Majestic Princess Jan 22 and Feb 19, 2022 live report

[dhanakorn]

Tonight I had dinner at Bistro Sur La Mar - one of the specialty restaurants on the ship. Harmony was my first choice since it’s unique to the Majestic ship. But menu doesn’t look very appealing. Who would want to pay $29 to eat Kung Pao chicken on the ship? I heard somebody calls it PandaExpress-At-Sea. 
 

La Mar is on deck 7 with windows looking out to the sea. It’s on port side so during the last night when we’re heading north if you make reservation for 5:30pm, you can enjoy dinner with the beautiful view of sunset. 

 

Baguette bread was ok but brioche bread was very good. I wish they served the bread warm. I had a glass of French 75 cocktail and white wine that the server recommended. 

The complimentary appetizer - deep fried polenta and goat cheese in olive wrap - both were very good. 

 

For starter, the server recommended tuna since I had escargots last night. It came with vegetable chips. Tuna was fresh and complimented well with the chips.  

 

The server suggested scallops for main dish since it’s the most popular dish here. It’s served with a side of risotto. While the scallops were huge and fresh, Princess already spoiled me with jumbo scallop menu in MDR, so another scallop dish here didn’t really impress me. The vegetable trio made the dish looked cheap. It reminded me of the frozen vegetable mix we get from supermarket. They should use asparagus or broccolini instead. 

 

Frozen Island - another recommendation from the server. It’s very similar to the same dish I had in MDR the other night. 

Compared to Le Bistro (French specialty restaurant on NCL ships), I give Le Bistro a higher score than La Mer in terms of food, service, and atmosphere. Le Bistro also let you order multiple appetizers and desserts so you can sample different dishes. While there’s nothing wrong with the food and service tonight, the experience wasn’t much better that what I received from MDR. If Princess wants to attract guests into paying for specialty restaurants, they need to lower their quality in the MDR so dining in specialty restaurants can give the guests exceptional experience, relatively.
 

I’m perfectly happy with the food and service in the MDR on this cruise so I probably won’t pay to dine in the specialty restaurants. I used the dining voucher for this meal. If I have to pay for it, I’d feel a little disappointed. 
 

Tonight MDR menu

[dhanakorn]

The Farewell show was pretty. It’s the last day for Kevin the cruise director before he leaves to see his daughter. So he and his team put on a little show (he’s in the green skirt). 


Last chance to enjoy the drinks. I was trying to get drunk on the last night. Probably won’t get the drink package again next time. 

 

 

 

[dhanakorn]

I got up around 6:45pm to the noise while the ship’s docking. I think if you get up earlier, you can catch the view while the ship is entering the harbor. 
 

Morning view from my balcony. The sun started rising. 

 

 

I went up to pool deck to take photo of sunrise and then head to buffet for breakfast. 

 

And took photos of the SeaWalk one more time. 

 

[CruzDayz]

Great trip report! This is one of the best ones that I have ever read. Such detail, and I'm sure that you are just as good in whatever line of work that you do. I hope that I see your next one.🙂

[dhanakorn]

I left the room around 8am. I thought I was late but looked like we’re still waiting for ship to be cleared for disembarkation. 
 

I got up to Hollywood Lounge to take some pictures while it’s empty. 

 

The entrance to Hollywood Conservatory

 

The entrance on the other side of the ship

The Hollywood Conservatory 

 

 

 

These semi-private rooms look very nice. I’m surprised that Princess didn’t charge for it

 

 

The major complaint with Hollywood Conservatory is the strong smell of chlorine from the indoor pool. I didn’t spend much time here on this cruise. 
 

While Hollywood Conservatory looks nice, NCL did much better design with the Observation Lounge. NCL version is two-deck high and more spacious with mini buffet setup in the Lounge.
 

 

 

 

[dhanakorn]

I walked around the pool deck one last time.

 

 

The aft looking at USS Iowa

 

 

 

I finally got off the ship around 9am. A quick Uber ride to the airport. Flying from LGB is so much better than LAX. This cruise is the best deal of a lifetime. I don’t know when I’m gonna be back again. 

 

Edited January 31, 2022 by dhanakorn

[dhanakorn]

1 hour ago, DANCING GRANDMOMMY said:

Hard to understand why they would choose deck 9 since it offers the most Premium Deluxe Balconies. There are only aft D4 cabins on the other floors. 

 

From the Life at Sea presentation, Princess requires all new crew to be in quarantine 7 days before start working. Rather put them in a hotel, they put all new crews on deck 9. So the new crews can rest and enjoy their quarantine time in the balcony room with food delivered to the room everyday. They have a new group of crews boarding the ship every week. 

[patrickmoran]

We were on this cruise also. We enjoyed it but the experience is not what it was pre-COVID. My main complaints are with the buffets and entertainment. The lunch and dinner buffets were small and horrible, especially desserts. Main dining room food was good but portions have shrunk. The entertainment is weak and doesn't compare to pre-COVID offerings. We've sailed 3 times since Thanksgiving (Regal, Emerald and Majestic) and the experiences were pretty consistent.

