Newport, Rhode Island - not a new port to us

 

Today was our first port stop of the cruise, Newport, RI. On our first visit here, Dad rode electric bikes and I visited Belcourt Mansion on separate Princess ship excursions. Dad's bike excursion is no longer available and nothing else seemed interesting to either of us. Our visit did coincide with a seafood festival that many on the roll call showed interest in checking out but I decided it wasn't worth the tender ride. As this was our first port and a tender port, April checked in the night before to confirm our plans and offered to make any arrangements for giving us priority tender access. According to Thor pre-cruise, Sky Suites also had the option of getting priority tender access on the return trip too which is something I've never seen Princess offer. Any suite cabin and/or elite passenger also has priority tender access as a perk. Some ships will tell you to simply get in at the end of the line currently heading onto a tender. This time, those passengers were directed to their own waiting area in a dining room and led down in groups. Since we did not get off the ship at all in a tender port, I can't speak from experience on whether the return perk is true. It was also mentioned that we got returning to the ship priority but the two times I got off to explore I either saw no sign of that or it wasn't long enough of a line to bother seeking out the option.

Not too shabby of a view from our balcony this morning

We enjoy playing trivia on cruises so soon started planning our days around the timing of these trivia sessions. We learned that there was always a morning trivia which varied from around 9:30AM to 11AM and an afternoon trivia around 4PM each day that was general knowledge based. If this hadn't been such a port heavy cruise, there would have also been a Progressive trivia where a session is held several days throughout the cruise and you play with the same group of people on your team with cumulative points until the end of the cruise. Each of these daily trivias was a one time, play with whomever, winner at the end of every session. 

With today's morning trivia scheduled for 10:30AM, we started off the morning by heading down to one our favorite perks any suite passenger can enjoy. There are many breakfast options for all passengers - the buffet, the International Cafe, room service continental breakfast, and the MDR. Suite passengers get the extra option of dining in one of the specialty restaurants on board, most often Sabatini. If your ship doesn't have Sabatini, then you'll most likely have it in the Crown Grill. While it's not the rich multicourse meal you'd be getting at dinner, it is a smaller space with more attentive service. Sabatini has its own breakfast menu but the choices don't differ much from what you would get in the MDR. 

We love using Sabatini for suite breakfast in the mornings because it is a smaller venue and thus a much more attentive wait staff. We often get a kick out of the little shot glasses of fresh squeezed orange juice. As with water during meals, we could easily drink a lot of orange juice at breakfast. I appreciate the extra effort but I'd much rather get a tall glass of regular orange juice than keep getting little shot glasses of fresh squeezed. At one point in the cruise I changed it up to get a break from the pulp with apple juice and it still came in a little shot glass. But then I comment on the tiny orange juice every cruise.

What I found a bit disappointing on this cruise compared to all the other experiences at suite breakfast, is the lack of service. Most of it was based on long stretches between and/or non existent drink refills which is always a pet peeve of mine. Especially in a venue like this where only about 3 other tables were in use at the time. This first morning, after we were seated, I overheard the host tell a waiter to take good care of our table because we were Sky Suite. I stepped away at one point after ordering to run back to the cabin and came back to my meal having arrived and getting cold. No wait staff returned to the table to offer drink refills or check if we needed anything else. I miss the days of having a second juice show up at my table because they saw mine was getting low or the attention to detail like when a host took back my banana order because he insisted on finding one that was fresher.

I wanted to make sure that I got to fulfill my desire to try eggs benedict on every cruise so I walked in to breakfast this morning already knowing what I wanted. I'll give this dish a 6 out of 10. Could have used more hollandaise sauce and had started to turn cold so it was tough to cut.

After trivia, we had some down time so I reached out to April to see if now was a good time for us to meet up and discuss options for the Deluxe Balcony Breakfast and Ultimate Balcony Dinner that we had scheduled for later in the cruise. April came to our cabin and we poured over her provided menus discussing modifications to placate Mr. Picky Eater and learning about options and additions we could have that weren't on the menu. While getting these unique meal experiences was only included because we were in the Sky Suite, the option to swap menu items and add other items is open to all passengers who choose to book it.

