Crown Princess Ship Review - California Coastal Oct 4th

[suzyed]

Please please please let us know how it goes on the 28 day cruise to the South Pacific.

 

I hope it's great!

 

Bon voyage:)

 

Thank you!! Will do!

[suzyed]

Thanks all for your reassurances! I have always said that if you don't have a great time on vacation, it's your own fault! LOL!

I also appreciate the OP review, it is always nice to get another point of view! With only a few days to go and the excitement of packing, I just got taken aback a bit! But I KNOW we will have a good time and we will try to see only the positives and TRY to look the other way on the negatives!! In any case, nothing is going to ruin this for me! (Short of a Costa Concordia situation....Knocking on wood)!!

 

My sincere hope is that Princess did see the review and have taken the comments seriously and are trying to fix the problems!!

 

I am so excited!! This will be our longest cruise yet.....trip of a lifetime!!:D

[MJSailors]

My DH and I sailed on the Crown for our 25th anniversary in 2008.

We truly enjoyed the ship then.

We were so pleased with that 9 day cruise to the Caribbean from NYC,we chose to repeat that cruise in July 2009.

We enjoyed the Sanctuary and thought the Piazza was so beautiful!

Fast forward to early December 2013.

We had been so busy renovating a newly purchased condo in Florida, we thought we would take a break and cruise on the Crown to the Southern Caribbean out of

nearby Ft.Lauderdale.

While we couldn't put a finger on one particular reason,we felt that the cruise did not meet with our experience of 2008 and 2009.

Most of the crew we encountered were friendly and helpful,particularly in the HC and the International Café.

Our room steward was efficient, but seemed overloaded and pressured to do his job.

The age demographic was older than us,we are early 60s, but most on board seemed to be having a pleasant time.

However ,for us, the cruise was meh.

We found the shows to be lacking and other entertainment in the day to be a stretch.

Horse racing in he Piazza ?

What happened to the musical entertainers during the day?

The Ye Olde Pub Night was fun, but having the cruise director and her staff put on a show instead of booking some quality entertainment for the Explorers Lounge seemed to be a result of Princess cutting expenses.

We have enjoyed cruising since 1985, but that most recent cruise experience has made us consider to step away from cruises for awhile and enjoy other forms of relaxing vacations.

I do hope that Princess can improve the cruise experience for future passengers on the Crown.

We still think that she is a lovely ship.

She deserves to be maintained effectively and to have the ambiance and quality level

reinstated to past cruising years so that passengers will want to return to cruise on her.

I will be interested to read reviews of passengers on the future 28 day cruises on the Crown.

Bon Voyage to all those planning these travels!

[JimmyVWine]

My DH and I sailed on the Crown for our 25th anniversary in 2008.

We truly enjoyed the ship then.

We were so pleased with that 9 day cruise to the Caribbean from NYC,we chose to repeat that cruise in July 2009.

We enjoyed the Sanctuary and thought the Piazza was so beautiful!

Fast forward to early December 2013.

We had been so busy renovating a newly purchased condo in Florida, we thought we would take a break and cruise on the Crown to the Southern Caribbean out of

nearby Ft.Lauderdale.

While we couldn't put a finger on one particular reason,we felt that the cruise did not meet with our experience of 2008 and 2009.

Most of the crew we encountered were friendly and helpful,particularly in the HC and the International Café.

Our room steward was efficient, but seemed overloaded and pressured to do his job.

The age demographic was older than us,we are early 60s, but most on board seemed to be having a pleasant time.

However ,for us, the cruise was meh.

We found the shows to be lacking and other entertainment in the day to be a stretch.

Horse racing in he Piazza ?

What happened to the musical entertainers during the day?

The Ye Olde Pub Night was fun, but having the cruise director and her staff put on a show instead of booking some quality entertainment for the Explorers Lounge seemed to be a result of Princess cutting expenses.

We have enjoyed cruising since 1985, but that most recent cruise experience has made us consider to step away from cruises for awhile and enjoy other forms of relaxing vacations.

I do hope that Princess can improve the cruise experience for future passengers on the Crown.

We still think that she is a lovely ship.

She deserves to be maintained effectively and to have the ambiance and quality level

reinstated to past cruising years so that passengers will want to return to cruise on her.

I will be interested to read reviews of passengers on the future 28 day cruises on the Crown.

Bon Voyage to all those planning these travels!

