LACruiser88

This is our 10th TA going west and only one of those were cold. The others all had the outside decks and pools full of folks.

Today was a beautiful, sunny day in Kotor! The nice thing of having been in a port many times before and having seen all of the "sites" is that you can just stroll around and soak in your environment. We enjoyed lunch at our favorite place, "Little Bay Terasa." I had a local dish, octopus baked in red wine and dried plums. Debbie had grilled squid in a garlic sauce. For those curious about what happened to the barrel chairs, one of them is in our cabin!

Currently on the Regal, from our mini-suite balcony. Much bigger than 12x12, more like 24x24.

October 27, 2022 9:00 AM EDT The Mediterranean is Calling! Princess Cruises Announces Spring & Summer 2024 European Season for Next-Generation Ship Sun Princess Additional Inaugural Voyages of Sun Princess from Barcelona, Rome and Athens Announced SANTA CLARITA, Calif., Oct. 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- When the newest, largest and most innovative Princess Cruises ship – Sun Princess – debuts in February 2024, guests will set sail on a memorable 10-day Grand Mediterranean inaugural voyage with departure options from Barcelona, Rome, and Athens. The first inaugural cruise of the 175,500-ton vessel, boasting expansive venues, contemporary entertainment, multi-story dining rooms and next-level accommodations starts on February 8. Additional Mediterranean voyages will go on sale Nov. 9, 2022, for voyages through September 2024. The full European season aboard the new Sun Princess includes 10-day itineraries visiting popular stops throughout the Western and Eastern Mediterranean and the cruise line's popular series of seven-day voyages departing from either Barcelona, Rome (Civitavecchia) or Athens, which can be combined for the ultimate 14-day or 21-day exploration of these sought-after vacation destinations. "When you dream of the Mediterranean, you immediately think of sunshine, endless blue water views, colorful and distinctive architecture, incredible cuisine, engaging locals and romantic settings," said John Padgett, Princess Cruises president. "It's a perfect match having our new Sun Princess debut in this scenic region because so much of our design inspiration for this next-generation ship comes directly from these iconic destinations." As seen on "The Real Love Boat," the new CBS reality dating adventure show set aboard a luxury Princess cruise ship, the inaugural season of Sun Princess cruises will visit the destinations featured in the show including Gibraltar, Marseille and Santorini. Highlights of the March through September 2024 inaugural cruise season of Sun Princess, include: 10-day Grand Mediterranean inaugural cruise between Barcelona and Rome departing March 9, featuring Mallorca, Sicily, Athens, Kusadasi, Santorini and Naples. Seven-day Mediterranean with Greek Isles & Turkey between Rome and Athens, seven-day Mediterranean with Greece & Italy between Athens and Barcelona and seven-day Mediterranean with France & Italy between Barcelona and Rome, with over 20 departures to choose from between April and September 2024. European Explorer voyages sailing between the Mediterranean and London (Southampton) from nine to 23 days. Nine-day Grand Mediterranean voyage sailing roundtrip from Rome. 10-day Grand Mediterranean voyages sailing roundtrip from Rome, or between Barcelona and Rome. 10-day Grand Western Mediterranean voyages roundtrip from Rome. 16-day Iberian Passage voyage sailing the Atlantic Ocean between London (Southampton) and Fort Lauderdale. Princess guests wishing to expand their time on land can also choose from three unique cruise-tours: Best of Greece: Visit the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Meteora, Delphi, and the Acropolis of Athens and its Parthenon. Offered with the seven-day Mediterranean with Greek Isles & Italy, 14-day Mediterranean with Greece, France and Italy, or the 21-day Best of the Mediterranean cruises from Athens. Classic Italy: Visit Venice, Florence and Rome's greatest sights: Venice's St. Mark's Square and Doge's Palace, Rome's Coliseum and Vatican museums, the Duomo and Michelangelo's sculpture of David in Florence. All sights are offered with the seven-day Mediterranean with Greek Isles & Turkey, 14-day Mediterranean with Greek Isles, Italy & Turkey, or the 21-day Best of Mediterranean cruises from Rome. Highlights of Spain: Offered with the seven-day Mediterranean with France & Italy, 14-day Mediterranean with Greek Isles, France & Turkey or 21-day Best of Mediterranean cruises from Barcelona. Visit Madrid, Valencia, Toledo and enjoy the sights and tastes of Spain. Currently under construction at the Fincantieri shipyard in Italy, the largest Princess ship ever constructed embraces Italian heritage by featuring a newly-designed, brand-iconic Piazza and The Dome, a cutting-edge entertainment space inspired by the terraces of Santorini. While introducing a completely new class of ships for the cruise line, Sun Princess also remains true to the smooth clean lines and design aesthetics of the cruise line's famous Seawitch icon and popularized in the original "Love Boat" TV series. Sun Princess will also feature the exclusive Princess Medallion that will extend Princess' leadership position in delivering exceptional and custom experiences at unmatched scale, offering guests personalized service only previously found on the industry's smallest ships. Part of Carnival Corporation's green cruising focus, Sun Princess will be the first Princess ship and one of 11 new vessels in the corporate fleet powered by Liquified Natural Gas (LNG), the world's cleanest fossil fuel. Past Princess guests are eligible for a special promotion when they book Sun Princess voyages early. The special promotion consists of a Captain's Circle Launch Discount, which may be combined with launch and group promotions. These discounts do not apply to third or fourth berth guests and the discount expires on January 31, 2023.

