will773 Posted January 6, 2013 #226 Share Posted January 6, 2013 (edited) Your review is awesome! It's so funny and with lots of pictures too, just the way I like it! :) Edited January 6, 2013 by will773 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strummer Posted January 6, 2013 #227 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Thank you for your great review - It was lovely to see all the different areas on the ship and it has renewed my excitement about my upcoming cruise in August!! Thank you again!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare A&L_Ont Posted January 6, 2013 #228 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Many thanks again for another wonderful review. Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildcatfish Posted January 6, 2013 #229 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Great review! It looks and sounds like a great cruise. Thanks for adding the photos of the Animal Kingdom Lodge! It reminds me of our Christmas vacation there a few years ago. Very unique decorations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms Belvedere Posted January 6, 2013 #230 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Great review and fantastic pictures. Loved reading about your trip! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmberTeka Posted January 6, 2013 #231 Share Posted January 6, 2013 (edited) i really enjoyed your review. You and your sister are as cute as buttons. Your Mom and Dad seem like total winners. there were a few things I wondered about. On Sea Days did you try any of the trivia activities or such? On the Princess ships we have been on, they are very competitive and very well attended. Many bragging rights to the winners. Also the ball room dancing..the Rumba..the cha cha cha..other games..cooking demonstrations..did not any of that appeal to you? Also, your family seems to be blessed with prosperity. I wonder why you did not take ship tours? We have always paid a little more to be on tours where we feel safe, and the buses, vans...are certified safe. We did one independent one in the Bahamas, and long story short, when we finally got back to the ship..we swore no independent tours for us ever again. If my tour guide..had gone to the home of another guide..and an argument over money had broken out..I would have jumped out of the car and started running. Your review..besides convincing me to book the Island Princess for January of 2014...also convinced me...................stick with the Carnival Shore Trips. Hope you have a great time in Italy. Eat a lot of good food..see some marvelous sights. If your family has not been to Cureso so..Aruba...Barbados...all of the Dutch Antilles..I bet you would enjoy that ten day Emerald Cruise. The new dress...the Grecian Draped Ivory one...really a pretty dress. It was modest..but still flattered your figure a lot. Good Choice! Edited January 6, 2013 by AmberTeka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix cruiser Posted January 6, 2013 #232 Share Posted January 6, 2013 This doesn't deserve to be simple called a great review, it is an awesome travelogue. If a career in architecture doesn't work out you should consider being a travel writer! I know it pales by comparison, but here is a link to my traditional Cruise Critic format review of this same cruise. http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=113258. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix cruiser Posted January 6, 2013 #233 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Forgot to add, magnificent photos- better than many professionals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trojangirl90066 Posted January 6, 2013 #234 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Thank you for the great review. We leave one month from today and your review has really given me an insiders look at this cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LittleMissMagic Posted January 6, 2013 Author #235 Share Posted January 6, 2013 (edited) i really enjoyed your review. You and your sister are as cute as buttons. Your Mom and Dad seem like total winners. there were a few things I wondered about.On Sea Days did you try any of the trivia activities or such? On the Princess ships we have been on, they are very competitive and very well attended. Many bragging rights to the winners. Also the ball room dancing..the Rumba..the cha cha cha..other games..cooking demonstrations..did not any of that appeal to you? Yeah, I played some trivia but found that I was significantly disadvantaged being under 30. Other things like the galley tour and towel demonstrations I've done on other cruises, so I wasn't really jumping to do it. I also thought that they put things at bad times. I would be on the pool deck for pool games, then they'd have something inside. I'm not going to go to an indoor activity on my swimwear. Also, your family seems to be blessed with prosperity. I wonder why you did not take ship tours? We have always paid a little more to be on tours where we feel safe, and the buses, vans...are certified safe. We did one independent one in the Bahamas, and long story short, when we finally got back to the ship..we swore no independent tours for us ever again. That was the first time anything has gone really wrong for us, and I was never scared or worried that I wasn't going to get back on the ship. I like adventure. I don't like overpaying for excursions. The cruiseline pockets a sum of the money with their tours, and I'd rather give it straight to the locals. I'm also a procrastinator. I was very busy the last month of school preparing for final review, and I'm usually the one to research excursions in advance. So I just never got around to booking anything on advance. We actually tried to book a Panama Canal tour, but everything was sold out. If my tour guide..had gone to the home of another guide..and an argument over money had broken out..I would have jumped out of the car and started running. It's a good thing you book straight through the ship then. You wouldn't survive a horror movie! No matter the situation, I try to stay calm and think before I act. Taking off running could send a lot of negative messages - "I'm guilty!" "I'm scared!" "Shoot me!". In this situation it's you against everyone else... You're gonna outrun the guy in the car? You don't know where you are or how to get back to the ship! The best thing to do is put on your don't mess with me face and deal. Your review..besides convincing me to book the Island Princess for January of 2014...also convinced