Maybe LIVE from Emerald Princess Nov 7 - Nov 23rd

[Coral]

 

Maybe live from Emerald Princess TA November 7th

 

Internet permitting - I hope to post a live report from the Emerald Princess.

 

I booked this cruise probably less than 4 months ago. They were running a special of balcony for an inside price and there didn’t seem to be a single supplement involved. The price also included Princess Plus. A friend had just found the pricing on this cruise and likes transatlantics so I decided to join him. This will be my first transatlantic cruise. Except for Southampton - I have not been to these ports. I work in Education and did receive the Princess Teacher discount but on this cruise - the Balcony for an Inside cruise promo turned out to be a significantly better price. I did load up my Kindle for all the sea days. I later paid for an upgrade to a minisuite. The new Princess bidding system was not available for this cruise though it seems to be for the cruise after this.

 

As of 2 weeks ago - there were 2164 passengers booked on this cruise. Plus - she is about 10 days out of dry dock. My Christmas cruise in 2021 on the Grand Princess had 400 passengers on it and I think I will forever be spoiled due to that cruise. That cruise felt like I owned my own private ship. Crew to passenger ratio was something like 2-1.

 

Date	Port	Arrive	Depart
Mon, Nov 7Monday, November 7th 2022	Southampton (London), EnglandView excursions in Southampton (London), England on Monday, November 7th 2022		05:00 pm
Tue, Nov 8Tuesday, November 8th 2022	Cherbourg, FranceView excursions in Cherbourg, France on Tuesday, November 8th 2022	07:00 am	07:00 pm
Wed, Nov 9Wednesday, November 9th 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Wednesday, November 9th 2022
Thu, Nov 10Thursday, November 10th 2022	Bordeaux (Le Verdon), FranceView excursions in Bordeaux (Le Verdon), France on Thursday, November 10th 2022	07:00 am	06:00 pm
Fri, Nov 11Friday, November 11th 2022	Bilbao, SpainView excursions in Bilbao, Spain on Friday, November 11th 2022	07:00 am	05:00 pm
Sat, Nov 12Saturday, November 12th 2022	La Coruna, Spain (for Santiago de Compostela)View excursions in La Coruna, Spain (for Santiago de Compostela) on Saturday, November 12th 2022	09:00 am	06:00 pm
Sun, Nov 13Sunday, November 13th 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Sunday, November 13th 2022
Mon, Nov 14Monday, November 14th 2022	Lisbon, PortugalView excursions in Lisbon, Portugal on Monday, November 14th 2022	07:00 am	04:00 pm
Tue, Nov 15Tuesday, November 15th 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Tuesday, November 15th 2022
Wed, Nov 16Wednesday, November 16th 2022	Azores Islands (Ponta Delgada), PortugalView excursions in Azores Islands (Ponta Delgada), Portugal on Wednesday, November 16th 2022	09:00 am	05:00 pm
Thu, Nov 17Thursday, November 17th 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Thursday, November 17th 2022
Fri, Nov 18Friday, November 18th 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Friday, November 18th 2022
Sat, Nov 19Saturday, November 19th 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Saturday, November 19th 2022
Sun, Nov 20Sunday, November 20th 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Sunday, November 20th 2022
Mon, Nov 21Monday, November 21st 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Monday, November 21st 2022
Tue, Nov 22Tuesday, November 22nd 2022	At SeaView onboard experience  for Tuesday, November 22nd 2022
Wed, Nov 23Wednesday, November 23rd 2022	Ft. Lauderdale, FloridaView excursions in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on Wednesday, November 23rd 2022	06:00 am

 

I flew into London Friday and arriving Saturday morning. Flew in via United Airlines. Once I got to Chicago - I had a direct flight to LHR.

 

I am staying 2 nights at Radisson Blu Edwardian Grafton hotel booked through Princess. The hotel is in a good location. The employees are very nice and helpful. My room is “just ok” though the bathroom portion is very nice. The room includes a very nice buffet breakfast which I wasn’t aware of when I booked it. There are a few things that you can order from the kitchen such as a ham and cheese omelette or French toast. There was a 3rd choice that I don’t remember. They also have free WIFI. When I booked, all of the Princess hotels were fully booked. I did put myself on a waitlist and this hotel came up with availability.

 

Location of hotel is excellent. It is right next to Warren Underground station. There is a McDonalds also right next door and Boots drugs (Walgreens) within a few steps. Boots is selling COVID tests - 5 for 9.80£ . Having just received my 5th vaccine (3rd booster) a month ago - I hope COVID is not an issue for me.

