Regal princess Blog Mar 6-13

[wdblake]

We decided to give princess another try after having a hiatus in which we switched to Celebrity specifically solstice class. We booked an inside cabin but were pleasantly surprised when three days before the cruise we were offered a balcony for just $99 per person. We could not resist! We live in Charleston, SC so we decided to drive to Ft. Lauderdale over a two day period to break up the trip. We stopped at exit 1 in Georgia to fuel up before entering Florida. This is a great exit to gas up off I-95 since the gas is cheap and it is an easy on and off (no divided highways or traffic lights). Also the Wendy’s at the Hess station there is pretty good.

We stayed the first night at the Holiday Inn Melbourne, FL. The hotel was very clean and quiet and offered on demand tv with a host of networks. Comfy beds with soft and firm pillows and best of all a breakfast with an automatic pancake maker...Delish!

We then continued on to Ft Lauderdale where we stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn Airport and Cruise in Dania Beach. We booked the park and cruise package.

We have stayed here a number of times and the service and amenities are top notch! They have a high attention to detail. Offer a cooked to order breakfast, parking for your cruise, and free shuttle to and from the port.

Ordered pizza from Sal’s Italian restaurant right across the street. They will deliver small pizzas. We got their specialty, the brooklyn’s favorite, which is chicken, sausage, meatballs, onion and feta cheese. OMG delicious and the perfect amount for my wife and I. If you order and let them know the hotel you are staying at they give you a 15% discount. My $15 pizza was only $13. Great deal!

Ok let’s go over the cruise ground rules:

 

The ship is the destination. We are not getting off the boat. Don’t get me wrong I think St Thomas and St Maartin are great ports but we have been there done that and want to enjoy the ship to ourselves.

No Dining room! Except lobster night. We will be taking advantage of the horizon court , trident grill, Alfredo’s, and Crown grill but we are going to avoid the lengthy dinners in the dining room.

No shows! Going to enjoy stateroom movies and hot tubbing in the evening hour

 

We are boarding tomorrow by taking the 11:30 shuttle and I will let you know how it goes. We are doing the Horizon Court buffet for lunch (I know it will be crowded but we can’t resist!). I will try to post the TV and Muts selections since we know they are in great demand. I got 2 hours internet with my platinum package so I will log in at 7pm to give updates. Tomorrow our journey begins!

[NJ Fred]

Bon Voyage and Smooth Sailing!

 

Wife and I booked on Regal for 1/2017. Will be eager to read your opinions.

 

Enjoy yourselves!

 

Fred

[TracieABD]

Happy Sails!!!!

 

I am looking forward to following along!

[kendon]

We will be on the same cruise. Love this ship! Join us for a meet and greet on 3/8 at 10 am in Club 6!

[ar1950]

Enjoy the Regal! Our favorite Princess ship.

 

BTW, Alfredo’s tends to get crowded at lunch time once people realize that it is not an extra charge venue.

Edited March 6, 2016 by ar1950

[j3000]

thanks wd! will be waiting for your comments. we're booked on regal april 3rd, so any tips, comments, advice will be appreciated! bon voyage!

[trystran72]

Have a great cruise! :)

[sunsetbeachgal]

Sounds like a great start already!!

[kaytamar]

You're whetting my appetite for our cruise - I can't wait!

[lovevacadays]

Than you for posting your blog. I will be following along.

 

Have a great cruise.

[WISH84]

Looking forward to your comments. We loved the Regal so much last December that we booked our first B2B on her for this December. Enjoy your cruise. Very interested in learning what your experience will be like not ever getting off the ship. Happy cruising!

[WISH84]

Happy Sails!!!!

 

 

 

I am looking forward to following along!

 

 

Hey Tracie.. Not trying to hijack this thread but wanted to say "hello". Big news our way... Left the college after completing the requirements for obtaining my Real Estate License. Wish me luck!!

[TracieABD]

Hey Tracie.. Not trying to hijack this thread but wanted to say "hello". Big news our way... Left the college after completing the requirements for obtaining my Real Estate License. Wish me luck!!

 

Hey Jeff!

Congratulations on your big move!

I am sailing in four days- I will be doing a live from---

 

Hope to see you there!

 

Sell, sell, sell!

TL:)

[WISH84]

Hey Jeff!

Congratulations on your big move!

I am sailing in four days- I will be doing a live from---

 

Hope to see you there!

 

Sell, sell, sell!

TL:)

 

Jealous! I'll be looking for your Live Report... They are always awesome! Safe Cruising!

