What About The Ocean Princess?

[gottagocit]

We are considering balcony cabin on the Ocean for our next voyage later this year but would like to know more about the layout of the ship. She looks and sounds like a fine ship from what I've read.

 

Our previous cruises with Princess have been on large ships like the Island, Diamond, Emerald and Ruby. On these ships the caribe deck offer larger balconies and sometimes easy access to the 'secret' observation area on the bow. There are other things that make each of them unique of course but they can seem crowded at times and in some areas with so many passengers.

 

For those who've sailed on the Ocean, which deck is your favorite?

 

Which deck, if any, offer the largest balconies or cabins for that matter?

 

Is there a special outside viewing area for watching the ships arrival or departure from ports?

 

What about other special areas not found on the larger ships?

 

It looks like all of the mini suites are on deck 8 (I think it was 8). Are they all the same or are some better?

 

We are cautiously optimistic about experiencing a smaller ship on our next voyage after reading about how much so many love them here on the boards.

 

Thanks for any advice.

Chris

Edited February 13, 2014 by gottagocit

[Pia1913]

We are considering balcony cabin on the Ocean for our next voyage later this year but would like to know more about the layout of the ship. She looks and sounds like a fine ship from what I've read.

 

Our previous cruises with Princess have been on large ships like the Island, Diamond, Emerald and Ruby. On these ships the caribe deck offer larger balconies and sometimes easy access to the 'secret' observation area on the bow. There are other things that make each of them unique of course but they can seem crowded at times and in some areas with so many passengers.

 

For those who've sailed on the Ocean, which deck is your favorite?

Deck 5 has all the action; deck 10 has a lounge.

 

Which deck, if any, offer the largest balconies or cabins for that matter?

Doesn't matter

 

Is there a special outside viewing area for watching the ships arrival or departure from ports?

 

What about other special areas not found on the larger ships?

 

It looks like all of the mini suites are on deck 8 (I think it was 8). Are they all the same or are some better?

AFAIK, all the same

 

We are cautiously optimistic about experiencing a smaller ship on our next voyage after reading about how much so many love them here on the boards.

 

Thanks for any advice.

Chris

 

You get from here to there in two minutes. There really isn't a special area, though the library is a large beautiful room. Everything is small; casino is tiny and sits right in the middle of the passageway. We have been on this ship and her sister (Pacific) for close to 200 days. It's a different kind of experience.

 

We board the Ocean again for 30 days on May 7th.

[flamomo]

It was several years ago that I was on the Ocean Princess back when she was still the Tahitian Princess, but we had a mini on deck 8 ..... 8041 ..... and it was wonderful. The mini cabin is more spacious than the minis on the bigger Princess ships, and is almost a square space. In addition to the built-in desk/dresser set-up and the beds, there was a sofa, coffee table, 2 armchairs, a small table between the armchairs, and a floor lamp. And there was still plenty of room to move around in the cabin!

The bathroom is also larger than those in the bigger ships minis. The balconies are not any deeper than the standard balconies, but that is just the configuration of these 2 particular ships.

 

About 6 months ago I cruised on the Pacific Princess in an oceanview cabin that had a porthole instead of a window, way down on deck 3, and even that cabin was roomier than the usual inside/OV cabin on the bigger ships!

 

The Pacific and the Ocean are wonderful "little white ladies" (the nickname one of the Captains used for them), and I plan to cruise on both of them again!!

Edited February 13, 2014 by flamomo

[paul929207]

We love the Ocean Princess. We always get a balcony on deck 7 midship. That way there are cabins above and below us.

[caribill]

You can see pictures of the Ocean Princess (from when she was the Tahitian Princess) at http://fp.caribill.com/

[twiggycat]

Thanks for the photos.

 

Does anyone know about suite 7004? or 7005?

 

We are sailing on Aug.3!!!

 

Thanks

[vinonme2]

We have a hold on a BC balcony cabin on Deck 6, mid-ship on the Ocean Princess. I've checked different decks and categories and it seems the balconies are very small. The square footage listed for this category is 32 square feet. Seems the mini-suites (48 sq. ft.) are sold out.

 

Would really appreciate feedback from anyone who has sailed this ship (or Pacific Princess) with that balcony category and square footage. Was there enough room for 2 large adults? Anything you can tell me will be greatly appreciated!

 

We like the itinerary and my husband has a mobility issue so we are trying a small ship.

 

Thanks!

[gottagocit]

You can see pictures of the Ocean Princess (from when she was the Tahitian Princess) at http://fp.caribill.com/

 

Thanks Caribill for the photos. They're very interesting.

