First a little background on us. This was our 12th cruise, but first with Princess. Most recent cruises were on HAL & Celebrity.

Executive Summary: We enjoyed Princess, especially our aft cabin, immensely. We found the service to be excellent, especially in the Portofino's Dining Room. We took this cruise for the scenery and wildlife (mainly penguins), not for days at sea, as was the case with our recent transatlantic and Mexican Riviera cruises. Fortunately, we did get into Pt. Stanley, which was a highlight. But we were very disappointed that we were unable to get into Ushuaia, and even more disappointed that Princess mishandled the penguin tour to Magdalena Island. First, by scheduling the tour on a ferry where we would be sitting on a bus for 2 hours each way with no view at all & then by canceling it all together. Regarding not getting into Ushuaia (a key port for us), it is understandable that safety of passengers & ship is first, but when this has happened to us in the past, a substitute port has been added to the itinerary. This was not the case for us. So beware that the itinerary you hope for and the tours that you reserve may not happen.

We arrived in BA 3 days early, stayed at the Marriott Plaza (which turned out to be a good hotel choice), enjoyed a tango show, visit to an estancia and the art museum. All of which we enjoyed. Suggest that you contact Carlos at privatetours.com.ar for transfers & tours. After talking to others on board the ship, we considered ourselves very lucky as there were many instances of wallets being picked & watches being stolen in BA, so be careful and do not wear any expensive (or expensive looking) jewelry. Read more