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Trip Report for Regal Princess Thanksgiving Cruise! With Patters and Menus

amanda384

By amanda384,
in Princess Cruises

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amanda384

amanda384

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Hi everyone! Spoiler alert: this will be a non-medallion oriented trip report since we didn't have the medallion.

 

The cast: Me (33), DH (38), DD1 (15), DD2 (11). Drove to Port Everglades from Northern Virginia!

 

Day 1, Embarkation:

 

We stayed at the Homewood Suites near FLL Airport and it was very convenient to the port and to I-95. We had to go to mass in the morning so we went to St. Sebastian's parish, which was even closer to the port. I highly recommend the 11 AM mass if you are looking to go to mass before boarding. We left a little before noon, parked at the Port Everglades garage and we were on the ship by about 12:45. No waiting at any point. We walked right through security and check-in, bypassed the picture-takers and were sitting down having lunch in Alfredo's before we knew it! After a quick lunch I made reservations at the Crown Grill for Tuesday, the first formal night. There were plenty of reservations available.

 

Alfredo's was delicious as ever. I can't say the same for the pizza on the Lido Deck but that's a story for another day. There were very few people at Alfredo's when we were there, as they really seemed to be moving people toward the buffet.

 

The muster drill was painless now that you don't have to lug your life jackets there and back. The ship was at capacity for a holiday cruise but I never felt crowded. The Regal does a tremendous job of distributing traffic patterns around.

 

MDR: I was not overly impressed with the menu the first night and I ordered the "always available" salmon which was fine. The chocolate hazelnut souffle for dessert was DIVINE. We did the late seating in the Allegro Dining Room and it was not crowded compared to the time we did the early seating. Our server was named Christopher and he was funny and very nice! My daughters loved that he always remembered what they wanted to drink.

 

I'm sorry but I can't figure out how to post pictures. I've never done a trip report before! I do have pics if anyone can help me. I am going to share the patters and menus in a dropbox link. If anyone can help, I will edit this post to include the pictures I took. :)

 

That's all I can write for now since we just got back tonight after a long, 2-day drive and I am exhausted! I'll post the rest tomorrow, along with the patters/menus. Any questions, I can try to answer!

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amanda384

amanda384

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my whole family hates the souffles... DH forgot and ordered it. Was hugely disappointed. :) We were on the same cruise as you.

 

Awww sorry you guys don't like them! That's the thing about critiquing cruise food... tastes are so varied!

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Host CJSKIDS "Live from...." Rare

Host CJSKIDS

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I managed to get the Patters to Dropbox, haven't done the menus yet but here you go!

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/b607apm1znzqrc9/AAD51ikoQgSbTxC71DAjc02pa?dl=0

 

Thank you so much. Looking forward to reading the rest of your trip report. Hope you had a great time!

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yoyosma

yoyosma

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Looking forward to reading the rest of your review.....:):):)

 

Bob

Thank you for the patters, We will be on the Regal for two weeks starting this Sunday. I read the patters very carefully. I’m looking forward to the rest of your review.

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amanda384

amanda384

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Interested in what conversations or remarks you might be hearing from those that are testing the medallion. I know there has been progress in the process of getting through the testing the system.

 

Honestly, there wasn't much medallion talk that I could hear. I did overhear one man at the main boutique talking about his hadn't worked at all since he boarded. The boutique employee was sympathetic and said that they were working hard on it but it wasn't perfect yet.

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amanda384

amanda384

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Day 1, Something I forgot!

 

The show Sunday night was Sweet Soul Music which I had seen before. It is not their strongest show, but enjoyable if you like the songs they perform. On my previous Princess cruises there was always a "Welcome Aboard" show that had both the Princess Singers/Dancers and then a comedian for a short act. I thought it was interesting that they opened with this and eschewed the Welcome Show. Maybe that's a new thing though, since I haven't been on Princess since last Spring.

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amanda384

amanda384

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Day 2: Princess Cay!

 

On Monday morning we woke up early to have breakfast in the Concerto Dining Room. My family enjoyed the Maine blueberry pancakes. I had eggs over-easy. Honestly, I didn't find the food that much more impressive than the buffet (which I enjoy quite a bit!) but I did like the atmosphere better.

 

We rented a bungalow on Princess Cay, which I found to be a good deal at $200 for 4 people. $50 per person is not that outrageous for a shore excursion, and being able to take air-conditioning breaks was worth its weight in gold to me. We ordered the $100 picnic and would not do that again. The food came in 5 separate courses and quickly crowded up the bungalow. It wasn't really that good, either, IMO. Live and learn!

 

I have heard complaints about the location of the bungalows. After a priority tender we were taken to our bungalow in a golf cart, but we walked back when it was time to go because it really wasn't that far. The retreat bungalows were a bit further away and the bathrooms in the area left a lot to be desired in terms of cleanliness. We had immediate beach access to calm waters and shady lounge chairs. The bungalows also include a free float which is waiting in the room when you arrive.

 

We tendered back at about 2:30 or so, and that tender ride back was the only time on the trip I got a little seasick. We had dinner in the MDR again, for Italian Night. I had the spaghetti and meatballs which I had previously enjoyed but it wasn't as great as I remembered (although it was not terrible.)

 

I skipped Robbie Printz, the comedian in the Princess Theater that night, but my husband and older daughter went. My 15 year old daughter found him hilarious. My husband said the act was amusing but a bit cliche. When he told me about it, it sounded familiar. I'm bad with names though. It sounded like the act I saw on the Caribbean Princess back in 2015. Was he there previously?

 

To be continued...!

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jetsfan526

jetsfan526

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good to know about the no life vests required. we still had to take them on our 5 day cruise on the Crown n 11/13.

 

LIFO

 

do you happen to have ant menus or patters from that cruise? im going on a 5 day in january and want to see what options they have for dinner

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