[jennymaxgirl]

I will be following ! We will be on the Regal in March next year and I am curious to see how you find the crowd over your cruise, given that it could be spring break for some. Would love to hear your feedback on if it feels busier with more children, or college crowd.

 

Above all - have fun!!

 

Jennifer

[wdblake]

Our adventure begins. We booked a shuttle for 11:30 and ended up on a giant bus with lots of other people. There were 8 ships in port so it was very crowded. We arrived at our gate at 12:30 and there was a very long line to get in. Now this is important! If you are a platinum or better in the Princess club you can bypass the long line and go through the short line on the right. Check in was quick. There were long lines for people wanting to bring alcohol on board. If you bring your own wine expect a wait.

We bolted to the Crown Grill to make reservations (many employees will tell you to go to the dining room or to call them but this is wrong. Go straight to the Crown grill.)

We cruised through the Horizon court for lunch and the amount of food was dizzying. It was crowded inside but we found nice seats just outside right by the pool. The tri-tip was very tasty and a sampled a few asian dishes (turkey dumplings and fried won tons) and there fried scallops which were all good. We finished off with a pepperoni pizza slice from Prego’s which tasted good.

The special pizza was an anchovy pizza at Prego’s.

We did the muster which was annoying but not to long.

Weather was beautiful, 80 degrees with a nice cool north wind perfect for laying out. Paul McCartney was playing on the MUTS.

The international cafe had a Zucchini and bacon quiche of the day and the meat pie was a beef and guiness pie. The internation charges $3 for the Norman Love desserts but they have a free one at the Horizon court pastry shop.

There was a special pizza at Alfredo’s which was a shrimp and spicy tomato pie with broccoli and a spicy siracha sauce.

We went to the Crown grill for night one. We started with the scallop appetiser followed by the black and blue soup. The main was a 14oz ribeye one of the best we have ever ate with a loaded baked potato featuring sour cream, chives and bacon. We opted out of dessert because we were too full (do not eat the bread!).

We browsed the buffet and they had some wonderful looking spring rolls, shrimp and mussells, and a feta cheese and sun dried tomato pie. If we can fit it in we will try to have a bite of one or two of those later.

We wanted to try one of the Norman Love chocolate drinks but they said they didn’t have the ingredients, boo! These are available only in the Wheelhouse bar.

MUTS tonight was Spectre.

Movies on demand:

 

Action: Ant Man, Avengers age of Ultron, Blackhat, Furious 7, Fury, Hitman Agent 47, Jurassic world, Kingsman, Mad Max, Maze runner scorch trials, Mission Impossible rouge nation, Run all night, Terminator Genisys, The Equalizer, The Man from Uncle

 

Comedy: A Million ways tro die in the west, Burnt, Entourage, Focus, Hot pursuit, Magic Mike XXL, Mistress America, Our brand is Crisis, Pitch perfect 2, Pride, Ricki and the Flash, Rock the Kasbah, Spy, St Vincent, Ted 2, The hundred foot journey, The intern, The second best Marigold hotel, This is where I leave, Trainwreck, Unfinished business, What If

 

Drama: A little Chaos , A Royal Night out, A Walk in the Woods, Black Mass, By the Sea,

Carol, Creed, Ex Machina, Far from the Madding crowd, Lambert & Stamp, Legend, Love and Mercy, March 2015, Me Earl and the dying girl, Mr Holmes, Pawn scarifice, Southpaw, Steve Jobs, The 33, The Danish girl, The fault in our stars, Trumbo, Truth, Unbroken, Woman in gold.

 

Family: Alexander the and very bad day, Annie, Big hero 6, Frozen, Goosebumps, Guardians of ther Galaxy, Home, How to train your dragon two, Night at the Museum (newest one), Paddington, Pan, Song of the Sea, Strange magic, The good dinosaur, The lego movie.

 

The Tv has music but you can’t choose the songs. The live tv is news and sports mostly.

 

We were going to try a late night hot tub the winds are very strong and cold tonight and we are still waiting for our robes thar we requested preboarding and once we boarded and we have been told they are in the laundry.

[Keith1010]

Bon Voyage.

 

Keith

[Woobstr112G]

Have a wonderful cruise.....:):):)

 

Bob

[sueandkent]

Our adventure begins. We booked a shuttle for 11:30 and ended up on a giant bus with lots of other people. There were 8 ships in port so it was very crowded. We arrived at our gate at 12:30 and there was a very long line to get in. Now this is important! If you are a platinum or better in the Princess club you can bypass the long line and go through the short line on the right. Check in was quick. There were long lines for people wanting to bring alcohol on board. If you bring your own wine expect a wait.

