Hey all you Princess fans...Sell me on Princess, please :)

[joy4ron]

So, I'm a total newbie here, and I think I'm looking at the Ruby Princess Oct 28th, 2012. I think that works for me.

My wife and I want to do our first cruise next year. We will be celebrating 20 years together.

I've been debating between HAL, Princess, and CCL. Price is one factor, but so is the quality and romance factor.

My question really is this. How much of a difference is there? And would we, cruise newbies, really notice?

We are looking at balcony cabins. I think that would be a must for this cruise. If/when (more like when I think) we go in the future, we would be willing to do oceanview or even inside (if we took our kids). But this is a special occasion, and we want to treat ourselves.

[rayandshirl]

For the price, Princess offers a great variety of destinations. You won't be disappointed.:)

[Kmkub]

We've been on a whopping TWO cruises, both Princess. (Ruby & Crown, which are almost exactly the same.)

 

For us (45 & 41,) we like the atmosphere. We like quiet and relaxing over "party all night." (Even though we stay up super late, especially on the cruises.)

 

We just like being together and enjoying each other's company. We like meeting new people in the dining rooms and such. Sea days are our favorite - there's so much to explore and we never get bored.

 

The evening poolside parties on Princess are lame (to us.) The music is cheezy, the drinks extra expensive and in general, not our thing.

 

We like all the various places you can go to get a different atmosphere... Crooner's Martini Lounge is by far our favorite place to visit each day, sometime after dinner. We also enjoy the casino and the art room a lot.

 

I would say that the food on Princess is probably not the best (though I've no other cruise line to compare it to.) Some of the food on the cruise will be out-of-this-world spectacular and other food will be "meh."

 

What we especially love about Princess is their catering to the older crowd. We plan to get a bunch of cruises under our belt and be elite by the time Princess starts catering to us (when we join the older crowd.)

 

Most of the shows are not our thing, but I'm thinking in a couple of decades, they will be suiting our needs rather nicely. We have seen a couple of very good comics in the theater, though.

 

Many people jump from cruise line to cruise line, which, would be great if we could afford to go on that many cruises. Since we can't, we're going to stick with the one line (for the most part) and build up our perks.

 

You will have to take my thoughts with a grain of salt, only having ever been on Princess. I love them, though. There's glitches in service, here and there, and I let them know on the post cruise survey, each time.

 

I think it would be rather polly-anish to expect 100% perfect service for an entire cruise, so we are rather forgiving of occasional human error. (Being humans ourselves, and prone to err on occasion.)

 

I think our biggest complaint ever (between both cruises) is the difficulty in getting beverage refills when using the buffet.

 

EDIT to add: Once you get a balcony, you won't switch to an inside room. That's a promise (almost a promise, anyway.)

[geoherb]

We love Princess cruises, but we also love Celebrity and Holland America. I would not sail on Carnival again. It's just not for us, although I'm sure plenty of people have great cruises on their ships.

 

In the big scheme of things, there's not that much difference between the three cruise lines I like. I look at the cruises that fit our vacation schedule. (DH teaches at a community college, so our available dates are fixed by his school's schedule.) Then I compare the itineraries and prices to find a cruise that fits our budget.

 

We love a balcony, but there's a certain difference in price that makes me consider going with an ocean view. I'm cheap, so paying an extra $500 for us to have a balcony doesn't seem worth it to me. Only you can decide what's right for your budget.

[joy4ron]

Km,

 

The wife and I are both 38 (Will be 39) on the cruise. We tend to stay up a little later if there's something to do, but we aren't 'partiers'. We tend to enjoy a little bit older crowd than our age, but I'm just a little concerned by what you say as they "cater to an older crowd". If you're a few years ahead of us, and you say they cater to even older... Could you elaborate?

[Kmkub]

I can't really elaborate, no. It's more a feeling. We peeked into the theater several times and each time I thought, "Yeah, I'd probably enjoy that if I were in my late 50's to 60's."

 

Don't take me wrong, there's PLENTY to do for any age. We're quite happy, though, that the parties don't go all night, there aren't tons of kids crowding up the pools and running around tripping you up! When we go wandering around the ship at 2:00 a.m., it feels like we have it to ourselves, really, and we love that.

 

We're taking the kids on Princess in January. Having already seen the "teen" club on board, we're confident they will be thrilled with it.

 

They do Wii games poolside, during the day and the Movies Under the Stars in the evenings are fantastic! They make fresh popcorn and hand out blankets... so cool to sit on deck in a lounger watching a movie.

