We take a lot of Princess cruises because they seem to be the best price at the time and I think the food is overall the best so it works out for us but we like all cruise lines. This itinerary is great. Local folks are lucky to have a great home port and cruises. I want to do it again when Galveston it is not having an arctic blast going on.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
We drove to Galveston with a rental car. On embarkation morning, I dropped family off at the pier about 9:30 and returned the car to Enterprise then took an Uber to the pier. Walked right through check-in and into the waiting room. Was on the ship by 11 am.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Princess always has good MDR food and the new lunch menu was awesome. The breakfast buffet is meh. Lunch is a little better but dinner buffet is really good. I often wanted to eat in buffet but family wanted to go to MDR so, I did both. Met a lady who said she had only cruised on several Royal ships and thought their food was good but now knows what really good food is. She said she never gained weight on Royal but will on Princess cause she can't stop eating. But don't get your expectations up too much. Princess is only a little better, except desserts, those are much better. They need a little help with Trident Grill at busy times. They have two guys cooking there all day but at lunch time they need four. Pizza is always great but the cooks don't understand supply and demand. On days when the Pizza of the Day is popular (four-cheese) they never make enough. On a day when it was Tuna Flake, they had four pizza of the days sitting there and a line of people waiting for them to finally make a Peperoni. But 90% of the time you can get a fresh hot slice of what you want with no wait.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Went to some lectures about flying. Weird hearing about airplanes on a cruise ship but it was informative. Can't remember doing much so activities must not have been more tempting than laying on deck and eating.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
The production shows were pretty good. I actually stayed awake the whole time in one of them, which never happens on any ship. The comedians were great and they had several extra shows in the lounge but never enough seating.
Children's Programs
Didn't have any minor children but those we saw on the ship seemed to have fun and were well behaved.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Everyone worked hard and was professional. They are not too "buddy-buddy" like on some ships but I'm good with that. MDR dinner time was usually just over an hour but one formal night was 90 plus minutes so schedule accordingly.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
This ship did have a narrow walk around deck on the Promenade level which was sparsely occupied. The International Cafe (buffet/deli/dessert bar) in the Piazza really make Princess special. You can get all kinds of snacks to light meals anytime of the day. Ship layout is different from the Diamond class so study the deck plan beforehand. The hot tubs were either too cool or too hot. How hard can it be to set a temperature?
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
We had the closest mini-suite cabin to the main pool on the Lido deck. Room was big enough for my wife and I along with two grown girls. Balcony was small and rarely used it. The bed was so comfortable! It has a full tub/shower.
Ship tip
Tip - when you come out of the elevators, you are facing the front of the ship. If you want to share a table in the MDR (and meet some new people) just ask receptionist. We ended up getting the same table every night with some great folks from Austin. It was just like the old times before Anytime Dining. Pack your swimsuit in your carry-on because any other day, the jacuzzi is often packed with adults.
First time in Galveston and even though we got there in the dark and it was cold, I want to come back. It looks like a great town. So many historic houses and buildings! Too bad it is so far from the airport.
We booked a Cave Tubing adventure through "Butts-Up Tubing" for $40. That included being picked up at the port, ride on a nice bus, guided jungle trek (they carried the tubes), amazing 40-minute guided tubing through the cave, lunch (chicken tamale), and return bus. I would do it again tomorrow if I went back.
We pre-booked Playa Uvas beach club for $15 per person. Had to get own cab ride there ($12 for 4 people I think). One free drink, use of chairs/umbrella, kayak, guided snorkel tour (if you wanted a guide, tip expected). Food and drink were expensive but we were never asked to buy anything and didn't. Nice hammocks, showers, lockers. Maybe not much better than some free beach club where you had to buy drinks/food though. It was just down from Nachi Cocom. The water was super clear. Snorkeling was fair but visibility on this day was way better than I had seen in Cozumel before.
Smooth, we asked the front desk for the first group of tags and were off by 8:45 without a porter. Everyone off by 9 am probably. I had scheduled an Uber for 9:30 but never got a driver and had to cancel then negotiate with an Uber driver to take us for more money -cash. Drivers said they don't take Uber requests until later in the morning because they hope to negotiate for more. Most ask for $125 to Hobby. If you're not in a hurry wait till 10 am or so and you can get a cheap ride at actual Uber app price.
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