just off Caribbean Princess 6-3/6-10

[Seayalater]

HI all,

We just got off her. Disembarkation was fairly fast, Embarkation last Sunday at 2pm was super speedy. We were in our room w/in 20 minutes.

Overall a good cruise, an older crowd, less children due to schools not being out yet. This was our 2nd cruise on CB, same itinerary. Captain Guiseppe Romano is on board, as friendly as ever.

Our waiter Jesus & Jeffrey (both fr the Philippines) in the Palm are great. We had them all week long because the 1st night we requested them after we were seated at a window table. Jesus sang for my husbands bday and was terrific. They really take care of you. Our deck was Aloha, port side balcony Rm 230 and inside 212. Great room, forward of ship, only felt movement the night we were enroute to St. Marteen. St

Marteen Port was nice, but too many folks hasseling you to buy jewelry adn hair braids. We and a lot of others had NO PROBLEM bringing booze back on board. Great prices, better then the ship. In St. M, I wouldn't reccomend the Ship Wreck snorkle tour, the waters were rough and deep. The extreme

saltiness of the water bothered me for the first time ever and I have snorkeled ALOT. Didn't see too many fish and there had to be 80 people on this excursion.....TOO MANY.

Go to Megans Bay in ST. Thomas, we went there 3 years ago and had the beach to ourselves, this time it was packed. A taxi will cost $9 a person, plus $4 to enter park. They have showers but little shade.

Meals were good, for some reason Princess can not do potatoes right, and the buffet doesn't keep food hot enough. Terrible crowds at buffet and it is hard to find a table, so when you do your food is colder.

I had ann exoensive spa treatment of Ginger/Salt scrub and massage. Was

nice but wait till the last cruise day when spa deals will be MUCH cheaper.

Our tv went dead but was fixed w/in 15 hrs.

Didn't use casino, or gym. Went to art auctions...same ol crap!

Room steward was accomodating, not overly friendly. One night I found him in our room talking on the phone with our door shut and no sign of cleaning equipment.

I sound like I am griping, but things have changed within 3 years of our last cruise on this ship. Photo lines on the ship on formal nights are deadly slow.

The comedian Steve Moris was a riot. We didn't go to the Princess theatre much, mostly singing/dance shows.

MUTS runs all day. Tip: Go to Promonade deck and head straight forward and you will be at the front of the ship, great for a romantic toast and sunset photos.

I rate our experience a B-.

This is only my opinion, everyone experiences things differently.

Seayalater.

Maria

[cruzkitty]

Thanks for the Review, Maria! I agree about the Captain-he's the best. Will be doing our 2nd Sailing on the CB soon.:D

[Whimsy]

What on earth did the cabin steward say when you caught him on your phone?

 

Thanks for the review!

[Seayalater]

What on earth did the cabin steward say when you caught him on your phone?

 

Thanks for the review!

 

he said he was finishing up cleaning!!

As my daughter pointed out, you really can't call

anyplace other then the ship.....

[Seayalater]

we are in Ft. Lauderdale for the night at the Bahia Mar resort and we can see the beach, the yacht marina and the CB. We watched her sail away at 5:15 and it was quite a sight. Sad watching her go out to sea and that we were on her last Sunday till this am.

[Seayalater]

FYI DH brought 2 LARGE bottles of Grand Marnier @ $19 a piece, Parrot Bay Rum for 7.99, and Absinthe (don't ask)

in St. Thomas and walked right on board. They asked him what was in the box and he said "Bottles", they repeated "Bottles?" and let him go on his merry way.

Prices in St. Thomas way better then ship.

 

Also, sign up for the wine tasting, they gave us all free dessert wine stemware. Very nice selection for tasting and only $19 for the two of us.

 

Also, go to the chef cooking demonstration and a galley tour. It was really fun. The chef was delightful and made 4 dishes in 40 minutes.

He also signs the Princess Cuisine Cookbook.

[seagarsmoker]

I was on the same cruise and rate it an A-.

Our dinners were prepared and served close to perfection every evening. We had excellent service from our waiter/asst waiter in the Island dining room. Matter of fact, out of 9 Princess cruises, they were the very best.

Weather was almost perfect every day. We went to Marigot while in St Martin (avoiding Philipsburg alltogether) and was not approached or hassled by anyone.

Agree with your comment about Steve Moris. Third time we've seen him and we laugh just as hard even with old material.

Staff was very friendly as with all of our Princess cruises and the beach bungalow at Princess Cays was the bomb! :)

[Toto2Kansas]

I was on the same cruise and rate it an A-.

Our dinners were prepared and served close to perfection every evening. We had excellent service from our waiter/asst waiter in the Island dining room. Matter of fact, out of 9 Princess cruises, they were the very best.

Weather was almost perfect every day. We went to Marigot while in St Martin (avoiding Philipsburg alltogether) and was not approached or hassled by anyone.

