CP Review - June 19 western itinerary

[margarita_me]

Thanks to everyone who posts on these boards. There is a wealth of info here and you all made our first cruise more enjoyable because of your info. My review is from a family's perspective (I am 37, wife is 39 and we brought our 3 children ages 6, 8, and 11). We sailed June 19 on Caribbean Princess on the western itinerary.

 

Embarkation is very smooth and quick. Doors open about 11:30 and we were on the ship within 15 minutes. We were in the family suite on Dolphin deck (deck 9). The family suite consists of a mini-suite (D105) and a state room (D101) that is connected by a sitting room that looks out to our deck. Our rooms were the first two at the front of the ship. Our deck was quite large because of the suite. Most other decks on Dolphin deck are square and about 8’ x 8’… comfortable size for 4 adults. These decks are not covered which I thought was nice. A quick tip for first time cruisers on CP.... odd number state rooms or on starboard (right side) and the carpet has a light blue strip in it, even number state rooms are all on port (left side) and the carpet has a red strip running in it. Trust me this is a good tip... it only took me 3 days to figure this out and the carpet tip helps when get off the elevators... especially for kids.

 

First impression of the ship is WOW! Massive, beautiful, elegant, comfortable, spotless. Only knock is that I found it somewhat confusing to find my way around, especially on decks 15 and 16 where the pools, spa, gym, kids club and buffet restaurants are.

 

Service is outstanding in all aspects.... room steward, buffet staff, dining staff, bartenders.... everyone. I am picky on service and I cant imagine service being better than we experienced, considering 3,000 + passengers. Speaking of number of people, the ship did not feel crowded except on sea days around the pools, but we were still able to find lounge chairs by the pool.

 

Food.... Didn’t eat at Caribe Cafe. Breakfasts were always at Horizon and featured typical buffet breakfast food. They do have made to order omelets there... just ask. Fresh fruit is excellent.... pineapple, papaya, cantaloupe, honeydew. Pastries are also tasty. Lunch for us was always at the Trident Grill where you order burgers, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches and fries or the pizzeria where you get slices of pizza. Hours are 11 - 8 and both are located by the pools on deck 15. Very convenient for a snack or a quick lunch by the pool. Cocktails by the pool range from $4 to $7 depending on size. Beers are $4. Beer selection is Dos Equis, Coors, Coors Light, Miller, Miller Lite, Bass Ale, and maybe two others.... no Heineken. A tip if you like beer... bring a 12 pack of Red Stripe back with you from Jamaica and put it in your little fridge.

 

We did PC dining and it worked surprisingly well. You can make reservations for the whole week or throughout the week if you want, but you will probably find that having flexibility on each day is nice. One night we at 6 pm and our family 5 sat alone and had no wait for the table. On the first formal only 3 of us went at 7:30 and had to wait 30 minutes. We wanted our own table so that caused some of the wait but they give you a pager so it was enough time to go to a nearby lounge for a drink. With PC don’t expect to walk up and be seated immediately unless you have a reservation, but the wait is not long either. Be patient and flexible. Your wait will be slightly longer if you want your own table too. I saw plenty of couples eating alone too. Dining room food is good not great. My favorite was the rack of lamb and the French onion soup. I think these were on Thursday. The fettuccine alfredo is excellent and is always available. Try a half order for an appetizer. We brought 7 bottles of wine on board (no problems and didn’t hide it at embarkation) and they charge $10 corkage. If you like fine wine then bring your own. Their wine selection is average at best. Since another hot topic is dining room attire I will mention my observations. On nights other than formals, you will see men’s dress ranging from sport coat and tie to nice khakis and a short sleeve button shirt (Tommy Bahama style). I never saw jeans, and only saw one man in shorts. Women were in casual dresses, capris, to nicer dresses (sorry for the lame description). Formal night... predominantly suits, and maybe 25% tuxes for men. I wore suit and am glad I didn’t wear a tux. It is warm in the early evening so I was hot in a suit.

 

Entertainment was good, especially the comedians. Sarge was hilarious but he is leaving soon to visit troops in Middle East. If he is on your cruise see him. The musicians aren't my thing so I have no comment. Didn’t go to Club Fusion either. Casino is nice... blackjack tables with $5 minimum, one craps table, roulette and a few poker tables. Slots too. Casino gets a little smoky. Movie Under the Stars was neat. Played Starsky & Hutch two nights and Calendar Girls two nights. Other movies and shows during the day and other evenings. You need tickets but didn’t appear to be too difficult to get tickets. Generally they have live music by the pools during the day. Either a steel band called Deep Blue (I think their assignment be up this week though) and they were very good, or they have a one-man band singing all your favorite songs with a Caribbean flare…. Both were excellent.

