ROLL CALL: 2/25/07 Caribbean Princess

[MattInFLL]

I did a search and didn't see another roll call here.... so I am posting. My partner and I will be going, and we will probably have a few friends with us. Since I am back in school, just feel lucky there is a cruise during my spring break. We did the one this past Feb. too.

 

Anyone else out there?

 

Matt

[MattInFLL]

Bumping so the few people I have been chatting with on other threads can find our roll call :)

[RMS Olympic]

After just returning from the Mexico cruise.....I am soooo ready to go.

Traveling solo and in an outside cabin on Plaza deck.

Looking to meet lots of people and have some fun times, a few beverages and look at lotsa eye candy.

Just think...late Feb...leaving the cold frozen north and going to the warmth of the caribbean....fab-u-lous!

Currently put myself in for an overhaul refit in preparation for the trip. Hull is being scraped down and repainted. Rudder needs to be worked on....rusty due to sitting tied up at the dock way too long. Super structure being realigned and overall gross tonnage being reduced. To insure less drag, head has been shaved to allow easier entry into the water.

Lets hear from who else will be on board......also a pre cruise or departure gathering once on board of Cruise Critic people would be fun. I could make name tags if people are interested (post name, name you go by, cabin number).

Tom, aka Bertha

[gigand]

Hey Guys,

 

Tom, I've chatted with you before. Glad you had a nice time on the Mexican cruise. It only makes you want to again... soooon!!! We feel the same when departing a cruise. Need to go to the Kathy Lee Gifford clinic to get over the addiction but who wants to do that. It's a great addiction.

 

Hi Matt, You're just up the road from us. My partner and I live in Miami and will be on the Caribbean Princess as well. You look familiar from other RSVP cruises. I'm good at recognizing people.

 

Would be nice to meet you guys on the ship.:D

 

Jim AKA Jim

[MattInFLL]

Tom - yes it would be great to do something once we're on board... or even that Saturday at Pineapple Point if enough out of towners are around.

 

Hi Jim - well we were on the cruise last February, but before that it was in 1999. Since I am now in grad school, and currently prepping for exams...thinking about my "spring break" keeps me sane :) Well, almost. Several of our friends are seriously considering this cruise as well.

 

Matt

[gigand]

Yes, we were on the Tropicale in 1999 and the Westerdam in February 06. I probably remember your face on one of those. Good luck on the exams !!!

 

Jim

[Firefighterhoop]

Hey guys, I am not an FOD, however did a search for this date on the caribbean, and came up with this response. - On the Princess website, this cruise is not listed, however, obviously it seems that you guys are on this cruise..??

 

So.... Is this a chartered cruise, or ??

 

Thanks for your time!

 

Scott

[beartraprr]

May partner and I will be going as well. I was on the Mex Riv cruise and what a blast, in my opinion it was the best RSVP cruise yet.

 

Hope I am not breaking any rules doing this but there is a website which is strictly pictures from cruises, there are a LOT of pictures from the Mex Riv Cruise. http://www.gaycruisepictures.com

 

There will be a Bon Voyage Party at the Cubbyhole in Fort Lauderdale the night before the cruise, watch their website for details.

 

See ya all onboard

[RMS Olympic]

Glad to hear you will be on board.

I will admit I liked having bears on board the Mexico cruise.......their diverse types did much to prevent the circuit boy image that a certain other company seems to promote even if the actual passenger make up isn't.

I am hoping there will be more bears on the Caribbean trip. I am still learning about this "bear" part of our gay world......still trying to figure out what an Otter is??????

Going forward, I sure would love to find out more about the various boards that discuss these charter cruises besides Cruise Critic. Finding things out after the cruise is frustrating...thank heavens for Cruise Critic.

You mentioned a prec cruise gathering at the CubbyHole.......I didnt make it there before the Feb 2005 cruise, but will get there this time. I think its great to meet people before you board...break the ice so to speak.

 

For Mattin FLL (MattinLA)......hope to meet the guy that snatched you up...when we met you were still single and in the process of changing careers.

 

gigand......looking forward to meeting you as well...your posts and comments have been a pleasure to read.

 

Figherfighterhoop...if that is your occupation...thank you for your career choice......I am a FOD, and a veteran as well...I hold military and para military people in very high regard. Thank you for your service.

 

Now to figure out where the cubbyhole is........thank heavens for the internet.

[cjswitzerland]

Hi guys.

 

I am really looking forward to this cruise. Cruising is my favorite hobby (in both senses of the word actually).

 

I will be arriving into Miami on a flight from Milan Italy at about 3 in the afternoon on Saturday. I expect a good nap will be in order to get myself a bit adjusted to the time change and over the travel fatigue, but I am looking forward to the week of comraderie and fun.

