Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Review of August 7-14th NE/Canada on the CB- very long

bonnieg

By bonnieg,
in Princess Cruises

Recommended Posts

bonnieg

bonnieg

Posted
Posted

We just returned from the first NE/Canada cruise of the season and had a wonderful time! This was my 2nd Princess cruise, the first being on the Emerald in the Med a few years ago. I traveled with my DH and DS who is 15yrs old.

 

Embarkation: We drove from our home on Long Island arriving at the ship at 11:30am. There were no lines and we dropped off our luggage, parked the car and were through security and check-in in 15 minutes. The first thing I did was call dining to sign up for the chef’s table then preceded to my cabin- C752. My son had the inside across the hall C746. Our luggage arrived 5 minutes later.

 

Cabin: C752 is the corner aft cabin that so many people rave about. It is very private and has a large covered balcony. I have only sailed in aft cabins. My previous Emerald cruise I was in B748. I liked the Caribe deck better because the balcony was larger and it was more private because the cabins next to it were suites. It worked out well to put our son in the inside cabin and it came to less money than a minisuite. Runiel was our cabin steward and he was wonderful, anticipating our every need. I didn’t feel any vibration. At times I smelled a sewage/diesel smell, but I don’t know if it was just the aft or other cabins that might have smelled it. It didn’t bother me.

 

Ship: Being that I was already on the Emerald, I didn’t have any problems navigating my way around the ship. It is huge and at times there were problems of crowd control, more on that later. I won’t go into details of the CB because there are already numerous threads about the ship. I think that more people are interested in hearing about the ports.

 

Food: After checking out our cabin we went to the dining room for our first lunch. It was a wonderful way to start our cruise. The menu was terrific and they even had one of their delicious soufflés for desert. I found the food to be very good through out the cruise. If there was something special I wanted I spoke to the head waiter. Even though I was in anytime dining, my requests were always met no matter who the waiter was or where I was sitting. We usually ate around 8:30 and never had to wait for a table.

 

The first night in the dining room there was a power failure and all the lights went out for a few seconds. It was a scary moment. The captain immediately went on the speakers to explain that one of the 6 generators blew out and we will not be sailing at full speed and might expect delays. After all the problems I have read on cruise critic about what can happen on cruises I envisioned missed ports or an aborted cruise. Fortunately, we only had a few minor delays and the rest was smooth sailing.

 

Chef’s table: The chef’s table was held Monday night after our day in Boston. This was the highlight of our cruise and was well worth it. Later on I’ll scan the menu and post it. The food and wines were unbelievable! It was a very special night.

 

Entertainment: We spent most of our nights listening to the piano player, Martin Kaye, at Crooners in the Piazza. He was fantastic! To me, he was the heart of soul of the ship. I think they should put him in one of the larger venues of the ship. It was always crowded with over 100 people standing to watch him. Even the last night when he did an Elton John tribute in the Explorer’s lounge, there were many people standing around who couldn’t get seats. We passed on the shows because of our late dining. We liked to relax at the Terrace pool after our days in port. We went to MUTS a few nights and saw Blindside and Invictus.

 

Ports: Newport- We arrived in Newport at around 9:30am when it was supposed to be 7am. We picked up our tender ticket at 10:15. It took over an hour to get on the tender and another 20 minutes ride on the tender. We didn’t set foot in Newport till 11:45. The onboard time was 3:30 for a 4:00 departure. This didn’t leave us much time in Newport. We walked to the tennis hall of fame then had lunch at the Moorings Restaurant on the water and walked around Newport. The line was also huge for the tenders back to ship. They had 6 tenders running. Newport was very pretty and the weather was bright and sunny like it was for everyday of this cruise. We really lucked out with the weather.

 

Boston- We arrived on time at 10am. We took a taxi for $22 to Fenway Park and made the 11am tour. This was a fun tour especially for my DH and DS. It was very informative and was great to spend some time in this historic ball park. There’s not too many of them left. From the ballpark we took the green line to Haymarket street to have lunch in the North end and walk the freedom trail a little. We also went to Fanuiel Hall and Quincy market then returned back to ship.

