We sailed on the Crown 2 years ago, which is almost identical to the Caribbean Princess, so we were able to find our way around easily. The ship was beautiful, well maintained and our cabin was spacious enough, with plenty of storage space. The bed was comfortable, and the room was quiet. Edmond took care of our room, did a great job, and was always friendly and greeted us with a smile. He was about the only staff member we encountered with a smile and a welcoming attitude. It was an extremely somber atmosphere in the buffet dining rooms, as the wait staff never smiled! We are not big complainers or hard to please, so we didn't let it bother us. I do however, after owning my own business, believe in excellent customer service with a genuine smile goes a long way! Embarkation was horrible! We waited in the hot sun for hours! we arrived about noon and were not onboard until about 3:00. There were people with diabilities, and the elderly in the heat for hours. We heard a rumor that the ship had to due a search of the entire ship for someone who was on a back to back cruise. I don't know, but nothing was ever said by Princess, no appologies! We were looking forward to the food and entertainment. The dining room menus offered mostly fish, and not being a fan of any seafood except for shrimp and lobster, it never looked very exciting! I think Princess has cut back too far on their menu, and is trying to force people to go to their other dining rooms that require an extra fee. I have been on other ships, where there were so many courses offered and a great variety. About the only alternatives, were medallions of beef or fettuccine every night. We ended up only eating in the dining room twice because of the menu and the first night because of the great seafood buffet sail-away. So, we ate at the buffet and I have to say they offered a very good variety of food, and it was completely different every lunch and dinner. The food after awhile did begin to taste the same and the deserts were never very good. The only desert I really enjoyed, was the floating Island with warm vanilla sauce. I am glad that they now offer complimentary lemon -ade. You do need to ask to get this though. It was The World Series, and we are big Yankee fans, so we did not go to the first few night's entertainment. We chose to watch the games on the big screen under the stars. With all the cheering and large screen, it felt like you were at the game. This did not last long for us though, as there is so much smoking around you, we had to go to our room to watch the rest. When we did go and watch the singers and dancers that are part of the ships entertainment crew, we were very unimpressed! The night we went the singing was not good, nor the dancing. I did not go to the other performances and maybe they were better, but the one night was so bad, I didn't feel they could have been that much better. The Crown had excellent singers and dancers when we went on it 2 years ago. I was very disappointed, as I owned a dance studio for over 20 years and love watching the top entertainment usually found on cruises! The magician/comedian, was excellent and we watched a couple of his shows and were very entertained! The other comedian was not that great. The ship was completely full, and we never had a hard time finding chairs, or quiet areas. It was however smoky everywhere, even though the ship has designated areas, they do not enforce this. The buffet was extremely crazy, hectic and set up wrong, as stated many times in these reviews. We made the most of our cruise and had a great time. We don't feel like we had great food or great entertainment and don't feel at all pampered! I know the economy is bad, and I appreciate the great fares, but think Princess cut back too far. We will try a different cruise line next time, and will think twice before booking with Princess again.