[Baxter68]

59 minutes ago, dhanakorn said:

If Princess wants to attract guests into paying for specialty restaurants, they need to lower their quality in the MDR so dining in specialty restaurants can give the guests exceptional experience, relatively.

Don’t lower quality in MDR, UP IT in the specialty restaurants!!

[Bwana Tom]

5 hours ago, patrickmoran said:

 

 

5 hours ago, Baxter68 said:

Don’t lower quality in MDR, UP IT in the specialty restaurants!!

My thoughts exactly!

[RNRcruisers]

Great review, thank you! I haven't done one of the Mexican cruises and now I want to!

 

I agree with food quality - we had great meals on our cruise earlier this month. We don't feel the need to pay for specialty restaurants. Although we have always been happy with our MDR meals on NCL also.

 

[Coffeeluvr05]

@dhanakorn thanks for the great review and photos!  

[yoshi]

Thank you for the thoughtful review and wonderful pictures. That colorful Arcos morning picture in Cabo San Lucas was my favorite, absolutely stunning!

 

[Oceansaway17]

On 1/23/2022 at 6:58 PM, dhanakorn said:

The Piazza looks more elegant than the Atrium on NCL ships. I may give a lot of comparison references to NCL ships since all my previous cruising experience was with NCL. 


The glass elevator adds nice classy look. 

 

 

 

 

yes it certainly does look more elegant.  I have been on the Bliss as well.   The newest Princess ships are really pretty from what I have seen.   Also the newest MSC are as well.

 

Overall some ships are loading up the outside with adventure stuff, while other ships are upgrading and making more beautiful the insides of the ships.   A different strategy for sure.   I go for improving the insides.  thanks for sharing

[nini]

1 minute ago, Oceansaway17 said:

 

yes it certainly does look more elegant.  I have been on the Bliss as well.   The newest Princess ships are really pretty from what I have seen.   Also the newest MSC are as well.

 

Overall some ships are loading up the outside with adventure stuff, while other ships are upgrading and making more beautiful the insides of the ships.   A different strategy for sure.   I go for improving the insides.  thanks for sharing

 Lovely and open Atriums are just one of the things we love about Princess ships. When on Celebrity, we felt like we were in a  dark hole most of the time.

[Oceansaway17]

12 hours ago, dhanakorn said:

I left the room around 8am. I thought I was late but looked like we’re still waiting for ship to be cleared for disembarkation. 

While Hollywood Conservatory looks nice, NCL did much better design with the Observation Lounge. NCL version is two-deck high and more spacious with mini buffet setup in the Lounge.
 

 

 

Yes I certainly agree one can not beat the Observation two level on newer NCL ships.

[Oceansaway17]

12 hours ago, dhanakorn said:

Last chance to enjoy the drinks. I was trying to get drunk on the last night. Probably won’t get the drink package again next time. 

 

 

looks yummy what do you call this drink?

[nini]

29 minutes ago, Oceansaway17 said:

yes I agree.

and believe it or not. some of the newer Carnival ships have great atrium with changing scenes.

here is one of them

 

 

That is really cool!

[MsSoCalCruiser]

15 hours ago, dhanakorn said:

While Hollywood Conservatory looks nice, NCL did much better design with the Observation Lounge. NCL version is two-deck high and more spacious with mini buffet setup in the Lounge.
 

 

 

 

I loved the Observation Lounge on The NCL Bliss.  It’s a beautiful area and it was really nice having the mini buffet close by.

[BlueFish2000]

@dhanakorn Please don't tell them to lower the quality of food in the main dining room!!! That's why the Majestic is my favorite - great food in the MDR. I have never had decent seafood on other ships - it's hard to cook fish for a big crowd but they can pull it off and since fish is my preference I have found my home away from home. We are on March 5 can't wait. Thanks for everyone's posts

Edited February 1, 2022 by BlueFish2000

[dhanakorn]

11 hours ago, Oceansaway17 said:

 

looks yummy what do you call this drink?

It's dirty monkey.

[dhanakorn]

5 hours ago, BlueFish2000 said:

@dhanakorn Please don't tell them to lower the quality of food in the main dining room!!! That's why the Majestic is my favorite - great food in the MDR. I have never had decent seafood on other ships - it's hard to cook fish for a big crowd but they can pull it off and since fish is my preference I have found my home away from home. We are on March 5 can't wait. Thanks for everyone's posts

The seafood that is served in MDR is fantastic! I was so surprised that they served jumbo scallops, prawns, fresh fish, escargots, lobster tail in MDR. You'd have to pay for this on NCL ships. I also love the cook-to-order fish in the buffet - the red snapper was very fresh. 

[dhanakorn]

Afterthoughts: 

 

Cabin: I stayed in a Studio room during my last cruise on NCL Bliss, so this Deluxe Balcony room was a huge upgrade for me on this cruise. Bed is very good with firm mattress and lots of pillows – I had good sleep every night. I love the glass railing on the balcony. The open walking closet is also handy with lot of space. This area can be used as semi-private changing room if you have other person in the room. 

