pmmorris1

Embarkation onto the Grand Princess was a breeze - this was the first time I did not have to wait in an endless line to board a ship. We went directly to our balcony stateroom (Baja deck room 630) which was large and had plenty of storage. The staterooms themselves could use a little sprucing up, but by no means were they in 'bad' shape - just a tad bit worn. These are regular sized balconies, but the great thing is, there is no balcony on the Aloha deck above you. The balconies below this deck are staggered out, so we could see the people on the balconies on Caribe deck and lower. Our room steward, Gemsen Swanson, greeted us with a very warm and friendly greeting and was wonderful through our whole trip. We set sail and tried to familiarize ourselves with the ship. For 16 years old, the ship is in good shape with great common areas. We had late seating for dinner - I think next time I will go with Anytime dining so that we can decide when we go to eat and work that around our ports. We had four in our party and were seated with 2 other couples so always had good conversation. I must admit, the very first night I was not impressed with our dinner and was worried that perhaps Princess food would not live up to what I was accustomed to on Royal Caribbean. However, meals on the 2nd day and beyond were excellent. Our options for appetizers, soups, and entrees was always good and desserts were incredible. My final overall impression of the food could best be summed up as excellent. We only saw one show which was what I would consider comparable talent to other cruises I've been on. The exception is that they had a great pyrotechnic display in this show. We did watch a movie under the stars one night which was fun and is a great touch that Princess offers. They supply chair covers and blankets as it did get cool at night. Popcorn was also available at the ice cream stand -- perfect for watching a movie. We saw the new Batman movie which w