We traveled to Seattle a day early and stayed at the La Quinta prior to the cruise. It's near the Space Needle, and has really wonderful beds. The staff were nice as well. However - the hotel could use a little work as it's a little rundown. We had time to see the Pike Place Market and the Space Needle. Embarkation was very painless the next day. We arrived at the port around 11:30 and were onboard a half hour later. All lines moved very quickly. We dumped our bags in our rooms and headed off to the Horizon Court for lunch.

We are first time Princess cruisers - having previously tried Carnival, NCL and RCCL, and Princess really impressed us. We liked being able to get into our rooms right away. The muster drill, held in a comfy lounge, was quick and painless. All of the staff we encountered were helpful and friendly. The cabin was laid out differently than other cruise lines. I'm not sure I'm a fan of the huge closet space. I think I'd rather have a larger bathroom and cabin, but we all appreciated the good sized balconies. We had ordered the foam mattress pads for our beds (thanks CC members for the tip) and slept very well. I heard my neighbors next door grumbling about the hard mattresses. We tried Anytime dining for this cruise. The staff in the Bernini dining room seemed to be much better organized than the Donatella dining room and after a few long meals (which is not preferred when you are traveling with small children) we tried to eat in the Bernini dining room for the rest of the trip. The food was very good. If anything wasn't what you expected it to be, or not to our taste - a replacement entree was swiftly brought out. We all decided that we prefer fixed dining however.

The Children loved the kids area on Princess. The 8 and 11 year old said it was better than Carnivals. They both loved the Playstation, Wii and all of the crafts. We wish that they would do kids dining every day - they did it 2 days onboard. The 5 yr old was too crabby after a busy day for a long dining experience. We didn't see much in the way of entertainment as we were always so busy. However, the naturalist was fantastic, and we really enjoyed the trivia. The last sea day I tried out a Spa/Salon treatment. They have a little selling station at the aft elevators near the entrance to the Horizon Court every morning. That day they had a Salon sampler - 5 treatments for $89. I couldn't pass it up, and it was total bliss. Read more