LIVE FROM - 2019 Pacific World Cruise - LA to LA

[ccrain]

Now its 4 suitcases, 4 carry-ons and a toolbox! A toolbox from Home Depot, wheeled, cheaper than a new piece of luggage, duct taped closed, filled with 4 months of toiletries and STUFF.

 

Oh yeah, let’s not forget umpteen different charging cords and the futility of trying to make sure your laptop and all your electronics are updated while still connected to decent WiFi – and knowing full well that the moment you get on the ship and leave the harbor, every device will require a major system update and app updates totaling more gigs of bandwidth than the entire Apollo program used in its lifetime – and those update will only last about 2 weeks…

 

When did cruising get so darn complex! Oh I forgot, we signed up for our first world cruise! To paraphrase a famous general, everyday cruisers think fun, drinks, exotic ports, sun, sea, surf – serious cruisers think logistics, alternate plans, closet space, backups upon backups (what if the toothbrush charger goes out?) – how many days of vitamins and supplements? How many bottles of shampoo and conditioner? No wonder the house budget consists of 20% food and the rest – STUFF! (Good thing we don’t have to bring toilet paper!)

 

But I get way, way ahead of myself. Hi Everyone! For those of you who don’t know us, Judy and I have been sailing since 2001 when we got hooked on an Alaskan cruise on the old Ocean Princess (Sun Class). 50+ Princess cruises and a little over 600 days and here we are – on our first World Cruise and our first cruise on the Pacific Princess. Yep, from a ‘can you fish off the back of the boat’ guy to a serious OCPD (Obsessive Cruise Planning Disorder) engineering approach to World Cruising.

 

We are presently ensconced at the Doubletree in San Pedro having had our breakfast, inventoried and re-packed a bunch of STUFF, and are enjoying a nice cup of coffee before heading out to purchase MORE STUFF. After spending almost $600 last night in STUFF for the next 100+ days on the ship, what more STUFF could we possibly need? Glad you asked. Crystallized ginger and Stevia from Whole Foods. A closet organizer, flip flops and a couple of other things from Walmart, with a backup location of a Target in Carson just in case the Walmart fails me.

 

So welcome to a Live From thread on the 2019 Pacific Princess World Cruise. Roundtrip LA. Or at least we are doing the R/T LA. Several of our Cruise Critic band has already started the journey from FLL. And many will get off in FLL as we circle the world. But I wanted to do a World Cruise. The whole enchilada. So here we are. Why the 2019 WC? In a word, Africa. When we booked, I didn’t think they would do Africa very soon after that, although the 2020 cruise also does Africa. But we have already booked our Route Sector Deviation and will be doing a 3 Day safari from Durban, catching up with the ship in Cape Town.

 

But again, I get ahead of myself.

 

The 2019 cruise, for us, starts in LA and then goes on the following itinerary. The Indian Ocean and Africa part of the itinerary is what caught my eye. Parts of the world we will probably never see, and face it, we’re not getting any younger. To quote another famous general “L'audace, l'audace, toujours l'audace”!

 

Sun, Jan 20         Los Angeles, California 

Mon, Jan 21       At Sea 

Tue, Jan 22         At Sea 

Wed, Jan 23       At Sea 

Thu, Jan 24         At Sea 

Fri, Jan 25           At Sea 

Sat, Jan 26          Honolulu, Hawaii 

Sun, Jan 27         Maui (Lahaina), Hawaii  (Tender Required)

Mon, Jan 28       At Sea 

Tue, Jan 29         At Sea 

Wed, Jan 30       At Sea 

Thu, Jan 31         At Sea 

Fri, Feb 1            At Sea 

Sat, Feb 2           Tahiti (Papeete), French Polynesia 

Sun, Feb 3          Huahine, Polynesia  (Tender Required)

