Discovery Princess - California Coastal Cruise Review (04/20/24 - 04/27/24)

 

The Discovery Princess is a new ship in Princess Cruises' fleet, having been put into service in 2022.  It often sails the California Coastal and Mexican Riviera routes in cooler weather, then moves North to sail Alaska routes during warmer weather.  This is the first time I've had to sail on a Princess ship this new, and I felt it would be an interesting experience to compare this trip with other ships and cruises I have taken.

If it weren't for my uncle, I wouldn't have planned this trip.  Last year, my partner and I took an almost identical cruise as an excuse to see my uncle,  Sadly, his health problems didn't allow for a visit at that time.  So I scheduled this cruise as another excuse to drop by and see him in the nursing home.  And again, I missed the chance to see my uncle, as he passed away 2 weeks before my arrival in California.

This time, I traveled solo to Los Angeles.  This effectively doubled the price I paid for the cruise.  These were my invoiced expenses:

Inside Cabin:             $1,957  (Note: Princess Premier fare - $80/day extra included)
Port fees & Taxes:       $250

Airfare (JFK-LAX):       $757

Hotel (LAX Marriott):    $448
Taxes:                            $49

Post-cruise transfer:      $34

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Total:                         $3,495

All of this was spent to have a last chance to see my uncle while he was alive, coupling a family visit with a vacation.

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Transit

Princess Cruises outsources its land logistics to a third party.  The last time my partner and I took this cruise, we were not able to find the person who would guide us to the hotel shuttle.  This year, things were different, as I found the fellow at the luggage carousel waiting for me, and he took care of bringing my luggage to she shuttle.  This made things much easier, as I didn't have to think of where to go and how to get there.

The cruise line has a letter waiting for all people who avail of its agency service, telling people staying at the hotel when to be ready, and to do with bags going to the ship.  Although I could have left my luggage in the room for the bellman to bring to the bus, I brought it to the lobby, from where it was transported to the bus going to the cruise terminal.

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Post cruise transportation is a little simpler.  If one buys the post cruise airport transfer package, one's luggage tags are associated with the transfer.  Once a person and bags clear the disembarkation process, the cruiser will take his/her bags to the first available airport transfer bus, and they will be made available at the appropriate airport terminal.

Hotel

Princess uses the Los Angeles Airport Marriott for pre-cruise hotel stays.  The first time I stayed at the hotel, I had no complaints except for the long walk from the hotel entrance to my room.  This year, I had a much shorter walk, but my experience was not as good. 

First, the fire alarm went off sometime late at night and I really didn't want to get dressed again unless absolutely necessary.  Luckily, this was a false alarm, and I was able to get back to sleep.  Next was the TV shorting out on me while I was watching a East Coast based morning news show.  Although I reported the problem at 8 am (when I went out for the day), I had to make a second call to get this fixed at 4:30 pm.  Lastly, there was a problem which could not be fixed, and not worth reporting - the "cold" water was coming out of the bathroom sink as warm water.  (This is a building design issue whose best workaround was to have ice available to have cold water nearby.) 

Embarkation

Last year, I had misplaced my Princess Medallion, and it took us at least 30 more minutes to deal with this on land, and another hour to deal with this once upon the ship.  This year, embarkation was a breeze.  All I had to do was go on the "Green Line" and show my passport - the Medallion had all the other information needed for the ship to identify me when needed.

Once aboard the ship, I encountered the usual embarkation day problems - overly warm temperatures in some public areas due to crowding, an overly busy buffet (as expected), and people not knowing how to navigate the cruise ship to reach their cabins.  However, I found that the Discovery Princess did not have enough signage on "public" cabin levels to identify both forward/aft and port/starboard directions.  I always had to go to one side of the ship to find out whether I was port or starboard, and then often had to go to the other side of the ship to find my way to my cabin.  Contrast this to many NCL ships where signage near the elevators clearly identify port and starboard sides of the ship, and the carpeting provides a clue (fishes swimming) to where for and aft parts of the ship are located.

Stateroom

Unlike the last stateroom I stayed in on another cruise line, I chose a full sized interior cabin which easily holds two people.  There is more than enough storage space for two people to place their belongings.  

As much as I was very happy with this cabin, I didn't like having to string an extension cord across my path to the bathroom so that I can use my CPAP machine.  Ideally, there would be 110v/220v A/C power outlets on each side of the bed (if configured as a king, or in the middle if configured as separate beds).  Considering that this ship was built in 2022, I was pleasantly surprised that a USB port is found in the base of the lamps found on the night tables.

Itinerary

This is a typical 7-day California Coastal run from Los Angeles to San Francisco, then South to Monterrey (or Catalina Island in my case), San Diego and Ensenada (Mexico) before returning to Los Angeles.  More than enough time is given to enjoy each port.  

