BACKGROUND: I’m a mature adventurous solo traveler who has cruised 45 times on many cruise lines. Most of my cruises have been on Princess ships. I’m currently on a quest to see where my ancestors came from, and many of these places are good cruise ports. This itinerary covered many places my Viking ancestors once lived in, and I’ve always wanted to visit these parts of the world. My favorite Princess ship is the “Ocean Princess”, so it appeared to be a perfect match.

TRAVEL TO EMBARKATION: I enjoyed outstanding Virgin Atlantic flight service to London’s Heathrow Airport from JFK. Stayed at the London Heathrow Airport Terminal 5, close to Heathrow, overnight. Went to Canterbury, England the next day for some sightseeing, and then on embarkation day traveled on to Dover with Chestfield Cars, a very good local limo service. For once the English weather was gorgeous – hot, sunny and dry, and it made local travel and sightseeing a pleasure.

SHIP INFORMATION: The Explorer Class “Ocean Princess” is a beautiful small ship. 30,277 tons, length 592 feet, with 11 decks, and 338 cabins. Maximum passenger load is 672, and as my sailing was sold out, this was a full load – it never felt crowded, however, at any time. There are 375 crew members on board. The ship was purchased “used” in 2002, and refurbished in 2012. The interior is timeless classic, and looks like a stately English country home with traditional furnishings, lovely carpets and paintings, lots of wood paneling, and a gorgeous lounge with a fireplace (not real). Spacious cabins are very nice, and the small size of the ship makes getting around very quick and easy. One main dining room aft, two specialty restaurants, the usual buffet restaurant, and other dining venues. Small showroom, and other lounges and entertainment venues. Compact but well-equipped fitness center, and elegant Lotus Spa salon. Internet café and various function rooms, and a large boutique and separate jewelry store, small casino, hot tubs and pool, private adult “sanctuary deck area”, photo gallery, guest services desk in a lovely foyer area, several bars, and most of the other amenities found in older traditional ships. It’s a very elegant and refined environment compared to the enormous ultramodern ships. There is a definite vibration and rumbling noticeable in the dining room, no doubt from the engine room somewhere below and in the vicinity. For the age of the ship, it appeared well maintained but a bit tired around the edges inside and out. Internet is available, isn’t cheap (upper level loyalty guests get some free time), and is extremely slow. In this itinerary, internet and TV signals were nonexistent due to the northerly remote areas the ship cruised in at times. The ship has stabilizers, which were a blessing on this sailing which encountered some very high winds and rough seas routinely. Most of the ship is nonsmoking both on balconies and inside and some deck areas. There was only one laundry room for the entire group of passengers (elite level loyalty guests got free dry-cleaning), with 6 washers and dryers, coin-operated, and $2 for every wash, dry, box of soap, dryer sheet, etc. Coins could be charged to the room account using one’s key card. The “Ocean Princess” will be sold at the end of the year, according to Princess, and while things may not have been truly wonderful on this trip, I’m sorry to see this lovely small ship leave the Princess fleet. Read more