 

Another tip… they take candid photos at dinners and when you leave for day excursions and at Princess Cays and other various times. They display them on walls near the Wheelhouse Bar and your pictures are easy to find. If you like them get them early because as more days go by they need the wall space to display the more recent photos so they pile up the older photos and stack them in a box. If you are looking for one of the photos stacked in a box (like I had to) it gets very tedious and time consuming flipping through each individual photo until you find yours.

 

Kids Club was my sole disappointment. They break ages by 3 - 6, 7 - 9, and 10 - 12. I have boys 6 and 8 and had to split them despite my persistent request. Also they close at certain times during the day which is fine, but they typically open at 7 on evenings which is also the time the first round of shows start. So it’s hard to get kids into Kids Club, run down to deck 7 to get into the show on time. Kids club closes at 10 but they do offer, "babysitting" for a fee. Don’t know the fee. The frustrating part for me was on a few nights (both formal nights I think) they don’t open until 8:30 which really screws things up for eating and going to a show and getting your kids by 10. I think they need to align their hours to allow parents to enjoy the evening entertainment and have dinner. The staff was nice, facilities are clean, and activities are so-so. Videos, Nintendo, and some interactive stuff.

 

What's the one thing I am glad I brought.... swim shirts for all of us to avoid burning. I saw too many people getting fried on the first two days.... trip ruined. Go to a sporting goods store or on-line and get swim shirts especially for excursions that include snorkeling or the like.

 

Ports of Call… Princess Cays is a nice way to start the trip. Clean beach with beach activities and water sports. BBQ set up by Princess. They have a bar and some live music… A good way to be introduced to the beautiful and warm ocean water of the Caribbean. Montego Bay was a little disappointing. Mostly because I don’t think there is too much to see as compared to the other ports of call. We hired A – Z Jamaica Planners and that worked out really well. They took us to Mayfield Falls, which is a fresh water river with beautiful falls and jungle atmosphere. It was very pretty but it took 1 1/2 hours each way. I recommend trying some jerk chicken or pork. We went to the Pork Pit in downtown Montego Bay and it was fantastic. We did not experience the pushy drug sellers nor did we feel threatened in any way. I think that may have been in part to A-Z Planners taking us to the right places. I thought the people of Jamaica were very friendly and nice. Grand Cayman was the highlight. We shopped in the morning. If you are looking for jewelry (other than diamonds... Cozumel is the stop for diamonds) or watches go to Freeport Kirk Jewelers. It is listed in a port of call handout you get in your room for Grand Cayman. We also did Stingray City through Captain Marvins and this was awesome. If you have children I would say bring them. My kids aren’t overly adventurous and they loved it. If the kids don’t feel comfortable they can stay in the boat, but I would definitely take kids. Captain Marvins is outstanding, and is walking distance from where the tenders drop you off. They are cheaper than the cruise excursions to Stingray City. They have fewer people on their charter boat than the cruise (18 people versus 70 people) so you get more time and attention from the crew. I truly can’t say enough good things about Captain Marvins. They also took us snorkeling and provided inflatable vests, which make it very easy for kids. Cozumel was also very good. We went to Chankanaab for the day and did the dolphin swim which was a blast, especially for the kids. If you have kids Chankanaab is perfect. It is a little commercialized so if you are looking for a more authentic beach you may want to try somewhere else.

 

If anyone has any questions I am happy to answer. I have copies of the Princess Patters so I can answer anything about that too. Bottom line we loved the cruise and the ship was fantastic. A great vacation.

[Julia & David]

Thanks for the review. We sail on her July 31. Can't wait.

[*KristenInCT*]

Great review!!! We are sailing on 9/11, and cant wait. When you docked in Cozumel, was there a Fat Tuesdays right at the end of the pier. I seem to remember one a few years back when we stopped there. I know they have two piews in Cozumel, just wondering which one they dock at. :D

[TexEm]

Thanks for sharing all the info--we sail 7/10 on the CP with the western itinerary, too. Sounds like the Kids Club needs to coordinate things better--hope you let someone know about it. We're sailing with 2 teenaged boys (and their 2 teenaged cousins) and will be anxious to see what activities there are for them. (Last cruise on Rhapsody of the Seas on sea days they mainly stayed in their cabin watching movies and ordering room service, joined us for dinner). Did you like the family suite? We always seem to book too late to get a family suite, so we get cabins across from each other. Thanks again!

