Balcony

Suite

Inside

Outside

Princess Cruises

Family Cruises

Gay & Lesbian Cruises

Romantic Cruises

Singles Cruises

Cruises for the Disabled

Senior Cruises

Fitness Cruises

Gourmet Food Cruises

Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades)

Southampton

Los Angeles

Seattle

San Juan

New York (Manhattan)

Vancouver

Rome (Civitavecchia)

Barcelona

Galveston

Quebec City

Santiago (Valparaiso)

Venice

Buenos Aires

Copenhagen

Dublin

Athens (Piraeus)

Paris

Whittier

Rio de Janeiro

San Francisco

Ensenada

Miami

London (Greenwich, Tower Bridge, Tilbury)

Aqaba (Petra)

Anchorage

Le Havre

Caribbean - All

U.S.A.

Europe - All

Caribbean - Southern

Mexico - All

Caribbean - Eastern

Europe - British Isles & Western

Alaska

France

Caribbean - Western

USVI

Mediterranean

Mexican Riviera

Bahamas

Netherlands

Europe River

Europe - Western Mediterranean

Spain

Scotland

Seine River

Italy

Transatlantic

Ireland

Baltic Sea

Europe - Eastern Mediterranean

Canada & New England

South America

Pacific Coastal

Columbia River

Hawaii

Belgium

Rhine River

Norway

Portugal

Denmark

Douro River

Dominican Republic

South Pacific

Iceland

Sweden

Europe - River Cruise

French Polynesia

North America River

Samoa

US River

Norwegian Fjords

Croatia

Argentina

Chile

Cruise to Nowhere

Falklands

Bermuda

Canary Islands

British Columbia

Uruguay

Panama Canal & Central America

Trans-Ocean

Wales

Excellent

Very Good

Average

Poor

Terrible

Caribbean Princess

Crown Princess

Ruby Princess

Emerald Princess

Regal Princess

Royal Princess

Grand Princess

Island Princess

Coral Princess

Sapphire Princess

Diamond Princess

Majestic Princess

Sky Princess

Discovery Princess

Enchanted Princess

Star Princess

A Cheapskate Tries a Repositioning Cruise

Elba

Crown Princess Cruise, October 22, 2023 

We had transfers from SFO to the ship. On the way to the ship, all went well until we arrived at the pier. There was a long line to get into the building and it seemed to be held up for no apparent reason.  When we finally were allowed to proceed, we went to the check in area and looked for the priority line for Elite passengers. We could not find one and we told to get in the same line with everyone else. My wife noticed a lady in a Princess uniform and asked why we did not get priority boarding anymore.  She called over a check in clerk and raised the barrier tape so we could crawl under and approach the clerk where we were checked in. I still wonder why there was not a separate line as there has been on previous cruises. That has always been one of the Elite benefits which are disappearing. I hope priority boarding is not the next one that will be taken off the list!

Our cabin was ready and we were able to proceed directly there and unpack our carry-on suitcases.  The cabin steward, Jun, did a very nice job of attending to the cabin and it was clean and comfortable with a nice balcony.  We then headed to one of the main restaurants for lunch. There was only one open and it was open for lunch on all the days we went there instead of the Lido restaurant.  

The lido restaurant was a zoo. It seemed like the majority of the passengers were using this place as opposed to any of the main restaurants for breakfast or lunch. The food there was mediocre at best. There was a large assortment, but most of the hot dishes were cold by the time we reached a table. As usual, the waiters were attentive bringing water and coffee or tea on request. On previous cruises, we had gone to the Caribe food bar at the very back of the Lido restaurant where they had fish and beef that were cooked to order. On this cruise, we went there several times and found it closed. On the next to the last day, we tried again and found that the food was the same as what was being offered in the rest of the Lido restaurant.  What a disappointment! The hamburgers on the lido deck were quite good, but the French Fries were usually cold and the service was extremely slow. Waiting a half hour to get a hamburger was not unusual. The pizzas at the Pizza bar were good and the ice cream cones were nice.

