Be sure to read everything in your pre-cruise information booklets thoroughly.
I suggest you start a "cruise tablet" and take notes of the tips here that will be of use to you. It'll be too difficult to scroll back at the last minute to find things you forgot to remember.
If anyone has good tips on packing, what to bring, etc., please post them here. They will be appreciated by all.
Bahama Mama
(Start taking notes for your to-do list with this subject if you wish. Other subjects will be posted regularly).
The doors at the Princess terminal generally open between 11-11:45 AM. All cabins and the ship itself is being cleaned and we can't board till this is finished. When you arrive you may be thunderstruck at the awesome line of passengers waiting to get in. Be of calm heart.
You get in quite quickly. Once inside, you'll be directed to the proper line to stand in.
Generally, if the doors open, say at 11:40 AM, you'll be checked in, passed through the security check and in your cabin by 12:30.
You may be thankful for a small water bottle in your carry-on as you wait in line.....some of this wait may be outside in the hot Florida air.
Do not doll up for embarkation. Wear shorts, jeans, ducks, sneakers, tees, cool tops. You are in Florida now. You can stay in these clothes all day till it's time to dress for dinner ("smart casual" night......no shorts, jeans, tank tops, etc.)
Port Security Notice: Do NOT take camera photos or video shots in the embarkation area. If you do, your camera will be deftly taken from you by security. The offending tape or film will be removed and the camera returned.
Each of you should have your IDs and ticket handy. Do NOT pack them in your check-in luggage by mistake. Have a pen handy, each of you. ID needed is your picture drivers license plus your original birth certificate or a photocopy with a RAISED SEAL on it.
Once on board, you will not be escorted to your cabin. However, boat staff is stationed at every elevator, stairwell and hallway to enable you to find your cabin with ease.
The freepers staying at the Comfort Inn will arrive as a group. Other freepers will be arriving at different times from the airport. Do not wait around for other freepers to arrive or for a freeper "group" to form. Go right in line and then head for your cabin.
We'll all meet together shortly for the welcome-aboard lunch buffet.
Your luggage probably will not be in your room yet. Freshen yourself and high-tail it to the buffet. The Comfort Inn folks will be wearing their name tags, and Bahama Mama will distribute the rest of them at lunch.
The buffet will be jammed. It will be chaos.......because all the the passengers are pretty much getting aboard at the same time, all starving. It will be hard to find each other. Our distinctive name tags will be a big help.
Crowd or not, you'll eventually get a nice meal. You can take your tray out to the tables and chairs on the Lido deck, if you like. I'll try to find as many of you as I can to give you your name plates.
After lunch and some schmoozing with your new freeper friends, go back to your cabin and unpack, explore the ship, or sit on your balcony and have a stiff one.
Dinner will be at 8:30 so you don't have to rush for anything. There are two dining rooms. We are not yet assigned to one. Your specific dining room and table number will be in your cabin when you arrive. Our group will eat together.
Later in the afternoon there will be the mandatory first-day lifeboat drill. I hear that Princess has the drill inside the ship in salons. This is good news. Standing shoulder-to-shoulder on deck in the hot Florida sun for a half-hour drill is murder.
The embarkation area, the first buffet and everyone trying to board tenders at once for Princess Cay Beach will be the only times you'll feel crowded. The architects of this new ship were astonishingly skillful in their design. It resulted in a vessel where you don't notice crowds at all and have plenty of places you can do things in almost solitary splendor.
I want to get in one philosophical word here. Remember, there are always glitches on a cruise just as there are in hotels and resorts. Nothing is perfect. To truly have a great time is to not sweat the small stuff and to concentrate on enjoying the good stuff.
The ship's staff works hard at low pay to help you have a pleasant voyage. If someone goofs a little, shrug it off. The good times will still keep rockin' and rollin' as we enjoy a terrific week on this beautiful ship.
Tomorrow, Bahama Mama will touch on helpful hints regarding luggage/carry-ons.
She will also address the most frequently asked question regarding cruises, "Can we bring liquor on board the ship?". Stay tuned.
Bahama Mama (hic)