Coral Princess Panama Canal Cruise Dec 18-28th review

[Jenncruiser]

Just wanted to write an overview of this cruise that I thoroughly enjoyed! I (26 F) was sailing with my mom (not 26). We've sailed on Royal Caribbean and Holland before but this was my first time on Princess. We both agreed that Princess is now our favorite line!

 

Room: We had a balcony cabin on the Aloha deck (A329). This was a great room and it was fairly quiet too. We were a two minute walk to the buffet which can be a good and a bad thing depending on how you look at it (my waist line says a bad thing). We had originally had a cabin on the baja deck that we had researched and selected but princess "upgraded" us ahead of time and we couldn't our old cabin back. We didn't want that upgrade and were upset at the time but I liked out room so I think it worked out fine.

 

Our stateroom steward was very friendly and brought us a plate of two cookies every night (his idea, not ours). He did this for all of his rooms in addition to the chocolates.

 

Food: Definitely the best food that we have ever had on a cruise ship. I had read a lot about the princess food. I was fantasizing about that fettucine alfredo in a parmesan bowl but guess what? They don't make it anymore. Well they do, but not in the parmesan bowl. Oh well, I survived. They have a menu inspired by chef Curtis Stone and chocolate deserts inspired by Norman Love. I definitely felt like a lot of thought went into the food choices and there was never a night that I couldn't find something I wanted to eat off the main menu in the dinning room.

 

The highlight for me was the gingerbread souffle on christmas. It was so delicious!

 

We tried every other free dinning choice on the boat as well (except for the grill because we're not hamburger/hotdog people). I enjoyed all of it, my favorite probably being the pizza (alfredos and the one by the pool) and the afternoon tea (we only tried this once because our seating was at 5:30). I can't speak for Sabatini's or the Bayou. I don't want to pay for meals on cruise ships when I'm already paying for the included food.

 

We also went to one of the wine tastings (they had three throughout the cruise). If you like wine, I think it's worthwhile to do this once. They give you snacks and let you try some pretty expensive wines too.

 

Onboard Activities:

I want to get it out of the way first and mention that one of my only complaints was The Voice of the Ocean experience. I'm a singer. I have a degree in vocal performance and I've been training for over a decade. I was really looking forward to this opportunity. They had auditions which basically entailed singing with the Karaoke machine and then the audience would write in votes and they would pick the top 7 or 8.

 

Here were the problems with that set up:

-16 or 17 people auditioned (I was number 3). Majority of the people that got through were in the last 8 and voted through by audience members who missed the first half.

-People voted for their friends/family that auditioned. They said they were only giving one slip per table but that didn't seem to be enforced. I (having only one family member there) and others (who had ten family members there) were not on equal footing.

-The 8 people that were voted through had a huge crowds that they brought with them and at least 5 of them were completely tone deaf.

 

It was a very frustrating/unenjoyable experience. I think the auditions should be voted on by the cruise staff so it is unbiased and then let the audience vote in the final show. I may sound bitter/a sore loser about this but I had to share how felt.

 

Moving on from that...

 

There was so much to do on this boat and the sea days just flew by! The cruise director Corey was the best cruise director we ever had (I was also a little bit in love with him).

 

Some of the highlight activities for me onboard were:

-Zumba (the classes that Corey lead especially). I do Zumba back home too and it was great to have this on sea days so I felt like I was getting some exercise.

-Stargazing. This was after the shows one night up on deck 16 by the splash pool. They turned off all of the lights and the cruise director pointed out different constellations in the sky and the stories behind them. It's a treat to see the night sky without all the usual light pollution.

-The library. People were leaving books they brought from home and finished so there was always new material. I think I ended up reading 5 books on this trip. The chairs are also comfy and point to the windows so it's a very cozy place to relax and read.

 

I appreciated the lotus pool a lot too though it often got very crowded. My favorite day was when we came back early from Grand Cayman and had the pools and hot tubs almost entirely to ourselves.

 

They also have BOGO happy hour in the Wheelhouse Bar everyday from 3-4 where you can buy one drink and get another one for 1 dollar. We did this almost everyday. They have trivia right after that in the same location which we tried one day but promptly realized we don't know anything.

