Regal Princess Review
Rating by category
Additional details
We are Elite members of Princess Loyalty so normally we pick Princess out of Ft. Lauderdale. We have been on the Regal many times, however each time we feel the service and quality of food and entertainment is not as good as it was when the ship first came out a few years ago. They have decreased the wait staff in the dining rooms and Anytime Dining is not any time. If you want to make a reservation, there are only three (3) times available: early or late. You can stand in line and get a reservation buzzer that will tell you when a table is available, however every time we were notified and were walked to our table, there were a lot of tables that were empty but had not been remade. The waiter has to remake his tables along with serving the seated guests in his area. One night, the Head Waiter pulled out waiter aside to remake three (3) large tables, meanwhile we sat and waited for him to bring our food from the kitchen. The first two nights it took 2 hours once we were seated to be served food and dessert. Thus we missed the late show. The same smaller staff is noticeable in the Horizon Buffet area.
Also, Princess is the only line in which if you request a balcony room, you only get two (2) chairs to sit on during the cruise inside your room. If you want a sofa, you have to upgrade your room type. The Mini-Suite is nice in that you have a sofa and 2 TVs, however the bathroom is equipped with a tub/shower which is not good for seniors with replaced knees and hips. There is a good chance of a fall as the surface is slippery.
The Loyalty cocktail party was great in Club 6, but when we had to move to the Vista Lounge due to a problem with Club 6, it was horrible. The Vista Lounge is the worst designed portion of the ship as the seating is impossible and there is no bar. Took 10 minutes to get our drink each night and the walkway to get the appetizers is dangerous when the ship is moving. The Vista is not a lounge, but a theater and should only be used for that purpose or they need to redesign and put an actual bar in, similar to the Emerald Princess.
Cabin Review
Deluxe Balcony
Since we upgraded we had a sofa which made for more comfortable sitting. The deluxe doesn't include the balcony which is very small. Pillows are way too soft as I woke up each morning with a stiff neck. We had a great cabin steward who made up our room quickly and it was always ready when we returned from breakfast each morning. Also called us by name when we saw him in the corridor. (Note 3 days before we departed, we received an e-mail from Princess with a complimentary upgrade to a mini-suite on Rivera deck. The room was directly under the Lido Pool area. We were upgraded to a room on that deck on a previous cruise and said we would never take a room under the Lido deck again due to the noise, especially early in the morning (5am) when they move all the furniture for cleaning. I immediately called Princess and was told that our first choice of room might be available to go back to, and that there were no other complimentary rooms available. I insisted that I wanted my room back as we choice for the convenience of the elevators (I am on a cane for walking). They told me it might take 48 hours to get see if I could get the room back. Well 48 hours meant that I would not have an answer until Saturday and we were leaving on Sunday. So I made a few more phone calls and was able to get with a supervisor and got our room back. Being an Elite member and have 17 cruises with Princess evidently doesn't matter when they assign you the worst complimentary room upgrades on the ship. Also it would have been nice to have a phone call offering the upgrade, rather than an e-mail telling me this is what I was going to get. Their reservation system needs a big upgrade.)
Port Reviews
Princess Cays
We love the beach bar and lunch experience. Also they have updated the transfer from the ship to land with larger vessels and we didn't have to use the tender.