On Regal right now...

[h-sar]

Oops. #7 above should be insulating, not insulting. Took 20 min for that post to go through, so didn’t want to recall it for an edit.

[Host CJSKIDS]

Glad you are having such a great cruise. We really enjoyed our 12/3 sailing.

 

They will also put pepperoni in the calzone for your husband! Our friends were on with us and the week prior. They really enjoyed the gluten free pizzas 3 times the first week but both times our week his week was just awful. They do seem to carry some every day now, he didn't have to order it the day prior.

 

Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

[Daddysbaby]

Thank you for your live thread........I just got off the ship on Thursday! Spent a lot of time in the Retreat Pool and Hot Tubs!

(I think you and I chatted online a few years ago and I believe you also went to Van Horne elementary school in Vancouver.) This was my 3rd Xmas on the Regal - I do so love that ship! I was in an obstructed balcony the last two years (E440 both years) and I love the location of that cabin and really not very much of an obstruction at all! I will continue along with you and it will be as if I never left the ship..................Sigh...................!

[h-sar]

Thank you for your live thread........I just got off the ship on Thursday! Spent a lot of time in the Retreat Pool and Hot Tubs!

(I think you and I chatted online a few years ago and I believe you also went to Van Horne elementary school in Vancouver.) This was my 3rd Xmas on the Regal - I do so love that ship! I was in an obstructed balcony the last two years (E440 both years) and I love the location of that cabin and really not very much of an obstruction at all! I will continue along with you and it will be as if I never left the ship..................Sigh...................!

 

Yes, we did converse! Van Horne back in mid elementary :)

 

Regal is my favourite ship. This is cruise number 5 for us on her since 2014. Our first was a Med cruise when she was just three months old. I don’t know how many times I said “I feel like I’m home” when we got on this past Thurs.

 

The obstructed balconies on Emerald are a great value as many of them simply overlook the deck 7 promenade. My kids said E426, next door to them, has an even bigger balcony than their balcony which is already considerably larger than my regular sized narrow Regal usual.

[Lucky TGO]

Thanks for sharing.

Tony

[h-sar]

Day 4 St. Thomas

 

1. This is our first time back on Regal since midship stairs were added on during dry dock. Makes a huge difference. You can tell the stairs were originally meant for crew as they have a raised ‘lip’ at the front of each step which is not on the aft or forward stairs. Nice to be able to take the stairs rather than the elevator (or walk all the way down the deck for the other stairs) if one is only going a couple of decks up or down.
   
2. Another reason I love Princess is the access to self serve laundry on most decks. Use your room card to buy tokens in the machine in the laundry room. Each cycle costs $3 and takes approx 35 min to complete. You can also purchase individual boxes of detergent, but I bring Tide pods and dryer sheets. The attendant cleaning the laundry room one evening told us it was open 24 hrs. Not sure if this is true for all ships. We’ve had a cabin on a previous cruise close by and you couldn’t hear a thing as the laundry rooms are so well insulated. I just toss in my laundry on the way to lunch/activity and ensure I’m back in time to free the machines up for someone else. Never had anything stolen. 4 washers, 4 dryers in each laundry room, along with two irons and boards. The dryers are quite powerful and I’ve never had anything not dry in one cycle.
   
3. Those of you new to Princes....Must do’s: International Cafe on deck 5 (free); Alfredo’s on deck 6 (free). The two very small pasta appys are absolute heaven. Pizzas are of the thin crust gourmet variety and are my favourites, tiramisu for dessert (free); hot fries at the outdoor Grill on lido deck 16 (if you’re going to have a chicken or beef burger on the cruise, do yourself a favour and have it made to order on the grill where you’ll get it piping hot, rather than in the dining room where it is never as hot or as appetizing looking); sit on pool deck and listen to the live band on sea day afternoons (check Patter for times); take as many pics of your family on board in various spots on the first afternoon as you’ll never be as skinny or as unburnt as on that first day (I’m serious!); if you need a new family portrait taken by a photographer, the ship is a great place to do it as it’s very convenient and you don’t have to buy the pics if you don’t like them; afternoon tea at least once, 3-4 pm on some days (check Patter for day and dining room); watch the live band (really good on this cruise) and people dancing in the piazza around 10 PM. Or take part in the dancing. So much fun if the band is good. Tons of people out there last night. Everything from pop to country.
   