 

Any reccommendations on best transport options from Miami International to Fort Lauderdale area would be much appreciated.

 

This will be my first Princess voyage as well as first RSVP voyage though I did travel with the other major charter company to Mexico in 2005.

 

I am in agreement that a Cruis Critic get together could be a great thing too.

 

Counting the days. Getting harder as it is getting colder.

[M&D]

Count 2 more in the roll call. This will be our 5th RSVP cruise and we are really looking forward to it. Good to see some names already appearing on the roll call list! We did the CubbyHole pre-departure party last year and it was quite a bit of fun--we'll be there again in February. We also have a friend who is going with us who has never cruised (on a boat anyway) and is doing the room share program. If anyone knows another single guy looking for a roomie, drop a line and maybe they could be roomies and get to know each other via phone before the cruise.Looking forward to having a great time!And yes, firefighterhoop, this is an all gay cruise charter. check out www.rsvp.net for the info!happy cruising!

[jimnbillnpa]

Joining you boys on the RSVP Caribbean Princess February 25th. Can't wait-32 degrees in Harrisburg, PA at the moment. Very excited-this is our second RSVP (did Panama Canal last year on the Westerdam) and will be our third time on Princess, one of the primary reasons we booked. Glad to see a thread started. Might help to include "RSVP" in the main thread heading-easier to spot-not sure if you can change it Matt. Looking forward to St. Thomas-I used to live there. Last time we rented a car for the day and I took my partner and another gay couple we met (mainstream cruise) to all the private beaches only the locals know about. But most of all looking forward to doing NOTHING! We both work full-time AND own a frameshop/gallery-so some downtime is much needed.

[RMS Olympic]

It was 20 degrees here this morning in Pa.......and my---- is way too cold!

cant wait for the Feb cruise. As the ship does not seem to be filling up I wonder what to expect...

The cruise to Mexico was great and this time I hope to participate more in all the activities......I was way too lazy on the Diamond Princess. So Caribbean Princess here I come. Has anyone heard whether there will be speicific theme nights? Costumes? Bears???????? I didnt partay much last cruise...so I want to make up for it...within limits mind you. LOL

Since I will be arriving in Ft lauderdale on Thursday staying at Pineapple Point of course, any suggestions for day time or evening activities? The only thing I know is a must is to check out the Cubby Hole. This looks Like my kind of place. For those in the know...any recommendations for day time hang outs at the beach or any place to meet people who will be on the cruise. I'd rather meet people before boarding...why wait to break the ice a few days into the cruise.

I hope everyone else is getting excited...Dec is almost half gone.....and January is right around the corner......

Happy Holidays in the mean time to all.

[Typhoon1]

We are onboard, now that the final payment has taken place it's not far away.

[RMS Olympic]

I expected many more people posting for this cruise....its as if Atlantis stole too many customers for the Freedom of the Seas sailing.

 

Does anyone know if there will be any themed nights on this RSVP cruise? I normally dont partake, but felt I missed out too much on the Mexico cruise by just being on the side lines. So I'd like to take some thing along and not wait till the last minute.

Hoping to meet everyone that is in town in Ft lauderdale before the cruise......especially at the cubby hole.......

Matt...looking forward to seeing you again and this time meeting your other half.

Tom in cabin P242

[dendren]

I haven't heard much specifics on the parties or entertainment as of yet, although I did call RSVP the other day on a different matter and the opening message said something about a Superheroes themed party on the Feb cruise... I'm assuming that will be the main costume party of the cruise.

 

I'm anxious to see exactly what happens on this cruise after the October cruise was SO amped up from any other. I'm also anxious to see how the 2nd Princess cruise fixes some of the problems (which there weren't many) that came up on their 1st. February can't come fast enuf :)

[RMS Olympic]

Themes for the week are as follows:

Super hero Costume Party

Red Hot and You....Red Party

Under construction Leather Party...tool mans fantasy

Movies under the stars Pajama party

Ripped and Stripped Underwear party

 

Some new themes for a change.....this is great. This super hero theme opens up so many possibilities......

[M&D]

Dendren, what do you mean by the last RSVP cruise being "amped" up? Am I right at assuming more lights, louder music on the deck for the parties? Are they "Atlantis-izing" RSVP? Thanks for your info.

 

Anxiously awaiting February as well!

