LIVE FROM Royal Princess Alaska September 17-24

[ceilidh1]

UPDATE: Refund just hit my account for the difference between what I paid with pax 1/2 with Plus to pax 1 with Premiere and pax 2 with no package. So Princess and I are financially even and all of the packages/booking stuff is correct. I have to say, after battling for months to get refunds/FCCs corrected, etc on cancelled bookings I am VERY impressed at the speed this was done (particularly as it seemed to be a multi-step/complicated procedure judging by the number of confirmations I was sent during the process). Kudos to Princess on this one. To be honest, if I ever decide to upgrade the package again, I will likely just do it for both - even though DD wouldn't get any added benefits, I only ended up saving about $100 and it seemed like a lot of work for that! Mind you, this is only a 7 day sailing. I'm not sure the added cost for a longer sailing would be anywhere near worth it, but I will be sure to report back on my take of the upgraded package!

[cr8tiv1]

I hope wi-fi works well enough for you that you will be able to make updated posts, but "too horrible" to get any work done.  Oops..."did I miss your email about.....?, I guess it will just have to wait until I get back in the office."

[TravelGirlinDallas]

5 hours ago, ceilidh1 said:

Does anyone else get that mixed emotions thing when they go on vacation?

YES. I get so stressed and tired at the last minute with trying to get things wrapped up at work, get us all packed, etc etc, that by the time the night before arrives, I don't even want to go anymore. Even after looking forward to the trip for months. My husband and I both laugh about this because it happens every time. Then we go and once we get there and finally start to relax, we're glad we did.

[SenatorsFan]

Looking forward to following along @ceilidh1. I hope you and the kids have a blast! 😊

[peachcreamsicle]

Following along as I’m considering a California cruise on the Royal Princess in October. As I’ve never done a Princess cruise before, would you be able to comment on the food / onboard entertainment?
 

Also, as a fellow Canadian, I’m guessing you need negative rapid antigen tests to board? Seeing some threads about covid breakouts aboard Princess ships so I’m thinking of getting the bivalent Moderna dose preemptively. Thanks in advance for any info!   

[ceilidh1]

54 minutes ago, peachcreamsicle said:

Following along as I’m considering a California cruise on the Royal Princess in October. As I’ve never done a Princess cruise before, would you be able to comment on the food / onboard entertainment?
 

Also, as a fellow Canadian, I’m guessing you need negative rapid antigen tests to board? Seeing some threads about covid breakouts aboard Princess ships so I’m thinking of getting the bivalent Moderna dose preemptively. Thanks in advance for any info!   

If the wifi cooperates...so will I! I'm planning on posting as much as possible, so feel free to ask specifics/remind me once I'm on the ship. 

[ceilidh1]

Oh dear...

[Princessfan20]

14 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

Oh dear...

This is the same thing that happened on an Alaska cruise this summer to our family and there were a lot of sick people.  People are paying a lot of money to end up quarantining instead of cruising.  Princess is at fault for saying their ships are safe and worry free from Covid.  I am sure they will not appreciate the new Peacock special on one of their ships.  Hope your husband has a healthy recovery. 

Edited September 15, 2022 by Princessfan20

[ceilidh1]

The kids have been bust getting their ducks in a row! I realise there are some folks that think this duck trend is ridiculous, but my family get a kick out of hiding the ducks and then watching the looks on the faces of those that find them - believe it or not, those that get most joy from this are crew members! Our ducks always have a little treat bag attached, so if you happen to be on this sailing keep your eyes peeled for chocolates!

[c-boy]

" Princess is at fault for saying their ships are safe and worry free from Covid"  ... 

 

I did not get that memo. 

[CruzeQueen2]

4 hours ago, ceilidh1 said:

Oh dear...

Oh dear, oh dear! 

[Belle]

No cruise line or ship has ever said their ships are safe. Why do you think

they have cabins put aside for covid passengers?  

 

Covid is here---on ships, in the supermarket, at the mall, everywhere. We/They just hope

it gets less and less and everyone gets their shots. We all know what we need to do, most follow

but we know we can still get it. That's life as of now.

