First, I must say that we were thrilled with the price of our cruise. However, there should have been disclaimers as to why the price was so low. The Grand Princess is scheduled for dry dock in March 2010. First lesson learned: check the ship's renovation schedule before booking. We booked a mini-suite and were unable to see out one of our balcony doors because the seal had broken and it was partially fogged up the entire trip. I slept in ear plugs because of the creaking of walls and furniture in the cabin. When we stepped in the elevators, the floors creaked so badly, it was a topic of conversation with fellow passengers. Mid way through the cruise, our cabin door had to be replaced because our door would not lock when we pulled it to. Even after being replaced, we had to slam it several times to get it to latch. I'm sure our neighbors loved us!
Although the ship's singers and dancers were very talented, they only performed 3-4 times in 21 days. What did they do with the rest of their time? Oh, let me tell you. They were seen around the ship, as if they were paying guests. One night, at a standing room only show at the Explorer's lounge, several of the entertainers were drinking, laughing, and disturbing the passengers trying to watch the show. They were also found at the buffet, elbowing passengers out of the way, as they filled their plates. Or, sitting in the atrium area with laptops. Also, lounging around the pool all day. Instead of Princess using their talents, we suffered through a terrible comedian, and an even worse juggler (would have been excellent for a 5-year old's birthday party). The bright side was a wonderful tenor and a great Scottish piano player.
One of the improvements since our last cruise, was the addition of a "coffee card". For $24 you can purchase a card to be punched when you purchase 15 orders of an espresso, latte, or other specialty coffee (hint: a double counts as one punch!). Way to go Princess.
The seal on the balcony door is broken, so one of the doors is fogged up and you can't see out. There are wedges stuck in the ceiling over the bed to keep it from creaking.
Bathroom: tub is great, but water pressure in tub is lacking and it takes a long time to fill the tub.