 

The onboard destination talks were also very informative. The guy that lead them always had very funny powerpoints and a lot of helpful information. He reminded me of Rick Steves.

 

Entertainment:

I was seriously impressed with all of the entertainment onboard the ship. The only show I didn't like was motorcity (it was cringeworthy).

Encore (a new princess show I believe) was especially impressive.

 

I also was really impressed by the magician that they had onboard (his name escapes me at the moment). He lead a class on the last day where he showed how he did some of his tricks. It was very interesting.

 

Around the ship my favorite music act was the violin duo (Angelic Dreams). They performed in different venues throughout the day and were always great to listen to.

 

Ports:

We did Princess shore excursions in every port except for Grand Cayman where we took a taxi to the beach (only $5) and then walked around the town.

 

We took the boat that went all the way through the Panama Canal which was a fascinating and worthwhile experience. That being said there was very little shade/AC on the boat so it can be a trying day, especially if you're older. I saw a lot of people on that excursion who looked like they were suffering.

 

My favorite port was Costa Rica where we saw the canals and the rainforest. I saw at least 5 sloths!

 

Holiday activities: The boat was well decorated for the holidays. There was a gingerbread display near the front desk that was particularly impressive. They had a lot of nice events for the kids and the grown ups. There was Christmas caroling on Christmas Eve and Santa came on Christmas morning to give present to kids in the atrium. Everyone on the boat got a stocking with a candy cane and some chocolates (one per room). They also had holiday cookie decorating on christmas which we did and a gingerbread house competition (which we didn't do). They had a special holiday show on Christmas night as well.

 

Let me know if you have any questions! I'm still jetlagged and tired so I apologize in advance for typos in this post.

 

I'll included some pictures later once I get them on my computer.

[easyboy]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. Thanks for the feedback.

 

 

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[TracieABD]

Thank you for your review. I, too, love the library on the Coral. It is a stellar space. I also really loved the Sanctuary.

 

I am sorry to hear about your audition for the VOTO... It is a really biased process- combo of popularity contest, kid's talent show, some Schadenfreude, and every once in a while- a truly talented competitor.

 

I hope that if you travel on Princess again, you will get a better shot at the competition rounds.

[JF - retired RRT]

Food: Definitely the best food that we have ever had on a cruise ship. I had read a lot about the princess food. I was fantasizing about that fettucine alfredo in a parmesan bowl but guess what? They don't make it anymore. Well they do, but not in the parmesan bowl.

 

If you request the day before you want the Parmesan bowl, they will make one for you.

At least that's the way it worked on the Star this month.

[Clarea]

Interesting, informative report, thanks.:)

[Mama24]

Thank you for sharing this. We'll be on the Coral in March so I love hearing about everyone's experiences.

[nanatutu]

Thank you so much for your review. Looks like you and your Mom enjoyed the cruise. We will be on the Coral in March and now cannot wait.

 

Thank you also for the info regarding happy hour in the Wheelhouse bar. I will keep that in mind as I cruise. ;)

[jagsfan]

We're also sailing in March!

I'm to know there's an Alfredo's. I didn't see it in the brochure.

 

 

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[CineGraphic]

I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy your experience with The Voice.

I was on board the week before you and thoroughly enjoyed my experience with The Voice.

I too, am a conservatory graduate. I graduated before you were born.

I have not sung professionally in over 20 years.

I too, was traveling only with my wife, and some of the other singers were part of large groups.

Like you, I sang early, but not only did I make it into the finals, I ended up winning the whole kit & kaboodle.

It comes down to song choice, and having fun on stage, not who has the most training, or the largest family in the audience.

If you entertain the audience and have fun, you will win.

Two of the other finalists were roomies, they had no family or friends on board either.

[Jenncruiser]

I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy your experience with The Voice.

I was on board the week before you and thoroughly enjoyed my experience with The Voice.

I too, am a conservatory graduate. I graduated before you were born.

I have not sung professionally in over 20 years.

I too, was traveling only with my wife, and some of the other singers were part of large groups.

