Caribbean Princess too crowded?

[KAKcruiser]

I haven't been on Princess for about 6 years. I have been sailing on HAL and enjoy the less crowded ships. I was thinking about the Caribbean Princess and was wondering if it felt crowded.

[sunnyv]

I guess "Too Crowded" is an opinion different with everyone, but that said, we were on the New Year's sailing and the only time we thought it "too crowded" was at disembarkment. But then so far, I think all ships are "too crowded" then. The great thing about Caribbean Princess, is there are alot of public space set aside in smaller areas.

[coiran]

We`have not been on the Carib but have cruised on the Grand and Star - it is the same size ship with 600 more people - I don't think we would like it - the Star was crowded enough.

 

Ron

[Toto2Kansas]

Only time we felt the crowded conditions seemed to be boarding in ports and tendering. Also the best shows had no seats available even 20 minutes before the show began. Other than that, it didn't feel any different than any other Grand Class ship.

[monk888]

I have been on both the Eastern and Western itinerary on the CB. I did not find the ship overly crowded except around the pools, during tendering and at the Horizon Court during peak hours. Otherwise, I think she is a wonderful ship.

[bdjam]

I haven't been on Princess for about 6 years. I have been sailing on HAL and enjoy the less crowded ships. I was thinking about the Caribbean Princess and was wondering if it felt crowded.

I would think it would depend on what you’re used to. If you’ve been sailing on low density HAL ships, you might find Caribbean crowded. I found the Grand Class ships (with 500 less passengers) a bit cramped compared to the smaller ships I prefer to sail.

[cruzinchris]

DH and I will sail on the Caribbean Princess for the second time in January, 2006. If either of us had thought the ship was too crowded, we wouldn't do an encore sailing. The CB is magnificent and has wonderful ambiance; this was our favorite cruise/ship to date.

 

Having also sailed on the Star, Golden, and Grand, we didn't notice the additional passengers until disembarkation; the terminal simply isn't large enough to accommodate luggage for that many passengers.

 

Areas of the ship that appeared "crowded" were similar to other cruises: pools and decks on sea days, photo gallery during dinner hours, merchandising in atrium, lounges and theatre for shows, re-embarking at ports of call, tendering to/from Princess Cays. If one plans wisely, these congested areas are easily avoided, and Princess ships have plenty of private nooks and crannies away from crowds.

 

Bon Voyage!

Chris

[KCSungirl]

I have had a lot of experience cruising lots of different sized cruise ships. I can tolerate the Caribbean Princess, but my husband said it was **** and he would never cruise with that many people again. The lines are terrible getting off the ship, especially when tendering. People are EVERYWHERE all of the time. Shows are standing room only. You have to go at least 30 minutes ahead if you want a good seat. An hour ahead for the Princess Idol final. It is just a mess of people and I would not recommend it. Love the Grand Class ships, but Caribbean Princess is a nightmare. Diamond Princess here I come.................Sungirl ;-)

[sherman931]

Sailed on CB twice....neither time could you tell there were 3,000+ people on board. Of course if you need to be the first to everything you may run into crowds just like anywhere else. If you plan and your daily schedule is flexible you can go where you like a pretty meuc avoid any type of hassle.

[bethcollins]

We were on the CB last Oct. and loved it so much we are going back again in August. I'm prepared for the crowds to be worse--how much worse I'll let you know when we get back on the 13th!

[Hav2cruise]

We were on the caribbean in march & my wife thought it was way more crowded than the Golden. She will not sail the Caribbean again. I would. She also did not like the seating in club fusion.

 

Tom

[KAKcruiser]

Thanks for all the replies. I'm still not sure what to do. I like the St. Thomas & St. Maarten itinerary. But, I don't think I would like a ship with so many people. Is the ship always full? Or are certain times of the year better for less crowds?

[LARGIN]

Any ship with over 2000 passengers is overcrowded in my opinion

[KCSungirl]

Most ships sail full these days. Lots of cheap promos within 75 days of sailing if the ship isn't full. I always book within 75 days to take advantage of the "Flash" specials. Never had a problem getting the exact cabin I wanted at a price I thought was fair. Booked my current Alaska cruise three weeks in advance and snagged an aft balcony. I lucked out.

 

The Eastern itinerary is better than the western, IMHO. You should be able to find another ship with the same itinerary. I think if you polled 100 people, half would say they loved the CB and half would say they thought it was too crowded. It all depends on the activities you choose, timing, etc. Everyone has a different comfort level when it comes to crowds. I would say everything in the evening is standing room only. Bert Straton comes highly recommended yet the lounge he plays in accomodates very few people. Everyone stands around and the congestion in the atrium is ridiculous. I could go on and on with examples of crowds. The main pools on sea days are frightening. Even the terrace pool you have six inches from some stranger's shoulder. Some people love the close quarters, love to chat, etc. I find the CB to be way too close. An entire extra deck of passengers and no extra public space. Club Fusion has these pillars all over the room that completely blocks the view for lots of people. The dining rooms and buffets are packed at peak hours. We eat late, so never had an issue with this. The lunch buffet is always crowded, but you can find a table. I just don't like listening to other people's conversations during meal times. It is such a distraction to the quality time with my DH. People are inconsiderate and talk too loud.

Sungirl ;-)

[KAJOKG]

I love the Star and the Golden. Do not like the CB at all. We really did notice the difference....same ship with 500 more pax makes for waits and crowded conditions here and there. In spite of that, we did have a good time, but we will not sail the CB again. However, it always leaves port without an empty cabin so it is popular. For us, we're happy there are choices. While we enjoy the Star and Golden, our favorite ship is the Coral.

