Live from Enchanted Princess 7 Day Cruise to Western Caribbean 4/27/24-5/4/24

[Luv2Cruzmyislandtvl]

1 minute ago, 2 to Sea said:

The taxi there was $15 and we asked in advance.  On the way back, we didn’t ask ahead and the taxi charged us $20.  Not sure the difference was our fault or just a different time of day.

 

The prices of food and drinks are posted on their site under menu in pesos.  Divide that by 17 and you will have your US amount.  It was comparable to a US restaurant in price.  There wasn’t a minimum to buy.  They do serve breakfast if you want to get there early.

 

They also provide the snorkeling gear, but won’t have prescription.  Both of us wear contacts and that worked well with the gear.  
 

The website is thecabanabeach.com

 

They have a map of their cabanas online, so you can choose your site.  Princess changed the port day on us after we booked.  I was able to change with them via email with no issues.

Thanks so much for your response! I am excited to go.  How was the snorkeling? Did you see a good variety of fish? Any starfish?

[kywildcatfanone]

14 hours ago, azbirdmom said:

FLL is so close that it's not difficult to do.  The only fly in the ointment is if the ship is late getting back.  That happened to us once but the delay was minimal and we were still able to make our flight.

Last year we had a flight out of FLL changed on us by Delta from 10:05 to 9:30.  Didn't concern me much.

Then, our last port we were 3 hours leaving because of wind.  We were late back to FLL, and it took forever to disembark.  We were near front of the line, and left the ship at 8:40am.  Through security and ar FLL at 8:45. Delta did have someone  flagging people down on the 9:30 flight and they did get our bags checked quickly and we boarded the flight at 9:10.  Whew.

 

10am doesn't bother me at all, and 9am wouldn't either if the ship is scheduled for 6am arrival. 

 

Things can happen sure, but for us it's worth the risk to get home earlier in the day than we would normally.  Our flight this Saturday home is 10am.

[bandp407]

1 hour ago, Robkat said:

Well, you've definitely chosen a beauty of a ship for your first Princess cruise. 

As you can see by our sign off, we've been on many cruises on many cruise lines, and for now at least, we're finding that we're most satisfied with Princess.

No cruise or cruise line "has it all" or is perfect, so as long as you aren't looking for those, we think you'll enjoy yourselves!

Have a great upcoming cruise!

Thanks much for all of your comments and good wishes! So true, a pros and cons list for all cruises and cruise lines! Happy Cruising to you as well! 

[Retired-N-Happy]

20 hours ago, kalkal said:

How long does it take to disembark.  Would a 10:15 flight out of Ft. Lauderdale be a close encounter?

Well as you have read, the first few responses were no and the rest of the responses were, yes, no problem.

It all comes down to how much risk you're willing to take and if you're going to walk off with your luggage at 630 am, assuming of course that there are no delays. Some are willing to roll the dice, while others don't.  We usually aim for a 12 noon flight.  If it's a choice between 230 and 1030, it frustrating because we are stuck with 230.  It's because we always cruise B2B so we'll have 3 suitcases, a back pack, a walker and a scooter for my DW.  Because of this, there is no way we are doing self disembark at 630.  Rolling 3 suitcases while wearing a backpack and carrying a walker is a slow process that will only occur once we get dropped off at the airport.

Once again, if you do self disembark and there is no problems with the ship, you should make a 10:15.  But there are no guarantees, so we'll wait till noon.  Happy sailings.

Edited May 5 by Retired-N-Happy

[Itchy&Scratchy]

4 hours ago, 2 to Sea said:

The website is thecabanabeach.com

seems quite a bit expensive. Cabanas start at $125 and then you pay additionally per person, and that doesn't even include food.

[alijay]

Does Princess have the service at FLL on the last night they pick up your luggage and the next time you see it is at your home airport?

 

Thank you.

Alice

[martinitime1]

33 minutes ago, alijay said:

Does Princess have the service at FLL on the last night they pick up your luggage and the next time you see it is at your home airport?

 

Thank you.

Alice

You are refering to EZ Check, yes they do. Most airlines are on offer except Delta International.

[azbirdmom]

1 hour ago, alijay said:

Does Princess have the service at FLL on the last night they pick up your luggage and the next time you see it is at your home airport?

 

Thank you.

