Live from Discovery Princess for Oct 21-Nov 4

[Cruise Raider]

1 hour ago, 1emerald1 said:

I was on the Discovery last year for Halloween and the decorations were minimal.  I thought the ship would be decked out, but no.  Are you having a Halloween Disco Deck Party tonight?  That was fun.

There are definitely more passengers in costume than earlier today and there is some festivity as far as Halloween but not as in past years.  Not sure about the dec’ party but they were conducting instruction on the Thriller video earlier.  
We went to the market in Mazatlan today to get bags of treats for the crew!  They are all so deserving!  

[wallyj]

Hi @Cruise Raider, got to see you in port with us(Celebrity Eclipse) in Cabo on October 30. We did an overnight so have an 8 day sailing.

 

Would you confirm if the on board 50% promo did END on Oct 31. I know you and I were able to book some great deals while it lasted.

 

Say Hi to Alex at SaltyDog from Wally. 
 

Hope we will cross paths again soon.

[denims]

On 10/23/2023 at 6:57 AM, Cruise Raider said:

 

Sadly, we won’t be onboard by the time they change out to the new restaurant.  
 

What is being changed?

 

Edited November 3, 2023 by denims

[Cruise Raider]

19 hours ago, wallyj said:

Hi @Cruise Raider, got to see you in port with us(Celebrity Eclipse) in Cabo on October 30. We did an overnight so have an 8 day sailing.

 

Would you confirm if the on board 50% promo did END on Oct 31. I know you and I were able to book some great deals while it lasted.

 

Say Hi to Alex at SaltyDog from Wally. 
 

Hope we will cross paths again soon.

 
The special did end n Oct 31st.  Glad we got some future sailings booked.  
I would love to say hi Alex for you.  We saw him last night there for a small plate.  

hope you are having fun on the Eclipse.  
 

[Cruise Raider]

So, I was having some trouble with my iPad for a couple of days.  It turns out it was condensation inside my cover from all the humidity while in Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta. 

Nothing that a quick cleaning wouldn’t take care of .. so, I’m back with some reports.  
 

It is our last full day onboard and it’s been such a great cruise with such a wonderful staff and crew.  I have even become to love the firmer beds on this ship.  

The crew is constantly cleaning and keeping everything in tip top shape.  I’ve also learned that the ship will go into dry dock after being in service for 2.5 years.  It’s hard to imagine she will need much work as she is pristine!  I assume that another year will show some wear and tear, though.  
 

We had the privilege to be invited up to the bridge for a tour yesterday. What an absolute treat and I found it to be quite fascinating.  I really need to research more about the flags they have onboard.   We were allowed to take pictures but no videos.  
We then attended a meet the Senior Officers event in the theater with a Q&A segment.  The Captain’s story is quite impressive.  It was informative, light hearted and funny until some guest just went on and on complaining about the elevators.  I’m guessing he wanted to brag about how much he knew about elevators .. blah blah blah!  Thank goodness the Captain finally cut him off after his rant stating he made his point.  It really wasn’t the time or place.  
 

We finally made it to the MDR for lunch.  They are rolling out the new menus that will be on the Sun Princess.  Excuse my poor photography but I just wanted to have something for others to see.  Oh my word, it was all so delish!  I just loved it and we shared 4 small plates and I main, which was also on the small side.  I prefer the smaller portions as it gives us the opportunity to try different things without being wasteful.   
We met a couple at lunch that was also was on our same B2B.  They commented on what a disaster it was on turnaround day for the passengers.  So, if you’ve read my previous comment, I guess that is why we received the confections with an apology.  I really thought it was handled quite smoothly.  Personally, I didn’t care that we boarded along with the Elite passengers.  I guess some people were miffed about it, though.  
BTW, our new room was ready and all our belongings were delivered by the time we were back onboard.  It was all well done as far as we were concerned. Also, we usually try to stay in the same cabin for B2B sailings but it couldn’t be done on this one as we booked the second leg just a couple of weeks prior.  I wouldn’t hesitate moving cabins between sailings and they handled everything so well for us.