 

It could be that the time of year we tend to go brings out an older crowd, too. That's going to be a factor.

 

We actually like hanging around older types... getting older ourselves, we understand how much information gets lost as generations start to fade away. We love sharing tables and talking to people from all over the world. People who cruise tend to be really nice and always seem to have some interesting story to share.

[bobalink]

I wrote this for another thread, but you may find it useful, so I will paste it here.

 

We are Princess fans, and recently moved up to the Platinum status. We have some Dutch friends who will only sail on HAL. For years they have "sung the praises" of HAL, so much so, that they convinced us to give it a try.

 

Last summer we were on the Noordam for a 7-day W. Med cruise, round trip Rome. We noticed many similarities.

 

The Noordam is lovely, rich wood and nice artwork. Our verandah stateroom was much bigger than a balcony room on Princess. The bathroom was quite large with a tub. The verandah was small and we could see the tenders and some spotlights from our verandah. Not a big deal, but I did not like looking at the top of a bright orange tender.

 

The Noordam has a beautiful library. The captain had a wonderful Q&A session and we really enjoyed that. He was very personable and approachable.

 

We thought the food on the Noordam was exceptionally good, in all venues. We paid the extra $$ for Pinnacle Grill one night and it was excellent, and well worth the additional charge. For us, we thought the food was better on the Noordam than on any of our Princess cruises. Table service in the HAL buffet (I think it is called Lido) was non-existent. You must get your drinks, water, etc. all on your own.

 

We had always heard that HAL attracts an older crowd, but that was not the case for our cruise. Because it was a round-trip from Rome, there were many, many, Italians on board. I guess it would be like a coastal cruise for them. Lots of families, babies, etc. We did notice a lot of smoking, but it never bothered us.

 

HAL's entertainment was okay, not great. But, it was a very port-intensive cruise, so we did not care much to see shows.

 

We did not think the room stewards or other staff were friendly. In fact, for whatever reason, the majority of the servers seemed very tense. We even wondered if they were under too much pressure.

 

We always have incredible stewards, waitstaff and bartenders, etc. on Princess.

 

I would probably go on another HAL cruise, if the itinerary was right. But I still prefer Princess. I really like the stunning Piazza and International Cafe on the Princess ships. Princess ships seem very "open and airy" compared to the Noordam.

 

Hope you have a wonderful cruise, whatever you decide. I don't think you can go wrong if you give HAL a try.

 

I believe that most of the cruise lines are very similar. We have never had a bad cruise!

 

Go...enjoy and report back!

[joy4ron]

KM,

Thank you so much.

 

What time of year do you normally go?

We love kids, but seeing as it is our anniversary, and we plan on leaving our 19 and 11 year old at home, we don't want to feel as though we're looking after someone else's kids... Somehow stray kids seem to find us, and we want to be a little selfish on this trip.

I also love the idea that you might feel as though you had the ship to yourself late in the evening. How fun

[Kmkub]

Both our cruises were to the Caribbean in the winter. (December and February.)

 

We're going back to the Caribbean in January.

 

Main reason for this is we live 15 minutes from the Ft Lauderdale port, so we save hundreds per cruise on airfare. (We will venture out, eventually!!!!)

 

Go when the kids are in school....

 

I strongly suggest you read several cruise reviews and also scour this forum (and the whole web) for pictures. Get an idea of what the ship your thinking about looks and feels like...

[CruzinNoony]

I am elite on Princess and also have been on several other cruise lines. We love Princess and it is by far our favorite. There is plenty to do for all age groups. If you do get a balcony, go for the Caribe deck. The balconies are twice the size as those on the other decks. :rolleyes:

[RebelSoul]

I've been cruising on Princess since I was 20 and am now in my late 30s. DH and I are not into partying, but we're nowhere near sedate, boring, or considered part of the "older" crowd (I think age is just a number anyway). I find the activities on Princess just fine for us. There are plenty of activities to do during the days and evenings. I can't think of a moment on any cruise where I was ever bored. Of course, I am quite content to sit out on the balcony and watch the water go by. We cruise to relax and have some fun. I'd rather have my land vacations be more hectic and busy.

 

Food is extremely subjective, so I try not to offer my opinion very often, but I think the food is above average on Princess for the most part. We do not eat at the buffet very often and are MDR and specialty restaurant eaters but will hit the buffet for breakfast once or twice a cruise because it's faster for us when we want to get off in port early. I love the International Cafe and stop by often, probably too much! Love the fresh baked cookies and milk they pass out by the IC and decks in the afternoon. Princess pizza is very good as well, better than I can find in my local home town.