We bolted to the Crown Grill to make reservations (many employees will tell you to go to the dining room or to call them but this is wrong. Go straight to the Crown grill.)

We cruised through the Horizon court for lunch and the amount of food was dizzying. It was crowded inside but we found nice seats just outside right by the pool. The tri-tip was very tasty and a sampled a few asian dishes (turkey dumplings and fried won tons) and there fried scallops which were all good. We finished off with a pepperoni pizza slice from Prego’s which tasted good.

The special pizza was an anchovy pizza at Prego’s.

We did the muster which was annoying but not to long.

Weather was beautiful, 80 degrees with a nice cool north wind perfect for laying out. Paul McCartney was playing on the MUTS.

The international cafe had a Zucchini and bacon quiche of the day and the meat pie was a beef and guiness pie. The internation charges $3 for the Norman Love desserts but they have a free one at the Horizon court pastry shop.

There was a special pizza at Alfredo’s which was a shrimp and spicy tomato pie with broccoli and a spicy siracha sauce.

We went to the Crown grill for night one. We started with the scallop appetiser followed by the black and blue soup. The main was a 14oz ribeye one of the best we have ever ate with a loaded baked potato featuring sour cream, chives and bacon. We opted out of dessert because we were too full (do not eat the bread!).

We browsed the buffet and they had some wonderful looking spring rolls, shrimp and mussells, and a feta cheese and sun dried tomato pie. If we can fit it in we will try to have a bite of one or two of those later.

We wanted to try one of the Norman Love chocolate drinks but they said they didn’t have the ingredients, boo! These are available only in the Wheelhouse bar.

MUTS tonight was Spectre.

Movies on demand:

 

Action: Ant Man, Avengers age of Ultron, Blackhat, Furious 7, Fury, Hitman Agent 47, Jurassic world, Kingsman, Mad Max, Maze runner scorch trials, Mission Impossible rouge nation, Run all night, Terminator Genisys, The Equalizer, The Man from Uncle

 

Comedy: A Million ways tro die in the west, Burnt, Entourage, Focus, Hot pursuit, Magic Mike XXL, Mistress America, Our brand is Crisis, Pitch perfect 2, Pride, Ricki and the Flash, Rock the Kasbah, Spy, St Vincent, Ted 2, The hundred foot journey, The intern, The second best Marigold hotel, This is where I leave, Trainwreck, Unfinished business, What If

 

Drama: A little Chaos , A Royal Night out, A Walk in the Woods, Black Mass, By the Sea,

Carol, Creed, Ex Machina, Far from the Madding crowd, Lambert & Stamp, Legend, Love and Mercy, March 2015, Me Earl and the dying girl, Mr Holmes, Pawn scarifice, Southpaw, Steve Jobs, The 33, The Danish girl, The fault in our stars, Trumbo, Truth, Unbroken, Woman in gold.

 

Family: Alexander the and very bad day, Annie, Big hero 6, Frozen, Goosebumps, Guardians of ther Galaxy, Home, How to train your dragon two, Night at the Museum (newest one), Paddington, Pan, Song of the Sea, Strange magic, The good dinosaur, The lego movie.

 

The Tv has music but you can’t choose the songs. The live tv is news and sports mostly.

 

We were going to try a late night hot tub the winds are very strong and cold tonight and we are still waiting for our robes thar we requested preboarding and once we boarded and we have been told they are in the laundry.

 

Watched you sailaway today on the webcam, have a fun week.

[wdblake]

Mar 7th , The princess cays day. We stayed on board rather than tendering in to princess cays to have the ship to ourselves. The weather was so so. Nice and warm with a good breeze but pretty heavy cloud cover. My DW and I did the walking/jogging track and did our mile walk to burn a few calories. It is laid out very nice on the 18th deck off to it’s own. They have separate lanes for walkers and runners.

After doing our mile we went to breakfast in the Horizon court. I had the breakfast sandwich which was Ok but a little dry. My DW had the Cheese and Chive quiche which was delishious. It was one of the fluffliest quiche I have seen on a cruise ship.

We scoped out two good seats on the upper deck. There were still a good bit of people there but there were plenty of good spots to lay in the sun.

We first did lunch in the Horizon court. We had Cioppino which was awesome. Loaded with seafood. The Louisiana dry rub brisket was very tasty. They had a Mussel in safron sauce which was fresh and a delite. I had seafood Tikka curry which was very good along with some fried rice.

The Prego specialty pizza was Hawaiian. The international cafe had Cherry tomato quiche, and a Bologuese Pie.

Alfredo’s special for today was a Chiken Tikka Masala pizza with bell peppers and white onions.

