Live from Emerald Princess - Norwegian Fjords and North Cape 6th August 2016

[Frflatt]

Hi,

 

This is my first live from but I wanted to document ourNorwegian adventure and share my thoughts on this cruise; this ship and itinerary - I hope you will want to come along and enjoy the journey!

 

My partner, Geoff, and I (Stephen) have been on five or six previous cruises - mainly Regal and Royal with one on Celebrity Eclipse; so this is our first time on the Emerald and our first foray into Northern Europe.

 

Our trip down to Southampton was uneventful - we left home in Central London at 8am on Saturday and, even with a stop to get petrol and last minute toiletries, were at the port by 10.15. We had a 15 minute wait until parking opened but found CPS to be very efficient so we were in the terminal and checked in shortly after 10.30. Boarding started about 30 minutes later on we were on board just after 11.15 am.

 

We were given a note in the terminal that told us that our stateroom wouldn't be ready until 1pm but we went straight there on boarding and were able to gain access to dump our carry owns! The room, D210 - a mini suite - is very pleasant if somewhat narrow and the balcony is a good size. Our cabin steward, Ramesh, had done a good job of preparation - turnaround days must be hard work and we are grateful that it was all in good order.

 

We then went for an orientation walk around the ship and, naturally, compared it to the Regal and Royal that we love so much. We found that there were things that we love about this ship and areas that we're not so enamoured with. The ship, for its age, seems in very good condition- there is rust here and there but that can be found even on the newest vessels.

 

We love the terrace pool area and can understand why people find the small rear pool on the Regal and nonexistent rear pool on the Royal disappointing. We also felt that the main pools were larger and much better laid out. The sanctuary is a lovely serene place and the adult only pool is so peaceful.

 

There seem to be more lounges and public areas on this ship than on the Royal class ships - which is surprising as the passenger numbers are lower. However, the big disappointment for us is the piazza- it seems very small and enclosed - we love people watching and spend a lot of time there. Also, the Horizen Court is too enclosed and not a pleasant experience!

 

We can understand why people are disappointed that the Royal class ships don't have a wrap around promenade deck because it is a lovely area and we saw many people doing circuits.

 

So, our first few hours on board were spent in orientation, unpacking and muster - next sail away and our first evening on board.

[hollon]

Following along, one day I'm hoping to do this cruise

[geocruiser]

Thank you very much for taking the time to do a live. Like you I have been on Regal, Royal and Emerald. On Regal and Royal what I miss is the wrap around

promenade deck plus in most of the inside public spaces little or no view of the ocean.

 

Will be following you thread. Both of you have a great cruise.

[GweninTX]

We are doing this cruise next year on the Pacific Princess! Thanks for sharing your experiences and observances!

[Shogun]

Hi

 

We did this cruise in a few weeks ago, you will have a great trip if you have

 

never been north before,

 

some amazing sail ins and outs so if you are early birds great experience,

 

you will find Emerald has many more great viewing areas than Royal

 

which her a great ship for this type of cruise,

 

try observation deck above bridge, or skywalkers for views

 

yours Shogun

[kernowkat]

Hi,

 

We are on the Emerald Princess next month, is the observation deck above the bridge clearly marked, or is it one of these secret places, thank you.

[sunsetbeachgal]

Looking forward to your postings, have done some ports in Norway and really liked them, never have been further than Bergen into the Fjords and this is on our list.

 

Bon voyage!

Edited August 7, 2016 by sunsetbeachgal

[phxbne]

Looking forward to this - fell in love with Norway this summer and a NorthCape cruise is now on my list!

Have a great time

[crows nest club]

Thank you for taking the time to post "a live from". We are on the next cruise down to the Med. If you get time could you post the name of the Captain and also the Maitre D on your cruise. Do hope that you enjoy the cruise although it had looked a bit bumpy on the webcam today.

