Caribbean Princess 12/21

[j!m]

we are both seasoned sailors having sailed about 15 times with celebrity and 3 previous times with princess. our princess experience is related solely to the tp and we booked the cb voyage with a measure of concern. we had never sailed on a ship as big as the cb and have never been away at xmas before. but we wanted a change so in november we booked the 12/21 voyage.

 

some of our readings on these boards prepared us for embarkation in san juan and we expected some confusion. however it was a breeze. we arrived at the port about 5pm, were in our room in about 20 minutes and our luggage arrived about half hour later. no problem at all!! very organized and efficient.

 

the ship is indeed large and we found it somewhat confusing to get around for a day or two but we finally became oriented. the ship is lovely, well appointed, nice furnishings and clean. the christmas decorations were great and santa appearing for all the children on board was a nice touch. there were gifts for all of them. way to go santa.

 

we didnt much care for our mini suite. i guess because of the ship layout all of the rooms are long and narrow. it felt like we were in a cave. we much prefer the minis on ships like the tp. they feel bigger because they are not so narrow.

 

despite what we would consider calm seas the ship seemed to roll more than we have experienced. there seemed to be a constant roll?? my guess was that because of the high winds we had and the height of the ship it tended to roll. but who knows? anyway it eas a bit of a rough ride.

 

one night, actually about 2am there was an in-room announcement that awoke us from sleep and scared the DW. it had something to do with crew reporting somewhere and then about 10 minutes later they were asked to stand down. why it was broadcast into our room i dont know and no explanation was ever given. actually an apology or some comment would have been nice. the DW was quite concerned and thought we should get dressed then she had trouble getting back to sleep because of her concerns.

 

all of the crew we interacted with were cheerful and friendly. they always said "hi". however in the buffet area it seems all they do is clean tables. they never offered to help any of the less mobile passengers find a table or help them by carrying their plates for them. we thought they could have helped some of them but they didnt seem to feel the same way. also we learned there is no beverage service in the buffet area. we had to go and get our own beer and soft drink at lunch time.

 

we did eat in sabatinis one night. we had to phone numerous times (8) over 2 days to finally get a reservation. then a day later we thought we should change from the 630pm we booked to 6pm in order to be able to see the early show. so we called and asked to change to 6pm. we were told there were no tables available at that time. the restaurant was full. how silly!! we asked just where we would be seated at 630 if they were fully booked at 6pm??? then we were able to change to 6pm and guess what? when we arrived there were 3 other tables being used.

 

the entertainment was generally good, not great but good. and we mean by cruise ship standards. however it was repititious with some acts appearing more than once and it was only a 7 night cruise.

 

i am a golfer and this cruise for the very first time, i decided to play everywhere i could because i had been to all the islands except tortola and there was no course there anyway. well, they were the worst organized excursions i have ever been on. the golf was fine the organization was a joke. we sat around a lot to sign forms and were constantly told that 30% of the golf pro's income came from tips and if we had a good time we should acknowledge this with generous tips. one day, despite being told we would be back to the ship by 3-330pm we didnt arrive till 530pm. my DW was frantic, thinking i might miss the ship. in addition to the fees we paid, each day we were asked for a cash payment of between $10 and $30 for the "customary starters fee" something i have never heard of in all my years playing golf. given there were about 15 fellow golfers i really doubt the pro paid the starter $150-$450 each day. he simply pocketed the money. then at the end of our last golf game while we were again sitting around waiting for a bus to the ship he asked if i had had a good time and why i didnt acknowledge this with tips. i told him if he really wanted to know i would tell him but i suggested he may not want that. he was at least wise and didnt ask for additional explanation. i found him to be a quite annoying person and a worse beggar than any we experienced in egypt.

 

while there were numerous sanitizers available in the buffet area we did not see any at the island dining room or sabatinis. as for the food at dinner we found it to be very ordinary. except for sabatinis where it was not. both of our ladies were sick shortly after our sabatini dinner and were unable to stay for the whole show we were planning on seeing. the buffet was very good perhaps better than any we have had on other ships, lots of choices and the hot food was hot.

 

the patter was simply another advertising vehicle. there was very little information about the ports, other ships including the tp do a much better job with their newsletters.

 

in our minds there is no such thing as a bad day at sea so we had a great time. we would sail with princess again but not on the cb. its not for us. we think the minor problems we had including the alahbama quick foot the girls experienced were all ship related not princess in general if you know what i mean.

[sherman931]

Thanks for the review

[kodiac]

Thanks for the review. I found the Caribbean Princess to be laid out differently than some of the other ships such as the Grand Princess. I did not like how they had MUTS setup or the Carib Cafe in the aft of the ship. In addition, we went during the start of summer break and the ship was FULL. Yes, I mean totally booked up solid. We would cruise on the CP again in the future, but not during the summer! :)

[nc_cruiser1]

Thanks for the review. We were on CB the week before. Too bad about the golfing excursions, I'm sure you were looking forward to that and to have to put up with those expectations for extra tips was poor form, especially given the bad organization.

 

Sabatini's was disappointing to us too, even though we didn't get sick. Agree on the buffets - good quality (for buffets).

