Sailing on the Coral Princess for the first time

[Spikesgirl]

This will be our 19th cruise with Princess and nearly all of them have been on their small ships (exception was the Grand).   I would love to hear from the folks who have sailed aboard The Coral what their best and worse experiences have been with this ship.

 

Thanks!  

[nini]

We sailed on the Coral in January 2018 for the full transit Panama Canal itinerary. We have been on the Golden (3 times), the Grand, the Emerald, the Regal, and the Crown. We absolutely loved the Regal and the Golden. We also liked the Crown. We were not crazy about the Emerald mainly due to the strange vibe of the crew (recently in May). Sadly, the Golden has been sold... we would gladly sail on the Regal and Grand again.

So, the Coral will never be our favorite ship- it seemed small and the design just was not to our liking. The buffet is on the front of the ship. The windows were typically dirty and foggy- it was so humid on this itinerary so we could rarely if at all see out. We did have a fantastic lecturer and commentator onboard doing talks of the Panama Canal. On transit day, he spoke for 10 hours straight with fantastic information.

[PacnGoNow]

23 minutes ago, Spikesgirl said:

This will be our 19th cruise with Princess and nearly all of them have been on their small ships (exception was the Grand).   I would love to hear from the folks who have sailed aboard The Coral what their best and worse experiences have been with this ship.

 

Thanks!  

We liked the Coral, but it felt small to us. You might enjoy it more if you like smaller ships.  The IC was added on in dry dock and it is small, but we liked it. Just didn’t like that it was right outside the casino.  
 

We only got to be OB for 14 days out of our 32 day cruise, due to the pause in March 2020.  We were in the middle of

South America.  
 

I wouldn’t hesitate to sail on her again.  Depends on the itinerary for us.

 

 

 

 

[Kay S]

I love the Coral.  It is not so small you will notice any difference between it and Grand ships.  One odd thing is International Cafe.  The added it later, and it sits next to the Casino.  The front facing buffet is great, and the windows weren't dirty on any of my trips.

[blizzard44ca]

Coral has a full walk around promenade (all on one level) and several forward and aft facing public decks.  It was built as a panamax, so can still use the old locks. I prefer the forward facing buffet, as the views are nicer than aft.

I would not hesitate to book the Coral, particularly if there is any scenic cruising involved. Please send her back from Australia!

[cr8tiv1]

Add me to the list of "I love the Coral".  I do not care for the larger Royal Class ships. Yes, it is odd that the IC is next to the smaller casino.  I usually do not sit and eat there.  

 

She has new Ocean View rooms next to the casino.

She has a walk around Promenade (very important).

She has "On the Bayou" (best production show in the fleet).

She has few passengers and more public spaces.

Some of her bump out balconies are larger.

 

Since they sold the Golden, the Coral and the. Grand are the only ships left that I really enjoy.

 

 

[mnocket]

I love the Sanctuary on the Coral.  It was great every day, but outstanding for the Panama Canal transit.

[CineGraphic]

We loved how small the Coral felt during our 10 Panama Canal sailing.

 

[Papa Yoda]

Just forward of the lotus spa are M/F sauna / shower rooms with lockers, very well hidden.  If you like, the Thermal Suite is also very nice.

 

 

[akeasley]

I sailed on the Coral in 2015 and thought it was wonderful...love smaller ships. Would highly suggest seeing On the Bayou if it is still being performed!

[Alaskanb]

My favorite ship! Just the right size. Really liked the location of the International Cafe. 

[rjack22]

I loved the Coral as well!   I like to smaller ships.   We did the 15 day full transit Panama canal and it was the best cruise we have ever taken.    When I was looking for a cruise for this winter I went looking for the Coral or her sister ship, Island first.   Unfortunately that didn't work out.

[Cruzinnana47]

We loved the Coral when we sailed on her in 2008 for our anniversary and 1st Panama Canal cruise (full transit).  The small size suited us just fine, and we enjoyed walking on the full promenade deck.  One feature that we really liked immensely was the aft viewing area on our deck (Baja--11).  We discovered it was a great place to observe the operation of the locks from an aft vantage point, after being outside on several much more crowded areas of the ship.    We stayed out there for the later part of the transit with the added benefits of shade and lounge chairs.