Sun, Feb 3          Raiatea, French Polynesia 

Mon, Feb 4         Raiatea, French Polynesia 

Tue, Feb 5          At Sea 

Wed, Feb 6         Cross International Date Line 

Fri, Feb 8            At Sea 

Sat, Feb 9           Nuku'alofa, Tonga 

Sun, Feb 10        At Sea 

Mon, Feb 11      At Sea 

Tue, Feb 12        Auckland, New Zealand 

Wed, Feb 13      At Sea 

Thu, Feb 14        At Sea 

Fri, Feb 15          Dunedin (Port Chalmers), New Zealand 

Sat, Feb 16         Stewart Isand, New Zealand  (Tender Required)

Sun, Feb 17        At Sea 

Mon, Feb 18      At Sea 

Tue, Feb 19        Sydney, Australia 

Wed, Feb 20      At Sea 

Thu, Feb 21        At Sea 

Fri, Feb 22          At Sea 

Sat, Feb 23         Cairns, Australia 

Sun, Feb 24        At Sea 

Mon, Feb 25      At Sea 

Tue, Feb 26        At Sea 

Wed, Feb 27      Darwin, Australia 

Thu, Feb 28        At Sea 

Fri, Mar 1            At Sea 

Sat, Mar 2           Komodo Island, Indonesia  (Tender Required)

Sun, Mar 3         At Sea 

Mon, Mar 4        At Sea 

Tue, Mar 5         Singapore 

Wed, Mar 6        Singapore 

Thu, Mar 7         Kuala Lumpur (Port Kelang), Malaysia 

Fri, Mar 8            Langkawi, Malaysia 

Sat, Mar 9           Phuket, Thailand 

Sun, Mar 10       At Sea 

Mon, Mar 11      At Sea 

Tue, Mar 12       At Sea 

Wed, Mar 13     Colombo, Sri Lanka 

Thu, Mar 14       At Sea 

Fri, Mar 15         Maldives (Male)  (Tender Required)

Sat, Mar 16        At Sea 

Sun, Mar 17       At Sea 

Mon, Mar 18      At Sea 

Tue, Mar 19       Seychelles Islands (Mahe) 

Wed, Mar 20     At Sea 

Thu, Mar 21       At Sea 

Fri, Mar 22         Nosy Be, Madagascar  (Tender Required)

Sat, Mar 23        At Sea 

Sun, Mar 24       At Sea 

Mon, Mar 25      Port Louis, Mauritius 

Tue, Mar 26       Pointe des Galets, Reunion Island 

Wed, Mar 27     At Sea 

Thu, Mar 28       At Sea 

Fri, Mar 29         At Sea 

Sat, Mar 30        Durban, South Africa 

Sun, Mar 31       East London, South Africa 

Mon, Apr 1         At Sea 

Tue, Apr 2          Cape Town, South Africa 

Wed, Apr 3         Cape Town, South Africa 

Thu, Apr 4          Cape Town, South Africa 

Fri, Apr 5             At Sea 

Sat, Apr 6            Luderitz, Namibia 

Sun, Apr 7          Walvis Bay, Namibia 

Mon, Apr 8         At Sea 

Tue, Apr 9          At Sea 

Wed, Apr 10      At Sea 

Thu, Apr 11        Saint Helena, Great Britain  (Tender Required)

Fri, Apr 12          At Sea 

Sat, Apr 13         At Sea 

Sun, Apr 14        At Sea 

Mon, Apr 15       At Sea 

Tue, Apr 16        Natal, Brazil 

Wed, Apr 17      Fortaleza, Brazil 

Thu, Apr 18        At Sea 

Fri, Apr 19          At Sea 

Sat, Apr 20         "Devil's Island (isle Royale), French Guiana Scenic Cruising"

Sun, Apr 21        At Sea 

Mon, Apr 22       Barbados 

Tue, Apr 23        Guadeloupe (Point-a-Pitre) 

