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Princess News & Princess Chatter / Re: Emerald Princess - Day 4
« Last post by RichC on June 04, 2023, 03:29:38 PM »
Emerald Princess – Day 4

Fresh Market/Horizon Court (FM)

•   There are two parts to FM on the Emerald Princess.  The middle part (on each side) and the back part.
•   At breakfast the port side opens first and well after the port side passenger grid lock has already occurred the starboard side finally opens. The back side has black out curtains covering the port side serving area and the rest of the backside has limited breakfast offerings.  Both the FM sides and back do not have a visible bread toasting machine.  It was hard to find toasted bread in the FM side serving areas but easy to find in the FM back side.  The butter for bread on both sides and back side is located far from the bread.
•   Orange juice is no longer on the servers trays.  In the middle part of FM orange juice is pre-pored in the small plastic glasses and placed in the food serving area for you to pickup.
I assume there the small shot glass size. I usually get three at a time.

•   FM syrup coffee is just as strong and bad tasting as you would expect.
How could they sell the coffee at the IC if the buffet coffee was to good?

•   It appears that FM is quite understaffed and the serving and kitchen staff seem to be unaware where passengers can find different food items.
•   This morning we sat near the aft end of FM and as a test I asked the Ocean Now app to tell my our location.  Ocean Now reported that we were seated in ‘Steamers Seafood.”  Say what?  We’ve near heard of an Emerald Princess “Steamers Seafood” area in the FM seating area.
•   Not to my surprise it appears that most passengers don’t know about the back side of FM.
OK. Makes for easy seating.

•   Yesterday morning there were no bananas available anywhere in the FM serving areas or in the FM  kitchen nor was Cream-of-Wheat (which apparently may be gone on all Princess Ships).
•   Yesterday they ran out of rolled silverware
•   The hand washing stations are no longer maned.
Same on the Enchanted.

•   I talked with four ship officers who were standing around about the bad music coming from the speakers in FM.  None of them seemed to care.
They've heard the music for so long they're oblivious to the music.

International Café (IC)

•   Princess has been bragging about their new coffee supplier.  My dear wife (DW) and agreed that the IC brewed coffee was weak and tasted bad.  They won’t hand you your brewed coffee order until you swipe your medallion on their medallion scanner.  There is now only one size brewed coffee.  No more large or small sizes.  All brewed coffee now costs $2.36.

Another price increase I see.

•   The green chairs by the IC are so low to the floor that it’s a real struggle for passengers to get out of them.  One short person seated at our IC table like them because finally her feet could touch the floor.

•   The snacks in the IC,  when we were there, were all greatly downsized, apparently to cut costs.
They have different recopies for some of the the pastries served for to the Suite people. At least the donuts are different and much better. The ones in the IC case were like sinkers on the Enchanted.

Other

•   Hazmat was observed working in a suite two doors down from us, day before yesterday.
•   Room Service, after prompting by us and after their broken promise, finally delivered our mini-bar trade out and the missing part of our pre-cruise order of water.
•   At the Captain’s Champagne Waterfall event it appeared that drinks were not watered down.  When the Captain presented the senior officers, one by one, to the crowd the junior officers dutifully clapped, but not all.
•   At the Motown (Tamla) trivia contest if you don’t know who sang Don’t Leave Me This Way (Thelma Houston) you probably will not win.
Never heard of her.
•   Passenger Services can show your account with your spouse account merged onto one page in the Princess app on request.
•   Tonight’s show is a repeat of comedian Mike Gafffney due to the entertainer no-show previously mentioned.  Gaffney has the show that caused me to almost fall asleep.
Hopefully a different show?
•   The music in the only Princess Theater show I’ve seen wasn’t too loud.  I did enjoy the booth guys playing Macarena as we exited the Theater.  We are fully prepared for blasting audio on shows to come.
•   The seats in the front of Princess Theater seem narrower than the back seats, or maybe it’s my imagination.
•   The Princess Theater Interdenominational Sunday Worship Service was high church Anglican, read the script, without a sermon or communion.  It was led by the Captain and helpers from the Entertainment staff. 
•   Sabatini’s food report in tomorrow’s update.

See above in red.
12
Princess News & Princess Chatter / Emerald Princess - Day 4
« Last post by Host Mike on June 04, 2023, 02:53:01 PM »
Emerald Princess – Day 4

Fresh Market/Horizon Court (FM)

