Coral Princess Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Taking everything into consideration, it was a very relaxing, enjoyable vacation.  The employees are very efficient and helpful.  Our balcony cabin needs some upgrading, carpet upholstering etc.  Food was good for the most part, although the Horizan Court didn't seem to have the variety that I remember on other cruises.  Embarkation was excellent and very organized.

my trip start out great! I was looking forward to a balcony room for a 10 day trip to the panama canal. The first day the ship was really rocking motion pill time. checked out ship came back people fixing the leak in my hall for 6-7 days with buckets, tiles, drills hammers all over in front of my room. Shut the water off for one day from 9-12. They were there with ceiling tiles out and men every where in the hall constantly. When that was done they started cutting the carpet up and putting down new carpet! Now how is that for putting up with crap on your vacation!!!. It was a pain coming out of our room every day with them standing their daily.  The staff in the provence dining room was awesome. we had a great time at every evening evening meal. also our waiters at the wheel house for bogo drinks were fantastic. The ship was always rocking i was taking motion sickness meds three times a day for almost the whole trip and the water was not that rough. I have been on other cruises so this was not my first ride,  Besides the rocky ship the beaches were great, nice and blue the weather was beautiful every stop was great. I thought panama canal  was long. It was 7.5 hours and it took up the whole day of nothing to do but sit on the boat and watch the canal.  Nice trip!

Our cruise started off lovely!!!! We were given $810 in on board credit and we didn't know why. We obviously didn't question it (wink wink). They cancelled our first cruise we booked, so maybe that had something to do with it. Looking back, I wish that I had not overbooked ourselves. this was no fault of the cruise line. I wore out my poor hubby with all of the running around.

Panama Canal was great; very informative and interesting.

Cartagena was a very historic place and a must see.

Aruba is ok, not as great as advertised.

Puntarenas is nothing but dirty; our zip line excursion was ok.

Never saw a monkey!!

Cabo San Lucas was ok, San Juan del Sur was cancelled!

Food, Service and Entertainment on board was outstanding.

Great employees made this a happy event.

Most enjoyable cruise ever on Princess.  Other than the snorkeling excursion in Aruba, the rest of the excursions were very memorable.  The food was excellent and our wait staff superb.  As soon as we got off the ship, we wanted to get back on.

Of all the cruises we have taken this was by far my favorite.  The crew were delightful, the activities plentiful and fun.  The food was wonderful as were the ports of call.  For this trip a balcony if fine.  Although when you go through the canal you want to be forward on deck.  We were on board for Halloween and the cruise staff put on a wonderful party.  Some passengers knew to dress up in costumes which was fun to see.  If ever we are onboard at this time of year I will bring a costume.  The decorations were delightful. Our first port was Aruba where we went snorkeling.  The water was warm and beautiful.  We explored the Old Town of Cartagena.  I wish we had gone to the fort as it looked like a great place to explore.  We stayed on the ship for the transit of the canal instead of taking a shore excursion and meeting up with the ship later.  The shore excursion that we took for Limon, Costa Rica was to a Rain Forest that is being restored.  The butterfly exhibit was delightful and so beautiful.  We made our own plans in the Grand Caymans.  The weather had turned to rain.  Lots of rain!  We headed out to the Turtle Farm as it is a favorite place of ours.  The majority of people did not venture out to visit with the turtles but we did and had a fantastic, wet time.  Back in Fort Lauderdale we went to a Alligator Farm.  It was fun to ride in the air boat and see the alligators in the wild.  Upon return we were ale to hold a baby alligator.  Most people just touched it but if you are there for the experience I say hold the baby.

The cruise was good but a little shocking to experience be around majority senior citizens with handicaps ( no pun intended ).  Wasn't happy with Xtra charges like for coffee or paying to see the canal from the bow when you already paid (purpose of cruising there) but overall since we are constant cruisers we chucked it up so it was still a nice getaway.

My first experience on a cruise, as my mother always wanted to go through the Panama Canal, so six of decided to take that trip with her.

The coral princess was great, but we were very disappointed with the arrival, no decorations, music drinks , or welcoming, we then went to or rooms, we had 5 adults in our fifties and my mother of 78, so we decided to have two rooms of 3, of which was known by the cruise line,  the rooms had 2 single beds and when we asked about the third person would sleep they told us there was a bunk that came from the ceiling of which was directly over one of the beds, and a small ladder to climb in and out of ,  we were disgusted that at no point we would told this, and this would only be suitable for a small child, when we complained the service was awful, and said they had no alternative, so we could either leave the ship of they had a disabled room but we had to pay a further $320 for,  we did pay it has didnt want to have further upset to our mother.

we also found the entertainment was very poor, only 2 resident bands - blue jade- awful, the worst i have seen, then a better band called Opus they played in different venues but not to the standard for a cruise, all the other activities held all only lasted 45 mins, so were really disappointed.

