Is Caribbean Princess still sailing with reduced speed? Air conditioning issues?

We had a technical problem on our British isles cruise in August announced after we left Guernsey. The lights in the corridor dimmed briefly (with the emergency lighting coming on). Coupled with our late departure from Guernsey, we ended up getting to Cobh late. But there was time for the captain to make up the time without cutting into the number of hours we got in that port.

 

We also had an issue with sewage backing up into our toilet. It was disgusting but fortunately did not spill out the bowl like I've read about others having experienced. And it was clear by the time we finished dinner.

Ours and several people in nearby cabins often had delayed flushing--the longest was 3 hours, but 30-45 minutes was common.

We just returned from a 14-day circle Caribbean on the CB, and it was a great voyage. A/C worked great - it was even chilly in our cabin. The vessel runs at reduced speed which is just by a few knots - nothing significant and how anyone would even notice is beyond me. Who cares while you are sleeping? It was a port intensive trip with 9 ports and we were either on time or early at each. On the final night, the vessel did crank to full speed to meet a Coast Guard chopper to evac a young 12-year-old boy with acute appendicitis. The vessel is able to perform without any issues.

We just returned from a 14-day circle Caribbean on the CB, and it was a great voyage. A/C worked great - it was even chilly in our cabin. The vessel runs at reduced speed which is just by a few knots - nothing significant and how anyone would even notice is beyond me. Who cares while you are sleeping? It was a port intensive trip with 9 ports and we were either on time or early at each. On the final night, the vessel did crank to full speed to meet a Coast Guard chopper to evac a young 12-year-old boy with acute appendicitis. The vessel is able to perform without any issues.

Well, this is good to hear, thanks for posting. Maybe I will just cross my fingers. We would miss that rear pool quite a bit on the Royal...with four sea days, maybe that's most important.

Well, glad you were high and dry during the listing period! I still feel a little anxious though. I don’t think we should have to trade the working ability of the ship just to be able to cruise on Princess to the southern Caribbean in May. Seems the engine issues would be pretty high on most people’s list of concerns.

I'm on this ship in April for 10 days. The thought of 5 hours with no AC is a big deal. How do we find out if our specific cabin may be affected? Also, they changed ours from Southern Carib to Eastern Carib April 11th.

We were on for 27 days in the British Isles/TA on Baja deck port side, mid 600's. We and many of our neighbors had problems with our toilets for most of the cruise, and our shower would go from very cold to very hot quickly. Neither of us had a decent shower in 27 days. The first crew member who came to check it turned the water on for less than a minute and told us it was fine! Four other times crew members came in and promised that it was fixed, but it never was fixed.

Once we got to warmer weather and needed our a.c. it was very poor. It was 78/80 most of the time even though we had technicians in several times. Finally, one tech. told us that if he fixed our a.c. it would make other cabins too warm. This was our 23rd Princess cruise, and we've never had the issues that we had on this cruise.

On the plus side, we loved the new beds.

How long ago was your 27 day cruise? This really worries me!

How long ago was your 27 day cruise? This really worries me!

Sept. 10 through Oct. 7, 2017

I'm on this ship in April for 10 days. The thought of 5 hours with no AC is a big deal. How do we find out if our specific cabin may be affected? Also, they changed ours from Southern Carib to Eastern Carib April 11th.

From what I've read on other posts, if one balcony door is left open in a section, the entire section is affected. It is not this way on the Royal class. I read a technical description of why this happens. It's on a post called Close Your Balcony Door Already.

I'm on this ship in April for 10 days. The thought of 5 hours with no AC is a big deal. How do we find out if our specific cabin may be affected? Also, they changed ours from Southern Carib to Eastern Carib April 11th.

Oh dear, ours is a southern Caribbean cruise and I really don’t want to go if they are going to change the destination. Did they change your itinerary before or after final deposit?

Here is what Princess has to say about our cruise, May 11, to the southern Caribbean, regarding "technical issues":

ITINERARY CHANGE

From what I've read on other posts, if one balcony door is left open in a section, the entire section is affected. It is not this way on the Royal class. I read a technical description of why this happens. It's on a post called Close Your Balcony Door Already.

