newbie Princess questions

[punkmuse]

sorry for the newbie questions but am sailing on Princess for the first time in March with my entire family. have cruised 3 times before but never on Princess. we will be on the Emereld Princess

 

1. is there a good variety of vegetarian options in both the buffett and the main dining room?

2. do they cater to people with different eating requirements? (ie no dairy, no meat, etc etc etc)

3. what is a coffee card, how much is it, and what exactly does it get me?

4. how are the kids club (or whatever Princess might call it) activities? my 2 nephews 8 & 10 will be with us.

5. is there a quiet adults only pool???

6. where do we dock in St Thomas? Charlotte Amalie?

7. any must sees or must do's?

8. how would you describe the level of service? i dont need my butt kissed but one thing i loved about RCCL is the employees really seemed to go out of their way to be nice to you and smile and say hi.

9. how is the food at the buffet and the main dining room??

10. for those who have also sailed on RCCL how does it compare? i have heard its about the same or maybe a bit better. we loved RCCL and were not big fans of NCL.

 

thanks so much!

[punkmuse]

sorry one more.

what is there to do at Princess Cays?

do they rent snorkel equipment?

how much do they charge?

do they have a BBQ that day?

the BBQ at Norweigian's private island had almost no veggie options and was not edible :eek:

 

thanks! :D

[jbrambach]

sorry for the newbie questions but am sailing on Princess for the first time in March with my entire family. have cruised 3 times before but never on Princess. we will be on the Emereld Princess

 

1. is there a good variety of vegetarian options in both the buffett and the main dining room?

Yes, I have always seen a vegetarian option on the main dining room menu

2. do they cater to people with different eating requirements? (ie no dairy, no meat, etc etc etc)

Yes, but you have to contact Princess before you sail with special dietary requirements

3. what is a coffee card, how much is it, and what exactly does it get me?

It gets you unlimited fresh brewed coffee (instead of the coffee syrup concentrate stuff that they serve in the buffet) and 15 specialty coffees

4. how are the kids club (or whatever Princess might call it) activities? my 2 nephews 8 & 10 will be with us.

Don't know

5. is there a quiet adults only pool???

Depending on the ship Yes. It is the Aft pool or on some ships the glass enclosed pool

6. where do we dock in St Thomas? Charlotte Amalie?

No, you dock at Crown Bay, about a 5 minute cab ride to town

7. any must sees or must do's?

Where? Or which ship?

8. how would you describe the level of service? i dont need my butt kissed but one thing i loved about RCCL is the employees really seemed to go out of their way to be nice to you and smile and say hi.

Same

9. how is the food at the buffet and the main dining room??

I like it better than RCCL IMO, the pizza is much better on Princess

10. for those who have also sailed on RCCL how does it compare? i have heard its about the same or maybe a bit better. we loved RCCL and were not big fans of NCL.

I like RCCL's entertainment better, but Princess' food better

thanks so much!

 

Have a great cruise.

[jbrambach]

sorry one more.

what is there to do at Princess Cays?

do they rent snorkel equipment?

I LOVE Princess Cays. They do rent snorkel equiptment, and other watersports. You can see the options online at Princess.com

how much do they charge? See Online

do they have a BBQ that day?Yes

the BBQ at Norweigian's private island had almost no veggie options and was not edible :eek: I know they do burgers etc and pasta salad, fruit and salad. Maybe if you let the Matree'D(sp) know b4 they can have a extra veggie option for you. BTW, through room service they have a veggie sandwich with avacado that is delish!

thanks! :D

See above

[Times Prince]

sorry for the newbie questions but am sailing on Princess for the first time in March with my entire family. have cruised 3 times before but never on Princess. we will be on the Emerald Princess

 

1. is there a good variety of vegetarian options in both the buffett and the main dining room?

2. do they cater to people with different eating requirements? (ie no dairy, no meat, etc etc etc)

3. what is a coffee card, how much is it, and what exactly does it get me?

4. how are the kids club (or whatever Princess might call it) activities? my 2 nephews 8 & 10 will be with us.

5. is there a quiet adults only pool???

6. where do we dock in St Thomas? Charlotte Amalie?

7. any must sees or must do's?

8. how would you describe the level of service? i dont need my butt kissed but one thing i loved about RCCL is the employees really seemed to go out of their way to be nice to you and smile and say hi.

9. how is the food at the buffet and the main dining room??

10. for those who have also sailed on RCCL how does it compare? i have heard its about the same or maybe a bit better. we loved RCCL and were not big fans of NCL.

 

thanks so much!

1. There are vegetarian selections available on the MDR menu. Also talk with your section Maitre'D - we were on one cruise where they prepared really good Indian vegetarian dishes, not on the menu.

2> Yes they cater to individual diets - see the Cruise Answer book for details.

4. Kids Club - they have great facilities and program onboard.

5. Adults pool - besides the one at the stern, there is a pool next to the Spa, below the Sanctuary which is labeled adults only.

