Currently on Royal Princess - first time with Princess!

[AllureOfVacation]

Hi,

 

it is our first time with Princess and I wanted to give you some quick thoughts and comments how we feel about it

 

We are currently on the "epic" repositioning cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles and got on in San Antonio Chile. The cruise will end on March 23rd.

 

We are in one on the forward facing balconies on Marina deck. I was afraid the bridge will intrude the view, but this is only minor. If you want to take photos, just zoom in a little and the bridge will not be seen on the photos. The opposing balcony has an antenna that might obstruct the view a little bit on photos, but no antenna on our side. 

 

On one side of the cabin there is a small crew corridor, so no direct neighbours on one side. The balcony is huge! It is less windy than I expected, but this can change with the wheather.

 

The ships atmosphere is very very relaxed. There are so many chairs available at the pools. There is almost always an empty Jaccuzzi. I went to the Sanctuary today to reserve a half day for a sea day for giving it a try. Only a few loungers were booked. When I booked it, no one was in the Sanctuary except the crew. 

 

The food in the main dining room is much better than we expected. I read so many negative points about the MDR in these boards which I can not understand. The food and service is outstanding. We have anytime dining and until now we never had to wait for a table. Maybe we will try one of the upcharge restaurants, but currently we see now reason to do it.

 

The cabin is very nice and clean, but we do not like the shower and there are no outlets near the bed. Compared to other large ships the bathroom is a little let down, but our room attendant keeps it clean which is more important than having a fancy futuristic shower. The bed is a little too soft, but we sleep well in it.

 

We have no room service menu in the cabin folder! Only the breakfast menu. I asked the attendant about the menu and he brought us another breakfast menu. I assume there is no classic room service on this cruise.

 

The attendant does a very good job by the way. The cabin is really clean.

 

On the ship there is a lot of work for the medaillons going on.

 

Bar service is excellent. We bought the beverage package and received a large tumbler which comes in very handy.

 

The whole crew is so friendly, so are the other guests. Very laid back and relaxed atmosphere.

 

For first time Princess guests, we are very satisfied until now! 

 

I think on one weeks cruises to the Caribbean there is much more hustle and bustle going on, the pool is much more crowded and the Sanctuary might be fully booked. This cruise feels so much more different than the Caribbean cruises we have taken in the past. So quiet and peaceful.

 

 

Edited March 13, 2019 by AllureOfVacation

[AllureOfVacation]

...some impressions: 

[rkacruiser]

Thanks for your first report.  My mini-suite Cabin Steward provided the best service that service in that category that I have had for some time.

 

If the Royal Princess Tea is offered during your cruise, although a modest extra charge, it was a highlight of my New Year's Cruise on this beautiful vessel.

[AllureOfVacation]

11 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

Thanks for your first report.  My mini-suite Cabin Steward provided the best service that service in that category that I have had for some time.

 

If the Royal Princess Tea is offered during your cruise, although a modest extra charge, it was a highlight of my New Year's Cruise on this beautiful vessel.

 

We have an "Obstructed Deluxe Balcony"

 

I already inquired about the upcharge afternoon tea. As far as I understood with my english skills they will do it on this part of the cruise, but do not know exactly when. I need to ask again

[reedprincess]

Thanks fir the review. Royal is a great ship.

We love the Deluxe Balconies on Royal class ships, especially some of those "obstructed view" ones - the balcony size can be huge!!

 

 

FWIW - there most definitely is 24/7 "classic " room service or however you want to call it. No charge at all any time, except pizza - it's a full personal pizza delivered.   Ask Guest Services for the room service menu. Salads, soups, sandwiches, lasagna, chili, potato chips, cookies, etc.  

[Italy52]

We have an inside cabin on the Marina deck for our June sailings to Alaska.  How do you like Marina Deck?

[AllureOfVacation]

1 hour ago, reedprincess said:

Thanks fir the review. Royal is a great ship.

We love the Deluxe Balconies on Royal class ships, especially some of those "obstructed view" ones - the balcony size can be huge!!

 

 

FWIW - there most definitely is 24/7 "classic " room service or however you want to call it. No charge at all any time, except pizza - it's a full personal pizza delivered.   Ask Guest Services for the room service menu. Salads, soups, sandwiches, lasagna, chili, potato chips, cookies, etc.  

 

I just went to guest service. There is room service and they will get us the menu. I was already wondering. Maybe our attendant got me wrong when I tried to explain.

Edited March 13, 2019 by AllureOfVacation

[AllureOfVacation]

1 hour ago, Italy52 said:

We have an inside cabin on the Marina deck for our June sailings to Alaska.  How do you like Marina Deck?

 

We like the deck, it is only one deck below the pool, buffet, trident grill and so on.

 

On the aft there are two self service laundromats

[OCruisers]

Hi!  So happy to hear you are having a good time!

We know two couples very well who are on this cruise with you.  Geri & Bruce (Northern California) and MaryAnn & Leonard (Florida).  They started in Ft. Lauderdale and be on until back in California.  

If you happen to meet any of them,  please tell them LuLu & Roundman say HELLO.

Continue to enjoy your wonderful cruise!  

