Caribbean Princess Review Oct 3-Nov 6, 2004 (Part 2)

[obe1]

We stayed in a BB aft cabin B756. After tipping our cabin Stewardess Lenie $10, she obtained 2 padded chaise lounge chairs for us and put them on our balcony. We were able to fit the 2 lounge chairs and a small table and 2 chairs on our balcony. The balcony is covered and very, very private.

 

The mattresses and the pillows are hard, I also found that there are some sort of loops attached to the mattress, which to me were very annoying, I requested an egg crate mattress pad which took care of the problem.

 

It was a wonderful cabin and being able to view the wake of the ship was fantastic! The only drawback is cabins B756 and B757 are located right next to a large air conditioning vent, which made the balcony rather noisy and breezy. I did get used to the noise and was able to tune it out and enjoy the balcony. I actually took a long nap on one of the lounge chairs one afternoon!

 

The ship was beautiful! Everything was ship shape and sparkling clean. We didn't have time to explore the ship as we boarded later than we normally do due to the transfers with Princess. We called concierge (sp?) to make reservations for Sterling Steakhouse and tried to make reservations for Sabatinis as well, we were able to make reservations for Sterlings over the phone, but we had to go down to make reservations for Sabatinis in person. Waited in a short line at Sabatinis, we then headed up to the Outrigger Bar on deck 15, aft for our get together with fellow Cruise Critics. Our party was well attended by most of our fellow CC posters! It was great to meet all of you!! We had a very nice time.

 

We had dinner at Sterling Steakhouse the very first evening. It was wonderful and well worth the $15 cover charge! I had the filet mignon, it was delicious. Our waitress was Maria from Grenada who was extremely efficient and friendly, she helped to make our dining experience a total pleasure! I highly recommend this restaurant.

 

We were up bright and early the next day, had breakfast in the dining room and went to explore the rest of the ship. The movie screen is awesome!! It was very nice to sit at the pool and enjoy a movie, or take a dip in the pool and sit back to read my book. I spent 2 out of our 3 sea days sunning in this area. Due to the popularity of the movie screen, get there early. We waited too long to make reservations for Movies Under the Stars, so we were unable to enjoy that, we did, however, see Tina Turner in Concert, we all enjoyed watching it.

 

We didn't see any of the production shows, they are not my cup of tea. We did see the comedians Bob Carver and Scott Wyler, they were very funny. Went to the hypnotist, what a boring show. I left before the end of it because it seemed so put on and fake. Bert Stratton was playing at Crooners Bar and in the Explorers Lounge, we did enjoy listening to him and he seems to be quite popular and has a very large following as all of his shows were standing room only! If you want to see him, get there early, so you can find a seat.

 

We attended the Halloween Party and the first Princess Idol in Club Fusion, we had a good time, however, we did notice that the room started to get very warm and began to get uncomfortable. I hope Princess will address this issue as this lounge is very nice.

 

I was always able to find an available computer at the Internet Cafe, it costs .35 per minute to use, unless you are Platinum or Elite member, then use of the Internet is free.

 

We chose Personal Choice dining and ate in the Coral Dining Room, found table #380 with Memo and Paul as our waiters, they were wonderful and very attentive, so we made reservations to sit at their table for the rest of the cruise. I found the food overall in the dining room to be very good to excellent. We ate at Caribe Cafe for dinner when they were serving grilled lobster and the Alaskan King Crab Legs, both were delicious. We ate lunch there a few times as well, they have a nice variety that differs from the Horizon Court buffet. Ate at Sabatinis the last night of our cruise, the food and service was wonderful!!

 

One of my fellow CC arranged a night tour and dinner in San Juan. It was very nice. We had a delicious dinner at a restaurant on the on the beach, while the sun was setting. Thanks Alyce for all your hard work in arranging it for us!

