This sea day intensive 8 day cruise was very relaxing. We chose this cruise because we have not been to Bon Aire before and were looking for something warm during our home state’s cold months. We set sail from Fort Lauderdale. I will be as honest as I can. With that being said this is not our first time on The Crown and we are also Elite cruisers. We have noted a number of things have changed both prior and during the cruise. Our last cruise was just seven months ago to Alaska. We flew Delta Air going down and it was very easy and getting our luggage was very smooth. We could not get into the hotel we prefer to stay in so we were at Hilton on 17th just outside the marina. This was our first (and our last) time in this hotel. As you know there are many hotels that are quite expensive in the immediate area. We like just outside the port for many reasons. Everything is in walking distance and very convenient. Currently Carabbas has “happy hour” from 3-6 if you sit in the bar area and this includes drinks and appetizers for half price. You can easily eat your fill very inexpensively. Walgreens, Publix, Winn Dixie and a Ross is just minutes away so if you forget something you can get whatever you need. One of the best reasons to stay so close is that you can walk onto the ship yourself rather than pay for another taxi ride. If you aren’t taking a ton of luggage walking on will save you easily 20 plus dollars. We have in the past had a hotel tell us you could not walk on and wanted 20 dollars pp to ride to the port. Not true and a good way to save yourself a few dollars to spend elsewhere. Hilton was much more inexpensive than where we normally stay but we wanted to keep in the area. We saved more than 150 dollars per night, however, this hotel is showing its wear and Is lacking a bit of elbow grease. Staff were very effective but even the mini fridge in our hotel was not even working. In fairness, they did give us free cold drinks at the bar to compensate. There is Einsteins Bagels within a few minutes walking distance for breakfast and Starbucks next door. After walking up to the pier we were able to hand over our bags to the porter. They will ask you for a tip but will tell you it isn’t required. I asked a Princess Employee and they said a dollar a bag is pretty typical. Getting on the ship was super easy and dropping off your carry on’s is simple once onboard. Usually boarding after 1 pm your wait times are reduced.

Once onboard employees will ask you if you would like one of the drink packages. From our own personal experience the coffee card is worth the thirty dollars you pay for it. We do not typically pay for the soda card because part of being Elite does set up a mini wet bar in your room and we don’t drink a ton of soda. The Adult Beverage package is almost 70 dollars per day and covers drinks I believe up to 12 dollars per drink. Do the math and decide how much alcohol you will drink per day as it may not be worth it for you to buy the package. The International Cafe always has wonderful fare and you can get a quick sandwich (warm or cold) along with soup or salad. Remember this location as i think you will visit it often. It is always open so if you are up late it may be the place to go. We had an obstructed outside cabin an it was wonderfully positioned on Emerald deck in the middle of the ship. Everything was super handy to get to. Crown Princess is a very classically appointed ship and doesn’t have a lot of the newer bells and whistles so it may not be perfect for young active kids. It is a very quiet, relaxing ship for us it has just the right amount of amenities.

We choose to do the late traditional seating. The benefit of this is that your wait staff gets to know your needs and your likes and they strive to make you comfortable and satisfied. We have done “anytime” before and did not care for the constant reintroducing yourself to passengers and staff. Late seating gives you enough time to get back from the islands and prepare for dinner without rushing. Dining is pretty steadily good fare. We believe it is good enough not to pay the surcharge to go to the speciality restaurants. They have a wide variety of foods and a “standard” menu so if you don’t like what is on that night you can have steak or chicken or pasta instead. I am a vegetarian and cruise after cruise you know what is being served. It would be nice if they had a variety or changed up the menu. Some of the dishes are better than the others. My husband’s favorite night is the 2nd Formal Night where they offer escargot, lobster and prawns and Beef Wellington. They have removed things that I think were a bit spendy like soufflés. They only offer that once during an eight day cruise. Rolls are half the size of what they once were and rather than put out butter they sort of dole it out on an as needed basis. Read more