On a good note, Crooners bar, had a nice atmosphere the bar team were friendly and made us feel very welcome, also had a pianist 'Barty' he was 82yrs, and played the old tunes of which my mother liked and also the older generation

 

would do a cruise again, but not this one ..

We especially liked Glacier Bay.  The day was beautiful and clear and Margerie Glacier was amazing.  Good commentary from the rangers, Zack and Nicole.

It was a great trip. The food was great. We had fun on our shore excursions. We enjoyed seeing the glaciers and incredible landscapes. We recommend this cruise to family and friends.

Loved this ship! We took this ship for our Alaska Cruise and had such a amazing experience. The ship was beautiful, excellent staff all around, very clean and had the best themed activities for Alaska. Our favorites was the Princess Sightseeing Alaska book sold in Gift Shop, helped us spot so much wildlife. The fresh local cuisine food was outstanding. Also loved how they had the Park Rangers come on the ship as well

I got off the Coral Princess all of 20 hours ago (as I'm writing this) and am very unsure about how I feel about my experience. This was my first cruise. I knew that they are normally filled with 60 something's looking to travel the world without actually doing anything to plan or coordinate their trip. This was true. I'm 22 years old, traveling with another 25 year old and our mother (54). Not only was it hard to find anyone that was willing to drink passed 10 PM, but anyone I did find was a result of dumb luck or dumb people. The food was mediocre at best, but it's a cruise, so can you actually expect something more? The thing about this cruise that made it completely worth it was the staff. Although I failed to meet an American employee, the people who run that ship are world-class people with even better personalities. I befriended about 20 of them, first name-basis and all, and they completely changed my experience. Broken English and all, the employees of the Coral Princess are AWESOME. From a beautiful Peruvian waitress at the bar, to an Indian immigrant bartender, these people completely made my trip. If you care about people or experience, and not just sitting on a 600 foot boat for a week, take a gander at this ship. Food sucked, drinks were great: what's not to love? Hope this helps! Peace! 

Great trip.  Adrienne, through BJ's Club,  was the perfect coordinator for this trip. Her communication was great.   Escorted land trips are the only way to go to insure you see as much as possible.  Only wish there was small snacks available after 10PM.  Other than the bars, all else was closed.

This was my first experience on a cruise- I was so impressed that I will book another cruise with Princess in the future.

Every single staff member was polite, courteous and went above and beyond to accommodate our needs.  I traveled with my 84 year old mother and we both thoroughly enjoyed the cruise.  The food choices were terrific, did not quite understand the anytime dining like we choose because you still had to pick a time either 5:30 or 7:30. They did their best a few days into the cruise to seat people in the other dining room.

The Horizon dining was outstanding, I am a healthy eater and there were so many options to choose from!  

We really enjoyed the Movies under the Stars and also the Princess dancers

I was very satisfied with our excursions and thought the itinerary was perfect.  I would highly recommend this cruise.  

This was a great cruise. Loved the ship, the Coral Princess was clean, well apppointed, and excellent service. The ports were just like every cruise....some better than others. I will definitely revisit Costa Rica and Panama due to my experience there.

Beautiful Ship

Beautiful ship. Excellent food.

All in all, this was a great cruise for us - we were looking to relax, get some sun, read a few books and be entertained as adults. Food was decent, but not over the top. Staff was awewome! The cruise was clearly geared for the over 70 cruisers - so us middle agers weren't fully stimulated - but that was OK.

It was a wonderful cruise and the coral princess ship and staff outstanding! Very upscale  It was

lively, yet conservative. The food was presented in a gourmet style and wonderful presentation.

The staff  was always there to help you with all your needs. Cleaning your food tables and there to service you at all times. Never had to wait long for any service .and never felt crowed.

We made wonderful friends on this cruise from our dinner table. Norine & Donald

Coral Princess in the Caribbean----The Good, Bad and the Ugly.