 

In St. Thomas I went on a daysail on the Winifred, this was a wonderful excursion and the highlight of my cruise. Captain Sharon and her fist mate Tommy took very good care of us. We sailed to St. John and snorkeled and saw a stingray, starfish, a sea turtle, sea urchins, a sea cucumber and a very large lobster! Unfortunately, it rained during our snorkel trip and on the sail back to Red Hook but this did not dampen my enthusiasm for this excursion. We had a great time and cannot wait to sail again with Captain Sharon and Tommy next year!

 

Took the Amphibious Duck Tour through Princess in St. Maarten, it was OK, but only lasted an hour and cost $49!! I didn't feel it was worth the price we paid.

 

My sister and I went to the Cooking Demonstration and the Galley tour. It was a hoot! The Executive Chef and Maitre'd were very funny and yes, they did cook several dishes. They made a salmon appetizer, caesar salad, gnocci (sp?), a pasta dish (I cannot remember the name of it) and Tiramisu. The tour of the Galley was amazing, I have never seen so much stainless steel in my life!!

 

I just noticed how long this review is getting, so I will now post a few thoughts about what can be improved upon.

 

I was a bit disappointed with our cabin Stewardess. I asked for robes in the cabin and asked that we get 2 Patters instead of 1 each day, the robes never arrived and we received 2 Patters only twice out of 7 days. I also had to ask her to replace the lotion that was used daily, she did forget this a few times as well. I think the added 500 passengers on this ship has put a definite strain on all the cabin stewards.

 

Service in the dining rooms, Horizon Court and Caribe Cafe was excellent. Never had a problem finding a clean table to eat at, waiters were collecting your used plates as soon as you were finished with them. We did have a hard time finding a table near the pizza place and the hamburger grill, we had to stand and eat our pizza. Pizza was good, as were the hamburgers.

 

We ordered room service for breakfast one morning. We ordered coffee, hot tea, croissants, butter and fresh melon. They brought me hot water for my tea, but forgot the tea bag, they also only gave us one pat of butter for 4 croissants, we asked for 4 pats of butter. I received a small bowl that was half filled with cantaloupe and honeydew melon. I was disappointed that they gave me so little. On the Grand and the Golden, room service gave me huge amounts of fruit. Just a side note for those of us who enjoy eating a hot breakfast on our balcony. The Caribbean Princess Room Service is not bringing food that is being written in on the breakfast order forms, they will only bring what is typed on the form. My sister tried to do this and they only delivered what was printed on the menu, not the scrambled eggs that she had written down. I really enjoyed having a hot breakfast on my balcony on the Grand and on the Golden, but it didn't happen on this cruise. I certainly missed this on the CB. I never again ordered room service, I ate breakfast in the dining room or at Horizon Court.

 

I never felt crowded even with the additional 500 passengers onboard. The only time you did feel the crowds was before the shows, you had to get there early or you would not get a seat.

 

Overall, I had a marvelous time on the Caribbean Princess and would book her again in a heartbeat! :D

[zurmoly]

Great review! I love hearing the positives since we sailing in Feb. We can not take he hard mattress and will ask for the egg crate pad as soon as we board.

[cbeach4]

Yes, great review! Thank you. The Cooking Demonstration and Galley tour sounds like something DH and I will really enjoy. Disappointed about the room service breakfast, though. Like you, I truly enjoyed having a hot breakfast on our balcony on the Golden and was looking forward to "writing in" and enjoying the Eggs Benedict again!

[Ziggy7]

Great review! Thanks for sharing your cruise with us :) We are even more excited to cruise on CB in May! :)

[CruiseFever]

Thanks for taking the time to tell us of your voyage! Glad to hear you had a fabulous cruise!

[GloriaF]

Thanks, great review with just the right info! We leave in 4 days!

[CHOCBANAWAD12]

Thanks for the great review. But, could you give us more details on Balcony Binocular Night? And Sparklies? And Johnny W.?

Obnoxious Sam:D

[tjatczak]

Sam,

You're killin' me! :)

I thought Johnny W. had calmed down a bit....

 

Guess he's upset because you had to cancel your trip to Europe????

 

:) Ted

[Cactus]

Great review Rose.

 

Ed

[mandiecandie5]

Great review! Thanks for making these last few weeks go by faster! :)