I don’t like the love seat sofa – it’s not very comfortable to sit and too small to lie down. I also don’t like the shower curtain. I think it’s not sanitized and has wet-clothe smell. The motion-activated lights are another annoying feature in the room.

 

There’s no turn-down service on Princess ships. Some people suggested that I could request one. But if it’s the company policy then I don’t want to put extra burden on my cabin crew. The turn-down service on NCL isn’t just straighten up the bed but almost completely clean the whole room again. I had much better cabin service during the two NCL cruises last year even though I booked the lowest category room.  

 

 

MDR: I had very good food and service here every night. Since we’re sailing at 25%, I could show up anytime and got a table right away. Plenty of small tables (for 1-2 persons), so I don’t need to share table with anyone. Seafood in MDR is superb (jumbo scallops, prawns, fresh fish, escargots, lobster, etc.). I don’t feel the need to pay for Specialty restaurants. Atmosphere wasn’t as formal as I initially fear. Nice shirt and pants would be sufficed. Service was very good and consistent. 

 

 

La Mer: Good location with windows looking outside. If you make reservation at the right time, you could have dinner while watching the beautiful sunset. Food and service were good but not much better than MDR. Compared to NCL, Le Bistro is one notch better than La Mer. 

 

 

Buffet: Significantly scale down on this cruise. NCL provides much better buffet lineup even during the reduced-capacity sails. Egg benedict was offered during the first two days but I didn’t see it on later days. I love the cook-to-order fish. They took a while to cook but fish was very fresh and they cook it right.  During dinner time, there’s very limited items available in the Buffet. You’d be better of dining in MDR or Alfredo’s pizza. Service in the Buffet is much friendlier on NCL ships. 

 

 

International Café: Many options of pastries and sandwiches throughout the day. Cuban sandwich was my favorite. Pastries looked delicious but didn’t taste as good as it looked. I think croissant and pastries from Costco taste better. 

 

 

Entertainment: I think the singing/dancing shows from Princess Production crews were pretty good. But entertainment overall lacked behind NCL.  On my last Bliss cruise, we had 2 production broadway shows (SIX and Jersey Boys), great Beatles performance at Cavern Club, stand-up comedy at Social Club for comedy, live music at multiple venues, and many gameshows hosted by the cruise director. 

 

 

Public areas: I love the Piazza - I think it looks very elegant with panoramic elevators. SeaWalk is a must-see since it’s the unique feature to the Royal-class ships. My favorite outdoor areas are the outdoor dining area on deck 16 aft and the promenade on deck 7 aft (port side). I couldn’t find any deck that has outdoor public space facing directly to the front. Hollywood Conservatory might be the only place that has front-facing view but it’s indoor and you have to take photos through the tinted glass. 

Even after 7 days, I still can’t figure out the direction on the ship. I got lost many times. Sometimes I was trying to get to Hollywood Conservatory but end up at Wake View on the aft of the ship. I think I managed to find Allegro dining room once. It looked so empty since most guest couldn’t find it. 

What I missed: The nighttime Water Fountain show on the Pool deck and the blue tote bag. When I walked out of the terminal on the disembarkation day, I saw many people carrying this blue tote bag with them. I didn’t know that you could take home the blue tote bag as a souvenir.

 

 

Cruise overall: I had a fantastic time on this cruise. Weather was great. I saw a few whales and dolphins when we’re sailing away from Cabo. Lot of activities everyday from morning to night time. I had very good excursion on every port. Food was superb. Service was very good in general. Everything went very smoothly on this trip. And the price was amazing. It's the best cruise deal I’ve ever had. For half the price I paid on the Bliss cruise, I got the Deluxe Balcony room, Beverage Package, Wifi, daily service charge, one specialty dining meal, and some OBC. You may think that Princess is taking a loss. But on the other hand, I’ve been on 8 cruises – exclusively on NCL. Without this great deal, my next cruise would still be on NCL since I’m comfortable with their product. But now that I’ve sailed with Princess and had a great time, Princess will be another option that I consider for the future cruises. 

 

If you’re on the fence thinking about going on a cruise, just book it. You’ll have a great time.   

[caribill]

12 hours ago, nini said:

 Lovely and open Atriums are just one of the things we love about Princess ships. When on Celebrity, we felt like we were in a  dark hole most of the time.

Have you been on any of the newer Celebrity ships?

[caribill]

42 minutes ago, dhanakorn said:

The seafood that is served in MDR is fantastic! I was so surprised that they served jumbo scallops, prawns, fresh fish, escargots, lobster tail in MDR. You'd have to pay for this on NCL ships. I also love the cook-to-order fish in the buffet - the red snapper was very fresh. 

 

Are you sure the fish was fresh and not previously frozen?

 

We were told that due to unpredictability of fish harvesting that the long term contracts are always for frozen fish with the sometimes exception of fresh salmon on an Alaska cruise.