[StLouisCruisers]

We just completed a 20 day Norway cruise on Holland America July 6. We saw 14 different Norway ports in addition to Copenhagen and Amsterdam (port of Ijmuiden) and loved the entire cruise! We have been to Norway several times and it's becoming a favorite country. I'd say Italy and Norway are tied! Everyone should get to Norway, you will love it! It should be on everyone's bucket list. Have a great cruise and I will be here waiting to hear what you think about the country.

 

BTW, we have sailed on Emerald, Royal and Regal and agree with some of your comments. They're different and each has their high and low points. But a cruise is what you make of it, so have a great time.:)

[TracieABD]

Oooooooooooo!!! I love a live from! That you so much for taking your time and Internet to haul us along on your cruise!

 

Can't wait for additional updates...

 

:)

[skynight]

Recommend you take time out from dining to watch the sail away from Flaam. It takes about 3 hours but is spectacular. We were on the same cruise in June of this year.

[easyboy]

Looking forward on your live update.

[riclop]

Looking forward to it.

[islandatsea]

Thanks for taking the time to do a Live Report.

[Lucky TGO]

Thank you for taking the time to do this for all of us.

Tony

[Frflatt]

Thank you all for your encouragement and appreciation - will try and answer questions but it may take a day or so.

 

Following muster Captain William Kent informed us that we would be delayed in setting sail by about an hour and a half due to a large container vessel coming into port (less manoeuvrable than us); the reality was that we set off at about 5.15pm. We sat by the Calypso pool for sail away and really missed the love boat theme played on the horn - cheesy as it is - it always makes me smile. Anyhow, we were off on our Norwegian odyssey.

 

We then went for a bit more of an exploratory wander and ended up in Skywalkers at the PES lounge. We had a drink of the day - Pimms Cup - and some guacamole and nachos which was really quite good. This seems like a lovely venue and I'm sure we'll spend quite a bit of time up here enjoying the amazing view.

 

After returning to our stateroom to change - it really is a lovely room and really convenient despite being quite far forward - we went for a pre-dinner martini in Crooners. As some of you have commented the public area in the ship have good views of the world outside compared to Royal class ships.

 

We went to Michelangelo dining room for our dinner; Geoff had the spring roll with the yummy peanut dipping sauce followed by the burger and I had the beef and onion flakey (not very) crust pie. For desert Geoff had cheesecake and I had creme brûlée. We were pleased to see that the nasty Curtis Stone dishes had been dropped from the menu and that the old 'always available' have returned - a good move by Princess.

 

Next we were off to the Welcome Aboard show - we've never been to this before and probably won't bother to do so again! It seems that this show is just an advert for what's coming during the week; however, we did get some interesting information. It appears that on this cruise there are 2,300 Brits, 500 US folk and a scattering of other nationalities - it will be interesting traveling with so many of our own country folk as we're used to being in the minority on cruises!

 

Half way through the show we decided that we had had enough and wanted our bed so sneaked out - actually we were spotted by Jo Little the comedian who announced our departure- and returned to our stateroom. I must say that when we got into bed we were very pleasantly surprised; the new beds are so comfortable and the pillows and bedding are an absolute delight - almost as good as ours at home.

 

Well, that concludes our first day on the Emerald Princess and the next day is a relaxing sea day!

[goughsters]

How was the sail away, was it a party experience on deck as we are used to p&o we have not experienced a princess as this is our first with Princess cruises. I do love a live from and thankyou for keeping us informed. My family and friends are going on Emerald on your return so look after her please! Enjoy your cruise and have fun 😃

[Frflatt]

Sunday 7th August 2016 - Sea Day

 

What a lovely nights sleep - the new beds and bedding are so comfortable. We woke feeling refreshed and ready for a hard day of relaxation!

 

First, off down to the International Cafe for a skinny latte for me and a large macchiato for him and a good dose of people watching. This is one of our favourite activities in the morning and so one coffee turned into two and half an hour of this fun sport.