Like you, I sang early, but not only did I make it into the finals, I ended up winning the whole kit & kaboodle.

It comes down to song choice, and having fun on stage, not who has the most training, or the largest family in the audience.

If you entertain the audience and have fun, you will win.

Two of the other finalists were roomies, they had no family or friends on board either.

 

Congratulations. I'm happy for you that you got to take part in it and win, that's definitely impressive!

 

I'll respectfully disagree as nothing you said seemed to be the case for my cruise. It may vary cruise by cruise. I still stand by my opinion that the first round should be chosen by cruise staff and the final should be chosen by the audience.

[Jenncruiser]

We're also sailing in March!

I'm to know there's an Alfredo's. I didn't see it in the brochure.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

It's not very clearly advertised but it's in the Sabatini restaurant I believe from 11:30-1:30 everyday.

[MargoK]

Thank you for your review

 

We have booked 21 December 2017 Ft Lauderdale to LA. One from our bucket list.

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the review.

[Coral]

Thanks for the review!

 

I almost was on this cruise and had problem finding affordable air on the 17th (last minute booking). In the end, it was good that I didn't book it as we had horrid weather the day I was going to fly out and most of the flights were cancelled.

 

Glad you enjoyed the cruise. I agree - sometimes those singing events turns out to be a popularity contest.

[ar1950]

We're also sailing in March!

I'm to know there's an Alfredo's. I didn't see it in the brochure.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

This last April they had Alfredo's pizza selections in Sabatini's for lunch on sea days.

[Jenncruiser]

Here are some pictures from around the ship: https://www.flickr.com/photos/146297657@N03/sets/72157678499370565/

Edited December 30, 2016 by Jenncruiser

[develizweb]

Was indoor lotus pool adults only or were kids allowed? Princess sales rep said adults only but I have heard differently on these boards...Thx!

[CineGraphic]

Was indoor lotus pool adults only or were kids allowed? Princess sales rep said adults only but I have heard differently on these boards...Thx!

 

We were on the Coral December 8-18 and there was only a handful of kids on board. We did see them at the lotus pool, but they were well behaved.

 

We did hear that the next sailing, Dec 18th-28, was going to have several hundred kids on board so mybe they enforced the rules more.

[TracieABD]

Here are some pictures from around the ship: https://www.flickr.com/photos/146297657@N03/sets/72157678499370565/

 

Lovely photos! Thank you!

[crd27]

Thank you very much for your informative review! When I click on the link for the photos, I am taken to an error screen (Page Not Found). Not sure what is wrong since TracieABD was able to view them.....

 

Thanks again.

[TracieABD]

Thank you very much for your informative review! When I click on the link for the photos, I am taken to an error screen (Page Not Found). Not sure what is wrong since TracieABD was able to view them.....

 

Thanks again.

 

Weird- I could view them in Safari- and now I can't. Possibly the OP is adding or editing...

[nanatutu]

Here are some pictures from around the ship: https://www.flickr.com/photos/146297657@N03/sets/72157678499370565/

 

When I click on the flickr link I get error message. ????

[Jenncruiser]

We were on the Coral December 8-18 and there was only a handful of kids on board. We did see them at the lotus pool, but they were well behaved.

 

We did hear that the next sailing, Dec 18th-28, was going to have several hundred kids on board so mybe they enforced the rules more.

 

 

Yup, there were a lot of kids/families on board!

 

The Lotus pool felt like it was often more kids than adults but I didn't mind that much and I felt like they were all pretty well behaved and conscience of their surroundings. I remember one of the royal Caribbean ships I was on had an adult only pool hour everyday that was enforced and I do feel like Princess could benefit from that.

[Jenncruiser]

When I click on the flickr link I get error message. ????

 

Hmmm...yeah I've never quite figured out how to post images on cruisecritic because they always change the link after I post them.

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/146297657@N03/sets/72157678499370565/

 

^hopefully that works.

[TracieABD]

Hmmm...yeah I've never quite figured out how to post images on cruisecritic because they always change the link after I post them.

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/146297657@N03/sets/72157678499370565/

 

^hopefully that works.

 

Still not reading...