The selections of shore excursions for San Francisco, San Diego and Ensenada are reasonable for single day port stops.  However, the shore excursions available for Catalina Island is a little bit lacking.  On this cruise, only two excursions were available: The Fantastic Catalina race and the Seal Rocks Safari Cruise.  The former is a "treasure hunt" to lead tourists around the island to visit assorted venues.  The latter is a cruise around Catalina Island, enjoying views of the wildlife near the island's shores.  Many cruisers simply choose to visit the town of Avalon and enjoy the sights there.

Entertainment

The first main theater show I attended was a production called "Rock Opera".  Like most big cruise ship theater productions, I found it lacking.  No, it wasn't a bad production. The singers were very good, but over-amplified, and it often was hard to make out what they were singing.  The dancing was very good, but distracted from the singers on stage.  And their selection of tunes was good, but could never justify calling this 45 minute show an opera, as they did not provide any plot narrative.

A couple of days later, I saw Elliot Hunter, the Illusionist on the big stage.  Although I had a good idea of how some of the acts were done, I enjoyed his show.  (I'm not usually into "Magicians", as I try too hard to figure out how an illusion is done and have caught a few magicians making dumb mistakes that most of the crowd wouldn't notice.)  His act was visually entertaining without a lot of the distractions which get in the way of enjoying the show.

The next time I was in the main theater, I saw Tommy McPhee sing the songs of Neil Sedaka, Elton John, Barry Manilow and others.  He sang the songs well, and I wouldn't mind seeing him again.  However, I found that he danced around too much on some tunes, distracting the audience from the music.

The lounge singers and atrium performers were something else altogether.  On embarkation day, there was an excellent Mariachi group singing classic Mexican tunes.  In the Crooners lounge, the performers all did a great job of entertaining without playing loud enough to interfere with any conversations which may be going on nearby.  On the final night of the cruise, they had an entertainer in the atrium showing off his skills with a pair of whips.  There was a little something for everyone, if one looked for it.

Food Venues and Availability

Buffet:

I ate almost all of my breakfasts in the buffet, since I like to wake up late.  The selections were adequate.  However, it was not easy to find a seat during busy times.

Main Dining Rooms (Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan)

The one time I had lunch in one of the main dining rooms, the food met my expectations - tasty and plentiful.  There was a special theme for the day, and one of the people at my table was able to get a piece of prime rib which made me wish I had ordered that instead of the salad I had chosen.

Skagway Restaurant (MDR - Complimentary) 

Both the service and food was very good.  The portions were plentiful, and I was able to get an extra main to sample without problems.  On the day that surf and turf was on the menu, I was able to order a second main (for a nominal price) so that I could have the extra seafood.  This was the one time I was underwhelmed by the "turf" portion, as it didn't have that much flavor.

Ketchikan Restaurant (MDR - Complimentary)

I ate at this restaurant several times during my cruise.  The first night I was placed at a shared table as the 7th diner in a table of 8 diners. Plating (dishes, utensils, etc.) had been already removed from the table, and we had to ask for them to be replaced. Once our orders were taken, we experienced very slow service, as it took 90 minutes before our main courses were delivered to the table.   The second night, things were much better, as the restaurant was less crowded and the staff better able to respond to the needs of the diners.

Gigi's Pizzeria (Casual Restaurant - Complimentary w. Princess Premier Fare)

I only ate at this restaurant once, as I tended to go to the buffet for lunch if I was on the ship for this meal.  The personal pizza was very good.  However, this restaurant does not provide the variety of pizza options as can be found in a typical Metropolitan New York City pizzaria.

Ocean Terrace (Casual Restaurant - Complimentary w. Princess Premier Fare)

This is the Discovery Princess' sushi restaurant.  I ate there on the last night of the cruise.  Sadly, the restaurant was very busy, and it took more time than expected for my meal to be delivered to my table.  Seating at this restaurant would be more than appropriate for a lounge. However, the tables and chairs were inappropriate for a restaurant, as they were at an awkward height for dining.  (Seating at the sushi bar itself appeared to be more comfortable, and if available when I was there, I would have sat there and watched the itamae (Sushi Chef) work his magic on the fish I was about to eat.)

Crown Grill (Specialty Restaurant - Extra Charge)

I had the veal chop dinner.  My first course was a wonderful onion soup au gratin (not pictured here), followed by the veal chop.  The Crown Grill serves its meats with a choice of salts: Himalayan Sea Salt, Hawaii Black Salt, and a Whiskey Bourbon Salt.  None of these added much to the flavor of the meat.  The chop itself was a little bit stringy, and I wouldn't order it again.  (This might be the nature of the cut, so I will try this at another restaurant when I have the chance to do so.)  If you take this ship in the near future, look for Darwin in this restaurant.  This waiter is a true professional, and I would love to have him serve me when I am next on the ship. 