VERY GOOD:

---We found the Coral Princess to be a vessel I really like, particularly the decor throughout most of the public space and lounges, sea and marine pictures everywhere, dark rich oak beams and molding backed up with lighter backgrounds. I'm tired of pastels and nonsensical modern art hung everywhere on ships. Excellent lounges, lots of room with rich furniture where peace and quiet is found, which makes it a simple enjoyment just to sit and relax in one. Also, super is the abundance of getaway nooks and crannies throughout the ship. The passenger to space ration is great but actually is even better than the numbers suggest. Nice to have some elbow room for a change, for instance the three elevator and stair towers were not ever crowded, even during the first boarding day. Contrast this to the new Royal Princess, where the stairway towers were claustrophobic with consistently long elevator waits; for instance a midship public stair case is non existent. Maybe Princess should begin having the French build and design their ships (Coral) rather than Italians (Royal). Like the good old days of yore, the Coral has a complete wrap around teak promenade deck, fairly wide in many stretches where old fashion reclining deck chairs are provided. The two level Lotus Spar area is great at no extra charge, two well heated hot tubs by the pool and lots of quiet areas above and below, to read and relax in. 

GOOD: 

---The specialty restaurants, particularly Sabatini's, but also the Bayou Cafe and its special "Crab Shack" luncheon were exquisite.  Meals in these venues, which you pay extra for, represent top of the line gourmet dining. Well staffed by knowledgeable and friendly personnel and your dining experience takes place in a wonderful, quiet, well decorated environment.  Unfortunately, the main dining room(s), are not so good, stink. 

---Ample public hot tubs, five in all, the three by the main pool though were usually a little on the cool side and occasionally youngsters using them as swimming pools was not good.---We had a mini-suite, nice decor and fairly large balcony on deck nine. Our cabin attendant was pretty good and very amenable and friendly even though he was probably burden by way too many cabins to service which often does not translate into fine personal service. Complimentary laundry service was excellent.  

---Staff, for the most part were very friendly all over the ship and tried to help, whatever the need or problem. Unfortunately, some areas like in the main dining room, were grossly understaffed.

---Horizon Court, the main buffet area had adequate seating, unlike on the new larger ships, Regal and Royal. Food was mediocre but the friendly and helpful staff partially made up for  lack of exceptional quality food. In this case the buffet did not appear to be understaffed, so, in all, it made for a worthwhile dining experience. In fact, out of frustration we abandoned using the Main Dining Rood and chose this venue for dinner instead whenever we decided not to eat in the specialty restaurants.

---TV--Nice to have MSNBC and BBS and not just FOX News--One of the things we like about Princess they understand not all guests are cut out of the same political persuasion cloth.

---Internet and library--Very fast and ample bandwidth and easy to use, staffed by an internet guy who knows his stuff. Wish the rates were lower but then, not all that bad if you are an elite like we are as you get some free time plus a good deal on more time if you buy it the first day or so. Library is very large for the size of ship, perfect layout for an exploration type voyaging ship.---Interdenominational Church Services---Two Sunday services on sea days this voyage. Really enjoyed both, thanks so much for the opportunity to fellowship, Princess.   

---Enrichment lectures---One of the things I like best about cruising is the theme lecturers the three lines we frequent usually have on board. Princess used to be super great at this, slipping a little though as of late. During this cruise they had---Dr. Dean Papavassiliou, an historical expert on the Caribbean as well as the famous Pacific navigators, his presentations brought on an impressive crowd. But the only other lecturer they had was a half retired airline captain---Captain Ted McCourt---His subject was not anywhere close to the theme of the voyage, so why was he there? Perhaps because everybody, almost, had to fly to get to or from the ship, so maybe it was an okay subject for some, attendance indicated few were interested though. For me, I was born and raised and made my career in the airplane game, so I found his lectures of interest. His creditability could be challenged from time to time due factual errors, but then subjects this complex are very hard to make a delivery on without making mistakes here and there. Other than that, I leaned a bit, would dearly have loved to hear a rebuttal though to some of his points as they were certainly argumentative. In short, his presentations were not ideally suited for the average cruiser booking this voyage. Only a few guests are airplane buffs, industry types and age old pilots like myself. Princes should have put on another cruise specific lecture, instead.

