LIVE: Geoherb's solo Island Princess cruise, June 4-14, 2024 (Halifax, Boston, Norfolk, Charleston)

[geoherb]

6 hours ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

Have you ordered anything using OceanNow? If so, please let me know if you have time and feel like checking something for me. 

 

I haven't ordered using OceanNow, but I've used it to look at drinks to search for different ones to try. At home, I primarily stick with gin and tonic as my mixed drink of choice. (Although eggnog martinis during the holidays are pretty tasty as well.)

 

When I don't have the Plus package, I usually go for the Beverly Hills iced tea. It's a lot of booze for the price. 

[geoherb]

8 hours ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

Have you ordered anything using OceanNow? If so, please let me know if you have time and feel like checking something for me. 

 

After answering that I had not ordered through the app, I realized that I did not want to go to the dining room for breakfast this morning. I ordered the breakfast sandwich and fruit plate. Wow! They were quick. It took just six minutes for the delivery person to bring my order.

 

The sandwich was just OK. It could have been hotter. They're better at the International Cafe on the ships that have those. The fruit was very good.

 

[latebloomer56]

3 minutes ago, geoherb said:

 

After answering that I had not ordered through the app, I realized that I did not want to go to the dining room for breakfast this morning. I ordered the breakfast sandwich and fruit plate. Wow! They were quick. It took just six minutes for the delivery person to bring my order.

 

The sandwich was just OK. It could have been hotter. They're better at the International Cafe on the ships that have those. The fruit was very good.

 

Without the IC do they have something 24/7 for my latte fix? I'm roaming around at 5-5:30 and my first stop is generally the cafe.

Thanks

[geoherb]

2 hours ago, latebloomer56 said:

Without the IC do they have something 24/7 for my latte fix? I'm roaming around at 5-5:30 and my first stop is generally the cafe.

Thanks

 

I don't see anything open that early on the schedule. The earliest is 6 a.m. for Good Spirits on Deck 5 and Horizon Court on Deck 14. They have them available on the app for ordering any time.

[latebloomer56]

1 hour ago, geoherb said:

 

I don't see anything open that early on the schedule. The earliest is 6 a.m. for Good Spirits on Deck 5 and Horizon Court on Deck 14. They have them available on the app for ordering any time.

Thanks will need room service.

[bones774]

Hi,

I'm on the IP next week. Is there a restaurant with service open or just buffet on Embarkation day?. New to Princess , Thanks

[memoak]

9 minutes ago, bones774 said:

Hi,

I'm on the IP next week. Is there a restaurant with service open or just buffet on Embarkation day?. New to Princess , Thanks

On every Princess cruise I have been on for at least 10 years there has always been one MDR open for 1 1/2 hour for lunch on embarkation day

[arizonaperson]

34 minutes ago, bones774 said:

Hi,

I'm on the IP next week. Is there a restaurant with service open or just buffet on Embarkation day?. New to Princess , Thanks

Check out the Bordeaux dining room on deck 5  mid ship, that is the one that is probably open on embarkation day from noon till about 1:30 approximately.

@geoherb describes in one of their very first posts(#6 )that they went there on embarkation day.

Edited June 7 by arizonaperson

[Therese S.]

Thank you to Iijost and geoherb for your responses to my question regarding the international cafe.  Wish princess would take out the prime real estate used for photos and create a true full service IC.  Photos could be digital views on your stateroom tv or on the princess app then print up the one you choose.  

[geoherb]

1 hour ago, bones774 said:

Hi,

I'm on the IP next week. Is there a restaurant with service open or just buffet on Embarkation day?. New to Princess , Thanks

 

It was the Bordeaux Dining Room on Deck 5 that was open when I embarked this week. The hours were from noon until 1:30. It's always nice to have a relaxing lunch in the dining room instead of trying to navigate the buffet the first day.

[XBGuy]

16 hours ago, geoherb said:

I asked the future cruise consultant about the missing choice of hors d'oeuvres on the first formal night. He did not realize that was a promised benefit for Elites. He knew that people in suites got them.

 

Keep in mind that "canapes" and "hors d'oeuvres" are not synonyms.  Canapes are hors d'oeuvres, but not all hors d'oeuvres are canapes.  

 

I have often had the canapes on Princess cruises and have enjoyed them quite a bit.  Over the years, though, I have seen many posts here on the Cruise Critic Princess board denigrating the canapes.  I suspect that some may have incorrect expectations.  They are disappointed when they are offered a toast point with whipped cream cheese and a bay shrimp when they were expecting Shrimp Rumaki.

 

And, yes, I am very much enjoying your reports.