 

Honestly? Most of the negative changes that you are describing are the result of changes to the cruise industry in general, and Princess in particular, and not changes to the Crown Princess. Staff cutbacks result in stewards being under more pressure. That is fleet-wide, not just on Crown. Decline in entertainment? Again, that is a fleet issue and not a ship issue.

[MJSailors]

Honestly? Most of the negative changes that you are describing are the result of changes to the cruise industry in general, and Princess in particular, and not changes to the Crown Princess. Staff cutbacks result in stewards being under more pressure. That is fleet-wide, not just on Crown. Decline in entertainment? Again, that is a fleet issue and not a ship issue.

 

Agreed, there are cutbacks across the board for all Princess cruises and I assume,most other cruise lines.

So sorry to see these changes that were evident from cruising five years ago to last winter.

Sorry to have experienced them on the Crown. She is a ship that holds many fond memories for us.We were disappointed in the most recent cruise on the Crown.

I was expressing this disappointment as it related to our experience on the Crown Princess.

Perhaps those new to cruising will not realize the decrease in ambiance and quality that was formally a part of a cruise.

As I mentioned in my other post, my DH and I are choosing to step back from cruise vacations for awhile and focus on some land based vacations.

This is our opinion.

Cruises can be a good value vacation that provide ease of travel from port to port.

We have enjoyed cruising for sometime.

Perhaps the economy will improve, perhaps Princess will take into consideration comments on the post cruise surveys so that cruise quality improves for future passengers and perhaps we will return as Princess cruisers.

[chinesecheckers]

Thank you so much for all your reviews and info. My husband and I will be doing our first ever cruise during New Year's Eve on the Crown Princess and despite the cutbacks and repairs needed, we're excited to experience this ship.

 

It's too bad about the mini-golf and basketball areas, though. We were planning on using them. We'll probably still check them out and see for ourselves. Hopefully some repairs will have been made before December comes around or even earlier for the poster who will be doing the 28 day cruise!

 

I am also the type of person who notices things most people do not but I will still try and keep an open mind going in and enjoy the experience as much as possible (my husband will keep me in check on that end anyway hehe).

[Snow cat]

I'll be on my 4th cruise on the Crown next month. I can't imagine not having a good time. However, agreed the mini-golf course is ridiculous - we still manage to play a couple of rounds each cruise and have fun doing so, but its been in the same condition for years.

[Pier Pressure 53]

Just came off of the Crown 7 day coastal on the 11th. Had anytime dining. Called the first night for reservation and no one ever answered. I was told they had 4 lines open but still no answer. Wait time was over 45 minutes the first 2 nights. Hardly anyone had a reservation. No beepers so people just stood in line. Buffet was so full there was no where to sit. I had 83 yr old dad with me so this was very frustrating. After handsome tip to the Maitre d we had a nice table for 2 for the rest of the cruise. We loved our ports of call and had a wonderful cruise but beware of anytime dining on the Crown. I have never waited more than 10 minutes for anytime dining on Celebrity.

 

 

If you don't mind sharing, just curious how much of a tip to the Maitre d to get the table for 2 for the rest of your trip?

[fastscot]

The biggest complaint seems to be the anytime dining. It's the same on all cruise lines with anytime dining. There's an easy way to avoid those problems - Don't go to anytime dining! Go with the fixed early or late seating (late is best) or go to the buffet! We have been on many cruises with Princess on various ships as well as over 35 cruises on Royal Caribbean (lost count) and we do like Princess a lot and have always had a great time on their ships both with just the two of us, or with friends and/or family. Cruising is never perfect but with the right attitude and expectations you will always have a great time. There is no other all-inclusive vacation that can match the value of a cruise!

 

Here's a tip for cruise reviewers. I used to do the occasional review but then I stopped. Doing a review forces you to look for problems so stop doing reviews and stop looking for problems! If a problem comes looking for you then deal with it immediately and politely. Oh, and one last thing - use the cruise critic forums - there is a wealth of information you can search for.

[vickie_bernie]

what a great and thorough review... thanks

 

I was on the Crown for 49 days to South america earlier this year and was on the cruise just prior to yours. I had grapefruit in the buffet the three times I went up there for breakfast. So I am guessing that maybe they ran out.

 

I would have to agree the ship is looking tired and is need of some TLC.

 

I had similar experiences with the Thermal Suite but on a different ship, so many items were broken and when I brought it to the attention of the staff they didn't seem to care. In fact when I was in the suite once a wall trellis that was decoration fell off the wall and hit someone on the heated bench. It just fell off, the poor guy was shocked and had a nasty bump and was bleeding. Help was quick and I hope they took care of the guy. But I thought it was money wasted and not that relaxing.

