Princess Secrets they Don't Tell You

[PonyPair]

Last fall DH and I took a weekend trip from Vancouver to LA. We went to the chefs table the night before disembarking, where I was given the customary rose. The dinner had been fab, and the rose was lovely. I wanted to keep it as a memento so walked off the ship in LA with it. I was pulled aside at the inspection station. I volunteered to toss my rose, but I was asked to just wait for a supervisor. We waited a few moments for a senior inspector to come and do a VERY thorough inspection of my one rose. He looked at each leaf, gently tapped the head on a pice of white paper, peered between the petals, he rolled it gently on the counter, inspected the stem, and the vial of water it was in. I think it was about 10 min before he handed the single rose back to me with a smile. It was pretty funny to watch the process and I have no idea why they went through the trouble. I would have never had the patience (and I'm sure the same for the inspectors) if that had been a bouquet of flowers.

 

 

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I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?vve1l4

[contentsam]

Can you get free playing cards from the pursers desk like you can Carnival?

 

Any tips on "don't miss" things?

We were on the Crown the end of Jan, 2012 and on the Ruby the first week of Feb. NO FREE PLAYING CARDS. We were told we had to buy them.

[TipsyT]

We were on the Crown the end of Jan, 2012 and on the Ruby the first week of Feb. NO FREE PLAYING CARDS. We were told we had to buy them.

 

On the Coral last week you could buy used playing cards at the casino for $1 per pack. They had a special one day where you got 6 packs for $5. We had already bought our before that though (needed them to play Hand and Foot). Which leads me to one of my "Secrets"....

 

On our Coral cruise the card room was often packed with people playing all kinds of card games. We found one foursome playing Hand and Foot in partners. That was new to us so we got the rules verbally and tried it out. So much fun and so much quicker than the way we usually play. So check out what others are playing in the card room. You might just pick up a new "favorite" game to take back home.

[cruzer0415]

Thanks for all the "secrets". As an elite member and cruising April 6, 2013 I have plenty of time to soke up all the secrets.

[mr green]

We were on the Crown the end of Jan, 2012 and on the Ruby the first week of Feb. NO FREE PLAYING CARDS. We were told we had to buy them.

 

On NCL years ago the 'Free Cards' were made in India, and this it the truth, they could only be used for 2 hours, the corners would crack and fall off. One deck that we had, only had 51 cards

 

john

[mr green]

We were on the Crown the end of Jan, 2012 and on the Ruby the first week of Feb. NO FREE PLAYING CARDS. We were told we had to buy them.

 

I will have my own form of protest. We always bring cards with us, but on our next cruise I will pack a couple of decks from HAL! If any staff member protests I will give them up, but only in exchange for free Princess cards!:cool:

 

john

[tere247]

On the Coral last week you could buy used playing cards at the casino for $1 per pack. They had a special one day where you got 6 packs for $5. We had already bought our before that though (needed them to play Hand and Foot). Which leads me to one of my "Secrets".....

 

On the Crown last March, and on the Caribbean Princess last October, we had to pay $2.00 per deck in the casino, but they did include 2 jokers. I also got them in green and black. In the past, the $1.00 decks had no jokers.

 

I also saw no 6 for $5.00 specials. My friends appreciate the cards (for our weekly game of Spite and Malice) and the mugs I bring back for them. I would have taken advantage of that.

 

While in Aruba, we visited the Crystal Casino. They gave us each 2 unopened decks of cards. When I asked how much they were, they said no charge.:D

[Mapu]

I don't know if you would be able to bring the flowers on board. I do know that you are prohibited from boarding with flowers or taking flowers purchased on board off the ship on Caribbean voyages. It's a customs thing so it could vary based on itinerary.

 

We have often bought flowers in ports to bring onboard. On cruises that leave from Ft.Lauderdale we have even brought on orchids in pots. On our last transatlantic our orchid was still in perfect bloom and left it with the port lecturer who was continuing on.