[gottagocit]

You get from here to there in two minutes. There really isn't a special area, though the library is a large beautiful room. Everything is small; casino is tiny and sits right in the middle of the passageway. We have been on this ship and her sister (Pacific) for close to 200 days. It's a different kind of experience.

 

We board the Ocean again for 30 days on May 7th.

 

I did see a few photos of the library and other common areas and they are indeed beautiful. The DW and I are thinking it would be a nice change to try a smaller ship but will probably keep the length down to around 10-12 days on the first try just in case we find it a little too small for a longer voyage.

[paul929207]

32 square feet for the balcony seems about right. Cabin is about 8 feet wide and the balcony about 4 feet deep.

[jfgdbg]

Caribill, Thanks for the wonderful pictures. They really got me in the mood for our cruise on the Ocean this fall. A few years back we were on the "Little Royal" for a total of 38 days and really thought she was wonderful. Dorie

[suzski]

We did a 12 day cruise on the Pacific Princess two years ago and LOVED it! We were really active in the roll call and set up a bunch of tours with members of the roll call in advance. By the second day, the waiters knew what drink my husband wanted, and it really felt "comfortable" - it was just a wonderful experience. We definitely look forward to sailing on one of the small ships again! By the way, we stayed in an oceanview which has a bit of a windowseat...I loved sitting up there and writing in my journal waiting for the ship to pull away from the pier at the end of a port visit.

[ontheweb]

What can you tell me about the inside cabins on the Ocean? We are booked on one. We always book insides because DW finds that the absolute dark helps her sleep. (We did once get upgraded to an obstructed view on the HAL Noordam.)

 

The other Princess ships we have sailed were much larger, the Star and the Golden. The smallest ship we have sailed so far is the Norwegian Crown (since sold.) The largest was the Norwegian Epic.

[shellbeachjim]

The Pacific and the Ocean are wonderful "little white ladies" (the nickname one of the Captains used for them), and I plan to cruise on both of them again!!

Actually, Captain Ravera referred to the Ocean Princess as the Beautiful White Lady. Some posters use the acronym BWL. The Ocean Princess and the Pacific Princess are also known as the "little girls". It's a term I didn't create, but use regularly. ;)

 

For a balcony stateroom (not a mini or full suite) the largest balconies are probably the aft cabins. There are 2 of them on each of decks 6, 7 and 8.

[WatchHill]

If you can, go for a mini on deck 8. Plenty of room, large sofa, two chairs and small table, plus a chair at the vanity table. Ample storage in the closet and drawers, plus the two side night stands. The balcony had two chairs, two foot rests and a small table. Plenty of room for us. We were in 8020.

 

We had a great table, #91, aft - looking out at the wake.

 

Just returned last night, ahead of the snow storm, from a cruise on the OP, HI to Tahiti. Being on a small ship brought back memories of times when most ships were similar in size. It's not all glitz, but I don't need that. Selecting the OP was primarily for the ports of call.

 

Darcy

[montu6]

We are in 7007 for out TA. It is a premium ocean view. We usually do balconies, but this one looked intriguing. Has anyone ever stayed in this cabin? What can you tell me about it?

Thanks

[thyme2go]

We have a hold on a BC balcony cabin on Deck 6, mid-ship on the Ocean Princess. I've checked different decks and categories and it seems the balconies are very small. The square footage listed for this category is 32 square feet. Seems the mini-suites (48 sq. ft.) are sold out.

 

Would really appreciate feedback from anyone who has sailed this ship (or Pacific Princess) with that balcony category and square footage. Was there enough room for 2 large adults? Anything you can tell me will be greatly appreciated!

 

We like the itinerary and my husband has a mobility issue so we are trying a small ship.

 

Thanks!

 

We've been in 6053 on the Ocean P. and 7007 (large OV) on the Pacific P. Both were great rooms. The balcony is not that small, and may even be helpful if mobility is an issue. The shower is tight and there is a small step into the bathroom--there is a loveseat which is nice in a balcony room. We enjoyed it! Also, you are very close to the MDR (down one level and back) and Buffet (up a few levels and back)........elevators are close by. I'm debating if we even want to try the bigger ships....we love the little girls/crew/itineraries!!

Edited February 13, 2014 by thyme2go

[vinonme2]

Thank you all for your responses, we enjoyed hearing about your thoughts on the Ocean Princess.

 

Caribill, loved looking at all the pictures. We like a dining room table for 2 but didn't notice any. Also enjoyed in particular, the casino pictures, as I like to give my donation ;) every night.

 

The ship looks like someone's beautiful home.

 

I measured off 4'x8' in our living room to give us an idea of the balcony size and it seemed very tight but your balcony pictures gave us a better idea of the size and maybe it would work. We book Caribe deck on Princess and guess we are spoiled by the size of those balconies.

