Didn't get the holiday spirit.

Island Princess Cruise Review to Panama Canal, Central America

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 5
Helpful Votes: 127

Overall rating:

3 out of 5
Island Princess

15 Night Panama Canal Westbound (Ft. Lauderdale To Los Angeles)

Sail date: December 20, 2016

Ship: Island Princess

Cabin type: Inside

Cabin number: B731

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 7 years ago

Review summary

We signed up for this holiday cruise to see if it's going to be an annual thing.  It was a disappointment as we didn't feel the cruise really had the holiday spirit except for the New Year celebration.  Needless to say, this will be our last holiday cruise.  Holiday cruise costs more but we didn't feel like we got anymore enjoyment than a regular cruise.

 

There were some gingerbread house display and Christmas ornament outside the cabin and that's the extend of the Christmas celebration we saw.  Totally lacked the Christmas spirit to give cruisers a joyous feeling.  The New Year celebration on the open deck was nice.

 

 

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5
A lot of rattling when the sea is rough.

Ports of call

Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida

3 out of 5

Oranjestad, Aruba

3 out of 5

Cartagena, Colombia

3 out of 5

Panama Canal Transit

5 out of 5

Puntarenas, Costa Rica

3 out of 5

San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua

3 out of 5
A small town that doesn't have much except a lot of bars.

Huatulco, Mexico

3 out of 5

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

3 out of 5

San Pedro (Los Angeles), California

3 out of 5
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3 Comments

Skywatcher    7 years ago

Yeah 95% of the crews are from countries that may not celebrate Christmas at all. Even though the ships are out of American ports we feel the world should celebrate and like what we like . . . but they don't. I'll definitely keep this in mind for future bookings.

banaford    7 years ago

I think they try to be more neutral, as not everyone celebrates Christmas.

picalo    7 years ago

I enjoyed the attempt the ships have made in the past to have the Christmas spirit but they do always seem too be a little short...conversely different resorts I've been to for Christmas have been great including Jackson hole and the Rosen inn in Orlando

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