From West Coast to Western Europe: 1st Princess Cruise & First TA Sept. 2015

[kcfoxy]

We have cruised a couple handfuls of times since 1999, but this is our first time trying Princess, Royal Princess and a late Summer Transatlantic voyage. The Cliff Notes version, for those desiring the bottom line is that we liked it very much, thought the food was better than NCL, the Royal was gorgeous & it only took a week or so after returning before booking another cruise; 4 stars.

********

For everyone else, here is the full cruise review with a bit of the before hand but none of the after...

 

We have done many sailings with NCL, and one each with Carnival and HAL, but this was our first ever with Princess, and overall it was a very good introduction. I originally wanted to experience their British Isles itinerary, loving many of the Scottish, Irish and English ports of call, but we decided instead to do a mini tour of some bucket list Western European ports and then a leisurely 6 days of sea days back to the United States.

 

We are late 50's to mid 60's with a variety of major health issues. I will mention this for the benefit of other likewise disabled/mobility impaired to help provide some insight into what such an adventure includes. 5 new airports, 6 new countries, a new ocean to cross and a new cruise line to experience.

 

The United and Icelandair staff provided airport wheelchair transfers and/or shuttles through much of the long concourses, and we rented our own wheelchair for the cruise itself. That one was available in our accessible cabin, but for both embarkation and debarkation, Royal Princess provided wheelchair assist.

 

After spending a few nights in a Heathrow area hotel, the better to lessen our West Coast jet lag, the transport company gave us a little stop at Stonehenge then delivered us right to our newish Southampton cruise dock around 1:30 PM. We were informed this was 'perfect timing' as a noontime power outage had put the cabash on all registration and boarding, for a full hour.

 

Our tour bus was parked behind another, and the covered walkway to the terminal itself was about 120 yards. We both began walking, I with one huge suitcase, 1 heavy CPAP case, largish purse and mini quad cane while DH forged ahead. Since there is also a serious lung condition, stops every 20 or so yards was the norm.

 

How fortunate that a very nice couple stopped to ask if they could help out! Between us, the last 40 yards wasn't so daunting, especially when a very energetic greeter named Jerry burst through the double glass doors brandishing my chariot, er, transport wheelchair. We literally whisked past all lines straight up to the handicapped registration. Passports and cruise documents furnished and it was only 10 minutes more until we were handed off to Princess transport team...our smiling driver recruited from the onboard room service staff.

 

First impressions. What a beautiful ship. Spotlessly clean. Huge central Piazza, 3 stories high with many bars and bistros all around. Plush and opulent without seeming garish...not a Las Vegas vibe, as with Carnival. By design, one trade-off is lack of a central staircase, beyond deck 7 for pax, although behind double doors there is definitely one for mainly crew us, except right before/after the afternoon's Muster.

 

Our room steward said Hello then walked off, promising to be back later. This gave us time to inspect Baja deck 435, the aforementioned handicapped balcony cabin. Squarely midship and sandwiched between two passenger decks, it would prove to be an excellent central location, while at times decreasing available elevators, (there are 6), where more able-bodied pax might opt to use the stairs.

 

Our room had a no-threshold entry way, 34-36" wide. The bathroom door was likewise ADA compliant with a very slight ramping, hard to detect otherwise. The no-threshold shower used rows of floor drains to separate it from the slightly elevated toilet, 19" off the ground.

 

There were sturdy grab bars all around and a roomy sink that made up with lack of storage cubbies, with a wheel-up capability for those confined to chairs. Body wash and shampoo dispensers and an emergency call light completed the bath, and we appreciated the hand-held shower wand and sturdy drop down bench, (supports 300+ lbs).

 

We notified Princess ahead of time, and free distilled water was available from our room steward for his and her CPAP machines. There were 2 AC outlets, no converter/plugs needed, but our daisy style extension cord and the heavy duty cord furnished from the front desk were put to good use.

 

Numerous reviews have decried the smallish balconies. What they are is narrow...4' wide, but 44" available with the metal and glass railing. Our cabin is about 3 feet wider than the usual balcony class, so the balcony was likewise longer and narrow enough that the two chairs worked better facing each other than outward. There is a ramp feature out to the balcony if needed, but I preferred walking the few steps out with my cane, otherwise it might work better for someone to position the WC outside in lieu of the deck chair. Doable at any rate.

 

Tons of closet space, plenty of drawers and shelves. The two deep drawers in each decent sized nightstand were very useful, as was the provided safe and mini fridge, which we used for our own bottled water, (Princess has no issue with you bringing a case or two onboard), and midnight snacks.

 

Since it was past lunchtime when boarding, we next proceeded to Alfredo's for our first meal. I was swooning over thin pockets of ground veal, beef and cheese in a decadent Piedmont-style cream sauce. Himself declared the calzone doughy and neither cared for the green salad, comprised chiefly of some sort of purple lettuce. My finishing pastry was good, and at least one of us wanted to give this beautiful spot right off the Piazza one more chance.

 

Many meals were taken in the Anytime Dining Room, midship deck 5. No assigned waiter or table, we still came to find an especially likeable waiter, requesting to be seated in his area whenever possible. This worked better with morning calls to the Dining Room...seemed an oxymoron, reservations for anytime dining, but we almost always scored a 2 top in this manner, with only a few minutes wait time if any.

 

The food was good to very good, about like banquet fare but with a bit more style.

