U.S. Cruise Reviews

We decided to go again on this cruise because we live in the San Francisco bay area and this is a quick and easy cruise to take and avoid flying while spending time away from home.

The ship is nice, clean and everybody tries real hard to make the guests enjoy their vacation.  There are enough activities for all and our group had a very good time.

Special thanks to our dining room staff, Felipe, Rajid and the Maitre'D.

Comedian with filthy language was inappropriate. Quartet singer was too loud and ruined passengers wanting to dance. Disco night was horrible music, not really disco.  You need more danceable music for passengers.  Maybe the Mexican trio could have played in the Wheelhouse 2-3 nights instead of the screaming singer from the Quartet.   People want to dance - not listen to screamers or jump up and down to music that has no rhythm.

Aside from the music problems, the rest of the cruise was perfect.  Ric Steele was the best part of the entertainment - a real professional with something for everyone. Dancers and singers at Princess Theater and Vista Lounge put on a great show also.  Make your demographics to the population of your people, which is early rock dance and funk.  We are on the boat for "feel good" music, not to promote screaming singers.

water buckets everywhere.  In the dining rooms, hallways, elevator areas.  Smells of sewer occasionally .  Not too clean.  Holes in sheets!.  Not much activity.  Excursion selections  were just ok. Crews looked as though they were wearing hand me down clothes from the nineties.  The food was good, the crew was good too.  Put the ship to rest.  My last princess cruise.  I will stay with celebrity or better.

One of the worst cruises we have been on. Entertainment was very poor, we don't think it met the usual Princess standards. Trivia games were a disaster! Smoking area very poor location!

Everything was great!  Want to go again.  Next time Alaska, i heard it's a great one. The workers on the ship are very respectful and helpful. Only thing I didn't like, was their coffee.

the cruise had a lot of good tours and the shows on the ship were just great.

I enjoyed the ships dinning rooms and the crew in the dinning room and our room did a very good job. I wish there was more info regarding any problems the ship may or may not have had

 Very enjoyable and relaxing cruise.  Staff extremely polite, pleasant and friendly. Would cruise this ship again. Only a few problems.  First, the Alcatraz Tour, could have used an extra hour or more on the island.  Second, because of weather in Santa Barbara, of course we can not control,  for the trolley tour we waited over and hour on the street because of delay.  No cruise ship staff to give any directions. 

Easy, fun trip going to some of our favorite California cities for a day at a time, without the driving, packing and unpacking....and in our case, no need to flight across country a day in advance, saving time, money and a hotel room.  These advantages were capitalized upon by a number of physically challenged passengers. There was tendering at Santa Barbara, but otherwise, we were parked at piers walking distance to the cities.  We went to 4 shows which were all very good, two of which were musical reviews, one was magic and the fourth was a telepathic magic show of sorts.  The two magic(esque) shows were incredible.  The Princess staff was all very polite and attentive, especially our cabin steward.  Food was Princess food.  A new specialty 'event' is a Crab Fest dinner, which was quite the change....very different and generally offered only once per week.  Demand caused them to offer a second night, that we happily attended.  I would definitely do this again.

Overall our first experience in a cruise ever was exceptional w/ just some room keepsakes issues to make this cruise a complete 5 Star for us. BTW, we came with a large group (9 total) but 2 cabins. The programs and events will keep you busy enough the moment you step into the ship that you won't want to sleep anymore. You are greeted by the crew once you enter the ship so prepare your video (we miss it coz we didn't know they would announce our arrival:)The theater shows were phenomenal (too bad can't take videos to show off). All worth every $$$ paid (mind you costly get-away cruise) but hoping Disney won't increase their cruise price anymore :) like Disneyland did so we can cruise again next year. The food/restaurant/buffet breakfast all awesome. I just hoped we had a few minutes of service orientation so we know what & where we could get food haha! Drinks are free. Don't worry about bringing extra drinks instead bring wines (allowed 2 bottles by Disney cruise) and a good wine opener. Adult fun is til 2am and kids have their own places to go too(look at the program at once and GO don't waste time!!! Servers are awesome. Crews are 99% friendly and always w/ a smile. Gratuities are included in your overall cabin bill at the end of your cruise but if you want to give extra tip, envelopes are provided also on the last day. Our Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom w/ Verandah is the best for family of 5 (10-16yrs old) we were not cramped in the room at all. Bathrooms/shower are separated which is a great idea! I love everything in this cruise! Will definitely do it again!!!

This cruise was really nice. We got to stay in San Fran until 11pm which was awesome. The margaritas in Ensanada were great. Overall the cruise was awesome.

