Not up to par

Caribbean Princess Cruise Review to Panama Canal, Central America

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 56

Overall rating:

2.2 out of 5
Verified Review
Caribbean Princess

10 Night Panama Canal With Costa Rica & Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: January 27, 2018

Ship: Caribbean Princess

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: A746

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

Won't do this one again. The ship didn't seem to have stabilizers and we rocked and rolled the whole time. The ship also shuttered loudly and pipes rattled. Very hard to sleep.

Embarkation

5 out of 5
Very smooth and efficient

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5
Drinks were expensive. Dining service was slow.

Onboard Activities

2 out of 5
Overlapping times prevented many activities. Had to skip dessert in the dining room in order to make the show. Princess theater was way too small.

Entertainment

3 out of 5
Comedian and magician were great. The other shows were not.

Children's Programs

1 out of 5
Didn't have kids, but your program won't let me pick the n/a selection.

Service and Staff

2 out of 5
Staff everywhere seemed rude and rushed. Rarely even saw our assistant waiter - he was doing bar orders.

Ship Quality

2 out of 5
Supposedly "refurbished" in 2017, but there were lots of issues. Some rooms couldn't get the A/C to work all cruise. There were broken tiles, lights not working, some bars closed. Even the mechanical system on the ship was broken so we couldn't cruise at regular speed and lost hours in ports.

Cabin / Stateroom

2 out of 5
Small and worn out looking. Cabin steward was not very friendly or helpful. Balcony was good.

Ship tip

Keep your expectations low - maybe that would help. We expected what we got in the past on Princess, and this ship did not provide that.

Ports of call

Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida

1 out of 5
8 ships docked, so very confusing and crowded. Traffic getting there was awful.

Princess Cays (Cruise Line Private Island)

1 out of 5
We were late getting to this port (due to a medical evacuation) but the crew wasn't organized and ready to bring the needed items ashore. Bars ran out of everything in 2 hours and the staff was rude.

Cartagena, Colombia

1 out of 5
We did a mangrove canoe and tour of old town. Both parts were disappointing. Won't go to this port again.

Panama Canal (Cruise Into Canal)

5 out of 5
Loved this experience. Couldn't get a shore excursion, even tried weeks in advance of the cruise, and they were all sold out.

Colon, Panama

1 out of 5
This port was for people who had an excursion in Panama to get back on the ship. Again, your program wouldn't let me choose n/a.

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

4 out of 5
Went to the Veragua rainforest and boat tour. Our guide, Wendy, made the trip great. She was knowledgeable and obviously loved her job.

George Town, Grand Cayman

1 out of 5
Didn't get off the ship. Been here before, and because it was Sunday, we knew that lots of shops would be closed. Don't know why they would port here on Sunday.

Disembarkation

4 out of 5
It was good.
Was this review helpful? 56

5 Comments

Gwbigdog    2 years ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise with us.

Gwbigdog    2 years ago

ZanneG    6 years ago

I'm sorry your experience was not what you expected. We sailed on the same ship but found our room (deck 10 back) to be spacious, nicely decorated, comfortable and our steward was very friendly and helped us out constantly. We enjoyed the excursions we went on and would definitely do it all again. We did not find anyone rude. I hope you have a better cruise next time.

compudoc    6 years ago

Are you sure that you were on CB? We experienced none of the negatives you mentioned. Only thing was the propulsion issue which you were notified about ahead of time.

deboftheseas    6 years ago

there was a big storm with high winds, we were on crown princess and had same experience as you, not ships fault, celebrity diverted some of their ships to avoid winds

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