I have a close group of friends that sail every year for New Years Eve. It's the best way to let the past go and the let the new year wash over you. This year we decided on taking a Princess Cruise on the fairly new Sky Princess. In all honesty it was my first Princess Cruise ( which I had to double check as I cruise multiple times every year but with no real brand preference). Sure enough, never had I sailed Princess. As new ships go , the ship was really pretty and functional and we just loved it. I did feel the balcony cabins were a tad small but frankly with the gang I was onboard with, we wouldn't be in the cabin much. What makes a good cruise great though is the little things. I don't think the crew even know the word "no". It was always, "it's my pleasure". Now we are not a demanding group, kind of go with the flow folks, but time and time again we witness guest interactions that were nothing short of spectacular. guests wold be so worked up about nothing like, "I can't find bagels on this ship" when they were standing in front of them and the staff would treat these folks with tenderness and attention. It was something to behold. Let's not forget Captain, "bye-bye" as he's affectionately called. He is just a hoot and could give lessons on how to be a personable captain. We looked forward to all his announcements. Always loved when he took FULL credit for the good weather.

Since we were on for New Year's Eve we knew that there would be a party, but couldn't have imagined how well orchestrated it would be. Major Kudos goes to Cruise Director Alexander (who was the best Cruise Director I've ever had) and the entire staff, they threw one heck of a party that lasted well into the early AM. I just can't say enough about the programming on board relative to activities, I wanted to cut myself into 4 people, so I could do everything that was in the Patter ( Princess daily events sheet). It was loaded from sun up to sun down with non stop activities for every taste.

Food- Was just amazing. The main dining room on anytime dining was a bit tricky and we sort of wished we had been able to get fixed seating. Sometimes we had to wait 30-45 mins for a table on anytime dining but they have pagers so you can go to the bar and have a drink or hang out in the Piazza the ships gorgeous atrium and listen to the band. The food itself was really, REALLY good. We ate at every specialty restaurant and every single one was spectacular. Service at each was TOP NOTCH! So good that we went back twice to the Italian restaurant. Read more