Occasionally live from the Island Princess

[We_like_to_cruise]

Cobh (Cork) Ireland

 

Two weeks ago we were at this port and took the train into Cork city.  As it was a Sunday there was not a lot happening in the city although we enjoyed the visit.

 

Today we spent the day in Cobh and are so glad that we did.  So many interesting things in this town.

 

It was the departure point for 2.5 million of the six million Irish people who emigrated to North America between 1848 and 1950.

 

The last port of call of the Titanic before it sank in April of 1912.

 

Annie Moore, traveling from Cobh, was the first emigrant to Ellis Island in NY.

 

Townspeople rescued survivors and buried the dead after the sinking of the Lusitania in 1915.

 

We docked right in the center of town and walked uphill - very steep - to St. Colman's Cathedral.  Then down the street for the mandatory  "deck of cards" photo shoot.  We also visited the Titanic Memorial Garden.

 

For a change we went back to the ship for lunch and then went back out again to the large and flat! harbor area.  Today was the last day of the Cobh Regatta and there was live music in the bandstand and sailboats out on the water.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[We_like_to_cruise]

5 hours ago, teacherplus said:

Someone posted on Facebook that the Island Princess was having electrical problems. Did it last long?

 

 

 

We did lose power for a short amount of time last night - perhaps 10 minutes or so?  It seemed to be resolved pretty quickly and has not affected us since.  We did not hear any details about the outage.

[We_like_to_cruise]

5 hours ago, chamima said:

 

Zeroing out the count is a US requirement. (Along with some other countries)

It's nice not losing those couple of hours we always have to wait for the one couple they can't find. 😄

Thank you.  Did not know that.  Yes, it was very easy for us!

[Loveh2ofl]

@We_like_to_cruise  Still asking about masking - are the full masking requirements still in force on this next leg?  Thanks for all your writeups - they're great!

[Steelers36]

50 minutes ago, We_like_to_cruise said:

Thank you.  Did not know that.  Yes, it was very easy for us!

They can do a zero in your case.  Total Pax - Pax Continuing on Next Voyage = Nbr Pax that Disembark.  As the guests disembark, the total count on board goes down and should equal just those continuing on.  Once there, they are good.   The US zeroing is due to herding everyone for US CBP and making sure all accounted for.  

[NoWhiners]

1 hour ago, We_like_to_cruise said:

 

We spent the next hour doing laundry that had piled up for the last two weeks!

 

 

Wow, that laundry room looks nicer than the others I've used on Princess. I'm sure all the decks are the same, but what deck are you on? 

 

It looks like most of the machines are the combo washer/dryer units you see in apartments. Is that true? And, all the way to the left in you pic, it looks like 2 normal sized dryers??

 

I know it will sound weird but DH loves to do laundry when we cruise (it's odd but works for me 😁. Maybe because he does most of the laundry at home and helps him feel more comfortable??). Just trying to gather more data for him--he loves data and analysis.

 

[Denali2003]

What time does the buffet open in the morning?  Is there Anytime dining or is it only Traditional?  I saw a post that someone went to the "mobile cafe" to get something to eat at 6:30am, but it was empty.  What time do they serve food there?  What kind?  Pastries?  Sandwiches?  Do you have a photo of it?  Thank you 🙂

[Steelers36]

43 minutes ago, Denali2003 said:

What time does the buffet open in the morning?  Is there Anytime dining or is it only Traditional?  I saw a post that someone went to the "mobile cafe" to get something to eat at 6:30am, but it was empty.  What time do they serve food there?  What kind?  Pastries?  Sandwiches?  Do you have a photo of it?  Thank you 🙂

https://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/food-and-dining/

 

[Loveh2ofl]

26 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

https://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/food-and-dining/

 

Here's a link from the above page to all the hours for each venue for each ship

 

https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/food-and-dining/dining-options.pdf

[Denali2003]

I see that the Patisserie is still listed on the above link for the Island Princess.  Some people have posted that it is no longer there.  What do they have instead of that?  Can you get ice cream on the Island Princess?

[venussuz]

1 hour ago, Denali2003 said:

Can you get ice cream on the Island Princess?

Asking the question that mattered to me re ice cream. When I was on the Island Princess two months ago, the ice cream stand Swirls was open from 12 to 6 pm and they sometimes had ice-cream in the mdr. I didn't find any at the buffet the times I was there or on the room service menu. 

 

I'm hoping it's more readily available now. 

Edited August 16, 2022 by venussuz

[Loveh2ofl]

3 hours ago, Denali2003 said:

I see that the Patisserie is still listed on the above link for the Island Princess.  Some people have posted that it is no longer there.  What do they have instead of that?  Can you get ice cream on the Island Princess?

the answers are on the pdf above.  And the 'patiserrie' is on the forward part of the buffet

 

[chamima]

10 hours ago, Loveh2ofl said:

the answers are on the pdf above.  And the 'patiserrie' is on the forward part of the buffet

 

 

 

I think the patisserie on the Island used to be where Good Spirits is now. I think someone said there is a small case for baked goods still on the Good Spirits counter but that he checked early one morning and the case was empty.

Maybe they put pastries in there during the day.

