Review of 4/16 Crown sailing

[aloha1010]

Hi, my husband and I are both in our low 30's and upper 20's respectively and are teachers. My husbands school/afterschool schedule keeps him so busy, we rarely get to vacation together so this was a first since our honeymoon.

I had originally planned to just copy and paste my travel journal into this space, but then as I was re-reading it I decided that you all dont REALLY want to read about when I sat on the promenade, when and what I ate, and how many times I actually napped... Besides, that document was six pages long!! Yikes, I guess I was a little long winded about my naps... :)

 

I first sailed with Princess on October 31, 2010 on the Ruby--Eastern Caribbean. Although we missed Grand Turk due to Hurricane Tomas (thats another story for another day) I came home INSISTING that Jim (DH) and I had to go on a cruise together. And so, as it is my role/duty/obligation as the wife and woman in his life, the pestering began....

 

Once booked I was ecstatic and begin reading up on the excursions and booked us on the Pirate Ship Encounter for Grand Cayman, a hike for Roatan, Coba Ruins for Cozumel and snorkelling for Princess Cays. Each week as we got closer to the cruise Jim decided he didnt want to do the Pirate Ship, or the hike, or the ruins, or the snorkelling....he wanted to do nothing.... So, all the excursions (save my hike, which I kept) were cancelled and i quietly (ha) kept my disappointment to myself! ;)

 

Okay... back to the stuff that matters...

 

Due to the SKYROCKETING airfare prices and poor selection in times offered through sites such as expedia etc, we booked our airfare through Princess. I was pleasantly surprised that their fares were equivalent, if not a hair cheaper, than what was offered through online sources. Jim, the constant worry wart, was thrilled that princess would get us to the next port if something were to happen to our flight.

 

Upon arrival at Fort Lauderdale on Saturday morning we were greeted by uniformed Princess reps who were there to direct us to the bus which would take us to the ship. Unfortunately, the Coast Guard decided to do an inspection on the ship which "apparently" held up our ability to get on the bus... As the delay continued for over an hour the reps became more and more irritable....but I was on vacation so I wasn't going to let their attitude bother me.

 

When we were finally transferred to the cruise port, we waited in line outside for no more than five minutes and inside we waited for no more than two minutes before being issued our cards and directed towards the gangways.

 

I keep reminding myself I need to be brief...sorry...

 

Ship:

 

The ship was beautiful, much like the Ruby, our room was great and our luggage arrived about an hour or two after we boarded. (2-3 pm) We did have a minor issue with our safe not working (after our things were in it) but both times when we called the front desk someone was there to fix it and after the second attempt, all was well.

 

People:

 

We met up with other cruise critic folks (desiro, shawley23, mysticfalcon, and vtlibrarian to name a few) at the Outrigger for sail away and had a marvelous time. In fact, several of us kept running into eachother on the ship and ended up spending quite a bit of time together which was great.

 

Excursions:

 

At Grand Cayman we ended up taking a cab to 7 mile beach (thanks to Adam, DH of desiro, for the suggestion) first thing in the morning. It cost each of us $5 US and we were able to do as we pleased. After about two hours we decided to walk back to the ship...i do not recommend this to ANYONE.... again, another story for another day.

 

We missed Roatan due to high winds so I missed my hike...

 

At Cozumel we had cancelled our Coba Ruins excursion and were waitlisted for Playa Maya Beach Break with Lunch... At the last minute my husband checked with the shore excursion desk and switched us to the Pasion Island Beach with Lunch. Apparently this is the beach where the Corona commercials are filmed... either way it was a fabulous day. Soft sandy beaches, ergonomic lounges perfectly situated underneath some palm trees, and all the food and drink one could want.

 

After the excursion we enjoyed some more drinks with a few other couples from the cruise at Fat Tuesdays... got ourselves some really remarkable balloon hats and headed back to the ship.

 

At Princess Cay, we were able to hang out with a Belgian couple from our section at dinner; Kirby and I on the beach and Stijn and Jim played in the water. Oh yah...and he decided to rent snorkeling equipment after all.... Silly boy just couldn't make up his mind! ;)

 

Dining:

 

Our waiter had to be the fastest most efficient man on the boat. He literally ran from the galley with our food, hardly allowing the junior waiter to do anything but pour water and wine. The food was wonderful, as always, I am quite impressed with the quality and quantity those galleys are able to turn out on a daily basis.