[travellerjoe1]

I have been reading the secrets and only have gotten to page 8 but thought I would post some of the things we have found to be helpful.

We always travel with a portable scale to weigh the luggage at the end of the cruise. If you do not have, ask the room steward to borrow one and he'll bring one to your room. Also they have the scales for sale in the gift shop.

For the laundry, we use Purex 3 in 1 sheets. there is soap as well as fabric softener in them. It saves packing or buying laundry detergent. The sheets pack really well. They are a bit thicker than a fabric softener sheet.

Rather than going to the purser's desk to get our key cards punched, we pack a single hole punch. Doesn't take up any room and saves having to stand in line.

On our last cruise, Sept. 2012, there was talk that the coffee cards were going to have an expiry date. How long that date was going to be from time of purchase, we have no idea. I think too many people were leaving one spot unpunched on the card and using it to get regular coffee and tea at the International Cafe.

If you like shrimp like I do, check out the buffet upstairs the day you embark. We have found they have a HUGE bowl of shrimp that you can have as much as you want. :D If the shrimp is not there, then we head to the dining room. :)

Lynda from SW Ontario, Canada

[Denali2003]

I have been reading the secrets and only have gotten to page 8 but thought I would post some of the things we have found to be helpful.

We always travel with a portable scale to weigh the luggage at the end of the cruise. If you do not have, ask the room steward to borrow one and he'll bring one to your room. Also they have the scales for sale in the gift shop.

For the laundry, we use Purex 3 in 1 sheets. there is soap as well as fabric softener in them. It saves packing or buying laundry detergent. The sheets pack really well. They are a bit thicker than a fabric softener sheet.

Rather than going to the purser's desk to get our key cards punched, we pack a single hole punch. Doesn't take up any room and saves having to stand in line.

On our last cruise, Sept. 2012, there was talk that the coffee cards were going to have an expiry date. How long that date was going to be from time of purchase, we have no idea. I think too many people were leaving one spot unpunched on the card and using it to get regular coffee and tea at the International Cafe.

If you like shrimp like I do, check out the buffet upstairs the day you embark. We have found they have a HUGE bowl of shrimp that you can have as much as you want. :D If the shrimp is not there, then we head to the dining room. :)

 

Lynda from SW Ontario, Canada

Yes, the coffee cards are now only good for the cruise that you are on. Just like the soda "card" stickers. Where do you get your Purex 3-in-1 sheets? I have looked at 2 different Wal-Marts and they don't have them.

 

Shrimp bowl? Is that in the Horizon Court during Embarkation day? Or is it out on an outside deck (by the pool)?

 

One secret I read on here last year and even tried it out. They say if there is something that you want that is not on the menu, you can ask for it. It might take a little extra time to make it, but you can get it. WELL I tried that. Didn't work out so well. There was a pasta dish that was on the Horizon Court that I liked. I ordered it in the dining room. I got a nasty look from the waiter. He had to go ask the maitre' d, he in turn had to ask the Chef. After about 10 minutes, the waiter came back and said (with a not so nice tone) we can, but it will take a while to make it. I said fine. He walked away with an annoyed look on his face. WELL, when I got my pasta dish, it was COVERED in Cheyenne Pepper!!!! I hate cheyenne pepper or any thing real spicy. I didn't want to send it back, because it was a special order. I ate it, VERY SLOWLY and tried to scrap off as much pepper as I could. I guess they were "teaching me a lesson" - don't order anything special - unless you give them a few hours notice. There are some things you can special order and you have to give a 24 hr notice.

[mrspaper]

I get my Purex things from the supermarket

 

The head waiter's request that you order things that aren't on the menu a day in advance.

[Arizona-Cruising]

As far the laundry soap, yes the 3in ones are great and easy. I have seen them at Walgreens, walmarts and other stores, ask a clerk they dont always stand out and you may of missed them.

 

Special requests at Dinner I asked for fruit and cheese plate (ws trying to avoid the dreaded bread bowl) to make room for desert..haha

 

So then to our surprise each night we recieved cheese and fruit with out asking.