 

After lunch, we went to the Navigator talk in the Vista Lounge from a 3rd officer.  It was definitely a day of learning all about cruising from the aspect of the bridge staff.  
 

We went to the captains party last night after missing it last week.  My DH won a bottle of champagne .. they gave us Gloria Ferrar, which certainly is nice.  It was a great party, IMO.  
we stayed in our seats for Carlos Oscar’s show.  The man is absolutely hilarious.  

Tonight, we are trying Sabatini’s since they’ve come out with their new menu.  By the time we cruise on the Discovery again, the Bistro Sur La Mer will be replaced by The Catch by Rudi.  I also have heard that O’Malleys may be replacing the Salty Dog GastroPub but that is not in the works just yet.  

 

One thing I noticed is that there were so many smokers in the casino on these two cruises.  Wow .. it made it difficult to not only gamble but even to enjoy Crooners.  I could even smell the smoke down in certain areas the piazza.  That’s unfortunate for such a gorgeous ship in every other way.  
 

I may be repeating myself but I love that this ship either never had the motion lights by the bathroom / closet or they’ve set it up to be on a switch.  It’s so nice to no longer have that feature in our cabin.  I don’t know if they will be changing them back on all their ships.  It’s good in theory but those lights were just too bright for a trip to the bathroom in the middle of the night.  We always just take a small and dim battery operated motion light for middle of the night trips.  We even use them at home.  
 

Since we set our clocks forward for Puerto Vallarta, we will be able to change them back tonight.  That gives us our hour back when we need it most tomorrow morning.  I like that plan.  It’s so much better than the other way around.  
 

 

 

 

[Cruise Raider]

We went to Sabatini’s for dinner tonight,  The service, as with the other specialty restaurants was excellent.  We ran into one of our favorite team members from the Royal Princess that has now joined the Discovery Princess as a sommelier.  What a treat!  
The service was amazing.  The food was good, especially the appetizers. I must admit that I miss the filet of sole piccata from the old menu.  The fish dish they serve now is just so so.  My DH ordered the Osso Bucco and said it was just OK.  The dishes leading up to the main course were all fabulous, as was the service.  To be fair, we are not ‘foodies’!  
 

Now that we’ve tried the three main specialty restaurants onboard, I must say that the Crown Grill was our favorite.  I’d do Sabatini’s again fir the service alone.  If the Catch by Rudi is as good as it was on the Majestic, I’d choose that over everything else. 

 

 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

@CruiseRaiderThanks for another great live from. So happy you had such a great time.  Safe travels home. 

[LawDog61]

It looks like Discovery is going to be late arriving in San Pedro because of heavy fog.   Anyone on board have an update?   I am following closely as we will be boarding her today.

[Cruise Raider]

We are now back home safe and sound!  
Our last evening onboard was great but even with the balcony door closed and our sound machine on, we did hear the fog horn blowing all night.  For some reason, I don’t sleep well on the last night of the cruise so, not blaming the fog horn for keeping me awake.  I just noticed it because I wasn’t sleeping very soundly.  
 