 

Bar Harbor- This was the prettiest port to sail in and out of. We arrived around 8 when it was supposed to be 7am. Because of the tender problem we had in Newport, I was one of the first off the ship. The tenders were much quicker in Bar Harbor probably because it was only a 10 minute ride and a quick turnaround. We prereserved a 2 ½ hour tour with Oli’s trolley to start at 10am. We picked up the tickets from an office right near the dock. This tour was excellent and the views were beautiful. I had my heart set on going to The Jordon Pond House for lunch. When we arrived back in Bar Harbor, we took the free #5 bus which stopped at this restaurant. The food and popovers were great in a beautiful setting overlooking Jordon Pond. I made this reservation before we left. On hindsight, we could have had a good meal at one of the restaurants in Bar Harbor to save some time. We had around an hour to walk around Bar Harbor before we took the tender back.

 

Saint John- Tour to St. Martins and drive the Fundy Trailway. We booked a car with Enterprise who picked us up from the port. Low tide that day was at 7:07am and I was a little worried we wouldn’t make St. Martins in time to walk the ocean floor. The ship arrived on time at 8am, but there was a long line to get off the ship. We exited the ship at 8:20 and it was after 9am by the time we rented the car and were on our way. We arrived in St. Martin at 9:45 and we were able to walk the ocean floor. The water was starting to trickle up though and our feet got wet. It is very rocky on the bottom and would suggest to wear water shoes or sandals if you go during off times. Walking barefoot is hard because of the slippery, rocky bottom. The tour buses arrived ½ hour after we were there and many people did not walk all the way to the caves because the water was rising. We took many pictures of St. Martins during this low tide. From St. Martin we drove the Fundy Trailway and all I can say is the drive and scenery were absolutely spectacular! Each lookout point has hiking trails and picnic tables. I wish I would have brought a picnic lunch with us. We returned back to St. Martin at 1:30 when it was high tide. We had lunch at the So’westerner which wasn’t that great. We took more pictures of St Martin during this high tide. It was neat seeing the fishing boats on the ocean floor then up in the water. We then drove back to Saint John and had time to walk around a little. It was another beautiful day and this was my favorite port.

 

Halifax- Peggys Cove and the Titanic Cemetery. Instead of being in port 9-6, it ended up being 10-6:30. All ship tour schedules were revised. We rented a car with Budget who said they would pick us up. I called them and they could not pick us up and we had to walk 20 min to get to them. Again there was a line to get off the ship. By time we picked up the car and were on our way it was around 11am. We drove to Peggy’s Cove which was quite picturesque. The drive there was very pretty with many lakes and small villages. Our original plan was to drive the coast a little to Mahone Bay, but time was getting away from us and after we had lunch, we left Peggy’s Cove to go to the cemetery. Before we left I printed out a list of the victims of the Titanic who are buried there. The list stated who they were, where they lived and how old they were. I’m glad I had this list because it made it more interesting seeing the headstones and knowing who they were. After the cemetery we drove back to Halifax, returned the car and went to the Maritime Museum then returned back to ship.

 

Teen Program-Remix, My son had a wonderful time in the teen program. There were activities planned, but most of the kids just hanged out talking to each other. This was a nice group of teens and my son made lots of new friends.

 

Overall, this was a wonderful cruise with no complaints. Thank you to fellow cruise critics who posted on the NE/Canada boards to help with my port planning. I will be happy to answer any questions you might have. I also have most of the patters and if anyone has a specific question I can look it up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
njdevil08

njdevil08

Posted
Posted

It's great to hear about your cruise as we'll be leaving for the same cruise on Saturday. I know it's a lot to ask for, but if you could scan the patters, that would be absolutely wonderful!

 

Two questions for now, though I'm sure I'll think of more! ;)

1) Did you experience any of the AC problems in your room or in public areas that we've been hearing so much about? If not, did you hear anything about it from others onboard?

2) I know you talked about crowds going on/off in ports, but did the ship feel crowded onboard? Did you have problems getting a seat in the theater, a pool lounger, etc.?

 

Thanks again!

-NJDEVIL

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Yukonbear

Yukonbear

Posted
Posted
It's great to hear about your cruise as we'll be leaving for the same cruise on Saturday. I know it's a lot to ask for, but if you could scan the patters, that would be absolutely wonderful!

 

Two questions for now, though I'm sure I'll think of more! ;)

1) Did you experience any of the AC problems in your room or in public areas that we've been hearing so much about? If not, did you hear anything about it from others onboard?

2) I know you talked about crowds going on/off in ports, but did the ship feel crowded onboard? Did you have problems getting a seat in the theater, a pool lounger, etc.?

 

Thanks again!

-NJDEVIL

 

I was on the same cruise with Bonnie - if fact we shared the pick up ride in Saint John.

 

I heard no complaints about the AC and although our room was not overly cool I attributed that to the fact I often had the balcony door open.

