Going to go outside my box and try Princess...

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for coming back and writing your review of your Princess cruise.

Glad you had a wonderful time.

[cruz chic]

Thx for coming back and letting us know. I think that Princess puts out a very good product, some ways much better than Hal. I like the towel animals too and miss them on Princess. I believe they are replacing beds on their ships. Mine on the sapphire was really comfy. One guy cracked a joke on the Princess board saying that Princess doesn't have bed bugs because the beds are too hard:D.

[canadianbear]

Great report. Interesting about the buffet being open 5am to midnight - what kind of service or food did they have between mealtimes?

 

I guess the way they did it was from 5-6am it was a continental type breakfast. From 6am-11:30am it was full breakfast then went right into lunch from 11:30-3:30. From 3:30-5:30 it was more of a light snack type stuff but lots to choose from and then full dinner from 5:30-11pm. 11pm-midnight again more of a light snack but lots available. They always had their dessert bar open there as well which had pastries, cookies, etc. They would close one side of the buffet during slower times (could be because again we were sailing way below full capacity).

 

I do know that my husband was disappointed there was no "omelet" station and I missed having eggs Benedict (which I have once usually per cruise on HAL) but trust me, we survived!:rolleyes:

[canadianbear]

Thx for coming back and letting us know. I think that Princess puts out a very good product, some ways much better than Hal. I like the towel animals too and miss them on Princess. I believe they are replacing beds on their ships. Mine on the sapphire was really comfy. One guy cracked a joke on the Princess board saying that Princess doesn't have bed bugs because the beds are too hard:D.

 

ha ha, that's hilarious-I would agree about the bed bug joke!!:) We were content on the Star so would certainly not hesitate to sail again on Princess. We really liked that they had a lot of pools too.

[Sage]

We tried our first Princess cruise in February on the Grand from SFO to Hawaii and back. We loved embarkation, very quick and easy. The service was wonderful, and the suite very comfortable. The mix of passengers was great, and we loved the Chef's table and would do that again and again. The thing that impressed us the most was the amount of space between tables in all the dining venues. There was also a waiter when ever you needed one, and the glasses were always filled promptly. HAL needs to step up their wait staff and add more waiters.The crew was very friendly, and there always seemed something to do onboard even on sea days. We will definitely sail Princess again.

[canadianbear]

We tried our first Princess cruise in February on the Grand from SFO to Hawaii and back. We loved embarkation, very quick and easy. The service was wonderful, and the suite very comfortable. The mix of passengers was great, and we loved the Chef's table and would do that again and again. The thing that impressed us the most was the amount of space between tables in all the dining venues. There was also a waiter when ever you needed one, and the glasses were always filled promptly. HAL needs to step up their wait staff and add more waiters.The crew was very friendly, and there always seemed something to do onboard even on sea days. We will definitely sail Princess again.

 

That's good to know about the service because we really wondered if it was because our ship was so empty. I drink a LOT of water and they were always very quick at keeping it topped up when we were dining. Since this was just a short 5 nighter for us I am certainly willing to try a longer one. I think our extended family would also have more fun on Princess with more to do.

[cruz chic]

We tried our first Princess cruise in February on the Grand from SFO to Hawaii and back. We loved embarkation, very quick and easy. The service was wonderful, and the suite very comfortable. The mix of passengers was great, and we loved the Chef's table and would do that again and again. The thing that impressed us the most was the amount of space between tables in all the dining venues. There was also a waiter when ever you needed one, and the glasses were always filled promptly. HAL needs to step up their wait staff and add more waiters.The crew was very friendly, and there always seemed something to do onboard even on sea days. We will definitely sail Princess again.

 

The service in the MDR is so much better on Princess then it is on HAL IMO. On my last Princess cruise I asked the waiter in anytime dining how many pax they take care of. He said 18. Remember that Princess takes ALL orders for alcohol (wine in bottle and glasses as well as drinks). On my last on HAL cruise I asked my waiter in open dining on HAL and he said he takes care of 22. They only get wine by the glass and drinks. To me, that would put them pretty even. I would love to know why HAL struggles so much when the service seems so much more polished and even on Princess. I know that someone is going to come back an say they have had excellent service on HAL. I suspect those folks are probably dining later and may be at a table for 2. You could have shot a cannon thru the mdr at 7:45 on my last HAL cruise and not hit anyone. The service should be awesome at that point.

[cruisemom42]

I do know that my husband was disappointed there was no "omelet" station and I missed having eggs Benedict (which I have once usually per cruise on HAL) but trust me, we survived!:rolleyes:

 

They do have an omelet station but it is kind of tricky to find it; it's located nearby but not in the main area of the buffet. Too bad you didn't find it. Next time....:)

[SeagoingMom]

Thanks for updating us on your experience! Our embarkation and disembarkation experiences (Caribbean Princess, 3014 pax, sailing full) were slow and crowded (the opposite of yours), so I think in this case "size," as in number of pax on board, matters! And pax on a ship sailing half full certainly had better get stellar service (unless there are proportionally fewer crew members on board? (Perhaps someone can enlighten us about whether a crew reduction is what might be expected on a repo?) Our Anytime Dining and cabin service on the CP was very variable in quality.

 

It sounds from your description that you may have found yourself another cruise line to make you happy! That's great ! Choices are good! And I think you have managed to make both Princess and HAL aficionados happy -- a rare thing on these boards! Bravo!

