Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Onboard Majestic Princess in Puerto Vallartaa

NavArch64

By NavArch64,
in Princess Cruises

 Share

Recommended Posts

Mike45LC

Mike45LC

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, pms4104 said:

25% is not sustainable ... particularly when many still are "spending" FCCs rather than cash ... Princess has long ago spent the money behind those FCCs ... how much longer can Princess go on?

I'd much prefer to see 50% or higher, but the cost of having the ships sitting around deteriorating has to be considered as well.  For my upcoming cruise, although the price was good, it was all cash into the coffers.  My Future Cruise Deposits had all expired and been returned.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
dockman

dockman

Posted
Posted (edited)

I have been on Majestic for two weeks now Jan 22, Jan 29 and will be on again for another week Feb 5.  A few observations:

 

1. The vast majority of passengers do wear masks when walking about and so far i have heard zero of any covid cases.  The dolphin deck is blocked off for quarantine if necessary and is used to also quarantine any new crew coming onboard before they begin work.

 

2.  The service is very good as more crew than passengers.

 

3. The port calls of Cabo, Mazatlán, PVR are pleasant enough and easy to get around and spend a few hours with near perfect weather.  It is a bit cool as you leave from and return to LA but once near cabo it warms up... low humidity and lots of sunshine. 

 

Generally flat seas especially near Mexican ports.  US dollars accepted most everywhere (but a few pesos would be good for public buses).  Public bus from ship terminal to central PVR old town and  malecon is 10 pesos (50cents)....any bus that says centro will get you there...some say tunnel and do sort of a bypass but end up same place...for back to ship any bus that says walmart is good (huge walmart right across from ship dock in PVR.....mazatlan a ride to the far end tourist zone is about $5 -7 USD one way in one of the open air golf cart looking type cars...mazatlan also has a pleasant walk from ship to the old town area with a blue line embedded in the sidewalk to make it super easy to not get lost and is a good way to spend a couple of hours in the old town area....cabo is tender port and easily walkable to see main sights.

 

4.  LOTS of porpoises jumping on ships wake especially near cabo...also LOTS of whales there as well.

 

5.  The buffet has only one small section open and the choice is not nearly as extensive as if a full ship.  The dining rooms are wide open with good service and plenty of spaced out tables.  Nobody appears to be starving.

 

6. There are few if any lines anywhere so that is for sure a plus of 26% occupancy.

 

7,  The entertainment in  my opinion is ho hum at best and the showrooms have plenty of seating available with no lines etc.  I have enjoyed Leo Rossi enrichment series where he tells lot of interesting stories with pics/videos etc of his long career as tour manager for groups such as fleetwood mac, the who, the beachboys and many other famous acts.  Casino does not appear crowded and no smoking that I saw.  There is a smokers area aft deck 7 starboard outside but the aft port side is no smoking. 

 

Quite a few ballroom dancer types in the atrium area at night.

 

8.Most of the passengers seem to be pleasant folks with little of the usual loud whiners. chair hogs etc...not a lot to complain about with more staff than passengers, no lines, few if any hassles. etc.  The Hollywood area at front of ship which is enclosed pool, cabanas etc is normally a daily charge but is now completely open and free for all to use. The front desk also gives you free tokens to use self service laundry if needed and no waiting for machines.

 

9 Lots and lots of passengers have the drinks/internet /tips package.  Cabin service is once a day unless you request evening turndown refresh service.  The internet works well on my laptop but not so great on my i phone.

 

10.  Medallion key fob works well for opening your door and paying for drinks, coffees, boarding etc.  About 20% of time at bars it doesn't apparently read the info so they ask you for your room number.  There is a staffed medallion desk on deck 7 that seems busy with staff trying to help people who are having issues with the medallion app.

 

11. The "library" is a joke with maybe a dozen books but thankfully many passengers do leave behind paperbacks etc so you can find something to read with a little searching.

 

12. People doing back to back cruises seem to be about 75 or so.  You are tested for covid for free on friday morning...takes maybe 30 minutes total til you are cleared...on the turnaround day Sat you have to get off the ship walk through terminal wait about 5 mins then you can reboard.

 

 

  All in all a very pleasant cruise and an opportunity to experience a big beautiful ship with no lines, no whiners, little if any hassles all at super bargain prices.

