From the Grand Princess

[Host Mike]

Old coffee cards unused punches can be used for brewed coffee with a punch.  New coffee cards say "Unused specialty coffees redeemable on next voyage. Complimentary coffee and tea only applicable to voyage of purchase.  (Apparently hot chocolate now requires a punch). 
Veranda chairs are VERY uncomfortable.  No rubber type floor on the veranda deck.  Just a slightly rusty metal floor.
Hawking at breakfast, lunch and dinner tables in the buffet area and dining rooms.  It's very annoying.
Still the same watered down orange juice in the buffet area.
The new island for pastries and desserts in the buffet area helps with the conjestion.
On the first evening in the dinning room muscle shirts and shorts were allowed.
Heavy perfume worn for some of the latino lady passengers.
No welcome aboard cookies.
The One5 lounge is used for wedding receptions.  The wedding chapel is right across the hall
The CC sailaway group (if any) were long gone when I got there not long after sailaway.
Our cruise director is losing his voice.
Tonights Motor City show (my favorite) has been reduced in time and occurs three times tonight.
Some balcony cabins, like my C205 have a VERY small closet.
Two weeks before the cruise insides were going for $249 net (after a $50 cabin credit) with free upgrades to restricted views.
The platinum/elite pre dinner lounge (One5 Lounge) is every night.
The quick Internet logoff procedure of 1.1.1.1 is being kept secret from the passenger.
Out going email SMTP on the ship requires a special ship IP address.
Boarding (for elites) started just after twelve noon.
International Cafe contains the coffee machines and is open 24/7.

Nothing else worth mentioning at the moment.  If you have a question let me know via a reply to this message.

Host Mike on the Grand Princess

[Host Mike]

Personal choice waiters at dinner on the Grand Princess are recording by hand when you arrive in the dining room, what table you sit at, when you leave the dining room and what cabin you are from for their nightly report.  The head waiter says this is because the Grand Princess dinning rooms have no computers and they want to know what to do if a passenger complains about their dining experience to the pursers desk.  My complaint, other than the slow service was the waiters hawking stuff several times during dinner.

We heard that on this cruise insides were going for as low as $229 pp for the 7 day cruise.  Don't know if this price is before or after cabin credit.

[NSWP]

Thanks Mike. I have to ask how is the 'infamous Princess coffee' on tap at the Horizon Court?

Enjoy your cruise.

[Host Mike]

Coffee on tap in horizon court is OK.  Some think it's too strong but I don't.  Since the International Cafe is open 24 hours a day with brewed coffee that's where I go in the morning.  I save the horizon court breakfast for later.  I love the International cafe and HATE the selling at the tables in the dining rooms and at the tables in horizon court.  I even more hate them tracking you in the evening dining room by demanding your cabin number at the table.  I got in sort of a stand off with the waiter last night over the cabin number demand and made my dear wife mad when I got up and left the table over the deal

[RichC]

The quick Internet logoff procedure of 1.1.1.1 is being kept secret from the passenger.

The 1.1.1.1 doesn't seem to work any longer, at least on the Island Princess.
We had to use logoff.com to disconnect.

Still the same watered down orange juice in the buffet area.

The days I got the watered down juice I just gave it back to the head waiter and received a good glass immediately.

Tonights Motor City show (my favorite) has been reduced in time and occurs three times tonight.

As you said, all the production shows on all the ships have been reduced to 30 minutes plus or minus but the guest entertainers do go over the 30 minute mark occasionally.

Veranda chairs are VERY uncomfortable.
The chairs on Caribe deck still recline to some degree or at least did on our Grand P cruise last year.

Boarding (for elites) started just after twelve noon.
We were also delayed to around 11:45 due to a Coast Guard inspection. The ship had no control over the matter.

No welcome aboard cookies.
Wow. Now that goes back a few years. 

I even more hate them tracking you in the evening dining room by demanding your cabin number at the table.
I would have given them any random number to choose from. 

Did they allow shorts in the dining room on casual evenings? They did in past years.

[obendus]

No rubber type floor on the veranda deck.  Just a slightly rusty metal floor.

Ewwww! They still had the plastimats on the Ruby, but some rust noticeable under the blue glass panels on balconies.

Hawking at breakfast, lunch and dinner tables in the buffet area and dining rooms.  It's very annoying.

... and it puts the servers in an awkward position, as they are directed to do so.

On the first evening in the dinning room muscle shirts and shorts were allowed.

What's next? Bathing suits?

Heavy perfume worn for some of the latino lady passengers.

Out of work smoking police will be tasked to patrol the (yet to arrive) fragrance-free zones ;-)

Tonights Motor City show (my favorite) has been reduced in time and occurs three times tonight.

The apparent answer to the theater being taxed to (over) capacity with two shows.

Nothing else worth mentioning at the moment.  If you have a question let me know via a reply to this message.

A passenger I spoke with last week mentioned that the Grand looked a little tired.
What is your take on the effect of aging on this ship?

[RichC]

What's next? Bathing suits?

If shorts are appropriate for breakfast & lunch what makes dinner that much different?



The apparent answer to the theater being taxed to (over) capacity with two shows.

The problem with the additional showings still exists. The first show is so early that many on the second seating people don't want to attend and the first seating people aren't finished with dinner. This only makes most the people have to line up in the hallway waiting to get into the second show while the late show has plenty of seating since many don't want to be seated at 10PM. The idea of presenting the production show 3 times might sound OK in theory but we're still going to go to the first one which usually means skipping dessert & returning to the DR after the show.   

