Just returned today... Caribbean Princess Review 7/1-8/07

[cbpanda]

We just returned today from a 7 day trip to the Eastern Caribbean aboard the Caribbean Princess. To give you a bit of background, we are a party of 7 people total. Myself (38), my husband (43) and son (14), my mother (63) and father (54), my sister (24) and her boyfriend (24). All except for hubby, son and myself were first time cruisers.

Pre-Cruise

 

We stayed at the Renaissance hotel on SE 17th Street. This is a beautiful hotel with a fantastic location. We were located across the street from the cruise port and in walking distance to several liquor stores, drug stores and grocery stores. The afternoon we arrived, we went to the Crown Liquor superstore and bought several bottles of wine and soda to carry on. The restaurant in the hotel was a bit pricey so we ordered in pizza and pasta for dinner that night. The only down side was that the bell captain was insistent on arranging a van for our party of 7 to take us to the port. The cost was going to be $7 per person ($42) and when hubby insisted on just taking cabs he was not happy. We ended up taking 2 cabs and the total cost for both including tip were $12.

Embarkation

 

We checked out of the hotel around 10am and after getting everything all together arrived at the cruise port around 10:30am. We settled in to the waiting area with our #2 boarding numbers and waited. At exactly noon, they opened the gates and we were through the embarkation process and in our cabins by 12:20pm. We shared our cabin steward, John, with my sister. He was extremely efficient and received an additional tip when we departed. He was so excited all week long -- apparently he was at the end of his contract and was headed home after our cruise. My mother’s cabin steward, Mariana, was also very efficient and we were pleased with both. We were in two balcony rooms and an inside across the hall. Our room had a third bed that dropped down from the ceiling. According to our son, this bed was a lot more comfortable than the mini suite we had last year.

The Ship

 

The ship was as beautiful as we remembered from last year. The upkeep is constant. Throughout the week we witnessed painting, varnishing and polishing in all areas. The atrium is impressive and it gives a fantastic first impression as you walk on.

We had early traditional dining set up for this trip mainly since we were such a large party, we wanted to be able to sit at the same table for dinner each night. In all honesty, I don’t think I will do that again. Early traditional is a bit too early and late seating was too late. We missed every sunset and most of the sailaways from port because we were either at dinner or getting ready for dinner. Also, it seem like we were rushed every night trying to get ready. On the port days, there was no down time between shore trips and dinner -- no time to just relax. I missed the convenience of anytime dining and the ability to go at anytime if we needed just another half hour.

Food is so subjective that I won’t go into detail. Suffice it to say that most of our meals were excellent. DH and son said the pizza was not up to par, but the rest of us enjoyed it. Buffets and other venues were exactly as you would expect them to be. However, we did not ever have problems finding seats in the buffet.

One thing I was completely amazed at was we could walk through the pool areas around 9am on a sea day and there were tons of chairs by the pool unoccupied and unsaved! I honestly couldn’t believe it. The ship definitely felt empty even though we were on a full sailing.

My sister and her boyfriend loved MUTS. Having never had the opportunity to see a drive in movie they loved sitting out under the stars and watching the movies.

We had a cruise critic meeting set up for the first sea day at 2pm at the aft pool area. This was the first time I have done anything like this and was a little hesitant but, it was really great to meet everyone that I have been chatting with for the last six months and to be able to put faces to names. And to top it off, I have to say that I made new friends in the process. ***You guys are great***

Entertainment

 

I only saw one show, The Piano Man. I liked the music and thought the show was just the right length. As soon as I reached the point of wanting it to be over, it was.

In my opinion, the best night was when we closed down Crooners with Bert Stratton. I realize that he is the kind of entertainer that either you love or hate, but I have to say – he makes me laugh. That’s all I need (that and a good martini). My mother, myself and two of my new cruise critic friends (Denise and Cindy) sat and listened to him. He spent the late evening dedicating songs to us. :D

Everyone else in our party saw the hypnotist, the comedian, and several other shows. All were raved about.

Ports

 

In St. Maarten, we split up. DH did the Americas Cup Regatta booked through the ship. He did like it, but said that he was unable to see much from the position he was assigned to work. However, his boat won, so he was happy. My mother, my father and myself, went to the butterfly farm. As lame as it sounds, we enjoyed it. My sister, her boyfriend and my son went horseback riding on the beach. We did not book this through the ship and arranged everything with Bayside Riding Club on the French side of St. Martin. According to her it was a fantastic excursion. 9 out of 10. The ride was from 9am-11am and they reached the stables after approx ½ hour cab ride from the ship; saddled the horses and they were off. My sister said the horses were wonderful and well taken care of and the stable owner and employees were friendly and helpful. She said the only drawback was that some of the horses did not want to swim that day, so it was a bit difficult to get them in the water. We were all back by early afternoon and able to do some shopping before the ship departed.

