When it rain's!

​Luke and I were fortunate enough to get to sail on the Royal Princess on the 5 December.  It was a short cruise sailing from Los Angeles stopping in Catalina, CA and Ensenada, Mexico. 

Princess Cruises is the only cruise line’s that has This new technology called “Ocean Medallion is a first-of-its-kind wearable device that elevates every moment before, during and after your Ocean Medallion Vacation. From on-demand food and drinks, interactive gaming, custom entertainment and smart navigation, Medallion makes cruising simpler, and more personal and enjoyable than ever.” 

​What is the first thing we did when we boarded the ship?  Checked out our cabin of coarse.  Luke was constantly seeing if his bed was soft.  Word of caution put the taller person in the bed by the wall.  Luke was constantly hitting his head, elbow, etc. on the tables.  The beds here are to twin beds. We did see other configurations of the two beds on opposite walls.

The cabin was the size of a hotel room with a great balcony.  The above photo was on the return back.  I like the lights as the sun was coming up.  Should you want to work, write letters, read, or try to figure out what the objects are at night the balcony was a perfect size with 2 chairs and a table.

​The Royal Princess offers several places to dine on the ship.  From the Horizon Court Buffet which is where we had breakfast every morning.  I learned later that they had a coffee Barista just next door in The Pastry Shop.  With us being on deck 15 aft and is located just above us it made for such a short walk.  The Barista was telling me while in Italy he learned to make his coffee in an orange.  Yum, I can not wait to try this.  Up by the pool, there is a Pizzeria that I heard from the grapevine on the elevator from Pizza connoisseurs that it was the best on the ship.  Should you be in the Atrium there was the 24-hour international cafe which offered food and drinks.  That delighted me with my Latte's and Tea.  Note:  Should you want a variety of tea go between the Horizon Court and The Pastry Shop.  I found that they had several teas that the cafes did not offer.  

For dinner, we ate everything from Oliver Stones mussels & pork belly's to the specialty hamburger and everything in between.  

What do you do while you are on the ship?  That is the question let me tell you if you are watching your steps I did not go under 10,000 every day!  You can visit the spa, take a fitness class, take tours, play games, go to shows.  

The show staff know and perform three shows two times a day along with having guest performers on the ship.  We took a backstage tour of the production area.  Wow, was that amazing.  Not only do they perform but they also have to keep their costumes clean and in repair.

Luke & I were also very lucky because we toured the galley with the executive chef.  The ship makes all of its bread products including gluten-free.  They also make the ice cream except for the sugar-free.  Our favorite was the nectarine ice cream with rhubarb sauce.  

It was amazing to see what goes on behind the scene to make our travel a memory.

With all of the activities on the ship should it rain you can still find something to do!  When we arrived at Catalina it was a beautiful morning.  We stayed on board to catch a class that was being offered by the fitness area. 

However as noon hit and we headed out for the afternoon adventure the storm clouds came upon us.  We boarded the tender and sailed into the drizzle to shore.  Note:  boarding the tender and the ride was quite nice.  Once off the tender we went in search of rain gear and set off.  Not too long into our walk, the drizzle turned to rain.  So we like hundreds of other cruise passengers stood in line to head back to ship.  The Princess crew brought out additional umbrellas and passed them out to help cover us.  The most amazing part of the story is when we arrived back to the ship the crew had hot chocolate and towels as we entered.  That was the most amazing and thoughtful thing I have ever experienced.  As we headed to our cabin to dry off we were warming up!  

​​I think the best recommendation that I can give to you is from Luke who is now planning a trip with his friends to go on a cruise.  It was a wonderful adventure.  

Look out for more installments on our journey.
Remember at the end of the day it is the memories that you cherish the most.  Start planning yours now!