Edited by dockman
  • Like 6
  • Thanks 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites
dockman

dockman

Posted
Posted
18 minutes ago, Quenby said:

I have been on the Majestic three times since 2018, and I board her again tomorrow.  I have never seen Princess charge for use of the Hollywood Conservatory.

i don't know but similar area on royal did charge and per this post from 2019 so did majestic

  •  
  • August 4, 2009
  • GTA, ON

I did forget to mention that there were two or so alcove sort of places on the Conservatory section (indoors) that were setup sort of like a Sanctuary cabana, but much smaller and with chairs and/or a sofa and not loungers as I recall from passing by.  There was a small sign and the pricing was the same as in an actual Sanctuary.  Needless to say they were always empty every time I was in the area.  Seemed like a complete waste of space keeping people out of there as no one was willing to pony up the very expensive charge (over $200 as I recall).  It wasn't all that great an area to be in for that kind of money.  Although, people would have no doubt sat there and socialized had it been free.  BTW, there were no Attendants in sight on the cruise we took, so I suppose someone could have just sat in one until a crew member came along looking to write up the charge.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
PrincessLuver

PrincessLuver

Posted
Posted
43 minutes ago, Quenby said:

I have been on the Majestic three times since 2018, and I board her again tomorrow.  I have never seen Princess charge for use of the Hollywood Conservatory.

We have been on Majestic several times recently and also her initial sailing from Rome to Beijing

and have never seen any charges for using The Hollywood Beach Club.....the earlier Royal Class ships did not have this feature......

Link to comment
Share on other sites
sfaaa

sfaaa

Posted
Posted
On 2/2/2022 at 8:55 AM, pms4104 said:

25% is not sustainable ... particularly when many still are "spending" FCCs rather than cash ... Princess has long ago spent the money behind those FCCs ... how much longer can Princess go on?

You do know there is something called shoulder and peak season in travel industry, right?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
smbt1

smbt1

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, PrincessLuver said:

We have been on Majestic several times recently and also her initial sailing from Rome to Beijing

and have never seen any charges for using The Hollywood Beach Club.....the earlier Royal Class ships did not have this feature......

Unfortunately neither do the later Royal class ships.  Majestic is unique with that feature since it was built for the Chinese market.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
dhanakorn "Live from...." Rare

dhanakorn

Posted
Posted
On 2/4/2022 at 12:03 PM, dockman said:

i don't know but similar area on royal did charge and per this post from 2019 so did majestic

  •  
  • August 4, 2009
  • GTA, ON

I did forget to mention that there were two or so alcove sort of places on the Conservatory section (indoors) that were setup sort of like a Sanctuary cabana, but much smaller and with chairs and/or a sofa and not loungers as I recall from passing by.  There was a small sign and the pricing was the same as in an actual Sanctuary.  Needless to say they were always empty every time I was in the area.  Seemed like a complete waste of space keeping people out of there as no one was willing to pony up the very expensive charge (over $200 as I recall).  It wasn't all that great an area to be in for that kind of money.  Although, people would have no doubt sat there and socialized had it been free.  BTW, there were no Attendants in sight on the cruise we took, so I suppose someone could have just sat in one until a crew member came along looking to write up the charge.

 

These are semi private rooms in the Hollywood Conservatory. There’re 4 of them. They looked very nice and were free to use during my trip last month. 
BB7FF5A5-B864-480B-9806-20DAFBC401A9.thumb.jpeg.082eded6097106691347741a71c03757.jpeg

 

2BB1B05E-5EDC-4A3E-BF49-E0BA072F8642.thumb.jpeg.5fa86cbecc9dc2dd791f9ee4d0c98b79.jpeg
 

The cabanas are also free to use. I didn’t use it because it’s not very comfortable for sitting. 

FB29FD6A-A00A-48E5-B3D9-C76CCCBDE822.thumb.jpeg.a0948d4aca696cd2d70bb7d15b0dea70.jpeg

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
rj59

rj59

Posted
Posted

Just be aware for entertainment that the dancers are wearing masks now during the shows, even during the sailaway outside on the open deck. I was on the Majestic last week, and it seemed a little sad and a lot of the crew were bored and didn't seem to care. Fortunately there were exceptions, like Maritsa from Montenegro on the Good Spirits bar, who is helpful and fun and charming. The other thing I found is that you can use Uber to get around in Mazatlan and PV without haggling over a taxi, so I think I paid $3-4 to get to the Malecon in PV and Golden Zone in Mazatlan. You just need a data plan that works there. Another new delight is Liverpool Alley in Mazatlan, at the start of the Malecon next to the shrimp restaurant--it has a Cavern Club, statues of the Beatles in their Abbey Road pose, mini Brit cars, and a big Yellow Submarine. It makes a great photo with the ocean in the background. And you get Liverpool Alley in Mazatlan and the Liverpool department store in PV. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • Hurricane Zone 2024
      • Cruise Insurance Q&A w/ Steve Dasseos of Tripinsurancestore.com June 2024
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...