[TipsyT]

You can totally ask for AND GET anything you want in the dining room but you need to ask for it the night before you want it. The head waiter was more than happy to arrange escargot and crab legs for us on a special order and we could have had it every night if we wanted by simply asking for it the night before. You can't really expect a kitchen that large and busy to be able to do special orders immediately upon request. It just doesn't work that way but by all means feel free to ask away for the next night's meal. Princess is VERY accommodating.

[melina]

We just returned from a 10-day Alaskan cruisetour on the Island Princess and found several of the above tips/hints/suggestions very helpful! Here are comments on what worked well for us:

1) We loved the tip about having the room card on a lanyard, so we brought lanyards from home and after boarding and then finding our room, we headed right down to the Passenger Services Desk and had them punch a hole in our room card, then placed it on our lanyard. We wore the lanyard almost the entire time we were on the ship and it was great having it always right-at-hand when needed. We didn’t have to search our pockets or wallets for the card and that was a plus!

2) We brought an extension cord and used that for charging our electronics, plus I had brought along a small electric alarm clock (there are no clocks in the room) as I tend to wake up frequently during the night and didn’t want to have to hassle with finding the time on my cel phone, so having the extension cord came in really handy for that.

3) We found the extra outlet behind the TV so that was great knowing it was there if we needed it.

4) We brought our larger digital camera with changeable lenses, which was great for taking awesome pictures, but having a smaller point-and-shoot camera came in handy on those rainy days when we didn’t want to haul out the larger camera.

5) A couple of days before our cruiseI had read about some Princess beds not being very comfortable and that egg-crate mattresses were available on a first-come first-served basis, so I called Princess and requested one. When we got to our room, I mentioned it to our cabin steward (as it wasn’t on the bed when we arrived) and later that evening we had one.

6) There were plenty of hangers in our room, so we didn’t have to ask for more, but we did ask for a top sheet for the bed. We loved that hint, too.

7) As I am a Diet Coke fan, I purchased the soda package and was happy to have my Diet Coke fix every day, all day. To me it was well worth the purchase price. I used my soda mug most of the time, but there were also times I got a large soda since it contained more than the mug would hold.

8) My husband drinks regular coffee and at the buffet they only have regular coffee mugs. He would have liked to have brought a travel mug from home so that he could fill up his travel mug and bring it back to the room, plus keep the coffee hot for a longer time.

9) Although I did bring a couple of suction hooks to hang things up in the bathroom if needed, since we didn’t use the hot tub or pool, and didn’t need to hang anything up to dry, we didn’t end up using them at all.

10) If you have a hairstyle that heavily relies on styling it with a hairdryer, consider bringing one from home. The hairdryer in the room is adequate, but that’s about it.

11) If you’re doing the cruisetour, make sure you carefully read about the luggage information specifically regarding when you switch from land to ship or vice versa. Our travel agent did not forewarn us about how our luggage would be handled and thankfully I read it and therefore was prepared for how that was going to pan out. You can read about it here under “Luggage”:

http://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/cruisetours/cruisetours_alaska.jsp

12) Although we did not purchase any internet packages, we brought along our laptop and downloaded the pictures from the cameras on a regular basis so that we had a backup of the pictures should anything have happened to the cameras.

13) If you can do a flightseeing tour of Mt McKinley, make sure to do so--it was absolutely breathtaking and awe-inspiring, and an incredible way to end a fantastic trip!

 

I'm curious...What is a lanyard?

[TipsyT]

I'm curious...What is a lanyard?

 

It's a doohickey you wear around your neck to hold you key card. Like this:

 

[labatsman]

I'm curious...What is a lanyard?

 

A lot of cruisers attach their cruise card to a lanyard which you wear around your neck,You can get yours punched at the pursers desk or the gift shop

here is wikipedis defintion

A lanyard may refer to a rope or cord worn around the neck or wrist to carry an object.

