Any Star Princess cruiser out there?

[MMeeks]

My Husband & I are booking a 7-Day Mexico Riviera in Early Oct 2003 with a BA stateroom w/ balcony on Caribe Deck. Our 1st time cruising one of the larger ships and a 7-Day (Only 4 days in the past). Any info on the following concerns is appreciated:
(1A) - Will we go nuts being 2 days at sea on a boat? Is there enough to keep you busy?
(1) Pros & Cons on Traditional & Personal Choice seating.
- Is Traditional ONLY available in one Dining Room? We would like to experience all.
- Is the first seating time 6pm or 6:30 pm? Does this time work well with other activies on board? Will we miss a show due to dinner?
- Can you get a table for 2 on Traditional or is it only available for PC? Or is this defeating the purpose of having Traditional (for getting to really know those guests at your table each nite)?
- We hear when trying to book reservations for PC the lines are frequently busy and you can't book more than 1 day in advance. How best to work this?
(2) What is "Roll Call"?
(3) Went to Cabo last Fall and is not too thrilled about seeing it again (other than getting off the ship for lunch on the beach), is there anything happening on board when we are at port?
(4) Which Decks on the Star have covered Balconies? Hear most have no privacy. Does this become a problem with people accidently tossing things over onto your balcony?
(5) How many usually purchase the Cancellation insurance. Only a deathly illness or a US terrorist attack will keep us from this cruise. But how practical is it to purchase insur
(6) Is there a way to see the suggested dinner menu for this cruise? Is there a website?
(7) How many found a need for the Transderm Patch (for sea sickness)? I hear once you've got it nothing helps it just have to take it's course. Don't want constant medication (ie Patch) if not necessary, but don't want to ruin our trip with sickness either.
(8) What's the weather like in Early October? Is the water rougher than usual? I hear the Pacific is rougher than the Atlantic.
(9) How do you become a "Platinum Member"?
(10) What is Express Embarkation? How does it work?
(11) Will appreciate any recommendations on experiencing the beauty and history of each Port without getting into bidding wars and dealing with con artists (which also include service personnel such as taxies and Tourist information staff). We really felt cheated after our trip to Cabo last Fall. Even the Hotel personnel was conning us. What land excursions on PV & Mazatlan that's not too expensive, not too long ( a few hrs) and relaxful? Has anyone taken the "Canyon" hike at PV? Do you think someone with a touch of arthoritis in one ankle can handle it?
(12) Is room service and the movies (on TV) in the room free?
(13) Is it true that the recommended tips are automatically charged to your room if your select Traditional seating? I read the service quality demishes once tipped.
(14) How late can you reserve breakfast on PC. We like to sleep in while on vacation.

Well that's it for now.
Sorry for so many questions but our Cabo (land) trip went horrible last year because we didn't do our homework. I said I'll never visit Mexico again unless we can return to an Americanized cruise ship.

Thanks ahead for your responses.


(5)

 

[geejay]

We were on the Star last November. I'll try to answer some of your questions.

You can get a table for 2 in the traditional dining room. There is only one dining room for traditional, two for PC. We prefer traditional, but many like PC.
Balconies on the Caribe deck are larger than others and are half covered, half open. Caribe balconies are what most people prefer.
Lido, Aloha, Baja are completely covered, but smaller than Caribe. Dolphin is mini-suites and open. Emerald (aft) is mini-suites and covered. All cabins on the very back of the ship are covered and those have bigger balconies.
Room service is free unless you are ordering from the bar. The menu is very limited, but you can write whatever you want and usually will get it.
Tips are automatically charged to your account, but you can take them off and tip directly. We leave ours on, and give extra where deserved. We haven't noticed that the service is any different.
There is a 24-hour buffet at the Horizon Court, so you can always eat there if you miss the dining room. I cannot remember the times, and think the buffet breakfast is better than the dining room. We nearly always order room service for breakfast and eat it on our balcony.
The days at sea are my favorite. I think there is always something to do. I would love to go on a cruise for a week that we never had a port. There are all kinds of activities during the day -- trivia, bingo, movies, cards, pool games, port talks, etc.
I don't use the patch, just take a Bonine every night and have never gotten sick. We went with a large group for a family wedding and that is what we told everyone to take. 29 people and no one was sick.
I thought Randi's Happy Horses in Mazatlan was lots of fun. You are back to the ship by 2. The horses are very gentle, you ride on a beach and then go to a restaurant right on the beach that is very good. The ride is on Stone Island which is not at all crowded.
And what the heck is roll call? We've been on many Princess cruises and I've never heard of it!
I didn't answer all of your questions, but it's a start. If you have any more I'll try to answer them. You will love the Star Princess! The Mexican Riviera is not my favorite, but I'd go again!

