Island Princess - do I believe the comments?

[Yehootu]

9 hours ago, EastBay Cruisers said:

The only time our family members could get together for our "bucket list" Panama Canal cruise was over Thanksgiving vacation this year, which is coming up.  We wanted to sail with Princess, so we had no choice but the Island, as she had the only itinerary that could fit our schedule.  I have warned our other family members that the Island has very bad reviews,  least popular ship in the fleet, long wait times for MDR and theatre. But, what could we do if we all wanted to be together for a special reunion?   So, sometimes if people want to cruise with Princess on a specific itinerary at a specific time, they just have to take what they can get.

 

The other day here, someone wrote that if you want to walk/jog the entire circumference of the Promenade Deck, then just walk through the aft doors, then through the ship and come out the doors on the other side. That seemed like a pretty good work-around for me. 

I'm nervous about this cruise due to the negative publicity, but we are all going to try to make the best of it.  I'll write a review of the pros and cons when we return to San Francisco on Dec. 5  -- EBC

We love the Island.  Think of opening the doors on your promenade laps as an upper body work out rather than a nuisance. Did 19 days on the Island last April, have the Coral booked for same Itinerary this year. Booked 25 days on the Island in 2020. It's what you make it.

[EastBay Cruisers]

21 minutes ago, Yehootu said:

We love the Island.  Think of opening the doors on your promenade laps as an upper body work out rather than a nuisance. Did 19 days on the Island last April, have the Coral booked for same Itinerary this year. Booked 25 days on the Island in 2020. It's what you make it.

 

Thanks so much for your reply !  We'll have a wonderful time being with other family members for Thanksgiving and being out on the ocean.  You're correct -- it's what you make it. -- EBC

[greenie082756]

40 minutes ago, Yehootu said:

We love the Island.  Think of opening the doors on your promenade laps as an upper body work out rather than a nuisance. Did 19 days on the Island last April, have the Coral booked for same Itinerary this year. Booked 25 days on the Island in 2020. It's what you make it.

I too read a lot of negative things about the Island however we were also on that cruise (round trip LA) and thought it was one of the best cruise experiences we have had so far. Since we had not been on the Coral either there was nothing to compare.

 I too had read all the negative opinions on the changes, I tried to keep an open mind to the ship and crew .

 

The exercise/gym room is small with no windows. Used it once on a really choppy sea day and decided I would not go in there again. Really bad. Both the hubby and I walked on the promenade for our laps, both going through the doors and coming through the other side to continue on. To me that was no worse than having to up and down stairs while walking on the promenade that are on some of the other ships we have been on. Actually it was easier on my knees.

 

We had anytime dining and yes, we had to wait with a beeper for the first few nights and that was to be expected. We usually eat in the MDR between 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. of course there will be a wait. There is on most of the ships we have been on.

 

No aft pool and it was missed. That is an area that should be a signature stamp on every ship Princess builds.  Instead we hung out in the covered pool ( me with a margarita) in the afternoons. The only thing I did not care for in that area of course was the chlorine smell and because of a roof the sounds echoed a lot. 

 

IMHO, any cruise is what you make of it. Try it, you might like it! 

[Thrak]

11 hours ago, EastBay Cruisers said:

The only time our family members could get together for our "bucket list" Panama Canal cruise was over Thanksgiving vacation this year, which is coming up.  We wanted to sail with Princess, so we had no choice but the Island, as she had the only itinerary that could fit our schedule.  I have warned our other family members that the Island has very bad reviews,  least popular ship in the fleet, long wait times for MDR and theatre. But, what could we do if we all wanted to be together for a special reunion?   So, sometimes if people want to cruise with Princess on a specific itinerary at a specific time, they just have to take what they can get.

 

The other day here, someone wrote that if you want to walk/jog the entire circumference of the Promenade Deck, then just walk through the aft doors, then through the ship and come out the doors on the other side. That seemed like a pretty good work-around for me. 

I'm nervous about this cruise due to the negative publicity, but we are all going to try to make the best of it.  I'll write a review of the pros and cons when we return to San Francisco on Dec. 5  -- EBC

 

You will have a fabulous cruise. Don't worry about it.

[elliair]

About those aft doors on the Promenade deck.  Do not book a cabin near them as people slam the doors going in and out  of them.  That was one of the complaints someone in the cabin near those door had.  Also, people like to leave them open so they don't have to keep openings and closing them.  But crew closes them due to temperature fluctuations for those new cabins aft. 

[Michael Kays]

we have cruised on both Island Princess and Coral Princess for two Panama Canal sailings..first off, Island Princess and Coral Princess are two of the oldest Princess ships still sailing.. if compared to newer, bigger, better designed Princess ships, in my opinion the general flow of passageways has improved greatly with the newer designed ships..more people but seems less crowded.

  We have sailed in aft minis both cruises.  The constant opening and closing of passageway doors leading to aft observation areas was quite annoying.  Also the continuous intrusion of passengers looking around the bulkhead that separated our cabins balcony from the observation areas was irritating. 

So there is give and take, if you prefer aft balconies there are more of them with more privacy, if you prefer interior or ocean view cabins and use the observation decks there are less areas.  More cabins means more passengers and more $$$ for Princess, while I am sure Princess also takes into consideration passenger concerns for these modifications.

To each his/her own, we all have priorities. 

By definition a cruise in my opinion is a wonderful serene getaway, and is meant to be enjoyed~  with all the options available we should all be able to find something we can tolerate for a few wonderful days at sea.

Edited November 3, 2018 by Michael Kays

[donswife]

The gym would be a deal breaker for me. 

[jacquesmm]

We just came back from a 10 day cruise on the Island Princess (Panama Canal) and we will not go back.

The ship is crowded and the activities were very limited.  Our mini suite was smaller than on our previous cruises on Carnival.

The shows were good but the seating is insufficient for the number of passengers. You may not find a seat. The exercise room is a dark small space with no windows and often full.

They advertise it but there is no "Patisserie", just a coffee bar.

We picked the traditional dining seating and that was fine but those who choose the anytime seating often had to wait.

We took most of our meals in the MDR but the few times we had to use the food court, were unpleasant. Once we could not find a table.

The food at the buffet (Horizon Court) was mediocre but we only tried it at lunch.

On the good side: the food in the main dining room was superb, the wine list very nice, the service was excellent everywhere. Embarkation and debarkation were fast and smooth. Our balcony was large.

We may try Princess again but not on that boat.

 

BTW, for those who wonder about the discount wine offer, it is available on that cruise. We got a 10 bottles package for $ 290.00 allowing us to select wines up to $ 45.00 each.

 

Edited November 3, 2018 by jacquesmm