Review: Crown Princess Mexican Riviera

[Terre]

As promised, here is the start of my review of our Mexican Riviera cruise the last week of February. This is totally my opinion and I realize there will some who will disagree with me, but that's why it's called an opinion.

 

Mexican Riviera Cruise

Crown Princess

February 21—February 28, 2015

 

Captain: Heikki Laakkonen, Finland

Cruise Director: Bob Leininger, USA

 

We are in our 60s and this makes cruise #31 overall, and 5th with Princess

 

Day One: Our day started very early on the 21st as our flight left Charlotte at around 7:45 a.m. We arrived at LAX around 10:30 and had booked the Super Shuttle to the cruise terminal. By the time we got off the plane, got our luggage waited about 30 minutes on the Super Shuttle, got checked in and onboard, it was close to noon. We found our cabin and our luggage was already there! We unpacked a few things and headed to the Da Vinci dining room for lunch. It’s open until 1:30 and is so much better than going to the crowded buffet.

 

Lunch was good, I had the avocado & bay shrimp, cacciatore chicken and an orange soufflé for dessert. The soufflé was very good! My husband had the pork tenderloin. Dinner that night was the prime rib and was also good.

 

We have been on the Crown before, but it was several years ago so we set out to explore. Of course we remembered the International Café, a wonderful little café by the Piazza that has scrumptious pastries and sandwiches. The food is free, but you pay for whatever you drink. This is a must stop for anyone on the Crown.

 

We set sail around 4:00 and got some good shots of sail away and of the USS Iowa that is located there. Once we were in open waters the night life begins. The Mariachi band, Los Brilliantes, cranked up in the Piazza at 7:00 p.m. and a husband and wife circus act were in the Piazza at 5:00 p.m. and 8:15. They were very good and you have to get video of them, still pictures don’t capture what they do.

 

After dinner it was around 6:30 and I was ready for bed. Exhausted by being up since 4:00 and flying for nearly five hours and my body being on east coast time, I couldn’t stay up any longer. Mike went to the show and said it was okay.

 

International Cafe:

 

Stairs at the Piazza:

 

Day Two, Sea Day: I really thought LA would be warmer, but it was in the 60s, still it was warmer than the temps we left at home. The sea day was really too chilly (for me at least) to layout in the sun, so we walked around the ship some more. This was also formal night so after dinner we watched some of the champagne waterfall and went to the production show, “Destination Anywhere”. I really wasn’t that impressed with the show, didn’t really like it. From there we headed to Karaoke which is always fun.

[Terre]

Day Three, Sea Day: As we got closer to Mexico, the temps warmed up enough to get some sun. After breakfast, we found some chairs and caught some rays until lunch time. For the show tonight, Jeffrey Allen performed A Tribute to Sir Elton John. He did a really great job and I think everyone enjoyed watching him and hearing those great songs by Elton John.

 

Jeffrey Allen, A Tribute to Sir Elton John:

 

Day Three, Puerto Vallarta: Here we had booked a city tour through the ship. We boarded the bus along with 30-40 other people and headed to the Tequila Factory first. We did the tour backwards, which I’m glad of, and I’ll tell you why later. At the factory, Hacienda Doña Engracia, we sampled different flavors of tequila and saw how it’s made. It’s actually made from the blue agave cactus plant. We also had lunch there before heading back to town.

 

From the tequila factory we stopped at a tile factory where you can see how tiles are made and do some shopping. From the tile factory we then traveled to the Malecon. This is the one thing I really wanted to do and spend some time at. Unfortunately, our bus ran out of gas before we got there. Yep, that’s right, it ran out of gas. We had to wait close to 20 minutes, which I know is not long, but it shaved off some our touring time. Had we been on the way to the tequila factory, who knows how long it would have taken another bus to get us!

 

So, we missed City Hall, which I wanted to see and we didn’t spend enough time at the Malecon. We did spend some time there, though, and it’s a beautiful boardwalk…a must see when you’re in Puerto Vallarta. From the Malecon we walked over to the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe. It is something else that is a must see. It features a gilded crown which is a replica of one worn by Carlota, empress of Mexico. Inside the cathedral is magnificent. Not being Catholic, I was in awe of the large golden candlesticks, statues and altar. We left the cathedral and went to a small shopping mall. I’m not a shopper so I was a little bored and just walked around taking pictures.

 

Another thing that shaved off some touring time, were those (usually the same ones) people who would never make it back to the bus on time. They were anywhere from 15 minutes late to 30 minutes late. At the mall, the guide had to actually go looking for one lady. Please be considerate of time when you on these tours.

