helenb

I meant the 54 day cruise (sorry I typed the days wrong) on Island in 2026. We just booked it onboard Regal. The Princess rep told us it was 1 segment.

We just booked a 52 day cruise. How do the packages work? Is it still only 2 casual/specialty meals for the entire cruise? Is the elite minibar setup just once? (This cruise is NOT in segments… it is a single 52 day cruise.)

We were in the piazza. We missed the balloon drop of old, but enjoyed the elbow room while we danced.

Most of the day, I think. I saw the big cakes at International Cafe, and they had them (and the premiere ice cream desserts) at the gelato place in the atrium.

I didn’t see a lot of people in the pools yesterday, but we were in the hot tubs. They were warm but not HOT. We have early dinner, but brought our own drinks to lunch and dinner, knowing that we couldn’t get them in the dining room. Not sure who the band is… would have to use the app (which I can’t right now since I am on CC…).

Also, no Coke Zero… only Diet Coke.

The bars opened for package use at 6:30 pm.

We just sat down to dinner and waiters confirmed no drink packages yet. We have 3 people in our cabin, all of us with soda packages. The first 2 passengers each got a $30 ‘group amenities credit’.

We boarded very quickly as well. Barely had time to sit in the elite lounge! Just waiting now to get far enough from Galveston to use our drink packages.

Was it smooth? Did they use facial recognition?

Where are you guys? We’re in chute 2 outside the terminal.

We will be on this cruise as well! We are flying out at 0-dark-30 tomorrow morning. Looking forward to seeing you, Beth and Katy, at the Cruise Critic gathering on the 28th!

We will be walking in, from Rosenberg St. I think that's the same way as those driving.

I believe that there are 2 other ships in port that same day, so I was worried that with buildings blocking we wouldn't be able to tell which was which.

Thanks. We are walking in from our hotel, so I wanted to make sure that we walk to the correct terminal! It looks like both 28 and 25 are easily accessible from the entrance. That posted schedule says Terminal 25, so I guess that's where we will be!

Thank you very much!

The soda package (does not include coffee or fancy water) is only $15 per day. This is my beverage package of choice.

Which berth/pier/terminal does Regal Princess use in Galveston?

I took a 16 day cruise on Pacific Princess once, back in the days when you got a soda package that ONLY included soda from the gun. The only diet choice was Diet Coke. But the bars ran out of Diet Coke 8 days into the cruise. They had to wait for a specific port to re-supply (they apparently couldn't re-supply at any old port) so it was another 4 days with no Diet Coke until we got there. And of course, there were no refunds on those 4 days of soda package, even though it was the only diet soda available. Ever since that cruise, I'm just grateful when they have any diet cola available. This being said, my preferred drink of choice is also Coke Zero, and I like cans so that we can take them on shore with us in ports. So I'm glad that the current soda package includes cans. I'll cross my fingers for Coke Zero when I board Regal next week, but if it's only Diet Coke, I'll still be fine.

That's great to hear! Thank you so much for following up on this.

Thank you so much for this report! I would also appreciate a report when you disembark, to see if they have resolved those issues as well.

Just to be a bit nitpicky.... the actual question was about New Year's Day. NYE is awesome (as many have posted above), but New Year's Day is just a 'regular' day on the ship. The holiday decorations usually come down and the ship is going back to 'normal' operation.

Thank you so much for this information! It is very helpful.

The packages are a terrible value if you do not drink alcohol. I do agree that they are easonable (at least, Plus is reasonable) if you drink. I would be really interested in a package that was nonalcoholic... I wonder if they'll ever do that?

Thanks! I haven't sailed Princess since pre-COVID, so a lot of the stuff I was used to is now gone. I guess I'll wait until I am onboard.