•   There are two parts to FM on the Emerald Princess.  The middle part (on each side) and the back part.
•   At breakfast the port side opens first and well after the port side passenger grid lock has already occurred the starboard side finally opens. The back side has black out curtains covering the port side serving area and the rest of the backside has limited breakfast offerings.  Both the FM sides and back do not have a visible bread toasting machine.  It was hard to find toasted bread in the FM side serving areas but easy to find in the FM back side.  The butter for bread on both sides and back side is located far from the bread.
•   Orange juice is no longer on the servers trays.  In the middle part of FM orange juice is pre-pored in the small plastic glasses and placed in the food serving area for you to pickup.
•   FM syrup coffee is just as strong and bad tasting as you would expect.
•   It appears that FM is quite understaffed and the serving and kitchen staff seem to be unaware where passengers can find different food items.
•   This morning we sat near the aft end of FM and as a test I asked the Ocean Now app to tell my our location.  Ocean Now reported that we were seated in ‘Steamers Seafood.”  Say what?  We’ve near heard of an Emerald Princess “Steamers Seafood” area in the FM seating area.
•   Not to my surprise it appears that most passengers don’t know about the back side of FM.
•   Yesterday morning there were no bananas available anywhere in the FM serving areas or in the FM  kitchen nor was Cream-of-Wheat (which apparently may be gone on all Princess Ships).
•   Yesterday they ran out of rolled silverware
•   The hand washing stations are no longer maned.
•   I talked with four ship officers who were standing around about the bad music coming from the speakers in FM.  None of them seemed to care.

International Café (IC)

•   Princess has been bragging about their new coffee supplier.  My dear wife (DW) and agreed that the IC brewed coffee was weak and tasted bad.  They won’t hand you your brewed coffee order until you swipe your medallion on their medallion scanner.  There is now only one size brewed coffee.  No more large or small sizes.  All brewed coffee now costs $2.36.
•   The green chairs by the IC are so low to the floor that it’s a real struggle for passengers to get out of them.  One short person seated at our IC table like them because finally her feet could touch the floor.
•   The snacks in the IC,  when we were there, were all greatly downsized, apparently to cut costs.

Other

•   Hazmat was observed working in a suite two doors down from us, day before yesterday.
•   Room Service, after prompting by us and after their broken promise, finally delivered our mini-bar trade out and the missing part of our pre-cruise order of water.
•   At the Captain’s Champagne Waterfall event it appeared that drinks were not watered down.  When the Captain presented the senior officers, one by one, to the crowd the junior officers dutifully clapped, but not all.
•   At the Motown (Tamla) trivia contest if you don’t know who sang Don’t Leave Me This Way (Thelma Houston) you probably will not win.
•   Passenger Services can show your account with your spouse account merged onto one page in the Princess app on request.
•   Tonight’s show is a repeat of comedian Mike Gafffney due to the entertainer no-show previously mentioned.  Gaffney has the show that caused me to almost fall asleep.
•   The music in the only Princess Theater show I’ve seen wasn’t too loud.  I did enjoy the booth guys playing Macarena as we exited the Theater.  We are fully prepared for blasting audio on shows to come.
•   The seats in the front of Princess Theater seem narrower than the back seats, or maybe it’s my imagination.
•   The Princess Theater Interdenominational Sunday Worship Service was a high church Anglican, read the script, without a sermon or communion.  It was led by the Captain and helpers from the Entertainment staff. 
•   Sabatini’s food report in tomorrow’s update.
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Princess News & Princess Chatter / Re: Emerald Princess - Daily Report
« Last post by RichC on June 04, 2023, 05:42:43 AM »
Their reservation system leaves a lot of room for improvement from what I've read over the last year or so although I don't think the other ship have been as confusing.
The way I understand it is, that you have to decide what time you want to eat when you book the cruise and as those slots get filled up you're forced into waiting at the door for what's available.
They would do better to return to the old way of early & late seatings.
We normally eat at 5 PM so we haven't had any problems.
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Princess News & Princess Chatter / Re: Emerald Princess - Daily Report
« Last post by Host Mike on June 03, 2023, 03:09:16 PM »
It’s almost impossible now to make a dining room reservation at a decent time on board the Emerald Princess for any of the three dining rooms. Seriously. Dine line will NOT accept any dining room reservations on their reservation phone extension. The only way to make a failed reservation attempt is on the TV in your cabin, your app or on the hallway big screens. Because of this it’s unlikely we’ll be able to report on any dining room food unless we join a waiting line.  The Michelangelo podium guy in the suit told us that the only chance to get in that dining room now without an advance reservation is to line up at 5pm. 

The reservation snafu for common folks is an MAJOR issue for us.  Staff tells us that large numbers make reservations long before the cruise sails.  BTW Salty Dog Gastropub aka Wheelhouse Bar says that the cabin TV menu that says they have a cover charge of $18pp is not true. Passenger Services says the Salty Dog/Wheelhouse Bar cover charge was dropped three months ago.  Probably so because we were the only ones in the sectioned off, so called Gastropub dining area last night.
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Princess News & Princess Chatter / Re: Emerald Princess - Daily Report
« Last post by RichC on June 03, 2023, 04:29:34 AM »
Sounds like there are no chair hogs to contend with....yet.  ;D
How has the DR food been so far?
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Princess News & Princess Chatter / Re: Emerald Princess - Daily Report
« Last post by Host Mike on June 02, 2023, 09:43:20 PM »
Emerald Princess – Day 2 report.