What's that? There's a dolphin springing out of my head on the #EnchantedPrincess? Unique photo ops happen when you're 5'7" tall. 

After checking out the mini golf course and participating in the first of a few Goofy Golf sessions and Ring Toss Challenges, we took advantage of the port day to visit a much less crowded Gigi's restaurant. I had planned to try the salad options and pasta along with the pizza I already enjoyed on previous sailings but we never bothered to try this venue again. The pepperoni pizza I ordered was overly saucy and not a favorite but the adorable waitress tending to our table was amazing! Everything was like the old Princess level of service I loved and we had a great time interacting with her during the meal. 

We  ended up sitting next to a couple already in the middle of their meal at what seemed like a four top table versus two two-top tables close by. Our waitress tended to both tables and facilitated the easy flow of conversation between us by suggesting we answer their questions since she remembered us from dinner in the Crown Grill. It was great conversation as we covered past and future cruise options, the various onboard restaurants we've tried, and what staying in Princess suites are like. We ended up running into each other several times throughout the cruise and teaming up to play games together. While it's great to travel with a large group, it's just as great to make these random chance meetings with other cruisers and hang out with each other throughout the sailing.

After more trivia and some scenic photography from our balcony, we decided that we were too tired to drag ourselves to our first planned evening in Club Class dining. This burn out usually happens more mid cruise where we hunker down in the cabin and opt for room service. 

Did I mention my love of lighthouses yet this trip review?

Dad wasn't ready to eat yet so I headed over to the pool deck to see about trying the new items from Salty Dog Grill. It was a cold night so while some were out on the lounge chairs watching the movie, there wasn't much activity at the grill or the pizza counter. I walked up to place an order at the Salty Dog Grill and just my luck, the crew members picked that moment to head back inside. I next headed over to the pizza counter and settled on a slice of pizza to take back to the cabin. Note to future me - Calabrian flavored pizza is not a good choice if you would like to keep your taste buds from catching fire. I briefly browsed the dinner options in the buffet to try and supplement the pizza slice but nothing caught my eye.

A short while later, Dad was hungry too so we used the interactive TV screen in the cabin to place an order from room service. While suites can order from the MDR menu too, we kept it simple with choices from the regular complimentary room service menu. There were some upcharge items but we stuck with all free options. Unlike some cruise lines, Princess does not charge a service fee for room service delivery and only recently with the introduction of Ocean Medallion, start charging for anything other than whole pizza delivery. We did, of course, tip the crew member who brought the food to our cabin. Once you place the order via the TV, it shows a progress bar and estimated time of arrival. Our order showed up right around the estimated wait time. 

Chef Salad - I chose ranch dressing and it comes in a little cup on the side

We both ordered the Double Decker Club Sandwich. This was a little confusing on the TV menu because it reads like you're choosing condiments to be included. I chose mayo and the sandwich arrived with plentiful mayo on it but also a little cup of mayo on the side. Not sure whether by choosing it, I chose to get extra or because I chose mayo, they added it and included extra. Something to watch out for if you're not a fan of mayo or are allergic. 

You know I had to get traditional cheesecake at some point didn't you? I ended up having to wait until bedtime to eat my dessert as the salad and sandwich were so filling!

And of course Dad doesn't get through any cruise without sampling the cookies! We weren't sure if one order of cookies meant one cookie or one plate of cookies so Dad changed the number to four. As it turned out, that brought us four total chocolate chip cookies. Dad ate two and put the rest aside to snack the next day.

With bellies full and tired bodies, we curled up in our respective bedrooms to partake of the on demand programming Princess offers on cabin TVs. Would it really be a Princess cruise if you don't spend time in your cabin watching this show?