We had a very leisurely morning finishing up our last minute packing and even had time to go downstairs to the IC and get a cup of coffee and some breakfast.  
I love the options of the salmon toast, egg and avocado toast and the grilled vegetable toast.  There were no egg and ham muffins but there was a ham and cheese sandwich on a ciabatta roll in the case this morning for my DH.  
We spent a bit of time saying goodbye to the crew members that we’ve grown so fond of over the last two weeks.  I also noticed that they signage at the Bistro had been changed to The Catch by Rudi already.  The signage at GiGis pizzeria was also updated, as were some of the decorative dividers there.  
After that, we gathered our bags from our cabin and proceeded to disembark. We were doing carry off as we’ve learned how to just pack in carry on luggage for most cruises, especially if we are flying to our meet our cruise ship.  The port of LA uses facial recognition so we were off the ship and through immigration in no time flat.  The port agents in LA were all very friendly and informative.  We have one favorite that we’ve gotten know, Michelle, and we were so happy to find her at the port on her break.  She came over to visit us while we were waiting for our Uber.  It was all a very seamless process and we got to the Long Beach airport quite early for our 1:20 PM flight home.  I love flying from LGB vs from LAX.  We snagged a nice table with an umbrella outside (the wet he was perfect by then .. all the fog had burned off by then) and I proceeded to complete my entire post cruise survey while waiting for our boarding time.  It always takes me a couple of hours as I want to recognize all the crew members that contributed to our fabulous experience.  My only complaint that I noted was the amount of smoke both inside and coming out of the casino.  
Once I was done with my survey, we went to grab a burrito from Taco Beach there at the airport so we’d have something to eat when we got home, as our fridge was cleaned out before our 2 week trip.  BTW, they make really awesome burritos there.  
I understand the ship may have docked late in LA but we hadn’t noticed.  We were out of our room by 8:30 AM, as required and to the airport and through security before 10:00 AM.  I knew we weren’t in any hurry having an afternoon flight, so we didn’t rush.  The flight was full but by luck of the draw, we got a row to ourselves.  
Now, back to our daily chores and appointments after a wonderful trip on the most beautiful Discovery Princess!  It really is good to be home!  

 

[Host CJSKIDS]

Thanks for another great live from, really enjoyed following along.  Glad you made it home safely.

[Cruise Raider]

Just one more note as we received our folio balance this morning.  It may appear that our package does not cover the last morning of the cruise if we use it after 6 AM, as we were charged for the two coffees we had at 7:30 AM in the piazza before disembarking.  
Interesting!  I’m going to ask on the post cruise questions on the Princess website.  
 

[dickinson]

Thanks for taking us along!  One question, what were they changing on the signage for Gigi"s?

[DiRonT]

10 minutes ago, dickinson said:

Thanks for taking us along!  One question, what were they changing on the signage for Gigi"s?

Ha ha - just about to post the same question.  I willbe following

 

[Cruisintimer]

19 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

We are now back home safe and sound!  
Our last evening onboard was great but even with the balcony door closed and our sound machine on, we did hear the fog horn blowing all night.  For some reason, I don’t sleep well on the last night of the cruise so, not blaming the fog horn for keeping me awake.  I just noticed it because I wasn’t sleeping very soundly.  
 

We had a very leisurely morning finishing up our last minute packing and even had time to go downstairs to the IC and get a cup of coffee and some breakfast.  
I love the options of the salmon toast, egg and avocado toast and the grilled vegetable toast.  There were no egg and ham muffins but there was a ham and cheese sandwich on a ciabatta roll in the case this morning for my DH.  
We spent a bit of time saying goodbye to the crew members that we’ve grown so fond of over the last two weeks.  I also noticed that they signage at the Bistro had been changed to The Catch by Rudi already.  The signage at GiGis pizzeria was also updated, as were some of the decorative dividers there.  
After that, we gathered our bags from our cabin and proceeded to disembark. We were doing carry off as we’ve learned how to just pack in carry on luggage for most cruises, especially if we are flying to our meet our cruise ship.  The port of LA uses facial recognition so we were off the ship and through immigration in no time flat.  The port agents in LA were all very friendly and informative.  We have one favorite that we’ve gotten know, Michelle, and we were so happy to find her at the port on her break.  She came over to visit us while we were waiting for our Uber.  It was all a very seamless process and we got to the Long Beach airport quite early for our 1:20 PM flight home.  I love flying from LGB vs from LAX.  We snagged a nice table with an umbrella outside (the wet he was perfect by then .. all the fog had burned off by then) and I proceeded to complete my entire post cruise survey while waiting for our boarding time.  It always takes me a couple of hours as I want to recognize all the crew members that contributed to our fabulous experience.  My only complaint that I noted was the amount of smoke both inside and coming out of the casino.  
Once I was done with my survey, we went to grab a burrito from Taco Beach there at the airport so we’d have something to eat when we got home, as our fridge was cleaned out before our 2 week trip.  BTW, they make really awesome burritos there.  
I understand the ship may have docked late in LA but we hadn’t noticed.  We were out of our room by 8:30 AM, as required and to the airport and through security before 10:00 AM.  I knew we weren’t in any hurry having an afternoon flight, so we didn’t rush.  The flight was full but by luck of the draw, we got a row to ourselves.  
Now, back to our daily chores and appointments after a wonderful trip on the most beautiful Discovery Princess!  It really is good to be home!  

