Can Princess Impress?

[jeromep]

16 minutes ago, memoak said:

The piazza is the glitz venue but with the height, the loud music and all the open food and drink areas around it just make it deafening. I will take the smaller ships we only sail this class if there is an itinerary we really want

Oh, I get it.  I could only tolerate the Piazza for a few minutes at a time most evenings.  The entertainers on the ship during our sailing were all excellent, but it is super loud.  I could never understand why they would have a good vocalist/pianist/stand up at the Piano in Crooners while at the same time they were playing music down on the floor of the Piazza.  I enjoyed it when the Piazza shows ended for the evening and all that was left was the piano player at Crooners.  Then Crooners "got hot" and was the place to be.

[TRLD]

On 3/13/2024 at 5:30 PM, Sox Fan Cruiser said:

Princess does not impress. They make you feel “at home”. Nothing about the Princess brand is impressive. But it’s comfortable. If that’s what you want then you will enjoy. We do when we understand the expectation.

That to a large degree sums up the Princess brand, a comfortable cruise at a lower price point than the other NA adult focused main stream lines. (Princess and HAL).  A good mix of value and cost.  

[cr8tiv1]

I have spoken to several Entertainment Directors as well as guest entertainers.  The sets should be staggered…..so only one venue is active at a time.  If there are competing venues, that’s the ED’s fault in scheduling.  
 

1 hour ago, jeromep said:

Oh, I get it.  I could only tolerate the Piazza for a few minutes at a time most evenings.  The entertainers on the ship during our sailing were all excellent, but it is super loud.  I could never understand why they would have a good vocalist/pianist/stand up at the Piano in Crooners while at the same time they were playing music down on the floor of the Piazza.  I enjoyed it when the Piazza shows ended for the evening and all that was left was the piano player at Crooners.  Then Crooners "got hot" and was the place to be.

 

[Oakman58]

1 hour ago, jeromep said:

I agree, I love Take 5.  First off, I'm inclined toward jazz in terms of instrumental music, but the space is just beautiful.  Has a lot of natural light during the day, a great bar.  When we were on the Discovery last July the Platinum, Elite, Suite nightly lounge was hosted there and it was a great way to get a snack and beverage before a later dinner.  The sausage roll they had most nights was spectacular.  I could have made a meal out of them.  Great live music later in the evening too.

 

That said, the Discovery is a beautiful ship.  In general, Princess does put their A teams on their newer vessels.  Wouldn't you, if you were running a cruise line?  Sure, you want a consistent experience, but human variability is always in play.

 

A theme amongst the fans here is that Princess doesn't impress... it is comfortable.  There is glitz and glamor in some places, the Piazza is basically that space, but generally speaking once we have settled into our cabin, it feels like home.

 

@Oakman58, I see a lot of references to sailing Norwegian in your signature.  It is difficult to compare the two lines.  While I suspect that you'll have an excellent cruise on the Discovery, especially since the ship is new, I can't help but wonder if you are hoping for the Norwegian vibe.  I know that your experience on the Diamond wasn't good, and as you state, it was just post CVD and the ship was in a restart mode.  I think the Discovery will give you a much better experience and be more indicative of the current state of Princess as a line.

 

I wouldn't say I'm looking for a Norwegian Vibe although yes, I'm Platinum Level with Norwegian.  Norwegian had made so many reductions in service and quality that I started looking at other cruise lines in 2022.  Since that cruise on Princess in '23, I have been on a Holland cruise, 2 Carnival cruises, and a Royal Caribbean cruise.  They were all head and shoulders above the Diamond Princess cruise.  I have two more cruises booked before the Discovery in Jan, one on NCL in Sep and one on RC in Nov.

I will be interested to see how Discovery handles tendering Cabo San Lucas because on the Diamond in Maui it was an absolute cluster, the worst we've ever experienced.

