We have sailed with Carnival and Royal Caribbean previously. I was led to believe that Princess was a step up, so to speak, in quality. I was disappointed.

First off, why Vancouver? The embarking experience was a waste of time. Vancouver looks to be a beautiful city, one that I wouldn't mind going back to. But for someone traveling in to embark on a cruise, the amount of time it took to go through Canadian customs and immigration for the sole purpose of getting on the ship was a joke. First you exit the plane and go through this maze of a line just to get downstairs, then another maze to do the biometric screening. Then, after taking a 45 minute bus ride you get to the pier, where you go through another maze, go upstairs, check-in, then immediately go downstairs to go through US customs this time, then get on the ship. Why not just cruise from Seattle?

So the good - the staff service was excellent, specifically, our waiters in the main dining room, Joepep and Rhyan. Our cabin steward, Dennis, was also very responsive. Read more