Thinking of branching out and trying Princess

[elycelynne]

So far I've only sailed with Holland America (six cruises) and was thinking of expanding my horizons. I'm already aware of a few of the things that I'd be giving up -- Such as the same good room service menu for all passengers as well as bathtubs in most of the cabins.

 

Other than what I've mentioned above, what are the major differences between the experience on the two lines? I should also mention that I cruise solo, so any specific feedback in that regard would be appreciated.

 

Thanks in advance!

[ksm77]

We like both lines. We were on the Regal Transatlantic in October. We will be on the N. Amsterdam in March. I would have to say I would give Princess a little higher rating than HAL. We are going to Alaska in June on a 12 day cruise tour. We have cruised to Alaska twice in the past once on HAL & once on Princess. We choose Princess because we felt it was the better of the two.

 

Things I love about Princess - better entertainment, better activities during the day. They have more choices at night of things to do after dinner. Love the international café on Princess open 24 hrs., also enjoy Vines the wine bar, I am big wine drinker.

 

Things I love about HAL being able to order hot breakfast to have on our balcony. Happy Hour, the personal service they are known for. The specialty restaurants on HAL are better in our opinion.

 

Both line's have things they do well. If we just want to have a relaxing cruise in the Caribbean we will usually choose HAL. If we are going for adventure we will choose Princess. I have never had a bad cruise on either line.

[caribill]

The Princess buffet is open from 6 AM to around 11 PM. No time in those hours that it is closed.

 

You do not have to pre-pay for shore excursions reserved before the cruise.

 

Except for on the Ocean and Pacific, the pools are all fresh water. Saltwater is used on those two.

[GUT2407]

Depending on which ship and itinerary you might also have a slightly younger demographic with Princess than with HAL.

[iceleven]

I like them both but I feel that the specialty restaurants in HAL is a much better experience both food and service. HAL doesn't serve food as late in the evening as Princess but their room service choices (full menu) all day is a real plus. I've preferred HAL's Alaskan itinerary over Princess' choices but that is just my experience. I wish HAL used SF and LA ports because I definitely would cruise her more often.

[OCruisers]

We always meet lots of solo travelers on Princess and often become "keep up by email friends" with them.

While HAL is a very nice cruise line, Princess has lots more entertainment options for both in the day and evening. :)

LuLu

[Sam.Seattle]

Respectfully.... Maybe it would be better to think about all the things you will get from Princess that are not on HAL.

 

* Movies under the Stars

* Newer Ships - Regal & Royal

* Larger ships

* New dinning choices (just new, not better or worse)

* more diversity in crew

* much more active night life.... maybe your last solo cruise? ;)

* IMHO - better entertainment.

 

Go enjoy!!!

[GUT2407]

I've said before that I am glad we are all different, and we love Princess, but not really for any of those reasons

 

Respectfully.... Maybe it would be better to think about all the things you will get from Princess that are not on HAL.

 

* Movies under the Stars

 

Great in theory but blaring music and rubbish all day, yuk!

 

* Newer Ships - Regal & Royal

 

We much prefer the older ships with wood and brass to glass and chrome any day of the week,

 

* Larger ships

 

Give me smaller every time, I love Pacific Princess and Ocean Princess.

 

* New dinning choices (just new, not better or worse)

 

But that's whenever you go on a different ship.

 

* more diversity in crew

 

I'd have said that pretty much all lines have similar mixes of crew, maybe different from line to line or even ship to ship, but similar levels of diversity.

 

* much more active night life.... maybe your last solo cruise? ;)

 

We go to maybe one or two shows a week, usually after diner, a stroll around the deck, hand in hand and back to our balcony.

 

* IMHO - better entertainment.

 

Really subjective.

 

 

Go enjoy!!!

 

Now here we agree, always ENJOY is the first rule of cruising.

[KruzPrincess]

I sail solo on Princess often. I've only sailed on HAL once recently and it was on the Veendam. It was a fiasco, but I still had a good time. I did that solo, too. I've always been treated well as a solo cruiser on Princess. I like that you have more freedom in choosing when and where you want to eat. Princess pizza is 100 times better. The grill on the Veendam was better, IMO, but it had such limited hours. I did like the taco bar, though. There seem to be more activities on Princess. People are really friendly on both, in my experience. All cabins on Princess have a fridge. I actually liked the buffet food better on the Veendam, but it had limited hours. Princess generally has a better salad bar. I like that HAL has hard pack ice cream in the buffet. Princess has an ice cream bar in the pool area that serves soft serve. Princess has Movies Under The Stars (which most HAL folks seem to hate). The Veendam had a big screen on deck, but it was never used. Many Princess ships have the International Café which is a really nice choice for small plate items and treats. Princess gives solo cruisers double cruise credits in their loyalty program. I feel that Princess has one of the best loyalty programs. I mentioned the fiasco on my HAL cruise last year. I won't go into it, but HAL handled it very well. Princess cruisers probably dress a bit more casually than HAL cruisers on formal night. Both are good choices.

