TXRed

I've seen jeans on casual nights in the MDR. I have not seen them on formal nights but I haven't looked for them either.

 

thanks katisdale, we don't do the formal night anyway....my DH says he goes on a cruise to relax not get all dressed up.(he wear a suit and tie every work day and to church on Sunday)...I afford him this 'luxury'...I leaned many years ago which battles to take on, and which not to...formal nights are a 'not to.':D

We were on the Star in Alaska in Sept. Plenty of jeans in the MDR.

 

thanks Avalon...that makes packing a little easier..my son and DH live in jeans..knowing that will make my life just a little easier;)

Specialty restaurant dress code is "smart casual" every night, including formal nights. I've found that people are on the dressier side of smart casual on formal nights.

 

No, unless you are in a full suite, dining room menus are not available via room service. You can always order the Ultimate Balcony Dinner. http://www.princess.com/learn/onboard/food_dining/ultimatebalcony/

 

Pam in CA, thank you...nope, not in a suite...and I doubt the Ultimate Balcony Dinner is going to happen. :p Are nice jeans ever allowed in the MDR? I assume they are acceptable in other places such as the buffet, pizza place etc.

USA Today Travel's Packing for Alaska article can be found here.

 

Lew

 

Thanks for sharing this. We have booked our first Alaska cruise, so I need all the help I can get:D

We are on our way to Hawaii on the Grand Princess. At about 1 pm there was a man overboard announcement. The ship slowed and did a u-turn. They fired flares into the water. They turned the ship totally around and a lot of the crew had binoculars searching for the missing person. At about 2:30 they ordered all passengers to their cabins without explaining that it was simply for a headcount - but ten minutes they clarified it. So we are now awaiting the next announcement.

 

Oh my!!...prayers for the person and I hope he has been found safe by now.

We are going to Alaska in 9/14 on the Grand. We are not going to carry dress up clothing. Soooooooo if we decide to eat in one of the venues where one pays an upcharge, what is the dress code in those venues on any given evening including those formal nights? And are the formal night menu items available through room service? TIA

Not catugirl, but in Juneau I suggest Harv & Marv for the whale watching. Costs about the same as a Princess whale watch excursion, but H&M only put six people on the boat which means everyone gets to see all the wildlife that appears. You need to book well in advance (see their web site) to be sure you have spots on their boat.

Do you have a link Harv & Marv???? TIA

[quote name='Thrak']At home we grind the beans fresh for each pot so we are kind of coffee snobs but not ridiculously so. [I've only cruised twice. On Sea Princess the coffee was pretty bad but drinkable. On Star Princess I drank the regular coffee with no issues. I bought a coffee card for my wife in case the regular coffee turned out to be bad and also so she could have specialty coffees, hot chocolate, etc. You may well find that quality of the regular coffee is not the issue that others have made it out to be. I don't want to take a chance....
As for each of you purchasing a card... There is a lot of discussion and disagreement about that. To me, a coffee card is for the person who purchased it. It doesn't seem right to me to purchase one card and then procure fresh-brewed coffee for everybody on your deck... Other people say that they bought the dang card and they will do whatever they want with it because, by golly, they are cruising and Princess owes them.
With the coffee card you have two types of usage. Specialty coffee drinks require that the card be punched. When all the punch spots have been used you no longer get "free" specialty drinks. Since you are using punches for those drinks I can't see any reason you shouldn't share them with anybody you like. When it comes to the fresh-brewed coffee it really seems to me that the card is intended to be used to procure coffee for the card holder and not for anybody else.

Will the staff at IC balk at giving you two coffees to take back to your room? I would say the chances are about 99.9999999999999999999999 to 1 against them saying anything at all. They will fill two cups for you without a second thought.

[B]I am simply going to take my chances and take my coffee pot....I see no reason to pay 30.00 each or between us to get freshly brewed coffee. We are not interested in fancy coffee drinks...just good coffee[/B]

If you're talking about the Grand, we stayed in the Grand Suite right next door to these prem. OV cabins. The lady next to us was a very, very heavy smoker and always had her door open so I could see clearly into her cabin. They really are more spacious than the average balcony cabin.

 

You have your own private hallway of sorts shared with these 3 cabins and the Grand Suite. It's really private and quiet and you don't hear the foot traffic out in the hallway.

 

The windows are amazing! We had them in our bedroom portion of our suite and the bed was right by them. The view was just incredible. I loved laying in bed and watching the stars sail by at night. If you can live without a balcony, these cabins are really unique and nice!

 

You definitely get more motion and creaking of the ship up there, but the good side is the close proximity to the pizza (or hamburgers/hot dogs/bratwurst on the other side of the ship). I think my son wore out the carpet between the pizza and our suite!

