Sailing Royal Princess 1 June 2024: what questions can I answer?

[Bazzi]

I wondered if anyone posting here is in a Penthouse Suite?

 

We’ve been on Royal Princess a few times but always midship and low deck.  Thinking of upgrading from a mini suite to a Penthouse Suite on a three day coastal ex Sydney next March but wondered whether there is much movement up there in fair weather?

 

Many thanks

[Italy52]

10 hours ago, _rusty_shackleford said:

I've never actually heard of or seen tote bags on this or any of our previous Princess cruises, and we've been with Princess since 2022. Didn't even know it was a thing!

Princess has had tote bags around for a long time.  However, when there was a problem with the supply chain and I think during Covid, Princess stopped giving them out.  On our coastal cruise in April, we got one but did not get one on our Royal cruise.  I have seen pictures of the bags from other cruisers' posts so wasn't sure if they were making a complete comback or if it was hit or miss.  Here is a picture for you.

 

[caleblyn]

Quick Question...

 

Our sailing is in a week.  I reserved dining times awhile back, but recently, about two weeks ago, there was an error that erased my reservations.  To be honest, I think it was my own self-inflicted error when connecting accounts.  Anyhow, my party is two separate bookings with two people in each.  Since I did not catch the deletion until late, there are no times where we can get a reservation seated together.

 

This is my first sailing with Princess.  On other cruise lines, we were able to go to the dining room immediately after boarding and get the parties connected.  Do you think I will have any problems connecting the two bookings?  We presently have several reservations, some at the same time but at different tables.  None of the reservations have us sitting together.

 

tia

[_rusty_shackleford]

12 hours ago, caleblyn said:

Quick Question...

 

Our sailing is in a week.  I reserved dining times awhile back, but recently, about two weeks ago, there was an error that erased my reservations.  To be honest, I think it was my own self-inflicted error when connecting accounts.  Anyhow, my party is two separate bookings with two people in each.  Since I did not catch the deletion until late, there are no times where we can get a reservation seated together.

 

This is my first sailing with Princess.  On other cruise lines, we were able to go to the dining room immediately after boarding and get the parties connected.  Do you think I will have any problems connecting the two bookings?  We presently have several reservations, some at the same time but at different tables.  None of the reservations have us sitting together.

 

tia

You should be ok. They also have a dine line you can call from the stateroom and speak with the dining staff. If they can accommodate you, they will.

 

One major issue I've had with the app this sailing is with dining times. I get an error telling me a dining time is full no matter what dining room/specialty restaurant, or what time, even if it's shown as available. Unfortunately, if you've already got a time reserved it will delete that one before you figure out there's a problem making a new one. My experience could be a one-off, but I'd recommend making changes by either talking to dining staff or calling the dine line just to be safe.

[_rusty_shackleford]

On 6/12/2024 at 6:04 AM, Italy52 said:

Princess has had tote bags around for a long time.  However, when there was a problem with the supply chain and I think during Covid, Princess stopped giving them out.  On our coastal cruise in April, we got one but did not get one on our Royal cruise.  I have seen pictures of the bags from other cruisers' posts so wasn't sure if they were making a complete comback or if it was hit or miss.  Here is a picture for you.

 

Thank you! To be honest I've never seen them, not on this cruise, and not on any of our previous cruises since we started with Princess in 2022 (Royal, Sky, Majestic, Royal). Are they intended to be used while you're onboard or meant as gifts?

[Italy52]

12 hours ago, _rusty_shackleford said:

Thank you! To be honest I've never seen them, not on this cruise, and not on any of our previous cruises since we started with Princess in 2022 (Royal, Sky, Majestic, Royal). Are they intended to be used while you're onboard or meant as gifts?

The Princess tote bags seem to be a hit or miss on ships these days and not exactly sure why this has happened.  We have taken 20 cruises with Princess and used to get them all the time.  When we got to our cabin the bags were either on our bed or they were attached to a hanger in the closet area.  Now, when we board the ships if we get one fine.  If not, then no big deal.  And, yes, they are a gift from Princess to the passenger.  Passengers sometimes use the bags for shopping totes when they roam around town; good advertisement for Princess.  Hope you are enjoying your cruise.