[lahlah57]

5 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

I would have to say, of all the ships we’ve been on, the Majestic is my absolute favorite.  I do love the Discovery but there are just things about the Majestic that just absolutely wow me!  The Hollywood Club (if that is what they call), is similar to the Sanctuary but without a charge.  Then, there is the Noodle Bar where you would normally find the outdoor pizza station out by the pool.  Not to worry, there is also GiGis pizza sit down inside.  
Plus, they have an additional specialty restaurant, Harmony, which not everyone loves, but I do.  They also have the Catch by Rudi, which is absolutely spectacular.  I am trying to think if they have Sabatini’s .. I’m going to say no but if I’m wrong, someone will jump in to correct me.  
 

They do have a Vines but no Crooners but there is piano and other wonderful entertainment outside the Crown Grill.  
She really is a spectacular ship!  I hope you love her as much as I do.  
 

Oh good....so glad Majestic was a hit with you so now I am looking forward to it. Actually the noodle bar in Alaska will be a go to for me! 🥶

[jeromep]

42 minutes ago, Oakman58 said:

I will be interested to see how Discovery handles tendering Cabo San Lucas because on the Diamond in Maui it was an absolute cluster, the worst we've ever experienced.

We don't cruise often, but when we do we book suites.  I've only done conventional tendering once without the priority tender embarkation that you get with booking a suite, but Princess tendering does feel slow.  If you have priority tender embarkation then you get to skip the line, cut the line, really, but the "at sea" tender handling process feels quite slow, deliberate.  I guess that is good, I mean we wouldn't want to have tenders crashing into each other at the ship or the dock, or a whole bunch of seasick pax because the tender pilot was Carol Shelby, but tendering with haste is not Princess's strong suit.

[lahlah57]

2 hours ago, memoak said:

The piazza is the glitz venue but with the height, the loud music and all the open food and drink areas around it just make it deafening. I will take the smaller ships we only sail this class if there is an itinerary we really want

Yes....on Discovery the piazza was loud and something was always going on! If you want relaxing and quiet...do not go there.

If you want to people watch that is the happening place!

[TRLD]

1 hour ago, TRLD said:

That to a large degree sums up the Princess brand, a comfortable cruise at a lower price point than the other NA adult focused main stream lines. (Princess and HAL).  A good mix of value and cost.  

meant to say Celebrity and HAL

[memoak]

31 minutes ago, lahlah57 said:

Oh good....so glad Majestic was a hit with you so now I am looking forward to it. Actually the noodle bar in Alaska will be a go to for me! 🥶

30 degrees and eating outside is not for me

[memoak]

1 hour ago, Oakman58 said:

 

I wouldn't say I'm looking for a Norwegian Vibe although yes, I'm Platinum Level with Norwegian.  Norwegian had made so many reductions in service and quality that I started looking at other cruise lines in 2022.  Since that cruise on Princess in '23, I have been on a Holland cruise, 2 Carnival cruises, and a Royal Caribbean cruise.  They were all head and shoulders above the Diamond Princess cruise.  I have two more cruises booked before the Discovery in Jan, one on NCL in Sep and one on RC in Nov.

I will be interested to see how Discovery handles tendering Cabo San Lucas because on the Diamond in Maui it was an absolute cluster, the worst we've ever experienced.

Tendering over is fine to Cabo. Tendering back is a disaster there is priority tendering back to shore so be prepared to stand in line for a long time in the heat

[Cruise Raider]

8 hours ago, memoak said:

30 degrees and eating outside is not for me

We go to Alaska frequently and it is rarely down to 30° in the summertime during the hours the noodle bar is open.  But, you can always take your soup inside the Horizon Court if it’s chilly out.  While we don’t tend to be outside in the chillier weather, we oftentimes eat outside when it’s 50°.  That’s when a good bowl of soup is the best!  
 

[lahlah57]

11 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

We go to Alaska frequently and it is rarely down to 30° in the summertime during the hours the noodle bar is open.  But, you can always take your soup inside the Horizon Court if it’s chilly out.  While we don’t tend to be outside in the chillier weather, we oftentimes eat outside when it’s 50°.  That’s when a good bowl of soup is the best!  
 

Oh Yes!