[jimnbillnpa]

Dendren-curious about the problems experienced on the last RSVP/Princess cruise. We've been on Princess twice (on mainstream cruises) and had the best time. Was a primary reason for booking on this one. I fully believe the service will surpass our experience on Westerdam last year (RSVP Panama)

[gigand]

Other than what RMS said there is more to come according to the brochure sent with our invoice. It sounds like RSVP is jazzing it up and making some changes in their themes. We noticed some changes in the Feb 06 Panama cruise as well but this one shows even more variety. I don't think they are trying to be like the other charter company but it looks like they are reinventing themselves. It looks gooooood !!! :D

 

Jim & Terry

[M&D]

I'm anxious to hear more.... :)

[2cruisinchiks]

Hi all!

 

Spent time on the Panama cruise with M&D zipping through the jungle and had a blast. Just decided to hop on to this cruise after deciding to take a year break, then reconsidering.

 

This will be our 8th gay cruise, 7th on RSVP. We are really getting excited. Maybe we can meet up for lunch M&D.

 

Looking forward to see you all on board

 

2cruisinchiks

Janet and Maria

[M&D]

Good to see you guys on the cruise! I was wondering if you were going to make it. Lunch, definitely! Looking forward to spending more time with you both!

 

M&D

[dendren]

I'm anxious to hear more.... :)

sorry, haven't logged in a few days. I hate to call it Atlantis-izing here, but there is just a bit of that going on. I still think that RSVP will cater to it's own clientelle vs the crowd that Atlantis goes for, but I know the last couple of cruises I went on with RSVP, the entertainment was very lacking and very predictable... a few gay entertainers here and there and some disco diva that hasn't had a hit in 15 plus years. The parties were pretty much all the same, yada yada. This last cruise, the entertainment was much more current... and varied. Catering to the disco crowd there was Kristine W, Deborah Cox, and Abigail, but in the lounges they featured Sharon McKnight, a gay mens chorus, Kinsey Sicks, Suzanne Westerhofer, Ant, the very very popular Amy & Freddy, and again Abigail, but doing a very nice accoustic set every night. The parties, some of the usual... underwear, leather, yada yada, but they also put themeing in to it a bit also. It wasn't just a costume party it was a renassainse (spelled totally wrong I'm sure) costume party. It just felt like they were *trying* to make things bigger and better instead of resting on their laurels.

 

I *am* a little fearful that RSVP is going to continue to change and try to go more and more head to head with Atlantis, but I'm hoping they will continue to find the line between good entertainment for all and not alienating one segment or another.

[dendren]

Dendren-curious about the problems experienced on the last RSVP/Princess cruise. We've been on Princess twice (on mainstream cruises) and had the best time. Was a primary reason for booking on this one. I fully believe the service will surpass our experience on Westerdam last year (RSVP Panama)

there were no *major* problems by any means on this trip. Just sort of... I don't know... the mechanics(?) of dealing with a gay cruise that is very very different from their normal crowd. The staff was very unprepared for how big a party this is, lines for drinks were often very long and crazy. I felt bad for a lot of the staff because they were being desperately run ragged. They just weren't prepared to be serving, and serving a LOT until 3 or 4 in the morning. Some things they worked on and changed fairly quickly... they actually switched the bathrooms closest to the dance floor to be both mens rooms... eliminating the loooong lines there were the first couple of nights. Also they upped the staffing after a few nights... I spoke with some staff and by the end of the cruise a lot were being called in for 16 hour shifts instead of their normal 8 or 10. Stuff like this I expect will be addressed before the cruise in Feb, instead of halfway thru it.

 

The main complaint I really had (as did most of my friends) was the food, especially late night. Dining room was fine but the buffet was so lacking. Plus, with people partying late in to the night, the night time buffet was probably utilized *way* more than it ever is on any of the straight cruises. I know I desperately missed being able to grab a slice of pizza at 2 in the morning. Instead what they had was a lot of full on meal stuff that just didn't work after partying all night. I think just offering pizza and sandwiches all night like they did on holland america would go a LONG way to improve things food wise.

 

Also, some things came up simply because RSVP was on a new and unfamiliar (and huge) ship which meant it took a few days to figure out how things come together. They tried putting down some rubber or something on what was going to be the outdoor dance floor and it was terrible. I stood and watched person after person trip over the damn thing where it bunched up. It was gone the next night. They also desperately need a much bigger venue for Amy & Freddy, by the last night it was so overflowing most couldn't see or hear.

 

It was just stuff like that... nothing major and nothing that hurt the cruise experience at all. Princess and their staff were WONDERFUL, but since they've never dealt with us before things weren't always as smooth as they could be. It's all stuff that Holland America learned after their first gay cruise, and Carnival after theirs. The gay cruises are a very unique cruise from everything I have heard from staff, when switching to a new cruise line it takes a bit to figure out how to handle us LOL