We have sailed on Princess before (Emerald Princess) and we were frankly disappointed, so I was reluctant to book another cruise on Princess; however the price was right, so I decided to try them again. I still don't think that there is anything to distinguish Princess from the competition. It's kind of a ho hum cruise line in my opinion. For my money, I think Celebrity and Royal Caribbean offer a better cruise experience. Despite the fact that the ship is going into dry-dock in January it was in good shape. Some furnishing and carpet were noticeably worn, but nothing that was detracting from the cruise.

My travel agent was able to get us an upgrade from a mini suite to premium suite and that certainly made a big difference. The cabin, A104, has a balcony that literally wraps halfway around the bow of the ship on deck 12. It was a wonderful place to view the fjords, but extremely windy while the ship was underway. The cabin had a separate living area with a marble entry and wet bar. The bedroom with queen size bed had more closet space than you could use on world cruise. The bed was very comfortable and the suites offer a pillow menu. The bathroom was nothing special however. Just a standard mini suite type bathroom. I would estimate the suite has about 500 square feet of living space. You do get nice amenities, like unlimited laundry service and breakfast in the Sabatini's each day. I don't know if it was because we were suite guests, but our room was always immediately cleaned as soon as we left. The stateroom attendant, Lawrence, was great. He always made sure we had ice and extra glassware (the suite has a wet bar and includes a one time liquor and beer set up).

One complaint I do have about Princess is that have the stingiest alcohol policy of any cruise line I have been on. First, the drinks are not cheap and they measure exactly one shot into each drink. No free pours here. One bartender told me that if they come up short on booze, they must pay for it out there own pocket. And, if you want a double, it cost literally double, not a nominal up-charge like you might expect. Read more