 

The weather has not cooperated on my trip to London and there was a planned transportation strike. My original goal (weather permitting) was to head out to Cambridge but I cancelled that due to the strike but I would not have gone with the rain that was here in London. I think the transportation strike did get cancelled but I don’t think everything is running as scheduled. 

 

I walked to the British Museum yesterday afternoon and spent the afternoon there. I thought it would be quiet being late afternoon but it was crazy busy and there was a large line out the gate. I did get in and saw some amazing things. I have not been here since I was 18. With out doing the math - it has been a few years since then :). There was a slight rain/mist walking to the museum but it was a nice walk. I noticed that there were a ton of restaurants, shops, sites between Grafton hotel and the British Museum. I stopped somewhere along the way and got a sandwich. Saturday was Guy Fawkes day. I was tired from the flight and didn’t venture out to see any fireworks.

 

Sunday morning - I enjoyed the hotel’s breakfast and met some fellow passengers. They were doing the hop on hop off trolley. I considered joining them and then looked outside and it was pouring. I decided against it. About 2 hours later - I decided to go to the National Gallery. Something else I hadn’t been to since I was 18. I still had an Oyster card with 25£ from my last visit and took the Underground to that. Spent a few hours wandering around enjoying myself and decided to venture back outside. When I walked out - I saw the stunning Big Ben in his glory. The last time I was in London was in 2018 and he was under construction. It is my understanding that it just finished a few weeks ago. I walked to the river, saw the London Eye and then towards Big Ben and Parliament. While walking along the river, it started to pour rain again. I took a few pictures and then jumped into Wesminster Underground station and took it back to Warren station and then to hotel.

 

I did have my GOR-TEX Brooks Ghost shoes on and my rain jacket. So I didn’t get too wet. My backpack is soaked and so were my pants. Everyone had their umbrella out and I chose not to grab mine from my shoulder bag. I probably should have just so my bag wouldn’t get soaked. Hoping it dries by tomorrow!

 

Due to the weather and short time in London - I didn’t see as much as I had hoped to. There is always next time. I have been to London a few times before so it wasn't that big of a deal. More disappointed that I didn't make it to Cambridge.

 

There are two buses from the hotel to Southampton to the Emerald Princess. One leaving at 9:45 and one leaving at 10:15.  We need to have our luggage outside of our room at 7 am to be picked up.

 

For this cruise - I have mostly private tours booked. I have 3 booked through Spain Day Tours. By the time I booked the cruise, a lot of the good Princess tours had already been full. I also joined some tours from my roll call.

 

Not sure how much I will be able to keep up on the Live thread - due to internet and port heavy early on but I will do my best. If anyone else is on the sailing - hopefully they will post also!

 

Theresa

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by Coral

[Coral]

Here are some pics of the room, interior of hotel lobby and exterior of hotel which shows distance to Underground station. Hopefully this will help someone in the future who may consider this hotel through Princess. I have to say the charging desk is nicely fitted with a US outlet and USB charging ports. And as of today, there is now a Christmas tree in the lobby.

 

 

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by Coral

[1emerald1]

Great itinerary!  Looking forward to following, and hearing about the improvements made during dry dock.

[PescadoAmarillo]

Can’t wait to read about your adventures. We have good friends on the ship for the past couple of cruises and the TA, and they’re enjoying themselves very much. Thanks for posting!

[azbirdmom]

Hope you have a wonderful time - and the weather improves.  Looking forward to your posts.

[Coral]

According to Crew Chat - we have 2047 passengers onboard.

[Coral]

Back to hotel. Last time I booked hotel in London (2018) - I stayed at JW Marriott Grosvenor House London on Park Lane. This was a very expensive area and there wasn't much near by.

 

I have to say while the Radisson Blu Grafton hotel wasn't of the high quality of the Marriott - I much preferred the Grafton hotel. The employees were amazing. Very friendly and helpful. The breakfast buffet was excellent and most importantly - the location was near a ton of shops, stores and attractions. It was easy to walk to British Museum and if it wasn't pouring rain - I could easily have walked to Big Ben and Parliament. Underground close by.

 

They had us put our luggage out by 7. They brought all the luggage downstairs to the lobby and then around the corner to a truck. There were several employees moving the luggage to the truck.

 

Here are a few more pictures.

 

 

 

Edited November 7, 2022 by Coral

[Coral]

Princess ran 2 buses and a total of 80 people from the hotel to the ship today. Due to some congestion - we took a more scenic route and saw more residential areas and a raceway. 