It was not a problem. They had the schedule all the way to the end of the year. There was only one other reservation for that week, I believe it was @chrysalis.

Here are the passenger numbers for this voyage. Blue- 554 Gold- 516 Ruby- 279 Platinum- 527 Elite- 457 Total= 2,333

We did the same this morning, booked the Sanctuary for all 7 days of the crossing. Btw, we streamed Netflix last night, no issues.

Here is the current Officer board. On Nov 6th, Nicola Furlan will return as the DRO (Maitre'd). Miroslav will return to his normal position as the Lido Manager (Asst. Maitre'd). Princess has started a new rotation system by having the Lido Manager fill-in while the DRO goes on leave. In the past, they had roving Maitre'd's that would fill-in. A money saving maneuver.

We are not doing any Princess excursions. We have a few that we booked on our own. @pompeii Sorry, Internet Cafe had a long line tonight.

Thanks for the laundry info. We usually only send out about 25% of our things (anything that a hot wash can't ruin). My DW is in the laundrymat as we speak, she said it was empty. @pompeii I will try later on our way to Vines. Our MTG invitation was waiting for us.

We are onboard! We were picked up at our hotel at 10:45 and driven to the ship in 45 minutes. Their are 4 ships in port today. We arrived at the boarding building, no one in security line or check-in line. We were curb to cabin in 10 minutes! Now to the weeks worth of dirty laundry! Btw, I tried to upload a photo of the port from our balcony, no luck. I tried numerous times. Not a good sign!😬

Thank you for the passenger count. How has the internet been onboard?

Check out the Roll Call for the Oct 26th sailing. There are tons of planned excursions on the spreadsheet that cover your segment.

We spent our last full day in Tuscany walking around Florence. We walked a total of 12 miles today. We visited the Bardini Gardens, which have a great view of the city. The DW's did their shopping at the San Lorenzo street vendors. We lunched again at the Central Market. A lot more people in town today versus last week. Tomorrow we will check into our hotel near the Rome airport (FCO) and return the van to the airport. On Wednesday, we board the ship!

We have had guaranteed cabins a few times. Usually assigned a week or so before sail date. Once it was assigned one day before sailing.

Today we explored the hilltop town of Montepulciano for the first time (we have been to all of our prior stops in the past). If you venture out to this quaint wine town, wear good walking shoes as the inclines in the town are extreme. Also, parking is a real challenge to find. It is around a 1.45 hr drive from Florence thru beautiful countryside.

Before booking flights I always check pricing directly thru the airlines, Amex Travel and EZair. During the past several years, we have not found cheaper international business class seats outside of EZair.

Today we spent the day in Siena. It was a bit cooler and breezy today. On the way back "home" we stopped at the castle in Monteriggioni (the last two photos). IMHO it was not worth the $2.50 parking fee.

We have dined at the Gastropub several times. The Beyond Meat burgers and fries are really good. Our travel companions have had the real meat burger several times. They also really enjoyed their dinner. Well worth the upcharge in MHO.

In November of 2019, we met the owner of the Uccelliera winery in Montalcino at the James Suckling "Top 100 Wines of Italy" event in LA. We were originally going to visit the winery in 2020. We all know what happened to 2020. Today we finally met with Andrea and his lovely wife, Paola, at their winery. After 4 hours of tasting thru 6 years of Brunello di Montalcino vintages, they made us feel like family. Such lovely people and great wines!

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Another warm and sunny day! We spent the day at Volterra and San Gimignano. Tomorrow we go to Montalcino.

Thanks, we'll check it out. We are going back to Florence on Sunday.

No, in Florence?

Here are a few photos of where we are staying and one of our room. The third photo is just outside of our room.