The Catch by Rudi (Specialty Restaurant - Extra Charge)

I had the "Three S" dinner: Sea Scallops, Scotch Salmon and Shrimp.  The presentation was impressive, as one shrimp the size of a tiny lobster was the focal point of the dish.  (The above picture does not do the dish justice, nor can it give any indication of how good everything tasted.)  My only complaint would be that I would have liked one or two more of these hanging Langostinos with the meal.

Disembarkation

This process was relatively straight forward.  Both "self-assist" and porter service was available. If one chooses porter service, one would use the luggage tags provided by the cabin attendant and place their suitcases in the hallway the night before disembarkation.  On the night before disembarkation, one is expected to have their porter service bags in the hallway by 8 pm.  However, this seemed more of a guideline, as I saw many bags in the hallways around 10 pm.  

The morning that the ship arrived back in Los Angeles, self-assist passengers may leave the ship as soon as the ship is cleared by US Customs.  All other passengers are expected to go to the assembly points associated with their luggage tags by 7:30 am to wait until they are told they can leave the ship.  Once called, passengers leave the ship one last time and proceed on the long walk from the ship to the baggage claim area on the pier.  In my case, my group was called at 8:20 am (as scheduled), and I was through customs with my bag before 9 am.  From there, it was another long walk to the airport transfer bus.

Miscellaneous

It wasn't easy to find one's account status with the Princess app.  I had to go to guest services to be shown where to find this option (look for "Folio" under personal account status).  From there, one sees a print format version of the debits and credits being applied to one's cruise account.

Although the Princess Medallion usually worked as advertised, there were enough cases where I found myself giving my room number to people for service - such as when I was in a restaurant ordering alcoholic beverages. Many times during the cruise, the cellphone sized medallion readers used to log people on and off the ship needed several attempts to scan my medallion before it was recognized.  Even worse, one time the RFID sensor for my stateroom didn't identify me as the cabin resident until I held the medallion next to the sensor.  

Those people who choose the Princess Premier fare have a nice perk - they can download all of their Princess photos for free, and get up to 3 8"X10" prints for free.  However, when I went to pick up my prints, the gentleman in the photo store tried to up sell me to buy a Princess frame for an extra $15 - and he had to be told NO twice before he backed off on the sale.  

Word of warning for those choosing this option: Princess uses facial recognition to associate a photo with a cruiser.  If one doesn't see their photos available for download, one must go to the photo store to get one's face rescanned, so that they can associate one's pictures with one's account.

Conclusions

This vacation was good value for the money.  Yes, I paid the solo traveler supplement. But I didn't feel nickel-dimed while on the cruise.  All of the drinks I ordered were covered by the beverage package, alcoholic beverages and non-alcoholic beverages (sodas, hot chocolates, specialty coffees, etc.), and I never got charged extra for any of my choices.

Transfers from airport to hotel, hotel to shop, and ship to airport were organized well, albeit that the first transfer had a Princess representative assist me to the Hotel's airport shuttle.  If I do this (or a similar) cruise again, I will let Princess handle the logistics, as it is way too easy to make costly errors with transit in Los Angeles.

Although Princess promotes the "Princess Plus" fare as having great value, I prefer spending the extra $20/day for the "Princess Premier" fare, as it gives me a larger variety of included alcoholic beverages AND up to 4 devices connecting to the internet via the ship's wi-fi network.

Emerald Princess - California Coastal Cruise Observations (06/17/23 - 06/24/23)

The following are my unfiltered observations in regard to the California Coastal Cruise on the Emerald Princess we were on in June.  Although I will not comment on the sites we visited in Los Angeles, I will mention how we got around, along with options that a tourist without a car can use.

Flight Arrangements:

1. We used a travel agent to handle of our booking requirements.  As a result, we were able to specify the airline to use for this trip (Delta) so that we each could get a free checked bag on our flights.  Additionally, we were able to select flight times, so that we didn't have to rush to the airport on either leg of this trip.

Pre-Cruise Hotel Arrangements:

1. The Marriott LAX is Princess's hotel of choice for pre-cruise stays.  All pre-cruise transfers take place between the airport and this hotel, and the hotel to the pier.
2. (Not a Princess issue) In order to get free Wi-Fi, one has to register in Marriott's loyalty program.  However, registering for this plan at the same time as checking into the hotel can be problematic.  I couldn't complete the data entry part of loyalty program registration, nor could hotel staff.  As a result, I was charged for the Wi-Fi upon leaving the hotel.
3. (Not a Princess issue) Dining choices near the hotel are very limited and are overpriced.  On our first night, we spent $120 for a simple dinner, each of us having a single drink.  Soft drinks and candy from the hotel's store easily cost twice as what one would pay at a local 7-11 store.  The only reasonably priced outlet where food and beverage is sold was the hotel's Starbucks outlet.