 

Oh, I just remembered -- I had wanted to ask you whether your Emerald deck balcony was completely or partially covered? On CP, I think Emerald deck had partially covered balconies (but I am not sure...) I am wondering if the deck plan is different on your ship vs ours (as I imagine it must be...)

Edited May 12, 2014 by SeagoingMom

[Mary Ellen]

We tried our first Princess cruise in February on the Grand from SFO to Hawaii and back. We loved embarkation, very quick and easy. The service was wonderful, and the suite very comfortable. The mix of passengers was great, and we loved the Chef's table and would do that again and again. The thing that impressed us the most was the amount of space between tables in all the dining venues. There was also a waiter when ever you needed one, and the glasses were always filled promptly. HAL needs to step up their wait staff and add more waiters.The crew was very friendly, and there always seemed something to do onboard even on sea days. We will definitely sail Princess again.

I'm glad you enjoyed your Hawaii cruise. I'd only heard the opinions of one of your traveling companions. The cutbacks in HAL's staffing in the dining venues is really apparent compared to Princess. Like you, we enjoy the extra space between tables. That's one of the things we REALLY don't like about HAL's newer ships, the MDR tables are crammed in there.

 

I've been hearing that Princess had been getting new (better) beds. My recent Princess cruise had a wonderful bed, much better than the one I had last year. I don't know if the improvement was due to the new mattress type, being on a different ship, or that I had a suite vs. the inside cabin earlier.

 

I did like my Princess suite much better than the Deluxe/Neptune suite we've had on HAL. The bathroom was much nicer and well thought out, being able to access from both the bedroom and living room. I also liked that we could pull a curtain to separate the bedroom from the living area. Having separate doors to the balcony from both areas was a nice touch.

 

As to inside cabins (we obviously book a wide range of cabins depending upon our needs and the particular cruise) I don't have a clear cut preference. The HAL cabin is larger (except for those nasty, teeny, tiny insides on the upper decks of the newer ships) than those on Princess. We like having a sofa on HAL that you don't get on Princess until you book a mini-suite. Our inside on the Emerald Princess had a much more usable closet than we've had on HAL.

 

Right now we have cruises booked on both lines.

[sunsetbeachgal]

We really do many more Princess cruises, just because of loyalty status, but love HAL and think they have some great itineraries, which is why we have a September cruise booked and most likely another HAL in the near future.

 

I love the subtle differences in the two lines and a cruise on either line is just dandy with me!:o

[Sage]

We really enjoyed so many aspects of Princess, and one of those was the onboard credit for military service. I also loved the items in the shops and found them much more upscale and desirable items than on HAL. They also have the movies under the stars, and the staff is so friendly. Another impressive moment came when a friend had a problem with her shower, and within the hour not only had they come to look at it, but it was fixed. Food and service in the speciality restaurants was also delicious. We will definitely book again on Princess.

[canadianbear]

They do have an omelet station but it is kind of tricky to find it; it's located nearby but not in the main area of the buffet. Too bad you didn't find it. Next time....:)

 

There were no omelets anywhere that we could see on anyone's plates. Apparently you can order one in the MDR but not good reports on those. Someone also said it might be possible to ask the staff behind the buffet and they could be made in the back but we didn't bother. Just used to the omelet station on HAL which is very good.

 

The only other station in the area of the buffet was the station that had the muffins, cookies, pastries. Next time, on a longer cruise, we will find out though for sure!

[canadianbear]

They do have an omelet station but it is kind of tricky to find it; it's located nearby but not in the main area of the buffet. Too bad you didn't find it. Next time....:)

 

I mentioned your post to my husband...and it got us thinking...they had a "station" where they had fried eggs....wonder if that is what could be the omelet station on a longer cruise maybe?

[iancal]

No question, Princess has a first rate product that stands up to comparison with any of the mass market lines that we have experienced. We are looking forward to our next scheduled cruise-this time on Princess..unless we snag something else in the meantime.

 

And you are correct, they certainly do know how to handle evening anytime dining in the MDR.

Edited May 13, 2014 by iancal

[pv girl]

I mentioned your post to my husband...and it got us thinking...they had a "station" where they had fried eggs....wonder if that is what could be the omelet station on a longer cruise maybe?

 

Last summer in Med on Ruby Princess - the omelet "station" was at the rear of the buffet by the hot foods. There was a waiter with a pad to check the boxes on what you wanted on the omelet. He gave you a receipt, gave the order to a cook in back, and you went on to your seat. You gave the receipt to the waiter in the seated area who gets coffee, juice, etc. and he went to get the omelet when it was finished and brought it to your seat. Super service - no waiting in line! Don't know how it works on other Princess ships, as this was our only Princess trip.

[TracieABD]

What a wonderful world when you have two great cruiselines to choose from!

 

I am so glad that you enjoyed your first Princess cruise!

[cruz chic]

What a wonderful world when you have two great cruiselines to choose from!

 

I am so glad that you enjoyed your first Princess cruise!

 

Long time, no see. Don't be a stranger.

[RDC1]

I mentioned your post to my husband...and it got us thinking...they had a "station" where they had fried eggs....wonder if that is what could be the omelet station on a longer cruise maybe?

 

On all of the Princess cruises I have been on (from 3 day to 20 day) they have always had a place where you go and place an order for eggs (fried, omelet, poached, etc). Not very visible, but it is there once you know what to look for. You place your order, they go in the back and make it.

Edited May 13, 2014 by RDC1

[Sage]

While we were on the Grand, there was a station to order eggs any way you wanted them They had two different kinds of scrambled eggs every day on the line as well.