[Host Mike]

The whole ship got blasted with "Rescue Me' music as they tested all speakers on the ship at once.  The Grand Princess is a bit rusty but nothing unexpected.  Nothing else of importance to report from Curacao other than the cruise director has lost his voice.  Everything else other than what has been reported is same old, same old.

[RichC]

Nothing else of importance to report from Curacao other than the cruise director has lost his voice.

Sometimes that not all bad.  

Check out the escargot on the last formal night & see if they've changed the receipt. I had it on the Island recently & it's nothing like in the past. I doubt if I would order it again.

Also - Did they at any time have a whole roasted turkey in the Horizon buffet that you noticed ?

[nabs14]

Escargot was very good on the Emerald Princess in early November...

[Host Mike]

I have never tried escargot and probably won't.  They had a whole roasted pig in Horizon Court one night.  Don't know about whole roasted turkey.  Last night was German night in Horizon Court and nothing looked good to me.  In Caracao a couple were missing when we got ready to sail.  The wife finally showed up without husband who apparently was still in a local casino.  Captain gaive the wife a choice.  Stay behind or leave him behind.  She choose to leave him behind and that is exactly what the ship did.  I heard the whole thing on two scanners.  One on the shore party frequency and the other on the bridge frequency.  Listening to the whole thing was a hoot.

I can not really describe how uncomfortable the new hard deck chairs are.

BTW When we were asked to give my cabin number in the dining room last night for their dining room report I told the waiter that we are in Aloha 9 1 1,  Amazingly he didn't question it.

[RichC]

I have never tried escargot and probably won't.  They had a whole roasted pig in Horizon Court one night.  Don't know about whole roasted turkey.  Last night was German night in Horizon Court and nothing looked good to me.  In Caracao a couple were missing when we got ready to sail.  The wife finally showed up without husband who apparently was still in a local casino.  Captain gaive the wife a choice.  Stay behind or leave him behind.  She choose to leave him behind and that is exactly what the ship did.  I heard the whole thing on two scanners.  One on the shore party frequency and the other on the bridge frequency.  Listening to the whole thing was a hoot.

I would have chosen to leave him behind without giving it a second thought. A person like that deserves a lesson.
Sounds like bringing a scanner does provide some good entertainment after all. 

I can not really describe how uncomfortable the new hard deck chairs are.

I know what you mean. They're absolutely TERRIBLE, especially if they don't recline somewhat.
How do you like their version of a deck table? It's large enough for two cups of coffee without room for a plate of danish. 

BTW When we were asked to give my cabin number in the dining room last night for their dining room report I told the waiter that we are in Aloha 9 1 1,  Amazingly he didn't question it.

Funny. 

When you return I've got a question for you about posting some old and recent patters on your web site.

[Host Mike]

RichC that sounds like a plan.  Tonight was formal night.  In the Michelangelo Dining Room this evening there was zero enforcement of the Princess formal dress code guidelines.  The guy seated next to me was wearing jeans.  No jacket, no tie.  All across the dining room I saw men without jackets or ties.  I mentioned what I was seeing to the dinning room greeter who couldn't care less.   Princess formal night is becoming a big joke, at least it is on the Grand Princess. 

Tomorrow night my dear wife and I prepare to switch cabins from one end of the ship to the other end. Cabin steward says I am pretty much on my own to make the switch.  Purser's desk, more or less, says the same thing.  Oh well.  Such is life on a Princess ship.

[RichC]

RichC that sounds like a plan.  Tonight was formal night.  In the Michelangelo Dining Room this evening there was zero enforcement of the Princess formal dress code guidelines.  The guy seated next to me was wearing jeans.  No jacket, no tie.  All across the dining room I saw men without jackets or ties.  I mentioned what I was seeing to the dinning room greeter who couldn't care less.   Princess formal night is becoming a big joke, at least it is on the Grand Princess.  

Tomorrow night my dear wife and I prepare to switch cabins from one end of the ship to the other end. Cabin steward says I am pretty much on my own to make the switch.  Purser's desk, more or less, says the same thing.  Oh well.  Such is life on a Princess ship.

Be sure to keep a copy of your Patters. More on that subject later.

We found about the same attitude on the Grand about formal dress although on the Island it was a little more strict. I say this because I don't participate in the formal routine dress outfit any longer. Just dress pants with a decent dress shirt will do for me. Sounds like the Grand is keeping with my style although they're only doing 7 day trips right now.  

As far as changing cabins, the few times we've done it we packed our our draws & bath items and the cabin steward moved our clothes off the rack with a rolling clothing rack. (although I would have done it myself).
Did you at least talk to your new cabin steward about the move? He might me a little more cooperative providing some assistance.
Don't tell me they expect to have you fold all you clothing & re-pack it in you suitcase.  
btw- How was Princess Cays? cool? Any noticeable damage from the storm? We getting a cold front tonight here in SW Florida for a few days which might hit the Bahamas somewhat. At least it's not snow. 

[Host Mike]

Cool in Princess Cays today.  In the sixtys.  We are staying on for the next seven days so more Grand Princess news as it breaks.  My Aloha 911 joke in the dinning room in the evening raised an eyebrow last night but went unchallenged.  I still don't like the cabin number inquisition at dinner nor do I like having dinner interrupted four times by sellers.