Had a relaxing time. Loved the Royal Princess
Royal Princess Cruise Review
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 36
4 Night West Coast Getaway With Catalina Island (Los Angeles Roundtrip)
Sail date: February 06, 2020
Ship: Royal Princess
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: R602
Traveled as: Family (young children)
Reviewed: 4 years ago
Review summary
We really enjoyed our cruise with Royal Princess. This was a much larger ship and I loved how the Piazza looked. There wasn’t a lot of sale merchandise being push on us and I like that. For a short 4 day cruise, we had a relaxing time and would do it again in a heart beat.Embarkation
We didn’t make it to port till 2:30 pm since my husband had to work that morning and my daughter was in school for half the day. Parking was convenient and embarkation was a breeze. When we got there, there was barely a line. We did do the medallion app at home and have already received our medallions. I still had to get a cruise card for my 2 year old since he’s still under age for a medallion. Still there was no delay. The only think different this time was the travel form they had us filled to see if we have been to China in the last 2 weeks. Other than that, I didn’t see any other health screening.
It was definitely the easiest and quickest embarkation experience we ever had.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
We did a little of both. As a family with 2 younger kids, 6 and 2 1/2, the main dining room can take up a lot of time. So we usually only went for dinner and tried once for lunch when we were at Sea. Since this was a short 4 day cruise, there was no formal night. But ppl still dressed up. And photo opportunities was up as usual.
The main dining room food was fine. There was a few hits and misses but what made it great was their attention to my daughter’s allergy. She’s allergic to Dairy, all nuts, seafood and fish. It made it more enjoyable for the whole family.
The buffet setup was so much better. I’ve been on Ruby princess many times and I love the Royal princess setup. There was a lot of food to choose from. Now we loved the fact you can order your drink from the app. They’ll even bring it to your room to enjoy on your balcony. Plus first drink was free. Total win.
Onboard Activities
I didn’t do a ton of activities since my husband and I would take turns being with the 2 1/2 yo. I did check out things like origami workshop. the library had tons of board games and very little books (I was always there for my sudoku). My daughter and I played the ocean medallion game on the touch screens around the ship. She enjoyed that.
I tried a few Effy events for a chance at the prize. No luck but atleast I got a few charms for my charm bracelet.
I tried my luck at the casino but wasn’t too thrilled about it. Felt a bit packed. And the games was so so.
Entertainment
The live music in the different areas of the ship was great. I wanted to just stay there and listen. The duo singers at night in the piazza did a great job. I wanted to boogie with the rest of the folks. I did catch the singer for the stage show and thought she was great.
Children's Programs
My daughter loved the children program. She was there every day. Signing up for it was easy. Has to be done on embarkation day. And right away that night had their first activity. Each day was a different theme with different activities. From pirates to super heros. There was lots of things to do. The kid space itself was nice. A lot larger than the one on Ruby Princess. There was even an outside area if they wanted to play on tricycles or hopscotch.
The staff was friendly and very informative.
Tip: sign up in advance on embarkation day if you plan to drop your kids off on port days. It can fill up quick, which had on our trip. The staff needs to know how many staff they will need for each day. We only did a half day at Catalina so we got to drop her off after lunch while I put my 2 year old down for a nap in our room. It was a great setup.
Service and Staff
Everyone was really nice. Our room steward did a great job, even working around my son’s toy blocks and balloons (never leave home without them).
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
It was our first time midship aft and we loved it. The convenience to the kids club and the buffet made this the spot to be. We got the basic balcony so we don’t have a couch in our room. Since our kids are too young to use the bunk beds we just had the two beds pushed together and against the wall. This gave us extra space in the room.
On embarkation day, our room was ready and we were able to settle in right away. The room was clean. The Shower was larger than the one on Ruby Princess. Everything else was the same to other balcony rooms we stayed in with Princess. The location it self was great 2 floors down from the buffet. We hardly ever hear music from above. it was great.
One incident did have me upset. A cabin near me decides to have a cigar on their balcony. Seriously, there is a cigar room on board for that. Don’t smoke on the balcony.
Ship tip
Take it easy and have fun. I didn’t get to do as much but I still was happy and had a relaxing time.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
It was a beautiful day at Catalina. We did a simple stroll and checked out the shops and arcade.
Disembarkation
It was easier than embarkation day. We did walk assisted, and left right at 8 am. Went straight to mid ship deck 7 and walked off. There wasn’t a huge line and it was super easy. We’re still talking about how easy everything was.
Traveler Photos