 

Once I got used to the ship's layout, I rather liked it. It is more "segmented" than other mega ships I've been on.

[j!m]

yes "segmented" is a good description of the cb

 

and our cruise was also full of well mannered nice young children who all seemed to be having a great time except for one young boy we encountered who was simply being 3 ( you know what i mean! poor mom and dad)

[Next]

yes "segmented" is a good description of the cb

 

and our cruise was also full of well mannered nice young children who all seemed to be having a great time except for one young boy we encountered who was simply being 3 ( you know what i mean! poor mom and dad)

 

Segmented is by design. The intent is to give you a small yacht feel as opposed to a hotel.

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the review...

 

About mini's. On the TP/RP/OP/PP and the Sun Class ships a mini cabin is a suite on Grand Class ships so no comparison. :)

[j!m]

the reason we booked the mini suite was because the minis on the tp and cb are advertised as being the same size and they are i think but i didnt measure

 

however, for example, 10x32 (cb) has a lot different feeling than 16x20 (tp)

 

thats all i meant

[tvlawyer]

despite what we would consider calm seas the ship seemed to roll more than we have experienced. there seemed to be a constant roll?? my guess was that because of the high winds we had and the height of the ship it tended to roll. but who knows? anyway it eas a bit of a rough ride.

I was on that voyage as well and had an opportunity to chat about it with 2nd Officer Ronan (can't recall his surname). Your guess is correct. He said that winds are typically 20 to 25 knots this time of year. However, there were a few times on our voyage when we encountered 40+

 

one night, actually about 2am there was an in-room announcement that awoke us from sleep and scared the DW. it had something to do with crew reporting somewhere and then about 10 minutes later they were asked to stand down.

A fire/smoke detector in Sabatini's galley was activated. It turned out to be nothing of concern.

 

why it was broadcast into our room i dont know and no explanation was ever given. actually an apology or some comment would have been nice.

Ronan told me that was his mistake and even showed me how he pressed the wrong button on the public address system panel.

 

both of our ladies were sick shortly after our sabatini dinner and were unable to stay for the whole show we were planning on seeing.

Which night did you dine in Sabatini's? We ate there Monday night and had no issues.

[emdia43]

Could you explain the meaning of " the Alabama Quick foot that the girls experienced"- ?

[CPA92]

I'm wondering the same thing.........:confused:

Could you explain the meaning of " the Alabama Quick foot that the girls experienced"- ?

[Caribbean Sunsets]

Nice review. It's unfortunate about the disorganization on the golfing excursions. I dined at Sabatini's on the Ruby and didn't feel well. I thought it was either too rich or just too much variety with all the courses. I wasn't impressed with Sabatini's but glad I did do it once.

[C&F]

I do believe that there should be hand gel at all dining rooms also. However, I believe it may not be at the dining rooms like it is at the buffet because in the dining rooms the people are actually touching the serving spoons and in the dining room, people are brought their meals and there is no interaction among passengers.

I always wash my hands before all meals (home or at sea) and hopefully most people do the same. Hand gel would be just another sanitary step people can take, but hand washing should be a must!

[j!m]

we dined in sabatinis on thursday evening

 

alabama quick foot = as a result of stomach cramps shortly after dinner both girls had to make a mad dash back to their respective rooms to use the facilities

[valuemkt]

We had been on the Grand and the Caribbean Princess before so were pretty familiar with the overall layout. I was a bit fearful of the Christmas crowd, as we were traveling without children. However, I thought that everyone was very well behaved. Anytime dining in the Coral was very good, with the wait staff generally cheerful and responsive. Tables for two were easily obtained prior to 7pm. At the Horizon buffet, while I agree that the food is hot and better than most other lines, I found the service consistently lacking. First, with only one side generally open, seating was at a premium. I also think I could have made enough money to cover my cruise if I had brought silverware on board. That was often more difficult to find than a seat. Most people got introduced to the Cafe Caribe by accident, following the crowd to find a seat. If you then ventured the "wrong" way to the back of the boat, you found the best kept secret on the ship, the small but quiet adult pool area, where you could read, drink, wade and snooze as the ship sailed along. Back to the Horizon .. I totally agree about the people cleaning tables.. they did that .. but try and get a coke with your meal .. nearly impossible. This was the only place on board that there was literally no beverage service .. especially if you wanted your "free" drink .. I finally resorted to bringing my drink in from one of the pool bars.

 

Re entertainment, in past cruises we had enjoyed having a drink at the Wheelhouse ? bar next to the Explorers Lounge. Quite disappointed in the selection of mostly Latin music . just not our taste. Comedians were hit and miss, although on one of the earlier nights in Explorer one had a blast funning with an 11 year old ..

 

Many of the excursions were disorganized, but I'm not sure if that was also because of some island characteristics. We took an all day tour of St Lucia, and would never do that again. Very cramped minivan with no leg room, and all day going up and down hills with hair pin turns. Very poor island with a few interesting items like the botanical gardens. other than that, a bunch of people trying to sell you beads where ever you went.

 

A few spa treatments, a few more drinks, a good book and generally great weather washed the negative comments overboard however. Seven days with no email or worries about the stock market does wonders to recharge the batteries. Would do another Princess in a heartbeat.