We had a great two weeks on board the Caribbean Princess. We relaxed, read, soaked up the sunshine, ate tons of great food and met lots of interesting people. We managed to find lots of places to hide when we wanted to read and relax quietly. The ship is beautiful and the crew was, for the most part, just lovely.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Embarkation process was so smooth with the pre check in medallion process! We were scheduled to board at 1230, and we actually got to board at 1130. Since we got our medallion and got "ocean ready" on the app prior to leaving home, we got to skip the long lines. It was awesome!
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
We chose anytime dining and never had to wait more than 10 minutes. We had our choice every night of sharing with other people, or sitting by ourselves.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We don't participate in the games, competitions, etc., on board. We like to read and relax. It seemed like there were several options if you like that sort of thing.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
The Movies under the Stars weren't very good this time. As that's always something we love to do on a cruise, it was very disappointing. The majority of the movies were Marvel superhero movies, and those just aren't something we're interested in. For the most part the shows in the Princess theater were good, especially Bravo. There were a couple of them that were pretty bad - one of the first shows that the Princess singers put on was filled with emojies and flashing lights and it was just bad. The singers were off key, the music choices were something that 14 year old girls listen to and for some reason they thought it was a good idea to keep the spotlights rotating into the audiences eyes. The last show was an Elton John imitator. From his cheesy power point presentation to introducing himself as Sir Elton John ("and now ladies and gentlemen, Sir Elton John!" What? How about, "John Smith, in a tribute to Sir Elton John" instead?) There's really nothing good that I can say about him. The Crooners Bar almost every night showcased an amazing talent named Sammy Goldstein - he is NOT TO BE MISSED. By the time we were halfway through our cruise the word had gotten around about how talented this guy was and it was standing room only every single night. He's amazing!
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
We were, as always, impressed by the service we received on this Princess cruise. Almost everyone was helpful and polite.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The Steamers and Planks restaurants were installed where there used to be World Marketplace buffet seating, so it was difficult to find a seat for breakfast and lunch and the buffet area was much smaller than on other ships that I've been on. The good news is that you can take your plate into those two restaurants at breakfast or lunch (plus they serve a smaller version of the buffet in there for no upcharge) and sit there. We discovered that the back of the steamers restaurant has a quite sitting area with armchairs, ottomans and tables and we sat there for hours and read in the peace and quiet.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Great balcony stateroom. We had no problems at all, and our Cabin Steward, Nora, was amazing.
Ship tip
If you have anytime dining and want to see the show in the Princess theater, the 6;45 show is your only option. Anytime Dining does not start til 7:30 pm, so you will not be done in time to go to the 8:45 show. The 6:45 show is VERY popular, so you will have to get there NO LATER that 6:10 to 6:15 if you want a seat. It was very irritating. If they started anytime dining at 6:30 or 7:00 you would actually be able to make it to either show.
Princess excursion to the forts and Nelson Dockyard. This was a very nice experience and the dockyard area is very nice. The rum punch was delicious and refreshing.
We took a Princess excursion to the Botanical gardens. It was just beautiful! We wandered around and took gorgeous photos, went across the swinging bridge, which was very fun.
Princess excursion to St. Benedicts Monastary. This excursion could have been wonderful. As it was, we had an inexperienced tour guide who read random facts to us as we drove around town. We went to the Monastary, which is beautiful and interesting, sat through a presentation, were served coffee and sweet breads which was nice. We were not given an opportunity to wander around the grounds at all, or discover "quiet bird filled gardens". We were inside, watched a presentation, saw the graveyard, got back on the bus which took us up to the church where we had 15 minutes to look at were directed to go to the gift shop prior to getting on the bus ( so we could spend money there). For the next two hours we were driven around, stopped at the "botanical garden" which was nothing more than a city park with families having picnics and cookouts in pavilians. We were paraded through the "botanical garden" to the concrete block bathroom facility and then paraded back to the bus. NO looking around the garden or strolling through it. It was obvious that we only stopped for a restroom break and the restroom was 1/2 a mile from the bus. I felt so, so bad for mobility challenged people as it was such a long walk just to use the restroom. We then reboarded the bus and were driven around another hour looking at the town buildings. There are some gorgeous old buildings in this town, but a lot of very run down and crime ridden areas. By about halfway through the excursion very few people on the bus were even paying attention to the guide and honestly, I had begun to feel like I was being held hostage long before they returned us to the port. It was really disappointing and nothing like the relaxing calm description of the excursion.
Flawless disembarkation! We took advantage of the EZ disembarkation and Princess took care of our luggage from the cruiseport to the airport and on to our final destination. We placed our check luggage in the hallway on Friday night and didn't have to hassle with it until we got it off of the carousel at our final destination. SO MUCH EASIER than finding luggage at the cruise port, schlepping them through customs, to the airport, checking the bags at the airport, etc., PLUS another advantage was that EZ disembarkation included our boarding passes already printed. We got off the shuttle and went straight to the gate with no checking anything. It was amazing and we will take advantage of this every time we cruise with Princess in the future.
The info you shared in this review is very helpful. I'm a loyal Princess cruiser but it's been a few years since my last cruise. I've learned A LOT from your review. Made notes for my upcoming November cruise. Thanks for taking the time to share information!
*Cruiseline.com is not a booking agent or travel agency,
and does not charge any service fees to users of our site. Our partners
(travel agencies and cruise lines) provide prices, which we list for our
users' convenience. Cruiseline.com does not guarantee any specific rates or
prices. While prices are updated daily, please check with the booking site
for the exact amount. Cruiseline.com is not responsible for content on
external web sites.
Contact us
Submitting...
Need help from a personal vacation planner?
Loading...
Find the perfect cruise with weekly tips and cruise deals for as little as $30/night!
Sign up for weekly cruise deals
Join other subscribers and get the best
cruise deals of the week in your inbox every Thursday.