 

[bardgal]

Mexico is my favorite cruise destination, but most likely because I'm a native Californian.
So here's my go at your questions:
(1A) - Will we go nuts being 2 days at sea on a boat? Is there enough to keep you busy?
Only if you have Attention Deficit Disorder. Seriously. The weather is usually gorgeous, and even if you do not want to participate in the endless activities, you can always lay in the beautiful sun with a great book, and RELAX. I can do this for DAYS at a time... love those sea days!
(1) Pros & Cons on Traditional & Personal Choice seating.
- Is Traditional ONLY available in one Dining Room? Yes. We would like to experience all. The other two main dining rooms are the same, with the same menu - the only difference is that you sit with the same people, at the same table, at the same time, every night with traditional. PC is just that - whenever you want -and yes it is sometimes busy, and they give you a pager like at the Cheesecake Factory. I personally prefer traditional seating. I can do PC every night ashore/at home, but I can only get this kind of dining experience on a cruise. Plus I don't want to wait 30 seconds for my table.
- Is the first seating time 6pm or 6:30 pm? I believe it is usually at 5:15/5:30. Late seating, which we prefer, is 8:15/8:30. Does this time work well with other activies on board? Depends on what you want to do.Will we miss a show due to dinner? Most shows are repeated for the various dining times, but it will depend on how long you take to eat, and how relaxing you want your dining experience to be. If it's a show you really want to see, you can always eat at Horizon court if you don't think you'll make the show. - Can you get a table for 2 on Traditional or is it only available for PC? There are tables for two, just not many, and it will depend on availability. (The ones for traditional - it will depend on when you book your cruise, and if they are still available then.) PC tends to be a faster dining experience - more akin to shoreside restaurants than the more relaxed, leisurely one of traditional. Or is this defeating the purpose of having Traditional (for getting to really know those guests at your table each nite)? Definately.
- We hear when trying to book reservations for PC the lines are frequently busy and you can't book more than 1 day in advance. How best to work this? In most cases, you can make a standing reservation in the PC dining rooms for a server/table/time you like - just not in the middle of the dining hours (7-8) so you end up having traditional dining almost anyway.
(2) What is "Roll Call"? It's a tradition on the CruiseCritic.com web boards for those people going on a particular cruise to find out others on their same cruise, and hopefully hook up once onboard.
(3) Went to Cabo last Fall and is not too thrilled about seeing it again (other than getting off the ship for lunch on the beach), is there anything happening on board when we are at port? Wow. You must have had a really bad experience in Cabo. It's one of my favorite ports, and am always on the cruises where we spend only half a day here. Great shopping, great restaurants, great snorkeling, great people... very relaxing, someday I want to catch a marlin! There is always stuff happening on board, or you can always relax by the pool.
(4) Which Decks on the Star have covered Balconies? Hear most have no privacy. Does this become a problem with people accidently tossing things over onto your balcony? This was perfectly explained in the previous post.
5) How many usually purchase the Cancellation insurance. Only a deathly illness or a US terrorist attack will keep us from this cruise. But how practical is it to purchase? Depends on your situation. I've been lucky, and never purchased it, nor do I have any plans in the near future.
(6) Is there a way to see the suggested dinner menu for this cruise? Yes.Is there a website? go here http://grafx.freeservers.com/cruise/menus.html
(7) How many found a need for the Transderm Patch (for sea sickness)? I hear once you've got it nothing helps it just have to take it's course. Don't want constant medication (ie Patch) if not necessary, but don't want to ruin our trip with sickness either. I've (luckily) never been seasick, even on the edge of Cyclone Zoe in the South Pacific - forget the patch, it can give you some wacky side affects, and it's a very strong drug. Bring bonine, and have some ginger ale handy.
(8) What's the weather like in Early October? Is the water rougher than usual? I hear the Pacific is rougher than the Atlantic. I don't want to scare you, but it's hurricane season, which is why the rates are so good. We went on the Star last year 9/28, and are going again this year 9/27 - had the most perfect weather EVER. But three weeks later there was a huge Cyclone that hit Puerto Vallarta pretty hard. I'll take my chances.
(9) How do you become a "Platinum Member"? After your fifth cruise with Princess, you'll be a Platinum Member. After your first, you are gold.
(10) What is Express Embarkation? How does it work? Once you book your cruise, if it is at least 60 days in advance (although I've seen it work with less) you go onto the Princess website, and with your booking number, log onto the Cruise Personalizer, and fill in ALL the information there. Then you will have Express Check-in for boarding, and it will go a little faster.
(11) Ports... etc... PV - The best thing to do here, if you don't want an all day thing, is to take a cab into town, and walk around. You will run into vendors, but a simple "No Gracias" and a smile will do the trick (unlike in the Caribbean). Lots of shops, restaurants, etc... There are several tours the ship offers which are nice - never done the canyon, but if you have a bad ankle, I'd advise against it. The dolpin swim and Tequila tour are both great - but the best is Las Caletas (although it is all day) It is a 45 min boat ride across the bay to a private beach. It is John Huston's old place, and you can only get there by boat (no vendors). Lunch and an open bar are all included, along with most water sports. Scuba and massages are extra - but the food and margaritas are fabulous, the staff gracious, and it's a wonderful relaxing day. Mazatlan - I prefer to take a cab to the Golden Zone, and have lunch at the Shrimp Factory (stay away from Senor Frogs unless you like very loud wild crazy drunken parties - it's fun, but I got tired of always missing dinner in that port.) Many of the resorts will allow cruise pax to use their facilities for a nominal fee. The beach is beautiful, but there are a TON of vendors.
(12) Is room service and the movies (on TV) in the room free? Yes.
(13) Is it true that the recommended tips are automatically charged to your room if your select Traditional seating? Everyone has their tips automatically charged. But as the previous post stated, you can change this. I read the service quality demishes once tipped. No. No one knows who has changed their tips. When you order drinks on deck or anything from the bar - 15% is automatically added - all you do is sign the check. This is standard on most cruise lines.
(14) How late can you reserve breakfast on PC. We like to sleep in while on vacation. You can't "reserve" breakfast, but room service (breakfast) is available until 9:30am.
Go here for restuarant hours for all restaurants:
http://www.cruisenewsdaily.com/d-personalchoicechart.html
Hope this helps.

