Is anyone going back to Princess in light of its new smoking policy

[Dena]

I apologize if this has already been asked, but the search feature is not working for me.

 

I am especially interested in those former Princess cruisers who went to Celebrity because of its stricter smoking policy. Will you be going back to Princess now, or are you happier overall with the Celebrity experience?

[Host Jazzbeau]

I haven't sailed Princess, but I have decided to try them on a future Alaska cruise--specifically because their old smoking policy was a deal-breaker and now I can evaluate them evenly against Celebrity and Oceania. On that basis, they seem to offer a lot (especially in Alaska).

[Dena]

I haven't sailed Princess, but I have decided to try them on a future Alaska cruise--specifically because their old smoking policy was a deal-breaker and now I can evaluate them evenly against Celebrity and Oceania. On that basis, they seem to offer a lot (especially in Alaska).

 

Yes, Glacier Bay.

[onthelake]

I really enjoy Princess cruises but must say, for us, cruising is all about the ports. I am glad the smoking rules have changed but that will not be the deciding factor.

[cruisestitch]

Elite perks are just that -- a loyalty program -- probably won't be starting with a new cruise line in the near future

[Waihekean]

Knew there was a smokers deck on my Dawn Princess cruise and when passing the smokers group you ofcourse smelled smoke, but for the rest never noticed any odours on board.

Like it though that there is no smoking on the Celebrity balconies (hopefully).

[emileg]

Never left Princess. Love both Princess and Celebrity. Smoke never bothered me on Princess except when walking through the casino. On some of the newer or refurbished Princess ships, there is a new hallway with new cabins where one can bypass the casino. I can hold my nose for a few seconds.

[Bridge Maven]

Princess is one of the few cruise lines that we have not tried yet. Some of our friends like Princess a lot better than Celebrity, while others like Celebrity better than Princess. I plan to try it one of these days so I can decide for myself which offers a better overall cruise experience.

[packedandready]

Can someone remind me what the new smoking policy on Princess is? thanks

[Denny01]

Only if they offer an itinerary that I want and Celebrity doesn't do. But not as my prime Line. I find Princess presses the hard-sell too much and I think the common areas are more crowded. Many of their ship theaters are too small - for a popular show, people went in an hr before to get seats- no way.

 

We had to upgrade to a mini suite to have room to have friends over. Celebrity has a seating area in their standard SRs.

 

We took a Hawaiian and an Around the UK Princess cruises, and really enjoyed them. But I find Celebrity more to my liking.

[Dena]

Can someone remind me what the new smoking policy on Princess is? thanks

 

As of 1/15/12 no more smoking in the rooms or on the veranda.

[EithneMay]

Many Many years ago, Princess used to have a limit on the number of children allowed on board. Does anyone know if they still do this? DH and I may consider it if they limit kids.

[Denny01]

Many Many years ago, Princess used to have a limit on the number of children allowed on board. Does anyone know if they still do this? DH and I may consider it if they limit kids.

 

Yes they do. If the ship has a capacity of 2000 passengers, then only 1000 kids are allowed on since a child has to have an adult with them....but of course if a bunch of parents with 7 or 8 kids book, there could be 1800 kids and 200 adults. Just depends.

 

Den

[PartyAllDaTyme]

We started with Princess, switched to Celebrity as soon as we found out about the smoking policy, and had no plans to ever return to Princess. Now, we will consider Celebrity our first choice, but will sail Princess for itineraries that X does not offer.

[bighairtexan]

I still prefer Celebrity over Princess, but not by such a large margin as before Princes changed the smoking policy.

[Cruise Junky]

Yes they do. If the ship has a capacity of 2000 passengers, then only 1000 kids are allowed on since a child has to have an adult with them....but of course if a bunch of parents with 7 or 8 kids book, there could be 1800 kids and 200 adults. Just depends.

 

Den

 

Are you kidding? I read that Princess had a 500 limit on kids. Not saying that's right but someone was recently turned down for adding a child to a reservation saying they'd reached their limit, hope it's not 1,000 :eek::eek::eek:

[Denny01]

Are you kidding? I read that Princess had a 500 limit on kids. Not saying that's right but someone was recently turned down for adding a child to a reservation saying they'd reached their limit, hope it's not 1,000 :eek::eek::eek:

 

Yes, I was kidding. did you notice the reference to 7 or 8 kids per couple so there could be 1800 kids???

