that I got off Amazon and I will say the holder I have will hold a medallion or the magic band piece (that you take out)

Thanks for the info! Now I just need to figure out how to pop that Magic Band piece out - those things are really tight in there 🤔!

11 hours ago, CeCe_ said:

 

Can you please elaborate are all elite perks are gone such as free laundry services?

Sorry for the confusion - Captain’s Circle benefits are still around (laundry etc). Since world cruises are so long, I seem to recall in the past those fares always included crew appreciation, Wi-Fi, and some OBC for excursions and now that Princess Plus is a thing you have to pay extra. 
 

But I was mistaken in saying there was no OBC, as others have stated, I do see we have $1000 OBC for LA - FLL, it just wasn’t stated anywhere during the booking process. My bad! 
 

I really like the itinerary and we’re looking forward to the cruise!
 

I think the days of getting “perks” are over - you have to pay for them now. You’re given the choice of a basic package with no perks; Princess Plus (Wi-Fi, crew appreciation, drinks package, a few other things); and the top of the line Princess package (forget the name, price, and additional perks since I’m not interested sorry!).
 

The price difference on a balcony between basic and plus for the 101 day LA - FLL was close to $7000 per person, not cheap!! Unlike the 2024 cruise (which I cancelled and booked 2025 instead), they were not offering a $1000 per cabin shipboard credit for excursions. Nothing has changed for the better -  except the itinerary.

And yet, not many cabins available. very sad! 

Does anyone know if a medallion fits in a Disney Magic Band? I have a few of those….

Kiwimum, thank you SO MUCH for this info! You made my day!
 

We’re booked on the 2024 WC but I like the 2025 itinerary a lot better and will probably switch (and if we skip the 2024 WC we’ll be in the U.S. and can travel to see the total solar eclipse in April). I’ll be anxiously awaiting my Elite invitation in the next few days! 
 

Thank you!!

Thanks for the great comparison info!
 

We’re “Elite” with Princess (comparable to 5* Mariners, still getting used to the HAL lingo) and will be taking our first cruise with HAL on the Rotterdam TA in April 2022 (God and COVID variants willing). Definitely looking forward to the Music Walk. I’m vegetarian and it sounds like the options in the MDR are better than what Princess offers.

I’ll definitely miss the self-service laundries that Princess has (even though we get our laundry done for free as Elites, I still like having a laundromat on every floor to throw stuff in once in a while when we have all those sea days on a TA). And I’ll seriously miss being able to do Zumba for free on sea days - Zumba’s probably my absolute favorite thing about Princess, especially if they have a fun Latin staff member to lead it! 🙂

Hoping the Rotterdam has some sort of exercise program, just can’t get excited about going to the gym and fighting for time on a treadmill. Good to know we can always walk the Promenade Deck!

Well, we booked it! Cabin 10608, so a GB Select with a bit of OBC (plus more when I fax my CCL shareholder info to the UK sometime next year). So enough for beers I think!

Really looking forward to this trip! I don't want to mention what I paid for it, would hate to have someone come back and say "You paid HOW MUCH????", but it was actually cheaper than I was expecting and the cabin location is great so no complaints from me!

Thanks to everyone who provided info to guide me along! 

Cheers,

Vikki

Gosh, emam, and you even bumped up the onboard prices thread for me - thanks! We just enjoy a beer or martini once in a while, so not holding out for a drinks package. The drinks prices are indeed reasonable. We will get shareholder shipboard credit, too, I think, so could afford a few beers 🤪

Considering how much we’re paying for 23 nights on the river cruise, plus the 14 day HAL transatlantic from Florida (actually, transatlantics are always pretty cheap), plus the QM2 to get back to New York, plus the cross country Amtrak trains to and from the U.S. ports to Colorado (we try to avoid flying just because it’s such a hassle and more fun and challenging to stay on the ground 😁), the experience on the Iona will undoubtedly be a bargain and memorable.  I’ll probably see if I can get a GZ Select balcony - will let y’all know.

Thanks for your input and interest!

Thank you SO MUCH happy v and daiB!

I really don't HAVE to book the cruise, as I was mainly planning to use it as a way to spend some time between the end of our river cruise (flying from Bucharest back to Heathrow on May 28) and when we catch the QM2 back to the U.S. on June 7. So I CAN hold my nerve and wait, but then the idea of sailing on a nice new ship with a new cruise line (for us) with mostly Brits sounds pretty good! We've been to Norway (BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL) but Stavanger and Olden would be new for us. Ah, heck, I've probably talked myself into making that phone call! 

Thanks everyone for your helpful and prompt replies!

I love the cheeky replies! I actually know who Nigel Farage is!. Wish I was technical enough to spoof the IP address 😞

Checked out the poamericas site (thanks for that tip, John!), interestingly it's operated by the online travel agency I was going to book the cruise with anyway. I was just hoping to get a feel for how many cabins were available before I had to call anyone to see if I could wait for better pricing or perks since it's still a year out.

Any chance someone in the UK could take a quick peek at the May 30 2020 Iona cabin availability?

Nope, not here. I choose select fares and there’s a big red box at the bottom of the screen (where you’d expect to see something like the word “Select” or “Continue” or whatever) that says “Call 877-828-4728 to Book”. The phone number appears to be a toll free number in the U.S. :-(

Hello! I am new to P&O (long time Princess cruiser from the United States) and am trying to figure out if I can see available seaview and/or balcony cabins for the Iona May 30 - June 6 2020 cruise to Norway. Princess' website is very easy to do this by doing a fake booking and selecting to choose your own cabin, but P&O seems to want me to pick Early Saver or Select guarantee and just gives me a phone number to call. I can't believe they don't have cabins you can view on the website!

 Is there a simple way (maybe it looks different to you folks in the UK?) to tell how well that sailing is selling without calling? And when (if ever) does P&O usually have a good sale or offers with perks like a beverage package?

Thanks for your help!

Love the PP! The one place that definitely could use some TLC is the Pacific Lounge, the furniture in there didn't get updated during the refurb last year and it was really looking tired. Don't recall any strange smells at all. I wouldn't hesitate to sail on her again (in fact, we'll be on her for over 60 days next year). If the itinerary and price work for you - GO!