 

I did not find the boat crowded.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
lgleason73

lgleason73

Posted
Posted

Thank you for the wonderful review! I'm wondering if there is information in the Patters regarding post debarkation tours in NYC? Our flight doesn't leave until 6:00pm and we are looking for a tour with drop off at LGA. I'm assuming that Princess is offering them.

 

Thanks!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Kasupe

Kasupe

Posted
Posted

Bonnie:

 

I will be leaving on this cruise on Aug 21st. Could you tell me the details about renting cars in St. John and Halifax. Did you book them on the internet or phone before you left. What were the cost of the daily rental? Was it easy to get around with the cars? Thanks so much for your detailed report.

 

Karen

Link to comment
Share on other sites
bonnieg

bonnieg

Posted
  • Author
Posted

NJDevil, We didn't have any air conditioning problems and I didn't hear any complaints. The only times the ship felt crowded was getting off the ship in ports which is understandable. We only used the Terrace pool and had no problem getting a chair. We didn't go into the theater.

 

Alli cruiser, We took over 600 pictures. I'm now in the process of sorting through and editing them. I'll try to post some soon.

 

lgleasen, Yes, there were tours offered with drop offs either at JFK or LGA. I didn't save the sheet, but I remember they toured the city, one of the sights being the world trade center site.

 

I still need to go through the patters and see what days I have. I also quickly grabbed what was in my son's room on the way out the door. I'll see what I can do.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
bonnieg

bonnieg

Posted
  • Author
Posted
Bonnie:

 

I will be leaving on this cruise on Aug 21st. Could you tell me the details about renting cars in St. John and Halifax. Did you book them on the internet or phone before you left. What were the cost of the daily rental? Was it easy to get around with the cars? Thanks so much for your detailed report.

 

Karen

In Saint John Alamo and National are the closest car rentals. Enterprise will pick you up. I booked Enterprise online and paid $55. I did a mapquest before I left, but the car rental will give you directions. It was a very easy drive to St. Martin and the Fundy Trailway.

 

In Halifax, Avis is the closest car rental and a short walk. They were sold out and I booked Budget online for $46. They told me they would pick me up, but they couldn't. It's a good thing I did a mapquest from the port to their address. At least I knew where I was going. If Avis is sold out then maybe try Enterprise. The are usually good about picking you up. I did a mapquest to Peggy's Cove then to Fairlawn Cemetary(Titanic) and back to Halifax.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
bonnieg

bonnieg

Posted
  • Author
Posted

rdsqrl, the weather was beautiful every day, sunny, low humidity. We lucked out. It started getting cooler in Saint John and Halifax. Cooler was 65-70. It felt great after the hot summer we're having in NY.

 

LGleasen, I found the post shore excursion info and scanned it. I tried attaching it to this reply, but the writing came out too small. I used the attachment feature in the reply. Can anyone tell me how to add pictures to my post? I have all the patters and it would help if I knew how to post them:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites
njdevil08

njdevil08

Posted
Posted
Can anyone tell me how to add pictures to my post? I have all the patters and it would help if I knew how to post them:D

You're the best Bonnie, thanks for all of your help!

You have a few options, if you have a webshots account, you can upload the JPEG's of the patters to webshots and from their literally copy and paste the pictures into a reply, or you could post the link to where the picture is hosted on webshots using the insert image feature.

 

Or, under additional options, scroll to manage attachments and attach the files that way if they're saved on your computer. Hope this helps!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Yukonbear

Yukonbear

Posted
Posted
Thank you for the wonderful review! I'm wondering if there is information in the Patters regarding post debarkation tours in NYC? Our flight doesn't leave until 6:00pm and we are looking for a tour with drop off at LGA. I'm assuming that Princess is offering them.

 

Thanks!

 

 

My wife and daughter did the post debarkation tour. They left about 9:15am and arrived at JFK about 3pm. We were in a bit of a spot as I thought I could check my bags on the ship right to the airport like you can in Ft Lauderdale (you pay a fee on the boat and it is not all airlines)

 

They enjoyed the tour and there was time to stop for lunch (on your own). The tour was pricey - $79 but they did see several good locations including Ground Zero.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Kasupe

Kasupe

Posted
Posted

Boniie:

 

I have another question for you. What is the Chef's table for dinner? Is there an extra fee for this?

 

I hope you don't mind but I may have more questions this week, as we are getting really close to our trip.

 

Thanks,

Karen

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • Hurricane Zone 2024
      • Cruise Insurance Q&A w/ Steve Dasseos of Tripinsurancestore.com June 2024
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...