We wanted just a little getaway with some sun and beaches. Amber Cove is nothing special, we took a catamaran snorkel tour instead. Not a huge variety of fishes, but plenty came when the guide feeded them with bread. I don´t want to jugde if this is ecological correct. St. Maarten still suffers from hurrican Irma but beach was ok. Just crowded when an excursion from the Allure of the Seas came to the same beach. If we had known this before we had choses a different location. Puerto Rico (San Juan) was interesting, good to do it on your own. Half Moon Cay is beautiful but we had to leave at 2:30 pm, way to early! It was the last cruise before drydock, your could see at a few places that the ship needs some repair but it was still ok. Service war good to very good (our steward ABA fulfilled wishes before we could tell him). We booked a VH guar and got an VB Aft Cabin, very nice! Cabin and Balcony are slightly bigger than average. Entertainment was good (Mainstage and B.B. King Club). Fitness Center has up to date equipment. Read Less

The entertainment aboard the Allure was outstanding. Very high quality performers and support. The shows were of Broadway and Vegas caliber. We went to every show and were pleasantly surprised with the quality. Especially the musicians and the singers - hit the correct notes every time. The only thing we would have done differently was not go during spring break because the bands tailored their music to the younger crowd. We like the more romantic dance genre. The wait staff in the Grande main dining room went above and beyond in providing us a wonderful experience. They always had our drinks ready upon our arrival etc... I require gluten free options and the amazing food I was served is like no other restaurant - the chefs outdid themselves on this cruise. The variety of neighborhoods was so fun to explore and we ran out of time in 7 days - this ship would take two weeks for us to have time to visit every nook and cranny. Thank you Royal Caribbean! We already booked our next trip on the Harmony next year! Read Less

I've taken a couple cruises before but this was my first experience with Royal Caribbean. Embarkation was smooth and we arrived on the boat well before our time slot. Walking onto the Royal Promenade was amazing, so much nicer and with more character than the previous cruises I have been on. I traveled with my boyfriend, my sister, and her friend (all of whom were first time cruisers) and they were blown away as well. Simply fantastic. The common areas were always clean (except around the ice cream machine due to little kids dropping theirs) and the staff were friendly but not overbearing. We ate at Park Cafe and it was a good first meal for the ship. Overall, dining was slightly above average. Sometimes the menu was a little odd at American Icon so we ate at Windjammer instead. However, the formal dinners were both very good. The lobster was probably the best meal I had the entire cruise. We did not really explore the ports as much as I would have liked. We didn't do much in Nassau as it was a public holiday and we didn't book any excursions so we really just walked around for an hour and got back on the ship. Saint Thomas was beautiful, Magans Bay was a very nice beach and totally worth the beach entrance fee. They had lifeguards and beach chair/umbrella rentals and the bar staff would bring your drinks to you in the water. In Saint Maarten we took a catamaran tour which left from the port and went around the west side of the island. It was very interesting to see all of the resorts and the damage that Irma did to the island and their tourism. I very much enjoyed the island but I know I definitely would have enjoyed it more had the hurricane not caused as much damage. Of the three ports we visited, I would most likely go back to Saint Maarten, obviously after their resorts are all back up and running. Read Less

Had an incredible time. Food on the ship was great!! No complaints. Would go back in a heartbeat. Mixed crowd.. Good value for the money. Other passengers said it was more of a mellow cruise when it came to atmosphere and entertainment. It was fine for us. I enjoyed the fact that not everyone was under 30. This time we chose alcohol drink package. Was pricey! 500 for week per person. Next time we will not. Didn't use it like we thought we would. Very Mixed crowd. Had a great time!!! Can't emphasize how great the food was!!!! We chose anytime eating. We're glad we did. We preferred buffet eating over fancy dining room eating. Huge selection of food!!!! Crew was nice.. Room was nice.. Weather was nice.. Food incredible.. Can't wait to book our next cruise.. Again we would use this cruise line again in a heartbeat!! This time I would pack less.. And less shorts.. More sundress type of attire. Loved it!! Read Less