•   The apparently only choice for mini-bar trade out is one bottle of Chardonnay.
•    Last night’s show was comedian Mike Gaffney.  I nearly fell asleep during the show
•   Our likely gay cruise director, with a  name that I forgot, came skipping out on the stage at the beginning of the show.  That’s right.  Skipping.  In listening to his look at me patter he admitted that one of the scheduled entertainers was a no-show.  He announced that “The mighty Quinn” a comedy juggler would fill  in.  Quinn is tonight’s show.
•   The ship rock and rolled all morning even though seas seemed normal.
•   The Captain gave his expressionless noon day report with an explanation of nautical terms.  I’ve heard that same speech on different ships.  He only mentioned the ship’s wallowing very casually other than basically – hold on.
•   The CrewCall Chat continues to VERY slow in giving you an answer to your question.
•   The cabin door LCD panel is also quite slow in showing your picture.
•   WiFi calling in airplane mode on my T-Mobile iPhone is working great.
•   Occasionally our ship WiFi connection loses Internet.
•   Our stewardess yesterday said she would turn in a maintenance request for our buzzing and flickering cabin lights.  That apparently never happened.
•   Cabin A/C works great – so far.
•   Cabin stewardess suggested eating green apples for sea sickness. My ENT doc suggested over-the-counter (Rugby brand) 25 mg Meclizine tablets.  I always bring a chewable 100 count bottle which costs under $6 at a local independent pharmacy. Ginger ale in a can was only available at one of two bars that I checked on deck 15.
•   Fresh Market (FM) aka Horizon Court with ongoing so-so food was playing loud cowboy music tonight.  The (gluten free) guacamole tasted almost  like smashed peas.
•   Reservation only Botticelli Dining Room – deck 6 aft – has to receive your reservation several days in advance.  In other words, that dining room has become fixed seating, once again.
•   I wasn’t expecting it to be so cold both outside and inside the ship here in the first part of June.  Nor did I expect the Emerald Princess lobby carpets on each floor to show so much wear.
•   Good news.  No pushy people ran over us today.

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Princess News & Princess Chatter / Re: Emerald Princess - Daily Report
« Last post by RichC on June 02, 2023, 04:03:24 PM »
The Emerald is getting old, real old. On our last trip 10 years ago the AC was non working in our cabin for 1/3 of the trip. I said never again for the Emerald.
Good luck.
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Princess News & Princess Chatter / Emerald Princess - Daily Report
« Last post by Host Mike on June 02, 2023, 12:38:52 PM »
Day 1 on the Emerald Princess

•   Pushy people in Fresh Market aka Horizon Court.  You know who I’m referring to.
•   In the embarkation line all were asked for boarding passes.  Few were able to find a QR code on the Princess app and no one had the non-existent boarding pass.  The SES Bluetooth button at the scanning reader was what you needed.  On the scanner machine some lanes had buckets, others did not.
•   Checked in our properly tagged bags at 10:30am with the attendant.  Bags didn’t arrive in our cabin until after dinner.
•   We were told in writing that we couldn’t go to our cabin until 1 pm.  Hall fire doors to the elevator lobbies were all shut.  At 12:30 pm a ship wide announcement was made that we could now go to our cabins,
•   Medallion net set up is tricky.  A setup handout helped with some of the setup instructions but some only found online.  Nowhere did it explain the four device setup.
•   You can watch the safety video on your cell phone.
•   The Emerald Princess has been ridden very hard and put away wet.  In our cabin we found lights buzzing, some flickering on and off and the bases to the bed lamps look rusty.  The bed was saggy but it will have to make do,
•   In Fresh Market for lunch a couple sat down beside us.  The lady wanted to tell us her complete medical history and her husband smelled of tobacco.  Food fare at lunch was only so-so.
•   Cabin speaker basted all afternoon with watch the safety video reminders and said the ship wouldn’t leave until all passengers complied.
•   Ship was scheduled to leave at 3 pm but didn’t leave until 4 pm.
•   Before we left the CrewCallChat was not working.
•   We learned the hard way that the Botticelli Dining Room, 6th deck aft, is reservations only!
•   The Captain’s private most travelled lunch cutoff appeared to be around 500 days.  This seemed to be about the same as on the Sky Princess.
•   On this first day at see the ship is really rocking and rolling.  Odd that there are no whitecaps in the ocean.

More Emerald Princess news at five.
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Princess News & Princess Chatter / Re: Sky Princess May 26, 2023 COVID report
« Last post by RichC on May 31, 2023, 08:43:30 AM »
I'm beginning to think it'll just be something we'll have to accept as a normal occurrence from now on.
Just like the Noro virus.
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Cruising Chatter / Re: The possible cost to you with the cruise line overbooks
« Last post by RichC on May 31, 2023, 08:40:57 AM »
 :( That's got to be one of the most expensive air fares and hotel stays ever.
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