Just Off the Golden to Alaska, RT Seattle 6/7-14/2014. Buckle Up!

[caribill]

Okay, I must have missed the Princess omelet bar. I only saw fried and scrambled. I guess I should have asked! Thanks for letting me know!

 

You order the omelet at the counter where you saw the other egg items already made.

 

[karatemom2]

Attached to this post is a photo I took of the stern of the Golden Princess last week in Alaska. I will let the readers of this thread determine what the truth is and if, in their opinion, the stern of the Golden needs to be painted.

 

I have controlled my urge to respond to this thread until now as the Golden is one of my favorites and I realized that any response I provided would likely be colored by that and probably less then cordial. But I really have to say that as nitpicking goes this photo takes the cake. If I let every little bit of rust or wear color my enjoyment of a cruise, I guess I'd never be happy either - on any ship I've ever been on! So the stern needs a bit of refreshing - it will get done and in the interim it would hardly affect my cruise experience.

 

And I guess as long as I'm replying I might add that I feel a little sorry for the musical acts you call out so harshly here. I have seen a lot of entertainment on Princess ships and granted some are better than others, but I don't think any have deserved the all caps screaming and frankly cruel type of critique you have leveled here. I'm sure Simon Cowell would be impressed! :rolleyes:

Edited June 21, 2014 by karatemom2

[backheidi]

You order the omelet at the counter where you saw the other egg items already made.

 

 

 

Oh my, now I really feel foolish, LOL! I guess the fact that it always seemed crowded did not help. I just took what I easily saw and got out of everyones way! Won't next time though, love my omelettes! But even without my omelettes, I always found plenty to eat and really enjoyed the Golden Princess and our cruise!

[JimAOk1945]

This is great information. Thanks for starting this thread.

 

Happy cruising wherever you go!

Edited June 21, 2014 by JimAOk1945

[KarateMan]

Complaining about the stern is quite childish and irresponsible. What do you expect people to do, repel the rear of the ship in a harness and paint it and clean it on a daily basis?

 

Golden Princess is a fantastic ship kept in good condition. If rust and materials were to be falling off and landing on passengers in a passenger area then it is of cause for concern.

 

Personally the only thing I agree with in this thread is the fact the buffet is no good. I did not like the buffet, I did however love the deck grills, pizza, main dining rooms and both Crown Grill and Sabatini's. International Café was ok for a light snack, could not see it having any wow factor, but it was just good for a light bite to eat.

 

I have to admit I had such a good time on Golden Princess around South America for 31 nights this year that I have booked the ship again next year for 38 nights. 10 nights to Alaska from San Francisco and then the immediate 28 night sailing from San Francisco to Sydney. Golden Princess cant be that bad if I am so quick to book it again in the face of strong competition.

[dylandog25]

you are the people that carry Norwalk around the ship

you may have washed your hands in the cabin but can you honestly say you did not touch anything on the way up hence picking up a bug from someone else

[monk888]

you are the people that carry Norwalk around the ship

you may have washed your hands in the cabin but can you honestly say you did not touch anything on the way up hence picking up a bug from someone else

 

And I guess I was at the Grassy Knoll that day in Dallas too. Wow!

[mr green]

And I guess I was at the Grassy Knoll that day in Dallas too. Wow!

 

No, you were probably helping to carry the food to the Horizon Court, 'Left over from the main dining rooms a night or two before'.

 

john

[shredie]

No, you were probably helping to carry the food to the Horizon Court, 'Left over from the main dining rooms a night or two before'.

 

john

 

LOL! I wonder if they make you use sanitizier before they make you do that.

[petlover]

Wow, I was on the same cruise as you and as a person who prefers RC, I was pleasantly surprised because we really enjoyed the ship much more then we thought we would. The embark was a little crowded but I do not blame Princess, I blame the fact that people did not come at their appointed times! Therefore, the staff said everyone came all at once. I had read that the ship was run down but I saw no wear anywhere. I thought it was in great shape. The brass and wood rails were like brand new! As for entertainment, the comedian was funny and I loved Sol Play (the lead singer was one of the best I have heard) and others must have agreed because people always seemed to be dancing. I also thought British Invasion was good. Was it Broadway....no....but the music, costumes, lightshow, etc. were good and fun. And we loved, loved Billy the Piano player. Also, really enjoyed the staff (which on recent cruises has not really been noticeable). Several nights some of the staff joined the Piano player and not only had great voices, but were charming and funny! Also enjoyed the on ship stores and specials much more then recent cruises.....had some great buys and I did buy, LOL! Since I am not a buffet person to start with, I only find them okay anyway (though I did miss RCs omelette bar). But I still always found plenty that was quite good (Danish, fruit, etc.). I do agree though that it is not set up well, just too tight a spot and makes it crowded BUT they had a lot of good seating areas. Our room was clean and comfortable as was our balcony. Also, loved the outdoor movies....just wish they constantly had a show or movie playing....at least on our final day. I would not hesitate to take this ship again! Really nice, fun ship, great weather, and Alaska was absolutely beautiful! Hope to do it again in the very near future!