BAD:

---Theater, okay for daytime lectures, I attended many in the theater, but that is it. For evening shows, count us out. No balcony but good steep stadium seating, unfortunately all isles have only two stairways so that those wanting to sit in the higher levels at mid-theatre had to tip-toe past up to 12 already seated if they were caught having to work into the middle of a row. First comers for the evening shows usually showed up very early, then they took the isle seats and were generally "very" reluctant to even standup in order to allow somebody else to occupy a vacant seat beyond them in the same isle. One nice feature was the little tables on each seat which pulled up, sort of like some first class airline seats do, don't know what they were there for though unless you brought your own drink, no service and hard to get to if there were waiters. All in all, for the big shows, the theater was terrible, we never did take in a top line performance due to this jumble, too bad as some shows were pretty good, we were told.         

---Over the last 15 months we have been on 5 cruises counting this one, Regent, HAL, Princess, Regent, Princess, 115 sailing days. 5 captains. Coincidentally, on each voyage unique circumstances developed, such as man overboard one time, un-commanded turn on another requiring emergency reverse thrust and dropping the anchor to avoid hitting the beach, etc. The situation was somewhat the same on this voyage as a lady went missing for the better part of a day, the crew scoured the vessel, of course all passengers were aware due all the announcements asking her to call. Turned out she had been hiding. Anyway, except for this captain, the other four captains were exemplary in their efforts to familiarize the guests with all developments thusly reducing the anxiety factor originating over concern for a fellow passenger. This captain was anything but a plethora of information. A day after the lady was found the ships grapevine made everybody aware she had not went overboard. On other occasions the captain would come on and attempt to explain what was going on with missed ports, etc. but most often one had to read between the lines in order to figure out what he wanted to say and what had happened. Very nice person if you meet him at a Captain's Circle event but he needs to do a lot of work on articulation and diplomacy. Perhaps, put him under the tutelage of the captain who commanded the Royal Princess in September 2014, for a stint.

UGLY:

---Princess has now completely adopted the business model of all the large mainstream cruise lines, we are witnessing what is either going to be the success or the degradation of this trend. From a profit motive standpoint it is likely to last. The concept leans toward building more and more very large vessels. The Royal Princess is 3.5 times the size of the Titanic and can hold 4610 passengers, the Coral, about 2000, to procure a vessel like these huge investment dollars are required. In order to fill up these ships most lines have adopted a policy of getting passengers on board for a very low initial fee. Then charging extra for just about everything except the basic stateroom and food served in the main dining rooms and the buffet areas, also there are pizzerias and hamburger grills with no extra charge. The ships function more or less like large floating resorts, with all sorts of premium type restaurants and other meal venues where additional payments are required, not to mention all the boutiques and other retail outlets trying to sell you something. By cutting down the size of, quality of, and service within the main dining rooms and other no extra charge areas, guests are more or less forcibly channeled into the nickel and dime game. 

----Up until this voyage the Main Dining Room on Princess was still tolerable, this time though, either we experienced a fluke or cost cutting has caught up with Princess rendering their product in the MDR undesirable for us. We have never ran into a situation like this before even though the "hand writing was on the wall" that it was bound to come. In my opinion this results from understaffing of both service and kitchen personnel. Each time we tried to use the MDR we were told there was a 40 minute wait time. They gave us a pager, but on the three occasions we decided to carry on and eat in the MDR the wait was only 10-15 minutes, which was not a problem. We don't like traditional seating for a variety of reasons, one of which is we hate being relegated to eating at either 5:30 PM or 7:45 PM., even if we secure a table for two, we usually try to get there by 6:30 using anytime dining. The principal problem(s) trying to eat dinner in the MDR was the lack of service and poor quality meals. For instance, there used to be a sommelier to take your wine order immediately after being seated, this practice gave way to no sommelier--instead head waiters were given extra training in wine selection then that gave way to what you have now, wine only if you are lucky enough to get someone's attention and forget about ordering a bottle to be carried over for the following evening, they will lose it for sure. You usually sit there waiting and watching a harried flurry of activity by the understaffed help forging a losing battle trying to keep up. Made dressing up in my tux on formal nights and trying to dine there a joke. So, in order to continue enjoying the cruise we made do, by booking dinner in one of the excellent specialty restaurants on board whenever we felt inclined to really enjoy dinner or simply going up to the Horizon Court buffet.

I have a theory that there will be a drift completely away from providing MDR service on the major cruise lines in the future. Instead cruisers will experience more of and larger specialty extra charge venues and expanded no extra charge buffet area service. We only use Princess, HAL and Regent. Regent being an all inclusive voyage, but ironically, the food and service in the specialty restaurants on HAL and Princess are much better than those on Regent which you can hardly ever get into due no extra charge. However, the MDR on Regent is far superior to those on HAL and Princess.