First, let me say that the best part of this trip was actually the three days that we spent in Sydney before the cruise itself. They were fantastic and I highly recommend spending a Sunday in Sydney Harbour as the ultimate pre-cruise preparation for sailing. The boarding process was painless and I really liked the International Passenger Terminal located between the Rocks and Circular Quay. As for the ship itself, it is beginning to feel a bit older and less comfortable. I spent a couple of cruises each on the Crown and the Golden but for some reason I don't think of either as being this stuffy. It might be because the wind was pretty strong for almost all of the cruise and it rained a bit also. While I still prefer the full promenade deck on these ships I also love this observation platform on deck 15 above the bridge. What a great place to be while cruising the fjords. Mornings were almost always misty and did not see a single marine creature from the ship for the entire cruise. No whales, dolphins, seals, sea lions, porpoises, penguins..... Very strange to me for a cruise that that is described as having so much to offer in these areas.

The service in the main dining room was very good but the food was average for princess and disappointing in that we were not aware of the fact that our 9 day cruise meant that we would not get a gala farewell dinner like others who continued on back to Sydney. This is usually one of the best meals. Also, we only had one formal night on the nine nights at sea. My wife dragged along two outfits because it said that cruise of 7 or more days have two formal nights. Even the photographer was surprised at this.

The food in the horizon court was standard lunch and breakfast fare except that the focus on being more friendly to Asian cruisers may have reduced the options for North Americans. Also, we have been spoiled by newer ships that have bigger buffet areas with special stations for different types of food as well as special bakeries. Read more