Day 1 - Embark Discovery Princess in Seattle
YESTERDAY
Our flight from DFW arrived on time and, after waiting about an hour for our luggage at baggage claim, we were able to get a Lyft ride to take us to our hotel. At the Seattle airport, you have to go to Level 3 (up one level from baggage claim) then go to the parking garage and look for the green barriers which is where Uber and Lyft pick up. The Lyft app worked well and we ordered a Lyft XL and a Chevy Suburban arrived in less than 5 minutes. The Lyft ride was $68 before tip.
The drive from the airport to our hotel, the Homewood Suites Downtown, took about 20 minutes. Checking into the hotel went pretty quickly and we were surprised to learn that they assigned us to a handicap-accessible suite at the end of the hall on the second floor. The room was large, but the furnishings look dated and worn. There was a kitchen, but no utensils or dishes. I would only rate this hotel 2.5 out of 5. I would go with Princess’ Westin hotel for pre-cruise instead.
TODAY
The hotel does offer a shuttle to the pier at 10:45 for $8 per person. However, we decided against the shuttle and instead opted for another Lyft XL. We can get a nice private ride for only about $10 more than the shuttle for 2 people. Why be crammed into a shuttle with 30 other people in close quarters if we can avoid it for $10?
Embarkation times are listed from 11am till 1:30pm. Even though our assigned time on the Medallion Class app says that our embark time is 12:00 to 12:30, we decided to go early. The Lyft driver picked us up at our hotel at 10:45 and we were at Pier 91 by 11am.
There are only two ships here today, the other being Holland America Westerdam. By 11am, the terminal is filling with Princess guests. The first order of business is to drop off our large luggage inside the terminal for delivery to our stateroom.
Pier 91 Cruise Terminal
As we expected, there were already a lot of guests arriving for embarkation. Apparently, most either did not get the memo about embarkation starting at 11am, or they simply ignored it. We could see people boarding the ship prior to 11am. Check-in only took a few minutes. After scanning the medallion, we showed our passports and Covid vaccination cards. There was one tense moment when we were asked for our Covid test result (still required by Canada), but we were informed that we did not need a test since we had recovered from Covid within the past 90 days. Fortunately, a supervisor looked at our lab documentation and approved us for boarding.
Like all Princess ships, Discovery Princess makes a great first impression when you board on Deck 5 and first walk into The Piazza.
We chose to avoid the crowded buffet and opt for embarkation lunch in the Skagway Dining Room (Deck 6). The menu is limited, but this is a much more peaceful and civilized way to enjoy an embarkation lunch and avoid the crowds. I had the pasta and Rickee just had an order of French Fries. We also each enjoyed a glass of Prosecco. During lunch, it became obvious that the onboard WiFi was going to be an issue as we had trouble even getting the Medallion Class app to connect to the ship’s servers.
MDR Embarkation Lunch Menu
Our stateroom, C630, was ready for occupancy as soon as we finished lunch. Our stateroom attendant arrived soon after we did to greet us and offer any assistance. Rickee requested additional clothes hangers and a bucket of ice, and he soon returned with both. We will be doing a complete review video on the balcony stateroom for our YouTube channel once we return home.
Balcony Stateroom C630
At 3:45, the cruise staff held a Sail Away party at the main pool (Deck 16). Some of the onboard entertainers were on hand to lead guests in line dancing. It was a beautiful day in Seattle with sun and warm temperatures and the energy at Sail Away was high.
At 4:30, we thought we would check out the Elite Lounge which is one of the perks associated with being Platinum Captain’s Circle or above. This daily event is held from 4:30 to 6:30 in Take 5 lounge (Deck 6 Fwd). This is a very quiet and elegant venue with full bar service and comfortable seating. A very nice appetizer buffet is provided for attendees to enjoy. I was disappointed to learn, however, that there are no Canadian whiskeys onboard Discovery Princess, despite what the bar menus say. There is no Crown Royal, no Canadian Club and no Seagram’s. So, I am out of luck on this cruise. This is the first cruise where I could not get a Canadian blended whiskey.
For dinner this evening we have reservations at Sabatini’s Italian Restaurant. We like to do specialty dining on embarkation day since they are rarely fully booked. Sure enough, the restaurant was only about half full. Dinner here is a multi-course affair and costs $25 per person. We will be going into depth on Sabatini’s in our Discovery Princess Dining Review video on our YouTube channel.
Fried Calamari at Sabatini’s
After dinner, we decided to skip tonight’s show and head to the casino. Fate was kind to me tonight on the slots, not so kind to Rickee, however. There are lots of slot machines and every table game imaginable here.
After our evening at the casino, we decided to turn in early and get some sleep. Tomorrow is a day at sea and I have a spa appointment at 8am and we have reserved space in The Sanctuary tomorrow afternoon.
