Review: Princess Cruises - Caribbean Princess - [September 17 , 2005]

[Net Reviews]

Review By:

Reviewer Comments:

Review of Caribbean Princess sailing September 17-24, 2005

Background: Myself (50) and husband (45), veteran cruisers (Royal
Caribbean, NCL, Carnival, Princess)

We arrived two days precruise. Rented a car for a day and drove over
to the West Coast to visit my parents in Marco Island. Returned the
following day and stayed at the Marriott Marina Hotel (our favorite),
which is across the street from Port Everglades. Met up with a couple
of our friends and took the water taxi (conveniently stops at the
Marriott) and went to Las Olas for dinner that night.

The next a.m. we had breakfast at the Marriott (very good breakfast
buffet $14.95 pp).

The Marriott provides free shuttle service over to the ship (sign up
the day before to ensure you get the time you want). We were scheduled
for 10:50 a.m., which is a little earlier than I'd prefer to get
there, but I wanted to get onboard quickly. I wanted to surprise my
husband by booking the Ultimate Balcony Dinner, and since they do only
two/night, I wanted to be sure I got the night I preferred.

I will now break down this review in categories:

Embarkation: Awful. I honestly can't say it was Princess' fault.
Apparently the ship didn't clear customs until very late, and the
previous week's passengers didn't even start debarking until after
11 a.m. It was unbelievably hot and humid, and we stood outside in
line for over an hour and a half. I felt very bad for the elderly
people. There was no place to sit and I felt the least they could have
done was begin to allow the line to filter into the terminal where it
was air conditioned or at least provide cold water or let the elderly
sit inside. But I guess they have their reasons. Once they started
the boarding process, I'd say it took about a half hour from the time
we entered the terminal (finally, some A/C!) until we boarded the ship.
Nice touch is that Princess has a "welcome" crew standing there to
escort you to the correct elevator. I've been on cruiselines where
you enter the atrium and are on your own.

Cabin: We had a balcony cabin on Caribe deck (C-708). Although
we've previously had mini-suites on the Grand and Golden Princess, we
opted for the balcony cabin this time to save a few bucks but mostly
because we wanted a balcony that had at least a partial covering over
the balcony. There are only a few mini-suites on Emerald Deck that
have covered balconies, and they were all sold out at the time we
booked.

The cabin was more than adequate. There was a mini-fridge (unstocked)
that actually kept things cold. Our previous experience on other
cruiselines has been that the refrigerator doesn't do a very good job
keeping things cold. They did have a couple of cans of soda (diet and
regular) as well as bottled water for sale. The bottled water was the
best bargain on the ship. A 1.5 liter bottle for $2.95. Can't beat
that price. That was the same price you could get it for from any bar
as well. If you ordered it while lounging at the pools, they brought
it to you ice cold with a big tall glass of ice. Great bargain!

Although there was more than enough closet space with tons of hangers,
I found the drawer storage space to be slightly lacking. Not bad, but
a few more drawers or shelves would have been helpful.

The bed was very, very comfortable. Now we did ask our cabin steward
when we boarded if he could get us an eggcrate (which he did), so I'm
not sure if that made the bed so comfortable. But it was probably one
of the best beds I've had on a cruise ship. Requesting extra pillows
was no problem.

Although I do love the larger bathrooms with full bathtub in the
mini-suites, this bathroom was more than adequate. While not roomy, it
had plenty of storage space. Yes, the infamous shower is small, but
completely doable. The shower stall is curved, so it gives you more
room, and the floor has a lip around the edge that keeps water from
going outside the shower. The curtain had little magnet things that
kept it totally adhered to the lip on the floor. I had no complaints
whatsoever about the shower (except maybe you'd have to be a
contortionist to be able to shave your legs in there). The water
pressure was excellent, always hot water available, and it had an
adjustable shower head which could be turned to a massaging shower
head.
Shampoo, conditioner, and body lotion are all provided on a daily
basis, and more frequently if needed.

The balcony was quite large, with four chairs and a table. Two of the
chairs are cushioned and are in desperate need of replacement. I
missed the adirondeck type chairs on the Grand where the foot stool
slides out from under the seat. These were just regular chairs,
although the ones with the flattened cushions did recline slightly.
There was also a table that we used to eat breakfast at (and did the
Ultimate Balcony dinner on). The Caribe deck balconies are partially
covered, but if you are looking for shade, the balcony still was mostly
sunny, even under the covered section. We were on Port side, don't
know if that made a difference.