 

The entertainment varies and again is subjective. We liked some of the production shows, although I wish they'd change them more often, especially since we like to cruise a couple times a year. I will say some of the best comedians I have ever seen were on Princess. (Sarge stands out in my mind from about 5 years ago...absolutely loved him and saw both is different shows!)

 

When it comes to cruises, I think what's more important is itinerary and price. I like Princess' itineraries. I will admit that look at Princess first because I like the loyalty perks (I am Elite) and think they are the best in the industry. However, I would also sail on HAL, RCCL, DCL, or Celebrity if the itinerary and price were better to me. I'm not a Carnival fan and didn't care for their style but I managed to still have a great time on that cruise as well. (Even a not so great cruise beats a week at work!)

 

Ruby is a great ship and newest in the Princess fleet. I looked at the itinerary and think it's fine and liked the prices. I do suggest a balcony with that itinerary, especially since you have an occasional to celebrate and it will be just the two of you. Whichever cruise and line you decide, you are already several steps in the right direction by posting here. Make sure you continue to read and post, as I feel an informed first time cruiser usually sets the right expectation level and makes for a smoother cruise. Best of luck and congratulations.

[jff50]

So, I'm a total newbie here, and I think I'm looking at the Ruby Princess Oct 28th, 2012. I think that works for me.

My wife and I want to do our first cruise next year. We will be celebrating 20 years together.

I've been debating between HAL, Princess, and CCL. Price is one factor, but so is the quality and romance factor.

My question really is this. How much of a difference is there? And would we, cruise newbies, really notice?

We are looking at balcony cabins. I think that would be a must for this cruise. If/when (more like when I think) we go in the future, we would be willing to do oceanview or even inside (if we took our kids). But this is a special occasion, and we want to treat ourselves.

My favorite cruise line is Princess (about 25 cruises) although I have also sailed about 10 times on Carnival, Celebrity, Costa, and NCL. For romance, I would definitely go with a balcony. I'd like to point out 2 dining experiences that Princess offers that can help make the cruise a lot more romantic/memorable.

 

Ultimate Balcony Dining (UBD)--Available only for a balcony cabin. For $50/person, they set up a table on your balcony and serve your meal in courses. A lot of excellent food, cocktails, a split of champagne, flowers and a photo--and the memories. Quite romantic.

 

Chef's Table--$95/person. Generally available once per 7 day cruise. Can accomodate about 10 people. Special meal hosted and prepared by the head chef and the Maitre'd. Tour of the galley, with champagne and hor d'ourves in the galley. Special table and service--everyone in the dining room will be watching you. Includes wine pairings. Also a rose for the women, a Princess cookbook, and 2 photos (the entire group with the head chef and the Maitre'd, and the 2 of you with the head chef). About a 3 hour experience. Not as romantic as the UBD, but an incredible/great experience. You should call the dine line to sign up/get on the list for this as soon as you board.

 

Either/both of these dinners offer an experience you can't match elsewhere at any price. My preference is the Chef's Table (I've done it multiple times, and will continue to book it whenever I can--it never fails to impress), but the UBD is more romantic.

[Roses2]

Cruising choices are highly subjective so take what you get from all of us with a bit of skepicism.

 

For every one of us that believes Princess is the best of the mass market lines there is another that feels the same way about one of the other lines.

 

Each itinerary, each ship, each cruise is a unique experience. No matter which cruise, there will be minor things that go wrong and if you dwell on those you will be unhappy regardless of which cruise you choose. However, if you savor the experiences the minor glitches fade into nothingness.

 

We are Princess boosters because we enjoy the interaries, the ships, the crew and staff we interact with as well as the extraordianry loyalty benefits they provide.

 

We only strayed from Princess once and based on that experience, we have become just Princess cruisers.

 

Rather than rely on Princess boosters or HAL boosters etc. to sway you, make your own choice.

 

This is a very subjective opinion.

[bmdlover]

We've done a lot of cruising in the Caribbean, and this is our take on the three:

 

CCL is a good choice if you like a "go go" vibe with lots of neon and flash. There are a lot of announcements going on all day, and a lot of activities, but they run more to the "Hairiest Chest" and "Best Belly Flop" than something more cultural. The shows are a bit more slick and glitzy, and the food tends to run about really average with no surprises. Lots of families and youngsters during school breaks.

