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Coral Princess Cruise Review to Panama Canal, Central America
15 Night Panama Canal - Ocean To Ocean Eastbound (Los Angeles To Ft. Lauderdale)
Sail date: January 06, 2019
Ship: Coral Princess
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: B423
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 5 years ago
Review summary
Coral Princess, 06 Jan-21 Jan 2019, San Pedro to Fort Lauderdale via Panama Canal. First the bad, yes the ship shows signs of wear, but what do you want for a ship going into refurbishment after our trip? The crew was working on things so unless you are a real nit picker, it really was not that bad (about a dozen seats in the theater were broken? Rusted out areas?) but I did not mark anything down. Hopefully the next group will have a fresh ship. Bedding, our bed had one mattress that had a 3 inch or so dip, BEFORE putting weight on it. But the steward had that changed out within a few hours of our complaining. Smaller ship than we are used to, so there was some adjustment for the strange traffic patterns like elevators and passageways, but nothing that an intelligent person should mark down since it was a matter of learning routes and knowing where things are. The international cafe was in an odd area, small, and not as good as the other ships we have been on, that was worth a quarter point off. The Atrium (Piazza) was poorly designed for the few entertainment venues held there, more of a nexus for the stairs, shops, and services. Anytime dining tended to have a line, but then this trip was mostly older folks who eat early. The good. The aft pool was covered, nice for the cooler days and help prevent sunburn during the hot days. Horizon Buffet, small, but a nice linear layout with a large selection of hot items (I ate more hot lunches on this trip instead of just making a salad). Usually the buffet also had several ethnic dishes and often a curry dish I liked, and several times large shrimp from the grill. And after about 2PM, chips, guacamole, and salsa (on the days they left out the quac, I asked and received it). Had good to great service there. Dinner was mostly great, food was much better than our last trip on the Caribbean. Granted there were ho hum days, but even then I had a lot I liked (2-7 appetizers and all but two times a main + desert?). Actually gained some weight on this trip[ despite all the stairs I did (up to 38 flights a day). We got the same table every night and the table assigner started telling us “Go to your table”, loved it! Our server, Lorina, was excellent Evening main shows were mostly ranged from very good to excellent (“On the Bayou” and “Encore” were excellent), one good, and two fair (the comedian, Scott Wyler, and juggler, Mark Nizer, were not very good). Still lacking late morning and early afternoon music. One thing I enjoyed were the enrichment lectures by Dr. Angel Colon, ranging from various medical breakthroughs in history to art and environmental. And the Blue Jade Band was very enjoyable. Actually had several tours we took that we enjoyed a lot, the Getsemani walking tour was very informative. Embarkation and disembarkation all went very smooth and fast (but then we are elite level). Due to lack of formatting in this, I am just going to finish and say - GREAT TRIP, well worth the cost.Embarkation
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Onboard Activities
Entertainment
The Library
The best library on the ships we have taken, many books, large, lots of reading seats with local lamps.
Children's Programs
Service and Staff
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
Ship tip
Walk all over and get a feel.
Ports of call
San Pedro (Los Angeles), California
Disembarkation
Traveler Photos