4. Have been to St. Thomas far too much, so last minute decision late last night to go to St John for Trunk Bay. Will let you know how that worked out. We don’t do ship excursions - try to find public transportation or use taxis or take tours from the pier (even on our Med cruise). Saves a small fortune for a family of 4 and allows us more time at these places over the ship’s ‘let’s herd a couple hundred people onto numerous monster buses and see what happens when they have to use a one stall bathroom at the same rest stop.’
   
5. Just waiting for 8:00 AM to make reservations for formal night dinner tonight and then will have breakfast and get off the ship.
   
6. 
   

[lstone19]

We are in D711, deluxe obstructed balcony. Typically small Regal balcony, but I’ll still take it! Obstruction again is that we overlook the deck 7 promenade below us which is no big deal.

 

D711 is not an obstructed cabin. All obstructed balconies are on Emerald deck and even E711 is not obstructed (it's aft of the lifeboats). D711 is a DD cabin and E711 is a DE cabin (on Regal, obstructed cabins have the second character of the cabin category between V and Z, e.g. DV).

[h-sar]

D711 is not an obstructed cabin. All obstructed balconies are on Emerald deck and even E711 is not obstructed (it's aft of the lifeboats). D711 is a DD cabin and E711 is a DE cabin (on Regal, obstructed cabins have the second character of the cabin category between V and Z, e.g. DV).

 

Oops. Right you are. We WERE originally in an obstr deluxe and then after final payment, prices went down a bit. We couldn’t take advantage of the price drop, but my TA was able to get us moved up to this DD category at the same price instead. Momentary memory lapse - too much sun :D

[Wishing on a star]

I like how you enjoy a cruise!!!!

 

Making me very wistful, as we had to cancel/postpone our upcoming cruise on the Regal.

I was so looking forward to sailing on her!

 

Happy NYE!!!!

[fishin' musician]

D711 is not an obstructed cabin. All obstructed balconies are on Emerald deck and even E711 is not obstructed (it's aft of the lifeboats). D711 is a DD cabin and E711 is a DE cabin (on Regal, obstructed cabins have the second character of the cabin category between V and Z, e.g. DV).

 

Also obstructed balconies on Marina and Lido decks.

[cruisequeen4ever]

Thank you for the updates! How was Trunk Bay? We loved it last year pre-hurricane.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Keith1010]

Enjoying your posts.

 

Happy New Year.

 

Keith

[h-sar]

Day 5 Martinique

But first, our time in Trunk Bay yesterday.

Happy New Year!

20 minute taxi from cruise to east end of island for ferry terminal $10 per person. Nice little verbal tour from driver. No picture stops, though. It was a rather residential and industrial area we went through. Devastation of hurricane evident in some homes and in the foliage. Was very sad to see.

15 min ferry $7 each

15 min taxi $6 from St John to beach

Everything went like clockwork. Decided to take 2:00 ferry back as all aboard was 4:30. Could easily have taken 3:00 back, but didn’t want to chance it.

Total for 4 people return: $184 just for transportation - ouch. However, it was one of the most beautiful beaches we’ve ever been to and I was also glad to do my tiny bit for the local economy.

 

We got off the ship and walked to the end of the shopping complex, following the taxi signs. Managed to get mini van taxi at 9:25 that was also dropping off others at the ferry terminal. It was almost full by the time we got there, so we left pretty quickly. Try to get an open air safari instead - way cooler, less bumpy, less crowded.

Driver strangely heavily pushed people headed to Coki to go to Sapphire instead. Said there would be no easy access to taxis there upon return. Seems like a blatant lie based on what I’ve read. Anyone?

It was a 17 minute, bit of a bumpy ride, to terminal. Got there about 9:45. The terminal was very quiet, with just a few other passengers from our ship and from Celebrity which was docked at Crown Bay, small handful of locals as well. NCL and HA were with us at Havensight, but had come in much earlier. Nice bathrooms inside the terminal. You’ll find out later why I was glad I made use of them before embarking.

