If this had been our first cruise with Princess it would have been our last. We chose this trip because of the itinerary which didn't disappoint, but were very disappointed with Princess. Up until now we have only sailed with Princess but after this trip we will be looking at other lines.
We had been on this same ship last spring and the improvements after coming out of dry dock this spring were very noticeable, but we did not like some of the changes to the buffet line and don't really understand why the mandatory hand sanitizer was replaced with an optional hand washing station (which didn't seem to be utilized too much)
Before the trip I had found an excursion with another company that was less expensive than the one offered with Princess. When I filled out the form and emailed it to Princess my request was declined because the excursion I found was LONGER than that offered by Princess, meaning it was a better value. As far as I am concerned their excursion guarantee is meaningless.
The new beds are wonderful, but the bunk beds hanging on the wall and the fact that the cabin was right next to the elevator made this the worst cabin we had ever been in.
Time in port was very short. We walked to Castle Cornet on our own. The line for taking the tenders back to the ship was very long.
We went to the Blarney Castle. The line to kiss the stone was too long so we walked around the grounds which are beautiful. The bus wasn't where we were told it would be when we finished the excursion and we panicked a bit before someone told us where we could find it.
Toured Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park. Had lunch at a very pretty hotel and time to get acquainted with the local livestock.
Could not stop at Kirkwall due to high seas.