[Pam in CA]

We were on the same cruise as Sunnyv and didn't feel that the ship was overcrowded. We'd been on the Grand where we felt overwhelmed by the crowds but didn't have any of that feeling or experience on the Caribbean Princess, even on a super full holiday cruise. We had no problems getting on or off the ship at any port -- it never felt crowded and we could pretty much just walk on or off.

 

The caveat is that I don't go to the pool area (my dermatologist would kill me) and I rarely go to shows at night so I can't comment about crowding in those areas. Considering the fact that we had rainy, lousy weather for our sea days, I was very surprised that I didn't feel overcrowded.

 

For breakfast and lunch, I always headed to the Cafe Caribe where I never had a problem getting a table, even during peak periods. I much prefer smaller ships but I'd go back on the CB again whereas you couldn't pay me to go back on the Grand.

[Dreamer333]

I've been on a few of the mega ships... the Grand, the Star, and the Caribbean...

 

I didn't notice any difference in crowds between the 3 ships...

 

Of course there are areas that are more crowded, as mentioned in other posts... however I was ALWAYS able to find a quiet spot to relax or read.

 

Trust me, I am not the type of person who likes really crowded places... I REFUSE to go to the Taste Of Chicago anymore because of the crowds...

 

But on the Princess mega ships, I am fine!! It is truly amazing that there are so many people on those ships, but it truly doesn't feel like that many at all!

[ISABELLA]

Caribbean Princess is crowded if to compare her with Sun class ships or even Grand class , but not as crowded as RCL"s Voyager Class ships. Those are just a ZOO.

[spongerob]

I really didn't notice a huge difference between Caribbean Princess and the earlier renditions of the Grand-classs ships. In fact, a few changes were made that improve the upper decks, in my opinion. Crowding, when it does take place is a little more noticeable in the key choke points of the Grand-class design - near the martini bar on Deck 7, near the photo gallery, and of course Horizon Court when the feedbag is on, in particular in the morning on port days. The key difference I noticed is that the crew is stretched a little thin in some departments due to the added passenger load. There was no provision in the ship's design to increase the crew complement in proportion to the increase in passenger levels.

[HAPPYHOURS]

Really looking forward to my Princess cruise next year.Thanks to everyone for all this terrific information.:)

[explorersummer05]

I have sailed with a group of family and friends on the Caribbean Princess twice and neither time did we feel that it was crowded! Always an available deck chair, never had to vulture for seats in the theater, and usually the elevators were clear (except for just getting into ports). I think the feeling of NOT being crowded on the CB spoiled us because this last summer we took a trip on the RCI Explorer of the Seas and it DEFINITELY felt like 3300 passengers! Had to get out to the deck by 8 am if you wanted a chair...otherwise plan on standing and waiting for someone to decide they needed another trip through the buffet and then run over to their chair (possibly knock a few other passengers over on the way). And forget sitting with other members of your group! One chair was hard enough to come by! On the CB we never had a problem coming up with 8 chairs together...I think this is due to the number of pools on board. With 4 pools (plus one "dipping pool") its hard for them to get crowded. They also use the jogging track to set chairs on during the day on the CB. One thing I did notice was that our Easter itinerary was a little less crowded than the Western on the CB...I'm guessing due to the age of passengers that each one appeals to. IMHO the crew/staff are top notch on the CB as well. They treat you like royalty!(which we are for that week we are on the ship, aren't we?:p ) Hope you enjoy her as much as we all did! Have fun!

[kelmac]

I haven't been on Princess for about 6 years. I have been sailing on HAL and enjoy the less crowded ships. I was thinking about the Caribbean Princess and was wondering if it felt crowded.

 

KAKcruiser,

 

My wife and I just returned from our quasi BtoB cruise combining the Caribbean Princess (western Caribbean) with the Zuiderdam (eastern Caribbean). The CP had 3,350 passengers and the Z had a little less than 1,900. Of course, the Z felt less crowed, however, the CP has fantastic deck spaces and we never felt crowded on deck. The flow around the ship was fine; loads of elevators, nice hallway design; four pools spreads people out nicely.

Down side-- with that many people you better get to the entertainment areas early to get a seat; embarkation was pretty smooth considering the long lines; disembarkation was very slow; the buffet areas have a goofy design and it can get ugly. The CP is a great ship and is in wonderful condition! This was my third Princess cruise, and my 22nd cruise overall. Unfortunately, it was obvious that the food on the Zuiderdam was much better than the food on the CP. Even Sabatinis and Sterlings lacks in food quality (excels in food volume!). Don't get me wrong, the food was good, but like Royal Caribbean, NCL..., Princess serves large amounts of low quality food. We did get a few great soups and a nice dish from time to time, but overall we were disappointed. In fact, I cancelled our up coming cruise on the Coral and replaced it with the Galaxy (Celebrity). I guess we are becoming a bit "cruised out" and a little picky about things?? I'm sure in a few years we will try Princess again.

Once again, we had a wonderful time on the Caribbean Princess and love many things about this ship!!

 

Enjoy!

Kel

[negc]

We have friends who sailed on Caribbean Princess last winter and complained that the ship was "too big, too crowded" and that it was difficult, if not impossible, to get seats for the shows. They are sailing on Mariner of the Seas this week and I will be interested to hear their comments about a ship that is even larger and carries more passengers.