californiagirl

Discovery 2/25-3/4 Switched for: -8 cans Diet Coke -6 bottles Heineken Zero -6 bottles of water We don’t drink coffee or alcohol so did not ask about either.

We experienced it on Discovery last week. It was amazing and the highlight of our cruise. The food was the best on the ship. There was one server per 2 guests. The visuals were gorgeous and the host made it even more wonderful.

We just got off Discovery and our room steward told us to call the room service line to make the change. The woman I spoke to on the phone asked us what we would like. She customized it to our tastes. We did all non-alcoholic beverages. I also don’t understand what they are trying to achieve. If it’s to antagonize their most loyal customers then they are doing a very good job.

Very true! I wondered where you were cruising.

Someone on Majestic just reported that the chocolate cake is still available on the room service menu. Once again the only consistency with Princess is their inconsistency!

Robncruise what are the desserts like in the buffet? Any regular layer cake?

We are on Discovery and we were invited to attend. I’m elite, husband platinum and we are not in a suite. We were seated next to a couple also not in a suite on their FIRST Princess cruise. We don’t drink alcohol and I have food allergies. They were amazing at accommodating both! They went out of their way to make us feel included and that there was no problem. Agree with everyone about the food. It felt like a very exclusive, premium, grown up Disney experience. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The following night the hostess in Skagway dining room asked us how we enjoyed the 360 experience. This before she scanned our medallions. I can only say she knew us by name. I’m not sure how since this was early in the cruise.

We are on the Discovery cruise after OP. Our room steward told us yesterday that this cruise is MUCH quieter than last week. He said last cruise most of his rooms had 3 or 4 people in them and lots of kids. He said it was difficult to finish his work in a timely manner.

I loved the coconut cake that Princess had for years. I miss the gourmandis in the dining room. Also gone are the soft pinwheel dinner rolls. Tonight my husband had the passion fruit cheesecake. It was frozen in the middle. I wonder if Princess has outsourced the buffet desserts and provisions them in a frozen state. That would explain a lot about the lack of variety, also how they are cut so perfectly. I don’t think we will buy the soda package again. I confirmed with a server tonight about the price of a fountain Diet Coke. She showed me the price on her device. $2.00 including tax and gratuity. Canned soda and fountain were listed individually. I haven’t had 7 1/2 sodas a day. The price I paid for the soda package makes me feel like repeatedly ordering one and pouring it down the drain just to feel like I got my money’s worth! If not for the discussions on CC about the changes to the drink packages I would never have thought to ask the price per drink. The buffet tonight was surprisingly good. The prime rib and roast turkey were very good. There was shrimp cocktail in the buffet as well. We ended up buying the future cruise credits a few minutes ago. We decided if we don’t use them the money will be refunded so a no loss situation.

None of the dining rooms had loud music. Could it have wafted in from the piazza? Duchessrn as of today I could have purchased a coffee card. 15 coffees for $31. Did they tell you that card was gone as of tomorrow? I saw it available for purchase on Ocean Compass when I was looking for my final statement.

