Some Clear Significant Struggles From COVID-19

Enchanted Princess Cruise Review

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Contributor Level: Second Mate

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 37

Overall rating:

4.1 out of 5

7 Night Spain & France (Southampton Roundtrip)

Sail date: August 05, 2022

Ship: Enchanted Princess

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: D702

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 2 years ago

Review summary

The ship was clearly understaffed but this was not acknowledged by the cruise line. I saw room stewards working in the bar and spar workers in the buffet. The staff were working non-stop to try and cover the shortfalls and done the best they could. The Medallion App was a massive disappointment. From the drinks ordered on the app, about 40% were actually delivered, despite them all saying delivered. Many abandoned this soon into the cruise and this caused long lines at the bars and wait times of around 30 minutes on average. Restaurant reservations made on the app were ignored and a "first come" service was adopted without any notification. This led to about a 20 minute wait for a table for me but others was longer. The app was good at locating ship mates and opening the door but that's all it was able to deliver. Why work the low staff numbers harder to deliver drinks or food to anywhere on the ship? The ship is very similar to other Royal Class ships. Despite not cruising for nearly three years the ship was very firmilar despite never cruising on the ship before. You may prefer this but I would have wanted a bit more of a different design for the ship. Some tweaks were made in some areas but it was close to identical which was a shame. Layout did work quite well though but space outdoors is limited and buffet seems smaller than previous ships? Overall the holiday was good but not the same as pre-pandemic. This is to be expected as the cruise restart continues. A misfire of an app seemed to cause more issues than offer me anything. I feel a traditional card system would have taken some of the issues away as well as work for staff.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Embarkation was mostly swift. Only had to wait ten minutes prior to boarding due to crowds. No social distancing measures in place as we were pretty much elbow to elbow with others checking in. All documents uploaded prior on app were ignored and paper copies needed to be provided at check-in for vaccination and test results.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Ordering drinks on Medallion App was not a good experience. About 40% of drinks actually delivered despite them all being recorded as delivered. Long waits at bars as they are clearly struggling for staff. I saw room stewards behind the bars. No real structure to this so many pushed in which extended wait times longer. Food was good but nowhere near the standard pre-pandemic. Much of the buffet was closed at one time. Food choices were limited but were self-service. Was often difficult to find cutlery on sea days. Reservations for main dining were ignored as they opted for a "first come" service. I would advise going to restaurants when they open to avoid long waits. Food was very good in the restaurants and service wasn't noticeably slower than pre-pandemic.

The Salty Dog Grill

5 out of 5

Food was excellent here and cooked to order. They had two staff here to work on the orders which led to a good service. Burgers were perfect!

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

The Shops of Princess

2 out of 5

Very little souvenirs to buy from shops. They had Norway stuff on offer that were from the previous itinerary. This was not updated for the entire cruise which was strange. Nothing in relation to where we were going was available. Unfortunately no ship model was in sight which was a tradition for me. Generic Princess gifts looked good.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Cannot fault the staff. They work very hard and were clearly being overworked by the company with COVID shortages and running all over the ship delivering stuff from the app.

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Ship design very similar to other Royal Class ships. Takes away that wow factor when embarking and no reason to explore the ship. This only applies if you have been on previous Royal Class ships. Some tweaks to design were good; Wake View Aft and Retreat Pool. Just wish they had changed more.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

Cabin was great and had an extended balcony which was a nice touch. View from the port side is stunning. Room is perhaps a bit more crowded than other layouts and definitely is when sleeping four due to pull down beds but you expect that. Bathroom is pretty standard for Princess.

Ship tip

Expect the experience to be less than pre-pandemic. Getting drinks, food and cutlery may take longer than you're expecting.

Thumbs up

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

Disembarkation was smooth. Busy as normal but there is no way around this. Organised very well and was a fairly quick process to get off the ship and back to luggage. No option of when to disembark though. Did not ask Guest Services so maybe they would have been able to change?

Some Clear Significant Struggles From COVID-19

Overall rating:

Review summary

Embarkation

Ship experiences

Ship tip

Disembarkation

Traveler Photos

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