Wed, Apr 24      "Marigot, Saint Martin Tender Required

Thu, Apr 25        At Sea 

Fri, Apr 26          At Sea 

Sat, Apr 27         Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 

Sun, Apr 28        At Sea 

Mon, Apr 29       At Sea 

Tue, Apr 30        Aruba 

Wed, May 1       At Sea 

Thu, May 2         Panama Canal (Scenic Cruising) Panama 

Fri, May 3           At Sea 

Sat, May 4          Puerto Quepos, Costa Rica  (Tender Required)

Sun, May 5         At Sea 

Mon, May 6       At Sea 

Tue, May 7         Huatulco, Mexico 

Wed, May 8       At Sea 

Thu, May 9         Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 

Fri, May 10         At Sea 

Sat, May 11        At Sea 

Sun, May 12       Los Angeles, California 

 

For this itinerary, we have a mix of DIY, Private Excursions and Princess tours scheduled. The largest and most complex, of course, is the safari in Durban. The DIY ports are mainly those that we’ve been to before – Hawaii, Auckland, Dunedin, Sydney, Darwin, Singapore – and the private excursions where we could get on them. Then we just filled in the rest with Princess excursions. As we go through the cruise, I hope to give everyone an idea of what we did, who we did it with and how it all went. Especially the mechanics of what we did for those of you infected with OCPD.

 

We have over 150 Cruise Critic members on this cruise. Meet and greets planned for FLL, LA and SYD. Hopefully we can do group luncheons and dinners as well – we had a great time on the Coral late last year during the 60 Day Northern Pacific cruise. I will try and give everyone, especially those on the 2020 cruise, a good idea of shipboard life, cabin space, food and entertainment, as well as the ports. After all, you can’t get enough information when planning something like this…

 

So that’s the morning before update…

 

Later!

[coo359a2]

Good to see you beat out the bad weather and arrive LA safe and sound.  We'll see you in Sydney

[BLJBLJ]

Hi Charles and Judy,  Just got off the Grand and this next 111 days will help me get over my PCB (post cruise blues).  I thought of you guys on day 8 of my cruise to Mexico because I woke up sick with a sore throat and cough.  Hope you guys stay well and have a GREAT time.  Thanks for taking us all along.  Brenda

[chrysalis]

Enjoy....we have friends already on board for the WC.....they boarded in Ft Lauderdale.

[AF-1]

wow what a lifetime thrill.  That is a long time at sea; but it will be fun.  I did follow you on your Alaskan trek and northern pacific.  So this should be fun

[Working 2 Cruise]

Hi. I've followed many of your adventures. This one promises to be spectacular! Enjoy the cruise of a lifetime!

[Pacificsunflower]

Thank you, again, for all of the organization! See you tomorrow!

Allison. 

[PescadoAmarillo]

Thanks very much for doing a LIVE FROM on a World Cruise!  Your first post already made me laugh twice: when you talked about serious cruisers needing to be much more systematic in their approach (so true..no place on earth has cheaper vitamins and supplements than the US) and that, despite your best efforts, everything will need to be updated two weeks after you embark (even truer). 

 

Thanks for for bringing us along with you.  Safe travels and stay healthy!

[DrivesLikeMario]

I have 4 friends on this cruise and am anxious to read your views as well as hear from them.  What an incredible experience!  Can you tell me if Sandy, the FCC, is onboard with you?

[Sea Hag]

I'll be very interested to read your continuing reviews. I hope you and your STUFF have a wonderful trip.

[4cats4me]

Thanks for letting us follow along! 

[tvlbum]

3 hours ago, ccrain said:

Several of our Cruise Critic band has already started the journey from FLL.

Can some one post the link to this thread.  I found one but it is only a segment not the World Cruise.  Thanks.  Lookng forward to followiing both.

[Crzn-Life]

Hey Charles and Judy!

 

Hope your new adventure exceeds the last one. At least the crew on the Pacific know how to plan and stock for a long cruise!