I’ve made some comments on other threads but I have some observations that aren’t a tidy fit for those threads. As I have mentioned in other threads this is my 4th cruise since the restart, second cruise with my husband since the restart and my first cruise as elite status. We have been on the Mexican Riviera for the week. I did this exact cruise one year ago. What a difference a year makes! Tourism is fully back in these ports. I suspect it has a lot to do with testing no longer being required to cruise and for people taking land trips testing no longer being required to re-enter the US. In Cabo there were an exponential number of boats in the water taking tours compared with last February. The port area was bustling. Having been to Cabo several times before, we didn’t leave the port area. We shopped and found an identical folding aluminum nativity scene to one I lost a few years ago. I purchased it in Cabo in 2009. We were in a store and I was lamenting to the clerk that I had not found one last year or this year. She pulled one out from a shelf behind the counter! She said the artist no longer lives in Cabo and she only has a few left and offers them for sale only at Christmas time. I was thrilled and didn’t attempt to bargain with her. She smiled and said she would give us a discount. In Mazatlan the number of people offering tours outside the secure port area is like years past. We were in port with Disney Wonder and the area was packed. I am very happy for the Mexican people. The port area has hundreds of new cars waiting to be shipped. There is more activity going on overall. We took the ferry to Stone Island and rented lounge chairs on the beach. I would say it is more of an authentic Mexican experience than going to a resort. We were surrounded by many locals and really enjoyed being there. In Puerto Vallarta again much more tourist activity. It was impossible to buy a day pass at the Westin or the Marriott. We ended up walking down the beach from the cruise port and rented chairs and an umbrella on the beach. Very relaxing day. We saw whales breach in the bay from our chairs. Beautiful, sunny day until about 4 when the marine layer moved in. We were about 15 minutes late dropping lines to leave due to two people thinking the departure time didn’t apply to them. They received the traditional welcome from passengers on their balconies that usually accompany such latecomers. Their taxi pulled up directly to the dock area. If it were up to me, we would have dropped the lines on time and left them. Seriously, 3598 passengers were able to get back to the ship on time! There was a port representative standing at the gangway conferring with the crew so I think they were preparing to leave them. We were thrilled to be invited to participate in the Princess 360 experience. So unique and creative. Our host made the experience even more enjoyable. She was exuberant and engaging. As someone commented tongue in cheek last night this may be why service is lacking in the dining room. Each couple had their own attentive personal waiter. I confess I don’t understand the algorithm used for the invitations. I believe full suite guests are invited once per cruise. We are in a mini-suite, not a full suite and we were seated next to a couple, also not in a full suite for whom this is their first Princess cruise. 20 people per seating with two seatings per night equals 280 people per 7 night cruise who get to attend. This is only 7% of the total passengers onboard. All I can say with certainty is that if you are invited, don’t pass up the opportunity! I have to admit though I am disappointed with the changes regarding food that have been implemented over the last year. Because we are sailing full all the dining venues are open. However, for the first time I’ve had little excitement in the food. Of course we haven’t starved but this sailing feels like Royal Caribbean in that the same food is repeated daily and across different dining areas. The exact same options are offered each day in the buffet at breakfast and lunch. We have gone to the dining room 3 nights and we are not going tonight, the last night. We have gone to the buffet twice, 360 and GiGi’s. If we had not gone to the 360 experience we would have gone up to the buffet. The dining room menu just is not appealing every night. It’s not worth the commitment of time or the change of clothes required to attend. Our last time in the dining room the maitre’d came to our table to ask how we were enjoying the food. We (and the table next to us) told him how sorry we were that the fettuccine and shrimp cocktail were no longer offered each night. He said they are available every night but not listed on the menu. The French onion soup is also available every night. He said they kept getting special requests from loyal Princess passengers that they make a small amount of each dish available every night. It used to be that there were different desserts in the IC vs the buffet. Not so anymore, the same unimaginative desserts…fruit tarts composed mainly of crust, gelatin/cream based rectangles of different flavors (some inexplicably labeled as cakes) and cookies. It reminds me of when Disney rolled out the dining plan at their Florida parks. Initially a great way to sample a variety of cuisines and flavors but eroded over time to the point where virtually the same meal is offered regardless of the restaurant. Dessert is not offered on the room service menu anymore. I have not called to ask if room service desserts are offered off menu. Bottom line I miss pre-covid Princess and after this cruise I would be willing to pay more to return to that level of dining. Our fellow passengers are a very nice group of people…mostly over 50. There are a handful of small children and teens. The ship feels full compared with my last three cruises sailing with limited numbers. We saw something on formal night that we have never seen ANY night on any cruiseline on which we’ve sailed. A twenty something woman lined up for the dining room in flannel pajamas, slippers and a robe! We couldn’t decide if she was making a statement or a rebellion. She certainly got attention! Having worked many years as volunteers with teenagers and young adults all it did for us was put a smile on our faces. We have a wonderful cabin steward. The staff continue to be the best part of Princess. They work so hard. Every staff member we pass offers a greeting. The internet is SO MUCH BETTER!! We have even been able to livestream videos! There have been a few times where it was slow. My husband has been able to work briefly each day. Of note though is that if the website one is trying to access has a high level of security you may not be able to access it. The IT manager onboard said that because we shift satellites those websites think someone is trying to hack. Much like trying to use an ATM in multiple countries without giving the bank advance knowledge of the countries being visited. About 10 days prior to sailing we received a complementary upgrade to a mini-suite from a deluxe balcony. We are on the Marina deck mid-forward. I would never choose this cabin. It is very loud. We hear the bass from MUTS even when the door is closed. The on deck dance party the other night was VERY loud. It went until 11:15. We also hear people (children) running above us. Fortunately my husband routinely wears earplugs to sleep and I can tune most noises out. Elite perks. We’ve decided the only perks that we will use going forward are the mini-bar switch for soda and water and priority tendering. (We already had priority embarkation.) In Cabo the priority tendering was a game changer! We were numbers 17 and 18. We boarded the tender within 5 minutes of receiving our tender tickets. When we returned back to the ship they were calling tender tickets numbers in the thousands! If we ever take a longer cruise we would definitely use the laundry/dry cleaning. The afternoon tea was nice but it’s so much food fairly close to dinner. I don’t mind going up to the buffet and getting my own scones. My husband enjoyed the sandwiches. I prefer Diet Coke to herb tea. Food aside, we enjoy the Princess experience. Having said that, we may be ready to spend more and try a premium line. Additionally we have some big land trips planned for the next two years. It’s the last day and we still have not decided whether or not to buy the FCD. We have a few more hours to decide.

Caribill thank you for the explanation. The only thing is that I bought the plan about a week ago well after the price increase.

