Another Great Cruise on The Island

[ahracer]

Just got off this morning and killing time at the airport.

 

This was our third cruise on the Island and we were not disappointed. The hull needs a good sanding and fresh coat of paint but you only notice that when you are off the ship looking at it. On board everything was in fine condition.

 

Embarkation was painless, we arrived right about about 11:00 and had one couple in front of us in the preferred line. We boarded at 11:45 and went straight to cabin to drop bags.

 

If anybody ever forgets to pack pants you will not find anything but sweat pants in the onboard shops. I had to wait until day 3 when we stopped in Aruba until I could buy some. Luckily I rented a tux so I was able to wear those pants the first nights.

 

Booked our cruise almost a year in advance and still did not get out table preference. Had to go see the maître de to get reassigned. Was surprised to find the dining room was half empty since this wasn't a full cruise. Don't understand how we don't get our requested table size when the dining room is half empty...

 

We had great weather except for showers in Jamaica.

 

Aruba- We did a dive through Princess. They use Red Sail as the operator. They were adequate and dives were nice. Equipment wasn't the greatest but it worked.

 

Cartegena - Walked through the cruise terminal and picked up a $20pp tour. There were 8 total in the van and tour was about 3 hours. Interesting city but it was hot. The cruise terminal has a wildlife area that was very nice. Parrots, toucans, deer, monkeys and other creatures roaming about.

 

Canal - After reaching Gatun Lake we took the small boat tour that takes you through the remaining locks to the Pacific. It was ok. Glad we got to the other locks but they really cram why to many people on a small boat.

 

Limon - just walked around town.

 

Ocho Rios - just walked around for a bit and went back to the ship. With the pullout of RCCL from the Ocho Rios things have gone down hill. Most of the shops were vacant. We we told that night that was the last stop there for the Island and future cruises will be going to Grand Cayman.

 

Disembarkation - We were in self help 2 group and we were at the airport and through security at 8:15am.

 

We had the shampoo dispenser installed a few days into the cruise . Also balcony furniture was replaced on our first port day.

 

The gym is small on the Island and there is know place to stretch.

 

Food was okay. The Dining Room was good most nights but they were hit or miss with some dishes. Horizon Court was pretty bad. Breakfast was okay but lunch.......I ate Pizza most days.

 

We spent most of our time relaxing in the Lotus Pool area and didn't really participate in many activities.

 

The Island Princess is still our favorite ship!

 

Scott

[geoherb]

Thanks for posting. We took this itinerary on the Island three years ago and had a great time. We stayed on the ship in Jamaica. Been there, don't that, don't want to do it again. It's great to hear that Princess is changing future itineraries to Grand Cayman instead.

[akeasley]

Glad to hear you had a good time. When I did this cruise, the stop was Grand Cayman instead of Ocho Rios. The Island is a wonderful ship!

[simbasmom]

Glad to hear good things about your cruise on the Island. I'm just jealous that it means you got to see our son before Mom did. Ironically, he also did a dive in Aruba. Is that a big dive location? LOL about the sweat pants. I wonder how many people are running around the ship in sweat pants. And if any end up wearing sweat pants on formal nights. I hope not!

[paul929207]

Thanks for the comments. We are looking forward to the full transit on the Island in March.

[paul929207]

Glad to hear good things about your cruise on the Island. I'm just jealous that it means you got to see our son before Mom did. Ironically, he also did a dive in Aruba. Is that a big dive location? LOL about the sweat pants. I wonder how many people are running around the ship in sweat pants. And if any end up wearing sweat pants on formal nights. I hope not!

Simbasmom,

 

Will your son still be on in March? As I recall he is a musician. If he will be on, what is his name? I know I had it a year or two ago, but have forgotten it.

[JimAOk1945]

ahracer

 

Thanks for your post. We are sailing on the Island next year. Your post provided me with answers to some of the questions I had.

[caribill]

Booked our cruise almost a year in advance and still did not get out table preference. Had to go see the maître de to get reassigned. Was surprised to find the dining room was half empty since this wasn't a full cruise. Don't understand how we don't get our requested table size when the dining room is half empty...

 

Some TAs do not explain all the dining options to clients and just automatically sign them up for a fixed seating time. This can lead to many unused seats when the passengers would rather eat at the buffet each night.

 

Also balcony furniture was replaced on our first port day.

 

Was the new balcony furniture better than what it replaced?

 

 

 

see above in red

[ahracer]

see above in red

 

It wasn't that they were eating at the buffet. The second seating was only about half full. The other sections were closed off from night one. The maître de was going to look into what happened but I never heard back from him. It was kind of funny because he immediately went into his explanation that there were more request for a table for two then they had available. Then when he noticed it was for the late seating he laughed and said that's a different story I have all kinds of room.

 

The new furniture was nice looking but it wasn't the most comfortable to sit in for long.

[gingin410]

We also just got off ship early this am...but only had a four hour drive to our home in The Villages, FL, where temps are in the 70's. We are anxious to hear from friends who had to change planes in New York and others flying into Dallas. Hoping the bad weather elsewhere hasn't left many folks stranded in FLL. Disembarkation went well, just running a bit late due to lack of open passport-control stations. Next Princess cruise, will try to pack for walk-off.

