Just Back From Cb Western 8/13-8/20

[dontstopcruisin]

Die Hard Princess fan. Just back from Caribbean Princess. Mixed feelings. Any questions? Review to follow.

[mollyanne]

Why the mixed feelings?:confused:

[myangel]

Oh no! Don't tease us!!! :) we are leaving for the CB Western in three weeks!!!

[Realtor1992]

Just a quick note to say my daughter and I had a WONDERFUL week on the Caribbean Princess! Calm seas and sunny skies during the day made our trip even better!

 

This was my 4th cruise, first on Princess. Overall it was terrific. At $135/pp per day who could complain??!! I could nitpick little things, but why? What a wonderful value considering that included endless meals, entertainment, and view. Our balcony on Caribe 242 was much bigger than we expected and quite a luxury! Having breakfast on our patio was such a treat!

 

My 9-yr old loved having so many kids on the ship and in the kid's camp. We enjoyed traveling with lots of families instead of just cuddling couples.

 

The Caribbean's turquois waters, endless white sandy beaches, and tropical fish are magical. It's been 15 years since I've been there--far too. Too bad we live so far away in Seattle...

 

Would I said with Princess again? In a heartbeat! As good or better than HAL (my previous favorite). Until my next vacation...

 

Debbie

[legalcruiser]

Realtor1992 - we are in C242 next week. I hope you left it in good shape :) Any hints or comments about the cabin? Did you feel a lot of movement? Noise?

[kendon]

dontstopcruisin - just back from the same cruise and I feel the SAME way (although I don't know YOUR details). This was our 9th cruise, 7th with Princess. Die hard Princess fans as well. I had my doubts simply with the size of the ship alone, but wanted to go to the Caribbean again, in the summer, on Princess, and this was it. My general feeling is that it is trying to be a "fun ship". There was a large and loud kid event in the atrium with Pelican Pete, Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, and other characters I don't remember; more announcements than usual; MUTS which drove me crazy with the thunderous roar and videos. Several crew members in higher places resent the fact that there are 600 more passengers with the same number of crew, and I really think it shows. The sophistication of Princess is on the decline I'm afraid. Maybe the way to go is on a smaller ship and a different itinerary. Have the Golden booked for April '06 (again), and I'm hoping for a different experience than this past week. Don't get me wrong, we had some great dining room waiters, met other terrific passengers, and generally had a good time - but this time something was just different. Hip hip hooray for youth security which is a new addition. I travelled with two teenage boys and they were a comforting site.

[kendon]

P.S. Couldn't use the gym. This is the largest Princess ship yet has such a small gym! They also reduced the width of the Promenade deck (one of my favorite places) so it no longer accomodates loungers, only chairs.

[mdmomof7]

When we sailed the 8/6 Eastern cruise earlier this month, DJ Bill, the DJ for the Fusion Night Club and soon to be an entertainer (singer) on board, told us that this past week was the largest number they've ever had. There were 3600 passengers and 1100 of them were between the ages of 3-17. Compare that to a normally full contingent of 3-17 year olds at 600-700 and you can imagine the challenge they had. He was rolling his eyes at the thought.

 

Don't know if this contributed to your mixed feelings, but I'm sure it did at some level at least. I'm sure the staff/crew were stressed to the max!

[kendon]

Princess used to quota the number of children on board. With your numbers, sounds like they didn't this time. We were told that on the 8/6 cruise, the youth security had their hands full with teenage problems. Apparently two "rival" groups formed, and there was trouble. My son is going on 15 years old, and some of the teen activities didn't even start until midnight! Not a good idea for those under 18, I think. That's looking for trouble, not to mention the arguments my son and I had about staying him staying out. After 12 pm, there is alot of hanky panky going on with the kids and underaged drinking (saw it myself). Wise up, Princess, and make everyone's life easier. End the 13-17 yr. old activities at midnight, don't start them at that time.

[NthernLgts]

Love my kids but am VERY glad we are going after school starts back up.

[sunluva7]

Yes, I agree that the teen patrol has their hands full, but responsibility for all these kids and teens running around ultimately belongs to the parents. As parents of teens, and belonging to a family full of high school teachers, we see it all the time - parents who don't set limits. My guess is that in quite a number of cases, the parents are in one cabin, the kids in another, the parents turn in for the night and the kids run free. My husband joked about "taping the kids doors at night", (yes, our kids included!) like they do on high school band trips. Maybe that's not such a bad idea! ;)

[shonandsuzie]

Love my kids but am VERY glad we are going after school starts back up.

 

LOL :D Couldn't agree more. It's bad enought to have to be on high alert at home, we do not want the worry at sea as well! On our last cruise they kept announcing that a 16 year old girl was missing. Initially they thought she was left at the last port. Finally, they realized that she was hiding out in a new (male) friend's room. Before that event we thought we'd bring our 16 and 14 year olds. Now we think we'll wait a few years. Viva la anniversary cruise ---without our teens!