The price per person for the classic soda for the week onboard is $104.77 so ~ $3.00 less total for the week. ($14.96/day.) Definitely not the $11.79/day shown in Oceanconcierge above. She did not know why the difference in price land vs sea. Maybe no tax as we were at sea when I asked. For some reason at guest services the little icon was next to my name indicating I had the soda package. However on the handheld devices it was missing and the servers could not see I had purchased the package. They acted like they didn’t believe me but did not want to argue the point so they would give me the soda I requested. After two trips to guest services it is resolved. They ended up having to remove the package and then reapply it to my booking. Not a big deal but irritating nonetheless. Much like a pebble in one’s shoe.

On Discovery here and that is exactly what happened to us! We were the last two top seated and the server then proceeded to take orders for all the tables along the row of two seaters. I watched and each of our courses were brought out at the same time…even though some were finished sooner. It might be quicker to sit at a table for 6.

We are currently on Discovery, boarded yesterday. The Wi-Fi has improved dramatically since I was on this same cruise last year. I didn’t bother purchasing it when I went to Alaska last September. I was able to stream YouTube videos around 11:00 pm last night! The cost is a mystery to me though. I purchased the 4 device plan pre-cruise for $140 for seven days. The info said that was a 50% discount as I am elite. It listed full price as $280. When we boarded yesterday I had a $70 credit for medallionnet. So it ended up costing us $10/day for 4 devices. That works out to $5/day per person as there are two of us and two devices each is plenty. I think that is what we paid right after the restart in 2021. Did we get a bargain or is that what it should have cost us?

I boarded this morning and just saw this post this evening. I’m going to go to guest services and ask the price. If it is less I’m going to ask for the difference in OBC.

So I paid $15.32/day for the classic soda package pre-cruise. I see above if I bought it today onboard I would have paid $11.39/day! And I could have used OBC! What is going on with Princess???

Boarded Discovery today. On the menu tonight are the following “Princess Favorites”: -shrimp cocktail -romaine and kale caesar salad -french onion soup -seared salmon -pan roasted chicken breast There are 6 main entrees offered tonight. I have cruised 4 times since the restart, the last time was in early September. Based on today only the overall quality of food is lower. The “tenderloin” at lunch tasted like pot roast. I’ve had it on the prior 3 cruises and it was definitely different (better) than today. The desserts in the buffet are primarily a gelatin mousse type of dessert both at lunch and this evening. We didn’t try any so I can’t give an opinion about them. My husband who has only been on one cruise since the restart…back in Nov 2021 was surprised at the decline. We won’t starve but it’s disappointing. On a positive note the soufflé was as good as always. Of note is that desserts are missing from the room service choices. (Can you tell I have a sweet tooth!) I scrolled through every food section and found nothing. I’ll check again tomorrow and report back. Are they available on other ships?

We boarded Discovery today. I wanted to give everyone an update about the soda package. We ate lunch in the dining room. When we requested Diet Cokes our server scanned my medallion. She said we did not have the soda package. I said I purchased it last week. She didn’t argue with me and brought my husband and I Diet Cokes. We went to guest services. They said yes we do have the soda package and showed us the icon that is next to our pictures if we have the soda package. She said we were not charged for our drinks at lunch. I’m not sure what was wrong. I tested it later at a bar and had no problem.

I’m so glad it worked out for you! We are on this cruise too. Cold and rainy here in Long Beach. We are going to leave for the port in a few minutes.

Thank you for the info!

Last week when we added the soda package we paid $15.32/day, total of $107.24 pp. Princess was a relative bargain compared with other lines. On Royal Caribbean in 2019 we paid close to what Princess is now charging. We board tomorrow and I’m going to ask the price of soda by the glass. I’m wondering if we are better off doing that. In the future.

Phabric I agree those packages would be wonderful! Because we don’t drink alcohol it has not been cost effective to buy the plus or premier packages. It’s much cheaper to buy the soda package and add wifi and gratuities separately.

Thank you Avalon for the passenger count. If you have a reason to be at the passenger service desk would you please ask what the passenger count is for the cruise beginning Saturday?

I’m sad to hear about the crowds. Do you know the exact passenger count on the current sailing? We board her on Saturday as well. We sailed Regal over Thanksgiving 2021 at 30% capacity…a dream! I sailed Majestic Feb 2022 at slightly higher capacity (I can’t recall the exact number) noticeably more people. Then Discovery last Sept at close to normal capacity. Again noticeable difference but did not feel packed. It looks like our upcoming sailing will be at complete capacity. The most packed ship we ever sailed on was Oasis of the Seas in Europe August 2019. Now that was miserable. One would think on a ship that size that the crowds would disperse throughout. Not so! The common areas did not compensate for the high passenger load. The buffet was about the size of a Royal class ship’s buffet and ALWAYS felt full. Her double/per room capacity is 5606. Imagine 2000 more passengers in a Royal class ship buffet! The only time I will ever sail on that class again is if we take our children and grandchildren. There is so much more for younger people to do onboard than any Princess ship.