We will never cruise with Princess again !!!.

Star Princess Cruise Review to Hawaii

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 32

Overall rating:

2.7 out of 5
Star Princess

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Sail date: February 02, 2018

Ship: Star Princess

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: C222

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

Princess cruises standards have dropped to an unacceptable level. The food was the worst I have ever encountered on any cruise ship. As far as the itinerary is concerned, too many days at sea bearing in mind there are only 4 stops in Hawaii. It would be much better to have overnight stays in Honolulu and Maui and miss out Hilo. We wish we had flown to Hawaii and spent more time on some of most beautiful islands

Embarkation

4 out of 5
Very good, unfortunately everything went downhill from here.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5
We last sailed with Princess 10 years ago and the food was excellent. How things have changed. During the past ten years we have cruised with 8 different cruise lines and we were shocked at the standard of dining on the Star. The main dining room food just about edible but the buffet food is disgraceful. There was only one roast meat at every sitting and it was raw, not rare, RAW!. All the vegetables we undercooked and cold even when you waited for a freshly cooked pan. The roast and boiled potatoes were as hard as rock. The only place you could get well cooked meat and hot fries was at the burger bar. We do not go on a cruise to dine at the burger bar for goodness sake !!!.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5
The Gym has recently had some new equipment but it is inadequate. The Spa is pleasant but vastly overpriced and the constant sell sell sell is not conducive to a relaxed environment

Entertainment

3 out of 5
The entertainment was a good standard. We enjoyed the shows. The musicians, dancers and singers were excellent and the Trivia games were good fun. Hosts Jody and Nathan were superb. HOWEVER, we were not impressed by the Cruise Director Angela Kristensen.

Service and Staff

4 out of 5
Our room steward worked hard and did her best with a cabin and balcony that was tired. Generally the staff were pleasant and helpful.

Ship Quality

2 out of 5
The layout of the ship is very good and works well. The ship has recently had new carpets in the public areas and looks fresh although it is showing its age in some areas. As far as cleanliness is concerned, the biggest issue we had was the tables in the buffet were never cleaned after they had been vacated. This needs to be addressed with some urgency.

Cabin / Stateroom

2 out of 5
The cabin has recently been fitted with a large TV and a new mattress and that is it. Our first impression was the carpet that was stained and worn. The shower room was very cramped and old. The extractor fan over the sink looked like it had not been cleaned since new. However it was the balcony that disappointed the most. The furniture was disgustingly filthy. After a long day we had a vision of sitting on our balcony sharing a bottle of wine. I spent an hour cleaning the table chairs and footstools before we could sit down. The balcony doors were also filthy as were the partitions, glass panels and floor matting. When I had removed the filth from the chairs I realised that they were also covered in white paint. There was also a multitude of badly painted and rusty pipes near the balcony doors.

Ship tip

The ship is old and the cabins are not up to standard. The food and dining is woeful. My advice would be cancel and not only change ships but cruise line as well. We will never cruise with Princess again !.

Ports of call

San Pedro (Los Angeles), California

4 out of 5
We stayed in LA for two days before the cruise. We booked our own excursions.

Lahaina, Maui

5 out of 5
This was a great place to visit. After shopping in the beautiful little town we caught the local bus. Just 3 dollars for a day pass. We managed to see many of the wonderful beaches just hopping on and off the very frequent busses. A great day.

Hilo, Hawaii

1 out of 5
Why the ship stops here I will never know. What a grim place this is. Apart from an out of town shopping mall there is very little to do. The town has no character whatsoever. The public transport is diabolical and it is impossible to get a taxi. This is one stop where I recommend booking an excursion with the cruise. There must be something to see on this island but where, I have no idea !.

Honolulu, Oahu

5 out of 5
Again we bought a day bus ticket for a few dollars. The journey to the north shore was stunning. We had lunch at Turtle Bay Resort .Twenty dollars each including drinks and the most amazing scenery. In the evening we walked to Waikiki Beach to watch the magnificent firework display. Finished off the day with some shopping. A very memorable day.