 

[DianeD]

Wow, bardgal ....

Thanks for all the Star Princess info. I've cruised on the Regal Princess and 12 other ships, but your insight really helps.

I'll be on the Star September 6th for the inside passage and feel like I'll know my way around with the new PC options (still deciding whether to stay with traditional), etc!

I also love the days at sea -- really look for cruises that have two in a row! As you mentioned, it really gives you time to know the ship and relax or do some of the fun stuff.

I am new to @ddicts and it's really incredible how much information everyone so cheerfully offers.

Thanks again,
Diane


74 days to go -- Star Princess (inside passage) - September 6, 2003



Post Edited (06-24-03 13:22)

 

[MMeeks]

Thanks so much Geejay & Bardgal for your replies

My husband was just blown away at all the detailed information you both gave.

We decided to go with Traditional Dining. It's not often we experience dinner with each course served separately.

So glad to hear the balcony is partially covered on the Caribe Deck. Nothing's more relaxing than to stretch out in a quiet spot and watch the sea. We know many don't spend much time in their rooms but we plan to enjoy our balcony. Besides I need the option to pull out of the direct sun from time to time without loosing the atmosphere.

Still not quite sure if we should go the last week of Sept or the first week of Oct. Responses from other cruisers during this time is appreciated. Don't see that date on too many Cruiser's history.

Bardgal, we know it's hurricane season on the East Coast in Sept-Oct but we didn't know that it stretches to the West Coast. Actually our very first cruise was a 4-Day to the Bahamas, we were re-routed and ran from HUGO the entire trip, but we had beautiful weather the entire cruise. So I guess we'll take our chances, but . . .

has anyone ever heard of a cruise line sailing in really bad weather?
Unsafe weather?
That experience may end my cruising days forever.