[chamima]

On 8/9/2022 at 11:36 PM, uspearls said:

 

Just off the Island a couple of weeks ago. The "special coffees" (i.e. espresso machines) are located at Good Spirits on Deck 5, the Casino Bar on Deck 6 and in Horizon Court at the front by the pastries.  The "Patisserie" branding is gone - there is a small, sad mobile case with various offerings through the day.  Coffee service begins at 6am with one overworked (but wonderful) staff member on Deck 5 who is joined by a second at 6:30am and they close about 10:30pm.   Specialty coffees also available in Horizon Court from 6am.

 

An International Cafe it is not and I provided some detailed constructive feedback in the post cruise survey about the lack of staffing and hours for a "cafe" of any type and the importance of brand consistency.  I disagree with you.  With better staffing and training to actually use the espresso machines properly (and let's face it, upgrading the flavorless coffee beans), the Island can provide a perfectly pleasant early morning and late night cafe experience.

 

On 8/13/2022 at 10:05 AM, We_like_to_cruise said:

 

I did head over to the Good Spirits bar at 6:30am the other day.  "Sad" is being generous.  There was an empty display case.  Perhaps it was too early.  There was an attendant by the specialty coffee machine, but I just went to my go-to barista on 14. 

 

15 hours ago, Denali2003 said:

What time does the buffet open in the morning?  Is there Anytime dining or is it only Traditional?  I saw a post that someone went to the "mobile cafe" to get something to eat at 6:30am, but it was empty.  What time do they serve food there?  What kind?  Pastries?  Sandwiches?  Do you have a photo of it?  Thank you 🙂

 

Denali2003

 

Your answers are in the posts I quoted above.

And there is no longer any Traditional Dining. It's now all called "Dine Your Way" - which is Anytime rebranded.

I have been able to book the same table, same time (which will hopefully translate to a traditional experience) through the Medallion app for 2 upcoming cruises but many, many others have not been able to do that.

 

[uspearls]

 

Just to add some clarity,  "La Patisserie" was nothing more than some branding around the Good Spirits bar on Deck 5.  Now, that branding has disappeared but the espresso machine at the bar remains and many people (including me) treat that bar as the poor substitute for an International Cafe since it's in the middle of the Piazza and opens at 6am. The small food case (which I accused of being sad :)) is in fact on wheels.  It is brought out sometime around 6:30am after the second staff person arrives and at some point a small selection of muffins/pastries appear.  During the day, some sandwiches are added.  I would not recommend relying on it for your daily ritual ! A far better option is Amuleto, which is just the pastries/dessert area at the very front of the Horizon Court buffet on deck 14.  That is essentially open at around 5am (as there are plenty of staff setting up for breakfast) with a full pastry selection.  They also have an espresso machine but that isn't staffed until around 6am I think.  I personally did not head to Amuleto when I staggered out of bed as my focus was coffee and I valued the comfy chairs around Good Spirits over the food.

[Jimmys Chippy]

My Dad is currently onboard so I took a screenshot from the webcam of tonight’s departure from Akureyri. 

[Jimmys Chippy]

And this is your sail into Reykjavik this morning!

 

[caribill]

On 8/10/2022 at 4:44 PM, Level six said:

When I booked a 30 day Baltic/Iceland about a week ago, I chatted two different times with Princess ( i have the chat printed). They said if booked as a 30 day cruise no testing between cruises If booked as 16/14 day, testing required.  I hope that is true.  I am not nervous about getting covid, but I don't want to be taken off the ship. We will see in a few weeks. Fingers crossed. 

 

Whatever the policy will be at the time you cruise, it will likely be the same from those who booked this as a single cruise of as a B2B two cruises.

[Jimmys Chippy]

[Jimmys Chippy]

[Loveh2ofl]

@Jimmys ChippyWhat is the current mask policy on this leg of the trip?

 

[jeno]

Does anyone have a picture of a caribe deck extended balcony cabin including the table? I’d appreciate it. Thanks 

[Jimmys Chippy]

11 hours ago, Loveh2ofl said:

@Jimmys ChippyWhat is the current mask policy on this leg of the trip?

 

I’d really love to be in a position to tell you but unfortunately I’m not on the ship 🙂

[villauk]

On 8/16/2022 at 1:51 PM, We_like_to_cruise said:

Falmouth UK

 

Walked off the ship and headed in one direction into town and the Maritime Museum.  Then we walked in the opposite direction to Pendennis Castle and Pendennis Point.  The weather continues to be lovely.

And had to enjoy some traditional Cornish pasty.

 

Did you enjoy the pasty? We’ve had a very hot summer here which is very unusual.

[We_like_to_cruise]

On 8/16/2022 at 9:48 AM, Loveh2ofl said:

@We_like_to_cruise  Still asking about masking - are the full masking requirements still in force on this next leg?  Thanks for all your writeups - they're great!

 

Back again - we had spotty internet the other morning when I usually post.  And the last three days have been very busy in Iceland.  More on that later.

 

As far as masking, yes there are still requirements in the Horizon Court and the Princess Theater as described in an earlier post.  People generally seem compliant but perhaps not as much as the prior cruise.  Just an observation.

 

Although this cruise only has 100 more pax (1700 vs 1600) than the first leg we find things in general to be more crowded.  We now have to get to the theater considerably earlier to get a seat and more lines in the buffet and at the guest services, waiting for tenders, etc.  Not terrible but different.  Still having a wonderful cruise!