[mdmomof7]

When I said this past week was the largest contingent of 3-17 yos CB ever had I meant this past week, Western 8/13-20, and not the week we went, 8/6-13 Eastern.

[vmom]

When I said this past week was the largest contingent of 3-17 yos CB ever had I meant this past week, Western 8/13-20, and not the week we went, 8/6-13 Eastern.

 

Not sure if I understood you correctly.

On the CB this last week 8/13-8/20 we were told that the previous week (the 8/6-8/13 week) had the largest # of kids on board and that youth security had their hands full.

[mdmomof7]

DJ Bill very clearly told a group of us that the coming week, meaning the next day since it was Friday night Aug. 12th, that they would be having a total of 3600 people and 1100 of those were 3-17 yos. He talked about how difficult it was going to be and how they had never had such a huge group nor that many children before.

 

We were told by the youth counselor that the week we sailed they had 600-700 3-17 yos on board. She was comparing that number to an Alaska cruise, which would only have about 300-400 even in the summer.

 

That's all I know...:rolleyes:

[dontstopcruisin]

OK. Here are some of my feelings on the Caribbean Princess.

First of all, let me start by saying that this was the most amazing vacation that I have ever been on to date!!!!! My Fiance and I were on this cruise together and we had a blast!!! I didnt think that I could have such a good time on a cruise. I always enjoy the cruises that I go on but this one was over the top.

 

Usually, the shows in the "smaller lounges are good but I feel the ones in the Princess theater are usually lacking. This time I have too say otherwise. Every single performance on this ship was out standing!!!

 

For the most part, all of the crew members that we interacted with were very nice. there were only a few instances where we noticed that they could have been a little bit nicer.

 

Our cabin was Caribe 325. I have been on 5 cruises (4 with Princess) I always book a balcony cabin. I never had a balcony like those on the Caribe deck. They were more than double the normal size balcony. Maybe almost triple the normal size. I think the ones on the dolphin deck (down one deck) were just double the size. Our Balcony was half covered and half uncovered. At first, while I was very excited about the extra large Balcony, I was a little apprehensive also. I was concerned about the privacy issue from balconies above. This proved to be a NON-ISSUE. It was such a good desicision to go with the caribe deck. We spent so much time on the Balcony. and we even fell asleep out there one or two nights. We sometimes slept with the door open so we could listen to the ocean. That was so nice!!!

 

Our Statroom Steward (Marius, from Romania) was the best that I have had on any of my 5 cruises. He catered to our EVERY need He almost seemed to know what we wanted before we even asked for it.

We asked him for a few special requests. We asked him to put 2 lounge chairs on our balcony. He did so without hesitation. He also put a pad on our bed to make it softer. our supply of fresh ice was endless!!! and our room was always kept spotless. I take my hat off to Marius!!!!!!!!!!

 

The ship was Huge and Beautiful. It was so big that by the end of the week, I still had trouble getting around. I had a similar problem on the Golden Last november. But the Caribbean seemed to be more difficult to navigate.

 

There were a few problems that we had that are DEFINATELY WORTH MENTIONING!!!!!!!! they are as follows.

1.) Too crowded. way too many kids especially. I dont know if its because schools were closed and everyone went on the same cruise . I was under the impression that Princess put a limit on how many kids they accepted on each cruise. I dont know what happened there.

 

2.) The buffet was also too crowded. it was often impossible to get a table unless we went outside by the pool.

 

3.) As usual, Princess didnt seem to inforce the "no reserving Deck chairs" rule. This didnt really surprise me that much because every time i have ever gone on a cruise, its the same thing. When My fiance and I sat down in front of the Trident Grill to eat our lunch, I put my towel on my chair and went to get a drink. before i got back, some guy picked up my towel and tried to move it claiming that he was already using the table. The funny thing is, we are both very easy going people. if the guy had just handled it a little bit nicer and not beed so rude, we might have actually gotten up and given him the table. but instead, we stayed where we were. I guess that Guy never heard that you can attract more bees with honey than you can with vinegar.

 

4.) The toilets on the ship had a strange oder imminating friom them all week. it smelled like an ash tray full of cigarette butts was dumped in there. it was nasty.!!! the smell never seemed to go away.

 

5.) There seemed to be a much higher number of announcements this week on the cruise ships P.A. system. after a while i was able to kind of tune it out a little. and every afternoon, we went to our room to take a nap. it was so great except for one thing. we both started to fall asleep when the Captain made his "daily" announcement. (which was played through the speaker in the cabin.) so that always woke us up.

 

6.) I think my biggest problem was with the Hot tubs. We enjoy using the hot tubs sometimes several times a day. Unfortunately, it was difficult to do so. they always seemed to be crowded with kids. Even the ones that were for adult use only. We figured we would go in the hot tubs late at night, which we always did on the Golden In November. and on all previous cruises.

unfortunately, EVERY SINGLE HOT TUB WAS CLOSED AT MID NIGHT!!!! I can understand that they need to be cleaned. but why not rotate cleaning times. so some of them can always remain open??