This is what I’ve read as well regarding balcony doors. We’ve only been on one cruise with Princess, on the Crown (similar ship) to the Mexican Riviera - also in March. I don’t remember these issues on that ship, but I am trying to recall if there was any effort by Princess to post any conspicuous notes about not leaving balcony doors open. The fact that I don’t recall likely means it wasn’t conspicuous. If this is the case, it doesn’t sound like it (I.e leaving doors open to feel and smell the breeze) is being addressed directly enough with passengers to not cause issues. Of course, in any group as large as the number of PAX on a ship like this, you’ll have about 15% of the folks who think the rules don’t apply to them, or somehow think that they’ll be the only ones skirting the rules and its “not a big deal.”

Anyhow, I’m not sure which is better - passengers mucking stuff up because they’re ignorant and/or inconsiderate, or technical issues with the ship. The latter can conceivably be solved, while the former is beyond a solution.

Really hoping for the best. We leave in 60 days and are booked in an Emerald Mini! We’re excited, but must admit reading this thread has us a bit concerned as well as hopeful. Seems like about half have had bad experiences and the other half have had no issues. Crossing fingers to be in the “no issues” half. Either way, we have in our minds to enjoy the ride!

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Just came off the CP Cabin R743 for 2 weeks over Christmas on the Circle Caribbean itinerary. No issues. We were in all ports on time all the way down to Aruba and back. I did not find any fault with the ship at all to be honest. We've sailed on her previously and found the changes and additions to be fresh and attractive. As for the AC, it has been my experience that the system does not like being set all the way down at the lowest setting. Use the level one above lowest. Also, and I assume most know this, the sliding door of balcony cabins effects the AC in the cabin. Make sure your slider is closed and locked as the AC will turn off if the door is left open.

Unrelated but interesting, we had a Medical evacuation of a young boy with appendicitis on our last evening on our way back to Port Everglades. The ship kept a steady pace at a pretty good clip as a coast guard helicopter hovered above the ship lowering a basket to retrieve the teen and his dad.

In all from my very recent experience I wouldn't hesitate to book a cruise on this ship. As with anything, every day is a new adventure and anything can happen no matter which ship you choose, but if you are looking for a systematic flaw to lead you away from Caribbean Princess I don't think that there is a real problem that has consistently negatively effected the ship to the point that it should be considered a "Lemon" from a passenger point of view. What goes on behind the scenes really isn't the concern of the passengers if it doesn't negatively effect them. For all I know Clopatra's rowing crew was down there getting us from Island to Island... and they did a fine job of it. Happy Cruising all!!

Just came off the CP Cabin R743 for 2 weeks over Christmas on the Circle Caribbean itinerary. No issues. We were in all ports on time all the way down to Aruba and back. I did not find any fault with the ship at all to be honest. We've sailed on her previously and found the changes and additions to be fresh and attractive. As for the AC, it has been my experience that the system does not like being set all the way down at the lowest setting. Use the level one above lowest. Also, and I assume most know this, the sliding door of balcony cabins effects the AC in the cabin. Make sure your slider is closed and locked as the AC will turn off if the door is left open.

 

Unrelated but interesting, we had a Medical evacuation of a young boy with appendicitis on our last evening on our way back to Port Everglades. The ship kept a steady pace at a pretty good clip as a coast guard helicopter hovered above the ship lowering a basket to retrieve the teen and his dad.

 

In all from my very recent experience I wouldn't hesitate to book a cruise on this ship. As with anything, every day is a new adventure and anything can happen no matter which ship you choose, but if you are looking for a systematic flaw to lead you away from Caribbean Princess I don't think that there is a real problem that has consistently negatively effected the ship to the point that it should be considered a "Lemon" from a passenger point of view. What goes on behind the scenes really isn't the concern of the passengers if it doesn't negatively effect them. For all I know Clopatra's rowing crew was down there getting us from Island to Island... and they did a fine job of it. Happy Cruising all!!

This is very helpful. Thanks so much for sharing your experience! We are excited to see the updates on the ship as well and it’s nice to hear that they seem to be well done. Certainly hope the young man that you mentioned being airlifted is ok - I can’t imagine as a parent such a circumstance. I’d read about this incident on the forums and it sounds like all was handled as well as possible, which is reassuring.

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I booked an inside cabin 744 in the same general area as you were. How did you find it for noise (above deck) and how busy were the hallways considering so close to the pool?

