The Best of the April/May TA Onboard Emerald Princess

[pandora518]

DH and I recently returned from the spring repositioning of the Emerald, which ended in Southampton. For us, this was the Best. Cruise. Ever. :) Here's why:

1. All time changes were effected at noon instead of at night. This was an experiment, suggested by the maitre d'hotel, to benefit the crew. As many of you know, most of the crew sleep in split shifts. Losing an hour each night can really adversely affect them. For many of them, changing times at noon meant a shorter workday and a longer night's sleep. We don't know whether there's a direct correlation or not, but this seemed to be the happiest ship at sea! Whatever affects the crew ultimately affects the pax, so everyone benefitted from this "experiment." I hope they implement it fleet-wide.
   
2. The captain was brilliant, witty, and approachable. We saw him out and about fairly often, but he was always on the bridge when he was needed. Our Aloha deck cabin wasn't too far from the bridge, and we could see him there during several port arrivals and/or departures.
   
3. The maitre d' wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty! We saw him greeting guests in the MDR, helping his staff put on a "Chef's Table" presentation, and even serving! We ran into him being helpful in the Crown Grill as well as the MDR. Sure, that gave him opportunities to assess his staff's performance and the satisfaction of the pax, but he was also really pitching in. Kudos to a wonderful maitre d'!
   
4. Cruise Director Kelvin Joy really lives up to his name. :D
   
5. Our bed really felt more comfortable! (The pillows, however, desperately need to be replaced.)
   
6. We actually found a few hot items on the breakfast room service menu!
   
7. Our cabin steward was fantastic. He was SO pleasant, caring, responsive, and respectful that we tipped him 3 times and nominated him for "consummate host." We're usually generous tippers, but 3x for one crew member was a first for us.
   
8. Not a single instance of norovirus! :)
   
9. GLORIOUS wx! I realize that Princess didn't provide that (the Floridians onboard did, they claimed LOL), but it was certainly a factor in our overall impression of the whole trip. It didn't even rain in Ireland!!!
   
10. Wonderful ports, for the most part. We absolutely loved Cobh, Dublin, and Zeebrugge, and Ponta Delgada was a pleasant place in which to break up the sea days. And we spent a week in London (including a day in Cornwall), and that was a wonderful week too. I'd do this trip again, frankly. (You can keep Paris, however. We should have done Normandy instead.)
    
11. The special production show "invented" near the end of the cruise! Amazing that the cast members could learn the songs, routines, and even languages in 3 days!
    
12. The "pub show" in Explorer's Lounge! SRO for good reason!!!
    
13. DJ Mat Davie. We only went to a couple of DJ-hosted events, but Mat was all over the ship, playing multiple roles and interacting with lots of pax. He was even a portly singing London bobbie in the "pub show!" Thanks for being so personable, Mat. :)
    
14. The young lady who warmly greeted MDR guests as they arrived. She was so helpful, sincerely happy, and remembered many of our names! She always understood and accommodated our ever-changing table requests.
    
15. The FOOD!!! MDR food was, for the most part, back to excellent. And we absolutely adore the international café. Vines, too! Vines became our go-to meeting place when we wanted to reconnect with pax we'd met at dinner or elsewhere.
    
16. Several private tours arranged by folks I "met" on the CC Roll Call board. We're convinced that no one else saw the Ireland that we experienced! Thanks to Cruising Sally and our irish guide!
    

I hope everyone else reading these forums has had or will have at least one such perfect Princess cruise!

 

Oh, I almost forgot to mention: the current wine policy was in effect, but it was managed via the honor system. We complied. Also, I occasionally bought a bottle onshore, and we declared that upon re-embarkation, but they were never taken away from us. It seemed to us that they were only taking hard liquor.

[Ferndale Girl]

Thank you for your nice, positive report. We're taking this next year so I was interested in what you had to say. Do you know the name of the tour company that you mentioned in Ireland???

[Susie51]

Thank you for your easy-to-read review. The time changing at noon is an interesting idea.

[Grammyluvs]

I love positive reviews. Especially ones regarding ships and cruises i have experienced. We did the TA/Baltic trip last May on the Emerald and felt the same way you did. Great cruise, great ship and even tho staff changes, great staff!!!

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the review, who was the Captain and MD?

[Pink-belle]

Thank you for the review. I like the idea of them changing the clocks at noon.

[PescadoAmarillo]

The Emerald Princess has always been in a class of its own. It's a very special ship, because of the officers, staff and crew.