 

Enjoyed your posts, we board this Saturday. 

[Cruise Raider]

22 hours ago, Cruisintimer said:

Enjoyed your posts, we board this Saturday. 

 Thank you and Bon Voyage!  
I know you are going to have the best time.  We sure did!  
If they are taking reservations, try The Catch by Rudi.  It’s so yummy!  

 

[Cruise Raider]

23 hours ago, dickinson said:

Thanks for taking us along!  One question, what were they changing on the signage for Gigi"s?

They changed the signage to “Gigi's by Alfredo”.  It was nicely done and I have probably not have even noticed it if my DH had not pointed it out.  
They also changed the dividers within GiGi’s with colorful glass triangles.  While I don’t care for the style, others may appreciate it.  The food tasted just as good!  👍 
 

[Cruise Raider]

So, just a follow up on erroneous charges from while we were on the Majestic in early October, as mentioned earlier in this thread.  
I reported the extra charges we found on our folio via the Princess website under Post Cruise Questions/ Concerns and Onboard Folio Statement.  
We received a check in the mail today from Bottomline Technologies to cover all the erroneous charges we found on our final statement.  That was a quick turnaround!  Nice job Princess!  
I don’t know if it is normal if they charge for specialty coffees on the disembarkation morning of the cruise as we found charges for those for this cruise on the Discovery, so I’ve also reported that.  Personally, that charge was only for $10, but it would be nice to know exactly when the package ends.  

 

 

[dickinson]

47 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

They changed the signage to “Gigi's by Alfredo”.  It was nicely done and I have probably not have even noticed it if my DH had not pointed it out.  
They also changed the dividers within GiGi’s with colorful glass triangles.  While I don’t care for the style, others may appreciate it.  The food tasted just as good!  👍 
 

On our September cruise on Enchanted Princess I noticed it said Gigi's by Alfredo.  Maybe they found that some people didn't realize it was really Alfredo's.

[Id rather be diving]

Thanks for a great report.  I gasped out loud with excitement when I read that the Catch by Rudi signs were up. We board this coming Saturday and I was really hoping The Catch would be onboard!  We visited The Catch twice on the Sky in August and it was the BEST!!!!

[suzyluvs2cruise]

On 10/27/2023 at 3:49 PM, Cruise Raider said:

Our lunch at the Ocean Terrace .. our waiter, Percio, now knows exactly what we love.  Spicy California vegetable rolls and and spicy California rolls with edamame.  
He even knows to bring a fork as I seem to be so uncoordinated.  I swear .. this is so good, I won’t be changing my order. 

We're on Discovery in Feb in Reserv Mini-Suite with Premier. We haven't sailed on Princess in several years so all they're offering now will be new to us. I'd love to eat in Ocean Terrace but my DH can't do fish/seafood. Do you know if they have any other options? Would also love to hear more about the Premier wines onboard? Is there anywhere one can see the menus for the Specialty and Casual Dining options? 
I'm enjoying your informative thread! 

[Cruisintimer]

1 hour ago, Id rather be diving said:

Thanks for a great report.  I gasped out loud with excitement when I read that the Catch by Rudi signs were up. We board this coming Saturday and I was really hoping The Catch would be onboard!  We visited The Catch twice on the Sky in August and it was the BEST!!!!

We board Saturday too!  Excited to check it out.

[Cruise Raider]

14 hours ago, suzyluvs2cruise said:

We're on Discovery in Feb in Reserv Mini-Suite with Premier. We haven't sailed on Princess in several years so all they're offering now will be new to us. I'd love to eat in Ocean Terrace but my DH can't do fish/seafood. Do you know if they have any other options? Would also love to hear more about the Premier wines onboard? Is there anywhere one can see the menus for the Specialty and Casual Dining options? 
I'm enjoying your informative thread! 

