Though I am an elite cruiser on Celebrity, I decided to try Princess. Big Mistake.

[Seas the Day]

I just came back from a disappointing Panama Canal cruise. has anyone else tried Princess and had issues?

[Roz]

What was the nature of your issues?

 

Roz

[Seas the Day]

I am a seasoned cruiser - having been on more cruises than I can count - on multiple

lines including: Carnival, Holland America, Princess, RoyalCaribbean, Celebrity, Cunard, Lindblad/National Geographic, and Silversea. My husband and I are elite members at Royal/Celebrity. I have never written anegative review…

 

...until this past cruise. We didn't mind (much) that embarkation was delayed for a day - which we didn't find out until the night before when checking email at our hotel. We were able to work around the fact that our hotel initially could not offer us another night because we were told Princess was holding rooms, but Princess Customer Service could not help. We didn't need to stay overnight in the ballroom that Princess reserved for guests without reservations. The broken window in our cabin for the first week was eventually fixed. The non-working AC when we first boarded was eventually fixed. These things were annoyances, and not enough to upset us.

 

I wasn't enthusiastic about the mix of passengers - I prefer a broader age range and geographic disbursement. This crowd was primarily American, and older than ourselves - and we are retired. In contrast, I've thoroughlyenjoyed meeting Europeans and Australians and Canadians –and Americans- aboard Royal/Celebrity/Silversea/Cunard, and we have friends across the world because of it! I so enjoy different points of view.

 

Here's what made us UPSET: We could not do what we wanted, when we wanted. Isn't that why we take cruises?

 

ENTERTAINMENT: SHOW UP EARLY OR YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE ENTERTAINMENT ONBOARD

* Evening entertainment consisted of a Theatrical Production and occasional Game Show

* The Theater does not have enough seats to accommodate passengers, and with few other options, seats were filled half an hour before show time

* If you do not arrive at the Theater a half hour early, you will not be able to sit with your significant other or maybe not get a seat at all (we were unable to get into three shows, and then stopped trying)

* Do not expect to get somewhere else quickly when leaving the theater. I saw no doors on the Lower Level, and nobody moves until the guests in the upper rows depart (and many don't move very well; re: age and disability). We (twice) waited fifteen minutes to start moving up the stairs towards the exit.

* We read about the Escape Room on Cruise Critic and wanted to sign up. I was first in line, having showed up 20 minutes early (learning from the Theater) and the staff member showed up 20 minutes late and took sign-ups in another location. Since there were only 60 slots, I was LUCKY toget two of them, despite showing up early.

* If you do not show up for Art Projects early enough, there are not enough materials.

* As usual, we enjoyed Trivia and other onboard games, and have many wine stoppers and some water bottles to show for it

 

 

DINING: YOU MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN WAITING IN LINE TO EAT AND SEEING A SHOW, OR NOT WAITING AND POTENTIALLY SEEING THAT NIGHT'S ENTERTAINMENT

* We chose "Anytime Dining" which we renamed,"NOT Anytime Dining"

* To finish dinner early enough for the 7:30pm show, you must be finished dining at 6:45pm - but if you show up between 5:15 - 5:45pm (too early anyways) there will be a long line

* If you show up between 6pm and 7pm, there will not be enough empty tables - and you will be given a pager

* If you eat with other passengers, hoping to meet new people, service takes two hours. You must eat alone if you hope to get out ofthe dining room quickly.

* If you go to the early show (offered some nights) and have dinner after, you miss the Game Shows at 8:00pm, and you are guaranteed a long line because the other Theater goers ALL rush the dining room at that moment

* If you decide - darn it, I'm just going to the buffet and eat quickly - you will have very little diversity of choice. Only half the area is active at one time, and choices are bland and REPETITIVE.

* If you decide - darn it, I'll spend the $29 per person and go to a Specialty Restaurant that IS better. The food is better. You are served quickly. We did that twice. I liked Sabatini's. The Crab Shack was disappointing, but I lived in Maryland for four years - so I know GOOD crab.

 

I CAN'T IMAGINE NEEDING TO GET SOMEWHERE IMPORTANT QUICKLY

* Lack of diversity (in entertainment and constitution of guests) could result in too many people in one spot at a particular time, and could lead to possible injury (my husband being stepped on)

* My husband was trampled during a rush to see a Production Show in the theater, and hurt his foot badly enough that it required an X-Ray.The doctor aboard suspected a bone fracture, and he wore a walking cast/bootfor two days - until a radiologist on land was able to clear him - two days of hobbling around later.

 

AFTER REVIEW OF OUR CONCERNS, PRINCESS OFFERED US TWO $29 SPECIALTY DINNERS AND A BOTTLE OF SHIP WINE ON A FUTURE CRUISE. They did not reverse medical charges of $261, which we asked to be refunded. They did not provide compensation for my husband trying to walk in a boot for two days. It was never about the money for my husband and me - we wanted them to care about the issues we faced. We wanted a CARE FREE vacation.