We had dinner in the Horizon court and it was Italian night. First off avoid the calzones they were all dough and air. The italian sausage in tomato basic was fantastic! Also good was the Sicilian Acancini rice balls with meat ragu. The meat ravoli was very rich and tasty as well.The bow tie pasta alfredo was a win. The true hit was the Frutti di mare (fruits of the sea) which was a spicy sauce with pasta and shrimp, mussels and scallops. Yum.

When we finished we went to the assorted cheese section and loaded up on various cheeses to enjoy in our stateroom later. The cheese selection is over the top!

Movies added to on demand...The Revenant, The big short, Spotlight and Spectre (which was shown in MUTS yesterday).

Tonight MUTS is doing Bridge of spies!

Ciao for now!

[tweety522]

Thanks for sharing your vacation. We are sailing on the 20th and cannot wait.

[riclop]

We decided to give princess another try after having a hiatus in which we switched to Celebrity specifically solstice class. We booked an inside cabin but were pleasantly surprised when three days before the cruise we were offered a balcony for just $99 per person. We could not resist! We live in Charleston, SC so we decided to drive to Ft. Lauderdale over a two day period to break up the trip. We stopped at exit 1 in Georgia to fuel up before entering Florida. This is a great exit to gas up off I-95 since the gas is cheap and it is an easy on and off (no divided highways or traffic lights). Also the Wendy’s at the Hess station there is pretty good.

We stayed the first night at the Holiday Inn Melbourne, FL. The hotel was very clean and quiet and offered on demand tv with a host of networks. Comfy beds with soft and firm pillows and best of all a breakfast with an automatic pancake maker...Delish!

We then continued on to Ft Lauderdale where we stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn Airport and Cruise in Dania Beach. We booked the park and cruise package.

We have stayed here a number of times and the service and amenities are top notch! They have a high attention to detail. Offer a cooked to order breakfast, parking for your cruise, and free shuttle to and from the port.

Ordered pizza from Sal’s Italian restaurant right across the street. They will deliver small pizzas. We got their specialty, the brooklyn’s favorite, which is chicken, sausage, meatballs, onion and feta cheese. OMG delicious and the perfect amount for my wife and I. If you order and let them know the hotel you are staying at they give you a 15% discount. My $15 pizza was only $13. Great deal!

Ok let’s go over the cruise ground rules:

 

The ship is the destination. We are not getting off the boat. Don’t get me wrong I think St Thomas and St Maartin are great ports but we have been there done that and want to enjoy the ship to ourselves.

No Dining room! Except lobster night. We will be taking advantage of the horizon court , trident grill, Alfredo’s, and Crown grill but we are going to avoid the lengthy dinners in the dining room.

No shows! Going to enjoy stateroom movies and hot tubbing in the evening hour

 

We are boarding tomorrow by taking the 11:30 shuttle and I will let you know how it goes. We are doing the Horizon Court buffet for lunch (I know it will be crowded but we can’t resist!). I will try to post the TV and Muts selections since we know they are in great demand. I got 2 hours internet with my platinum package so I will log in at 7pm to give updates. Tomorrow our journey begins!

Hope you get better weather then we had last week. Enjoy.

[kayyfire]

Glad your trip is going so well! Thank you for sharing. Are you noticing many spring breakers on board being loud? We are sailing next week and I'm just curious! Thanks!!

[david56]

Thanks for this, which is fascinating. We're taking our first ever cruise in June on the Regal Princess, around the Baltic.

 

This is probably a very simple question - are there extra costs for MUTS and in-cabin Movies on Demand (or anything else on the TV?). Can you connect your own device (tablet, or whatever) to the TV over HDMI to show your own content?

 

Thanks

 

David

[WISH84]

Thanks for this, which is fascinating. We're taking our first ever cruise in June on the Regal Princess, around the Baltic.

 

This is probably a very simple question - are there extra costs for MUTS and in-cabin Movies on Demand (or anything else on the TV?). Can you connect your own device (tablet, or whatever) to the TV over HDMI to show your own content?

 

Thanks

 

David

 

There is no cost for MUTS, it's the big screen TV you see hanging over the main pool. Once a movie shows on that screen for the first time, they then add it to the on demand movies in your cabin, also no charge.

 

As far as connecting your lap top or any device to the TV in your room, I understand it's possible however the process I've seen people discuss on how to do it and what equipment you would need in order to facilitate such a connection.. I hardly think it's worth it. Unless your in the tech industry and doing so is as easy for you as it is for me to crack an egg!!

Edited March 8, 2016 by WISH84