 

Den

[Bridge Maven]

Regarding children - Based on my experience, Celebrity is the only mass market cruise line that has very few children. Even our Holland America cruise had a lot more children than I ever saw on a Celebrity ship.

[cruiserone]

We love Princess but decided I did not want to deal with the smoking time and time again. Moved over to Celebrity for 2012 and now Princess changes the policy. The main question I have is Will They Enforce It? I bet not. We go on our cruises for ship and ports and don't want it ruined by not being able to sit on our balcony and enjoy the sea air. Had a wonderful time on Serenade of the Seas in March on a terrific aft balcony, but it was ruined by smoking neighbors. They smoked from 6am till 12 am on the balcony. We did not enjoy more than 15 minutes a day on our balcony. I have not smoked in over 40 years and DH has not smoked in over 5 years. Never smoked on a cruise ship or on a balcony of any hotel. Not everyone feels the same.

 

We will book our Alaska cruise on Princess for 2014 and be happy about it.

 

Happy Sailing All!!

[PartyAllDaTyme]

Yes they do. If the ship has a capacity of 2000 passengers, then only 1000 kids are allowed on since a child has to have an adult with them....but of course if a bunch of parents with 7 or 8 kids book, there could be 1800 kids and 200 adults. Just depends.

 

Den

 

It may be more of a function of the number of people per cabin-- just because a cabin can theoretically hold three or four people, they would exceed the total ship's capacity if all cabins were booked that way. Since these extra spaces tend to be occupied by children, they may have a "kid limit" to help keep under that limit while still allowing some extra space to be allotted for some adult passengers. Also, it's probably in their best financial interests to have more adults and fewer kids-- adults tend to spend more on beverage packages and spa treatments.;)

 

Edit--- yes, I knew you were joking.

[Dena]

We love Princess but decided I did not want to deal with the smoking time and time again. Moved over to Celebrity for 2012 and now Princess changes the policy. The main question I have is Will They Enforce It? I bet not. We go on our cruises for ship and ports and don't want it ruined by not being able to sit on our balcony and enjoy the sea air. Had a wonderful time on Serenade of the Seas in March on a terrific aft balcony, but it was ruined by smoking neighbors. They smoked from 6am till 12 am on the balcony. We did not enjoy more than 15 minutes a day on our balcony. I have not smoked in over 40 years and DH has not smoked in over 5 years. Never smoked on a cruise ship or on a balcony of any hotel. Not everyone feels the same.

 

We will book our Alaska cruise on Princess for 2014 and be happy about it.

 

Happy Sailing All!!

 

Princess still allows smoking in the casino so the smell can waft into the atrium. But maybe with fewer smokers onboard it will not be an issue.

[Denny01]

 

Edit--- yes, I knew you were joking.

 

my secret is out!

 

Den

[KruzPrincess]

I'm a Princess cruiser who tried Celebrity last year. It wasn't just because of smoke, though. I booked back with Princess before the smoking policy change, but now I consider that icing on the cake. I still prefer Princess, but I'm looking at a Celebrity cruise itinerary that Princess doesn't offer during the week I want to go. I never really had a problem with smoke on Princess, but maybe I was just lucky. Actually, I was driven off my Celebrity balcony because my neighbors seemed to bathe in perfume on their balcony. You just never know what will happen. When I read Celebrity reviews I often read about people complaining about smoke, so it must still happen on Celebrity. I'm sure there will be a learning curve for Princess in this area.

[miched]

.

 

 

I look for value. I have the highest membership on both Carnival and Princess plus future cruise vouchers for both, haven't used either in 2 years because I "discovered" X. Princess cruises for me are pricing themselves out of my value range. Plus I love the no smoking policy on X. Carnival is another consideration. Good for a great get away and party time cruise when I just need it.

 

 

I can relate to the perfume comment of the above poster. Some of that stuff is like napalm. Why do people think that others want to smell that crap?

 

.

[royalcruz]

I've mostly had problems with the smoke in the casinos on Princess but it will be nice to know that we won't get stuck in a stateroom after someone smoked in it for a week, as smoke gives me coughing issues.