 

We left at approx 9:45 and got to the ship at 12:30. We breezed to get on the ship and I immediately went to the dining room. I have not made it to the ship early enough to eat in the dining room for years (though I haven't cruised that much with Princess lately). 

 

I love the first day menu and ordered my "usual". My computer hasn't downloaded my lunch pictures yet - I will post lunch and dinner pictures later today. I can say that the lunch in the dining room was very well attended and the dining room seemed understaffed - they were working really hard.

 

I have a Dolphin minisuite near the aft elevators. My luggage arrived after lunch. I could use my phone to see the 2 suitcases were not near each other with my "Find my AirTags". Eventually they were near each other and then delivered to my room probably around 2 pm. I just finished unpacking for the 16 night cruise. I did my Muster Drill before I unpacked.

 

I do have Princess Plus on this sailing.

[PescadoAmarillo]

Enjoy Princess Plus!  My DH says he’s not sure that he can ever cruise without it again, he likes it so much. At least on sea day intensive cruises. 😆

[CruzinNoony]

Looking forward to reading all about your cruise.  It sounds like a wonderful itinerary.  Have fun!!

 

[Coral]

First day lunch menu - usual menu:

 

 

[Coral]

First night dinner (un-inspiring):

 

Edited November 7, 2022 by Coral

[Coral]

Dessert:

 

[Coral]

Today's Patter:

 

 

[Coral]

Tomorrow's patter:

 

 

[Coral]

Tomorrow I have an all day tour to Normandy so I probably won't have time to post until Wednesday.

[LidoLiz]

We are also on this TA cruise, and the first few hours have been fantastic. We are currently rocking our way through the English Channel.
The ship looks great post dry-dock, and the crew seems very happy. The sports court flooring looks new, as does the mini-golf, croquet and bocce areas. We haven’t been able to try these yet due to the weather.

Dinner was a bit crazy….we had reservations for our party of six in Da Vinci at 6:40, but didn’t get in until well past 7. Not a hardship, but tables for six are slow to open and the dining crew member recommended coming after 7 (and with a smaller party.) They weren’t even checking for reservations, so it was a free for all. The actual meal and service, once seated, was excellent. Love that flourless chocolate cake!

Checked out the spa area, and sadly confirmed earlier reports that the free sauna and steam rooms have been removed from the locker room area. However, a crew member told me that they have been able to use that space to better accommodate differently-abled cruisers who want to access spa services, so that’s a fine enough reason.

Coral, sorry to hijack your excellent thread! 

 

[Coral]

4 hours ago, LidoLiz said:

 

Coral, sorry to hijack your excellent thread! 

 

Continue to post on this thread! The more who post - the more information provided. You have been to places I haven't had a chance to get to! Anyone else on this sailing - feel free to contribute also.

 

I have to agree dining has been crazy though IMO - the employees are working really hard. Even though we are not at full capacity - it sort of feels like it.

 

The ship is definitely rocking and rolling right now.

[LidoLiz]

The Wake Show just announced only 1,800 passengers are onboard, including 1,300 Americans and 300 Canadians.
Had a nice chat with the Loyalty and Events manager at the Platinum-Elite event in Skywalkers last night. She’s from Milan and extremely personable.
Two different crew members have told me that during the last cruise (post drydock), COVID was not an issue at all. I have seen very few masks, which means more smiles than I have seen in the last two years. 🙂
Going to be a great TA to the New World.
Enjoy your day in Cherbourg, Coral!

[Coral]

Here are tonight's dinner menus. I got back to the ship - took one look and headed to the buffet. If anyone knows me - I am not a buffet fan but the food up there was actually impressive tonight.

 

 

[Coral]

Today I joined 6 other individuals from my roll call and went on a Normandy excursion from our port in Cherbourg. The weather looked iffy and after having rain in London, I was prepared......

 

We went with Allied Victory Tours: https://alliedvictorytours.com/american-d-day-tour-from-cherbourg-cruise-port/ 

 

This tour probably ranks as one of my top cruise ship tours I have ever done. I was disappointed when the Normandy tours through Princess were booked when I booked the cruise about 4 months ago. I jumped at a chance to go on one organized by a fellow CC roll call member and am so glad I did. I will remember this tour forever - it had a huge impact on me.

 

Mike picked us up at 8 am and dropped us off about 6 pm. The tour is listed in the link above. One person wanted to go by a German WWII Cemetery and he added that. We also stopped at a delightful French bakery for lunch which was to die for. I think that was the moment where I was like "OMG - I really am in France". This was my first day in France. Somehow my previous planned trips to France fell flat such as for my significant milestone birthday that happened in April 2020 due to COVID.