In St. Thomas, DH, the only one in our group who is certified for open water dives opted to scuba dive in St. Thomas. We booked independently with Blue Island Divers. They are located right at the port in Crown Bay. He was scheduled to do two open water dives during the morning. Unfortunately after the first dive he was not feeling very well and opted out of the second dive. Overall, the excursion was very well done and he said that he would book with them again. But wished he’d been feeling better.

The rest of us (6 ppl) charted a sailboat and sailed to St. John. We called Rumbaba Charters and were absolutely completely satisfied. The cost was $80 pp (for cash) or $90 pp (for credit) and believe me it was worth every penny! This excursion far exceeded our expectations. This company is fantastic. He can only take 6 people so it’s a very personal excursion. We took a ½ day sail between 10am –2pm. We grabbed a taxi from the port and boarded the sailboat in Red Hook. From the time we got on to the end of our trip, Captain Bobby took perfect care of us. We sailed from Red Hook to one of the beaches in St. John (sorry, I can’t remember the name of it). He was personable, friendly and funny. His first mate (and wife) Karen, was also wonderful. We moored off shore and some of our party went snorkeling. My sister’s boyfriend said that it was right out of National Geographic. He had never seen so many beautiful fish and coral in his life. Karen made us a yummy lunch….grilled chicken wraps, pasta salad and fruit. Open bar was included in the price. On the way back, Capt Bobby took us on a short tour of around the other islands in the area and the history behind them. Then the sail back to St. Thomas. The only problem with this trip was that we didn’t book the full day. :) We highly, highly recommend this trip for anyone who wants to go to St. John. Here’s to Rumbaba…the Hindu God of Irresponsibility!!!:eek:

In the Princess Cays, we did not get off the ship. It was way too hot!

Miscellaneous

 

My sister and her boyfriend received a couples massage during our port day at the Princess Cays. Yes, ladies and gentlemen it is possible to have a positive spa experience. She said the massages were wonderful and her only regret is that they got them on the last day instead of the first.

The ship was beautifully decorated for 4th of July. Lots of balloons, banners, and carvings. The MUTS screen played the Star Spangled Banner at sailaway and showed video of fireworks during the deck party.

To sum up…we had a great time and would sail this ship again. All of our first-time cruiser companions had such a good time they booked future cruise credits.

I should have our pictures up by tomorrow. Please feel free to view them.

[roe2ship]

Sounds like you had a wonderful time. Thanks for posting a review.

 

Do you recall which night is Caribbean in the dining room? Is Captain Romano still on board? TIA

[cruisecrazylady]

Thanks for the post. Glad you had a good time.

 

I need a little Rumbaba right about now! only 209 days to go!

 

Thanks again....look forward to the photos.

Julie

[sonomaphil]

Thank you! A nice, fair review.

[cbpanda]

Sounds like you had a wonderful time. Thanks for posting a review.

 

Do you recall which night is Caribbean in the dining room? Is Captain Romano still on board? TIA

 

Caribbean night was Tuesday night.

 

And yes, Captain Romano is still on board.

[jkudzu]

Thank you for the review Claire! This was just what I wanted to hear since we leave next Sunday! Glad you had a great time.:)

[DiTomCruisers]

Great review..

 

A bunch of us are going in January. Two couples are celebrating 25th anniversaries...:)

 

The St John's sail trip sounds so good. The only worry I would have is if the boat didn't get back to the ship ontime! Did you have any such worries? Should I not worry?

 

On your last cruise, did you ever have a problem with getting a table at anytime seating?

 

Thanks again for your review!

[Whimsy]

Excellent review! I am really getting excited as our trip is getting nearer. I made the final payment today.

 

So glad everything went well for everyone. Sounds like a wonderful vacation. Thank you for sharing!

[marne001]

Looking forward to your photos.

 

BTW: you write in a delightful manner!

[marne001]

Looking forward to seeing your photos. Did anyone in your party swim in the lap pool?

 

Again, thanks for sharing.

[cruzkitty]

Thanks for sharing your Review. Looking forward to seeing your pictures! Sounds like everybody had a great time! I'm going for my second trip on the CB in Sept.:eek:

[Quacker]

Thanks Claire for the review. We are onboard July 15th with the same cruise you did. We are Grandparents taking a 14 year old Grandson. (he hasn't cruised) Did your son go to any of the teen center activities? If so how did it work out? Our Grandson is a very out going person so we don't think he will have any problem meeting up with other teens. We are doing anytime as we want to be flexible. Don

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the review. :)

[S.S.Oceanlover]

We just returned today from a 7 day trip to the Eastern Caribbean aboard the Caribbean Princess. To give you a bit of background, we are a party of 7 people total. Myself (38), my husband (43) and son (14), my mother (63) and father (54), my sister (24) and her boyfriend (24). All except for hubby, son and myself were first time cruisers.