All in all, I wouldn't hesitate to book a balcony cabin again, but if
we did, we'd probably opt for a smaller balcony but one that was
completely covered.

Service: Our cabin steward was very good. Not out of this world, but
very pleasant, accommodating and kept our cabin very tidy. I honestly
don't expect more than that from my cabin steward. We tipped him
extra upfront, and he did his job very efficiently. I've had some
that are more friendly, but as long as I get good service, that's
what is most important to me.

Every where we went on the ship, we were greeted by smiling faces and
"hello's" or "good day's" from the staff. This went for
everyone from the Captain right down to the maintenance crew. The only
exception was the Lotus Spa employees. I believe they are not actually
Princess employees, but someone can correct me if I'm wrong.
Example: We prefer to spend our days at the Lotus Spa pool. It is one
of two "adults only" pools and this particular one has the "swim
against the current." Anyway, our first day onboard, we went up to
the spa to sit by the pool, and the door leading to the pool was
locked. I asked one of the spa employees how I could access the pool,
and she said I had to exit the spa area, take the elevator (or stairs)
down two decks, go outside and walk forward, and go back up three
decks. Okay, this seemed ridiculous when the door was right there and
the pool was about four feet from the door. But she said that door was
for "spa guests" only. Well, since it lead only to the pool and
outside deck area, why would the "spa only" guests be using it.
That pool is for all passengers! Anyway, she had a very condescending
attitude. Same goes for the bathroom near that pool. Although there
is one right inside the door down a hallway about 10 feet (and it
doesn't entail one traipsing through the actual spa area dripping
wet), they kept locking the doors from the pool to that bathroom. They
told us that bathroom was for "spa guests only." This was really
annoying. Several people complained, and they did lighten up a bit
during the day, but you had to hope when someone went through that
door, that they didn't close it completely because otherwise it
locked and you were "locked out of the bathroom." The only other
bathroom was down three decks and over two pools in the Horizon Court
buffet. That was ridiculous to have to go that far to use a restroom.
Anyway, like I said, they did lighten up a bit as the week went on, but
you did tend to get "disapproving" looks from the spa staff
whenever you availed yourself of that door and/or bathroom. Another
example is that one day two of the spa employees (in their uniforms, I
believe they were hairdressers) were standing at the pool and going on
and on *****ing about how they hate their jobs and "nobody can stand
working here." Okay, I've been in jobs I hate too, but it is
totally unprofessional to be standing there among passengers
complaining like that. That should be done outside of earshot of the
passengers.

Otherwise, the Spa Pool area was lovely. The water is freshwater, not
too heavily chlorinated, and had steps leading down into it so you
don't have to go up and down via a ladder. It was kept immaculately
clean, as were all the deck areas. It is an Adults Only pool (as is
the aft pool), and there were a couple of occasions that parents
decided they could break the rules and bring their loud, obnoxious
children into that pool. A couple of times it was obvious people
didn't see the sign, and the kids were well- behaved and didn't
stay long. That was fine and nobody (including myself) said anything.
But one day an entire family with 5 kids ranging in age from about 7-14
decided to avail themselves of this pool. They were totally out of
control. Screaming and yelling (kid type stuff, but annoying
nonetheless) and blocking the current where a woman was attempting to
swim laps. They were splashing like crazy, and nobody was saying
anything. Finally, when I determined who the parent was, I very
politely went up to her and said, "I'm not sure if you are aware
that this is an Adults Only pool. I know the sign is rather hard to
see, and you probably didn't realize it." She got very indignant
and said "I don't see any sign." When I pointed it out to her,
she ignored me and acted like she wasn't going to do anything. A few
minutes later, she did gather her children and upon exiting the ship,
commented very loudly, "C'Mon kids, we have to leave, some people
are just very anti-social." I didn't answer her comment; I figured
she's just one of those ignorant parents who thinks the rules don't
apply to "her" little angels. Afterwards, several people came up
to me and thanked me for having the "guts" to say something. But I
will say I don't think it should be a passenger's responsibility to
enforce the rules. Princess should have somebody monitor this. One
day two obviously very high (we had just spent the day in Jamaica, need
I say more!!!) young guys (I'd say around 25) came up to this pool
and proceeded to stand on the ledge of the hot tub and jump into the
pool (which is only 4'9" deep with very large signs stating "NO
JUMPING OR DIVING."). After the first guy did it, a passenger said,
"I guess some people can't read." Then his friend did it. The
same passenger said, "another one who can't read." These two
guys got very irate at the comment. They then exited the pool and went
and got a boom box and started blasting music. They first had it by
their lounge chair, and then proceeded to balance it on the ledge of
the hot tub. They were obviously doing it just to annoy the older
passengers who were enjoying the quietness of the Spa pool. Anyway, I
saw a deck attendant and mentioned this to him. His answer? "I
can't do anything about it." Huh???? If he can't, who can?
Anyway, these two got bored and left shortly thereafter. They left
while uttering, "let's go to the pool where they let you jump, and
get away from all these geriatrics." I didn't want to be the one
to break the news to him that all of the pools have signs that state no
jumping or diving.