 

At the Malecon:

 

Statue on the Malecon, "In Search of Reason"

[Terre]

Our Lady of Guadalupe:

 

Inside:

 

[Terre]

Day Four, Mazatlán: Here we booked a city tour excursion with a private company, which I have to say, was better than the ship’s tour the day before. We drove through the city streets and headed downtown to the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. You can see the tall yellow towers above all the other buildings. It has several different styles of architecture, Moorish and Gothic, among others. It all blends together and is very beautiful. The stain glass windows at the top all have a Star of David, because when the money ran out at one point during the building process, a Jewish family donated money to help complete it. Mazatlan also has several old famous hotels, such as the Belmar.

 

From here Mike and I walked down to the market which has an array of meats, fish, and produce...very interesting, to say the least. As we headed back to the bus, we crossed over to Plazuel Republica which is somewhat like a park. It has a bandstand and a large old tree. It sits directly across the street from the Cathedral Basilica, so I was able to get some great shots of it from that angle.

 

The Cathedral Basicila of the Immaculate Conception:

 

 

[Terre]

More pictures of Mazatlan

 

The Market:

 

 

Cliff Divers:

 

Mazatlan from Hilltop:

Edited March 10, 2015 by Terre

[Terre]

Day Four: Cabo San Lucas: We booked a whale watching tour with Whale Watch Cabo. Since we didn’t go into the town, my pictures of Cabo are only of the pier area. It’s a beautiful little place with lots of sailboats, shops and a few bars. Since our tour began at 8:15 and we got there around 7:30ish, we walked around. Note: there are no public restrooms anywhere around this area, and the bars won’t let you use theirs unless you purchase something. I walked around taking pictures of this beautiful place with its sailboats and sun-glistening waters. Once checked in and everything taken care of, we got on the boat and headed out. We came to Land’s End first which is a spot with huge rocks sticking out of the water at the Sea of Cortez. Located between the rocks is Playa del Armor or Lover’s Beach, and El Archo (the arch). Next to that is the sea lion rock. It was covered with lazy sea lions all sunning themselves and napping in the warm sunshine. The water was very choppy and it was hard to get good shots here, but we got some great ones on the way back.

 

We are now on our way to find whales! It didn’t take long. These amazing creatures swim right alongside our boat and don’t care that we’re there. We see them everywhere! Below is a great shot my husband got of one breaching! After spending around two and a half hours watching these beautiful creatures and trying to get pictures, we headed back to the ship for lunch. We had to be back on board by 1:00 anyway and this is a tendering port. Our tour guide also took photos and Whale Watch Cabo downloaded her shots in Dropbox for everyone to have for free! Yep, no extra cost. She got some really good shots and actually, even though the boat was very rocky and it was hard getting those shots, my husband did a pretty good job…almost as good as some of hers. To tell you the truth, it’s hard to tell hers from ours in some cases.

 

El Archo:

 

At the Pier:

 

[Terre]

Now for the Whales!

 

This is one my husband got:

 

The next two were taken by the Whale Watch Cabo guide:

 

Edited March 10, 2015 by Terre

[Terre]

Day Five, Sea Day: Sadly we are on our way home. Again this sea day was warm, but cloudy so I didn’t even try to layout. We messed around the ship and didn’t do much.

 

Day Six, Sea Day: As we were closer to LA, this sea day was much cooler so I started my packing. Reality day…we’d be back in the real world tomorrow and I dreaded that. No one to cook my meals, make my bed every day or turn it down every night. What will I do? If I click my ruby slippers together, could it last forever?

 

The Ship: The ship was in good condition and was just the way it was when we sailed her in 2009. The golden spiral staircases in the Piazza, the International Café, the Princess Theater, it was all the same, still grand and beautiful.

 

The Food: Here’s the problem, for us, at least, the dining room menus didn’t have a good selection of items. There was one night we even ate at the buffet because there was nothing on the menu we wanted. We usually ate in the dining room for lunch and breakfast and most times lunch was okay. My favorite dish at dinner was something called Brasato di Manzo al Barolo. It’s a beef pot roast braised in Barolo wine, very good!

 

Pizza and Ice Cream Bar: Both were good…I had a slice of pepperoni pizza one night and a cheese slice another night. Caution, the slices are huge! Most nights I just got a bag of popcorn from there.