Promptly at 10, we left for St. John. Lovely, scenic ferry ride, with a gentle breeze as we sat on top uncovered deck. Got off and managed to catch a safari right away that was heading out to Trunk Bay. Driver gave us a bit of a verbal tour as we drove. He stopped at a couple of scenic overlooks so we could quickly snap pictures from inside the safari of the harbor below. By 10:35, we were heading into the entrance for Trunk Bay.

Others had written that there was a $5 charge to get in, but we were able to walk right through. There did not appear to be any sort of check in where one might have to get a ticket. Right by the parking lot there was a hut where one could rent chairs for $10 with a $50 deposit returnable deposit and also rent snorkel gear for $10. There were two United State Park Rangers who were close to the entry keeping an eye on things. They were very friendly and gave us some great information about how best to get around and use the beach.

Sadly, there was some damage done as a result of the hurricane. All of the facilities, including bathroom, and restaurant, were completely shut down. There were some porta potties which the lady at the hut was charging one dollar for. Not sure if this was something she had authority to do. The change rooms were open. Showers were not. I can’t do porta potties and was really happy that I’d used the bathroom at the terminal on the St. Thomas side.

Having not been to Trunk Bay before, I cannot comment on the condition of the beach now compared to before the hurricane. There were some bent trees, but the rest of it seemed fine. The buildings that were closed seemed intact for the most part. Just sad to see the after effects, knowing many people who would have been gainfully employed there are probably without work right now.

Absolutely breathtaking spot - water so blue and crystal clear. Sand incredibly soft. You know how you see pictures online of the most beautiful beaches in the world and they are beautiful because there is not one solitary person in the picture and then you see a picture of that same beach and it is littered with thousands of umbrellas, chairs, and people and does not look quite as breathtaking anymore? Well, Trunk Bay would be the same (at least it was yesterday) in the before and after shot. This is the kind of beach I dream about. Isolated. Few people. No resorts in the background. Even all the little closed facilities were tucked away behind the trees so you could not see them from the beach. They were only a few dozen people there and so we were all very well spread out. No umbrellas littering the landscape. Just the chairs. Of course this meant there was very little shade right on the beach area. There was some towards the back where the trees and shrubs were. They were also some picnic benches in those areas which I made use of when I wanted to get out of the sun.

There was a tiny little island just a short swim away and I noticed one of the park rangers with his binoculars yelling at a fellow who was far too close to the island. He was telling the swimmer to stay away from the island as he was stepping on coral. So please be aware of this if you should ever be fortunate enough to get to TB.

My son did rent some snorkelling gear and tried to follow the snorkelling trail which has signage down underwater. He said it was a little bit too murky to see much of anything.

The whole transportation to and from was very expensive for just a beach day. However, I viewed the taxi/safari rides and the ferry as part of our tour of St. Thomas and St. John. All in all, a beautiful day in an incredible bit of paradise. There were not more than a few dozen people there and we were all fairly well spread out.

The kids said it was one of the most beautiful beaches they’ve been to. However, they rated Valley Church Beach in Antigua just a bit higher. Going there a couple years back cost us about $10 on the public bus! Don’t think we could have done TB any cheaper. ??

Will post later about New Yrs on the Regal. Off to Martinique today. From today on, all ports are new to us.

[Woobstr112G]

I completely agree with you about the thermal loungers. Princess should not allow saving of the loungers and limit the time since there are so few of them. I have used The Enclave and people would "set up shop" at the loungers bringing their novels,tablets, phone, drinks and stay for hours, We all have purchased the pass and would like to enjoy the loungers too.

 

If they move their feet, they loose their seat. Treat em just like the Hogs at the pool. If they are gone for more than 30-45 minutes, move their stuff and have at the lounger.....

Bob

[h-sar]

The paragraph spacing on my previous post seems weird. Hope the font size came out ok. Again, don’t want to recall it for an edit as it has been taking me multiple attempts to post something. Even trying to preview my post before posting causes a whole lot of spinning to occur, so can’t even see what it looks like before I post. Apologies in advance for any other similar issues which might arise.