We had most of our lunches and dinners in one of the main restaurants. We went at various times and were able to get a table within just a few minutes. The hostess at the door was very helpful and always knew who we were after our first time there. The waiters were very efficient as usual and the food was definitely a cut above what was being served in the lido restaurant. We enjoyed all of our meals there. 

The entertainment was mediocre at best. Princess has a reputation for hiring from the low end of the entertainment acts available. One female comedian was really struggling and many of the cruisers commented on her lack of ability.  I am not a fan of the production shows so I did not really enjoy them, but the other people attending seemed to enjoy themselves. We always attended the early show and we were very surprised to find the theater about half empty at every show. On past cruises it was necessary to get to the theater 15 to 30 minutes early to get a seat easily. On this cruise there were empty seats everywhere in the showroom. We overheard remarks from other passengers that they enjoyed the shows at the various bars and other showrooms on the ship so this might have accounted for the low passenger count at the main showroom.

Part way through the cruise we got a letter stating the we were to appear at a show room the following morning to have our immigration status checked by immigration people. When we got there at the appointed time, the line was endless. It started at the showroom in the vary back of the ship and went almost to the front of the ship, then turned back and headed for the back of the ship again. We stood in line for half and hour and then saw the immigrations people passing through the area on their way to the showroom.  Why they asked us to be there at 8:10 AM was beyond me when the immigration people did not arrive until a half hour after that. Also, they could have had the meeting in the main showroom where people could, at least, have been able to sit down and wait. I seemed like every one on the ship had been told to report at the same time. We had a harbor tour booked and were concerned that we would miss the tour. One crew person passed our line and told us that he was going to make sure we arrived at the tour on time. We later were told to start waking to the tour boat which was docked several hundred yards away from the ship.  When we got there, we were again held in a line for about a half hour before being allow to board. I could not for the life of me understand why that was necessary when there was plenty of room on the boat.  Unfortunately, the tour boat looked like it was a survivor of the Civil Way. We have taken Hornblower boats before and they were OK, but this one looked like it needed to go into drydock for a face lift. 

The information on the TV was a joke as it was on our last cruise. None of the restaurants had their open hours listed and we were never able to find out anywhere when the Caribe restaurant was open. Also, none of the prices for the specialty restaurants were listed on the TV listings. We did not even try to order anything from room service using the TV, because on the last cruise we found it impossible to use and did not need anymore frustration.

Overall, I give the cruise a rating of 3 on a scale of 1 to 5. Most of that rating was due to the excellent work of the waiters, steward and other crew attendants on the ship.

Another average Princess Cruise

Brisbane

We honeymooned on the Crown in 2007. Had a great time sailing from NYC to the Caribbean and back. That trip kick started our love of cruising. So this trip was a homecoming of sorts.

How was it 16 years later? While the ship has obviously aged and shows some wear here and there, overall it seems to be actually improved. The tech added throughout the ship is brilliant. The medallions worked flawlessly. So nice walking up to a bar and the staff just know who you are, no paper to sign.

The crew was fantastic; every single one we encountered was friendly and helpful. 

The ship was very clean and this extended to our cabin. It was spotless and our steward did a perfect job of keeping it that way. 

For food, we never ate at the buffet. Did two meals at Salty Dog Gastropub, enjoyed them both very much. Smaller portions but everything we had was tasty. Otherwise we did main dining room and room service. Food quality for room service was hit or miss. Some dishes came lacking ingredients like toppings. Main room dining room was consistently good. For breakfast I found the featured items were your best bet. A la carte items were very bland.

Gary the cruise director and his staff were very funny and engaging. We participated in a lot of different games and had fun. This cruise had a lot of older guests, many of them who seemed more content to watch than participate.

The shows were a mixed bag. The main singer is very talented but the show Magic To Do needs a lot of work. Comedian Rollin Jay Moore had some good bits. Not exactly a show but the naturalist Mark Harris gave some great presentations in the main theatre. Very engaging and informative.

Embarkation and disembarkation were the easiest we've ever done but this was likely helped by the low crowds.

Overall, we loved our together again on the Crown and look forward to doing it again soon.