Food: I thought the food was very good. The buffets were a little
unimaginative, but the fresh fruit and desserts were very good. The
salad bar was very good as well, with all different types of lettuce
(raddichio, butter, endive, romaine, etc.). We did the Caf=E9 Caribe
Seafood Extravaganza on one of the formal nights. I thought it was
good, but not great. My husband, on the other hand, loved it. It's
at the back of the ship and it was extremely hot back there. I
couldn't wait to get out of there, so maybe that tainted my
experience.

We did Personal Choice Dining in the Palm Dining Room. The staff there
were the only ones I didn't think were up to Princess standards.
The Maitre de had a bit of an attitude. One night when we arrived and
requested a table for four, he said, "can you do it in an hour?" I
thought he was being funny (meaning could we wait an hour) and I
answered that I thought I'd be eating the furniture if I had to wait
an hour. He didn't fine this funny, apparently because I
misunderstood him. What he meant was the table he was putting us at
was reserved for another family in one hour, so we would have to finish
our meal in one hour. We said okay, but I thought this was a little
tacky. I wouldn't have minded waiting a bit for a table where we
wouldn't be rushed through dinner. He then made sure he told the
waitstaff that this table would be occupied by another party in 1 hour,
so to make sure he was done with us within an hour. Naturally, we were
rushed through dinner.

While generally our servers each night did their job, they did nothing
out of the ordinary. I've done PC dining before (on the Grand and
Golden) and had outstanding service. These servers just did their job,
and did nothing over and above. They didn't come back and ask you if
you needed anything, or ask if everyone was okay. Not once was fresh
ground pepper offered. Your food was put in front of you, and they left
until it was time to serve the next course. They never offered any
suggestions on selections. My husband was quite disappointed in this.
I'm not saying your waiter has to be your best friend for the
evening, but a little interaction is nice. On our last night, I had an
encounter with a waiter that is too long to go into, but he was
downright rude. His behavior was totally unacceptable. I only wish I
had the guts to ask him his name and report him, because he was totally
out of line. Unfortunately, that left a bad taste in my mouth
regarding the entire dining experience. I really try very hard not to
judge an entire group by the behavior of one, but I guess with that
being our last night, it's hard to get past.

The dining room food was very good; my husband thought the menu was a
bit unimaginative. Some of the desserts in the dining room were
tasteless, but I always managed to find something I liked. The breads
were outstanding. We ordered a bottle of wine most nights with dinner,
and it was reasonably priced.

We did Sabatini's one night, and it was (as usual) fabulous. Our
wait staff were outstanding and the food was wonderful. It reminded me
that this is what dining used to be like in the regular venues when we
first started cruising 10 years ago. We generously overtipped in
addition to the $20 pp charge, but this dining experience was the best
all week and worth every penny.

The other experience that rates right up there with Sabatini's is the
Ultimate Balcony Dinner. I won't go into a lot of detail because I
know it's been discussed before, but it was worth the $50 pp charge.
It's a lot to spend $100 for dinner when you can eat in the dining
room for free, but if you have a special occasion (and we did), I would
recommend doing it at least once. We also did the Champagne Balcony
Breakfast, which was $12.50 pp. It was nice and the price was
reasonable. But I'm not a big breakfast eater, so I'd probably
skip this next time. Way too much food; if we had two more people to
share it with it would have still been too much. I felt bad wasting
all that food.l But it is a nice touch.

