We use EzAir and were VERY glad we did after the delay. Rebooked, put up at a hotel compensated for meals. Inconvenient? Sure. But well done by Princess.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Embarkation was as smooth as possible given the Grand is not yet a Medallion ship.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
We love both Sabatini's and the Crown Grille and ate at both (Sabatini's twice). Had a great experience with regular dining. Waiter Allan and his junior waiter William were outstanding. Quite possibly the best regular dining room experience (taken in total) we've had. Menu really hasn't changed too much from previous cruises but quality was excellent for most dishes.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
The Fitness Center has great views but could use more treadmills. I realize they're a bit limited for space there. Didn't do the pools, etc.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Waiters and our room steward were excellent. Occasionally at the Wheelhouse we'd have to track down a waiter. Enjoyed working our way through the cocktail list at the Wheelhouse but the guitar player/singer they had there several nights was not very good at all.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The Grand is an older ship and she has some wrinkles. But every part we saw was clean and worked.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Love the size of the mini-suite. On longer cruises that extra space helps. Again, there is some sign of wear but everything was clean and worked perfectly.
Ship tip
If you're doing the Hawaii cruise on the Grand you need to be aware that it's not all 82 degrees and sunny. It's always cool the first two or three days out of SF and will be again when you get back. You probably will run into a couple instances of rough water. This cruise had more than it's share.
Did not do an excursion but it's a world class city (including prices lol) with great dining, etc. and many things to do. Close enough to go visit wine country as well.
Some love Honolulu. Since I'm not one to go out at night for me it's just okay. However, we did do the excursion which is the hike up Diamond Head. Do NOT do this excursion if you're not in pretty good shape as there is a lot of climbing (all relatively safe). But if you are in decent shape (be honest with yourself here) it's spectacular when you get to the top. If you can handle it I highly recommend this excursion.
No excursion here. Insider tip: The port is a way from the city. Walkable for some but not for most maybe. Hard to get a cab or Uber as in the morning those people (if you can find one) only want to do day long things where they show you the sights. The Hilo Hattie's shuttle can be a long wait. BUT the Wal-Mart shuttle goes more often and the Wal-Mart is about a block from Hilo Hattie's so you can go to Wal-Mart, walk in and buy a little something, walk over to Hilo Hattie's, then back to Wal-Mart for the shuttle back to the ship. Also the trolley type shuttle leaves you at a very nice little shopping area and right across the street is the other shopping area and you can trolley or shuttle back to the ship with ease. Don't forget a little something to tip the drivers.
No excursion here (had been here before) but we had a great time wandering downtown after coming in on the tender. Had a great lunch at Mick Fleetwood's restaurant. If you're looking for cool T-shirts you'll thing you died and went to heaven. Found one specific shirt I'd been looking for. If you're looking for Hilo Hattie's it's a bit off the main drag and the address we were given was a bit misleading as they'd moved. The Hilo Hattie's in Nawiliwili was bigger and better.
We had to double back to Honolulu to off load a passenger who was too ill to be choppered off the ship. This put us WAY behind schedule. It was absolutely the right thing to do. This saved a life and those that gripe about how inconvenienced they were need to take a look look in the mirror. Anyway, we had to skip Ensenada.
Given that the ship was about nine hours late arriving due to a medical issue that required us to double back to HI and was slowed down further by a LOT of rough seas I thought disembarkation was smooth. In my review summary I'll comment on post embarkation.
Great review! Question. We’re going to Hawaii next week and we have the same cabin as you D509. Does D509 have USB ports in the lamps? I’ve read that most cabins do, but not all. Wondering if we need to take a power bar.
Thanks for a very thorough review.
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