 

The weather cooperated with us! It probably was 45-50 degrees F. It looked like it was going to rain all afternoon (and it did rain in Cherbourg.) It was a little windy and a few times, I felt a drizzle for about 2 seconds but it wasn't until the drive back to the ship that the downpour started.

 

Mike is definitely a WWII expert and loves the historical study of WWII. He also participates in WWII re-enactments. He is extremely knowledgeable and funny. Though there was a moment where the group apparently voted if they should leave me behind or wait for me and he said it was his idea. Not sure if that was the truth or part of his humor. I really did get back to the van with 2 minutes to spare - I swear. He was the perfect guide and I had an amazing day with him. I know the others in my group also enjoyed the tour.

 

If anyone stops in Cherbourg or takes the train in from France for a day tour - I highly recommend Mike's tour. It was exceptional! He is exceptional!

 

Wednesday is a sea day and formal night.

 

I will try to upload some pictures if my computer ever syncs with iCloud.

 

-------

 

On a different note - the ship did rock and roll last night. Right now it is rocking quite a bit also. My cabin is near the aft elevators. I have a friend whose cabin faces aft and I forgot to ask how things were last night.

 

Theresa

 

Edited November 8, 2022 by Coral

[Coral]

Wednesday Patter:

[Steelers36]

On 11/7/2022 at 2:06 PM, Coral said:

First day lunch menu - usual menu:

 

On 11/7/2022 at 2:34 PM, Coral said:

Dinner Dessert:

 

Gotta love those B2B souffle's!!  

 

Edited November 8, 2022 by Steelers36

[Coral]

1 minute ago, Steelers36 said:

 

 

Gotta love those B2B souffle's!!  

 

And I ate both of them!!!! I haven't made an embarkation lunch for a very long time!

[Coral]

Hi All -

 

Sea day today. Formal night tonight

 

Ship is still rocking and rolling and there are vomit bags out by elevators and steps. they promise us things will get better.

 

The Promenade deck is blocked off due to wind. I have to say I do miss the covered pools on the original Grand class ships.

 

We had our Cruise Critic Meet and Greet. It was well attended by officers and also by members. They did talk about dry dock. A lot of the parts of the ship that were upgraded dealt with the galley. They also indicated many ADA upgrades were done (lowering of bars, etc..). Obviously the engine maintenance and ship painted. There seems to be a lot of new carpet around also. The motion detection lights were bright up in the cabins and individuals ask about possibility of disabling them. The Officers indicated that those decisions are made elsewhere. There were also some talk about Dine My Wy and not working exactly how we expected it to. People show up when they have an assigned time and still have to wait. Officers indicated that progress is being made and hoping that in the future it will be more ironed out. The officers indicated that the last sailing was mostly Brits while this sailing is mostly North Americans.

 

Personally - I am finding the dining venues pretty crowded. Not sure if it is the times I am going. I walked by the dining room for lunch and there was a line out the door for people waiting to be seated. I will post the pictures of lunch and dinner menus after this if internet cooperates. I quickly grabbed something from the buffet for lunch. The highlight was "fried pineapple and some type of syrup". Never had it before or heard of it but thought it was quite tasty. Most have indicated that the food on the ship is generally pretty good. While I may be some what critical of the menus and choices on them - I would agree that the food has been pretty good. For me, who hates buffets - I have to say the food has been excellent there.

 

Planks and Steamers still seem to be marked at the back of the ship but the crew have indicated that it is not coming back. Sort of surprised the signs have not been removed during dry dock. I should say I saw the sign for Planks but didn't walk over to the other side to see if the sign for Steamers was there. 

 

I went to 2 talks by the destination speaker (Julio Delgado). I will always remember him in the future as the older gentleman who has no luck with laser pointers and picks up the mop to use as a pointer for his PowerPoint slides. He is quite effective using it that way. This afternoon's sessions - he had to get more creative so he has two brooms taped together for a longer pointer. 

 

I also went to a talk about Christopher Columbus but only attended as I had my times screwed up.

 

I have to say the crew have all been wonderful - very cheerful and always smiling. In the dining room, I am blown away at how busy they are and how they are still able to be very professional, kind and trying their best to provide a wonderful dining experience for the passengers. 

 

The ship looks great. The crew have been great. Passengers onboard seem to be a great group and are very polite and courteous of others. I would say there are some passengers and crew wearing masks but most have not been. I have not heard of any COVID issues on this trip.

 

I will be extremely pleased when the Captain gets out of these rough seas and we have more smooth sailing 🙂 .