 

Other than those things, the cruise was an awesome one. the food was excellent.

 

We ate in the Sterling Steak house and Sabatinis. the food was excellent in the steak house. the food was very good in sabatinis but i dont know if id say it was excellent. but it was a fun experience to go there and basicaslly eat everything on the menu.

 

We ate in the Palm dining room on both formal nights. The food was unbelievable. The first night our waiter was fantastic. He was from the Phillapines. and he sang to us almost the entire time we were in there.

Our waiter (from Mexico) the second formal night was a bit rude. I know he was very busy. but we asked him to take our picture. He told us "im kind of busy" but he took the picture anyway.

 

The Cafe Carib was nice but not at all what I expected. we didnt seem to go to the Buffet nearly as much as in the past.

 

The pizza by the pool was probably some of the best pizza that i have ever had. this is always how pizza is on Princess Ships. the pizza is always the best.

 

The Grill was also very good the cheese burgers and fries were a favorite for me.

 

We only used room service once. Every time we would call, we would wait on hold for what seemed like forever. then just gave up.

 

all ports were great except for Grand Cayman. I wont miss it if I never go back there.

 

All in All. I think I will stick with Princess. just never on the Caribbean Princess. simply because for its size, it holds too many passangers. the Golden Is cutting it close. If the Caribbean Princess was the same capacity as the other Grand class ships, I think most of my complaints would be nonexistent.

[Realtor1992]

Legalcruiser re: C242:

 

We just got off the Caribbean Princess (8/13) and had the room you will have. I though it was terrific! Although we were closer to the front of the ship, we had no issues with motion or noise. Our balcony was enormous by cruise standards. As a result, we will probably never cruise again without a balcony room. Just to sit outside by ourselves and watch the sunset over the Caribbean was extraordinary!

 

I was shocked at the large closet space (more than expected) and dismayed at the teeny bathroom (same as expected, though). Our beds were very comfortable and our steward, Roberto, was excellent.

 

Enjoy!

[legalcruiser]

Thank you! We had an inside on our first cruise and have booked balconies ever since. I am very excited about the extended balcony. Our friends will be next door so we will open up the door between the two making for an even larger space.

 

Glad to hear about the cabin steward.

 

I just hope we even get to go on this cruise. With the tropical storm headed towards Fort Lauderdale, we are quite nervous and anxious. If our flight is cancelled, we may just have to rent a car and drive 24 hours!

[RM]

Not feeling too confident about the weather here at all. Legalcruiser I'm driving down tomorrow and not looking forward to it. Sounds like it will be awful. Keep your eyes on the weather.

[coiran]

You show an Elite Avatar in your sifnature - how did you do that with only 4 Princess cruises - It took us 15 to get there?

 

Ron

[leighj]

Legalcruiser and Realtor1992, I was surprised when I saw that you both have/had the same cabin that we have for our Oct. 1 cruise!!! Out of all the cabins...anyway, I'm glad to hear that Realtor1992 had good things to say about it! I'm looking forward to hanging out on the big balcony. Legalcruiser, good luck on the weather and have a great cruise!

[kendon]

dontstopcruisin - Your review could have had my name on it. I was on the same cruise and agree with nearly everything, including the toilet problem (several public toilets wouldn't flush), and more annoucements than usual (do we want to start calling this the "fun ship" too?). Our cabin steward made the bed (and nothing else). The dining room food was not as good as we've had on previous cruises, and we ordered the same dishes. Seemed that the Horizon Court had a tough time keeping up. Been on 7 Princess cruises and I also would not repeat the Caribbean Princess as too many areas suffer with the number of passengers and it shows. I was apprehensive about the ship from the beginning due to the massive size and number of passengers, but we all brought our usual positive attitude on board. Generally speaking, I found the crew the least enthusiastic of all my cruises. I think the crew has to be stressed when dealing with poorly behaved children, spoiled and demanding adults, and understaffing. The Caribbean crowd can be a party crowd, and on this ship year round can take a toll I'm sure. Princess, please bring back the Sun class ships. The intimacy and managability of a smaller ship can't be beat. Have the Golden booked for April '06, we'll see....

[PescadoAmarillo]

You show an Elite Avatar in your sifnature - how did you do that with only 4 Princess cruises - It took us 15 to get there?

 

Ron

Is THAT what that is?? Who knew? I just thought it was the sea witch. Maybe the OP did too.

[FBrew]

Could you please tell me what nights are Caribbean night for dinner Italian night for dinner? I am asking because we would like to go to the steak house one night and also Sabintin's one night. We will be on the Caribbean Princess 9-10.

Thanks

Phyllis

[legalcruiser]

We decided to fly into Jacksonville tomorrow instead of FLL and rented a car to drive down. Fingers crossed that we all make it aboard the CB safe and sound!

 

LeighJ - Thanks for the good wishes. We will try not to wreck the room too much before your trip:)