Still a lovely ship with a fantastic crew

Split

What year is this cruise? People are eating rice pilaf and drinking Blue Hawaiians, the comedian’s routine is shockingly racist, and the big musical revue is a nearly all-white salute to Motown. I halfway expected to run into cigarette machine. I am old, but Gen Z: I was appalled on your behalf. The fact that the buffet has a vegan section and there’s a nightly LGBTQ meet-up reminded me it was 2023. 

A coworker described a repositioning cruise to me earlier this year which led me to Google 1) what is a repositioning cruise and 2) why is it so cheap? This cruise was especially cheap, not only because it was repositioning but also because it was sailing in the Pacific Northwest in October. You choose your price, and you take your chances. A gigantic cruise ship that’s about half full and where everyone is mostly stuck inside because of weather is a real weird scene. I ventured out once in the rain and the wind to watch part of Shazam from the outdoor hot tub with a towel over my head and didn’t regret it. Lean into the experience. Why are there so many Shazams in this movie?

When I looked online at the photos of the cheapest room I could possibly book (which I did) I got a little nervous. However, Princess reliably does their rooms right. While the furnishings remind me of my 1980’s Barbie dream house, the layout is good, the thermostat will reliably provide you with both hot and cold air, the carpet is clean, and the bed is supremely comfortable and big enough for two if neither of you is especially tall. 

I also cheaped out of any sort of package deal. I had a $200 ship credit which I assumed would surely last two very moderate drinkers a couple of days. It lasted us exactly 24 hours. Each drink came with various taxes and hospitality charges, making a glass of Prosecco cost about $20. A 30-minute yoga class cost $30. Fellow cheapskates: you might want to reconsider the ad-hoc path and go with the package deal to avoid the anxiety.

The entertainment was kinda weird throughout but grew on me. I thoroughly enjoyed the buffets. The oddest buffet choices—Indian-spiced breakfast potatoes, dark chocolate tapioca pudding—were all universally good. The bread was skippable except for something called a Tiger Bun which housed an egg salad sandwich at the International Café I still think about. The fancy dinners were fine, again, just a weird scene when the ship is half empty and vegetarians only have one option (sorry vegans), so we preferred the buffet. 

Every interaction we had with every single crew member was extremely pleasant. I sincerely hope Princess is doing right by you.

We are a three person family with a toddler. We chose this cruise as part of a trip to Vancouver to see friends. Our cruising activities are limited by our kid, so we spend most of our cruises eating, walking around the ship, and enjoying some of the music activities.

Day 1: we had lunch and dinner at the buffet. Both times it was okay - good staff, no wait time, but food was pretty mediocre. Nothing wrong, just cafeteria food style where the ingredients seem low quality and flavoring is all pretty bland. Otherwise we walked around most decks of the ship and caught up on sleep.

Day 2: this was a day at sea, where the ship sailed aimlessly around the Puget sound. We had a surprisingly speedy breakfast in the main dining room with a tasty omlet (no eggs Benedict to my slight disappointment). We returned to the buffet for lunch and dinner, with mostly boring food again, but had a decent beef stew and tiramisu. We watched a musical theater performer on the main stage, then saw a guitarist in a bar and a small band in club fusion. The small band was fine, but they complained about no one dancing, which felt a little odd and whiny. Our kid liked dancing to their songs, in any case. 

Day 3: the ship was stopped in Victoria all day, but we only went for a short walk in the afternoon to find a playground for our kid. We split up for breakfast, and I had some decent little dishes from the international cafe on 5. In general, I liked the breakfast smoothies on the ship (the international cafe seems like mostly a convenient spot for foods that are also available in the buffet and main dining rooms). Lunch at the buffet was uninspiring, as was dinner at the salty dog. We had a fun time at the sports court and the mini golf course. There was a decent disco themed show on the main stage after dinner.

The princess app was hilariously bad. We've previously sailed on royal and Holland, and I recall both having better apps. It's hard to find basic information in the princess app, like how to chat with those sharing your room. The app is missing some information you would expect, like dining menus or a way to filter events by category. And finally, the app crashes seemingly half the time. On the other hand, the medallion system is nice and I liked having the room open as soon as I'm close by.