[caribill]

On 9/12/2022 at 12:46 PM, dockman said:

.frankly i cannot imagine that whoever princess has hired to create an easily usable app wasn't fired/ replaced years ago....

 

Actually, the person hired for this has been promoted to be President of Princess Cruise Line.

[caribill]

18 hours ago, ceilidh1 said:

 I wonder if they will show the funeral onboard?

 

 

 

Since they have one or two international news channels, I am 99.9% certain it will be available live on board.

 

However it starts at 11 AM London time. Depending where the ship is, that will be 2 AM or 3 AM on board when it starts.

[Belle]

They have the BBC Channel think they would show it   Have the MSNBC

Channel think they will show it or at least some of it.

Edited September 15, 2022 by Belle

[Belle]

Ceilidh1--- I hope your able to post about your cruise on the Royal that the internet

works. But as you know in Alaska signal not as strong. Love to hear about the ship.

Sailing on her Sept. 27th for the 1st time. Different layout then other ships. Think

I'll really miss Skywalkers. Happy they have Alfredo's.

 

Thanks for posting ahead of your cruise, hope to read more. Have a great cruise

with the "kids"😊

[dockman]

1 hour ago, caribill said:

 

Actually, the person hired for this has been promoted to be President of Princess Cruise Line.

truly amazing

[dickinson]

12 hours ago, Princessfan20 said:

This is the same thing that happened on an Alaska cruise this summer to our family and there were a lot of sick people.  People are paying a lot of money to end up quarantining instead of cruising.  Princess is at fault for saying their ships are safe and worry free from Covid.  I am sure they will not appreciate the new Peacock special on one of their ships.  Hope your husband has a healthy recovery. 

What is the name of the Peacock special?  I would like to watch it.  Thanks.

[ceilidh1]

Another item checked off the list!

ArriveCan complete. This is far less frustrating than anything the Princess app requires you to do - it had saved all of our travel info and vax proof from our previous trips this year, so all I had to do was complete the the new dates/ship. 5 minutes and I had my receipt and ready to go.

 

[ceilidh1]

Another work day in the bag. Only one more to make it through and then it is vacation time. This will be the first thing we get once onboard:

[ceilidh1]

Weatherwise, Alaska can be very unpredictable. We have pictures from one September trip with the sun shining, blue skies, and kids in the pool with snow covered mountains behind us. We have pictures from a July trip with a complete blanket of cloud and fog and we are decked out in hats, goves, and coats. It's impossible to tell what you might get. However, being the person I am, I have taken a look at the forecast and found this:

Vancouver

 

Ketchikan

 

Juneau

 

Skagway

 

Victoria

 

Doesn't look horrendous at this point, fingers crossed it gets better rather than worse! Not that it matters, really. Nothing concrete planned so will make the most of whatever the weather brings.

 

ONE MORE WORK DAY. EEEEEK......

 

[Pluto_fan]

Those temperatures nearly gave me a heart attack, until I remembered that you are Canadian so those are in Celsius 🤣

[Princessfan20]

54 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

Weatherwise, Alaska can be very unpredictable. We have pictures from one September trip with the sun shining, blue skies, and kids in the pool with snow covered mountains behind us. We have pictures from a July trip with a complete blanket of cloud and fog and we are decked out in hats, goves, and coats. It's impossible to tell what you might get. However, being the person I am, I have taken a look at the forecast and found this:

Vancouver

 

Ketchikan

 

Juneau

 

Skagway

 

Victoria

 

Doesn't look horrendous at this point, fingers crossed it gets better rather than worse! Not that it matters, really. Nothing concrete planned so will make the most of whatever the weather brings.

 

ONE MORE WORK DAY. EEEEEK......

 

 

They are predicting the storm of the decade to hit Alaska this weekend.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/15/weather/alaska-typhoon-remnant-storm-weekend/index.html

[ceilidh1]

2 minutes ago, Princessfan20 said:

 

They are predicting the storm of the decade to hit Alaska this weekend.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/15/weather/alaska-typhoon-remnant-storm-weekend/index.html

NOOOOOOOOOOOO........

[luvteaching]

Don't worry - the storm is more hitting the Aleutians and north. Your area is not in the path.

 

Karen