Thanks for taking the time to post a review. Sounds like you guys had a great time.

 

Sounds like you had a wonderful time. Thanks for posting a review.

 

Do you recall which night is Caribbean in the dining room? Is Captain Romano still on board? TIA

 

Hi Rose Ann,

I see you are cruising on the 15th. Have a GREAT cruise!

 

I'll be cruising on her in February again...FINALLY!!!!

 

Take care

 

Bill

[smurf1635]

Your day in St Thomas/St John, sounds wonderful. Do they have a web site?

 

Robin

[Coolmama_1]

Thanks for sharing your review! We are going in January and can't wait!

[jckvpa0]

Nice review, thank - you !

[cbpanda]

Great review..

 

A bunch of us are going in January. Two couples are celebrating 25th anniversaries...:)

 

The St John's sail trip sounds so good. The only worry I would have is if the boat didn't get back to the ship ontime! Did you have any such worries? Should I not worry?

 

On your last cruise, did you ever have a problem with getting a table at anytime seating?

 

Thanks again for your review!

 

We booked the 1/2 day sail for two reasons. 1st because I was a little nervous about getting back to the ship on time and 2nd because most of our party was new to St. Thomas they wanted to do some shopping. My first worry was unfounded. Next time I will do the full day sail with any hesitation. The trip is planned and organized to end in plenty of time to get back to the ship.

 

Last year we never had a problem getting a table in anytme dining. We were a party of 3, and 5 of the 7 nights we sat at a table alone. Of course we always arrived at the dining room before 7pm. Formal nights were busier than others. If you are willing to eat at a larger table with other folks, there should be little to no wait. We did this twice last year and had lots of fun meeting new people.

 

Enjoy your cruise. I'm ready to go back again!

[cbpanda]

Looking forward to your photos.

 

BTW: you write in a delightful manner!

 

Thank you! :)

[cbpanda]

Looking forward to seeing your photos. Did anyone in your party swim in the lap pool?

 

Again, thanks for sharing.

 

My husband loved that pool. Just for the quiet ambiance. He did not, however, swim the laps. Too much work on vacation. We did see others doing it.

[cbpanda]

Thanks Claire for the review. We are onboard July 15th with the same cruise you did. We are Grandparents taking a 14 year old Grandson. (he hasn't cruised) Did your son go to any of the teen center activities? If so how did it work out? Our Grandson is a very out going person so we don't think he will have any problem meeting up with other teens. We are doing anytime as we want to be flexible. Don

 

Hi Don,

 

My son once again loved the teen center. He was all about meeting friends. Funny thing was he even met up with one girl that was on the same cruise as we were last year!

 

He did the tournaments, the scavenger hunt, the discos, the pizza party, etc. Need I say that we barely saw him? :D If your grandson is outgoing, he will have no problems making friends and having a good time. The only part that my son didn't like was when I made him come back each day 1 1/2 hours early before dinner so I could spend some time with him!

 

Yeah, as I said in my review I wanted the flexibility and didn't get it with traditional dining. I know where we will head in the future.

 

Have fun, I know your grandson will!

[cbpanda]

Your day in St Thomas/St John, sounds wonderful. Do they have a web site?

 

Robin

 

We did have a wonderful time and as I told Capt Bobby, I will be happy to share the website and whole heart recommendations with anybody who wants them!

 

www.rumbabacharters.com

 

Enjoy!

[cbpanda]

Excellent review! I am really getting excited as our trip is getting nearer. I made the final payment today.

 

So glad everything went well for everyone. Sounds like a wonderful vacation. Thank you for sharing!

 

Thank you. Hope you have a great time on your cruise!

[crewser1]

We were on this cruise last week as well.

 

The review given speaks for itself. I might add that the service was excellent and the food very good. The fruit, in particular pineapple, papaya, watermelon, etc was some of the freshest I have had in some time. We were very impressed by the efficiency of the Princess crew given the fact they were dealing with 3,200 passengers. We did Princess Cays, and yes it was sunny and hot. But we had a cabana which provided shade when needed and of course, the water was only a few feet in front of us. It was a great beach day.

 

Had anytime dining and the flexibility afforded us to plan what shows we wanted to attend and whether or not we took in the early or late show. It also allowed us to take in a few sunsets such as the one I attached.

 

Also included a picture of one of the 4th of July decorations (I think this was deck 5 or 6) and a couple of pictures of the ship - one taken from Princess Cays and the other one off the ship at St Maartens.

 

For those interested in flowers for the room, I attached a pic of flowers I ordered from the Princess florist that were waiting in the room. Also threw in a pic of where we were just prior to the sail away in port everglades - overlooking the Neptunes reef and pool area.

 

Had a great time.

[crewser1]

4th display