Is Princess cruise a mistake?

[philabos]

We sailed on the 16 day Far East Cruise from Singapore to Shanghai last December on OCEAN PRINCESS and found it very enjoyable. In fact, the voyage of a lifetime.

Yes the tours were probably overpriced - in major ports where we were alongside the city we went out on our own in it was great. However, if you are in Vietnam for the first time, have only one day and the dock is 50 miles from Saigon - you take the tour bus. We took both bus tours in Vietnam and after each day concluded the experience was worth the price. No complaints.

We found the food quite good and the efforts of the wait staff to make everyone happy top notch. Cabin steward also top notch. All very warm and friendly.

We have cruised with Princess 7 times, and also on RCCL, NCL, Cunard, Carnival and "others". It is impossible for any cruise line to completely satisfy all 3,000 passengers on their ships. Some have legit complaints (we have had a few issues with Princess but all have been resolved once we discussed with onboard personnel). Some may not have had as good an experience. Others will complain about everything.

Their shore reservation staff have gone beyond anything I would reasonably expect from a cruise line.

In my view - perhaps the weakest part of the operation is the Purser's Desk but Princess is not unique there..

Overall we were well pleased with the Far East service - enjoy your cruise!

[Lilly'sMom]

We spend 96 days on Princess ships last year and loved all but three. We hated getting off at the end of each of the three cruises. :)

 

 

That's cute!!! :D

[janina]

We did the Diamond Bangkok to Beijing Oct/Nov 2009. It was the best cruise ever. We loved the Diamond, the crew and the cruise director Adam. It is a beautiful ship and they give free shuttles to a lot of the ports and there you can pick up your private tours. It is a large ship but very nicely done. The night light laser show in Hong KONG WAS GREAT. You will enjoy it...don't worry.:)

[BridgeMates]

There are 6 of us that have booked a 16 day Asia Cruise for next April on the Diamond Princess. Is this a mistake? The reviews I have been reading sound like Princess has gone "down hill". The cruise is too expensive to just have an "OK" cruise. Not sure on what to do. It's not too late for us to all cancel and book with another cruiseline! We have cruised with Princess 5 other times, but not for two years.:confused:

 

We just came back last month from 16 days on the Diamond, Bangkok to Beijing and thoroughly enjoyed it all. It was our second time on the ship and it's still one of our favorites because of the different dining rooms you can go to if you choose Anytime Dining. Perhaps we're easy to please as we've never had a problem with the food, the service or activities on the ship. You'll always hear gripes about something, but consider how many people are on board. You can't please everybody all the time. Don't worry, you'll love the trip. We took the precruise package in Bangkok and did a private tour in Beijing. Let me know if you want any information.

[Coracii]

Cancel and go with another cruise line! Read my post about 'don't book with princess" Now I find out with the insurance i bought I only get $400 back from a $3700 cruise! Beware!

 

Nice try but the responses you'll get here aren't any different than you've gotten in your other attempts. You bought the Princess cruise air (first mistake in most experienced traveller's opinions), refused to authorize the airline change when it was obvious there was a potential problem (second mistake), and then didn't understand how the travel insurance you bought worked (third mistake). Posting the same information without accepting that your own actions are at least equally responsible for the problems is a little misleading.

[Cruisematic]

I wish I was taking that cruise. None of our 16 cruises have been in the far east. But we are back in Alaska in June and can't wait. My new goal is to cruise on every Princess ship. That should be a milestone the company recognizes with some kind of perk.

[Mines Rescue Service]

There are 6 of us that have booked a 16 day Asia Cruise for next April on the Diamond Princess. Is this a mistake? The reviews I have been reading sound like Princess has gone "down hill". The cruise is too expensive to just have an "OK" cruise. Not sure on what to do. It's not too late for us to all cancel and book with another cruiseline! We have cruised with Princess 5 other times, but not for two years.:confused:

My Wife and I are both Elite Members of Princess Cruises, the Company rewards loyalty. We have tried numerous other Cruise Lines, but we prefer Princess Cruises everytime. You and your Party will have a great time. Bon Voyage and Best Wishes from Brian and June in Perth Western Australia.

[Mines Rescue Service]

I wish I was taking that cruise. None of our 16 cruises have been in the far east. But we are back in Alaska in June and can't wait. My new goal is to cruise on every Princess ship. That should be a milestone the company recognizes with some kind of perk.

 

Dear Cruisematic, We also would like to sail on all 18 Princess Ships, may I suggest that the Cherry Blossom Cruise to China and Japan that departs from Sydney in March 2011 is well worth the effort. We did this cruise last year on The Dawn Princess, and we have booked it again for March 2011 because we really enjoyed the six weeks cruise. The March 2011 cruise is on our favourite ship the Sun Princess. Happy Sailing and I hope that we may meet sometime in the Future. Kindest regards. Brian and June.

[rugbypopsie]

I sailed 80 days on Princess ships in the last year..including the Cherry blossom on the Dawn Princess and two trips on the Diamond..