[SadieN]

On Princess only minisuites and above have bathtubs. Otherwise the cabins have puny showers.

The OV on HAL are larger than the OV on Princess. No sofas in the Princess OV.

 

Princess OV and IS cabins have a very awkward round table. Many just shove that thing into the closet.

Edited February 22, 2015 by SadieN

[GUT2407]

On Princess only minisuites and above have bathtubs. Otherwise the cabins have puny showers.

The OV on HAL are larger than the OV on Princess. No sofas in the Princess OV.

 

Princess OV and IS cabins have a very awkward round table. Many just shove that thing into the closet.

 

 

I hate the having to climb into the tub to have a shower, I have some mobility issues, but don't take up an accessible cabin [which also have real issues in themselves] and it is a real problem.

[scienceteacher]

Variety is the spice of life. Give something new a try. You can always go back to HAL for your next cruise. I doubt you will have a bad time on a Princess cruise.

[GUT2407]

Variety is the spice of life. Give something new a try. You can always go back to HAL for your next cruise. I doubt you will have a bad time on a Princess cruise.

 

 

Now that's good advice.

 

I am so glad that my first couple of cruises were with Princess as some since have been not really to my liking [some have] and I know that I can always go back to Princess and now Celebrity, if my first few had been with lines that weren't to my taste I might not have tried again.

 

But then again that would have saved me a load of $$$. :D

[kitkat343]

They're very similar lines, so I think you should try and see what you personally prefer. My family prefers Princess, but a lot of people prefer HAL. I find the food in the main dining rooms and buffet stronger on Princess, but agree the room service and specialty restaurants are excellent on HAL.

[fishywood]

This thread from last summer was started from the opposite perspective (a regular Princess cruiser who tried out HAL) and inspired a lively but factual and rational discussion of the differences between the lines. Post no. 15 contains my distince pros and cons of each line, which I like everyone else encourage you to try both and form your own conclusions.

[trbarton]

Here's 2 pluses for Princess:

 

OBC....For prior military service...all you need is to provide a copy of your DD214 form.

Stock Credit....If you have at least 100'shares of Carnival stock you get OBC.

 

For cruises on 14 days or longer you get $250 OBC.

 

You also get a generous amount of FREE Internet minutes if your Platinum class.

 

Tom:)

[caribill]

Stock Credit....If you have at least 100'shares of Carnival stock you get OBC.

 

For cruises on 14 days or longer you get $250 OBC.

 

 

Get the same on Holland America which is also owned by Carnival Corp

[SoCal Cruiser78]

The most notable difference to me between the two is that HAL ships generally have a quieter, more relaxed feel to them while Princess ships tend to feel a bit higher energy with more activity, especially after dinner. I think some of this is due to demographics, and some the overall tone set by staff.

 

IMO, neither is necessarily better, just different. I plan to continue to sail on both.

[UpcountryTravelers]

"Things I love about HAL being able to order hot breakfast to have on our balcony."

 

You can have hot breakfast on your balcony anytime you like on Princess. I do it quite often. Their omelets are delicious, especially the jalapeno one.

[elycelynne]

"Things I love about HAL being able to order hot breakfast to have on our balcony."

 

You can have hot breakfast on your balcony anytime you like on Princess. I do it quite often. Their omelets are delicious, especially the jalapeno one.

 

Doesn't Princess charge extra for "Breakfast On Your Balcony"? I'm under the impression that you can only get a limited continental room service breakfast (nothing hot) unless you're in a mini-suite or higher.

 

Everyone is entitled to the same room service on Holland America, regardless of cabin.

[Jim Avery]

Lots of good points made here. We have sailed both but not many times (yet) on either. We have been in suites on both. For our money, Princess seems to be a bit more bang for the buck. The extra tariff restaurant (s) on Princess are, in our experience much better. Food and service generally (especially on the Pacific Princess) were better on Princess. In our thinking the biggest advantage to HAL is that most of their ships (so far) carry under 2,000 passengers. Most of Princess ships are 2,500 to 3,500 and up. As with most all lines, newbuilding is going up and up. In spite of the many posts here and on other lines boards declaring preference for the smaller ships. "Smaller" is starting to mean 2,500 passengers.:eek: I know some prefer the larger ships with more venues but have you seen many posts saying "I really want bigger ships.......Just can't wait to sail with 10,000 passengers".:eek::D:D