 

It was so much fun having a chance to meet so many of you in person. We surely have made some new lifetime friends and are looking forward to visiting each-other's homes. Plus, there's always another cruise where we can meet again as we are already starting to look ahead to the ext cruise.

 

We did anytime dining and loved it. Another member and my husband took the "Ultimate Ship Tour" where they learned the total number of passengers was jut over 1500 which is why we didn't have to wait in line anywhere on ship-board or have problems finding a deck chair at the pools.

 

If you've never taken the "Ultimate Ship Tour" it came with a small group viewing of several locations behind the scenes. Also, for your $150, you get a plush Princess bathrobe, a Princess chef's apron, 4 pictures, a notepad from printing shop with your name and name of ship, early sampling of that evening's desert..and, lastly (still to come) a letter from he Captain. It was well-worth the expense.

 

Special thanks to Janet Moss who arranged our meet-and-mingle. And, although we did opt to any of the small group excursions she had arranged, we leaned a good lesson. I never knew you could find excursion reviews on TripAdvisor as she did so have added that to my storehouse of important websites when cruising.

Edited December 10, 2013 by gingin410

[gingin410]

Somehow managed to post twice when editing...sorry all!

Edited December 10, 2013 by gingin410
Duplicated post in error

[simbasmom]

Simbasmom,

 

Will your son still be on in March? As I recall he is a musician. If he will be on, what is his name? I know I had it a year or two ago, but have forgotten it.

 

As of now, he's not scheduled to be on in March-his contract should end in February. However, he told me today that so far there's no one listed on the computer as his replacement, which means he could be asked to extend his contract although they still have plenty of time to schedule his replacement.

[paul929207]

As of now, he's not scheduled to be on in March-his contract should end in February. However, he told me today that so far there's no one listed on the computer as his replacement, which means he could be asked to extend his contract although they still have plenty of time to schedule his replacement.

Is his name Matt? I remember we sailed with him a couple of years ago. Maybe on the Dawn around Australia in September/October 2011?

[sawtooth]

We are sailing the Island 1/20/14

Princess site still lists Jamaica as a port of

Call.

I am hesitant to book an excursion if they

are changing ports.

Any other news of this?

[caribill]

We are sailing the Island 1/20/14

Princess site still lists Jamaica as a port of

Call.

I am hesitant to book an excursion if they

are changing ports.

Any other news of this?

 

If you are thinking of a Princess excursion, you can book it and know you will not be charged if they do not go there.

 

If you are thinking of booking a local excursion on your own, just be sure there is no chrage if the ship does not go there. And do not book any that require an advance deposit which is good advice for every port.

Edited December 11, 2013 by caribill

[simbasmom]

Simbasmom,

 

Will your son still be on in March? As I recall he is a musician. If he will be on, what is his name? I know I had it a year or two ago, but have forgotten it.

 

My name remembering skill is totally shot. Yes, he's Matt the musician from the Dawn/ fall 2011.

[paul929207]

Is his last name the same as yours? I still have your email from 2 years ago, so no need to post your last name. I will try again to find him if he is on in March.

[simbasmom]

Is his last name the same as yours? I still have your email from 2 years ago, so no need to post your last name. I will try again to find him if he is on in March.

 

Yes, it is the same and although he's not scheduled to be on in March, as he's learned over the years is that schedules change.

[ahracer]

One thing I didn't mention but the more I think about it still bothers me. The Maitre De and Head Chef were inseparable. During the dinner hours they would be walking around the public areas and we saw them dining together at Sabatini's and the Bayou almost nightly. The only place there weren't found was the dining room except for the last night.

 

I think it is great that they are out and about for passengers to see but......

 

My chilled seafood appetizer is room temperature more than one night, my medium steak is well done, my souffle is the consistency of a muffin most nights.

 

Perhaps if they were in the dining room and kitchen during meal service they would catch these issues. I kept waiting for Robert Irvine or Gordon Ramsay to burst in and start yelling :)

[sunshine nana]

We found out we had to tip the M'D to get a table for two with anytime dining even though we were there when they opened. We were told there were no 2 tops when we could see many. Others went past us to "their" tables. We pressed the issue, did not tip and eventually prevailed. I complained here on CC and there was a long thread on it. I'm wondering if that was your experience? Hope it was not. Hope there was some action take by Princess. The cruise was great otherwise.

[ahracer]

We found out we had to tip the M'D to get a table for two with anytime dining even though we were there when they opened. We were told there were no 2 tops when we could see many. Others went past us to "their" tables. We pressed the issue, did not tip and eventually prevailed. I complained here on CC and there was a long thread on it. I'm wondering if that was your experience? Hope it was not. Hope there was some action take by Princess. The cruise was great otherwise.

 

No, we did not have to tip. In fact the Maître De was very pleasant. My only question is why our seating preference was ignored when there were plenty of tables available in our seating. Note this isn't just a Princess problem I encountered it on other cruise lines also.