 

Wishing you fair winds and calm seas. The Pacific can really rock and roll in heavy weather. Judy, I hope you took lots of meds because rough seas on the Pacific will make the rough days on the Coral feel downright calm. 

 

I know you two will have a fantastic adventure!

 

We’re on the Crown now...just relaxing. Bill knows where the ship is!!!

 

Enjoy. 

 

Walking!

 

Wanda and Bill

 

 

[jlf1]

Following, always enjoy your Live Reports

[sewgood]

Have a wonderful cruise. I will be reading along wishing I was there.

[tawlaw1526]

I will be following along.  What a wonderful trip you have ahead.    Enjoy every minute of it!      BON VOYAGE!!!!!!!!

[slwildflower]

Thank you Charles & Judy 🙂  Your information has been SO HELPFUL!!  I hope you don't mind my adding a suggestion for anyone who might be interested......  My Sister (Barbara) has a famous booth at KCC (Kapiolani Community College) Open Air Market near the base of Diamond Head where she makes "Fried Green Tomatoes" like you have never had before!!  The market is open every Saturday from 7am to 11am and her booth is called "Two Hot Tomatoes".  Her line is usually filled with Japanese Tourists.... go figure.  She has been doing this for over 15 years and it is an experience to taste her tomatoes.  Also, the Market is filled with so many other homemade original Hawaiian treasures.... flowers, food, nuts, etc. and is SO WORTH a trip  if anyone can arrange the time.  Tell her Bonnie says "Hi" and I'll see her after market.......

[Grumpy69]

WOW.  Can't wait to follow along!

[ccrain]

3 hours ago, Crzn-Life said:

Hey Charles and Judy!

 

Hope your new adventure exceeds the last one. At least the crew on the Pacific know how to plan and stock for a long cruise!

 

Wishing you fair winds and calm seas. The Pacific can really rock and roll in heavy weather. Judy, I hope you took lots of meds because rough seas on the Pacific will make the rough days on the Coral feel downright calm. 

 

I know you two will have a fantastic adventure!

 

We’re on the Crown now...just relaxing. Bill knows where the ship is!!!

 

Enjoy. 

 

Walking!

 

Wanda and Bill

 

 

Is Bill sure? I know how persnikity he can be!

 

Judy brought lots of EVERYTHING! Oh my aching back, and that poor UBER driver from LAX. His Prius had to have 3 of our luggage pieces in his front seat!

 

Take care guys and have fun. Wake Bill up for me - ok?

[Sun Lakes Cruiser]

27 minutes ago, slwildflower said:

Thank you Charles & Judy 🙂  Your information has been SO HELPFUL!!  I hope you don't mind my adding a suggestion for anyone who might be interested......  My Sister (Barbara) has a famous booth at KCC (Kapiolani Community College) Open Air Market near the base of Diamond Head where she makes "Fried Green Tomatoes" like you have never had before!!  The market is open every Saturday from 7am to 11am and her booth is called "Two Hot Tomatoes".  Her line is usually filled with Japanese Tourists.... go figure.  She has been doing this for over 15 years and it is an experience to taste her tomatoes.  Also, the Market is filled with so many other homemade original Hawaiian treasures.... flowers, food, nuts, etc. and is SO WORTH a trip  if anyone can arrange the time.  Tell her Bonnie says "Hi" and I'll see her after market.......

 

[Sun Lakes Cruiser]

Hey Bonnie ...Great to see you on CC ... Guess I'll get double of you ...CC and SLCC...Have a great trip!

