Went on the 10-day cruise from Los Angeles to the Mexican Riviera on the Crown Princess. First, I read all of the reviews. Ranged from GREAT to POOR. As usual, the reality is somewhere in between.

Embarkation: TERRIBLE ! Princess is supposed to have good embarkation, but we waited in line in the hot sun for over an hour moving slower than a Disneyland attraction line. The Princess staff who were supposed to be there to help passengers find their way were horrible. They were standing, talking to a few passengers, talking amongst themselves, and occasionally letting someone with a sob story cut the line. There was no information being given by them about why we were standing there sweating, and they had no supervision (or if they did were ignoring it).

Ship: Once we got on the ship, things were much better. For the most part, the ship was well maintained, staff were all friendly and helpful, and the décor was quite nice, as to be expected. Read more