Which Princess ships are their most classiest?

[Ken the cruiser]

We're in our mid 60s and over the past 7 years and 400+ days on a variety of cruise lines, we're finding Princess offers many of the things we have come to enjoy on a cruise. For example, we find ourselves enjoying cruise lengths between 21 - 35 days. We're also finding more sea days on a cruise is a positive rather than a negative as long as there is a variety of fun things to do, professional lectures to attend and a promenade to walk around. We enjoy having a balcony, a comfortable bed and a sofa, enough space not to feel overcrowded and a quality internet connection in the cabin. But most importantly, we enjoy the fact when compared with the other cruise lines we've sailed, Princess also offers a very fair price for what we get along with being able to pre-book excursions using our military and shareholder benefits OBC. 

 

So far we'd sailed on the Diamond and Crown and have future cruises booked on the Island, Grand and Coral, all in mini-suite or vista cabins. But we also know Princess has a lot more ships with different designs and character to explore. With that in mind we'd like to ask folks which Princess cruise ships they enjoy the most and why. Hopefully, with your added input we'll be able to pick future Princess cruises on some of their more preferred classy ships.

 

 

[Hlitner]

All the ships you mention are part of the "Grand" Class of Princess ships.  This design has been around for about 20 years and defines a majority of the Princess vessels.  That design has now been replaced by the much newer "Royal Class" which represents the newest vessels (Royal, Regal, Majestic) with 2 more coming in the next year.  I will ignore the few older vessels which are no longer as popular in the US market.  The new Royal class vessels are gorgeous but do have some unpopular issues such as smaller balconies and the lack of a wrap around Promanade.  Personally I do not think one design or ship is "classier" then the others.  For us, the real class on any ship is defined by the passengers and crew which really can make or break any cruise vacation.

 

Many Princess fans do have their favorite ship but even those folks seem to have difficulty defining why.  Personally I preferred the first few Grand Class ships (Grand, Golden, etc) because they had an all-weather pool (retractable roof).   I say this even though our next two Princess cruises (Caribbean and Emerald) do not have the all weather pool feature.  We choose our cruises based on itinerary with the knowledge that every ship we have cruised (I think its over 70 different vessels) had its pros and cons.  I should add that many of us long time cruisers (we go back to the 70s) might say that the classiest ships were mostly older vessels...now gone.  My personal favorite was HAL's Prinsendam (recently sold to a German cruise line) which was old, worn in many places, had its share of rust, did not have many of the amenities found on newer/larger ships, but she was a special vessel to many who walked on her decks.  Some of our Princess fan friends put the original Royal Princess (now long gone) into a similar classier class.

 

Hank

[AF-1]

Have two cruises with Princess.  Emerald and Caribbean, and Sky next fall.  I say whatever ship I am on is the best. I enjoy being at sea and traveling to different locations with my wife.  Nothing on a ship is that special; as to make me book a cruise for that one feature.  Itinerary and time of year dictates where we choose to go; not the ship.  sorry can't answer your specific question.  Have fun on your next cruise.  Both Emerald and Caribbean were great ships and the crews were excellent.  

Edited August 18, 2019 by AF-1
added txt

[MISTER 67]

IMHO, the Royal and the Regal. Most of the Grand Class ships are just about identical, they are all fine ships but not as classy as the Royal and Regal.

[antsp]

My choice is the Sapphire, one less deck of passengers, covered pool, smaller Dining rooms. But to be honest where and when the ship sails will always win. 

[tailspintom]

It is the passenger set that gives the ship class.  I would imagine any of the Princess ships would be enhanced with your presence. Pacific Princess reminds me of classic sailing more than any of the other ships.

[Cruiserkenn]

The Royal and Regal and other ships of similar design do not have walkable, sheltered promenade decks.  So, for those of us who treasure promenade decks, the Royal and Regal are not worthy of consideration.

 

Grand class and Coral are great for walking promenades.

[memoak]

Pacific Princess is a truly class ship

[LoriPhil]

After 18 Princess cruises we’re sailing on Pacific Princess this spring.  From what I’ve read she harkens back to earlier times, with about 650 passengers in well-appointed facilities and a warmly welcoming crew.

Edited August 18, 2019 by LoriPhil

[Ken the cruiser]

Thanks everyone you your thoughts and insights. So far we have enjoyed all of our Princess cruises as well as those we've taken on other lines. But as of late, Princess is really starting to stand out in a multitude of ways for us. We were really impressed with the MedallionNet internet service we used on our recent UK cruise on the Crown, especially when I was using it on our balcony during prime time. We also enjoyed the fact we didn't get heartburn once on our 12 day cruise where it was a common occurrence on the Oceania cruises we've recently been on. I guess rich food just doesn't agree with us. And then I can't think of any cruise line we've been on where the CD had 6 assistants, all comedians in their own right!!

 

Hank, you also motivated me to make this chart listing all of the Princess ships with some associated data I found via Ms Google. Hopefully it's all close to being correct. For what it's worth the Berlitz ratings were as of the 2016 version my DW has on her iPad. 

