Princess Cruises

[highvista]

I've always been a big fan of Princess, a platinum member of the Captain's Circle. However the last two times I cruised with Princess I have noticed some changes since Carnival took over. Princess just doesn't seem to have the same atmosphere it had when owned by P&O. Is that just my imagination or have other die hard Princess fans noticed this?

[Toto2Kansas]

I've always been a big fan of Princess, a platinum member of the Captain's Circle. However the last two times I cruised with Princess I have noticed some changes since Carnival took over. Princess just doesn't seem to have the same atmosphere it had when owned by P&O. Is that just my imagination or have other die hard Princess fans noticed this?

 

I honestly don't think it has much to do with 'Carnival taking over', as that was quite some time ago. I think it is more of an economic thing, and not just on Princess cruises, but all mainsteam cruise lines.

[highvista]

You might be right. It's just that I'm of Scottish descent and Princess had a some what "British feel" which seems to have faded and there were certain Princess hall marks like Italian maitre'd's at the door in all their dining rooms which again seemed to have disappeared. It might be I'm too much of a traditionalist/Royalist :)

[Scotto97]

I do agree that Princess has lost a little of it's British feel of formality since Carnival took over years ago. Kinda miss it.

[Tralynn]

In the last 10 years, I've noticed cruising has become more casual on ALL of the mainstream cruise lines. I think it's because they opened the market to the masses by making it more affordable therefore allowing them to compete with other cruise lines. Cruising had to change in order to fit the market. I still enjoy it though.....Just go with the flow.

[Woobstr112G]

IMHO, it is definetely an economic thing. Minor cutbacks here and there are unfortunetely a reality in these current times. I've noted the changes since I started cruising in 1993.

 

Even with the changes though, I'll always pick a cruise over a land vacation.....:):):)

 

Bob

[caribill]

They still have a daily English tea hour in a dining room each afternoon.

[ssbeagle]

Princess has cut back just like any other cruise line has. Also, with the larger ships they just don't do things like they used to on the old Royal, Pacific, and Island Princess ships. The only thing that comes close is the teatime in the dining room every afternoon. But they don't even serve English tea. It's good old Lipton. They have even cut back on some of the amenities. And prizes for trivia and other games have certainly taken a dive.

[HomelessBear]

Although the Grand and the Star are sister ships, I have found that these have a very different in atmosphere and feel. It could also be due to the crew on board at the time and / or the leadership of the Captain.

 

I feel that the Captain and his "style" of command has an effect on the whole cruise, on the staff and consequently on the experience for the passenger.

 

Just a few of my thoughts.

[Toto2Kansas]

I've always been a big fan of Princess, a platinum member of the Captain's Circle. However the last two times I cruised with Princess I have noticed some changes since Carnival took over. Princess just doesn't seem to have the same atmosphere it had when owned by P&O. Is that just my imagination or have other die hard Princess fans noticed this?

 

If you are looking for things more or less as they used to be. Try sailing one of the smaller ships in the Princess fleet. The Ocean, Royal or Pacific Princess we have found, are more like the sailings of the past then on the larger mega monster ships. ;)

[BalconyGal]

Unfortunately, I think it's not so much Carnival as it's making princess more "mainstream" for the masses. I still think it is quite a bit classier than other mainstream lines, I won't mention names as I don't want to get flamed. :o

[highvista]

Thanks for all your feed back,very helpful

[Pam in CA]

Unfortunately, I think it's not so much Carnival as it's making princess more "mainstream" for the masses. I still think it is quite a bit classier than other mainstream lines, I won't mention names as I don't want to get flamed. :o

I agree. ALL of the cruiselines are building bigger, better (?) ships with lots of staterooms that they have to fill. Cruising is no longer a vacation for the "rich" but rather an alternative to the average family's vacation destination. Dinner has become more of an "eat and run to entertainment" than a dining experience because that's what today's cruisers want and expect.