Daisyloo

19 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

I found this https://eticket.migracion.gob.do. It may be what you had to do as you were flying in.

Yes, I am pretty sure that was what we filled in.  

15 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

How long were your visits? According to the Travel.gc.ca website, "Tourist visa: not required for up to 30 days."

Both of our visits were for one week each. One was in February and the other in April.  I used the term visa, but maybe it was called something else?  But I know it had to be done before the flight there, as the airline was checking to make sure everyone had done it.

We did two trips to the Dominican Republic this year, both on land.  We had to apply for a visa for each trip (Canadians).  It was all done online and was free. Very quick and easy. 

20 hours ago, eagletwo said:

The Catch by Rudi on the Sky Princess, Nov. 2023 was way better than eating in the Steak house. Just my 2 cents.

We agree.  The Catch was wonderful.  Great service and food.  We are not impressed with the Crown Grill.

We are looking at two cruises in April through the Panama Canal.  Both leave from Ft Lauderdale and end in Vancouver,  One is on the Eurodam, the other is on the Nieuw Amsterdam.  Do they both go through the old locks?  I can't see on the description which locks they transit. This would be our first time through the canal so I am hoping they go through the old locks.  

We just got off the Sky.  She is in great shape.  

I prefer the staff to serve in the buffet.  We mostly sail on HAL, but also sail on Princess and they have self serve in their buffet.  I have witnessed too many incidents of passengers not washing their hands before entering the buffet, licking their fingers, eating while in line, coughing into their hands then touching the serving utensils, picking up food with their bare hands, etc etc etc.  So when we are on Princess we avoid the buffet whenever we can.  

On 8/2/2024 at 7:48 AM, craig01020 said:

Good morning. I've booked my first-ever Princess cruises. Looking at photos of the staterooms, it appears the bedside lamps are fixed to the nightstand. If that is true, where do people put a cpap machine if not on top of the nightstand?

 

Thanks.

We just got off the Sky Princess, and the lamps are attached to the bedside tables.  I found my

c-pap fit on the table behind the lamp, so between the lamp and the wall.  If I tried to put it at the front of the table, I felt there was a chance of it falling off.  

6 hours ago, Ggrun5673 said:

What about Majestic options? Thank you.

We booked the Majestic for July 2025.in the Symphony dining room.  The two times were 5 and 7:30.  We chose 7:30,  a private table.  

We have sailed on both ships and would be happy to go on either one again. The only reason we would pick the NA over the Noordam would be for the Tamarind.  It is our favourite restaurant at sea.   

We will be joining you on the 14 day segment.  Our medallions arrived today.  This is getting exciting!

16 hours ago, rideev said:

Majestic Princess. Symphony is the Traditional Dining.  5 and 7:30 are the options.  I was able to book for a July 2025 TA cruise.

 

Still can't book Royal for a Sept 28 cruise (traditional dining.)

I was also able to book Symphony on the Majestic for next July.  We chose 7:30 for all the nights.

2 hours ago, Mike07 said:

Also, at least they have self laundry machines. HAL has done away with them.

True, but HAL has a very good laundry service at a reasonable price. Even before we became 4 star and got free laundry, we would send out bags for the laundry.  Always came back clean and pressed with no issues.  Princess' laundry fees are quite high.  We really miss having free laundry when we are on Princess. 

1 hour ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Yes...excursions will automatically cancel.

I cancelled one excursion and it cancelled automatically.  How soon can I expect to see the refund?  It has been over a week now.  Cruise is not til mid July.

We have had great deals booking through the cruise line in the past, but not for our trip this summer.  It was quite a bit more to book through the cruise line than booking direct with the airline.  About $500 each.   So it always pays to look and compare.

We tried to do that through Easy air and they would not let us.   We have booked an extra seat directly with the airline in the past and were very pleased with the extra room.  

I really dislike the Princess buffet for all the things mentioned by the OP.  So many people have no idea about proper hygiene.  I much prefer the buffet on Holland America Line.  The staff serve most of the food except for a few pre-plated things.  And it goes quickly, contrary to what some people say.  

We have sailed out of Vancouver 4 times and the luggage drop off has always been in the underground parking area.  

We are 2 people in a deluxe balcony.  But, when we booked it we were going to be a party of 3.  A few months after booking, the third person changed their mind and cancelled.  So we are still in the deluxe balcony, just two of us.  We are past final payment.  I am hoping to keep the cabin, but admit I am a bit concerned that Princess might bump us to a different cabin if a party of three wants to book.  

I think you did a beautiful job!  Top stitching in gold sounds very nice.

I have had that same thing happen many times.  It has never been an issue. I think that is just how the airlines do things.  

I am pretty sure they had Seagram's when we were on. 

We have sailed on the Koningsdam 5 times.  We have always had a balcony cabin and we have always just had 2 chairs and usually one footstool.  Never a chaise lounge.  

I hope the crew are serving in the buffet.  That is what HAL does and it works great.  I like the idea that I don't have to worry that the person ahead of me hasn't washed their hands after using the bathroom.  Or that they licked their fingers and then touched the serving utensils. 

So when I saw the pictures of staff serving I was happy.  

Chair hogs are not only on cruise ships.  We were just at an all inclusive resort and the chair hogs were out in force there too.  There were signs saying it wasn't allowed, but there didn't seem to be any policing of the policy.