7. Catch some of the street entertainment in the Atrium.

8. Service on the Emerald Princess was the best we've ever had. Crews change, but there is a high standard for service.

9. We find the food very good.

[marypat01]

sorry for the newbie questions but am sailing on Princess for the first time in March with my entire family. have cruised 3 times before but never on Princess. we will be on the Emereld Princess

 

1. is there a good variety of vegetarian options in both the buffett and the main dining room? ............ LOTS of veggies - as already said, communicate special dietary needs. If you have gone through a travel agent, be sure they are communicating any special needs.

2. do they cater to people with different eating requirements? (ie no dairy, no meat, etc etc etc)

3. what is a coffee card, how much is it, and what exactly does it get me? ...........I was on the Emerald November 2008 and April 2009. I ws able to get regular coffee always, even in the little cafe's and the coffeee card was only used for specialty coffees.

4. how are the kids club (or whatever Princess might call it) activities? my 2 nephews 8 & 10 will be with us. ....... I always saw the kids involved in some type of activity. There is also a game room

5. is there a quiet adults only pool??? .....Yes, there is also a Sanctuary. It is an extra daily charge if you wish to use it, but it is quiet and VERY nice.

6. where do we dock in St Thomas? Charlotte Amalie?

7. any must sees or must do's? .........The best shopping is usually St Thomas. I do not know which other islands you are going to, so check on line. My wife and I enjoyed them all.

8. how would you describe the level of service? i dont need my butt kissed but one thing i loved about RCCL is the employees really seemed to go out of their way to be nice to you and smile and say hi. .........Done RCCL - hmm, close call, but I am sticking to Princess for now

9. how is the food at the buffet and the main dining room?? ......... always good. lots of fruits, breads and salads

10. for those who have also sailed on RCCL how does it compare? i have heard its about the same or maybe a bit better. we loved RCCL and were not big fans of NCL.

 

thanks so much!

 

 

see above quotes

[Tohna]

I would take Princess over RCCL any day. We sailed on RC last year and were very disappointed. The ship was beautiful (RC Explorer of the Seas) but the food was only fair, dining room and buffet. The wait staff were not very professional and the room steward hardly smiled or talked to us until the end of the cruise (when they get their tips).

 

This is only my experience as I know many people who sail RC and would not change, but we have sailed, Carnival, NCL, RCCL and Princess and we will always come back to Princess.

 

I am sure you will not be disappointed. :D

[UtterCaro]

do they cater to people with different eating requirements? (ie no dairy, no meat, etc etc etc)

 

I can give you some extra firsthand experience on this one. I chose flexible dining on one of my Crown Princess (sister ship) crossings, and happened to be seated with the same woman two nights who was restricted to a gluten-free (celiac) diet. She had informed the maitre d' beforehand, but I thought she was taking a risk that she wouldn't get a full meal in the dining room if she couldn't eat what was offered on the menu. Was I ever wrong! The maitre d' came over both nights and made sure the waiters knew her restrictions, knew which meats and vegetables were safe for her, made alternate suggestions, etc. He couldn't have been more gracious about it.

 

Caro

[Cruisin' Chick]

About five years ago, after a "borderline" high choles. test result, I selected the low fat option on my hubby's portion of the cruise personalizer on the princess.com website. You should fill out the CP anyway, so that's the first place to indicate any dietary restrictions. If you have an absolutely mandatory dietary restriction (severe allergies, gluten-free, etc.), then you should fax in a special request to Princess Corporate. If you can't find out the info on the princess website, maybe someone here will give it.

 

With my husband, the head waiter came over every night with the next day's dinner menu. Whatever he selected was prepared without extra fats and served to him (once the waiter was a bit embarrassed to discover some other waiter grabbed the plate by accident so she had to order a replacement). For our next cruise, I asked if he wanted to do that again, and he said no. But he's good about ordering the right food anyway. And Princess does indicates the healthier options with a symbol on the menu. And there's always vegetarian options.

 

I would guess it's easier to handle any allergy matters in the traditional dining room as the waitstaff does get to know you. And unless the buffet has become better about labeling the food, you may want to become careful there. I had once prepared a plate of Asian Stir Fry in the Horizon Court and almost started eating it before spotting the tiny shrimps, which I'm extremely allergic to. I did make a comment on the comment card about this as there was no mention of shrimp on that little sign.

 

As for the kids' program, the way it works is that when you first get to your cabin, there will be a Shockwave packet for your nephews (I'm guessing they both will be in that group). A parent (or guardian -- if you're taking your nephews, you should make sure you get written parental consent) needs to sign up the boys at the mandatory meeting. The boys should go too to meet the counselors and the other kids.

 

The packet will have a day-by-day listing of the activities. Sometimes the schedule changes, but it'll give an idea of what to expect. If there are fewer kids onboard (this may be before spring break for many school districts), there could be fewer activities. There will be at least one kids' dinner in the buffet...one side will be closed for a "private party." After dinner, the counselors will bring the kids to the fun zone for the evening activities.