[SusieKay]

Great report. We're also planning a London stay following our TA on the Royal next spring. I am completely overwhelmed when I look at London hotels (and the prices!) Any suggestions?

 

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[loma linda ca a & j]

Great report. We're also planning a London stay following our TA on the Royal next spring. I am completely overwhelmed when I look at London hotels (and the prices!) Any suggestions?

 

Sent from my YP-G70 using Forums mobile app

we read so many terrific reviews of luna simone & we booked

about a year ahead - stayed 5 nights - had a marvelous time -

the twin brothers / owners serve your breakfast every morning -

their staff has worked for them for years & are like family !!

 

bus 24 drops you off in front of hotel & picks you up across street -

it runs 24 hours & stops at lots of the important places in london !

 

our friends are staying there next week & booked it last summer

after we returned from our trip

 

looking forward to our next visit in a few years when we can book it again !;)

Edited May 16, 2014 by loma linda ca a & j

[lovevacadays]

Great review. I would love to hear more about your tours and tour guides in Ireland.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[pandora518]

Thank you for your nice, positive report. We're taking this next year so I was interested in what you had to say. Do you know the name of the tour company that you mentioned in Ireland???

Yes, it's My Irish Guide. He has a website. :)

[Ferndale Girl]

Yes, it's My Irish Guide. He has a website. :)

 

Thank you....I'll look him up.

[pandora518]

Thanks for the review, who was the Captain and MD?

Captain Nick Nash. He hails from Cornwall, England. We've been very lucky in that we've had extraordinary captains on several Princess cruises. Having worked for some wonderful leaders before I retired, I know firsthand that great leaders inspire their staffs to perform their best. I've no doubt that Captain Nash is largely responsible for the performance and attitude of his crew.

 

I'll look up the maitre d's name when I finish unpacking. :)

[pandora518]

Great report. We're also planning a London stay following our TA on the Royal next spring. I am completely overwhelmed when I look at London hotels (and the prices!) Any suggestions?

 

Sent from my YP-G70 using Forums mobile app

Start by listing your priorities: do you plan to try to walk to many of the attractions, or will you rely on the tubes, buses, or trains? Do you want a fairly stress-free visit, or are you willing to absorb some stress to save some money? We opted for less stress and bought a London Pass with Travel Card. Pricey, but well worth the freedom from fretting about every £5 we'd otherwise have spent to go one stop on the tube.

 

Then much of your decision is dependent upon how much you're comfortable spending for a room. London is one of the most expensive cities in the world. Have you stayed anywhere in Europe before? If not, be prepared for tiny rooms and elevators! But small rooms don't have to feel cramped. We stayed at the Park Grand in Kensington and the room was so well-engineered that we were quite comfortable.

 

We started by asking well-traveled friends and family for recommendations, then began reading reviews on Trip Advisor and Yelp. When looking at such reviews, eliminate the overly-gushing ones or any that are really superficial or vague ("Fantastic hotel! We loved it!" tells you nothing.) Also toss out any that were written by "grumpy Gus" who'll complain about anything and everything or who doesn't take responsibility for his own decisions and actions. Focus on those that have specific bits of useful information, e.g., "There was no tub but the shower was huge and included a rainshower, and the water was hot and plentiful."

 

Keep a browser tab open to a currency converter site so you'll know (at least for that day; exchange rates can be volatile) exactly what you'll be spending. You can usually book an "advance purchase" room at substantial savings, but it's non-refundable. Do you belong to any hotel rewards programs? If so and they have properties in London, call the rewards number directly and ask for their best deals, then check that against online pricing thru Expedia, hotels-dot-com, etc. If earning points is important to you, don't book thru the deep-discount sites. Just as an example: we were able to snag 2 nights FREE at the Hyatt regency Churchill because I have a Hyatt Visa card. We could never have afforded that room on our own, and getting the 2 nights free ANYWHERE was a key part of our overall trip budget. When I went online, it said there were no rewards rooms available. But I called the rewards number and they booked us right away. Also, the Park Grand (we were at the Kensington property) is a Shaftsbury property, which is not a US company so we weren't members. But I signed up when I booked the room, and that got us free bottled waters, a fruit basket, and an upgraded room.

 

London is a fabulous city! I know you'll enjoy it no matter where you stay. :) If I can be of further help, let me know.