Thanks

Just came off the CP Cabin R743 for 2 weeks over Christmas on the Circle Caribbean itinerary. No issues. We were in all ports on time all the way down to Aruba and back. I did not find any fault with the ship at all to be honest. We've sailed on her previously and found the changes and additions to be fresh and attractive. As for the AC, it has been my experience that the system does not like being set all the way down at the lowest setting. Use the level one above lowest. Also, and I assume most know this, the sliding door of balcony cabins effects the AC in the cabin. Make sure your slider is closed and locked as the AC will turn off if the door is left open.

 

Unrelated but interesting, we had a Medical evacuation of a young boy with appendicitis on our last evening on our way back to Port Everglades. The ship kept a steady pace at a pretty good clip as a coast guard helicopter hovered above the ship lowering a basket to retrieve the teen and his dad.

 

In all from my very recent experience I wouldn't hesitate to book a cruise on this ship. As with anything, every day is a new adventure and anything can happen no matter which ship you choose, but if you are looking for a systematic flaw to lead you away from Caribbean Princess I don't think that there is a real problem that has consistently negatively effected the ship to the point that it should be considered a "Lemon" from a passenger point of view. What goes on behind the scenes really isn't the concern of the passengers if it doesn't negatively effect them. For all I know Clopatra's rowing crew was down there getting us from Island to Island... and they did a fine job of it. Happy Cruising all!!

We did a 10 day cruise in December. Yes, the issues are still there which makes the ship move a little more slowly. I see people posting and saying that you wouldn't notice a difference, however, it significantly shortens the time in some of the ports which is a bit distressing. It didn't ruin our trip by any means & I will say that I still prefer this class of ship over the new ones with their tiny cabins. Go and enjoy ~ you already know what to expect as your schedule reflects the changes due to slowdown. Interesting to see others mention about medical evacuations which seem to be the norm now. We cruised in November and December and both cruises involved medical evacuations....

The problem of the air conditioning not working when someone leaves their balcony door open is not unique to Princess. Seems there just has to be one in every section who can't read the rules or more likely doesn't care.

Toilet issue--ditto. And usually someone tried to flush something that they shouldn't have. The crew has horror stories about what people do.

Now I still have to decide whether to book the Caribbean Princess this spring or not.

CB has weak ac.

Was hot in public areas in 2006 and it still is weak ac.

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Just off the CB and no problems with AC or toilets. We had an inside cabin on the Lido deck.

We took the Caribbean Princess last February for a B2B and had no problems in C753. Air was as cold as we wanted. We're going back on her in March 2018 and 2019 with no concerns.

The problem of the air conditioning not working when someone leaves their balcony door open is not unique to Princess. Seems there just has to be one in every section who can't read the rules or more likely doesn't care.

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I've sailed at least 40 times with Princess and have never read the "rules" because there are none to read. Please direct me to these rules you state exist and I'll stand corrected.

I've sailed at least 40 times with Princess and have never read the "rules" because there are none to read. Please direct me to these rules you state exist and I'll stand corrected.

It is possible that Princess is a line that doesn't post a small notice on their balcony door asking that guests keep the door closed. I know that there is such a sign on the door of at least two other lines I've cruised. It is a small notice, perhaps 2" by 3". I am quite certain that there was a sign in the bathroom on our last Princess cruise "requesting" that nothing be flushed other than the obvious.

It is possible that Princess is a line that doesn't post a small notice on their balcony door asking that guests keep the door closed. I know that there is such a sign on the door of at least two other lines I've cruised. It is a small notice' date=' perhaps 2" by 3". [/quote']

 

Yes, this is posted on the balcony door of every balcony cabin.

 

Being a decal, many people may not notice it.

It is possible that Princess is a line that doesn't post a small notice on their balcony door asking that guests keep the door closed. I know that there is such a sign on the door of at least two other lines I've cruised. It is a small notice' date=' perhaps 2" by 3". I am quite certain that there was a sign in the bathroom on our last Princess cruise "requesting" that nothing be flushed other than the obvious.[/quote']

 

I have never noticed but it most likely is posted there. Yes we do leave our sliding glass door open at times when we are in the room. One just has to remember the "wind tunnel" when the main cabin door is opened while the sliding glass door is open.