 

The day, despite being forecast as cloudy, turned out to be bright and sunny and what was apparently a high of 18 seemed more like 30! After sorting out domestic chores - ironing some shirts - we spent most of the day relaxing at the Calypso pool. It felt like we were in the Caribbean rather than Northern Europe - the weather was absolutely perfect and by 3pm we had had too much sun and decided to get some shade on the promenade deck assisted by a buy one get one for a dollar drinks from the Wheelhouse bar.

 

We hadn't bothered with breakfast - still full from the night before - and only had some salad for lunch so we were looking forward to dinner, tonight would be the first formal night of the cruise. After attending the obligatory trivia in Exploreres lounge (I got 13 - the winners got 19) we returned to our stateroom to luxuriate in the bath and primp and pamper ourselves in preparation for formal night.

 

Suitably attired in dark lounge suits we promenaded along to Crooners for our pre-dinner martinis - me dirty, him Hendricks. There we got chatting to some delightful ladies who decided that they weren't terribly impressed by the Emerald having traveled on a number of cruise lines previously. Tonight was the champagne waterfall; however, we couldn't see anything due to the poor layout of the piazza - the sight lines on Royal class ships are so much better.

 

Michelangelo dining room for dinner again - Geoff had the veal pasta and roast lamb (he said it was the best dinner on a cruise ship) and I had the veal pasta and game hen - a little dry. For pudding he had the Norman Love hazelnut slice and I had creme brûlée (again). It was a lovely dinner - we are anytime dining and did have to queue for about 10 minutes but it was ok and we spent the time chatting with folk around us.

 

After dinner we went to Princess Theatre to see Steve Larkins - Salute to Freddie Mercury - we've seen him before and thoroughly enjoyed and we weren't disappointed this time. As well as having a great Mercuriest singing voice he is a very funny comedian and has great audience participation- well worth seeing if you get a chance.

 

After our very relaxing day, delightful dinner and entertaining evening show we were ready to retire to our luxurious bed - so off back to our stateroom to climb between those lovely covers.

 

In the morning we will arrive in Stavanger for our first port of call on this Norwegian trip.

[sunsetbeachgal]

Stephen, you are a wonderful writer, I feel as if I'm sitting right with you in the Piazza people watching (and agree that the Royal class ships are the best ships for this!). Thanks so much for taking us along!

Edited August 8, 2016 by sunsetbeachgal

[slw6130]

Thank you for your postings. My sister and I were supposed to be on this cruise but had to cancel 2 weeks prior due to medical reasons. Looking forward to your posts. We did a 1 week Norway last year and just couldn't get enough, so booked this one for 2 weeks into the Arctic Circle. The Emerald is one of our favorite ships. Enjoy and thanks again for posts!

[MawganTr]

We are onboard too and loving it. We have sailed on Cunard a number of times, P&O 3 times and this is our first time on princess. It's great...busy, but great. There are a number of small differences to P&O especially that we enjoy. As we have our children with us (another first) it suits much better than I think Cunard would.

Even the rain in Stavanger isn't dampening our spirits!

 

 

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[Geoffa30]

We are staying in Stanvenger until noon tomorrow due to storm force winds and 7 to 8 metre swells. Missing Flam altogether which was the port we were looking forward to the most. Disappointed. Will be interesting to see if the Serenade of the Seas and another ship are also stuck here overnight.

 

Captain William Kent seems to think he's on the Caribbean Princess. Perhaps it's his first cruise LOL

[Geoffa30]

We are staying in Stanvenger until noon tomorrow due to storm force winds and 7 to 8 metre swells. Missing Flam altogether which was the port we were looking forward to the most. Disappointed. Will be interesting to see if the Serenade of the Seas and another ship are also stuck here overnight.

 

Captain William Kent seems to think he's on the Caribbean Princess. Perhaps it's his first cruise LOL

 

Just listened to Serenade of the Seas announcement. They are about to set off to Bergen. Expecting 35 knot winds and 5 metre swells.

[MawganTr]

On the marine traffic app it shows SOTS route forecast taking them through inlets rather than open open seas. I guess it may be less choppy?

Really disappointed to be missing Flam but glad to be out of the storm.

I wish someone would tell the captain which ship we are on!

 

 

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