[_rusty_shackleford]

On 6/8/2024 at 12:43 PM, Italy52 said:

@_rusty_shackleford, thank you for your post, I appreciate you answering questions.  We just got off the Royal May 18-June1st cruise. We will be returning on the Royal August 10-24th, same itinerary.  If you don't mind, can you post if you got an Immigration/Customs form PRIOR to debarkation in Vancouver.  We were handed ours after debarking the ship and in line for our clearance.  It was quite hectic for all trying to move along luggage, fill out a form and then present it to the authorities.  Also, our disembarkation time was delayed to 9:30 AM from 6:30AM like our original itinerary showed -- no word as to why.  So, if you could, please verify when you will be getting off the ship when you have the final notification time shown on the disembarkation form.  If you have eaten in the buffet, did you notice that fresh cut fruit was scarce and that American cold cereal options were very minimal?  Thank you very much for taking the time to respond.

Our customs form was waiting for us in our cabin on our last night.

[Italy52]

10 minutes ago, _rusty_shackleford said:

Our customs form was waiting for us in our cabin on our last night.

Thanks for letting me know, I really appreciate it. 

[rosemc1146]

@_rusty_shackleford Thanks for all the great information! We are looking to book Royal Princess in June 2025, 7-night Inside Passage + Glacier Bay. I was curious on your overall thoughts on this ship. The most recent CC reviews are not good. And even though I take every review with a grain of salt (some people are super picky) since we have never sailed Princess, I don't really have a frame of reference. How is the overall appearance and cleanliness of the ship? Food and drink quality? Are there things to do for younger people? We will be traveling with a multi-generational group. From my father and stepmother (in their 80s) to my stepsons (25, 21, and 17). I would appreciate your honest opinion on if you think this would be a good choice. Thanks in advance!

[memoak]

Just now, rosemc1146 said:

@_rusty_shackleford Thanks for all the great information! We are looking to book Royal Princess in June 2025, 7-night Inside Passage + Glacier Bay. I was curious on your overall thoughts on this ship. The most recent CC reviews are not good. And even though I take every review with a grain of salt (some people are super picky) since we have never sailed Princess, I don't really have a frame of reference. How is the overall appearance and cleanliness of the ship? Food and drink quality? Are there things to do for younger people? We will be traveling with a multi-generational group. From my father and stepmother (in their 80s) to my stepsons (25, 21, and 17). I would appreciate your honest opinion on if you think this would be a good choice. Thanks in advance!

Don’t expect the RCL type of ship. No water slides, no climbing walls and no Flowrider or go carts. There will be a disco but it will not be really busy late night on many cruises

[rosemc1146]

4 minutes ago, memoak said:

Don’t expect the RCL type of ship. No water slides, no climbing walls and no Flowrider or go carts. There will be a disco but it will not be really busy late night on many cruises

Thanks! I figured it would be less "amusement park" atmosphere which is fine for us. I just don't want it to be completely boring onboard 😂

[_rusty_shackleford]

11 minutes ago, rosemc1146 said:

@_rusty_shackleford Thanks for all the great information! We are looking to book Royal Princess in June 2025, 7-night Inside Passage + Glacier Bay. I was curious on your overall thoughts on this ship. The most recent CC reviews are not good. And even though I take every review with a grain of salt (some people are super picky) since we have never sailed Princess, I don't really have a frame of reference. How is the overall appearance and cleanliness of the ship? Food and drink quality? Are there things to do for younger people? We will be traveling with a multi-generational group. From my father and stepmother (in their 80s) to my stepsons (25, 21, and 17). I would appreciate your honest opinion on if you think this would be a good choice. Thanks in advance!

I'll give you the perspective of someone who's been on 4 Princess cruises (2 on Royal, 2022 and 2024). I did not notice a major difference between the 2 years on the ship cleanliness or condition-wise, and we've always had an excellent time on Princess vs. Carnival. A lot of the negative reviews are comparing to Princess of, say, 10+ years ago. I have no doubt it was better then but we've always been happy with our overall experiences. I'll say the demographics tend to skew older than Carnival/RCC/NCL but this past cruise there were about 400 under the age of 18. No slides, but there is an arcade and organized clubs for 17 and under. My brother and I would typically use that space to meet people/make friends the first day or two and then do our own thing when we were that age.

 

My wife and I think the buffet is easily as good as the Carnival main dining room. Princess main dining offers a good variety and the quality is usually decent. If you go in expecting a Ruth's Chris experience every night you'll be disappointed but we've enjoyed the food by and large.

 

I think reviews always tend to skew more negative in general than they would be if everyone wrote one. Most people who have a positive experience are not nearly as motivated to write a review as a dissatisfied person is. I personally would feel very comfortable recommending the ship and itinerary to you, but understand that the Royal is too big to sail inside Vancouver Island and you'll be sailing out and around Seattle and in the Pacific for the first sea day. Feel free to ask any follow up questions!

