Crown Princess Review

4.5 / 5.0
2,240 reviews

Better Than Expected, But....

Review for the Mexican Riviera Cruise on Crown Princess
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ecj1948
10+ Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Jan 2015
Cabin: Penthouse Suite with Balcony

Chose this sailing with friends because we wanted to splurge on suites, embarkation port (ease of driving to San Pedro), and two new stops ( La Paz and Loreto). Platinum status gave us some very nice perks - lots of free internet, priority boarding. Suite status added in-room bar set-up, Sabatini's for breakfast, and 2 free specialty restaurant meals. All these were handled very well. We literally walked onto the ship 5 minutes after arriving at the terminal. The specialty meals were excellent, and the Sabatini's breakfast was a highlight - great service, great food and outstanding fresh coffee. The manager, Flaviu, runs a very professional operation, yet keeps the atmosphere friendly and fun. And Francesco serves the Mimisas and coffee with panache. I would sail on this ship again just for the Sabatini experience. Crown Grill was also excellent and I still dream of the chocolate dessert we had there. Food in the MDR was generally OK to good, if rather unimaginative and bland - everything could have benefitted from more seasoning (not just salt) and hot sauce. The first meal there was a big disappointment. Three of us ordered pan-fried sole and got dry, breaded fish (not sole) that was exactly like frozen breaded fish filets (was Mrs. Paul in the kitchen?) Some nights, it was difficult to put together a decent meal from the offerings - is a slice of pineapple really an appetizer? Bland Indian food - isn't that an oxymoron? Fortunately, the bread was always so good, I never left hungry. Service was actually pretty good, a little harried and disjointed at times (anytime dining has its drawbacks), but overall pleasant and efficient. One more point - we were in Mexico! Where was the Mexican food? (This is an on-going complaint with me on just about all cruises.) The Horizon Court is another story. Unappetizing, bland food at all meals. Everything over cooked and tasting of steam table. Staff know little about what they are serving. Poor organization and layout leads to bottlenecks and conflicts. Had breakfast there twice due to early excursions. Just try to get a toasted bagel while you get edged out by everyone else. (I was on a Princess Cruise a while back that had a separate area just outside of the breakfast buffet at which a staff were just serving toasted items and breakfast pastries - worked out well.) Pizza was good, if it was fresh out of the oven, ice cream bar was fun, Trident grill was as expected, and sometimes was the go-to for lunch, since it was quick. International Café was always justifiably busy - good coffee drinks and snacks/pastries. The suite (A750) was great as was the cabin steward (Cyrel) - it was roomy, well-organized, and spotless, and always serviced quickly. The entertainment was varied and good for the most part. They did 3 production shows, all of which I have seen multiple times, but they were well handled and the dancers were excellent. The disco themed show grated on me a little bit - it was corny and clichéd - but I really enjoyed the Cole Porter-era show - maybe just my music preference. Cruise director (Neil Rose) was good and I enjoyed his staff at their various endeavors - they seemed to have fun and it was infectious. And they did a bang-up job on the final night "If I Was Not Upon This Ship" tradition. The other entertainers (magician, comics, singer, ventriloquist) were entertaining and worth seeing. The lecturer (Bruce Yancil?) spoke about various aspects of cruise line history, and was interesting and well-prepared. I actually felt like I learned something. Excursions: Cabo - took the resort break. It was quite pleasant - just lying around near the pool, taking the occasional dip, meal and drink included and the staff really seemed to appreciate Princess's business. La Paz - nice bus trip with a city tour and beach break. Loreto - city tour in a small town center area - well handled and interesting. PV - no tour booked - would have taken a shuttle into town IF ONE WAS OFFERED! Just cab service. Other points - Pub Lunch was held 3 times - good Fish and Chips. Hate the sales tables dragged out into the Piazza (which is already too crowded.) They impede traffic, put disabled passengers at a disadvantage, and cheapen the experience. Surely there is under-utilized space elsewhere that could be turned into a daily sale destination. It could even be themed according to the cruise destination. Of course, if it wasn't for the Mariachi band and a few banners, we could have been anywhere. A little too much nickel-and-diming at the beginning - saying no for repeatedly offered packages get to be annoying. There were some younger passengers on the cruise, and they really helped pep up the experience by joining in the pool games and generally livening up the pool area without being loud or obnoxious. I actually enjoyed time by the pool much more on this ship than on most others - good weather helped. Disembarkation, for us suite/Platinum passengers was amazing. We opted for walk-off - we waited less than five minutes in our designated area and that was it. We were in our car 30 minutes before our schedule walk-off time. All in all, a nice cruise with a few areas for improvement.

Cabin Review

Penthouse Suite with Balcony

Cabin S3

Roomy, well organized suite with a huge, rear facing balcony. Included in-room bar set up, daily canapés, if requested, really nice fruit bowl, chocolate dipped strawberries. Kept spotless by steward.

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