[h-sar]

DH says the Enclave has very few people in the early morning, so he’s been going for a short stint after his morning workouts and then a longer visit in the evenings. He absolutely loves the facility, even given the issue with the thermal loungers (yesterday, he said a girl was asleep on one for the full 90 min he was there - yikes! Doesn’t sound safe. He did say they’re not really heated, though.

[kbubbles]

Looking forward to St. Maarten. Thanks for the review.

[telcom]

Also on the Feb 18 sailing. My niece will be traveling with us and she is gluten free. Would love to hear how your friend is managing?

 

Also will be on the February 18 sailing; we did B2B on the Regal beginning Thanksgiving week. I eat gluten free (celiac) and did not have any issues with anytime dining, room service, or buffet. On the Cruise Personalizer, I noted my dietary requirements and received e-mail confirmation. The head waiter will take your order for the next evening and accommodate your preferences; if you go to a different dining room, they can still find your order. At the buffet where I sometimes had lunch, I asked a chef to show me what is gluten free. On the room service breakfast card, I requested gluten-free toast and received it every time. I did bring my own cereal and some Kind bars. There was really nothing for me to eat at the Pub Lunch, but I did enjoy gluten-free pizza at Alfredo's (no need to order a day ahead, as on some cruises). The poolside grill has French fries using a dedicated fryer, so I enjoyed those. All in all, an easy way to deal with special diets.

[h-sar]

1. New Year’s Eve on Princess a couple of nights ago...
   

It’s funny that the only time my family actually makes an effort to get dressed up and celebrate New Yrs is when we happen to be on a cruise. After having experienced New Yrs on Oasis, Carnival, and Holland America, have to say that Princess puts on the best celebration.

It was a bit odd not having the champagne waterfall yesterday as it’s always a good lead up to the festivities. Oddly, there were no Norman Love cake pops at the champagne waterfall as in the previous ones I’ve attended. They did serve the typical free champagne and mimosas.

There were multiple New Yrs celebrations going on...outdoor party poolside with one of the bands (modern stuff); indoor party with another band (older standards) in the piazza where the famous Princess balloon drop takes place at midnight; an after party at the Retreat pool later with the DJ which my kids said was attended mostly by younger guests who apparently have more staying power than I do. DH and I tend to stick to the piazza one until just after midnight to ring in the new year with a few hundred of our best new friends. Will never get tired of the balloon drop.

We found some prime seats on deck 6 overlooking the piazza, so had a great view of the festivities. The kids know, regardless of what they’ve been doing, they need to come to the piazza just before midnight so that we can all ring in the new year together. After that, they go off to hang out at the various parties with their friends and we will spend a few minutes at the pool party before deciding it’s too loud and windy (really just looking for an excuse to head inside to the late night New Year’s buffet!). Princess did a nice variety of finger foods that you don’t typically see in their regular buffet and also a good variety of fancy desserts. Chocolate covered strawberries were particularly good as were the individually plated meatballs in a Thai chili sauce. Nice decorations in horizon court, along with the 2018 ice sculpture and some verrry large 2018 cakes. Chefs/cooks out did themselves.

 

1. We managed to secure a reservation (after much time on the phone yesterday between 8-9 AM as everyone was probably trying to make reservations for New Yrs eve) for Symphony dining for 7:30 pm. We were in a third new section for this week and really enjoyed our waiter, but service was incredibly slow. Dinner took 2 hrs 25 min. It’s not like we had anywhere to go, so didn’t bother us. However, the table next to us had three generations of a family and I was worried that elderly grandpa and little grandson might both fall asleep before the second course! Little guy was given a large plate of fries to tide him over after they ordered and I think he overfilled on those as he barely touched his actual meal.
   
2. I mentioned a couple of days ago that we had yet to see a Norman Love dessert...well, we ended up with the hazelnut one in the MDR for dinner three nights ago. One of my favourites. Unfortunately for GFF (gluten free friend), who is a chocolate connoisseur, Norman Love does not make any gluten free desserts for the Princess menu. She has purchased his box sets of chocolates to take home in the past, though. The chocolate pudding like dessert (which looks a bit like a chocolate flan) called Catalana has made an appearance in the Intl Cafe twice this week, much to the delight of GFF. She says it’s one of the better gluten free desserts, so look out for that one and the dining room menu’s flourless chocolate cake for your GFFs.
   
