This was our 5th Princess cruise and our 2nd cruise to the Western Caribbean. Our last trip to the Western Caribbean was in 2006 on the Star Princess. This cruise replaced Jamaica with Roatan. We found this to be a good change. The new Mahogany Bay area is quite nice.

This year the age of the cruisers was older than any other Caribbean cruise we have taken at this time of year. I'm wondering if the economy is the primary reason for this. Retirees may be able to afford to cruise while younger couples and families may be saving more or simply cannot afford a vacation at this time. There were very few children on this cruise and I only noticed a couple of teens.

Embarkation was well organized and swift. Of course this may have been because we were the second party to enter the cruise terminal! We were probably in the first 20 people to board. The cabin was ready for us and we then went to the International Cafe in the Piazza (deck 5) for lunch. The shrimp salad, chicken salad, and desserts were great. I also enjoyed the gelato later in the week ($1.50 for three generous scoops). Read more