 

Note: all guests on this sailing were offered 15% off a future cruise due to the late embarkation. We do not plan to take them up on this offer.

 

 

Princess? I plan to avoid it. I cruise 3-4 times a year, and it won’t be on Princess.

Edited January 3, 2018 by Seas the Day
fixing spacing issues

[LH25]

Was this your first Princess cruise?

[Charles4515]

I just came back from a disappointing Panama Canal cruise. has anyone else tried Princess and had issues?

 

Been on 11 Princess cruises and never had issues. Did the Panama Canal on Island Princess a number of years ago. One of my favorite sailings. I do prefer Celebrity over Princess but will likely cruise Princess again in the future because they have interesting itineraries.

[Wiltonian]

Unfortunately, people have replied to the post you made on exactly the same issue, albeit with little information, less than two hours earlier.

[mek]

No, I love Princess - it is my overall favorite line. Kind of hard to address any issues when you don't mention what they were.

[ghstudio]

We are elite plus on Celebrity and pond scum (no perks) on Princess...but we braved a Princess cruise up the coast of Norway a few months ago. It was excellent....even without the perks. We would definitely sail Princess again if the itinerary fit....

[Silkroad]

Perhaps you should copy your detailed post into the other thread you started, instead of leaving people wondering why you’ve given no details.

[eandj]

Which ship?

 

Anytime dining is poorly run on Princess. It is their number one complaint.

 

We have cruised several ships on Princess. We have enjoyed them all. We are elite on X, but look elsewhere for variety and updated itineraries.

 

Sorry your husband hurt his ankle. We have never experienced the crowds trampling others.

[mom says]

I'd like to know which ship/sailing this was, too. I'm sorry the OPs experience with one ship has turned her off an entire cruise line.

 

Edited to add: never mind. I see on another thread that it was the Island Princess. The OP must be incredibly disturbed by her experience. So far I've counted 4 separate threads sprinkled across these boards on the same topic. Not sure what the point of that is.

Edited January 4, 2018 by mom says

[George C]

The Theater does not have enough seats to accommodate passengers, and with few other options, seats were filled half an hour before show time

this is reason we stopped sailing princess on the other hand there entertainment was way better than Celebrity.

[Charles4515]

I'd like to know which ship/sailing this was, too. I'm sorry the OPs experience with one ship has turned her off an entire cruise line.

 

Edited to add: never mind. I see on another thread that it was the Island Princess. The OP must be incredibly disturbed by her experience. So far I've counted 4 separate threads sprinkled across these boards on the same topic. Not sure what the point of that is.

 

 

 

She is on a vendetta. No doubt there were some issues on her sailing but when someone is on a vendetta I stop believing most of what they rant about.

[Jade13]

[quote name=Seas the Day;54891157

 

AFTER REVIEW OF OUR CONCERNS' date=' PRINCESS OFFERED US TWO $29 SPECIALTY DINNERS AND A BOTTLE OF SHIP WINE ON A FUTURE CRUISE. They did not reverse medical charges of $261, which we asked to be refunded. They did not provide compensation for my husband trying to walk in a boot for two days. It was never about the money for my husband and me - we wanted them to care about the issues we faced. We wanted a CARE FREE vacation.

 

Note: all guests on this sailing were offered 15% off a future cruise due to the late embarkation. We do not plan to take them up on this offer.

 

 

Princess? I plan to avoid it. I cruise 3-4 times a year, and it won’t be on Princess.[/quote]

 

 

 

Why did you expect a refund on medical services, and why did you not purchase travel insurance?

 

Most issues seem to revolve around making a theater show. Trying to have dinner, theater, and another activity by 8:00pm was probably not realistic.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Iamcruzin]

I have sailed Princess 5 times and agree with all you said about "not anytime dining" and the theater. Out of five sailings we only saw one Production show and the Comedian Show we listened to while standing outside of the venue. With that said, I would still sail on Princess and choose anytime dining since we eat late we generally don't have a problem with lines. I have had more waits on Celebrity even going late than on Princess. The most loyal Princess passenger would also agree with you that the anytime dining is poorly controlled. In my opinion they have too many dining time options that really interferes with Anytime dining. There are two different early time traditional seatings and one late traditional seating. In theory there shouldn't be such a long wait for anytime when there are 3 traditional times. The problem is that those new cruisers that are in traditional think that they can bounce back and forth between dining venues and it is allowed by the staff. Celebrity actually checks your card.

 

I would have had a big issue with the broken window and the lack of A/C. I am also not a fan of the tiny shower with the curtain that assaults you and the walk in closet takes up too much of the room, I would still sail on Princess if the itinerary and Price is right. I have one cruise booked with them but I am going to cancel because Celebrity has a better offer.

[keithm]

I just came back from a disappointing Panama Canal cruise. has anyone else tried Princess and had issues?