[geoherb]

28 minutes ago, XBGuy said:

 

Keep in mind that "canapes" and "hors d'oeuvres" are not synonyms.  Canapes are hors d'oeuvres, but not all hors d'oeuvres are canapes.  

 

I have often had the canapes on Princess cruises and have enjoyed them quite a bit.  Over the years, though, I have seen many posts here on the Cruise Critic Princess board denigrating the canapes.  I suspect that some may have incorrect expectations.  They are disappointed when they are offered a toast point with whipped cream cheese and a bay shrimp when they were expecting Shrimp Rumaki.

 

And, yes, I am very much enjoying your reports.

 

On one of my cruises since the restart, they offered hors d'oeuvres even though they still called them canapes. On another, they delivered cream puffs each formal night. We did not have a choice, but at least they did something.

 

I miss the days when chocolate-covered strawberries were an option. On my last cruise, they skipped giving us the option to order canapes on the first two formal nights. The third one, they delivered chocolates. 

 

Here's a photo of the order form and bites from the Caribbean Princess, December 2021.

 

 

[geoherb]

The fog is still pretty thick at 2:30 this afternoon. I'm also feeling a little bit of motion. On my walk around the ship this morning, I went to the back. When they did the refurb and added cabins where the Universe Lounge was, they left these two aft open decks on the Emerald and Dolphin Decks. I'll go back when it's a pretty day to watch the wake. I was on the Emerald Deck. There are lots of empty cabins back there. I wonder if some of them will be filled by passengers embarking in Boston tomorrow.

 

Here's a photo of one door decoration I saw on my way back there. I've seen a few more but none near me.

 

I placed into the finals in the ring toss this morning--everyone who scored some points did. I left before finding out who won. It wasn't me. I hurried to get to trivia. I joined one of my previous trivia teammates and helped him with the last few questions. The surprise was that the perfect team did not get a perfect score today. They ended up with 18 and in a tie-break with another team. They lost.

 

Lunch in the dining room was good. I had the summer rolls and a curried fish dish. I also had nutella ice cream. The other flavors were nectarine, espresso, chocolate, and vanilla.

 

I went to the Deal or No Deal game show. It was fun. I did not go early enough to find out how much the people paid for their entries. Both of the contestants won a little more than $100. The highest offer was $186. The people who bought cards did not win much. The biggest prize that some of them won was bingo entries.

 

 

 

 

 

[VaCruzers]

3 hours ago, geoherb said:

 

 

This photo is giving me vibes from the Canada & Greenland cruise we shared in August 2022. The perpetual foghorns! Still a good cruise. Have a great trip!

[PescadoAmarillo]

22 hours ago, geoherb said:

I asked the future cruise consultant about the missing choice of hors d'oeuvres on the first formal night. He did not realize that was a promised benefit for Elites. He knew that people in suites got them.

I wish we had one of these emojis on CC:  🙄

 

I always enjoy your live froms, and this one is no different. I hope it all continues to go well, and thank you for bringing us along. 

 

[geoherb]

Here is the Patter for tomorrow in Boston. We arrive at 7 a.m. but have to go through Immigration. Mine isn't until 8:45 in the Bayou Cafe. Thankfully, I'm not in a rush to leave.

 

 

[geoherb]

I was a little late to dinner. Thankfully they had room for me at the solos table. I had the vegetable pastry for an appetizer. It's on the menu as a main course, but I knew that it was not that large. I had the rack of lamb for my real main course. It was tasty, but the green beans were not haricots verts. I skipped dessert to go to the comedian's second show. Explorers Lounge was packed. Tonight's comedian, Sid Davis, was really funny.

 

I ordered a drink through the app right before the show started since no servers had come by where I sat. I never got it even though it showed up as delivered on the app. I did not bother to try to get the attention of a server because the show was going on.

 

The production show tonight was Spectacular. I found it didn't live up to its name. They had too much lip-synching. Some numbers were all lip-synching. There were plenty of seats available. They announced that they would release the reserved Premiere seats 5 minutes before show time. I don't think they are that great seats.

[Queen of the Queen]

8 hours ago, geoherb said:

The fog is still pretty thick at 2:30 this afternoon. I'm also feeling a little bit of motion. On my walk around the ship this morning, I went to the back. When they did the refurb and added cabins where the Universe Lounge was, they left these two aft open decks on the Emerald and Dolphin Decks. I'll go back when it's a pretty day to watch the wake. I was on the Emerald Deck. There are lots of empty cabins back there. I wonder if some of them will be filled by passengers embarking in Boston tomorrow.

 

Here's a photo of one door decoration I saw on my way back there. I've seen a few more but none near me.