[leiloni]

margarita me

that was a great review, we are cruising on the 10t of July same ship and we are wondering how you got your beer on the ship from Jamica? we were told that they always check and if you have any booze they take away until the last day. thanks for your help

LeiLoni

[margarita_me]

Kristen- There is a Fat Tuesday at the end of the pier that we docked at in Cozumel, along with a ton of shops selling every souvenier under the sun.

 

Tex- There were quite a few teenagers, especially by the pools. They also have teen room by the Kids Club by I think most of the teens felt they were too cool for it.... maybe so. One thing I forgot to mention in my review is the gym. It is well equipped and very nice. When I went on "at-sea" days in the afternoon there were a fair number of teens in there. We loved the family suite and actually were uprgraded to it the week before sailing. We oringinally had a mini-suite and interior room across the hall. The family suite is hard to get so we got lucky.

 

Leiloni- I was expecting the beer to be taken away and returned at the end of the cruise, but they didnt take it. They do have scanners and metal detectors when you re-board but I didnt see them taking anything away from anyone. We didnt hide the beer either... just had it in plastic bags.

[Froufie]

Thanks for the fabulous review - just a couple of questions:

 

Re breakfast/lunch in dining rooms...how "dressed" do you need to be? Can you wear shorts at these times? Or more dressed up than that?

 

Also - what is "swim shirt"?? We usually wear a t-shirt (that has seen better days?) when snorkelling/swimming in the hot caribbean sun to avoid excessive sun exposure.

 

Can you advise what was on the room service menu? Did u order anything? Any suggestions/comments? Is this available 24/7?? or only during certain hours?

 

thanks,

[margarita_me]

Froufie-

 

A swim shirt is skin tight and made of stetchy /elastic material. It dries quickly and doesnt get weighted down like a cotton t-shirt. Some swim shirts are SPF rated as well. If all else fails, a t-shirt would work fine. If you burn easily, use at least the t-shirt, especially in the ocean. The salt water seems to wash away the sun screen easily.

 

We ate breakfast in the dining room only once (as opposed to the Horizon Court Buffet). We wore shorts, but no swim suits. They serve the same food that is available in the Horizon Court. Onl difference is they serve you. If you go to a dining room for breakfast and have kids, get the hot chocolate.. it is delicious and it is not available in Horizon.

 

Room service.... we tried on at least 5 occassions to order room service but they would never answer the phone so I cant be too much help there.

[stuartalt]

We were on the Grand (but I think its the same) and as a note for next time, my recollection is the two nights they open late it is because they take all the kids to the buffet or pizza for dinner and then open the club at 830. So you can drop them at 7 and make the show. Its not all that clear. Also th elate night sitting is $5 per kid per hour. It worked well. After 10, the kids watch a movie and then can lay down and fall asleep in the back area.

[coalesm]

I was also on the CP on June 19. I went with my husband for our 5 year anniversary and we had a lot of fun. The only thing that bothered me was we could feel the ship rocking a lot. We went on Carnival 5 years ago and I only noticed it one night. I figured with this ship almost twice the size of our first one we wouldn't notice it. I was wrong. Even people at our table could feel it. It didn't make me sick but it made me dizzy. I've had some inner ear issues the past few months so maybe that was my problem. I'm not sure if Princess doesn't have very good stablizers or if the water was rough. I have a friend who gets motion sick very easily and he usually goes on Royal Caribbean and doesn't have a problem. I was wondering if you noticed this with Princess. I was also wondering if Royal was was more stable because my friend has not been on Princess so he couldn't compare the 2.

[stevewiz]

I was on the 7/3 Eastern cruise and the ship did rock a lot more than previous cruises on the Grand. The water did look a little rough but the sky was clear and no rain. I expected the ship to be calmer.

[teach21566]

a question about the kids program. would they allow your older son to go into the younger group??? I have a 5 year old and one that will turn 7 just before the cruise, I was told she could go with the 5 year old, in the younger group, but the 5 year old could not go up, any thoughts from anyone on this???? Thanks sheila

[Rustynail]

Great review. Thanks for taking the time to share your wonderful experience with us.

 

Rusty

[ItsMe]

Wewere on CP June 12th. I actually thought it was pretty calm(the only time I could tell that we were even moving was when I layed down) except for the night we left St. Maarten and the next day until we arrived in Princess cays, it was definately rougher then, but I think that we were going a lot faster too.

[Cruisin' Lisa]

We are going on the Caribeann Princess August 21 and are celebrating our 20th anniv and a couple birthdays. When are the formal nights and when do kids have their special kids program dinners together ( I don't want to request our waiters to celebrate a child's birthday and then , they not be at the table b/c they are eating at the kids program instead.