 

You could chose from Always Available items such as filet, salmon, chicken, pasta or a vegetarian selection, or chose from nightly offerings. We are carnivores, but neither cared much for the prime rib. I loved the chilled fruit soups, so missed on NCL of late, while we both rejoiced over the wide variety of flavorful sorbets, eschewing the more caloric sweet offerings more than not.

 

We also sampled the Horizon buffet, for both breakfast and lunch. This thing is truly huge, but DH got the hang of it fairly soon. Loved the made to order omelets, fresh fruit and very well done breakfast pastries. Didn't care much for the sausage; the American style looked promising but tasted exactly like not-so-meaty bangers. The bacon was not bad, and the meatloaf was actually quite tasty.

 

The International Cafe was open around the clock and provided specialty coffees and teas, for a fee, as well as wonderful salads, sandwiches and desserts without added cost. The Shrimp Salad and Ham & Cheese croissants were faultless, and the Coffee Card we bought brought cafe mochas, espressos and even decadent Ice Cream Sundaes.

 

We also tried the two surcharge dinner venues, Steakhouse and Italian respectively. The rooms were quite lovely, the service excellent and the food very good to excellent. We'd try the Crown Grill again in a heartbeat. By sticking to grilled meats, steamed veggies and light desserts or fruit, for the most part, we were able to stay within our diabetic regimes.

 

There was no Noro virus outbreak on our 15 night cruise, though weeks before this was an issue. Hand washing stations in the buffet and hand cleanser dispensers were prominently placed near other dining venues. Quite a few did develop a deep, hacking bronchial cough toward the end. Foodwise, I opted for simpler fare during my self-imposed quarantine, so our final score was Casey: lost 5 pounds, Richard: gained 2.

 

The weather cooperated throughout, just a few minutes of misting in England and some dark clouds in the Netherlands. Security was good on these port stops, and staff helpful when any assistance needed. Some terminals were the equivalent of a 2 to 3 block walk and no carts or shuttle type transports seen at any.

 

The late Summer temperatures of 60-70 felt marvelous after 90-100 degrees every day in California. On board ship, 68-72 degrees seemed the norm, and the 3,400 pax were mainly in the 50-80 age range, almost all refreshingly spry and adventurous. The hot tubs were in use and not so much chair hogging around the pool. We didn't try Movies Under The Stars, (MUTS), but both enjoyed the wide variety of television...must have watched every rerun of The Love Boat available, too!

 

Shipboard staff was helpful with the huge Cruise Critic Meet & Greet organized, with about half of the invited Officers attending. Of 270 signed up RC members, about 170-180 made an appearance. Nice, since this was a port day until 2 pm. We handed out customized pins commemorating our lovely cruise and beautiful ship. Unfortunately our Name Tag Volunteer was the victim of jet lag, napping, (no wake up call?), but we greatly appreciated having the Lounge rather than a Bar for our gathering and managed to have a pleasant hour socializing.

 

We didn't partake of any specific activities or entertainment, but heard lots of live music in the Piazza. With instrumentals this wasn't at all bothersome, but with some of the vocalists, and one particularly pitchy female, the cruise staff cranked up the volume and you could hear it a couple decks away. Someone, how about a ship's engineer, should definitely monitor the decibel level...it was 100 or more...not at all pleasant in several cases.

 

Did miss the usual towel animals gracing our beds on other cruises at least 50% of the time. After I mentioned it in passing, one cute little monkey made an appearance swinging from the overhead fixture. Making a point to thank our room steward next day, (about the halfway point of the 15 night cruise), was told "You are welcome, Madame Casey and there will be more of those coming." No further additions to the menagerie, possibly a towel shortage or green conservation efforts, not a deal-breaker either way. :p

 

Transfer from the ship to our airport, on disembarkation went well even though the assisted disembark-and all others I'm told-was delayed by almost 2 hours. Our own travel wasn't until late afternoon, but for some other travelers they'd be cutting it close. We rejoiced at the return of Jerry, the best wheelchair pusher I've ever encountered. He made up for lost time and zipped through Customs and baggage claim lines then out onto the pavement. It was an E ticket ride, but safe nevertheless. Super ending to a fine cruise. 

 

Published 10/26/15

[srpilo]

Enjoyed your review... Thanks for sharing your cruise with us

[sept10dsm]

What a nice review! Princess has never let us down. I guess you are Disney fans with the reference to the E ticket ride! Wish Disney was back like it used to be!

[cnd crsr]

Thanks for sharing. Sounds like you had a great first experience on Princess:)

[JF - retired RRT]

You were lucky to get one towel animal...it isn't something that Princess does.:(

[Mom33]

Thanks so much for your review. I'm happy to hear that your cruise was a pleasurable experience.:) The Royal and Regal truly are beautiful ships.:D

[kcfoxy]

Yes, it was a very good experience. I was somewhat saddened to see several 1 star reviews and although I understand shipboard experiences can vary, there was precious little that was even average, and more than enough above so for my rating IMHO.

 

As far as the dearth of towel animals :rolleyes: it might also depend upon your particular room steward. We often supply them with construction paper in black, red and blue for the details of such critters, and usually they love this thoughtful gift in addition to extras they have earned ;)

 

BTW: One of our Roll Call members indicates she and her (adult) daughter had received 3 towel beasts by the halfway point. Very sweet and they were not Suite passengers by the by.

 

Here is the souvenir cruise pin given out at our Meet & Greet as a lightweight, (easily packable), vacation memento. But after signing up 270 for the M&G itself, I might just enjoy the next one as a guest rather than host :D

 

Edited October 28, 2015 by kcfoxy