Review of the Crown, Canary Islands 1st June

[Rascal1]

Hi, well it's back to reality for me after a wonderful cruise on the Crown Princess. I'll try to cover the main points and then feel free to ask any questions. We booked the cruise as a 'chill out and relax' holiday after a particularly stressful 12 months at work and Princess didn't disappoint.

Embarkation:-

Princess have this nailed (or Southampton does), we were due to board at 12 noon based on our cabin, but decided to risk it and turned up about 10.30, we had car parking booked with cps and they asked us to park up as they weren't quite ready, 15 minutes later they came over and said they were now ready and we could drop our car off. The process was easy and very efficient, we then went to check in, no queue, went straight through security and thought we'd need to wait, but no, we were told we could board straight away and we were in our room by 11.20.

Cabin:-

We originally booked a mini-suite but had an upgrade offer to a full suite which we had accepted so we had C750. It wasn't our first time in a suite but was our first time at the back of the ship. There are pros and cons for the back of the ship, we loved the quiet and the sound of the wake being the only noise and the views leaving port were amazing but there was more vibration than I expected and when you put your head on the pillow you could feel the vibration, it didn't bother us but it would some people, the ship moves alot more at the back, again I don't mind this but we didn't have really high waves (the biggest were 9 to 10ft) but again some people wouldn't like it. Would we sail at the back again, yes if the price was right but otherwise we'd choose mid ship. The cabin was clean and in good shape, the balcony had support beams which we expected and to be honest it wasn't a problem as there were just 2 of us, but I wouldn't like to have 3 or more due to the balcony size. Raymond, our Steward was nice and friendly, we don't ask for much but our toilet did initially have some problems, when you flushed it, it didn't flush for about 5 minutes. But it was fixed within 30 minutes of reporting it so no complaints.

Food:-

We book anytime dining, but this time we either ate at Horizon Court or Crown Grill or Sabitinis. We found the food to be delicious with lots of choice and I couldn't fault the service or food in either Crown Grill or Sabitini's. One night was my birthday and the waiters sang Happy Birthday and had a nice chocolate cake for us and a Birthday card which was a nice touch. The cocktails were very nice and I enjoyed trying different ones, it was hard to find a seat in Crooners Bar which was very popular.

Ship in general:-

I thought the ship was in great condition, yes there were some bits which needed a paint touch up but that is being really picky. I'd sail on her tomorrow if I could. All the crew were very friendly and cheerful, there wasn't a sales push which I've encountered before and again I wouldn't be able to fault anyone. We don't smoke and have found the casino to be too smokey on other ships, but was pleased that the Crown had a non-smoking section and I don't think you could smell the smoke so that worked really well for us, we did well on the slots on the last night but as always the house still won overall. The only disappointment was a general lack of visibility from the officers, on previous cruises I seem to recall more interaction with the passengers and more 'announcements' from the bridge, but the last cruise was with Captain Ed Perrin and that was fantastic so maybe my expectations were too high or my memories were slightly off. We did have a change in Captain's mid way through so maybe that had something to do with it.

Ports of Call:-

We did the Loro Parque excursion in Tenerife which was brilliant and the Toboggan Ride, Cable Car and Botanical Gardens in Madeira, again brilliant, the guide was very knowledgeable and funny. I'd recommend both of these excursions. In the other ports we just had a walk round, it was sad to see the number of shops closed in Vigo and Lanzarote, I was surprised at how much the recession had impacted the ports.

Entertainment:-

We didn't do many of the shows, we enjoyed Blame it on the Boogie and Destination Anywhere, it was nice to be able to find a seat without having to turn up early but I personally liked the longer shows they used to have, although not a show shopper and it wouldn't put us off Princess again. Some of the 'shows' in the Piazza were brilliant, there were 2 acrobats which were amazing. The jazz band were also fab.

Disembarkation:-

The best yet, we asked for 8.30 disembarkation and were assigned 8.15 which was great. We turned up at the lounge at 8.05 and were called at 8.10, we found our luggage straight away, picked up car keys and were in the car driving away from the port at 8.28. Certainly a record for us.

Overall:-

The cruise was a lovely relaxing time, the crew were great and the ship was in great shape. I wouldn't do the same itinerary again but only because we've been to some ports before and there are so many other places to go. Overall I'd give it 5/5, now where are next year's brochures .....:D

[Drews_Cruise]

Thanks for the review. T could reads these all day and dream dream dream.. Thanks again.

[Dwalkerdave]

We were also on this cruise and agree with all comments.

I can also add the shows were excellent especially the three comedians and the ship band 'The Speakers' were also very good.

Also agree about what a shame so many shops were closed down in each port, and a lot of people begging in Vigo, we were asked at least 6 times but all were polite and not threatening at all.

First cruise and we found it very enjoyable, well done Princess.

[flamomo]

Thanks for the posts by OP and DWalkerDave. I will be doing this itinerary plus the TA to Ft Lauderdale on the Crown later this year, and your info and assessments are helpful for having an idea what to expect.