[pandora518]

Great review. I would love to hear more about your tours and tour guides in Ireland.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Stephen, aka My Irish Guide, showed us HIS Dublin and Cork, rather than taking us to all the popular tourist spots. We ate in places he'd choose for himself and his friends, we stopped at photo-worthy spots off the beaten path, we spray-painted graffiti on Bono's wall in Dublin (Stephen supplied the paint!), we picked up a hitch-hiker on the way to Cork and he serenaded us for his "fare..." That said, we also visited the Guinness Storehouse, Blarney Castle, Jameson's, and other famous sites, by request. And Stephen pointed out many others along tha way. In one day, you can see and do only so much. I'm amazed at how much we did - and how much fun we had doing it all. Check out his website. He'll do whatever you want to do, and you can arrange for private or group tours. He'll also give you advice about other ways to see Ireland on your own.

[1prissydog]

If you are in Dublin.. you have to contact Stephan@myirishguide.com. It is the best tour you will ever have . we had a group of 30 from the Emerald Princess and it is a day we will never forget. Stephan kept us entertained and informed from the minute we were on the bus... with surprises around every corner.. we tagged a wall... paint supplied by Stephan in Dublin.. picked up a hitchhiker that sang irish ballads for us.. and he even called his mum and she sang on his speaker phone for us...He kept us laughing the whole day and so well informed about his wonderful country. Had us reserved for the number one pub for lunch a meal not to forget.... and the price is the lowest of any... if you get a group of 16 together from cruise critic.. it is less than 40 euros each for an all day tour.. check him out on tripadvisor... he has all 5 stars .. and by next year he will have enough reviews that he will be number one as he is in my book..he was the talk of the ship!!!!!

[JustinPlusLauren]

Loved reading your review, happy you had a great time, and we also love the Emerald Princess!!!!

[soakedbythesea]

If our Oct TA to Houston has changes of time during the day, hope the staff and people printing the daily know about it. They tried it out at noon on one TA a few years back and it was such a screw up that after awhile it just got funny, trying to figure if the schedule was for old time, new time, etc. They finally told us "Never Again" would they change time at noon. For one thing it meant there was a shortened time between lunch and dinner times, but the biggest thing was activities that were normally at 1PM, now were at ??? 1 min after noon? Hope they have it figured out if they do daytime clock changes.

Ever wonder why in the states that have daylight savings time, the clocks change at 2AM, then about all that is affected is if bars stay open or close early and by that time of night, who cares?:confused:

 

DH and I recently returned from the spring repositioning of the Emerald, which ended in Southampton. For us, this was the Best. Cruise. Ever. :) Here's why:

1. All time changes were effected at noon instead of at night. This was an experiment, suggested by the maitre d'hotel, to benefit the crew. As many of you know, most of the crew sleep in split shifts. Losing an hour each night can really adversely affect them. For many of them, changing times at noon meant a shorter workday and a longer night's sleep. We don't know whether there's a direct correlation or not, but this seemed to be the happiest ship at sea! Whatever affects the crew ultimately affects the pax, so everyone benefitted from this "experiment." I hope they implement it fleet-wide.
   
2. The captain was brilliant, witty, and approachable. We saw him out and about fairly often, but he was always on the bridge when he was needed. Our Aloha deck cabin wasn't too far from the bridge, and we could see him there during several port arrivals and/or departures.
   
3. The maitre d' wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty! We saw him greeting guests in the MDR, helping his staff put on a "Chef's Table" presentation, and even serving! We ran into him being helpful in the Crown Grill as well as the MDR. Sure, that gave him opportunities to assess his staff's performance and the satisfaction of the pax, but he was also really pitching in. Kudos to a wonderful maitre d'!
   
4. Cruise Director Kelvin Joy really lives up to his name. :D
   
5. Our bed really felt more comfortable! (The pillows, however, desperately need to be replaced.)
   
6. We actually found a few hot items on the breakfast room service menu!
   
7. Our cabin steward was fantastic. He was SO pleasant, caring, responsive, and respectful that we tipped him 3 times and nominated him for "consummate host." We're usually generous tippers, but 3x for one crew member was a first for us.
   
8. Not a single instance of norovirus! :)
   
9. GLORIOUS wx! I realize that Princess didn't provide that (the Floridians onboard did, they claimed LOL), but it was certainly a factor in our overall impression of the whole trip. It didn't even rain in Ireland!!!
   