[ccrain]

1 hour ago, slwildflower said:

Thank you Charles & Judy 🙂  Your information has been SO HELPFUL!!  I hope you don't mind my adding a suggestion for anyone who might be interested......  My Sister (Barbara) has a famous booth at KCC (Kapiolani Community College) Open Air Market near the base of Diamond Head where she makes "Fried Green Tomatoes" like you have never had before!!  The market is open every Saturday from 7am to 11am and her booth is called "Two Hot Tomatoes".  Her line is usually filled with Japanese Tourists.... go figure.  She has been doing this for over 15 years and it is an experience to taste her tomatoes.  Also, the Market is filled with so many other homemade original Hawaiian treasures.... flowers, food, nuts, etc. and is SO WORTH a trip  if anyone can arrange the time.  Tell her Bonnie says "Hi" and I'll see her after market.......

Since the Honolulu Stadium flea market was such a bust last November, maybe we will gather some people and do an excursion. Thanks for the tip!

[ccrain]

4 hours ago, DrivesLikeMario said:

I have 4 friends on this cruise and am anxious to read your views as well as hear from them.  What an incredible experience!  Can you tell me if Sandy, the FCC, is onboard with you?

I will check tomorrow when I post the first patter details.

[ccrain]

The trip in to LAX yesterday was typical January Colorado weather. A blizzard. 2 hours late into LAX on a direct flight from the Springs, but at least it was on an E-175 with decent E+ seating. Even got a little nap. In winter we always fly two days early. Especially for a cruise this important.

 

All 4 bags made it off the luggage belt - #1, 2, 3 and 5. Found a cart laying around and headed up to the departure level to grab an UBER. (LAX United UBER stops at the departure level between T7 and T8.)

 

It was rush hour so UBERX, no UBER XL was available, was $85 to the Doubletree and took about 45 minutes. I think a taxi would have been over $100 with the stop and go traffic. The Doubletree is our go-to hotel for San Pedro departures. 30,000 HHonors points per night, free breakfast (for Gold and Diamond), free shuttle to the port, free shuttle to a lot of places nearby and a nice place to walk around the Marina. We have used Super Shuttle before, but with this delay we would have missed our assigned shuttle and would have had to wait for another. Waiting time for UBER was about 5 minutes.

 

After getting something to eat, OCPD kicked in and we shuttled to Home Depot to pick up a roll around toolbox – which I, of course, had previously scouted out on-line and at our local Home Depot – and walked down to the Target to pick up almost 75 items on our STUFF list – which of course we had previously scouted on-line and in person at our local Target. Two hours later, we had everything we could find on our list and called the shuttle to pick us up. That was the end of my day for sure…

 

This morning we (Judy) removed all the packaging, broke out the duct tape and filled the tool box, which will serve as a storage coffee or end table on the ship, with the STUFF purchased so far. Some friends of ours picked us up to complete the shopping quests for the day. Walmart and Whole Foods had almost everything we need. Anything else we will pick up in Honolulu at the Ala Moana Wal Mart.

 

After intensive shopping, our friends took us to Din Tai Fung, in the Del Amo Fashion Center mall in Torrance. WOW. This is really good dim sum. As good as the dim sum we had in Hong Kong last April. The pork/soup dumplings (Xiao Long Bao) were fantastic. The cucumber salad could have used a bit more spice, but was very good as well. The Shrimp & Kurobuta Pork Shao Mai were fantastic, but the dish that stole the show for us was the Vegetable & Kurobuta Pork Dumplings in a spicy sauce. That sauce was to die for. The braised beef noodle soup was also really good as well! This was, what I refer to, as WOW food! A really good start to the trip for sure!

 

So now, OCPD is sated for the day. Time to kick back and relax, watch the boats in the Marina and join fellow cruisers for happy hour.

 

So until tomorrow…

[ccrain]

BTW - Starting tomorrow afternoon, I will be 'on the clock' as in using ship wifi. So I will try and answer questions, but if someone else jumps in and answers it, I probably won't. I always compose off-line and upload, then log off, reading messages cached on the screen. Helps keep the wifi bill down a bit.

 

For those of you interested in more details on this cruise and the people involved and some of the other stuff we did in preparation, the Shutterfly website is in my signature line below. 

 

So later all!