3. Two nights ago, our head waiter (with whom we’d been talking about all the Indian offerings in the buffet the night previous) surprised us with an Indian feast (mixed veg dish, chicken in a curry sauce, basmati rice, Indian flatbread, raita - tangy yogurt dish with diced cucumbers and tomatoes, shrimp curry dish, papadums, and a lentil dish). It was a LOT of food. Indians eat thali style (thali is an Indian platter which contains a number of different dishes that are eaten together - we don’t really eat one main thing at our meals). However, our Thali’s contain very small amounts of each item. What came out for my DH alone was enough to feed a family of 5! The food was delicious and the gesture was greatly appreciated.
   
4. Last night, we did Crown Grill. Food and service were as great as ever. I love their black and blue French onion soup, but last night could not finish more than a quarter of it as it was super, super salty and I am one who really likes her salt. (Strangely, a few nights ago, I decided I needed to try one of the Curtis Stone menu items as I never had. I had the chicken pot pie and it, too, was incredibly salty. I’ve never had this issue on princess before.) We had all the sides which we all love, with the creamed spinach being our favorite. DH had the lobster and was disappointed that he could not ask for a second, as it was quite small, without having to pay the $10 charge for an extra main. The other four of us had fillet mignon and it was superb Cut of meat. I know others have mentioned this on Cruise Critic, so I should have thought ahead, but was not thinking. Halfway through our meal, one of the bands (which is actually quite good and I enjoy listening to), started to play in the wheelhouse. We were sitting at a table right next to the Wheelhouse, with not even a half wall separating us. We could not even try to carry on a conversation after that, because the music was just too loud. The music would have been enjoyable had we not been trying to have a nice meal together. Next time, I will ask for a table on the opposite side of the restaurant. I guess eating at 5:30 might also have helped as I believe they started at around 815.
   

Will try at some point today, as we will be back on the ship quite early from Grenada, at 1:30, to catch up on my Martinique day yesterday.

[h-sar]

Oops. Wrote some of this post yesterday, so typed ‘yesterday’ in a couple of places when I might’ve meant two days ago.

[emmak8]

Thank you for your detailed post. Regal a favorite of mine and I'll be boarding Jan 7.

 

It's the cruising life for me!!!

[Mayo21]

Thank you for your detailed post. Regal a favorite of mine and I'll be boarding Jan 7.

 

 

 

It's the cruising life for me!!!

 

 

 

We’ll be on the Regal for 25 days beginning April 15th, so I’m loving all the info you’re providing! Thanks!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[h-sar]

We’ll be on the Regal for 25 days beginning April 15th, so I’m loving all the info you’re providing! Thanks!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

25 days!? You are SO living my dream. I have about 4 years to retirement and going on a few back to backs will be my gift to myself. Right now, my work (junior high assist. principal) allows me only the two weeks at Christmas to cruise - highest peak time for cruise and air :( No desire to cruise in the summer when it’s the nicest weather for us back home.

[h-sar]

1. Backtracking to Martinique day yesterday...
   

I had made notes on each of the ports we are going to on this cruise while researching on Trip Adv and Cruise Critic prior to the cruise. My notes on Martinique ended with the question, “would this be a good ship day?” This was based on things I had read on CC about some issues people had encountered at this port - particularly about rude tour and taxi vendors. However, not having been to Martinique before, I felt I needed to see some of the island. Should have listened to my first instincts. I think because Martinique is so much more developed and has more industry than other islands, they’re not as dependent on $$ generated by the cruise ships.

After getting off the ship fairly early Monday morning, we spent almost 90 minutes looking for a taxi or bus tour of the island, hoping to learn about its culture and history. There were just a small amount of vendors outside at the port, definitely not the plethora one sees on the other islands. It was a very hot and frustrating 90 minutes looking for a taxi or bus that would take the five of us as either a small group or part of a larger group. A few of the drivers actually agreed to take us and then would turn around and make a better deal with others, promptly ditching us. We finally gave up and took a ferry from the port over to Anse a L’Ane beach. It cost $14 return and took about 30 minutes each way. Unfortunately, the water was pretty murky and dirty looking there, possibly because of the dark sand the island is known for.