We arrived at the Port of Los Agngeles at noon, the exact time RCCL advised in an email the day before. Had a difficult time finding Jewel of the Seas because it had been moved to an auxiliary berth over a mile away from the cruise port. When we entered to drop off bags, I was advised to drop them off and then park back at the cruise port and a shuttle bus would bring us back to the ship. Fair enough I thought. When the bus arrived back at Jewel of the Seas we encountered a very long line outside the temporary tent set up for the embarkation. After standing in the sun for over 40 minutes we finally made it into the shade. Shortly thereafter, a new line appeared next toours and passengers swarmed to the front. RCCL personnel were overwhelmed and any semblance of order was lost. Platnimum and Diamond lines were a joke. People just jped into the first line they saw. The power to the computers in the tent had failed and boarding had to processed manually. The temperature in the tent was over 100 degrees and there was very little water available. RCCL personnel said it was not their fault and to blame it on the port. Bottom line we finally got on the ship at 4 PM,  just prior to the safety brief.

After finally getting to our room things improved immensely. This is a great ship and the decor was fantastic. Food in the dining room was the best I have encountered on more than 14 cruises. The waiters were accomplished and made the cruise experience worthwhile. The buffet in the Windjammer was a different story. The food was bland and underseasoned. The only saving grace was breakfast when we had on debarkation day. We took all meals in the dining room.

I can not comment on the ports as I twisted a knee on the shuttle bus prior to embarkation and was unable to walk enough to go ashore.My experience was limited to my room and the dining room.

I would love to give Jewel of the Seas another chance.

This was a very nice cruise for a short get a way.  However the ship is in need of some updating.  The Balcony room we had was very small compared to other balcony rooms on other cruise lines.  The crew was not as friendly as in the past cruises.  Food was very limited.  This was my 4th cruise 2nd with Norwegian.

This is our first time to take the cruise, then we did enjoy the place and so many nice food, people who work in there are very friendly, the only thing we dislike is the bed looks like clean,  but my parents got some marks on their neck on next day morning  looks like bitten by the insert?? anyway, there had very limit entertainment  base on the one day trip? will try a little long trip one to see what is the different. Thanks for all sever they are great.

This "repositioning" cruise was recommended by a friend, so we made this our first cruise on Holland America. The entertainment was outstanding--some of the best we have experienced on ANY line. And the staff was very friendly, helpful and efficient. The ship was clean, but is showing its age, and is in some need of repair and refurbishing. The veranda rooms are adequate, but they seem smaller than most on other lines. The food seemed pretty mundane. Beef dishes were very good, but other choices were pretty unimaginative. The layout for the Lido buffet was awkward, and downright risky when faced with numbers of people in walkers, scooters and wheelchairs--not laid out well. Even the recorded voice in the elevators sounded bored. (No kidding!) The cruise stops were interesting overall, but the quality of the shore excursions seemed to vary widely (WE lucked out, though). Overall, it was a pleasant cruise, with unbelievably smooth seas and good service. We did notice that "hand cleaning" was not emphasized (or supported very well) at all, which may have led to a HUGE number of people getting sick on the long trip.

This was an absolutely fabulous cruise.  We saw so much and had so much fun.  Excursions were great.  Food and service were outstanding.  Our room was perfect for seeing the shoreline all the way and absolutely the best seat in the house for seeing the Panama Canal.  Lectures, entertainment and ship activities were terrific.   Food was delicious with wonderful presentation.  Staff were spectacular.  We had a wonderful time and are so glad we went.  All of our expectations were met

This being a first cruise for us both, we wanted to experience it all!  Although we couldn't do everything within our time frame we sure had a good time trying - there was so much to do!  We started off on the top outside deck with a delicious drink from the bar, it was a gorgeous warm September day and quite a few people were enjoying the pool, almost wished I'd brought my bathing suit!  Everyone was so friendly and happy.  The Crown Princess is a beautiful ship with all it's grandeur, it reminded us of The Titanic. The staff was very helpful and courteous in showing us to our room or answering any questions we might have.  Our dinner in the Da Vinci  Room was excellent, we ordered a nice bottle of wine as we were celebrating my daughter's 26th Birthday.  We then saw a comedy show, toured the ship and hit the various clubs.  It was so much more fun than either one of us had ever imagined!!!  My only regret is that I didn't make it to the casino or order room service on board.   

Great food with even better service. With only one day at sea, it was easy to see a lot of places with the luxury of traveling while slumbering. Exceeded expectations to be the best cruise I've taken so far.

This ship was perfect for the young children in our group (16 family members) which gave the adults lots of freedom.  Although the ship could use some updating.  My biggest complaint is that the tenders were unable to accommodate wheelchairs so two of the ports of call were unaccessible.  Crew members are not allowed to assist.  No compensation from Royal Caribbean.

Great cruise overall , food was not like other 2 cruises with Princess, not very good, only veggies offered were zucchini every night, some days with carrots added or broccoli! Ate a lot of salad and pizza, stir fry night was awesome! Afternoon and a lot of nights activities were very dull. Staff were awesome! International Café staff became like family, the best ! Made the cruise so much more enjoyable. All ports were very good , enjoyed them all, seeing the Panama Canal was amazing! Would def recommend this cruise. Experience was amazing.

JUST GREAT ACCEPT THE GAMLING WAS SMOKY AND  NO SMOKING NITE SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE FIRST NITE BEFORE IT STARTED TO SMELL