Ok, here goes. We usually do Celebrity(Eclipse)Great 14 day itineraries, decent food(except this past Jan.)In 2016 we did a 14 day B2B on the Regal. First week was horrid(NOT Princess's fault)the first week the ship was full of Carolina Panther fans(super bowl week)Really trashy overall disgusting group. Food on board was overall very good, though Celebrity specialty rest. are far better. The second week we had a whole new group of pax & it was MUCH better. The theater DOES fill up quickly. Yes, it's too small. We had NO problem attending shows. We always do early traditional seating & have no problems getting to the shows early. Did miss the central stairway that Solstice class ships have. We used the central

staff stairway often. This is now converted to pax use. Food was again very good in the MDR. Dining rooms aboard Regal do not have "wow" factor like you see on Celebrity & other lines. That being said I'd still cruise Princess. I'd just avoid the super bowl week.

As to your issues, some of them are your own doing..select dining. Did you purchase insurance? Pax who don't are fools! trust me, others will back me on this. The line is under no obligations to refund medical bills that are NOT directly the fault of the line. Perhaps you should pursue legal claims against those who trampled your husband(good luck there!)

Edited January 4, 2018 by keithm
additions

[Luvcrusn]

While I both understand and sympathize with your concerns I don't understand why you've started multiple threads about the same issue. Could you explain?

[mek]

The Theater does not have enough seats to accommodate passengers, and with few other options, seats were filled half an hour before show time

this is reason we stopped sailing princess on the other hand there entertainment was way better than Celebrity.

 

Not saying it's a good thing, but we just go 45 minutes early and play cards. Never have a problem getting the seat we want.

[Iamcruzin]

Not saying it's a good thing, but we just go 45 minutes early and play cards. Never have a problem getting the seat we want.

 

Something is wrong when you have to go 45 minutes early to see a 30 minute show.

[GUT2407]

We are elite plus on Celebrity and pond scum (no perks) on Princess...but we braved a Princess cruise up the coast of Norway a few months ago. It was excellent....even without the perks. We would definitely sail Princess again if the itinerary fit....

We are pretty much the opposite, one cruise away from Elite on Princess, bottom f e bucket on Celebrity (now had 8 nights) but I’ll do Celebrity again.

[GUT2407]

While I both understand and sympathize with your concerns I don't understand why you've started multiple threads about the same issue. Could you explain?

I think they need validation. Or support to get something out of Princess.

 

But the biggest thing to me was the medical bill and thinking Princes should wear it because hubby hurt his foot.

[Charles4515]

Did you purchase insurance? Pax who don't are fools! trust me, others will back me on this. The line is under no obligations to refund medical bills that are NOT directly the fault of the line. Perhaps you should pursue legal claims against those who trampled your husband(good luck there!)

 

I back you up on it. The $261 they were billed is actually a very low medical bill. It is possible to rack up a medical bill in the thousands of dollars. I have a friend who was charged several thousands onboard Celebrity. He was smart enough to have insurance and was reimbursed the whole amount by the insurance company. Medical coverage is a must.

[Marelaine]

We only sailed one time on Royal Princess. I hate to judge by just one cruise, but I agree with your assessment. There are not enough seats in the theater to accommodate everyone who wants to see the show. You need to get there early if you want to sit with your spouse and the shows are very short. They hardly seem worth it. But on the positive side, Princess did seem to have more entertainment options in the smaller lounges. And Movies Under the Stars was fun, when it wasn't cancelled due to wind. They also had a light show, but that may have been something special they were doing for their 50th ? anniversary. They also played the Love Boat Theme on the ships horns for sail away. A small thing, but still a nice touch.

 

We usually eat dinner early, 6:30, and didn't have to wait too long most nights. But the food and service in the MDR was not as good as Celebrity. Again, I'm just talking about one particular cruise. The buffet on Royal Princess is chopped up into sections, but the waiters were quick to take drink orders, get coffee, iced tea etc...I prefer the open layout and variety of foods in the Celebrity Oceanview buffet.

 

Our Princess cruise was a 10 day southern Caribbean. Most of the passengers seemed to range between 30 and 90 years old. Lots of Canadians and Europeans, as well as Americans.

 

We've always had excellent cabin stewards. Always. Princess was no different.

 

No smoking in the casino on Celebrity. There were nights that the Princess casino was so thick with smoke that we couldn't stand it.

 

Celebrity has The Solarium, which absolutely tips the scales to Celebrity for us, if everything else is more or less equal.

[mek]

Something is wrong when you have to go 45 minutes early to see a 30 minute show.

 

Maybe, but we would just be playing cards somewhere else. Seats can be found up until about 15 minutes before the show and then it gets dicey. I could say something is wrong when people wait unill 5 minutes before a show starts and think they're going to get a seat.

 

Of course the people who save seats only add to the problem. In my opinion 1 seat can be saved for a spouse or sig other and that's the limit. But no, folks come in and save 4 and 5 seats and get really nasty if someone tries to sit in them. Good to the people who go ahead and sit down anyhow.

[karena1]

We love Princess, only complaint are the pools are really cold

 

We cruise 3 lines - mostly Royal, but then also Celebrity and Princess. At this point we have decided it is the only 3 lines we will go on. We love them all.