Although they are still wrapped in seaweed, they had a maki vegetable roll with what I think was avocado, cucumber and asparagus.  They were delish!  I asked for spicy.  
There are also edamame beans and a seaweed salad.  We tried the nigiri and neither of us really cared for it.  I liked the maki rolls much better, especially the California rolls and the vegetable rolls.  
 

[Cruise Raider]

15 hours ago, suzyluvs2cruise said:

We're on Discovery in Feb in Reserv Mini-Suite with Premier. We haven't sailed on Princess in several years so all they're offering now will be new to us. I'd love to eat in Ocean Terrace but my DH can't do fish/seafood. Do you know if they have any other options? Would also love to hear more about the Premier wines onboard? Is there anywhere one can see the menus for the Specialty and Casual Dining options? 
I'm enjoying your informative thread! 

As for the premier wines, they had some great options.  These were our favs that were included n the package.  

Champagne:  Cattier 

Blush:  Whispering Angel 

Red:  Seghesio Zin, Parodoux Cab, Grirgch Hills Merlot 

White:  Hartford Chardonnay (they may be out now as this was my favorite 😂 ), Staggs Leap Chardonnay, Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 

 

They had some wines only by the bottle such as Rombauer.  We had it by the glass included in the premier package just as recently as July.  
There was a glass of Caymus cab my DH had that was about $9 over the premier package limit.  A bottle of it with the 25% discount was $120.  One of our friends splurged on it for our Crown Grill meal.  
 

I am partial to California wines but I’m sure there are many more international wines that were very good.  
 

Just one note is that the Discovery is the only Princess ship that we’ve been on that uses all nice stemware for their wines.  A good wine deserves a good glass.  It does t have to be a Reidel, although many were, but something with thin rim and the right shape makes the wine so much better.  

Our favorite bar to get great wines was at the Salty Dog bar on deck 5.  

[lx200gps]

15 hours ago, suzyluvs2cruise said:

We're on Discovery in Feb in Reserv Mini-Suite with Premier. We haven't sailed on Princess in several years so all they're offering now will be new to us. I'd love to eat in Ocean Terrace but my DH can't do fish/seafood. Do you know if they have any other options? Would also love to hear more about the Premier wines onboard? Is there anywhere one can see the menus for the Specialty and Casual Dining options? 
I'm enjoying your informative thread! 

We were on the Discovery a few weeks ago, and will be back on her again in February. My wife loved the Ocean Terrace, but like your DH, I don't do bait and can't find anything to eat there. When my wife wants her sushi fix, I simply walk downstairs to the IC, grab a sandwich and bring it back upstairs to eat with her. Since the IC is directly above the Ocean Terrace, it's a very easy workaround.

[suzyluvs2cruise]

2 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

As for the premier wines, they had some great options.  These were our favs that were included n the package.  

Champagne:  Cattier 

Blush:  Whispering Angel 

Red:  Seghesio Zin, Parodoux Cab, Grirgch Hills Merlot 

White:  Hartford Chardonnay (they may be out now as this was my favorite 😂 ), Staggs Leap Chardonnay, Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 

 

They had some wines only by the bottle such as Rombauer.  We had it by the glass included in the premier package just as recently as July.  
There was a glass of Caymus cab my DH had that was about $9 over the premier package limit.  A bottle of it with the 25% discount was $120.  One of our friends splurged on it for our Crown Grill meal.  
 

I am partial to California wines but I’m sure there are many more international wines that were very good.  
 

Just one note is that the Discovery is the only Princess ship that we’ve been on that uses all nice stemware for their wines.  A good wine deserves a good glass.  It does t have to be a Reidel, although many were, but something with thin rim and the right shape makes the wine so much better.  

Our favorite bar to get great wines was at the Salty Dog bar on deck 5.  

Thank you! and agree about the wine glasses. They do make a difference. I'd already scoped out that for a bit more $ we could have a glass of Caymus. That's the wine that got me drinking reds. 

Curious about the Sea/Sky Walk and what deck you wouldn't choose for your cabin because of it. Can others up there see into your balcony on Riviera deck?