Mom, Dad and 18-year old disgruntled son dragged away from electronic devices for a vacation arrived in Vancouver a day before the cruise left, and spent the day sightseeing, shopping and dining. The bellman from our hotel carted our 6 bags (yes, 6, we overpacked) all the way to the Canada Place luggage drop. He got a very nice tip, as did the disabled man handling the luggage on the pier. (We bypassed the unionized longshoremen.)

Princess really has all its logistics under control. Very impressive, very well thought out. Hotel chains could learn some lessons from Princess.

Our mini-suite on the Island Princess seemed very small at first, so I put our name on a list with the purser for an upgrade to a full suite if one became available. (I think she was humoring me, but politely, as the suites were taken.) After we unloaded our 6 bags, I realized that they could all fit under the bed, and voila, plenty of room. Read more