Agree with your comment about Steve Moris. Third time we've seen him and we laugh just as hard even with old material.

Staff was very friendly as with all of our Princess cruises and the beach bungalow at Princess Cays was the bomb! :)

 

Seagar-Glad to hear it. We will be on the Caribbean Princess for the third time this August. Can't wait to see if we can tell a big difference between this next cruise and the two previous ones.

 

Seayalater-Thanks for the review, it is appreciated. We have also sailed the same ships many times and sometimes I think it is just our mood as to if this sailing is better or worse than the last. Second sailing on the Dawn last April, and honestly can't say we enjoyed it as much as previously. Can't even put my finger on why, maybe just our mood as I am sure the ship itself was pretty much the same. Only difference was in April we had a full suite, so by rights, the cruise should have been better than the one previously, but it wasn't as far as we were concerned. I am really looking forward to comparing August's Caribbean sailing to the two preivous ones, you just never know until you sail for sure how it will turn out I guess.

[mumsiesof2]

FYI DH brought 2 LARGE bottles of Grand Marnier @ $19 a piece, Parrot Bay Rum for 7.99, and Absinthe (don't ask)

in St. Thomas and walked right on board. They asked him what was in the box and he said "Bottles", they repeated "Bottles?" and let him go on his merry way.

Prices in St. Thomas way better then ship.

 

Also, sign up for the wine tasting, they gave us all free dessert wine stemware. Very nice selection for tasting and only $19 for the two of us.

 

Also, go to the chef cooking demonstration and a galley tour. It was really fun. The chef was delightful and made 4 dishes in 40 minutes.

He also signs the Princess Cuisine Cookbook.

Did you have to sign up for the cooking demonstration & galley tour ahead of time-or was it a one day come to event ? Sounds like alot of fun :) .

[Whimsy]

I was on the same cruise and rate it an A-.

Our dinners were prepared and served close to perfection every evening. We had excellent service from our waiter/asst waiter in the Island dining room. Matter of fact, out of 9 Princess cruises, they were the very best.

Weather was almost perfect every day. We went to Marigot while in St Martin (avoiding Philipsburg alltogether) and was not approached or hassled by anyone.

Agree with your comment about Steve Moris. Third time we've seen him and we laugh just as hard even with old material.

Staff was very friendly as with all of our Princess cruises and the beach bungalow at Princess Cays was the bomb! :)

 

Hi Seagarsmoker! Glad to hear you had a great time!

[seagarsmoker]

Hi Seagarsmoker! Glad to hear you had a great time!

 

Oh yeah - no wedding to worry about this time! :)

[Plant]

Did you have to sign up for the cooking demonstration & galley tour ahead of time-or was it a one day come to event ? Sounds like alot of fun :) .

 

No, you don't have to sign up ahead of time. I've done this a couple of times and enjoyed it! The chef will do a demonstration (the time will be posted in the Patter's) in the theatre and the galley tour follows. I have read that some ships aren't doing the galley tours :( , but the chef's presentation is fun! (We want to sit up close :) !)

[redjuliet]

Glad you had a good time! This is our first time sailing with "princess"

Any advice? Which movies did they play under the stars?

Thanks

[Seayalater]

I got my Patters out and MUTS showed..(during the day) .Oceans 12, Spiderman 2, Harry Potter; Socerers Stone, Meet the Robinson's, Rocky Horror Picture Show (HA! at 12:15AM)Happy Feet, Mission Impossible, The Holiday, Music & Lyrics, Pirates of Carrib..etc...

 

ALso, the chef demonstration they were handing out sheets to people to attend. It takes place in the Princess Theatre.

[kendon]

I will be on this ship for a third time in August and agree with your rating, B-, simply because it is just too big. Service suffers.

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the review. :)

[Seayalater]

I can't remember who asked about which liqour store we went to in St. Thomas but it was right by Fresh Produce ( a women's beachware store)

The liqour store was quite nice. Dh is kicking himself about the Remy XO

which was priced 2 bottles for $150, rather then the $145-150 you'll pay in the states!!

[YoPhilly]

We've sailed twice on CB and loved it. Last time was our first visit to Princess Cays and we were all disappointed with it. The beach is beautiful but you DEFINITELY NEED water shoes, as the water is only about 8-12 inches deep for about 500 yards out, and the sea bottom is thickly covered with coral.

[Seayalater]

We've sailed twice on CB and loved it. Last time was our first visit to Princess Cays and we were all disappointed with it. The beach is beautiful but you DEFINITELY NEED water shoes, as the water is only about 8-12 inches deep for about 500 yards out, and the sea bottom is thickly covered with coral.

 

Yes, I wore water shoes this time because I learned that 3 years ago when we sailed CB. This time the water was cold, but you definately need to wear some foot covering because who knows what you are stepping on.

Also, there are PLENTY of chairs and canopied chairs on Princess Cays as well

as free water (not bottled) and fancy drinks that are served in Coconuts carved to look like monkeys.