me...................stick with the Carnival Shore Trips. Hope you have a great time in Italy. Eat a lot of good food..see some marvelous sights. If your family has not been to Cureso so..Aruba...Barbados...all of the Dutch Antilles..I bet you would enjoy that ten day Emerald Cruise. We actually did a similar itinerary on the Serenade of the Seas, but it's one I enjoyed and would love to do again! The new dress...the Grecian Draped Ivory one...really a pretty dress. It was modest..but still flattered your figure a lot. Good Choice! Thank you very much! I tend to be more modest in clothing choices than my sister, so when I saw her cruise dresses, I freaked out that I wasn't sexy enough. So I went to the store in search of a plunging neckline, but I felt like a tramp. I was glad to find a dress that was stylish but modest and more mature looking. Edited January 6, 2013 by LittleMissMagic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joand452 Posted January 6, 2013 #236 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Wonderful review and photos, Victoria! It was good to get the perspective of someone who's cruised mostly on RCI. We've done more cruises on RCI, but three on Princess and are waffling about trying another Princess cruise (the California Coastal). Our last cruise on Ruby really put me off. Nothing specific, but the service wasn't nearly as good and friendly as on RCI. The Wheelhouse Lounge is beautiful on all ships, but all were smoking venues on the ships we were on, so we never went in (except for pub lunch one day). And Crooners was empty each night!! The entertainer was good, too (unlike some we've had on RCI; we steer clear then). I really liked most of the entertainment, especially those in Explorer's Lounge. We're bigger people and those seats in the main theater are narrow! RCI wins there! Thank you again for taking the time to take us along on your cruise. Looking forward to your next one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bermudiana Posted January 6, 2013 #237 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Thank you for the wonderful review! Your photos were fantastic and make me want to book a canal cruise for next year. Job well done :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caribill Posted January 6, 2013 #238 Share Posted January 6, 2013 The Wheelhouse Lounge is beautiful on all ships, but all were smoking venues on the ships we were on, so we never went in (except for pub lunch one day). And Crooners was empty each night!! The Wheelhouse has been smokefree for several years now. It depends on who the entertainer is, but on many of our Princess sailings the crowd at Crooners has overflowed into the walkways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojitoman Posted January 6, 2013 #239 Share Posted January 6, 2013 With such a great cruise review and some time in Italy on the horizon, any chance you will have an Italy travel blog posted any where??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCCC Posted January 6, 2013 #240 Share Posted January 6, 2013 With such a great cruise review and some time in Italy on the horizon, any chance you will have an Italy travel blog posted any where??? Great idea! I would love to read about your Italy travels (and live vicariously :p) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueridge20 Posted January 6, 2013 #241 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Thanks so much for your wonderful review!! We like Princess very much and prefer it, but we just returned from our first RCL cruise. We were on the 10 day Dec 14, Vision of the Seas. We enjoyed it, the itinerary was very good, and price better than 10 day on Emerald! :D I did see the negative comments and I think you seem like a wonderful young lady, very thoughtful and insightful. Hope you have a wonderful time in Italy, and look forward to reading your next review. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian99 Posted January 7, 2013 #242 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Thanks for the great review and amazing pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigboy209 Posted January 7, 2013 #243 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Princess gives chocolates at turn-down. Royal Caribbean stopped doing this several years ago. DSC_7004 by vshingl, on Flickr Let me guess..... your bed on the left and your sister's is the one on the right. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiamondDiva Posted January 7, 2013 #244 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Super job-thankS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlineMom Posted January 7, 2013 #245 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Loved your review and pictures! I appreciate you taking the time to put it all together. My kids are just 12 and 13 but the four of us love to travel together... I hope it continues - your family obviously still enjoys it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LittleMissMagic Posted January 7, 2013 Author #246 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Hello, everyone! I arrived in Italy today. Unfortunatley, my luggage did not. :( Our flight from Charlotte was delayed half an hour which gave us ten minutes to spring across the airport in DC, and our bags didn't make the plane. It's been a very stressful day of travel! If you'd like to follow along with my Italy adventures, my travel blog is www.victoriaonvacation.blogspot.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiseAdict218 Posted January 7, 2013 #247 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Love the review and excellent photos. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goodycruising Posted January 8, 2013 #248 Share Posted January 8, 2013 I almost get a big surprise if the luggage all arrives these days. We haven't travelled a lot, but the fail rate has been pretty high! Hope it gets to you pretty soon.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sea Legs Posted January 14, 2013 #249 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Really enjoyed your postings and pix. We are sailing the Island Princess in April so I am using one of your pix each day for my computer screen background! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sea Legs Posted February 15, 2013 #250 Share Posted February 15, 2013 Still enjoying posting a new pix from LittleMissMagic's photos each day to use as my background screen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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