First time on Princess was so-so

Embarkation day went well. We got to the Seattle Pier 91 around noon. It took 15 minutes to board after going through security. At 1pm our cabin was ready and we were in an inside cabin a few doors from the very aft of the ship. The cabin layout is very good except for the shower. There is no plastic or glass door but only a plastic shower curtain and very worn out. We picked an inside cabin mainly because we're in our cabin just to sleep. 

My wife and I are on a16 night cruise from Seattle to Hawaii from 9-30 to 10-16-2023. It takes 5.5 days to get to Kona which is our first island. We took the free city bus around the few shopping areas with many stores and restaurants. The second bus took us around the beaches.

We then went to Hilo. If your not on a ships tour, then the town of Hilo is a good mile away and I didn't see any taxis at the pier. We took the ships shore excursion to the Volcano National Park and the Macadamia nut farm. You can still see steam coming out of the volcano and you make three stops at the park. Then afterwards we went to the Macadamia nut farm. The cost of the ship excursion was $100 per person and well worth the price. 

Our third stop was Honolulu. We took a taxi with another couple to Pearl Harbor. The cost for the taxi was $40 so it cost $20 per couple. When you get to Pearl Harbor, there is a no bag policy. If you bring a bag then you have to put it in a locker which cost $7. Visits are free to the park. I wouldn't pay for a ships shore excursion. Pearl Harbor is not to be missed. Afterwards we went to Walmart to get a small box of laundry detergent.  On the ship there is a free self serve laundromat. Before going to the ship we went for a local Hawaiian BBQ restaurant. We got to the ship around 5pm. That night in the theater there was a local Hula troop running from ages 6 to in the 20s. It was a great show. 

Our last stop is Nawiliwili, Kauai. We walked about 10-15  minutes to the beach from the ship. The beach was excellent. They also have an ABC store and a coffee shop and a few other stores. The ship left at 5pm and now it's another five seadays to Victoria, Canada. 

Entertainment on board the ship is excellent. They had a singer/ instrumentalist, also a great impersonator, a comedy show, a magic show and four production shows all in the theater. Gary Golding the cruise director and his team are excellent. They'll keep you busy all day long. The deck party is excellent. 

The service from the ship in all departments are very good. They seem to care about their passengers. The gym is good and plenty of machines. 

Now for the disappointments.  On the first night at the welcome aboard dance party no staff came and started the party off. Since there was no staff the DJ jammed but shortly after people left. 

The food at the buffet and the main dining room was only fair to good. I was surprised that there was no steak entree on the every day menu like before. At the buffet there is only one carving choice for lunch and dinner.  The buffet is very small and has few options. If you go to the main restaurant between 5pm to 7pm it will take two hours to finish your meal. We went after the first performance at the theater around 8:20pm. At that time you can finish dinner within an hour. If you order ice cream  it's the cheapest I've ever had and not good at all. The pizza is good. 

Overall I enjoyed the cruise and would recommend this cruise. If your a foodie I would definitely not recommend the Crown Princess.

Only a fair cruise. 

My wife and I have sailed on 4 cruises to various places.  We have sailed on Royal Carribean and Norwegian.  The most recent was on Princess to Alaska.  The boarding experience was lacking.  Very long line and not very organized.  We told the person to use the main credit card for the secondary passenger, but apparently that did not happen, so we were called back down to guest services during the cruise to tell them the same thing.  They did not have much food available for everyone after boarding to start the cruise and it was very crowded.

The ship itself was very nice and looked good.  There were some minor things about the restroom being dirty.  It became apparent pretty quickly that the basics were not what they wanted you to do.  They wanted you to spend more money on the extras.

The buffet was mostly the same thing everyday.  Very minor changes to what they had available on the cutting board was the biggest difference.  The majority of the items were identical everyday.  The other cruise lines that we have been on had an area for ice cream or sundaes.  This ship only had one spot and all you could get was a complimentary soft serve with sprinkles on either a cone or a cup chocolate or vanilla (you could also mix).  If you wanted anything extra it was $12.  There was also only one place on board to get this.