[Mike A]

16 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

Not to worry, there is also GiGis pizza sit down inside.  
Plus, they have an additional specialty restaurant, Harmony, which not everyone loves, but I do.  They also have the Catch by Rudi, which is absolutely spectacular.  I am trying to think if they have Sabatini’. I’m going to say no but if I’m wrong, someone will jump in to correct me.  
 

They do have a Vines but no Crooners but there is piano and other wonderful entertainment outside the Crown Grill.  
She really is a spectacular ship!  I hope you love her as much as I do.  
 

@Cruise Raider We are going on Majestic April 2025. When I look at the deck plans for Majestic, I do not see GiGi's pizza. Where is it located? Am hoping it is there since being from NY we have to have our pizza LOL. Anyway, I am also hoping that Harmony is converted to Sabatini's. Chinese restaurants are a dime a dozen here in NY and Sabatini's has always been our favorite restaurant on Princess. Finally, can't wait to try Catch by Rudi!!!

[JGmf]

13 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

I have spoken to several Entertainment Directors as well as guest entertainers.  The sets should be staggered…..so only one venue is active at a time.  If there are competing venues, that’s the ED’s fault in scheduling.  
 

14 hours ago, jeromep said:

Oh, I get it.  I could only tolerate the Piazza for a few minutes at a time most evenings.  The entertainers on the ship during our sailing were all excellent, but it is super loud.  I could never understand why they would have a good vocalist/pianist/stand up at the Piano in Crooners while at the same time they were playing music down on the floor of the Piazza.  I enjoyed it when the Piazza shows ended for the evening and all that was left was the piano player at Crooners.  Then Crooners "got hot" and was the place to be.

 

Piazza music/band/entertainers were staggered....at least on my cruise last week on the Enchanted. 

 

Now if only they would stop playing the same sets within a sailing (and even the same songs the other musicians played minutes before), that would be great!

[Cruise Raider]

6 hours ago, Mike A said:

@Cruise Raider We are going on Majestic April 2025. When I look at the deck plans for Majestic, I do not see GiGi's pizza. Where is it located? Am hoping it is there since being from NY we have to have our pizza LOL. Anyway, I am also hoping that Harmony is converted to Sabatini's. Chinese restaurants are a dime a dozen here in NY and Sabatini's has always been our favorite restaurant on Princess. Finally, can't wait to try Catch by Rudi!!!

Sorry .. my error in the name.  I believe it’s called Alfredo’s on the Majestic but I believe it is the same as GiGi’s by Alfredo’s.  I really don’t know the difference.  
anyway, it is on deck 6.  
I also used to love Sabatini’s but that was before they changed their menu.  I loved the filet of sole they used to serve and now it’s a fish or a recipe that just doesn’t really appeal to me.  Did they also get rid of their fondue soup?  That was also one of my favorites but they didn’t had it last time I was there.  
I so prefer the Catch by Rudi to all other specialty restaurants on Princess but Harmony came in as a distant second for me and Crown Grill is in third place.  

[TheMichael]

3 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

Sorry .. my error in the name.  I believe it’s called Alfredo’s on the Majestic but I believe it is the same as GiGi’s by Alfredo’s.  I really don’t know the difference.

Only the name is different. Alfredo’s and Gigi’s are essentially the same. 

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

If you are from NY, you will be VERY disappointed in Alfredo’s/Gigi’s. The pizza you are used to is WAY better!  It’s okay, but not the stellar stuff we all get. 

Edited March 16 by Sox Fan Cruiser

[TheMichael]

2 minutes ago, Sox Fan Cruiser said:

If you are from NY, you will be VERY disappointed in Alfredo’s/Gigi’s. The pizza you are used to is WAY better!  It’s okay, but not the stellar stuff we all get. 

 

Someone from NYC will be disappointed in the pizza in Italy, much less anywhere else. 

[memoak]

17 minutes ago, TheMichael said:

 

Someone from NYC will be disappointed in the pizza in Italy, much less anywhere else. 

No here in Portland we are used to great pizza and Princess pies are just so so 

[TheMichael]

4 minutes ago, memoak said:

No here in Portland we are used to great pizza and Princess pies are just so so 

Both can be true…