 

 

[cr8tiv1]

The Coral has many "secret" viewing areas both bow and aft on several decks.  I can't recall which, but the locations are not well marked.  

[Spikesgirl]

3 hours ago, nini said:

We sailed on the Coral in January 2018 for the full transit Panama Canal itinerary. We have been on the Golden (3 times), the Grand, the Emerald, the Regal, and the Crown. We absolutely loved the Regal and the Golden. We also liked the Crown. We were not crazy about the Emerald mainly due to the strange vibe of the crew (recently in May). Sadly, the Golden has been sold... we would gladly sail on the Regal and Grand again.

So, the Coral will never be our favorite ship- it seemed small and the design just was not to our liking. The buffet is on the front of the ship. The windows were typically dirty and foggy- it was so humid on this itinerary so we could rarely if at all see out. We did have a fantastic lecturer and commentator onboard doing talks of the Panama Canal. On transit day, he spoke for 10 hours straight with fantastic information.

We adore the small ships and are sad that Princess sold them off.  Interesting about the buffet being at the front of the ship. I'm glad that you at least had a good lecturer.

 

Thanks

[Thrak]

We have sailed on Coral Princess twice. The only thing I don't particularly care for is the layout of the central Atrium. It has weird stairs in the middle and just doesn't feel "roomy" to me. Other than that (which really isn't a big deal) I love the ship.

 

We most often sail in balcony cabins but, on Coral Princess, we book B731 which is an Ocean View. We absolutely love the cabin. It's only a few steps to the aft viewing deck which is not used much. It's like having a huge balcony that is very often not used by anybody else. I tried looking in the window during the day but, with the sheer drapes pulled, I couldn't see into the cabin even when I pressed my face to the glass. At night we pull the heavy curtain for privacy.

 

Below is a picture of the aft deck. The window nearest the door is our cabin. (There is a similar cabin on the port side of the ship.) We have spent some great times out on this deck having an evening drink while  watching dolphins play in the wake. It's "almost" like having a huge balcony all to ourselves since most people don't realize this area exists.

 

We would be happy to sail on this ship any time. I agree with others here that On The Bayou is the best show Princess has and it is designed specifically to make use of the unusual rotating stage. I love seeing people's faces when the show starts. Unless one has seen the show before the beginning is a real surprise. 😃

 

[Spikesgirl]

3 hours ago, Kay S said:

I love the Coral.  It is not so small you will notice any difference between it and Grand ships.  One odd thing is International Cafe.  The added it later, and it sits next to the Casino.  The front facing buffet is great, and the windows weren't dirty on any of my trips.

Small is what we love, so I'm hoping it won't come as too big a change for us.  We're old and don't handle change as well as we used to.  😄   I've never been to the International Cafe - I'm hoping the Wifi is tolerable in the cabins to avoid it.  

 

Thanks so much for all your information.  I'm quite looking forward to it.  

[Spikesgirl]

3 hours ago, PacnGoNow said:

We liked the Coral, but it felt small to us. You might enjoy it more if you like smaller ships.  The IC was added on in dry dock and it is small, but we liked it. Just didn’t like that it was right outside the casino.  
 

We only got to be OB for 14 days out of our 32 day cruise, due to the pause in March 2020.  We were in the middle of

South America.  
 

I wouldn’t hesitate to sail on her again.  Depends on the itinerary for us.

 

 

 

 

We loved the smaller ships, so I'm hoping this isn't too much of a shocker for us.  Someone else mentioned about the IC, but I've always avoided them.  Hopefully the WiFi won't be too iffy in the cabins.

 

It had been fortunate that the Pacific sailed where we wanted to go.  I'm sure going to miss her.