The on board complimentary restaurants were nice and we did enjoy the food.  You could eat as much as you wanted but you had to order multiple times if you wanted more than the basic portions.  They did allow you to order more than one at a time if you already knew the portions were too small for you.

We had booked an excursion well before we travelled for the cruise and it apparently was changed on the time that we booked.  We did not find out until we were on the cruise and we were almost late.  Guest services and the excursion group kept passing us off to other people until we finally got ahold of the person in charge of excursions.  We did get a small credit, but we should have been given much more notice and a potential refund for our choice if we wanted rather than accepting the alternative time excursion.

Basic Cruise is OK, they want the extra charges

Ship was extremely crowded. Embarkation took hours. Layout of the ship is confusing.  A lot of people mentioned their difficulties with the ship layout. Ship is old and needs a lot of repairs. Wires hanging. Elevators required long wait times. Ship specialty restaurants were all booked as well as afternoon tea. So disappointing to not be able to eat in one at least once. Food in dining room also disappointing. Inedible New York strip steaks. Super small rooms. Requested robes four times. Room steward chastised us for this. Staff had attitude. You feel like they are annoyed to be there. It was shocking after our Holland cruises to hear their annoyed tones. Staff also drinks! Ship has you wear tracking devices. Booze cruise with very few options for non drinkers.  Basically they cater to drinkers. Not a nice ship at all. Biggest problem is crew is not trained. Nobody could direct us without asking for assistance. Avoid this cruise line.

Sampler cruise 

We went on a miniAlaska cruise from Vancouver, ending in Seattle.  The checkin process in Vancouverwas poorly organized.  We ended up standing in line for over an hour.  The ship itself is OK but in need of upgrading.  Staff for the most part were friendly and helpful.  We disembarked to have lunch in Ketchikan.  When we returned there was a very long line to get back on the ship.  Only one stairway was open which was very steep and difficult for older passengers to navigate.  Eventually they opened another, more accessible entryway, but this should have been done much sooner.  Food in the buffet was very limited as compared to other cruise lines and seating was difficult to find even if you were willing to share a table.  The dining room food was quite good and our service was also good.  Many other passengers commented to us that they felt Princess had cut back on amenities and I agree.  With so many other cruise lines to choose from I would not recommend Princess.

Disappointed in Princess

We booked this 4 night Alaska Preview cruise because Airfare was less to fly to Vancouver than it was to Southern cruise ports.  My sister was interested in doing a longer Alaska Land & Cruise tour package so this sampler cruise was perfect way to get her to see a Vancouver, Ketchikan, and Seattle.  Honestly, this cruise could not have been more perfect! Weather was so perfect every day, I packed sweaters and long sleeves and ended up buying Tshirts because temperatures were still in high 60's with sunny skies.   We loved The Sanctuary, this is an Adults Only area that is an upcharge of $20 for half a day, or $40 for all day. You're not able to book in advance, only on the ship. So this was our first stop as soon as we got on the ship.  There was no line, and I think we were the only ones that took advantage of this private area.  yes, there are other free outdoor lounge areas on the ship so it's not a "need" just an option.   We liked having this reserved designated spot away from the crowds, and the staff in this area treat you like VIP guests, as well as on Sea Days the afternoon Tea was served here. We used that Sanctuary every day of the cruise.    The Food in each main dining room, and the buffet was good, no complaints on any of it, and never once had upset stomach after eating.  We had the plus package and didn't have the opportunity to use the special desserts, or even the special casual dining credits.  But, the plus package is still a great deal for the tips, drinks, and wifi being included so I would pay that package again. Our Cabin was the Perfect location, booked a balcony guarantee and was assigned after right at the elevators.  We kept a cute Moose Magnet on our door to easily identify when we stepped off the elevator.  From our Balcony with binocular we saw Moose along the land, and a whale was in the water beside the ship. The time difference was a struggle for us East Coasters, we stuck to our body clock so up at 3:30A grabbed a coffee from the International Cafe, found a nice quiet spot to chit chat, check emails, etc.  Early dinner at 5p and we was in bed by 9:00P.M  the evening entertainment was "Motown" style shows.  Only onboard event we casually attended was The Art Auction, because I was curious on how much they went for.  I've been on 10+ cruises and never attended this Art Auction before, and if I wasn't listening carefully I would have thought all the art work was sold, but auctioneer was smooth in saying there was a "Reserved price of $43,000" and start the bid at $43,000, going once, going twice, lets give a round of applause for Mr. Kinkade :) Love his artwork so that was fun to sit in and listen to unique facts about his work.     After the cruise in Seattle, we had an 11P flight so we booked a "Room for the Day" at The Charter Hotel, we was able to check in at 8:00A.M and room was ready for us to leave bags, and then we walked to The Space Needle, waterfront, Marketplace, etc. and enjoyed drinks at the rooftop bar, and dinner in the hotel restaurant.  Would highly recommend this and will do again.  We took Uber to airport, it was faster than waiting for taxi.  Overall a great trip!