 

HAL in the Caribbean does cater to an older crowd. The ships are more stately with lots of wood and crystal. ALthough you will find a range of ages, it does skew 65+ on most cruises. Friends always seem to talk about walker tangles at the elevators. The shows are more routine. The food is very good.

 

To us, Princess hits a happy medium between the two. There really is a good range of ages, and plenty of activities day and night. We find the food to be really good (it seems to vary among ship chefs). THe staff is the most friendly and attentive we think. You get good value for the price you pay, and the loyalty program is pretty good.

 

You really can't go wrong with any of them. It depends on what you enjoy.

[Pam in CA]

I'm Elite on Princess and a 3-star Mariner on HAL, and I think that for a quiet, romantic cruise, I'd go on HAL. HAL ships are smaller and have fewer passengers, plus if you choose to have a private, romantic dinner on your balcony, you can order anything off the dinner menu and have it delivered to your cabin. On Princess, you would have to purchase the Ultimate Balcony Dinner for $100. Granted, you won't get your own waiters to serve each course but for $100, I'm sure you can take off a plate cover without any trouble. You can also order a full breakfast the same way, which also isn't available on Princess other than for $50, the Ultimate Balcony Breakfast.

 

Unless you book an AD mini-suite on Princess or an aft balcony, you won't have a private balcony. While most are covered, anyone on a lower deck can look up and in because the balconies are tiered. On HAL, the balconies aren't tiered so others can't look in.

 

If I wanted a romantic, private cruise in a balcony cabin, that's what I would book.

[lovetocruise2020]

I'm Elite on Princess and a 3-star Mariner on HAL, and I think that for a quiet, romantic cruise, I'd go on HAL. HAL ships are smaller and have fewer passengers, plus if you choose to have a private, romantic dinner on your balcony, you can order anything off the dinner menu and have it delivered to your cabin. On Princess, you would have to purchase the Ultimate Balcony Dinner for $100. Granted, you won't get your own waiters to serve each course but for $100, I'm sure you can take off a plate cover without any trouble. You can also order a full breakfast the same way, which also isn't available on Princess other than for $50, the Ultimate Balcony Breakfast.

 

Unless you book an AD mini-suite on Princess or an aft balcony, you won't have a private balcony. While most are covered, anyone on a lower deck can look up and in because the balconies are tiered. On HAL, the balconies aren't tiered so others can't look in.

 

If I wanted a romantic, private cruise in a balcony cabin, that's what I would book.

 

 

Great points!

Also, there are the retreat cabanas (best amazing service and perks ever) on ms nieuw amsterdam and eurodam, 2 newest hal ships. i was looking at ruby, I was very very interested but its hard to stray from one of those two ships because of Canaletto the free italian specialty rest (its amazing) and Tamarind the Pan Asian (free for lunch) the retreeat cabanas, and all of the points you made above, AND you can bring on unlimited wine & champagne. We are 30 & 32 and never felt the Eurodam was "too old" for us. Lots of people our age, and the SC wrap around suites, cant be beat as well as the suite perks and concierge lounge.

 

Still thinking of Ruby, but hard to decide!! If the Ruby had cabanas or an upscale asian rest, it would be easier.

 

The movies under the stars look amazing!! We should just book both, BTB :)

[lovetocruise2020]

I'm Elite on Princess and a 3-star Mariner on HAL, and I think that for a quiet, romantic cruise, I'd go on HAL. HAL ships are smaller and have fewer passengers, plus if you choose to have a private, romantic dinner on your balcony, you can order anything off the dinner menu and have it delivered to your cabin. On Princess, you would have to purchase the Ultimate Balcony Dinner for $100. Granted, you won't get your own waiters to serve each course but for $100, I'm sure you can take off a plate cover without any trouble. You can also order a full breakfast the same way, which also isn't available on Princess other than for $50, the Ultimate Balcony Breakfast.

 

Unless you book an AD mini-suite on Princess or an aft balcony, you won't have a private balcony. While most are covered, anyone on a lower deck can look up and in because the balconies are tiered. On HAL, the balconies aren't tiered so others can't look in.

 

If I wanted a romantic, private cruise in a balcony cabin, that's what I would book.

 

PS. HAL is now doing course by course balcony dining with white linens and china, still free... I saw a review from a friend on the board, thats a great value. She had a great time.

[TwinCruiserMom]

I have some thoughts from the prospective of a couple about 10 years older than you who have been cruising for the past 4 years (with and without kids). Our "kids" are 21, 16 and 16.

