This review is based on two cruises taken back to back on two ships. The first cruise was aboard the Caribbean Princess December 9 to 16, 2007. The second cruise was aboard Holland America Westerdam December 16 to 23, 2007. In an effort to be as fair as possible the variables of the two cruises were kept to a minimum. We stayed in comparably priced balcony cabins on both ships, and even declined an upgrade to keep objectivity. Similar meals were ordered when possible, and the seven day itineraries of both ships were similar. All my comments are made from the extensive notes taken during the two weeks.

Embarkation

After spending the night in Fort Lauderdale we took a cab to Port Everglades to board the Caribbean Princess at 11:00am and arrived about 11:20. Processing was very fast and efficient. Platinum and Elite were done first followed by all others. After received our room keys we waited in an upstairs room till 12:00 boarding time. Here things slowed down considerably, because of photos for both the ship and the ever present Photo Gallery, but we were in our cabin by 12:10 and friends traveling with us on their first Princess cruise were just minutes behind us. Read more