 

I love the Diamond Princess...and obviously Princess cruises you will have a great time...dont worry...I haven't noticed any "going downhill".

[cruisenuts4life]

We have been on Celebrity,Royal Caribbean and Carnival,just returned from our first Princess on the Ruby and this was the best cruise ever.As far as cut backs,that goes with every cruise line.I will be sailing on Princess from now on,everything was great!!!I could go on and on,the staff,service,dining options,buffet was excelllent.:)

[Cruisematic]

Dear Cruisematic, We also would like to sail on all 18 Princess Ships, may I suggest that the Cherry Blossom Cruise to China and Japan that departs from Sydney in March 2011 is well worth the effort. We did this cruise last year on The Dawn Princess, and we have booked it again for March 2011 because we really enjoyed the six weeks cruise. The March 2011 cruise is on our favourite ship the Sun Princess. Happy Sailing and I hope that we may meet sometime in the Future. Kindest regards. Brian and June.

 

We would be ecstatic to come to Australia on a cruise and spend 6 weeks seeing the far east. Our longest cruise has been 14 days and I was just getting comfortable. I also have relatives in Perth and the Golds Coast that we dearly need to visit.

[PescadoAmarillo]

We have sailed over 200 days on Princess, and believe their product is truly improving over time. I'm not certain I would sail on a Sun Class ship again, as I believe our cruises on those ships (54 nights) weren't up to other Princess standards. But I would book a cruise on any other Princess ship with much anticipation. In fact , we have 8 more to look forward to right now.

 

But (and this is the truth) I am sitting in the Detroit airport waiting for a flight, and two ladies just walked past me and one was saying, "My cruise on Royal Caribbean was wonderful, but I'll never go on Princess again."

 

it's great we have choices!

[fairstars]

There are 6 of us that have booked a 16 day Asia Cruise for next April on the Diamond Princess. Is this a mistake? The reviews I have been reading sound like Princess has gone "down hill". The cruise is too expensive to just have an "OK" cruise. Not sure on what to do. It's not too late for us to all cancel and book with another cruiseline! We have cruised with Princess 5 other times, but not for two years.:confused:

 

We have done 57 days on the Diamond in the last 2 years including three Asian cruises and thoroughly enjoyed every day. You have not made a mistake, they have not gone ‘downhill’, go with it, totally enjoy your cruise enjoy the experience of the exotic ports and most of all go with an open mind. Enjoy!

Happy cruising

Chris

[flamomo]

We're booked on the Diamond for the 1/15/11 sailing, preceded by a 5 day land tour.

There is a roll call started for it, if you would be interested in joining it.

[jbu]

In fact , we have 8 more to look forward to right now.

 

Hey, Jeanne!

 

I see you're book for 8 more?! How fabulous! We met you and Greg in January on the Ruby (ran into you at the Meet & Greet, and realized we'd met you the year before that - remember?). Glad to see you're still active on the boards here.

 

We're booked for next January on the Emerald, doing a repeat of this year's trip (January 17-27 - check the roll call). Any chance that's one of your 8? Would LOVE to run into you again! We never did get to have dinner together, so maybe we could still arrange it! And if you do go on that one, Bill might have some dive buddies for a scuba excursion - maybe?

 

Jenny

[Silversands]

I note that you have managed to Book a Princess Cruise for Oct 2011. I have been trying to find a note of the Princess Schedule to the Panama Canal for Autumn 2011 without success, can anyone assist in pointing me in the right direction? When I type in Princess Cruises I am redirected from their site to uk local Cruise Agency sites which do not appear to show the schedules for Autumn 2011, and it is so frustrating.

I would just concur how much we enjoyed the Princess Asian Cruise from Bangkok to Beijing - we rode elephants through the River Kwai; walked on the Great Wall of China; walked through the Forbidden city; visited the silk markets of Shanghai; saw the spectacular laser show as we departed from Hong Kong with the sound of "Time to say goodbye" in the background - oh so magical. Visited Okinawa, the peace park in Nagasaki in fact we raved on about Asia so much that our daughter is now living and working in Japan, and about to visit Vietnam on holiday, another country which is so very beautiful.

[Pam in CA]

I don't think it's a mistake as you'll have a wonderful cruise. The reality is that cruising in general has changed in order to appeal to mass markets and people who wouldn't ordinarily think of a cruise. Doesn't matter the cruiseline. In a way, booking on Princess and then second-guessing yourself is like buying a Mercedes and thinking, "Gee, should I have bought that BMW or the Lexus?" There's no such thing as a "perfect" cruise no matter what cruiseline you take so board with an open mind. The exotic itineraries tend to attract more traditional cruisers who expect more; Princess delivers.