Ports of Call: I won't go into this, but we were originally
scheduled to go on the Eastern Caribbean itinerary. Because of
Hurricane Rita and Tropical Depression Phillipe, Captain Romano rightly
decided to switch us to Western Caribbean. His decision was an
excellent one. He told us we were 450 miles ahead of Rita every step
of the way, and we had the absolute best weather. Sunny every day,
hot, and very calm seas. Couldn't have asked for better weather. I
will say if you are going to be in Cozumel for the day, I highly
recommend Paradise Beach. No admission fee, lounge chairs and
umbrellas free, and you have a beach attendant who is "yours" for
the day and will fetch drinks and food for you. Reasonably priced
drinks, beach lovely, water beautiful, and spotlessly clean bathrooms,
showers, and changing rooms. It's a $12 taxi ride (each way) from
the ship ( we were docked at the furtherest away dock).

Entertainment: We didn't avail ourselves of this. We aren't big
nightlife people. But we did see the Juggler/Comedienne (very good)
and we attended 3 of Bert Stratton's shows. We had heard of him
before, but never really knew what he did. On a friend's
recommendation, this time we attended his show. It is not to be
missed. We were totally entertained for almost 2 hours. If he is on
your ship, don't miss him. If you go to his website
(www.bertstratton.com) he has his schedule posted. We didn't go to
any of the MUTS movies, but we did watch Monday Night Football on the
MUTS screen. That was very enjoyable. The picture was very clear and
they came around and delivered bags of popcorn to everyone. That was a
lot of fun.

Miscellaneous: The islanders love those rubber bracelets that everyone
is sporting these days (Lance Armstrong's Live Strong, breast cancer
awareness, etc.). If you have any, the islanders love them. We gave
away a few. It makes their day to receive them.

I had a problem with my ear and had to pay my first visit to the
ship's infirmary. Being a nurse myself, I have to say I was totally
impressed with the facility. The staff were excellent, and the
facility itself was spotless with every modern convenience. For some
reason I expected a disheveled, sorry looking doctor filling in his
retirement days. Instead he was a very young, handsome South African
doctor who was very thorough and gentle. The other doctor was a young,
good-looking Australian. The nurse was an older English woman who was
extremely pleasant and professional. They gave me an itemized bill I
can turn over to my travel insurance for reimbursement.

Drinks were very heavily pushed in the pool/deck areas. In the lounge
areas, sometimes it was hard to get waited on, but out by the pool, it
was relentless. I don't think it's necessary for the bar staff to
constantly keep asking you. If they are walking by, you can summon
them. But they made it a point to keep stopping by your lounge chair
asking if you want a drink. It became tiring after awhile constantly
having to say, "no, thank you." A couple times they walked away
seemingly annoyed.

My husband has a lung disease and I worried about smoke being very
prevalent on the ship, as it has been on other ships. I have to say, I
was very impressed that there were very few areas where smoking was
allowed. I think I only saw 5-6people smoking the entire week.

Lounge chairs were very easy to get. No problem there.

I was surprised at the amount of rude passengers. I don't mean to
sound elitist here, but I'm not sure if the low price of this sailing
attracted a different demographic group. I'm not saying wealthy
people can't be rude, but there seemed to be an inordinate amount of
"unkempt" looking passengers. They tended to be a bit on the loud
side, wore blue jeans to the dining room, put their feet up on chairs
and sofas, and didn't hold doors open for those walking in behind
them. I honestly don't know if the price of the cruise had anything
to do with this, but I was surprised to see this. I guess I've been
used to a more upscale group of people on my previous Princess
sailings. I hope nobody misconstrues what I am saying here. I'm not
trying to act like I have my nose up in the air, but it just sort of
surprised me. And what's up with all these girls with tattoos????
I'm glad I don't have any daughters, because I think it would drive
me crazy. Everywhere I looked, these young girls with very nice bodies
have tattoos every where you look. I'm sorry, I know that is just my
opinion, but I just think it looks awful. I know it's a double
standard, but I wouldn't mind my sons having them, but I just don't
like the look on girls (again, a disclaimer here that this is my
personal opinion, and no reflection on Princess!).

Well, I guess that's about it. I've tried to present an honest and
unbiased opinion (except for the tattoos!). We really did have a great
time. The weather was perfect, we met some very nice people on board,
the cabin was lovely, we love Captain Romano (he makes it a point to
mingle with the passengers), the food was very good, the ship was nice
(can't say it "wowed" me). But we enjoyed it enough to book the
same ship for next September (we were lucky enough to get one of those
highly demanded mini-suites on Emerald Deck (E730). We also did one
future open booking.