Pre-Cruise Transfers:

1. Although Princess was supposed to provide a transfer from the airport to the hotel, we were not able to find it.  Instead, we used the hotel's shuttle to get from the airport to the hotel.
2. The transfer from the hotel to the pier ran a little late in arriving due to Los Angeles' traffic jams.  Once the bus arrived at the hotel, it was a relatively quick trip from the hotel to the airport.

Embarkation/Settling in.

1. The check-in process for people who have lost of misplaced their Princess Medallion needs to be fixed.  Although we had notified Princess of my problem a day in advance, they did not have have either a replacement medallion or a temporary cruise card available when we arrived at the cruise terminal.  We had to wait 30 minutes before a cruise card could be given to me before proceeding onto the ship.
2. Once on the ship, we proceeded to Guest Services and traded the temporary cruise card for a medallion.  However, it took 15 minutes' waiting at Guest Services for the replacement medallion to be printed and handed to me.
3. The Guest Services area did not have adequate air conditioning to keep people comfortable while in the area on embarkation day.  This is likely a result of the crowds of people needing service once they got on the ship.
4. Upon activation of my new medallion, my partner's medallion was accidentally deactivated.  We had to go back to Guest Services to rectify this.

Restaurants.

1. Buffet. (Complementary).
   - We were underwhelmed by the range of food selections found in the buffet.
   - The layout of the buffet made it harder to find the foods one wanted to eat, as there was no default flow of people through this space.
   - Buffet staff always handed us both plates and tableware when we went to get food from the stations. 
   - Buffet staff would fetch beverages for us, making it a more enjoyable dining experience in the buffet.
2. Botticelli Dining Room  (Complementary).
   - This was the easiest of the complementary dining rooms in which to get a table for dinner service, due to its location at the back of the ship.  
   - Once seated, the wait staff was friendly, professional, and efficient.  
   - At dinner, we were often served extra main courses and desserts, both containing items we didn't think to order. as samplers.  At one meal, we enjoyed the extra courses more than the dishes we had ordered.
   - On the last night, we were not prepared for the cruise director, and the noisy lights-out parade of sparkling Baked Alaska desserts.  This was very disturbing, and almost ruined our meal.
3. Da Vinci Dining Room (Complementary).
   - I found it hard to get seated in this dining area unless I arrived early.  If seated here, service was of the same quality as in the Botticelli dining room.
4. Crown Grill (Specialty Restaurant).
   - On both occasions that we went to this restaurant, there was no one waiting in front of us.  There was no one manning the host/hostess location, and we had to wait 5-10 minutes to be recognized and then get seated.
   - It took a while for table service to start, but once started, it was almost flawless.
   - Food quality was very good, but not as good as I've had at some land based steakhouses in the NYC area.  

Excursions.

1.  San Francisco - Japanese Tea Garden
   - The Japanese Tea Garden is an island of serenity in a chaotic city.  There is not much to do here, save enjoying the beauty of the place.  However, like many excursions, it involves a bus ride from the cruise ship.

Post-Cruise Debarkation and Airport Transfer.

1. Debarkation was very quick.  We were off the ship shortly after our color code was called, without having to wait on line.
2. Our luggage was easy to find at the pier, as our group's luggage was in a relatively small area compared with some other ports I have sailed from.
3. Customs at the Los Angeles (San Pedro) cruise terminal used facial recognition, and we breezed through the checkpoint without incident.
4. Buses were lined up for those using airport transfers.  As soon as a bus was filled with luggage and passengers, it was off to the airport.  We had booked a 2:20 pm flight to be safe.  We could have booked earlier flights, as the bus reached our airport terminal before 10:30 am.

Miscellaneous Items of Note.

1. We had purchased the Princess Premier package.  This entitled us to:
   - Photo Downloads of all pictures taken of us together or as individuals
   - Three 8"x10" print photographs of our choice for each person
   - Two meals at the ship's specialty restaurants for each person
   - Unlimited Wi-Fi for four devices each person
   - Unlimited specialty desserts
   - Exercise Classes (unused)
2. The photography area did not associate my partner's solo pictures with our room.  As a result, these pictures were lost to the ether.
3. Pictures in the photography area were hard to find in their displays.  Cruisers mishandled pictures, intermixing undesired pictures with those of other cruisers.
4. On the last day of the cruise, the photography area did not have enough staff to deal with both download issues (such as our missing images) and photo purchases.
5. The music volume at the Crooners' lounge was excessively loud, making conversation impossible without having to shout.
6. The "Baked Alaska" parade was a needless interruption of dining on the last night of the cruise.  For people with visual impairments, the lack of adequate light can create a dangerous environment.
7. On the last morning of the cruise, using the Da Vinci restaurant as a debarkation staging area is confusing, as people may think to go there for their last morning's meal on the ship and miss out on that meal.