Island Princess?

[papa4330]

Has anyone sailed the Island Princess lately? We are taking a 15 day full transit of the canal, leaving Jan 4th.We are platinum members but have never sailed this ship before. Any info. about the ship or ports we will be stopping at would be much appreciated.Thanks it will be west to east transit.

[Colo Cruiser]

Has anyone sailed the Island Princess lately? We are taking a 15 day full transit of the canal, leaving Jan 4th.We are platinum members but have never sailed this ship before. Any info. about the ship or ports we will be stopping at would be much appreciated.Thanks it will be west to east transit.

 

 

If you use the "search this forum" and search "Island Princess" at the top/right of the page where the posts start you will fine numerous threads on Island Princess.

 

Here is one.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2380566&highlight=island+princess

 

Also one on the Island/Panama,

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2421363&highlight=island+princess+panama+canal

Edited November 8, 2016 by Colo Cruiser

[Brisbane41]

I would not sail on the Island Princess even if I were paid to after Princess destroyed the ship by removing public rooms and filling the ship with cabins.

 

If you are used to the generous space on other Princess ships you should keep this in mind.

[1965]

We were on her last fall, 19 days, Venice to Ft. Lauderdale. There is no International Cafe, and the atrium is smaller and not designed well. Otherwise, we liked her just fine. I won't hesitate to sail on her again if the price and itinerary are to my liking. Hope this helps. :)

[wowzz]

Well, you can pay me to cruise on her again. We did the full transit in April. Excellent staff, good food, entertainment was fine, and we never found the ship to be crowded.

 

 

Sent from my SM-T700 using Forums mobile app

[azgrandmax3]

Has anyone sailed the Island Princess lately? We are taking a 15 day full transit of the canal, leaving Jan 4th.We are platinum members but have never sailed this ship before. Any info. about the ship or ports we will be stopping at would be much appreciated.Thanks it will be west to east transit.

We sailed on her through the Panama Canal it was our first time on this ship. Found it to be one of the most comfortable, clean and excellent service of all the Princess ships we have experienced. We had not experienced the ship before redo, so as the old saying goes, "we did not miss what we had not seen." We never felt crowded anywhere on ship. Enjoy.

[socaljo]

We were on the Island, this past spring, doing the 15 day, ot was wonderful! If you want to read all about it, here's a link to my review! We leave Jan 4 on the Crown!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2340550

 

Happy Sailing!!

[tiessa]

We did the partial canal earlier in the year. The worst cruise ever. It was our first and last cruise on Princess. The dinner lines were very long. We didn't care for the food but that is subjective. The buffet was very limited. The theater was too small and there were long lines every night. The shows we saw were good. The service was a mix from good to absolutely rude. I think there were a lot of unhappy crew on the ship and it showed. The excursions were always late and rushed or didn't even happen. It was just a terrible experience. I'm glad we cruised enough to know this was not typical of cruises or we would never cruise again. I did think she was a beautiful ship.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[MGnut]

I agree with the yeah-sayers, not the nay-sayers. We did the east to west full transit in April '16 and had a great time. We had been on the Island before the change, and, truthfully, we had none of the crowding, over-full problems that some folks complain about. In many cases, I think, many of the complaints are from those who have not sailed on her since the changes.

 

True - you can not do a complete loop of the Promenade deck - you need to cross over at the aft. It was never problem to go through the doors to the other side for us - but we're not marathoners so it didn't bother us.

 

My bet is that you will have a great cruise if you sail her.

[LSGDRG]

I was recently on the Island in September 2016. I was nervous prior to the cruise due to all the negative comments on cruise criticabout the ship. I ended up enjoying my cruise. It may have helped that I had not been on the ship prior to it's last drydock. I suggest you read member reviews for the Island.

[recyclelady]

I'm not real excited about the ship itself since they took out the public space and moved the gym. BUT I am booked on the 60 day South America trip in January 2018 aboard her and I am excited about the itinerary!

[wishfulone]

Currently on the Island doing the east to west Panama Transit. Once you get used to the fact that there are cabins at both ends of every deck it's not an issue. The atrium is smaller than some Princess ships with not much seating, but all the services are conveniently located on the floors opening to the atrium. There's a very strong smell of cigar/cigarette smoke is the atrium area all the time perhaps because it's smaller and doesn't vent properly.

 

The only real problem the new cabins appear to have created is with dining. There are very long lines for Anytime Dining with up to an hour wait for a table some nights. All those extra cabins, equals lots of extra people but there appears to have been no new dining arrangements put in place.

 

The ship's activities are very well planned and organsied. Good shows. Excellent CD (retiring at the end of this stint unfortunately). Wonderful itinerary and the port lecturer Bill Keene is exceptional. Enjoy your cruise. It'll be fabulous.