My third cruise. All 3 on Princess. My first on Medallion. Of course a trip will be affected by the company and this past trip my company was some of the best! We had a very, very nice time. Some of the nicest, most agreeable staff you'll ever meet. Wonderful food, night and day. We did not pay much attention to ports other than minimal souvenir shopping. We made the most of the ship and relaxing on deck. Movie under the stars was enjoyable even in the rain. So many agreeable staff willing to help. We chose the "anytime dining" and usually arrived by 5:30. Never a wait for a table. The Crown Grille was worth the additional price. Best steak. Ever. The live musicals are long enough to be entertaining but short enough not to bore. Try the Limoncello. We did not try the casino. The 3 sisters had a great time. Read Less

This was a spring break cruise for me, my significant other, our 12-year old daughter and our 8-year old granddaughter. We got to the port around 10:30 and were on the ship within an hour and were able to go straight to our rooms. Our cabin steward, Ivan, introduced himself and asked if we needed anything, which we didn't because he had already made sure that we had all of the necessities. After dropping off our carry-on bags, we explored the ship a bit and then went to Alfredo's for lunch. The food there was amazing!! I HIGHLY recommend the Rollata di Melanzane (Baked eggplant stuffed with angel hair pasta)! The shows in the main dining room were ok, similar to others I have seen on other lines; however; I do not like how the main theater is set up, I prefer seating like they have in the Vista Lounge. I love the way that the mid-ship is set up with bars, dining and shops surrounding the Piazza; I also love that the casino was NEVER filled with smoke! I actually spent a little time in there because of that. Movies under the Stars is done really well with the padded chairs. The only complaint that I had is that they still need to work some bugs out of the anytime dining; the first night was perfect, we were seated right away and got our food very quickly. The second night was completely opposite of that! We waited for over an hour and then just decided to go to the Horizon Court, which I must say, for a buffet is awesome!! They had a Mongolian grill set up that night with lots of different types of veggies, as well as chicken, beef, pork, shrimps, salmon and scallops. It also had buckwheat noodles, udon noodles, regular noodles and white rice as well as multiple sauces and spice levels; it was perfect!!! I wish that they had that every night! The pizza on the lido deck was good, as was the burgers, hot dogs and wings at the Trident Grill. The International Cafe had great sandwiches, salads and treats and the coffee was as good as any on land coffee shop! One thing that I really liked was how the wait staff brought drinks to your table at the Horizon Court and Horizon Bistro; that was a nice change from having to get it yourself. We all had the soda and more packages and never had to wait anywhere on the ship long for a drink, as soon as we were done with one, someone was asking if we needed a refill. My daughter didn't spend too much time in the kids club, but our granddaughter did and loved it. Both of the kids participated in the "Jr. Chef at Sea" program and had a great time; they also each received a picture of themselves with the pastry chef, as well as one of the entire group; they also each received a certificate, a Princess chef hat and apron and their decorated cakes. I'm glad that we signed up as soon as the clubs opened because they only allow so many kids and there were 266 kids in the 8-12 year old group, which is the group that participates in this program. Tip - pack pants and closed toe shoes if you want your kids to participate as they need to have both; thankfully, St. Thomas has a lot of american stores that sell both, it's difficult to find pants in the Caribbean otherwise. My SO and I were selected to take place in the Chef's Table Lumiere; if you get a chance to do this, take it! It's well worth the cost! Don't eat the day of though because it's a ton of food! Debarkation was the easiest that I have ever experienced! At Princess Caye we got Coastal Cruise with lockers, floats, and snorkel gear for four (2 packages). The coastal cruise was a lot of fun, we actually used the same boat that's used for the glass-bottom tour. The guides were very knowledgeable and gave a lot of history of the island. Snorkeling around the pier was good, I had forgotten my underwater camera though and missed some good shots, as my SO and daughter saw a barracuda! At St. Thomas we did the two island snorkel tour. We spent about an hour or so at Buck Island, were we saw a ton of fish, sea urchins and coral, but no turtles; we then boarded the boat to Honeymoon Beach on Water Island. On the way to the second island, the staff provided unlimited soda and water for the kids as well as unlimited rum punch for the adults! At Honeymoon Beach, the kids played along the shore and found a bunch of cool shells and sea glass while my SO and I snorkeled, I went off on my own and found a turtle!! That was the highlight of my day! We spent another hour or so there, the boat had an open bar the entire time and they kept the drinks flowing on the way back to the ship. It was a ton of fun and I highly recommend this excursion for everyone! At St. Maarten we went to Rockland Estates and took the Sky Explorer (ski-type lift) up the mountain, took a ton of pictures and then took it back down the mountain. If I did this again, I would include the Flying Dutchman zipline because it looked like a lot of fun! The highlight of the trip though was eating at Emilo's! The food there was fantastic and the portions were huge! We will definitely visit there again! This was our best cruise ever. If you are on the fence about this ship, give it a try yourself! Read Less