10. Wonderful ports, for the most part. We absolutely loved Cobh, Dublin, and Zeebrugge, and Ponta Delgada was a pleasant place in which to break up the sea days. And we spent a week in London (including a day in Cornwall), and that was a wonderful week too. I'd do this trip again, frankly. (You can keep Paris, however. We should have done Normandy instead.)
    
11. The special production show "invented" near the end of the cruise! Amazing that the cast members could learn the songs, routines, and even languages in 3 days!
    
12. The "pub show" in Explorer's Lounge! SRO for good reason!!!
    
13. DJ Mat Davie. We only went to a couple of DJ-hosted events, but Mat was all over the ship, playing multiple roles and interacting with lots of pax. He was even a portly singing London bobbie in the "pub show!" Thanks for being so personable, Mat. :)
    
14. The young lady who warmly greeted MDR guests as they arrived. She was so helpful, sincerely happy, and remembered many of our names! She always understood and accommodated our ever-changing table requests.
    
15. The FOOD!!! MDR food was, for the most part, back to excellent. And we absolutely adore the international café. Vines, too! Vines became our go-to meeting place when we wanted to reconnect with pax we'd met at dinner or elsewhere.
    
16. Several private tours arranged by folks I "met" on the CC Roll Call board. We're convinced that no one else saw the Ireland that we experienced! Thanks to Cruising Sally and our irish guide!
    

I hope everyone else reading these forums has had or will have at least one such perfect Princess cruise!

 

Oh, I almost forgot to mention: the current wine policy was in effect, but it was managed via the honor system. We complied. Also, I occasionally bought a bottle onshore, and we declared that upon re-embarkation, but they were never taken away from us. It seemed to us that they were only taking hard liquor.

[jean s]

I loved reading your review. We have a cruise booked on the Emerald soon and it was great to see your positive comments about the ship and crew.

[flacruiser]

DH and I recently returned from the spring repositioning of the Emerald, which ended in Southampton. For us, this was the Best. Cruise. Ever. :) Here's why:

1. All time changes were effected at noon instead of at night. This was an experiment, suggested by the maitre d'hotel, to benefit the crew. As many of you know, most of the crew sleep in split shifts. Losing an hour each night can really adversely affect them. For many of them, changing times at noon meant a shorter workday and a longer night's sleep. We don't know whether there's a direct correlation or not, but this seemed to be the happiest ship at sea! Whatever affects the crew ultimately affects the pax, so everyone benefitted from this "experiment." I hope they implement it fleet-wide.
   
2. The captain was brilliant, witty, and approachable. We saw him out and about fairly often, but he was always on the bridge when he was needed. Our Aloha deck cabin wasn't too far from the bridge, and we could see him there during several port arrivals and/or departures.
   
3. The maitre d' wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty! We saw him greeting guests in the MDR, helping his staff put on a "Chef's Table" presentation, and even serving! We ran into him being helpful in the Crown Grill as well as the MDR. Sure, that gave him opportunities to assess his staff's performance and the satisfaction of the pax, but he was also really pitching in. Kudos to a wonderful maitre d'!
   
4. Cruise Director Kelvin Joy really lives up to his name. :D
   
5. Our bed really felt more comfortable! (The pillows, however, desperately need to be replaced.)
   
6. We actually found a few hot items on the breakfast room service menu!
   
7. Our cabin steward was fantastic. He was SO pleasant, caring, responsive, and respectful that we tipped him 3 times and nominated him for "consummate host." We're usually generous tippers, but 3x for one crew member was a first for us.
   
8. Not a single instance of norovirus! :)
   
9. GLORIOUS wx! I realize that Princess didn't provide that (the Floridians onboard did, they claimed LOL), but it was certainly a factor in our overall impression of the whole trip. It didn't even rain in Ireland!!!
   
10. Wonderful ports, for the most part. We absolutely loved Cobh, Dublin, and Zeebrugge, and Ponta Delgada was a pleasant place in which to break up the sea days. And we spent a week in London (including a day in Cornwall), and that was a wonderful week too. I'd do this trip again, frankly. (You can keep Paris, however. We should have done Normandy instead.)
    
11. The special production show "invented" near the end of the cruise! Amazing that the cast members could learn the songs, routines, and even languages in 3 days!
    
12. The "pub show" in Explorer's Lounge! SRO for good reason!!!
    
13. DJ Mat Davie. We only went to a couple of DJ-hosted events, but Mat was all over the ship, playing multiple roles and interacting with lots of pax. He was even a portly singing London bobbie in the "pub show!" Thanks for being so personable, Mat. :)
    
14. The young lady who warmly greeted MDR guests as they arrived. She was so helpful, sincerely happy, and remembered many of our names! She always understood and accommodated our ever-changing table requests.
    