 

We ate in the Crown Grill one night because part of the promotion when we booked was dinner for two there. Honestly, I wasn’t impressed. The lobster cake was really good, but the steak was okay. One thing that really bothered me was that they would leave trays of dirty dishes and lobster shells sitting by someone’s table until it was so full they even had a hard time carrying it off. I thought this was not only disgusting to look at while trying to enjoy your meal in an “upscale” restaurant, but it was probably unsanitary, not to mention the odor of those shells! One tray was sitting right beside a diner for quite a while. Yuck.

 

Entertainment in the Princess Theater:

I loved the Tribute to Sir Elton John. Jeffrey Allen did a great job of imitating him and sounded very much like him. I didn’t like “Destination Anywhere”; it was strange. “Motor City” was much better and if you like music from the Motown era, you will probably like this. Comedy Magician, Christopher James, is very good. He’s funny and is a good magician! “Blame it on the Boogie”; honestly, I can’t remember anything about this show, but I know we saw it… Comedian, AJ Jamal, was very funny. I laughed so hard I snorted the whole time he as up there! You know it’s funny if I snort when I laugh. The man is hilarious and with NO profanity…very refreshing.

 

Entertainment around the ship: Everything in the Piazza was pretty good, but my favorite was the Circus Spectacular of Daniel & Kimberly Craig. They were really great, and that girl can do some things with a hula hoop or 50!

 

We didn’t watch any of the movies or do much else, but we did step in on the Karaoke one night and that’s always good. Most everyone could sing so it wasn’t very funny. We did watch the Emperor Penguins one evening in Explorers Lounge and they were good, and we played a trivia game in there one night. There are many things to choose from so you can always find something to do.

 

The Crew: The crew was great, especially our Cabin Steward, Noel. On the first night I asked for a few things and was never without them. He does not have any assistants but our cabin was always neat and clean twice a day. He had 17 other cabins to clean and I don’t know how he did it without assistants.

 

The Ports: I loved all of the ports we stopped at. My favorite was Cabo, I think. What we saw of it was so pretty and I do have a thing for sailboats and the water, and that’s what won me over.

 

Embarkation & Debarkation: Both were very easy and quick. No problems here.

 

Would I take this itinerary again? Probably, but next time, we would do different things and I would spend more time at the Malecon in Puerto Vallarta.

[Terre]

Miscellaneous Pictures:

 

 

The Captain:

 

Brasato di Manzo al Barolo:

 

Sunset:

[Terre]

A few more pics:

Sea Lions in Mazatlan:

 

 

 

Click on this picture for the entire album.

Note: once the album is open, click on the left arrow on the picture and go backwards to keep the pictures in order...it's a Photobucket thing.

Edited March 10, 2015 by Terre

[szubieta]

Very nice!! Thank you for the review. Looking forward to our cruise in a few weeks.

 

If I may ask, how was the Cruise Director? And did you have to purchase your lunch at the Tequila tour? We will be on that same tour.

Edited March 10, 2015 by szubieta

[osofish2]

A few more pics:

Sea Lions in Mazatlan:

 

 

 

Click on this picture for the entire album.

Note: once the album is open, click on the left arrow on the picture and go backwards to keep the pictures in order...it's a Photobucket thing.

 

Hey there, we were on this cruise, and had some activities with the Cruise Critic group. We also had a great time. Thanks for the pics. I won the slot tournament, and can go to Florida for the Regal $50.000 tournament!

No free cruise though!:D

[DawnisDream]

Your review is fantastic, as is the pictures. We will be leaving in a few days on the same itinerary and was so happy to read all about your trip. This will be our very first cruise.

We also will be taking the same whale watching tour in and are a little worried about catching the early morning tour. Did you catch it in plenty of time? Jeffery Alan sounds like a great show to see, I hope he is still performing when we go. Thanks again for wonderful review!

[Terre]

Very nice!! Thank you for the review. Looking forward to our cruise in a few weeks.

 

If I may ask, how was the Cruise Director? And did you have to purchase your lunch at the Tequila tour? We will be on that same tour.

 

CD was okay, not the best we've had, but not the worst either.

The lunch was included with the price of the City Tour. They offer two different City Tours, so make sure you buy the one that offers the lunch. It was tacos and you can choose between beef and chicken.

Edited March 10, 2015 by Terre

[Terre]

Your review is fantastic, as is the pictures. We will be leaving in a few days on the same itinerary and was so happy to read all about your trip. This will be our very first cruise.

We also will be taking the same whale watching tour in and are a little worried about catching the early morning tour. Did you catch it in plenty of time? Jeffery Alan sounds like a great show to see, I hope he is still performing when we go. Thanks again for wonderful review!