 

I too found calling the dine line on the first day to be totally useless. I personally don't think they have anyone covering the phone all day. I tried to make reservations at Sabatinis and tried numerous times and even went up to the restaurant but it was not open the first night. I just gave up.

 

I love Adagios, one of my favorite bars on this class of ship.

 

Thanks again

Vickie

 

You can read about my travel week on the Crown in my blog

[pablo222]

The Ye Olde Pub Night was fun, but having the cruise director and her staff put on a show instead of booking some quality entertainment for the Explorers Lounge seemed to be a result of Princess cutting expenses.

 

I remember seeing 'London Pub Night' in about 1990 on the

old Crown Princess. So, I don't think the cruise staff putting

on a show is anything new to cut expenses.

 

There used to be $1 bass ales during the show.

Now, THAT is long gone...

[casinovisitor]

Thanks for your review. I always book the thermal suite no matter how long or short my cruise. I love relaxing on the stone loungers with my kindle and some refreshing cucumber or lemon water and I love the scented scrubs in the steam room. I hope they have the shower situation corrected by the time I cruise because I love that too. LOL :D:D:D:D

[pattimelt]

I will be on the Crown for my first ever Princess cruise in January. This is precisely what I wanted to see!!! I know nothing is perfect. I actually don't want perfect. I want decent. I want to be able to relax in a warm pool (the OP told me where to find it!!), I have more of a clue where to find different food, and I know dinner won't take forever because we have assigned dining (late!). And to know the elevators are slow? THIS is important, since my friend is in a wheelchair and we will have to take her in an elevator everywhere, and we have scheduled activities since this is a group cruise!!

 

I can't wait to be on a different cruise line. I know it will be crowded. I'm ok with crowded. I LIKE people watching! I think it's gonna be a blast!!!

 

This review answered questions I never would have thought to ask!! It's the little things that I forget to ask, and this is wonderful!!!

 

Thanks OP!!!!

 

ps--is it January yet??? :D

[Princess Patches]

I was on the Crown Oct. 4 sailing and my experience was a positive one. I also sailed on the Crown during its inaugural season back in 2006. I was amazed when I boarded at how well the ship had been kept up. It hardly looked different from when I sailed on her in 2006. That is one of the things I think Princess does very well is maintenance of their ships. They are always polishing, replacing carpets, etc. I also did not notice any significant decline in food or dining service. We had traditional dining and our waitstaff was among the best we ever experienced. The food was outstanding as always. We avoid anytime dining due to the waits. We did hear some people complaining about the wait during peak hours at anytime.

 

We had a mini suite on Dolphin deck and the balcony is spacious. You can easily accommodate four people on this balcony. The cabin service was excellent. The Crown is more crowded than other ships due to the extra deck of cabins. The first show was always packed and you had to get there at least 1/2 hour early. The second show was not crowded at all. You could stroll in 5 minutes before show time and sit down front. The Horizon Court was always packed even at off hours. We avoided the buffet due to crowding. We ate all our meals in the dining room and did not find the service unusually slow. Embarkation and disembarkation was smooth and easy. We were on the ship by noon and got off the ship at 8 am. Other than the crowding in the buffet and at the first show, we had no negatives on this cruise.

[HMSDingy]

Wife and I are sailing on the Crown in February for a Mexico cruise. This will be our second as Platinum members and second onboard the Crown. I can honestly say we have never encountered any problems that would ruin or hamper our cruise. Aside form the weather, a cruise is what you make it. Except for our first cruise. we have always had anytime dining, not so much to eat when we wanted to but that we didn't like the hours offered for traditional dining. With anytime dining, we would meet with the Maitre d' or his assistant and settle on a time we liked. This time around we may just opt for traditional just to change. As for rude wait staff, that too we have never encountered. Maybe inexperienced but never rude or hostile. The only time we ever had a rude head waiter was on our Med cruise with another line. I have to also add that IMHO, people should not base their choices on other peoples' cruising experiences. What's that saying..."One man's feast is another man's fodder". Happy cruising everybody!:D

Edited October 21, 2014 by HMSDingy

[fastscot]

Wife and I are sailing on the Crown in February for a Mexico cruise. This will be our second as Platinum members and second onboard the Crown. I can honestly say we have never encountered any problems that would ruin or hamper our cruise. Aside form the weather, a cruise is what you make it. Except for our first cruise. we have always had anytime dining, not so much to eat when we wanted to but that we didn't like the hours offered for traditional dining. With anytime dining, we would meet with the Maitre d' or his assistant and settle on a time we liked. This time around we may just opt for traditional just to change. As for rude wait staff, that too we have never encountered. Maybe inexperienced but never rude or hostile. The only time we ever had a rude head waiter was on our Med cruise with another line. I have to also add that IMHO, people should not base their choices on other peoples' cruising experiences. What's that saying..."One man's feast is another man's fodder". Happy cruising everybody!:D

 

I totally agree! I have however been in the dining room where some of the guests were more than disrespectful to the dining room staff. I usually find that the people who complain the most are often the ones who should look at their own behavior first!