[SeaLaRae]

CVS carries Purex. I use them all the time - detergent & fabric softener all in one no mess,

 

Sharon

[sportsmum]

Butternut1 - DARN YOU! DARN YOU! DARN YOU! I am suppose to be looking into the Star Princess in August and I have been feeding your fish for 15 minutes!!!!

 

I want that- where did you get it, please. :)

 

Edit - never mind, I found it!

[butternut1]

Butternut1 - DARN YOU! DARN YOU! DARN YOU! I am suppose to be looking into the Star Princess in August and I have been feeding your fish for 15 minutes!!!!

 

I want that- where did you get it, please. :)

 

:D it is addicting, isn't it? Those little boogers just keep on eating and eating. :D OK, just go to the upper left hand corner of the fish box and click. It should bring you to the site where you can download the fish. You get to pick out the color you want the fish to be, etc. . Pretty cool.

[Memargi]

HAL allows wine too.

 

 

Theo

 

Disney Cruise line allows you to bring wine on board:D

[Mulan2]

CVS carries Purex. I use them all the time - detergent & fabric softener all in one no mess,

 

Sharon

 

Hi there! New to this board but not to cruising. Finding this thread really interesting.

As for the Purex sheets I saw from another thread that they were being discontinued! I went to the supermarket the other day and couldn't find them. These were the best. So easy to pack and don't have to pay for those overpriced little boxes of detergent. Anyway, a few other brands are selling individual pods either filled with liquid laundry detergent or powder. I got a bag of the Arm and Hammer pods. Best of all they have an offer to try it free. There's a sticker on the bag for a rebate up to $9.99. We'll be trying these out next month when we go to our timeshare. Sorry to go off track but thought I let others know.:)

[mrspaper]

Hi there! New to this board but not to cruising. Finding this thread really interesting.

As for the Purex sheets I saw from another thread that they were being discontinued! I went to the supermarket the other day and couldn't find them. These were the best. So easy to pack and don't have to pay for those overpriced little boxes of detergent. Anyway, a few other brands are selling individual pods either filled with liquid laundry detergent or powder. I got a bag of the Arm and Hammer pods. Best of all they have an offer to try it free. There's a sticker on the bag for a rebate up to $9.99. We'll be trying these out next month when we go to our timeshare. Sorry to go off track but thought I let others know.:)

Good to know. I'll try to google it

 

Just went on their website. 3 in 1 still shows as a product

[Pocahontas FW]

I just found this thread - some great stuff. Thank you! I am particularly thankful for post #1163, which organized the compilation in #1162. And someone also pointed out that if you click on the post number, you get an easily printable format.

 

I started reading the thread backward and ran out of steam on p. 57, so I'm hoping I didn't miss anything that wasn't in post #1163!

 

A couple of my own - not specific to Princess:

I take digital photos of the dining room menus when they are posted, so I can zoom in and peruse them at my leisure. This thread says that the whole week's menus are in a binder at the entrance to the DR, but I don't know if one could get hold of it long enough to photograph it!

 

Cruise ship coverage feature for Verizon cell phones (and probably other providers). Sign up in advance, but just pay as you use.

 

Before you leave - e-mail pdfs of your passports, credit cards, etc. to yourself (and to a family member?) That way you can retrieve them from anywhere you can go online. As a former boater, I think I also had good luck waterproofing papers by spraying them with a polyurethane spray. (Not that I'm planning on abandoning ship, but I'm just sayin'.)

 

If you use a GPSr onshore, use the Where Am I? feature to save any place you want to be able to get back to - like the pier, or where you parked your rental car.

 

Barbara

[Tedferg]

Great stuff - BTW post 1163 is on page 59. (if you hover mouse pointer over page number it list post numbers for that page)

[Smokeyham]

Great stuff - BTW post 1163 is on page 59. (if you hover mouse pointer over page number it list post numbers for that page)

 

Thanks for that hint, I have been trying to get back to that very well organized list!