My wife (a travel agent) and I travel a lot and cruise often; at last count, 52 cruises on 14 lines, giving us a fair basis for comparison. We booked back-to-back cruises on Sun Princess for 13 nights in New Zealand and 14 nights in Fiji, departing Sydney in both cases, based on a prior favorable experience in Alaska on this line and because New Zealand and to a lesser extent Fiji were on our bucket list. I won't dwell in this review on the ports themselves, which vary from idyllic (e.g. Bay of Islands and Napier, NZ) to grimy and dangerous ( e.g. Suva and Lautoka, Fiji). Certainly the port selection and itinerary could have been much better on both cruises but some things are beyond anyone's control. What is in control of the ship, however, is the cruise experience.

In this regard, Sun Princess is a fail. It is the quintessential "old-school" cruise experience dumbed down to accommodate the masses and falls into that growing pool of cruises based entirely on budgets that nickel and dime customers to the point of annoyance, and in that regard I have no love for "The Love Boat" and wish it a speedy and short journey to decommissioning.

For starters, the condition of the ship is appalling. Tiny rooms typical of 50s ships can be forgiven, but nonfunctioning spa tubs, showers and sinks in public rooms cannot. There is literally rust, missing and broken tile, clouded windows and a worn and tired look everywhere. To it's credit, my bed was excellent and the TV and other room amenities were fine, including the balcony, but I could not escape a cramped feeling. Read more