[memoak]

7 minutes ago, rosemc1146 said:

Thanks! I figured it would be less "amusement park" atmosphere which is fine for us. I just don't want it to be completely boring onboard 😂

There will be lots of trivia and game type shows, music and competition games in the Piazza and evenings there will be either a production show or guest entertainer 

[rosemc1146]

57 minutes ago, _rusty_shackleford said:

I'll give you the perspective of someone who's been on 4 Princess cruises (2 on Royal, 2022 and 2024). I did not notice a major difference between the 2 years on the ship cleanliness or condition-wise, and we've always had an excellent time on Princess vs. Carnival. A lot of the negative reviews are comparing to Princess of, say, 10+ years ago. I have no doubt it was better then but we've always been happy with our overall experiences. I'll say the demographics tend to skew older than Carnival/RCC/NCL but this past cruise there were about 400 under the age of 18. No slides, but there is an arcade and organized clubs for 17 and under. My brother and I would typically use that space to meet people/make friends the first day or two and then do our own thing when we were that age.

 

My wife and I think the buffet is easily as good as the Carnival main dining room. Princess main dining offers a good variety and the quality is usually decent. If you go in expecting a Ruth's Chris experience every night you'll be disappointed but we've enjoyed the food by and large.

 

I think reviews always tend to skew more negative in general than they would be if everyone wrote one. Most people who have a positive experience are not nearly as motivated to write a review as a dissatisfied person is. I personally would feel very comfortable recommending the ship and itinerary to you, but understand that the Royal is too big to sail inside Vancouver Island and you'll be sailing out and around Seattle and in the Pacific for the first sea day. Feel free to ask any follow up questions!

Thanks so much - I really appreciate it!

[singhe]

I will be on the Royal Princess in August heading to Alaska.

Can you please let me know which Specially restaurants are available on the Royal Princess and also which casual dinning restaurants (with a fee) are there as well.

 

Thank you

[_rusty_shackleford]

15 hours ago, singhe said:

I will be on the Royal Princess in August heading to Alaska.

Can you please let me know which Specially restaurants are available on the Royal Princess and also which casual dinning restaurants (with a fee) are there as well.

 

Thank you

Just Crown Grill and Sabbatini's. We much preferred the Crown Grill to the point we cancelled our other Sabbatini's reservation the second week in favor of the Grill again.

 

Not specialty, but there is also Alfredo's and Ocean Terrace for sushi.

[mattR]

My sister was able to disembark and meet her 6:45 am transfer from Whittier to Anchorage no problem. 

 

Thanks

[mthomp5]

Do they still offer the Royal Afternoon Tea in the piazza? This is different than the complimentary afternoon tea that is usually held in the dining room.  The Royal Afternoon Team has a fee and used to be held on sea days

[ninka26]

On 7/11/2024 at 8:45 PM, singhe said:

I will be on the Royal Princess in August heading to Alaska.

Can you please let me know which Specially restaurants are available on the Royal Princess and also which casual dinning restaurants (with a fee) are there as well.

 

Thank you

Just came off the Royal Princess (7/20 to 7/27 sailing) I was not impressed with either of the specialty restaurants. The Crown Grill is located behind the Wheelhouse Bar. You need to enter the Wheelhouse Bar (by the bar) to get to the hostess stand for the Crown Grill. This made it confusing as to who was on line for the Crown Grill and who was just milling about the bar. Crown Grill was very loud and chaotic and service was very slow. Slow to the point we had been waiting over 30 minutes AFTER completing our main course for the dessert to show up which had been ordered at the same time as the appetizer and main.  The food was ok but not worth the added cover charge IMO. The steaks were more choice than prime which was disappointing. I ordered my steak medium rare but it was more on the rare side. Didn't want to send it back because I was hungry and who knew when I would see it.  Sabatini's wasn't much better food wise although the service was better. I found the food to be under seasoned and very much in need of salt.  The veal cutlets were ok but the sauce was bland.  I actually had three free specialty dinners for this cruise but after trying both canceled the remaining reservation. This is just my opinion, others may have other thoughts. 

[cruisequeen4ever]

On 7/29/2024 at 9:29 PM, mthomp5 said:

Do they still offer the Royal Afternoon Tea in the piazza? This is different than the complimentary afternoon tea that is usually held in the dining room.  The Royal Afternoon Team has a fee and used to be held on sea days

Sadly, no. 😔

[mthomp5]

13 minutes ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

Sadly, no. 😔

Awww…bummer.  I thought it was really good.