 

One negative was that we had the jogging track above us so that was a bit disconcerting at times. You'd hear "pound, pound, pound" then it would disappear, then come back. It was usually during the mid-day and didn't last too long though so it didn't bother us too much.

 

If you don't mind more ship movement, then go for this location! :)

 

Thanks for your post...sorry about your next door cabin smoker... but glad you could see in the cabin!! Hope no one will be jogging on our 9/14 Alaska cruise :D

I order extra cream with room service breakfast and keep it in the fridge.

 

What a good idea...we like either cream or half and half as well....:p

We had with us with auto shut off ability kettle on princess criuse back in 2011. It didn't get taken away. :) and we are planning to take it with us next year in May on our Alaska cruise with grand princess

 

So good to know...it seems as long it is 110 volt and has an automatic shutoff, it is acceptable. Thanks

Hi, TEX - our cruise is Jan. 19 to Hawaii. We will definitely take pictures and post them.

 

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!:D

I bought a small single travel mug brewer for less than $20 at Target (black and decker). It has no hot plate and only brews the one cup and turns off. Just used it on my 10 day CB cruise with no problems. Was so nice to flip the switch in the morning and not have to go search for coffee. I did buy the coffee card but the coffee in the IC tasted the same to me as the buffet and that was never the case on previous cruises. Just my opinion. Get a cheap one and carry it on.

 

thanks dcrow, I shall!!

A coffeemaker with an automatic shutoff will not be confiscated. TXred, you got the same info directly from Princess, so need not listen to the posters who really don't know.

 

I brew my Starbucks in my cabin every morning, and have been doing so for well over ten years. I also use Via during the day and some evenings in the dining room or HC.

 

thanks Pia, that's a relief..just when I think I know something someone says something different and then I start questioning myself. We were always able to take our peculator on RCCL, but since this is our first Princess cruise I thought I should check. Much appreciated!!;)

They do have afternoon tea service on board, you may want to check that out. It will be listed in the Patter. ;)

 

that would be great....I will check it out, thanks

I'm an Olympic tea drinker (hate coffee). I just ordered a pot of water every morning and had it within 10 minutes. Wasn't inconvenient at all. :)

 

thanks, that's good to know for I often drink tea in the afternoon.

I called Princess and they said there were no restrictions as long as it it a 110V- with automatic shut off. It could be subject to an inspection to ensure it meets those standards. Just tell them you have it so it doesn't look as though you are try to pull something over them. YIPPEE!!!:D

A friend of mine had her kettle confiscated a little while back. I wouldn't risk it.

 

thanks I am going to call princess and just find out for sure.

If sailing on the Royal the free coffee in the buffet & dining room is made from ground coffee & not from concentrate. I thought it was a big improvement & only used my coffee card for IC brewed coffee when wanting it to go in a paper cup with a lid. It would be great if Princess added the Royal's coffee system fleetwide to reduce the number of those who are unhappy with the coffee from concentrate.

 

I don't know about anyone else and this is just my personal opinion...but drinking coffee from a paper cup, even Starbucks, just isn't the same. Just reading coffee concentrate makes me cringe. :eek:

I suppose you could bring your French press but you'll still need to go get the boiling water or have it delivered to your cabin. They will confiscate any kettle/coffee pot you try to bring onboard.

 

I can't imagine getting boiling water...they would have to confiscate me with it...however, I am not one that would try to sneak anything on:rolleyes: However my DH and I will each carry on a bottle of wine for our traveling companions.

Yes, get a coffee card for $30 or so. Well worth it! My husband and I are also picky about our coffee and wouldn't cruise without one!

 

Would we each have to get a coffee card? Is there a limit on the amount per card? We are not fancy coffee drinkers, just plain old good coffee.

Suggest that you get a coffee card on board.

 

thanks but that doesn't mean we can simply relax in our cabin with fresh perked coffee...someone has to go get it..:( not the same.

You are not supposed to bring a kettle or something of that sort into the cabin so I suppose that covers coffee pots too.

 

I would imagine so...darn it

Thanks, I just upgraded to this category- TA checked with Princess, and room is larger (206 sf) than standard oceanview plus floor to ceiling windows- basically a balcony cabin, except the balcony space is "indoors". I can't find photos anywhere- will just be surprised when we arrive!

 

WOW, we too just booked these cabins in our 9/14/14 Alaska cruise. I have searched high and low and have not been able to find a photo...odd, but as you say,we will simply be surprised. As another poster said, just imagine a balcony sliding glass door that doesn't open and no balcony. When are you going??

We love our coffee and I have been reading the coffee on Princess is terrible....are we allowed to bring our own coffee pot (percolator type) and coffee? Or will I have to bring a french press...and then I need boiling water. Gotta have my good coffee as we are non drinkers and often have coffee drinks while others have wine etc. TIA