It definitely was not a picturesque beach. The water was warm, but the beach area was pretty unkempt and not the type of place where one would want to have a laydown on a towel. There were a few unattended dogs wandering around and there was some dog poop along the beach. We stayed about an hour and took the next ferry back.

There were a few little tourist huts at the port where we bought some souvenirs and an island dress I had been looking for for quite a few cruises. My advice for Martinique would be to arrange for a tour beforehand or be the first one off the ship to increase the chances of being able to hire somebody on the spot. After 13 cruises, this was our first experience where we were unable to hire someone right off the pier. Totally our fault as others had posted similar warnings from prior experiences.

1. I will take a moment and wade into the great Princess pizza recipe change debate :). My kids and I have always loved Princess pizza by the pool. I had read on CC that there had been a recipe change, not for the better. My son, who had no prior knowledge of this, took a bite on our first day and said, “what’s wrong with their pizza?” The cheese is definitely saltier and oilier and the crust has a bit of an odd taste. However, this has not prevented me from eating vast amounts of it this week! Still way better than Royal Caribbean and Carnival.
   
2. There are over 500 kids on board (I went up to deck 17 to check for you:) all having a great time and extremely well behaved. Good job, parents. Kids camp is divided into 3-7; 8-12; 13-17. Biggest group is 13-17.
   
3. Saw Dirk (the hotel General manager who was featured on one of the big ship type TV shows about the Regal a couple years back) all over the ship this week. My daughter thinks of him as a bit of a rockstar! Cruise director is Martyn Moss. I assume he’s doing a great job as everyone’s having a good time, but I always miss Ron Goodman as a cruise director.
   
4. The poolside band is Excite. They play in many other venues and are quite good and versatile. Did some great Linda Ronstadt as we pulled out of Grenada this afternoon and a particularly great rendition of a couple of Adele hits the other day. Think they’re from Trinidad, but don’t quote me. Billy Joel concert is on MUTS right now (4:20 pm). Wonder Woman, Big, Princess Bride have been shown this week - didn’t notice the others. Fiera tonight in the Princess Theatre is a favourite so we will definitely go see that. On this port intensive cruise, it was nice to have an early back on board this afternoon (1:30) as it allowed us to go to port and also have a bit of a sea day.
   
5. Regal has adopted a program they call Skip the Straw, probably due to environmental concerns with straws easily blowing into the ocean. They will only give you a straw if you ask for it.
   
6. On the first night, I had a $17 charge on my acct from the Casino bar. None of us go anywhere near the casino as we don’t like the smoke and we also don’t drink. By that time, we had also already bought our mocktail cards, so it couldn’t have been a non alc drink. I went to customer service when I noticed it in day 2. The rep said he’d look into it. The next day, the charge was gone, no explanation given. Appreciated that they took care of it so quickly, but odd that they didn’t want more info from me.
   
7. Have had great balcony neighbors. No noise issues. Very few people are ever out at the wooden loungers two decks below us on 7, so don’t hear much from there either.
   
8. Have I mentioned that my hometown has had record lows of -30 to -42C the past week? I’ll probably mention it again...many times. How annoyed do you think all of my colleagues at school are going to be when I come back with a pronounced tan on my already naturally dark skin? :)
   
9. Love that the Christmas decorations are still up.
   
10. Why is Princess having such difficulty in rolling out a digital photo display similar to the one Royal Caribbean has? It is such a hassle trying to find your family’s photographs in the display booths and it seems like such an incredible waste of paper.
    
11. If anyone has any questions that I can investigate on board for them, ask away. We have a couple of sea days coming up at the end of the week and with all the eating I have done, walking around the ship trying to find the answers to your queries will not be an altogether bad use of my time.
    
12. For those new to Princess: Wait staff are great about coming to you when you seat yourself in the buffet, asking if you want water/bar drink/coffee, etc. Bring a water bottle from home with a wide top, so you can fill it with ice on port days and your water will stay colder for much longer. Please do use a glass to fill up your water bottle, though. I have seen so many people put the mouth of their water bottles right on the water dispensers, making it very unhygienic.
    