Alice

 

Yes, here's the info we received last week on the Enchanted.  We didn't use it but our friends did and they love this service

 

 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

13 hours ago, azbirdmom said:

Yes, here's the info we received last week on the Enchanted.  We didn't use it but our friends did and they love this service

we've never done or even considered this before, but we usually fly on Spirit anyway, which is not included. But this time we are flying on SW and we'll have OBC left over (most likely), and we'll have our very immobile dad with us, so it would be nice to use.

I wonder how often they lose the luggage...

[BamaVol]

18 hours ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

seems quite a bit expensive. Cabanas start at $125 and then you pay additionally per person, and that doesn't even include food.

I didn’t think it was too much.  The food and drink prices aren’t outrageous.  I’m not crazy about paying another $19 pp for admission to Chankanaab Park next door.  But I think we will do it. My daughter saw pictures this week of a pool by the pier that looked disgusting.  A cool cabana, clean pool and nice beach is much more appealing. The place has a 5 star rating on TripAdvisor with over 200 reviews.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

33 minutes ago, BamaVol said:

 A cool cabana, clean pool and nice beach is much more appealing.

 

We usually go to Playa Palancar - $20 pp gets you a nice lounger with an umbrella and a beautiful beach. It has never crowded like some other beach bars either. And we don't want a pool when we go to the beach.

 

Before the pandemic they didn't even charge $20 pp. They charged less and it was per chaise+umbrella instead of per person.

 

So, to me personally $125 for the cabana itself, without a food/drink credit and then an additional fee of $19 per person - that's too much. It would be $220 for us without food or drinks.

 

It's just a matter of preferences, I guess.

[nhkroozer]

My Wife and I were on Enchanted and visited Cozumel on April 15th and lucked out that we were the only ship in port. We took a taxi to Paradise beach club $18 each way. Admission was $67.each. We had two waterfront loungers with umbrella, perfect weather and all inclusive drinks and food with wait service. The best part was that there was only about 30 people on the beach and about the same as the pool. I had checked port schedules about a month before to see how many ships were in port. I call it the luck of the Irish... plus O'Malleys's on board topped it.☘️

[ecs66]

On 4/27/2024 at 3:38 PM, gwhitti said:

We will be on the Enchanted in December.

I see your "upcomings".  We also will be on your 14-day Circle Caribbean cruise, and have been looking seriously at the 32-day South Pacific on Sapphire.  Sapphire was the first cruise ship Hubby and I were on together -- maybe around 2005 -- so it has sentimental meaning for us.  It was just a few months old.

[ecs66]

On 4/27/2024 at 11:43 PM, 2 to Sea said:

the cocktail menu

My sis is a martini lover.  When we're on Enchanted in December, I know she'll try the Espresso Martini.  Interesting.

[ecs66]

On 4/30/2024 at 10:45 PM, 2 to Sea said:

He instructed staff to cook with olive oil instead of butter.

WHAAAT?!  Just for the vegan/vegetarian dishes, I hope.  Gotta have butter!

[gwhitti]

1 hour ago, ecs66 said:

I see your "upcomings".  We also will be on your 14-day Circle Caribbean cruise, and have been looking seriously at the 32-day South Pacific on Sapphire.  Sapphire was the first cruise ship Hubby and I were on together -- maybe around 2005 -- so it has sentimental meaning for us.  It was just a few months old.

Yes that South Pacific cruise is obviously our favorite cruise. We liked the Emerald as well as we really like the Adagio lounge area next to Skywalkers. That size and configuration of ship really appeals to us. We are looking forward to the 14 Circle Caribbean since we haven’t been to most of those islands and tropical islands appeal to us as well. 

[metairiegal]

When disembarking at Port Everglades, where do you go to call for an Uber?

[Retired-N-Happy]

31 minutes ago, metairiegal said:

When disembarking at Port Everglades, where do you go to call for an Uber?

The porter who was schlepping our bags took us to the area where Uber and Lyft pick up.

[platinumdancer]

Can you tell me the names of the entertainment is for dancing? We would really appreciate it. We are cruising on the Enchanted on Jun 15. Thanks so much, Platinum Dancer

[azbirdmom]

On 5/8/2024 at 2:08 PM, metairiegal said:

When disembarking at Port Everglades, where do you go to call for an Uber?

Walk straight out of the terminal and cross the street.  It's in the ground floor area of the parking structure where the taxis used to be.