 

Ship	Class	Capacity	Crew	Age	Refurb	Prom	Tons	Berlitz
Sun	Sun	2,000	924	1995	7/18	Yes	77	1408
Sea	Sun	2,000	910	1998	11/17	Yes	77	1414
Grand	Grand	2,600	1,150	1998	3/19	Yes	107	1417
Golden	Grand	2,600	1,100	2001	4/18	Yes	108	1420
Star	Grand	2,600	1,100	2002	12/17	Yes	108	1417
Pacific	R Class	670	375	2003	6/19	No	30	1442
Coral	Coral	2,000	895	2003	1/19	Yes	91	1439
Island	Coral	2,200	900	2003	12/17	Yes	92	1437
Diamond	Gem	2,670	1,100	2004	2/19	Yes	115	1448
Sapphire	Gem	2,670	1,100	2004	3/18	Yes	115	1437
Caribbean	Caribbean	3,140	1,200	2004	5/19	Yes	112	1430
Crown	Crown	3,080	1,200	2006	4/18	Yes	113	1427
Emerald	Crown	3,080	1,200	2007	4/19	Yes	113	1442
Ruby	Crown	3,080	1,200	2008	10/18	Yes	113	1434
Royal	Royal	3,560	1,346	2013	12/18	No	142	1528
Regal	Royal	3,560	1,346	2014		No	142	1527
Majestic	Royal	3,560	1,346	2017		No	143
Sky	Royal	3,660	1,346	2019		No
Enchanted	Royal	3,660	1,346	2020		No

[Ken the cruiser]

1 hour ago, LoriPhil said:

After 18 Princess cruises we’re sailing on Pacific Princess this spring.  From what I’ve read she harkens back to earlier times, with about 650 passengers in well-appointed facilities and a warmly welcoming crew.

We've sailed on Oceania's Nautica and Sirena, both sister R-class ships to the Pacific, and really enjoyed our cruises, especially when we could dine outside up at their (Terrace Café) lido deck. Hopefully there are similar places on the Pacific as well.

[Ken the cruiser]

2 hours ago, MISTER 67 said:

IMHO, the Royal and the Regal. Most of the Grand Class ships are just about identical, they are all fine ships but not as classy as the Royal and Regal.

We just booked a 21 day family Med cruise on the Enchanted Princess for Jul 2021, and are really looking forward to cruising on a new ship!!

[MixerDave]

4 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We're in our mid 60s and over the past 7 years and 400+ days on a variety of cruise lines, we're finding Princess offers many of the things we have come to enjoy on a cruise. For example, we find ourselves enjoying cruise lengths between 21 - 35 days. We're also finding more sea days on a cruise is a positive rather than a negative as long as there is a variety of fun things to do, professional lectures to attend and a promenade to walk around. We enjoy having a balcony, a comfortable bed and a sofa, enough space not to feel overcrowded and a quality internet connection in the cabin. But most importantly, we enjoy the fact when compared with the other cruise lines we've sailed, Princess also offers a very fair price for what we get along with being able to pre-book excursions using our military and shareholder benefits OBC. 

 

So far we'd sailed on the Diamond and Crown and have future cruises booked on the Island, Grand and Coral, all in mini-suite or vista cabins. But we also know Princess has a lot more ships with different designs and character to explore. With that in mind we'd like to ask folks which Princess cruise ships they enjoy the most and why. Hopefully, with your added input we'll be able to pick future Princess cruises on some of their more preferred classy ships.

 

 

 

Is classiest even a word?

[Colo Cruiser]

7 minutes ago, MixerDave said:

 

Is classiest even a word?

Most expensivest?

[Colo Cruiser]

We like the Regal mostest now.

[USCAdventurer]

my favourite princess ships would be the grand class ships for one main reason.  i only book the aft mini-suites on the starboard side.  ex. e729, e731.   those are great cabins for me.  everything else about princess is wonderful especially the pub lunches 🙂

[Ken the cruiser]

48 minutes ago, MixerDave said:

 

Is classiest even a word?

Ms Google says it is.

[geoherb]

Our favorite ship is the Sapphire Princess, although we haven't sailed on it since it moved Down Under. 

[Ken the cruiser]

29 minutes ago, USC Adventurer said:

my favourite princess ships would be the grand class ships for one main reason.  i only book the aft mini-suites on the starboard side.  ex. e729, e731.   those are great cabins for me.  everything else about princess is wonderful especially the pub lunches 🙂

We saw those and would definitely book one of those too if they were available as we definitely prefer a covered balcony over an uncovered one!

[capriccio]

4 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We've sailed on Oceania's Nautica and Sirena, both sister R-class ships to the Pacific, and really enjoyed our cruises, especially when we could dine outside up at their (Terrace Café) lido deck. Hopefully there are similar places on the Pacific as well.

Aft of the the buffet (deck 9) on the Pacific Princess is a partially covered outdoor area with tables and chairs according to the deck plan  (https://www.princess.com/deckPlans.do?shipCode=PA).  We will have our first cruise on it in October 2020 but we were on her sister ship (the old Royal Princess) ten years ago and enjoyed that area very much.  Here's a picture from Google:

 

[4cats4me]

4 hours ago, MixerDave said:

 

Is classiest even a word?

 

Yes.  

[brisalta]

5 hours ago, MixerDave said:

 

Is classiest even a word?

 

Except as classiest is a superlative you do not say "most classiest".

[Ken the cruiser]

19 minutes ago, brisalta said:

 

Except as classiest is a superlative you do not say "most classiest".

You are correct. Thank you so much for pointing this out. If I had the capability to correct the title of my thread, I would remove "most" from the title.

[nini]

We have been on the Golden 3X, the Crown once, the Coral once and the Regal once.

Our favorite is the Regal because it is an updated classy version of the Golden minus

Skywalker's. However, we love Skywalker's on the Golden and the Crown because of the fabulous

private time and views. The Regal offers a fabulous Horizon Court. 

We did not care for the Coral, actually because of its size and no aft balconies. The Horizon Court

was at the front of the ship and because it was a Panama Canal cruise, the windows were usually

fogged over offering no views. And the windows were slanted; not a great design in our opinion.

The Golden Crown, and Regal were much more open; never seemed crowded when the Coral actually did.

Note: Many people love the Coral- not us.

[Lucky TGO]

My first cruise with Princess was on the Dawn Princess. For me the Dawn Princess is the most ‘’Classiest.” 

My Rowboat is the most Classiest rowboat 😁.