 

Most days Jim and I ate our breakfast in the Piazza, breakfast sandwiches and yogurt from the international cafe. However, we did get buffet breakfast once or twice and enjoyed that out at the Terrace Pool. The Pub lunch at the Wheelhouse Bar was good as was the lunch offered in the dining room.

 

Liquor etc....

 

Neither of us drank very much on the ship, but the few martinis and mixed drinks I had were excellent and I felt they were reasonably priced. Several times Jim and I got a wine flight from vines and then enjoyed the sushi and tapas they provided....I am a sushi lover and will say that the tuna and yellow tail were excellent.

 

I did watch very closely as the bartenders made my dirty banana... It was:

Equal parts, dark rum, Tia Mia, Kahlua, and cream, ice and half a banana... Then he asked me how "dirty" I liked it and proceeded to add chocolate syrup. Yum.

 

Disembarkation:

 

We were held up with disembarkation, I am guessing it was to keep the customs lines from getting more ridiculous than they already were... but after an additionally half hour or so in the Casino, we were allowed to disembark.

 

Okay so I hope this isnt ridiculously long and I hope I havent forgotten to talk about anything major... but please feel free to leave questions!

[Woobstr112G]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. Sounds like you had a great cruise.....:):):)

 

Bob

[kywildcatfanone]

We were on the Crown a couple of weeks ago and had a wonderful time. I really enjoyed your review, not long winded at all. Sorry you missed Roatan, it's a beautiful little island. Glad you had a good time!

 

Mike

[srpilo]

It's obvious you had a great time and a great cruise, and now a great review :)

 

 

 

 

Really enjoyed your take on the Crown and the energy in the review

Srpil,o

[desiro]

Hi Aloha! Great review - fun time was had by all :) Wish we were at the Crown Grill right now - we were last Monday night!!

[Mysticfalcon]

Excellent review. It was a fantastic time. Great to meet you guys. It was really nice that we met up the first night so we all had a few friends onboard from the get go.

 

I did watch very closely as the bartenders made my dirty banana... It was:

Equal parts, dark rum, Tia Mia, Kahlua, and cream, ice and half a banana... Then he asked me how "dirty" I liked it and proceeded to add chocolate syrup. Yum.

 

Thanks for that. I do love the dirty bananas but I am not sure that they are what the 45 and rain of VT calls for.

[Coolmama_1]

Sounds like you had a great time. Thanks for sharing.

[GORGEOUSONE]

I noticed on your report that you had been in cabin 240. Was it on Lido deck inside.

We are cruising on Crown in July and wondered if the cabin and location were good.

Welcome back.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for taking the time to do a review.

 

Kirk

[ecofallout]

Our waiter had to be the fastest most efficient man on the boat. He literally ran from the galley with our food, hardly allowing the junior waiter to do anything but pour water and wine. The food was wonderful, as always, I am quite impressed with the quality and quantity those galleys are able to turn out on a daily basis.

Very nice review! Makes me wish I was on the Crown right now. Well, I guess I just want to be on a cruise, lol. I'm still amazed how efficient the servers are on a cruise ship.

[aloha1010]

Excellent review. It was a fantastic time. Great to meet you guys. It was really nice that we met up the first night so we all had a few friends onboard from the get go.

 

 

 

Thanks for that. I do love the dirty bananas but I am not sure that they are what the 45 and rain of VT calls for.

Yah...that weather certainly doesn't help the transition home! I hope our weather makes it up to you...83 and sunny today...

[aloha1010]

I noticed on your report that you had been in cabin 240. Was it on Lido deck inside.

We are cruising on Crown in July and wondered if the cabin and location were good.

Welcome back.

We were in Riviera 240 which is one floor below the Lido. I loved the room, I was in riviera 320 on my last cruise and thought it was a great location in the ship. One flight of stairs up to the pools and buffets or two to the gym/spa/sanctuary. Altho I can't speak for the noise on the lido deck, we found the room to be quiet and still. The only day we felt a lot of motion in our room was on the day with high winds in roatan. But, in my experience, in any small space you are going to notice the movement of the ship. Please let me know if you have more specific questions.

[kywildcatfanone]

I noticed on your report that you had been in cabin 240. Was it on Lido deck inside.

We are cruising on Crown in July and wondered if the cabin and location were good.

Welcome back.

 

Let me chime in here, we have been on the Crown four times in the last two years and each time have been in a Lido inside cabin. It's our favorite location to stay on the ship. Short walk to the pools and buffet/pizza/burgers and a quick trip back to the room if you need something.

Sometimes in the morning you will hear a sweeper or cart going down the hallway above you, but we have not found it to be a real problem.

 

Mike