Pride of America Review

Lots of Pride on Pride of America

Review for Hawaii Cruise on Pride of America
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thatgreekguy
First Time Cruiser • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Jul 2009

We are a couple in our mid-fifties and very experienced with cruise ships having sailed more than fifteen times over the past twenty years on both luxury/premium (Crystal/Celebrity) and standard (Norwegian/Royal Caribbean) cruise lines. Pride of America is a much more casual operation than, say, Celebrity, although everything about the ship was pleasant and, we thought, well-managed. Our inside cabin on Deck 8 (we only spend for inside cabins because we spend so little time in the room other than sleeping)was the equal of any we have had previously and our cabin attendant service was very good. The bathroom was well-appointed and (addressing some complaints we'd read on this site) the size of the shower was acceptable...we'd say about cruise ship average. Overall, the American crew was friendly and polite and we had no service issues. We did not utilize any of the alternative restaurants because the Cadillac Diner and Liberty/Skyline Restaurants and Aloha Cafe offered very good meals and well-paced service. That said, the menu choices/variety and dining room service were a cut below Celebrity, but certainly the equal of Royal Caribbean. The Freestyle Dining was different for us and OK although we missed the friendships we have had with more polished European wait staffs on other ships. We did not like the policy regarding gratuities(the first time we've ever been told that tipping is "mandatory") and prefer to be able to hand out our own gratuity envelopes as opposed to contributing to a general pool for the crew. We held our peace about the "mandatory" issue because the crew was generally deserving and we're good tippers anyway. An idea: abandon the idiocy of tipping on a cruise ship, increase fares to be "gratuities included", pay the crew better, attract a bigger worker pool, weed out the bad apples on the crew and have done with the foolish charade we call tipping. (End of tirade). This trip was our seventh visit to Hawaii and the first involving a cruise through the islands. It was pleasant and enjoyable and we recommend it to all.

Cabin Review

Inside cabin #8205. On a quiet corridor forward. Very good.

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