We (10 family members) will be on the Golden in less than 2 weeks. I'm so happy to read your positive comments. I feel reassured and am looking forward to a great Princess cruise (I have more than 600 cruise nights but this is my first Princess cruise).

 

THANK YOU so much for taking the time to tell us Princess newbies the GOOD things you experienced on the Golden .:)

BTW, my husband and I are very easy to please but not buffet people either.

[backheidi]

We (10 family members) will be on the Golden in less than 2 weeks. I'm so happy to read your positive comments. I feel reassured and am looking forward to a great Princess cruise (I have more than 600 cruise nights but this is my first Princess cruise).

 

THANK YOU so much for taking the time to tell us Princess newbies the GOOD things you experienced on the Golden .:)

BTW, my husband and I are very easy to please but not buffet people either.

 

 

I hope you have great weather. Also, thought I would mention a few excursions I really liked. The first is Mendenhall Glacier. It was the second part of our whale watch excursion which left us short of time. You get up close with a good size Glacier, there is a nice visitor center which you can see the Glacier from as well, and there is a nice Falls you can walk to (this I really wanted to do but it takes 45 minutes there and back and we did not have enough time). Also, take the Tram up the mountain and hike up a ways. The higher you go, the more beautiful the views are. Both Mendenhall and the Tram are in Juneau. Also, the little town of Juneau is really nice to walk through and a little stop at Red Dog Saloon was a lot of fun! We were in Juneau the longest amount of time and really liked it.....could have spent a lot more time there. At Skagway we took the train ride (the basic only) and walked through the little town. Both were really nice but we still had plenty of time at that stop and so wished we had done a more extensive excursion (or did two). Ketchikan looked like a really cute little town but our excursion (which my husband loved)....the Deadliest Catch Crab fishing tour took up all of our time. I really wish we had much more time at this stop because I would have loved to have gone through the town and gone to the Totem Park. But maybe next time. Anyway, just thought I would share. Have a wonderful time!

[petlover]

Thank you Backheidi.

 

We're taking our Grandson Dog Sledding on Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau for his 8th birthday. My husband & I are going in Float Plane in Ketchikan to Anan Wildlife Conservatory to see bears. In Skagway all 10 of us are going on the Dog Musher's Camp (hope we see some puppies). We've been to Alaska before but it wasn't a whole family trip. We are so excited. We did another 3 generation cruise last year on Disney and that was so memorable.

[Jim Avery]

Last month on Pacific, the highlight of our trip was the helicopter from Skagway up to a landing on a glacier at a sled dog camp. 240 dogs (including some puppies) and a ride on the dog sled. Fantastic. The copter ride in and out was spectacular as well. A fine trip.:D

[WAshgirl]

Thanks for the honest review. Its always nice to read positive reviews, but reading the negative can also be helpful. Since our last cruise was with Disney, I have high expectations. I am hoping we have a great experience. Sounds like Sabatini's is not to be missed. How do we book that? We also want to get the specialty coffee card. How can we get one of those? :)

[KarateMan]

Attached to this post is a photo I took of the stern of the Golden Princess last week in Alaska. I will let the readers of this thread determine what the truth is and if, in their opinion, the stern of the Golden needs to be painted.

 

They are just skidmarks it is no big deal. You find skidmarks on every ship. If you look carefully at the stern you will notice the skidmarks are in areas where the lines scrape against the ship as they heave them back into the stern.

 

There are likely to be skidmarks on the rear end of just about every ship in service. Sometimes hosing the marks down for a wash down wont work due to the angle of the ship. The wind, elements and sea spray will also contribute to these dirty stains.

 

[monk888]

Thanks for the honest review. Its always nice to read positive reviews, but reading the negative can also be helpful. Since our last cruise was with Disney, I have high expectations. I am hoping we have a great experience. Sounds like Sabatini's is not to be missed. How do we book that? We also want to get the specialty coffee card. How can we get one of those? :)

 

 

Thanks. You can book Sabatini's one of two ways, in person or over the phone. As soon as you get on the ship, head for Sabatini's. Sometimes, they will have a person standing in the front of the restaurant to take reservations. If no one is there, you can drop by the Crown Grill and they may have someone there who can take reservations for all of the specialty restaurants. If no one is at either place, you can call the Dining Line from your cabin. I forget the number, but if you look in your Princess Patter (the daily newsletter which will be in your mailbox at your cabin), it will surely list the number. On embarkation day, it could be a challenge getting through on that phone line, which is why I usually go straight to Sabatini's.