 

I placed into the finals in the ring toss this morning--everyone who scored some points did. I left before finding out who won. It wasn't me. I hurried to get to trivia. I joined one of my previous trivia teammates and helped him with the last few questions. The surprise was that the perfect team did not get a perfect score today. They ended up with 18 and in a tie-break with another team. They lost.

 

Lunch in the dining room was good. I had the summer rolls and a curried fish dish. I also had nutella ice cream. The other flavors were nectarine, espresso, chocolate, and vanilla.

 

I went to the Deal or No Deal game show. It was fun. I did not go early enough to find out how much the people paid for their entries. Both of the contestants won a little more than $100. The highest offer was $186. The people who bought cards did not win much. The biggest prize that some of them won was bingo entries.

 

 

 

 

 

Love your posts! We will be boarding  the IP when you disembark on the 14th. You are giving me lots of ideas (have not been on Princess in 12 years)

Does Princess allow door decorations? Are you allowed to bring fresh flowers on board

 

[MsSoCalCruiser]

16 hours ago, geoherb said:

 

After answering that I had not ordered through the app, I realized that I did not want to go to the dining room for breakfast this morning. I ordered the breakfast sandwich and fruit plate. Wow! They were quick. It took just six minutes for the delivery person to bring my order.

 

The sandwich was just OK. It could have been hotter. They're better at the International Cafe on the ships that have those. The fruit was very good.

 

That fruit looks really good. Would you please check the Chef Salad and see if the option to leave off the cheese has been added to the app yet? I was told that it would be added to the app. I’m really looking forward to being able to order a salad without cheese. 😋

[geoherb]

5 hours ago, Queen of the Queen said:

Love your posts! We will be boarding  the IP when you disembark on the 14th. You are giving me lots of ideas (have not been on Princess in 12 years)

Does Princess allow door decorations? Are you allowed to bring fresh flowers on board

 

 

Yes to door decorations on this ship. Most of the ones I've seen have used magnets or Command hooks, like the photo I posted earlier of the skeleton in the Hawaiian shirt. I believe people are allowed to bring fresh flowers on the ship but not take them off. They also sell them on board.

[geoherb]

I woke up and heard them vacuuming in the hall and thought I overslept. Turns out it was 5 a.m. A pipe burst. My feet went squish when I stepped on the carpet. The water is down my side of the bed. I had knocked a pillow off and it's soaked. There's another squishy area right in front of the bathroom and of course down the corridor.

 

A supervisor just came and they're moving me to another cabin for the moment so I can rest while they clean it up. Thankfully it did not get any of my things wet. But the only things I have on the floor are my shoes and a small pile of dirty clothes behind my suitcase in the closet area. Those need washing anyway.

[geoherb]

5 hours ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

That fruit looks really good. Would you please check the Chef Salad and see if the option to leave off the cheese has been added to the app yet? I was told that it would be added to the app. I’m really looking forward to being able to order a salad without cheese. 😋

 

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like they've added that option. The options are no turkey, no ham, or no cheese plus a choice of dressings.

[MsSoCalCruiser]

13 minutes ago, geoherb said:

 

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like they've added that option. The options are no turkey, no ham, or no cheese plus a choice of dressings.

So there is now an option for no cheese? If you have time, could you please post a photo of it? I’ve been working with them for a while to try to get that added. Thank you so, so much!

[paddingtonbear]

1 hour ago, geoherb said:

I woke up and heard them vacuuming in the hall and thought I overslept. Turns out it was 5 a.m. A pipe burst. My feet went squish when I stepped on the carpet. The water is down my side of the bed. I had knocked a pillow off and it's soaked. There's another squishy area right in front of the bathroom and of course down the corridor.

 

A supervisor just came and they're moving me to another cabin for the moment so I can rest while they clean it up. Thankfully it did not get any of my things wet. But the only things I have on the floor are my shoes and a small pile of dirty clothes behind my suitcase in the closet area. Those need washing anyway.

So sorry to hear about the water leak in your cabin! 

[scubacruiserx2]

1 hour ago, geoherb said:

I woke up and heard them vacuuming in the hall and thought I overslept. Turns out it was 5 a.m. A pipe burst. My feet went squish when I stepped on the carpet. The water is down my side of the bed. I had knocked a pillow off and it's soaked. There's another squishy area right in front of the bathroom and of course down the corridor.

 

A supervisor just came and they're moving me to another cabin for the moment so I can rest while they clean it up. Thankfully it did not get any of my things wet. But the only things I have on the floor are my shoes and a small pile of dirty clothes behind my suitcase in the closet area. Those need washing anyway.

 

 

 Yuck ! We hope that the rest of the day goes better for you . And thanks for doing this Live . We know how how much effort it takes to do a review - especially a live one .