13. One of the waiters at the bar close to Int’l Cafe told a teen girl (with a group of teens) who was getting cookies that her clothing was inappropriate for that area of the ship. She was wearing a tank over her bathing suit, but no shorts over her suit bottom. I was pleasantly surprised that a crew member said something. Wish someone had said something to the middle aged man in the yellow speedo, shirtless, who was in the buffet this afternoon - yikes. When it comes to clothing, my attitude is live and let live. I have to spend way too much time at school enforcing dress code, so really don’t want to be thinking about it on my holiday. My family, including the kids, really enjoy getting dressed up for dining room dinners, but we certainly don’t look around to see how others are dressed. However, the right of a fellow passenger to wear what makes them happy ends at my right to enjoy food that hasn’t been impacting by their unhygienic dress. LOL
    
14. Library on Regal has to be the tiniest at sea :) Download your own books on your tech; don’t depend on the library as a third of what little is there will also probably be in a language foreign to you! Speaking of the library, the table in there has been well used all week by people quietly playing cards, games etc.
    
15. If your kids are over 17 and under 21 and are worried about meeting new friends, make sure they go to the 18 to 20-year-old meet and greets that happen on the first night and a few other nights. Check in the Patter. My kids went, would meet up with people and they would all go to a show or arrange to play basketball or meet up at the pool etc in small or large groups. This would be advice for kids of all ages who wish to make new friends. Do not miss out on the first night of the kids’ camp or the meet and greets as it’s on the first night that connections are made. My kids have been cruising princess since they were 8 and 10 years old and always loved the kids’ camps.
    
16. Way easier to get your first alc. drink or pop for dinner from one of the bars closest to your dining room as you walk into the MDR as it’s always a long wait to get one from the dining room servers.
    

 

[h-sar]

Today, we were in Grenada from 7:00 am - 1:30 pm. Having such a short day and not wanting to replicate the fiasco of yesterday, we were off the ship by 7:10. There were many, many vendors and taxi drivers outside the main entry who were eager to get our business.The three of us adults joined two other couples in a minivan island tour for over 3 1/2 hours, with an additional 40 minutes at the end at Morne Rouge beach. My children went on a hiking and waterfall excursion DS had read about. They got on a private tour where they were put in a minivan with a family of four, meaning that they only had to pay $20 each for transportation there and back, versus the $50 they were going to be charged each if it waS just the two of them.

Our tour of the island was very pleasant. We went to three different areas: Fort Frederick, Annandale waterfall - part of a national park, and Grand Etang Museum and lake. As we left each site, huge Princess bus tours would descend. Glad we were always a step ahead and many bodies short! The cost was $25 each and each of the three places we stopped at had an additional two dollar entry fee as they were all national historic sites. We also stopped at a little shop along the way where the owner spent some time giving us in a really good demonstration of Nutmeg, taking it from its original form to the powdered form. It was very educational and quite interesting. He also went through a few other spices and showed us cocoa in its original form, as well as in its chocolate form.. All seven of us bought a few items each from his shop and a couple of us purchased the spice necklace for about four dollars that the island is so well-known for. It’s a great souvenir. I bought a bottle of the local banana ketchup as well.

 

Morne Rouge is a beautiful beach. Water is a beautiful crystal clear blue/green and the sand is incredibly soft. Lots of nice restaurants facilities. Could have spent the whole day there and the next time we come to Grenada will definitely do just that, now that we have done an island tour. The kids had a great time on their excursion. they did a 30 minute hike up to the waterfalls and a 30 minute hike down as well. I believe it took them about 30 minutes in the vehicle to get there. They were given a free guide to guide them up to the Falls. They work on tips, so the kids tipped him $10. They were also given walking sticks to make the hike easier. They said it is not something for the faint of heart or the unsteady of foot. One of the guides took my son up to the top of one of the smaller waterfalls and allowed him to jump into the water. He said he would not have done it if the kids had been on a princess excursion as princess does not allow it. Really, really glad I was not there to see it. Would have had a heart attack, I’m sure. The kids said quite a few people were making the jump so DS felt safe in doing so. Their runners got quite muddy, but there were people at the bottom who would clean shoes for those coming down. Again, they did not charge anything, just worked for tips. Kids tipped this fellow a couple of dollars each. I think it’ll be a highlight of the cruise for them.