I sailed this cruise for my birthday (27) and loved the ship and itinerary. However, I do wish the ship had more late night activities. There were hardly any comedy shows and most shows interfered with our 8pm dinner in the dining room. However, the food and service were excellent. I will warn you though, the chocolate martini on Princess is basically straight vodka with a swirl of chocolate in the glass. It burns the whole way down. The Milky Way is what most would consider a traditional chocolate martini. The bar staff got mad when we sent the drink back because it was too strong and we did not know it would be made this way. We did scuba diving as an excursion in St. Thomas and loved it. However, the reef was a little damaged from the hurricane and was not as colorful as it used to be. I still recommend this excursion because the sea turtles were amazing. Read Less

Another terrific Princess cruise!!!! The newest ship, The Regal, was beyond description. The week went by much too quickly!!! The food was exceptional in all the dining areas and seemed to change not only daily, but by the hour. The fitness center was much larger than I had used on previous ships, plus the addition of a superb running/walking track on the upper deck exceeded my expectations. I exercise almost everyday so this was unexpected benefit. The entertainment was nonstop whether it be on the main deck, theaters, or even in the Plaza, it was quite delightful and diverse. This trip we opted for a balcony cabin and I would never want anything else with future cruises. The St. Thomas and St. Maarten stops are always enjoyable and despite visiting these on previous cruises they were a rewarding change of scenery. I was surprised at their recovery from the two major hurricanes that had swept through these areas this past fall, so shops, bars,etc, were all open and functioning to full capacity. I just hope that the next trip available for us will be again on the Regal!!! Read Less

I have always cruised with Royal Caribbean due to my positive experiences with them. The overall experience was amazing and the ship was beautiful. The wait staff from bottom to top were absolutely great. The bar staff and quality of drinks were equally as good. We only made it to a couple of shows, but what we went to were great. The kids activities were great. My 5 year old never wanted to leave. The teen club was also great, I rarely even saw my daughter, she had a blast. I probably spent the majority of my time in the casino. The quality of the games and machines were amazing. The wait staff was also around very frequently. The only negative thing I can say about the casino is the cigarettes and coming back smelling of smoke. I played bingo twice and it was very good, but felt like it was quite expensive for only playing 3 games. My overall experience with Royal Caribbean, Allure of the Seas was outstanding. Read Less

This is an excellent cruise with the exception of the excursion on Saint Maarten. The Regal princess is not one of the superliners but had all the excellent options typical of a great cruise line. Do not consider the Flying Dutchman/ Rain Forest Adventure. The staff was unsafe, It will take much longer than planned, the service was disrespectful and I’m surprised Princess sponsored them. Shame on the Excursions team for recommending this excursion. The certified diving on St Thomas was very good! The cruise itself was otherwise lovely. The room stewards and dining room staff were excellent. we are pleasantly surprised that the extremely high quality of the entertainment. The shows were Broadway quality. Although the ship was full, the staff handled the volume exceptionally well. The food was excellent, and typical for my Princess experience. My wife and daughter are vegan and always found the staff accommodating and the food tastefully prepared. Read Less