[seamwoman]

We were also on the October/November 2009 Bangkok to Bejing Diamond Princess Cruise with two other couples and LOVED everything. One couple have cruised Regent etc. and they were happy. The itinerary was fascinating, the food good, entertainment excellent and service outstanding. We couldn't order a cheese platter from room service for appetizers without a charge but that was a small change from previous Princess cruises. We were so disappointed with Princess that we leave in two weeks on the Ruby :) Enjoy!!!

[PescadoAmarillo]

We're booked for next January on the Emerald, doing a repeat of this year's trip (January 17-27 - check the roll call). Any chance that's one of your 8? Would LOVE to run into you again! We never did get to have dinner together, so maybe we could still arrange it! And if you do go on that one, Bill might have some dive buddies for a scuba excursion - maybe?

 

Hi Jenny, of course I remember! We got your business card the last night of the cruise. I'm looking right at it (in my cruise rolodex, because my cruise stuff outgrew my regular rolodex!). Sorry I am late responding...things have been crazy with my aging parents, back and forth to Ohio this entire year, I think. Hopefully, we've got some things in place now...

 

Anyways, we are booked on the Emerald from 12/28 till the end of March. Really. Those FCCs are evil, evil I say! Too easy to book. The reality is that we are debating spending the entire winter (or a month or two) in Hawaii or Barbados, which will determine when/for how long we cruise. But my best guess right now is that we will be on the Emerald for 3 cruises in a row (at least, possibly five), and one of them would be with you and Bill. Can't wait! And I would love to dive, because G just isn't as into it as I am. He likes a long cruise with an occasional dive; I like to ascend just long enough to have some shrimp at the buffet. So let Bill know he has a (potential) dive partner. Our plans will firm up in September, probably, and then I will hop on the roll call. See you there!

[Colo Cruiser]

Hi Jenny, of course I remember! We got your business card the last night of the cruise. I'm looking right at it (in my cruise rolodex, because my cruise stuff outgrew my regular rolodex!). Sorry I am late responding...things have been crazy with my aging parents, back and forth to Ohio this entire year, I think. Hopefully, we've got some things in place now...

 

Anyways, we are booked on the Emerald from 12/28 till the end of March. Really. Those FCCs are evil, evil I say! Too easy to book. The reality is that we are debating spending the entire winter (or a month or two) in Hawaii or Barbados, which will determine when/for how long we cruise. But my best guess right now is that we will be on the Emerald for 3 cruises in a row (at least, possibly five), and one of them would be with you and Bill. Can't wait! And I would love to dive, because G just isn't as into it as I am. He likes a long cruise with an occasional dive; I like to ascend just long enough to have some shrimp at the buffet. So let Bill know he has a (potential) dive partner. Our plans will firm up in September, probably, and then I will hop on the roll call. See you there!

 

Gonna have to start looking at you as a crew member!!

People will start booking cruises around to catch you onboard like Generoso. :D

[BLS]

There are 6 of us that have booked a 16 day Asia Cruise for next April on the Diamond Princess. Is this a mistake? The reviews I have been reading sound like Princess has gone "down hill". The cruise is too expensive to just have an "OK" cruise. Not sure on what to do. It's not too late for us to all cancel and book with another cruiseline! We have cruised with Princess 5 other times, but not for two years.:confused:

 

We too were on the Diamond for 23 days last year and loved it!

Granted the port in Beijing is quite far from the City but we enjoyed the drive and seeing the extra sights.

[BlueCat1105]

If you look at the other lines' forums, you'll see the same thing written there. There will always be disgruntled customers, no matter where you go. And a lot of people are reminiscing about the good old days, when times were good and cutbacks didn't exist.

[jd1966]

There are 6 of us that have booked a 16 day Asia Cruise for next April on the Diamond Princess. Is this a mistake? The reviews I have been reading sound like Princess has gone "down hill". The cruise is too expensive to just have an "OK" cruise. Not sure on what to do. It's not too late for us to all cancel and book with another cruiseline! We have cruised with Princess 5 other times, but not for two years.:confused:

We're big Celebrity/RCCL fans but you'll find the same kind of crap on their boards as well as most of the others. The CC boards represent a pretty small percentage of cruisers so discretion is required when reading anything. We enjoyed our only Princess cruise and plan on using them again!

[PescadoAmarillo]

Gonna have to start looking at you as a crew member!!

Thanks Keith. Crew member...7 months at a time on a ship...I like that. However, it's in my psyche that, as soon as I board a ship my work ends, and that might pose a problem.;)

[ribarfly]

There are 6 of us that have booked a 16 day Asia Cruise for next April on the Diamond Princess. Is this a mistake? The reviews I have been reading sound like Princess has gone "down hill". The cruise is too expensive to just have an "OK" cruise. Not sure on what to do. It's not too late for us to all cancel and book with another cruiseline! We have cruised with Princess 5 other times, but not for two years.:confused:

 

 

You will always find negative things about each cruise line on these boards, some people are just never happy! Don’t believe everything you read be your own judge. We just got off the Emerald a few weeks ago and had a great time, our first Princess cruise and we will cruise with them again.

Ron :)