[cruisingrob21]

We really enjoy the Coral.  The double "large" show lounge is nice with the Princess theater forward and the Universe Lounge aft.  Also, aft on Emerald to Baja deck are some really nice aft viewing decks.  The ship is similar to the Island (but better since the island got a pretty bad refit a while back)

 

The wide promenade is well regarded on this ship - the only other ones with one this nice is the Sapphire and Diamond which is nearly as wide in several spots.  The Island, the sister to the Coral, lost her wrap around promenade during a refit a few years back.

 

We also really liked the dedicated card room and library on deck 8 - funny to say but the Coral has the tallest atrium in the fleet, although it's not as impressive as the Piazza styled atriums on the other ships.

 

Topside, the buffet is forward which is different from the rest of the fleet, the covered pool is nice and rare among princess ships now.  Additionally, while the layout is similar to grand class ships on lower decks, there are only 2 dining rooms and all cabins on deck 5 are midship or aft because the dining rooms are forward from the atrium.

 

It's my favorite ship in the fleet still after so many years but it doesnt seem like she will return to the west coast anytime soon so my cruise in 2019 might be my last time sailing on her 😓

[Spikesgirl]

2 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

Add me to the list of "I love the Coral".  I do not care for the larger Royal Class ships. Yes, it is odd that the IC is next to the smaller casino.  I usually do not sit and eat there.  

 

She has new Ocean View rooms next to the casino.

She has a walk around Promenade (very important).

She has "On the Bayou" (best production show in the fleet).

She has few passengers and more public spaces.

Some of her bump out balconies are larger.

 

Since they sold the Golden, the Coral and the. Grand are the only ships left that I really enjoy.

 

 

Here's hoping they hold onto the Coral for a while, then.  😄  It would just be my luck to like her and have them sell it.

[Spikesgirl]

2 hours ago, mnocket said:

I love the Sanctuary on the Coral.  It was great every day, but outstanding for the Panama Canal transit.

Fun!  I might have to check the Sanctuary out.  We did the Panama Canal on the Pacific and it was great fun.

 

Thanks!

[cruisingrob21]

6 minutes ago, Thrak said:

We most often sail in balcony cabins but, on Coral Princess, we book B731 which is an Ocean View. We absolutely love the cabin. It's only a few steps to the aft viewing deck which is not used much. It's like having a huge balcony that is very often not used by anybody else. I tried looking in the window during the day but, with the sheer drapes pulled, I couldn't see into the cabin even when I pressed my face to the glass. At night we pull the heavy curtain for privacy.

 

Below is a picture of the aft deck. The window nearest the door is our cabin. (There is a similar cabin on the port side of the ship.) We have spent some great times out on this deck having an evening drink while  watching dolphins play in the wake. It's "almost" like having a huge balcony all to ourselves since most people don't realize this area exists.

THIS!!! ☝️ Get one of the few OV's out here or even an inside cabin, they all have very convenient access to this deck area.  We've spent countless hours out here on the Coral.

[Spikesgirl]

2 hours ago, Papa Yoda said:

Just forward of the lotus spa are M/F sauna / shower rooms with lockers, very well hidden.  If you like, the Thermal Suite is also very nice.

 

 

Two things I've never done.  Who knows?  This might be a first for me.  :DD

 

Thanks!

[Spikesgirl]

3 hours ago, blizzard44ca said:

Coral has a full walk around promenade (all on one level) and several forward and aft facing public decks.  It was built as a panamax, so can still use the old locks. I prefer the forward facing buffet, as the views are nicer than aft.

I would not hesitate to book the Coral, particularly if there is any scenic cruising involved. Please send her back from Australia!

I will see what we can do for you!  😄  Thanks for all your great information.

[Spikesgirl]

2 hours ago, akeasley said:

I sailed on the Coral in 2015 and thought it was wonderful...love smaller ships. Would highly suggest seeing On the Bayou if it is still being performed!

Ooo, A show I haven't seen 14 times.  😄  For us, she's a big ship (the Pacific only had 670 passengers).  I'm looking forward to having a few more options.

 

Thanks!