 

Congratulations on your first cruise! A word of caution...cruising is addictive. You will love this cruise, trust me.

 

We, too, were worried about making the 8:15 tour. We got up very early and grabbed a quick breakfast in the buffet. The tendering desk opens at 7:30 and we were in line around 7:00 or shortly after, and were the second ones in line, so get there early. You will meet at Da Vinci Dining Room for the tickets. We waited a few minutes and they came out and said they didn't have the tickets yet so they took us on down to the tender. We got to the gate for the tour around 7:45. The walk is not very far. Look for the bar they tell you it's across from, and you will see the white gate.

 

The trick is to get to the tender ticket desk early 'cause you want to be on the first tender.

Edited March 10, 2015 by Terre

[Terre]

Hey there, we were on this cruise, and had some activities with the Cruise Critic group. We also had a great time. Thanks for the pics. I won the slot tournament, and can go to Florida for the Regal $50.000 tournament!

No free cruise though!:D

 

Wonderful! Good luck with the Regal Tournament! We only had two couples show for the first day M&G and only one at Sky Walkers. Sorry we missed any other activities, but didn't know about them. I didn't get back on the roll call the last month, had a lot of family issues going on and didn't have time to check it.

[srpilo]

Solid review, concise and well written

 

 

 

Thanks for sharing your photo's

Srpilo

[Terre]

Solid review, concise and well written

 

 

 

Thanks for sharing your photo's

Srpilo

Thank you, that so nice of you to say, I appreciate it.

[SadieN]

In Cabo there are free bathrooms at the bus station on the marina. It's a low, one story white building with some tour operators in front. It sits slightly 'upslope' from the Marina.

Edited March 10, 2015 by SadieN

[DawnisDream]

Congratulations on your first cruise! A word of caution...cruising is addictive. You will love this cruise, trust me.

 

We, too, were worried about making the 8:15 tour. We got up very early and grabbed a quick breakfast in the buffet. The tendering desk opens at 7:30 and we were in line around 7:00 or shortly after, and were the second ones in line, so get there early. You will meet at Da Vinci Dining Room for the tickets. We waited a few minutes and they came out and said they didn't have the tickets yet so they took us on down to the tender. We got to the gate for the tour around 7:45. The walk is not very far. Look for the bar they tell you it's across from, and you will see the white gate.

 

The trick is to get to the tender ticket desk early 'cause you want to be on the first tender.

Thank you for the well wishes! My sister and her husband are taking us for our 30th wedding anniversary and we are soooo excited! Great information for getting out there on time in Cabo,definitely follow your advice. I have another question. We are wanting to go to the Crown Grill one night. Could you suggest a night that might be good for that?

[senior lady]

Great review.

We were on the same cruise and thought it was great!!! No complaints.

Except the Cruise Director............ Was awful!!!! I called him the "invisible man"

The only time you saw him was on the morning show or when he was "flogging" his book. I see he is getting off next month.

I'm so glad that Princess is bringing the day Mexican cruises back:cool:

[Terre]

You are so right, Senior Lady! We never saw him anywhere around the ship except to introduce an act. On Carnival they are always very visible and we had one come to our Cruise Critic meet & greet! He was a little boring, too.

[Terre]

Thank you for the well wishes! My sister and her husband are taking us for our 30th wedding anniversary and we are soooo excited! Great information for getting out there on time in Cabo,definitely follow your advice. I have another question. We are wanting to go to the Crown Grill one night. Could you suggest a night that might be good for that?

We booked for the last night which turned out to be a good night because we didn't see anything on the menu we wanted in the dining room. The problem is you need to book as soon as you get on board and it's a crap shoot when doing that. We went straight to the restaurant and booked rather than calling the dine line. Good luck and congratulations on your anniversary. You can call Princess and let them know which night you are celebrating your anniversary and your steward will decorate your cabin door.

 

Here's our door:

[DawnisDream]

We booked for the last night which turned out to be a good night because we didn't see anything on the menu we wanted in the dining room. The problem is you need to book as soon as you get on board and it's a crap shoot when doing that. We went straight to the restaurant and booked rather than calling the dine line. Good luck and congratulations on your anniversary. You can call Princess and let them know which night you are celebrating your anniversary and your steward will decorate your cabin door.

 

Here's our door:

 

Great advice! Thanks Terre!

[seafun]

I'll be on the Crown this time next week and you've whetted my proverbial appetite with your review and photos.

 

Looking forward to getting away from it all for a few days. Whether one can "come back new" in just 7 days remains to be seen, LOL, but I will certainly try! :D