 

Regarding the coffee card, you can buy it in advance by calling Princess or by stopping by the International Café when you board.

 

Enjoy!

Edited June 25, 2014 by monk888
Forgot to mention the coffee card.

[#1Nanna]

We were on the Golden this past Sept to Alaska. We had a wonderful cruise!!! We thought she was a beautiful ship! We had a VERY different experience than what was presented here.

The food was very good. We did not eat much in the Horizon Court, as we prefer the relaxed meal & service of the MDR. but we did go there twice for breakfast & a couple times for late night snacks. We knew it was a buffet when we went. Keeping in mind that it is a buffet, we did not find the food to be bad.

We thoroughly enjoyed our dining experience at Crown Grill. We were a group of six, and all of our steaks were cooked perfectly. The service was great!

We found the staff throughout the ship to be very friendly & attentive, always trying to please.

We would sail on the Golden again in a heartbeat!!!!!

Edited June 25, 2014 by #1Nanna

[cruiser 1613]

Hi Monk... Thanks for your review.. Everyone will have a different experience, even on the same cruise..

 

I may not agree with everything you posted, but feel that was your experience based on YOUR trip..

 

I do think that Golden needs to improve their buffet..

I think that the pizza and Hamburgers stations were better than the buffet..

 

I do not like to wear a suit and tie during formal nights, so that's were we went even thou we do enjoy the Main Dining Room.. But not enough to join the formal nights..

I did see some without ties or suits, but didn't want to spoil the evening for those that like to dress up..

 

I did not try the crab shack...

 

Another thing my wife found out, is there is no free coffee or water at the IC.. Yep, she could have bought a coffee card.. Maybe she didn't ask the right person when she had a snack or dessert.. She does not care for gourmet coffee thou..

 

Also found out that if one post a negative review on this forum, some will find fault with it.. That was my experience too, even thou, for the most part, we enjoyed the ship and Alaska cruise...

[Susie51]

Thank you for sharing your perspective.

[caribill]

Another thing my wife found out, is there is no free coffee or water at the IC.

 

I have had no trouble ever getting a cold glass of tap water at the IC bar.

[monk888]

Hi Monk... Thanks for your review.. Everyone will have a different experience, even on the same cruise..

 

I may not agree with everything you posted, but feel that was your experience based on YOUR trip..

 

I do think that Golden needs to improve their buffet..

I think that the pizza and Hamburgers stations were better than the buffet..

 

I do not like to wear a suit and tie during formal nights, so that's were we went even thou we do enjoy the Main Dining Room.. But not enough to join the formal nights..

I did see some without ties or suits, but didn't want to spoil the evening for those that like to dress up..

 

I did not try the crab shack...

 

Another thing my wife found out, is there is no free coffee or water at the IC.. Yep, she could have bought a coffee card.. Maybe she didn't ask the right person when she had a snack or dessert.. She does not care for gourmet coffee thou..

 

Also found out that if one post a negative review on this forum, some will find fault with it.. That was my experience too, even thou, for the most part, we enjoyed the ship and Alaska cruise...

 

Thanks.

[mr green]

We could not get cold water there. It was readily available however at the bar next to it.

 

john

[cruiser 1613]

You may have NOT had trouble getting a glass of water at the IC, but my wife did on our cruise.. This was on Golden on our May cruise..

 

They did tell her, she could buy a coffee card, but wife declined...

[shredie]

You may have NOT had trouble getting a glass of water at the IC, but my wife did on our cruise.. This was on Golden on our May cruise..

 

They did tell her, she could buy a coffee card, but wife declined...

 

 

Sometimes you encounter poorly trained staff. I figured out that I need to ask someone else when I get an answer I think is wrong. I also think that more of those untrained staff end up on the Golden than anywhere else (and I have no concrete evidence whatsoever to back that up.)

[sherryf]

You may have NOT had trouble getting a glass of water at the IC, but my wife did on our cruise.. This was on Golden on our May cruise..

 

They did tell her, she could buy a coffee card, but wife declined...

 

I think what others have said is that they were able to get water at the BAR next to the IC. Not at the IC, not at the coffee bar, but at the regular bar. You can always get water at any bar.