Nawiliwili, Kauai

3 out of 5
A bit of a let down. We took the shuttle to the shopping mall. After lunch on the ship we walked to the local beach. It's OK but the water is not very inviting. All the other beaches we saw the water was crystal clear but not this. There are a few shops and hotels nearby.

Ensenada, Mexico

1 out of 5
I did not expect this to be good and I was right. The walk on the promenade into town was pleasant. There are fountains, green areas and monuments. However the town itself is not the best. There are plenty of shops but all seem to be selling the same tacky souvenirs.

Disembarkation

2 out of 5
Standing for over an hour in a hot shed waiting for someone to look at my passport is not my idea of fun.
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9 Comments

cruisellama    5 years ago

Nice review

GTVCRUISER    6 years ago

All my cruises have been good , I have never had a bad cruise

 

AuntPinkie    6 years ago

Originally posted by: kergan66

I have no problem with complaints.  If they’re valid.  If part of a cruise is disappointing, fine , tell us about it.  We have had one really bad experience. But even that one had some good points. 

 

Agreed. There are some people who just shouldn't cruise.  It isn't the only answer and maybe the OP is one of those people.  We've had a few cruises where it seemed everything went wrong and fortunately we knew that was not the norm.  We've also had those cruises where everything seemed touched with magic and while that is also not the norm, we like to make that the bar to reach each time.

kergan66    6 years ago

I have no problem with complaints.  If they’re valid.  If part of a cruise is disappointing, fine , tell us about it.  We have had one really bad experience. But even that one had some good points. 

AuntPinkie    6 years ago

So sad, that they had such a miserable cruise.  Sure hope they didn't post here in hopes of like-minded complainers. They'll have to go somewhere else because we do not want them (complainers) on this forum!

askeegan    6 years ago

Some people just need an audience.

Kennicott    6 years ago

Originally posted by: kergan66

How is it so many trolls come over here, go through all the trouble of setting up a profile, just to whine about a bad cruise ?    They make their one post and are never heard from again.

 

I've wondered the same. Why it is one party will have such a disastrous cruise then go out of their way to warn others not to book said ship or line or both, while dozens of others on the same voyage had such a great time?

 

No question, some are just trolls, perhaps they have their own favorite line and just want to put down the brand X, sort of like rooting for a football team and posting how bad the others are. Always beware when they use language like "the food in the buffet was worse than a hospital cafeteria" or "I wouldn't feed their food to my dog". But then, once in a while one of these reviewers will stick with it and respond to questions, they might even appear to have a grain of intellect in their discourse. 

 

I just ran across one of these puzzlers prior to our last cruise, which we boarded in mid-January for an over three weeker. This party had been on the same ship in August and wrote a scathing review dealing with almost every aspect of his cruise. I thought this rather strange since six months prior to his cruise we had been on the same ship for over a month and experienced nothing like all the negatives he espoused. So I waited, but he had me concerned. After six days we reached our first port, which was Honolulu, then I posted my findings on his review, all good things, an absolute opposite of his tormented review.

 

He did provide a cordial response. Was glad we were having a good cruise and sorry he made me nervous. But he did suggest one thing that still makes me wonder as to his motivations. I happened to mention that since we didn't leave Honolulu until late in the evening we had scheduled an "Ultimate Balcony Dinner". He recommended that we cancel that and instead have dinner at one of the fine eateries in Waikiki, some of which he recommended. Well, we have been going to Hawaii for almost 50 years, sometimes twice a winter, so we know that, have eaten out a lot over there. Turned out the steak and lobster meal was exquisite and the Princess balcony service super. He just couldn't resist attempting to convince us to forgo a Princess meal on our balcony, could he??   

kergan66    6 years ago

How is it so many trolls come over here, go through all the trouble of setting up a profile, just to whine about a bad cruise ?    They make their one post and are never heard from again.

MVSGeek    6 years ago

I'm surprised to hear some of your comments. I've been on a few Princess cruises where Angela was onboard and found her to be delightful. What happened?

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