I have actually sailed on the Sky Princess twice this year, and waited until after the second cruise to write a review. I wasn't sure if I was just getting a poor experience due to my first time being in the Easter holiday, or if it was just this particular ship! I've sailed with Princess several times over the years, and have always found them to be excellent in terms of service, food, entertainment and the overall experience. This cruise was not quite up to those same high standards I had come to expect.

I still had a very enjoyable holiday! The cabin was fab, a mini-suite on port side with a large sofa and a bathroom with an actual bath - very spacious and comfortable. I slept really well every night as the cabin was nice and quiet! There are some little things Princess seem to have taken away, such as nightly chocolates, bathrobes and slippers. I had to ask the steward (who we only saw twice across the whole cruise) for bathrobes. Turn down at night is no longer a standard practice and needs to be requested.

Food over the cruise was generally very good, we ate in the Cielo dining room throughout the cruise, opting for the same time and table (as if it were the old style traditional dining, we prefer getting to know the same waiting staff!). We had two really lovely waiters who were quick to learn our preferred drinks and were nice and chatty. We used the buffet for most lunches, however it was disappointing in that the foods available were basically the same every day - very little variety at lunch. The International cafe served some nice smaller lunch options and we enjoyed the variety of sweet treats here practically every day! Alfredo's pizza was also nice, and we absolutely loved the Ocean Terrace sushi bar - the waitress recognised us from the previous cruise, which was lovely. Out on the open deck, the burgers and pizzas are some of the best options for quick meals, always freshly prepared. The extra paid for ice creams at Gelato's are well worth the small fee ($1.50 for a scoop, real italian style gelato in a big range of flavours). We are not big drinkers so we didn't choose to go for the "all inclusive" style Princess Plus fare, instead we just paid for drinks as and when we wanted them - this was fine however most drinks are very expensive. We probably wouldn't have got the value from the all in package. Our favourite specialty dining meal was at the Crown Grill and Bistro Sur La Mer - incredible! Read more