Perfect Alaska Preview Cruise

Having been away from Alaska since 2018, we were excited to travel north aboard CROWN princess for an 11-night adventure.  We last sailed on CROWN to the Caribbean in 2018.  We recall that cruise event as having the best food/service in all the Princess fleet we had ever experienced.  Not to be the situation this time. 

EMBARKATION: Went well.  Well organized at Canada Place, Vancouver.  The lines moved quickly, and we were shortly aboard, followed by our luggage.

ITENIARY:  Sitka, Hubbard Glacier, Icy Strait (Hoonah), Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Victoria. Inside passage.

THE CRUISE: Weather was a bust.  Rain every day, except for Hubbard Glacier day.  Not the fault of Princess, of course, but worst weather we have experienced in Alaska over six cruises there. Many of the shops in the ports were already closed up for the winter. This was CROWN'S last Alaska trip before transitioning to the Hawaii/Mexico routes.

THE SHIP: CROWN is holding up well for a 17-year old vessel.  Rust is kept to a minimum, and maintenance was seen all over the ship. 

STATEROOM:  We had the standard balcony, port side, aft.  Well-maintained, and our steward did a great job for us.

DINING/BEVERAGE VENUES:  Here is where Princess is starting to fall down. Having been on 16 prior princess cruises, we have expectations of top-notch service in the MDR.  The wait staff here seemed to be severely under-staffed, possibly by as much as fifty percent.  Waiters were running to service the dining load, (2800 passengers on a 3000 pass ship).  We had fixed-time dining each night, but never got the same table or wait staff (like in the old days of traditional dining).  Wait times after orders were placed were unacceptable...your appetizer could take 15 minutes to show up, then 30 minutes for the main.  Lots of idle waiting. Wine ordered from our Plus pkg list was almost unconsumable (we started ordering upgrades off of the Priemer pkg (more $$) but the wine quality did not improve). Some of our simple dinners (party of two) required two hours to complete.  Other nights, we were done in under an hour. We don't know if Princess simply can't get enough employees to service the ship, or if they are reducing manpower to save money, but the passengers who have been accustomed to first-class service in the past are getting the shaft. Beverages from the various bar venues often required a long wait, to receive.  Bar staff looked rushed.  We would order beverages from the Medallion website..... sometimes they would be filled/delivered, other times the order never materialized (that happened a lot).  This same service situation occurred to us on the DIAMOND Princess on a January 2023 sailing, so we're starting to see an unpleasant pattern developing.  Princess is cutting back all other the ship.... no more flowers on your dining table, butter looks artificial, food portions are smaller (but adequate), no more table bread with seeds on them, no more music channels on your stateroom TV, no extra princess patters at guest services, bars have shorter hours, less staff in the buffet, the higher-quality mini-bar package we receive in our stateroom has been replaced with foreign brands we have never heard of, the "free daily desserts" you now pay for in the plus pkg was a bust, the "free" exercise classes require a tip.....the list goes on.  What's next, having to pay for dining in the MDR? Having been loyal to only Princess since 2005, we are seriously considering giving up our elite perks and giving another cruise line (Holland America Line) a shot at our patronage.  Never thought this day would come.  Princess, ARE YOU LISTENING?

Is this the new princess?

Filters

1-10 of 2,228