[cruiser1956]

We were on the same October 4th sailing, and I fully agree with the OP's comments. While I love cruising, no matter the cruise line, this was the one and only time I ever walked out of a dinner service. I have always booked late dining. This trip, however, I was with friends that just could not make that 8:15 time after the 2nd night, so off to mytime dining. We were seated right away at a table for 4. Our orders were taken, and the salads and soup were brought right away. Then there was a 45 minute wait, and our main course had not arrived. It did not look like it was ever going to arrive, so we politely told the waitress we were leaving. It is not like there wasn't ample food elsewhere on the ship.

 

The uncomfortable part, was the next night we had reservations at the Crown Grill. Awesome restaurant. But almost impossible to make a reservation. We had the same phone problems as the others here. As we walked in we joked how funny it would be if the waitress from the night before was there. Turns out, she was. And, she was our waitress. I don't know if she remembered us, but you could certainly tell where she belonged. She did an amazing job at the Crown Grill.

 

The pizza on this ship was some of the best ship pizza I have ever eaten. Desserts outshine Royal Caribbean, hands down.

 

This was a wonderful cruise!

[Morebeer]

Took the California coastal cruise right after the 1 the OP started this thread about departing Oct 11th. Overall I guess I was fairly satisfied if only because Princess is the only line offering this itinerary that I could find. Had early assigned evening dining although they say it's 6pm when you get your ship card for the week the time listed on the card is 5:30 not 6 a little early. I also found the service in the Bottecelli dining room to be quite slow. Also found the deserts both in the dining room as well as up in Horizon Court the buffet to be constantly repetitive and not very good. Thought the singers and dancers as well as the comedian to be quite good, however as mentioned previously the theatre ofter filled totally up at least 30 minutes to the the start of every show so if you wanted a seat at the earlier show you needed to arrive quite early. Lastly although I'm in my early 60's I would say the average age of the passengers on our cruise was well past my age. Although my energy level is not what it once was on this cruise I felt like one of the younger guests on the ship. Many to many wheelchairs, walkers, scooters, and people walking with canes made it feel like a retirement home setting rather then a fun vacation.

[Cruise Raider]

I did not feel like your review was anything but a very fair representation of your cruise experience. It did not sound at all like complaining but valid concerns that you had.

 

We had a similar experience on the Crown in its first or second year out, although I do remember the mini golf being in great shape at that time. The service was just so pathetic. We've sailed a lot and usually don't feel this way about our vacation and can let a lot slide but when it keeps building or if they have that "I don't care" attitude, then I do feel slighted out of what I have just paid for, in both vacation time off from work as well as money.

 

So, I wrote to Princess, telling them of my experience and told them that I really wasn't interested in compensation as I didn't plan on returning. Well, they did send me credit for another cruise if I chose to take it (the deficiencies were pretty great on my first cruise on the Crown). I booked the Crown again the following year and had a great time. I felt as though the service was much improved. Now, that was years ago and have another booked on her later this year, so will not set my expectations too high.

 

While I don't usually mind waiting (up to 45 minutes) for anytime dining, Celebrity does do a much, much better job with this. Someone mentioned all cruise lines were the same in this respect but that is just not true. We've never ever ever waited more than 5 minutes for select dining on Celebrity. We found that when we go to dinner at 9:30 PM -- which we kind of like to do, you get seated and served really quickly. They want to be done...and actually have had really good service at that time at night. We even tell them that we won't have dessert but they sometimes insist. So, it doesn't seem to annoy them....but of course, that timing doesn't work for everyone.

 

The one thing I really don't like about some of the Princess ships is that they don't have enough seating for everyone for some of the really popular shows and sometimes you get skunked out of seeing a good show. That really shouldn't be. Then, when people go to the first of the 2 or 3 performances of the same show, they go to the 2nd and 3rd as well...again, not enough seating for those that haven't even seen the performance once. Oh well...don't know what they can do about that but change the venues.