 

First of all, if you are considering a cruise on October 28th, remember that hurricane season does not end until November 30th. You stand the chance of your itinerary being altered and you may have some rough seas if there is a storm in the region. The Eastern Caribbean is usually a bit bouncier than the Western Caribbean so if either of you has motion issues, that is another thing to keep in mind. My husband and I have vacationed for years now around the first week of December and that has been a fabulous time weather wise in the Caribbean and the rates for cruises are very attractive then, too.

 

You will not run into a lot of children in the fall as most are in school. There will be some children, but no where near as many as there are in the summer or around the holidays.

 

We love Princess and our experience has been on the big ships like the Ruby. Those ships are huge and there is so many places to explore. There is a good mix of ages on Princess cruises for the most part although older people do make up a large part of the demographics during the fall season. Not a problem for us, even our kids would rather cruise with older people than a ship full of kids.

 

You are never going to get complete romance and isolation on a cruise ship because there are so many people onboard with you. A nice resort in the Caribbean would fit that bill a bit better. But, you can enjoy plenty of alone time on the ship. We like the Caribe deck balconies as they are large, half covered and half uncovered and you do have a good bit of privacy if you sit to the back of the balcony. Still, cruise ship balconies are not totally private as your neighbor can always look around their divider and you can hear voices from other balconies.

 

We like to do anytime dining so we can eat when it is convenient. After a day on a Caribbean island in the hot sun, we like to have a quick meal in the buffet (around 2pm or 3pm) and take a rest. We do not want to have to hurry to get ready for dinner so Anytime dining has always worked well.

 

In the evening, it gets very deserted on the top decks and it is a nice time for a private walk around the ship. We do not go to a lot of the shows as they are always crowded, but we do occasionally watch a movie at MUTS in the evening.

 

I think Princess would be the best fit for your age and expectations. I have been on one HAL cruise and the demographics are definitely older and that was in the summer. I enjoyed our HAL cruise, but found myself missing Princess as did the rest of my family. I have never been on CCL but, I do not think that would be a good choice given your expectations.

 

You certainly cannot go wrong with Princess for your first cruise, and the cruise fares for the late fall are usually very attractive. You have plenty of time to read these boards before your cruise and you will find tons of valuable information that will let you know exactly what to expect.

 

I hope you have a wonderful cruise :)

[richkauf]

We have cruised carnival and princess. Both were lots of fun. Both ships were beautiful.( Crown princess and Carnival Miracle) The demographic on princess was a bit older, but on our cruise ( 7 day crown princess out of ft lauderdale) had lots of couples in their 20's and 30's as well as 40's and up and families with kids. Princess was a bit more upscale. We had inside cabins on both and had lovely rooms. As for a balcony, we figured how much time do you reall spend in the room anyway. ( but if you can get a balcony for just a few bucks more it might be worth it- it depends on your budget and look at the location on the ship- which deck and location - mid ships vs in extreme front or back). overall our experience has been carnival 8.5 out of 10 princess 9 out of 10.

[ChrisB123]

If you do choose Princess, be sure to order the Ultimate Balcony BREAKFAST!. Everyone talks about the dinner but the champaign breakfast is to die for. SO romantic!

[Traveling Bob]

KM,

Thank you so much.

 

What time of year do you normally go?

We love kids, but seeing as it is our anniversary, and we plan on leaving our 19 and 11 year old at home, we don't want to feel as though we're looking after someone else's kids... Somehow stray kids seem to find us, and we want to be a little selfish on this trip.I also love the idea that you might feel as though you had the ship to yourself late in the evening. How fun

You'll find the most kids on cruises at times when there are school breaks, so avoid them. I've found a lot of kids on RCL at any time. But the end of Oct should be OK on anything but Disney and RCL.

You have gotten a lot of good info here, but some of it is a matter of personal taste. Also, you should take anything said by those who only travel on Princess with some skeptecism as they may not have enough experience with other lines or have a definite personal preference. But you can rely on someone like Pam who has a great deal of experience on several different lines. I would also agree with Rebel Soul when she says that the destination and price are more important than the line. If you are not tied to going on a certain date, check out the prices for the same trip on different dates. Sometimes, the savings can be significant. Finally, IMHO, if you can afford it, try the lowest price mini suite, especially for something like a 20th. You my spend a little more time in your room and will certainly appreciate the extra space.

Whatever line you choose, enjoy your trip.

[Sapphire723]

As far as romance goes, I might be a little biased. My husband proposed on the Crown Princess, and we took our honeymoon on the Caribbean Princess, so Princess has a special place in my heart.

 

I think for a 20 year anniversary you will enjoy Princess.