rolloman

This past Sunday I went to Port Canaveral to pick up family who returned on the Wonder of the Seas. I was there around 9:00 A.M. and as to be expected it was pure chaos. There were tons of people arriving way too early to check in for the next voyage, people trying to find their way out of the port, RCCL employees trying to get to their work station to set up for the next voyage, delivery trucks bringing in supplies. So, you have to ask yourself...should I be in the way while this is taking place? The fact is, if you arrive before 10:30 AM you are in the way and creating a hazard. There is zero reason for you to be there. 

1 hour ago, orville99 said:

It may have been at one time, but gravity has brought a once Iconic brand to ground. While we still enjoy sailing Princess on occasion, it is nowhere near the quality experience that it used to be. And the fact that it sails all over the world is moot, since it will be doing exactly none of those itineraries out of PC, and every major cruise line sails all over the world. You just can't get there from PC.

Gravity? No, if anything the degradation you may have felt would be due to Princess becoming Carnivalized. Just curious are you a board member or similar with Carnival Corp? If not, your definitive statement Princess will never sail future non-Caribbean itineraries out of PC is unfounded, unsubstantiated and therefore simply nothing more than speculation on your part. 

The Veteran get together on cruises really never existed 10 years ago. Now it has become a "thing"....so where is the outrage on that huge gap? It seems some are more worried about photos... here is a novel idea...take your own photo. As for the get together. I will say some lines do it better than the others. I feel Royal kind of goes through the motions (so much so I don't even attend) and Carnival really goes all out. Let's be clear though, I don't go on a cruise for the purpose of a Vet get together with strangers. Especially those strangers who did not serve in the Navy or Department of the Navy...i.e.; Marines (sorry had to throw that in there... lol)

9 hours ago, orville99 said:

IMHO, the only thing Miami currently has going for it is the number of different cruise lines, demographic levels, and itineraries that it supports relative to PC. Adding Princess to PC may help a bit, but their PC itineraries are unimaginative at best and the reality is that Princess (since it was acquired by Carnival) is just another RCL/Carnival/MSC clone from an experience perspective. The only line out of PC that is showing any imagination right now is RCL with longer cruises sailing to Bermuda, the ABC islands and other ports that typically don't show up on PC itineraries. If PC really wants to keep its "title", it needs to attract more lines that elevate the cruise experience - not just replicate it, and show some imagination in where they sail. Celebrity would be a good start, and something like Silversea or Regent would be even better.

For starters PC just recently elevated to number 1 (it was a goal). The port is continuing to expand. New restaurants, terminals, aquarium are on the way. Unlike Miami you can actually walk to the beach or nearby restaurants. Ask any Floridian which Florida port they would prefer to drive to, and the response will overwhelmingly be PC. 

   The new ship builds are now coming to PC on a regular basis. These new builds are faster and more efficient which makes the Miami location a moot point. PC is one of the only ports with LNG, another huge plus. Multiple new hotels are being built in the general port area. Princess is an iconic line which sails around the world not just the Med or Caribbean. So, it is a BIG deal they will now sail out of PC.   I look for the new terminal on the south end to be assigned to Celebrity or similar.  Therefore, in reality there is little concern Miami will surpass PC anytime soon.  By the way, Carnival also sails from PC to every one of the locations you listed. 

Just did a drop off…no queue outside at 12:30. However, traffic is really heavy driving on 528 headed to the port  probably due to the rocket launch. 

Anyone know the reason Wonder of the Seas is delaying embarkation? Just received a notice to come one hour later than assigned check in time. If you are at the port now are things backed up? 

This is old news and has always been the rule since forever. Your post title is deceiving...

Kind of risky having those monkeys crawl all over you if you have no verification the animals have been vaccinated... for example ...rabies.

Total of 5 medical evacs in the past 8 days on Mariner...not sure what they are going to do about this trend? Mandatory stress test prior to boarding?

You went aboard after I departed. We were supposed to have the same itinerary as you but we had 4 medical emergencies. We turned around two separate times to drop a total of 3 people off in Fort Lauderdale and when we returned there were 3 ambulances and a firetruck and one person leaving in handcuffs. So it sounds like you had a little better luck. But to recap-that is 5 medical emergencies in a 8 night span...unreal!!  By the way good thing you didn't eat in the MDR...it would have changed your mind on the "best food" you've had on a ship. 

Any updates to the Platinum Elite lounge post covid? Are the drinks still $6.50 and are there a variety of snacks available each night? I have not been on Princess in a while but looking forward to coming back since they will now sail close to home.  I can't wait to order some of my favorite Princess desserts. Tired of Royal Caribbean dog food served in the main dining room.