 

Thyme2go, we have a hold on cabin 6060 - very close to the cabin you had. Agree with you on it being a great location with the dining room, buffet, and elevator being so very convenient. It would have been perfect to get Deck 7 but cabin availability wasn't good. We book port aft cabins near elevators on every ship we sail and it always works out well.

 

We're hesitant to book anything on Deck 8 because of the pool, buffet, and public areas all on the deck above. We also need shower only (no tub) and the mini-suites all have the combo.

 

We have till tomorrow to choose between the Ocean Princess 12/19 cruise and the Hal Amsterdam 12/22 cruise. On the Amsterdam, the balcony is 70SF and the cabin is larger, but is more forward on the ship (we prefer aft). It's larger in size and carries about double the passengers as does the Ocean. We sail both lines, so for this cruise, it's a matter of which ship.

 

It's going to be a sleepless night!

[shellbeachjim]

We're hesitant to book anything on Deck 8 because of the pool, buffet, and public areas all on the deck above. We also need shower only (no tub) and the mini-suites all have the combo.

We've been on Deck 8 without noise issues, however we were not below the buffet. We usually try to get the aft cabins on Deck 6 (6090 and 6093), but they usually sell pretty quickly.

[SoBaycruiser]

We've spent about 75 days total on the Ocean Princess or equivalent sister ships. We love the smaller R-ships. The balcony isn't large but it's big enough. I think it helps that instead of clear plexiglass or something similar it has the steel bars. You can put your feet on the bar and it feels like more room. The room itself has a love seat and tiny coffee table which is really nice.

 

The atmosphere is very intimate. You meet people and see them over and over again. You get to know a lot of the crew.

 

I like the setup for the buffet much better than the big ships. I also think the forward lounge on deck 10 forward beats anything on the larger ships because you have a great view looking forward. Most of the lounges (except Skywalkers) are in the bowels of the large ships. When traveling in scenic areas, this is a great place to be and enjoy the view.

 

I think the items I miss most on the the small ships is the large walk in closet area and a good hair dryer. Other than that I think you'll love the ship.

 

 

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[casavaha]

We booked cabin 6071 on the OP for Christmas, 12/19/14. After cruising alot on the

STAR, Golden and Sapphire. We are looking forward to a smaller ship. I am sure

there will be some things we will miss from the large ships but you can't always find

perfection. With us it is the band for dancing. We dance every night, do not go to

shows. I am not a big fan of the Carribean having been to most of the islands. However,

this cruise does go to some unusual ones. The weather should be warm.

 

Greg

[goodie2shoes]

We have been on the Ocean Princess and the Amsterdam - both for Alaska Cruises. There is no question in my mind about which is best! It's the Ocean Princess all the way!!!

 

We also just came back from a 12 day cruise on the Azamara Quest, which is another of the "R" ships, exactly like the OP. We were in 8059, which is right below the door to the buffet. We had some noise now and then, but it was not a problem, and we hardly noticed it. It did not interfere with our sleep at any time.

[vinonme2]

We have been on the Ocean Princess and the Amsterdam - both for Alaska Cruises. There is no question in my mind about which is best! It's the Ocean Princess all the way!!!

 

We also just came back from a 12 day cruise on the Azamara Quest, which is another of the "R" ships, exactly like the OP. We were in 8059, which is right below the door to the buffet. We had some noise now and then, but it was not a problem, and we hardly noticed it. It did not interfere with our sleep at any time.

 

 

What was it about the Ocean Princess that was better than the Amsterdam? I'm just trying to decide between both ships and would like to hear your thoughts on each ship.

[caribill]

We booked cabin 6071 on the OP for Christmas, 12/19/14. After cruising alot on the STAR, Golden and Sapphire. We are looking forward to a smaller ship. I am sure there will be some things we will miss from the large ships but you can't always find

perfection. With us it is the band for dancing. We dance every night, do not go to shows. I am not a big fan of the Carribean having been to most of the islands. However, this cruise does go to some unusual ones. The weather should be warm.

 

Greg

 

Every time I have been on the Ocean or Pacific there has been music to dance to in the lounge on deck 10. May not be all evening long and often not well attended. The "band" for this is usually 2 or three people.

 

Also, at least in the past, there have been evenings when the show band plays music for about 20 minutes before the shows.

[mrsrev2012]

We've been on Deck 8 without noise issues, however we were not below the buffet. We usually try to get the aft cabins on Deck 6 (6090 and 6093), but they usually sell pretty quickly.

 

 

We cruised in 2013 on Pacific Princess. Cabin 8000 was underneath the Internet cafe and very quiet. Loved the location. Wished we could have got similar for our Ocean Princess cruise this year, but all that area was booked :(

 

 

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