Edited November 11, 2016 by wishfulone

[Colo Cruiser]

Currently on the Island doing the east to west Panama Transit. Once you get used to the fact that there are cabins at both ends of every deck it's not an issue. The atrium is smaller than some Princess ships with not much seating, but all the services are conveniently located on the floors opening to the atrium. There's a very strong smell of cigar/cigarette smoke is the atrium area all the time perhaps because it's smaller and doesn't vent properly.

 

The only real problem the new cabins appear to have created is with dining. There are very long lines for Anytime Dining with up to an hour wait for a table some nights. All those extra cabins, equals lots of extra people but there appears to have been no new dining arrangements put in place.

 

The ship's activities are very well planned and organsied. Good shows. Excellent CD (retiring at the end of this stint unfortunately). Wonderful itinerary and the port lecturer Bill Keene is exceptional. Enjoy your cruise. It'll be fabulous.

 

 

 

I agree! This also effects entertainment venues as they removed the 2 level Universe Lounge. :(

 

Even though we have seen it several times over the years, On The Bayou was standing room only in the Princess theater each time. :(

 

In the Med there were lines for AT dining every evening from 5pm-8:30 into the opposite side of the atrium. :(

[Rocknie]

I am one of those members who believes Princess ruined a once great ship. I would never say that I wouldn't sail her again but there are two absolutes that would have to be met!

 

1) Traditional Dining (as others have said... Anytime Dining is a long wait during popular dining times.)

 

2) NEVER get one of the new aft cabins... last trip aboard the Island our friends took an aft owner's suite. It was like you were standing on 25cent motel vibrating bed!! I can't believe they put up with that for the entire length of the cruise. We had one of the Penthouse suites midship and while the deck was small we didn't have any type of vibration.

 

Regardless, enjoy your sailing!

[LeeW]

I would not sail on the Island Princess even if I were paid to after Princess destroyed the ship by removing public rooms and filling the ship with cabins.

 

If you are used to the generous space on other Princess ships you should keep this in mind.

 

Frankly, it hasn't changed that much. Casino is smaller and you can't walk all the way forward or aft on the Lido deck. The biggest change was removing the Universe Lounge (and I wouldn't want a cabin next to the new fitness center), but at least they now have "On the Bayou" adapted to the Princess Theater. The only thing I would watch (from our last two weeks on her) is avoid the six obstructed OV cabins just forward of the atrium. These are above the stage in the Wheelhouse Bar and vibrate from the music, or from a few parties in the atrium. Does shut down around 11, but would really help if the singers were on key. We're going back in April.

[wishfulone]

I agree! This also effects entertainment venues as they removed the 2 level Universe Lounge. :(

 

Even though we have seen it several times over the years, On The Bayou was standing room only in the Princess theater each time. :(

 

In the Med there were lines for AT dining every evening from 5pm-8:30 into the opposite side of the atrium. :(

 

Went to the late show of On the Bayou last night. 9.30pm I think. The theatre was about two thirds full but I believe the two early shows were packed to the rafters. It's excellent and so was the tribute show - Elton John, Billy Joel and Barry Manilow.

[Brisbane41]

Frankly, it hasn't changed that much. Casino is smaller and you can't walk all the way forward or aft on the Lido deck. The biggest change was removing the Universe Lounge (and I wouldn't want a cabin next to the new fitness center), but at least they now have "On the Bayou" adapted to the Princess Theater. The only thing I would watch (from our last two weeks on her) is avoid the six obstructed OV cabins just forward of the atrium. These are above the stage in the Wheelhouse Bar and vibrate from the music, or from a few parties in the atrium. Does shut down around 11, but would really help if the singers were on key. We're going back in April.

 

It doesn't matter to me because it is on my black list for life. It comes down to principles. I disagree with the changes and I do not like overcrowding on holidays so therefore I will never book it again. Particularly when there are better ships in existence that have more generous space for passengers.

[jshyshka]

We sailed her through the canal in October - loved the ship - one of the best cruises we have been on. Don't care about the changes - plenty of room for everyone, never waited for a pool chair at any time of the day.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[TLCOhio]

We sailed her through the canal in October - loved the ship - one of the best cruises we have been on. Don't care about the changes - plenty of room for everyone, never waited for a pool chair at any time of the day.

 

Appreciate these various positive comments on this thread. Have booked to do our first Princess cruise on a Fort Lauderdale to San Francisco cruise through the Panama Canal in late February-early March 2017. Therefore, sorry, debating and hang-wringing on the "old" versus "new" versions of this ship are totally unimportant for us and our interests.

 

For us, this cruise includes stops in Aruba (that we did in early 2015), Cartagena/Colombia, Puntarenas/Costa Rica, San Juan del Sur/Nicaragua and Cabo San Lucas/Mexico. This would be our first time for visiting Columbia, Panama Canal, Central America, etc. It’s eight sea days, which is a little high for us, but it is a “get-away” from the Midwest winter. Looking forward to reading any and all tips, suggestions, ideas, ship secrets, etc.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 160,392 views for this posting.