[Sea Day Cruiser]

1 hour ago, AllureOfVacation said:

 

We have an "Obstructed Deluxe Balcony"

 

I already inquired about the upcharge afternoon tea. As far as I understood with my english skills they will do it on this part of the cruise, but do not know exactly when. I need to ask again

 

On the Royal there is usually a sign-up sheet for the royal tea in the piazza on deck 5. Look for it near the entrance to the raised area near the international cafe. Or just ask someone at the international cafe and they will tell you how you can sign up for the tea.

[mthomp5]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on the Royal Princess.  You have a wonderful room with that huge balcony.  Glad to hear the food on the ship has been very good.  You should also try Alfredo’s.  The pizza is very good and there is no additional charge. I also like the veal ravioli dish...I forget what it’s called.  Oh...and the tiramisu.  

[#1Nanna]

 Thank you for  taking the time to share your thoughts about your cruise.  We will be on the Royal May 4th and reading of your experience is just building our excitement.  Glad to hear good reports on the dining room.  Enjoy the rest of your cruise! 

[cruzn fun]

Thanks for the review. We will be boarding the Royal on April 13th. Hopefully the Medallions will be working. I can't wait to have some of my favorite Princess foods, Fettucini Alfredo, Goat Cheese Soufle and escargot 🙂 Enjoy

[sunsetme]

we were on the segment from BA to San Antonio and thought food at the Horizon Court was surprisingly very good especially at lunch. The ship is beautiful but some of the "activities" such as game shows were silly but well attended. Too many sea days for me and the weather wasn't great, seas were choppy (to be expected).

[AllureOfVacation]

14 hours ago, mthomp5 said:

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on the Royal Princess.  You have a wonderful room with that huge balcony.  Glad to hear the food on the ship has been very good.  You should also try Alfredo’s.  The pizza is very good and there is no additional charge. I also like the veal ravioli dish...I forget what it’s called.  Oh...and the tiramisu.  

 

We have been to Alfredos on our first sea day and we really liked our dishes. I had the Royal Princess Pizza and it was very good

 

 

 

3 hours ago, jdechter said:

we were on the segment from BA to San Antonio and thought food at the Horizon Court was surprisingly very good especially at lunch. The ship is beautiful but some of the "activities" such as game shows were silly but well attended. Too many sea days for me and the weather wasn't great, seas were choppy (to be expected).

 

We have heard from another guest about the choppy seas and that it was quite cold sometimes

 

I can confirm your comment about the food quality in the buffet. Lots of variety and still high quality. And they have a bowl of Nutella for breakfast - this keeps me happy!

 

 

 

Today we are in the Sanctuary. It is perfect wheather and there a only about 10 guests up here. The servers are very attentive and the food menu has interesting options.

[rkacruiser]

17 hours ago, Sea Day Cruiser said:

 

On the Royal there is usually a sign-up sheet for the royal tea in the piazza on deck 5. Look for it near the entrance to the raised area near the international cafe. Or just ask someone at the international cafe and they will tell you how you can sign up for the tea.

 

The gentleman responsible for "managing" the Royal Tea was the Sommelier at Vines.  When I inquired about how to sign-up for the event, I was directed to Vines.  A Vines bartender then referred me to this gentleman.  He may not have been an "official" sommelier, but he clearly was in "charge of Vines".

[greenie082756]

Thanks for sharing your cruise. 

DH and I will get to experience the Royal for the first time on April 6 - 13th. So looking forward to it.

 

Have a wonderful time!

[stvandy1]

4 hours ago, greenie082756 said:

Thanks for sharing your cruise. 

DH and I will get to experience the Royal for the first time on April 6 - 13th. So looking forward to it.

 

Have a wonderful time!

As will I. Taking my Dear Wife, Son and Daughter in Law. Maybe I will see you aboard ship. I will be the one with the crutch under my left arm.

Edited March 14, 2019 by stvandy1

[stvandy1]

What dining room are they using for MDR Breakfast and lunch on the Royal Princess?

[AllureOfVacation]

1 hour ago, stvandy1 said:

What dining room are they using for MDR Breakfast and lunch on the Royal Princess?

 

Breakfast and Lunch is in Allegro according the Princess Patter for tomorrow

[stvandy1]

1 minute ago, AllureOfVacation said:

 

Breakfast and Lunch is in Allegro according the Princess Patter for tomorrow

 

Good to know. 24 days till I board the Royal.

[BCCRUSINGCOUPLE]

...some impressions: 

Thanks for the great pics


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[AllureOfVacation]

We were selected to test the Medaillons!

 

Received them this morning

 

 

Edited March 14, 2019 by AllureOfVacation

[Georgie562]

Thank you for your thoughts!! I will be on in April. I am also staying in one of those forward facing balconies but on Lido deck. I "scored" when I booked that balcony as it is huge.

Edited March 14, 2019 by Georgie562

[AllureOfVacation]

11 minutes ago, Georgie562 said:

Thank you for your thoughts!! I will be on in April. I am also staying in one of those forward facing balconies but on Lido deck. I "scored" when I booked that balcony as it is huge.

 

We booked this cruise when it was almost sold out. But surprisingly our forward facing cabin on Marina deck was still available so we immediately booked it.

 

I can tell you the balcony is really huge. The center forward facing balconies on Lido even have a wider balcony because there is no outside crew corridor which I was referring to in my post above.

 

There is an aerial photo of these balconies around here in these boards which shows the difference quite well.