15. The FOOD!!! MDR food was, for the most part, back to excellent. And we absolutely adore the international café. Vines, too! Vines became our go-to meeting place when we wanted to reconnect with pax we'd met at dinner or elsewhere.
    
16. Several private tours arranged by folks I "met" on the CC Roll Call board. We're convinced that no one else saw the Ireland that we experienced! Thanks to Cruising Sally and our irish guide!
    

I hope everyone else reading these forums has had or will have at least one such perfect Princess cruise!

 

Oh, I almost forgot to mention: the current wine policy was in effect, but it was managed via the honor system. We complied. Also, I occasionally bought a bottle onshore, and we declared that upon re-embarkation, but they were never taken away from us. It seemed to us that they were only taking hard liquor.

 

We took The Emerald out of Copenhagen to the Baltic last July. It was an awesome journey. We loved everything about The Emerald, including IC. We met lovely folks on CC, arranged a couple of private with our CC friends. We all enjoyed each others' company, and can't wait to sail on The Emerald again. Everything was excellent on the ship.

 

Six of us are Sailing on Caribbean Princess next week. Can't wait!

 

Highly recommend Emerald. Enjoy!

 

Michele

[caribill]

If our Oct TA to Houston has changes of time during the day, hope the staff and people printing the daily know about it.

 

Doing it at noon makes sense on the spring TAs which head to the east as an hour is lost each time the change is made.

 

For your fall TA when the ship will be traveling west, the change will be made in the middle of the night as in the past giving you your 25 hour days.

Edited June 14, 2014 by caribill

[lovevacadays]

I missed your post when you originally posted it.

 

I really enjoyed reading about all the great things about your TA crossing on the Emerald.

[Colo Cruiser]

Captain Nick Nash. He hails from Cornwall, England. We've been very lucky in that we've had extraordinary captains on several Princess cruises. Having worked for some wonderful leaders before I retired, I know firsthand that great leaders inspire their staffs to perform their best. I've no doubt that Captain Nash is largely responsible for the performance and attitude of his crew.

 

I'll look up the maitre d's name when I finish unpacking. :)

 

Thanks!

[NavyVeteran]

I was on the same cruise. Although I understand the reasoning behind the time change at noon, it did have some problems - particularly at the beginning.

 

On the first day with a time change, the patter said that lunch in the MDR was over at 1:30 pm (which was only a half hour after noon). They were open until 2:30 pm for the normal lunch length however, and the next time the patter was corrected.

 

There was a long line when the MDR opened for lunch on the first day of the time change, and the service was very slow. Obviously, they had not planned for the fact that everyone who normally shows up between 12:00 noon and 1:00 pm would all show up at the same time - especially with the patter having the incorrect closing time. The dining room was not staffed or prepared for the crowd arriving early. By the second day with a time change however, they had fixed the problem. Service was back to normal with no delays.

 

There was only one hour between the end of lunch at 2:30 pm and the start of tea at 3:30 pm - in the same dining room. This didn't give the staff much time to turn the room around, especially since a 2:30 pm closing meant they stopped letting people in at 2:30 pm. There were still people finishing lunch on one side of the dining room when they opened for tea on the other side.

 

Several activities were scheduled at 1:00 pm on sea days, and these activities were scheduled at 1:00 pm on time change days as well as other sea days. On a time change day, there was no time to eat lunch before a 1:00 pm activity.

 

I agree that it would have been difficult for the crew to lose an hour's sleep every night. However, the noon time change had problems for them too. Even though they worked one hour less than normal, they still had the same amount of work to do. The dining room staff had to turn around the MDR from lunch to tea very quickly. The room stewards had just as many rooms to clean.

[Crzn-Life]

Re the time change. We were on the Ruby TA & our time changes were in the wee hours. I asked Commodore Romano if they had considered the change being made at noon as some of the captains on the QM2 have been doing. He said no he didn't like it & from his experience most of the passengers didn't either. While he appreciated that some of the crew might prefer the noon change he thought his primary consideration should be the passengers. If the Commodore isn't in favor of it I don't see it being implemented fleetwide. We hope it won't be because we didn’t particularly like it. It's been popping up on a ship or two periodically for several years and so far no cruise line has opted to go with it so hopefully it will remain an occasional occurrence from time to time.