we are a married couple in our 40's with no kids. we live on long island and drove to the port in bklyn. we parked at the pier and got on the ship at 12 noon. this was very impressive. very clean and smooth operation. princess has this down to a science. we had a beautiful balcony cabin on the caribe deck. balcony was large. partially covered. cabin was beautiful but shower was too small. met our cabin steward as soon as we arrived. darius introduced himself immediately. we had a few requests such as a top sheet extra bath towels and beach towels and extra chocolates when he turned down the bed. he was so efficient and concerned wrote every request on a clipboard asked us to get a bite to eat and said when we returned to unpack our bags that our cabin would be set to our liking. sure enough, darius pulled through. even though we had tips included we slipped him extra when making the initial requests. well worth it because we never had to ask for anything else as he had this setup for our entire cruise. the ship was just beautiful. clean and spacious. plenty of pools hot tubs although the hot tubs weren't very hot and the jets weren't very strong. plenty of lounge chairs on decks both padded and mesh-like. many decks to choose for sunning or relaxing. many venues for dining and drinking. the crew was wonderful. roughly 1 crew member to every 3 passengers. never wanted for anything. all were very friendly and helpful. just ask and it was delivered.there were many venues of entertainment from theater to clubs to casino to pool games . there were many diverse activities both day and night and into the wee hours of the morning as well. ship was kept immaculately clean.food was great and an overabundance of it.we had anytime dining which worked great for us. had dinner in either da vinci or Michelangelo dining room most nights. second formal night we dined in cafe caribe to a lovely hot and cold seafood buffet which had many other selections to satisfy all. we did get all dolled up for the first formal night but we really did not enjoy that. we did enjoy the meals just not getting so dressed up. we really did prefer the smart casual. before dinner on the first formal night there was captains cocktail party where several different kinds of cocktails were passed around along with hors d'oeuvres ( im sorry if spelling is wrong). there was a band playing classical music which made for a very glamorous setting. this was held in the piazza but it did get very crowded. we opted out of the second formal in the dining room because we felt out of place in such a surrounding but it was a nice change to have a dinner in the buffet which that in itself was a very lovely buffet.i went to afternoon tea one day while my dh took a much needed nap. tea was fun.sat at a table with a few other women and chatted away while sampling different types of pastries and sandwiches. ice cream was offered every afternoon in the buffet for one hour with a choice of 2 flavors and all the fixings. never had it though. dh loved the cappuccino ice cream and had it at dinner when offered. every day the flavors would change. all meals in the dining room had a very extensive menu. lots of courses and lots of choices. i ate a lot and enjoyed every bit.always ended our nights at the buffet for a snack after the casino. casino was a lot of fun . they did not comp any cocktails but we both had our soda stickers so we were ok.we did not participate in any activities because we were loyal to the casino.service was very good. both in the dining rooms, buffet and the pool areas. we went to explorers lounge a few evenings. caught some shows which were nice. short and sweet about 45 minutes. not too long to drag on and just enough to entertain. went to the theater one night and that was very nice. the seats had a hidden tray under the armrest to hold your drinks.we didn't book any excursions but did the ports on our own.grand turk we bought cigarettes at 18.50 a carton which was very nice . dh went back to ship because of the heat. i went to the beach and enjoyed. san juan we found some casinos and then took a bus tour of the island with a great guy that hounded us down for 10 bucks a head great time had by all. saint thomas we taxied into town for 4bucks a head . walked around got souvenirs and headed back to the ship.we returned early from all the ports because of the heat. ship was very enjoyable then for swimming and napping. bermuda we took the ferry to st georges and walked around . a little expensive but a very pretty quaint part of the island. because of the heat returned early to the ship. had lunch at the buffet, dh took a nap and i sunned and swam in the pool. we had 4 ports of call with 4 sea days. 3 ports of call were one after the next and that was a little tiring. i feel they should have alternated port days with sea days a little better. disembarkation was a breeze. we had self disembarkation. we met in the casino at 7:20 am and was off the ship by 7:40am. i have to say this was the best cruise we ever took. we sailed with carnival 2 years ago and that was fun. we sailed norwegian this year in june and we will never sail ncl again. we feel that princess was the best for us. they definitely know what they are doing and deliver a fine product. most enjoyable with no complaints. in the future we will look to sail princess again. we really don't care where or when. a truly enjoyable time and highly recommended.