Super excited about this. I know it is an older ship. However, I am sure they are testing the market. I used to sail Princess often when I lived in Fort Lauderdale but quit sailing them because I moved near Port Canaveral and Iam not a fan of the drive down or the port itself. I think Princess brings a more upscale presence to what is currently in Port Canaveral. Royal Caribbean food has drastically gone downhill and caters to families and Carnival is like a box of cracker jacks...you will get a surprise each time, but you just don't know what it will be. I am confident Princess will be successful and will quickly allow them to bring a new ship shortly after.

Mariner=Yes

2 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

 It's been scheduled like that for a while. I assumed it was for construction work on the new adults only area.

Coco Cay closed for Sanitizing and evidently will be until the 10th. (According to a RCCL officer I spoke to)

Update again…even more bizzare news…instead of steaming towards Nassau, we are quickly headed back to Fort Lauderdale for TWO more medical evacs…one of them is a crew member. 

Update…now Nassau is in question…waiting for updates…this may wind up being a 4 night cruise to nowhere. Evidently there is a paperwork issue. What a Cluster!!!

Suddenly Freeport is out…we now are headed to Nassau….sea day tomorrow and arrive in Nassau Sunday. 

Headed to Freeport now…

Onboard Mariner of The Seas 4 night to Labadee. We left PC yesterday and the Ship turned around this morning. Currently in Port Everglades for medical emergency. Waiting to hear update from Captain. Pretty sure Labadee is out of the question at this point. 

With the latest news out about expansion, so many questions need to be answered. Anyone care to take a guess who will be assigned the proposed new cruise terminal? Personally, I feel it would be awesome to finally get Celebrity or Princess to call PC home. Port Officials say it will be on the southside and it will affect current operations occurring in the proposed spot. There is no further detail provided at the moment. Well, the only thing in the area they are talking about is the Victory Casino cruise in the little terminal 3 which is right next to the new terminal currently used by Mardi Gras. It was also mentioned the Brevard Zoo will be putting in a 100-million-dollar aquarium and nature conservation walking distance from the south terminals. This will huge because outside of restaurants, not much happening for those who want to stay near the ship. Exciting times ahead, especially for locals who do not care for the drive to Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

On 4/28/2023 at 11:27 AM, Engineroom Snipe said:

At about 11:15 am on April 27, 2023, (yesterday). I was sitting on deck five outside of the midship  elevator bank on the port side. I witnessed what appeared to be an F 18 do a high speed fly-by cutting from our starboard bow and sharply following our port side with the one wingtip lower than the top of the deck railing. I had a complete view of the top of the jet.  It might have been about 200 feet away at most. In all of my years in the Navy, I have never seen a plane almost touching the water on its side at about 390 knots.

 

It was a Top Gun moment where I could distinctly make out the details of the pilot's helmet.

 

The same jet made another high speed pass from our stern passing along the starboard side before doing a vertical afterburner ascent disappearing into the clouds in about five or six seconds.

 

I guess we looked threatening but after closer review, found not dangerous.

 

I do think it was a bit unsafe. I would hate to think what would have happened if a wingtip touched the water or God forbid, have struck the ship.

 

The Navy is not proud of it for I cannot find any reports about it with any search engine.

 

"Maybe it was the Air Force.........."  😉

 

🫢

Clearly you were never stationed on a Carrier. Funny story, I was on a cruise ship off the coast of Cuba a few years back and we had multiple high speed passes by two jets. The passengers on deck started shouting USA , USA...yeah..well..uh...those jets had the Cuban military insignia...

Multiple times on multiple Royal ships I have been charged in the MDR instead of using a voucher. Therefore, I now get a drink and bring it into the dining room to alleviate the problem. Funny story, on my recent Odessey cruise, the waiter asked why I was getting my own drinks and I explained the history. He said it would not be a problem this cruise so just order from the table. I took the bait and ordered a martini, the drink finally came during desert. They brought an apple martini...sigh. The next night I ordered a beer and guess what...they charged me instead of using the voucher. Moral of the story, you want the free drink, stick to the plan, bring a drink with you or don't order one (from the MDR)

On 4/25/2023 at 5:26 PM, poocher said:

So how did you get involved in all this?

Must be Nunya....

42 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

See previous post. 

ok...one of your above post was about Celebrity...and the OP is talking Royal Caribbean. Another of your posts indicates you put in various other discount options at the same time so you really don't even know for sure what discount was specific to military. I personally put in Military every booking and similar to Phillyfan...it was not a discount which was better than any other offer to a non-military. Simply window dressing. I like what Princess does...gives you $100.00 OBC regardless of what deal you were able to snag. Now that is a real, measurable military discount. 

The discount if applicable to your sailing results in a less than minimal savings... more than likely about 50 bucks, lol...probably not worth fretting over....play in the casino...that is where your real savings can occur once you become prime.