The Sea Princess is now an average ship having aged poorly. There appears to be some outstanding maintenance required to get it back to a reasonable standard. Our cabin seemed to be smaller than previous cruises, along with the bedding feeling like it was also getting old. We predominantly ate in the Horizon Court dining facilities and must say that the food was far below standard with excess oil and/or spices being used, along with being overly repetitive. On some occasions we ate either fruit or bread rather than hot food. When we did eat in the Dining Room, you do notice the dramatic differences, with the quality of the food being equivalent to a good restaurant. The evening entertainment was generally good, with some shows being absolutely fantastic. However, as a contrast, the daytime activities were primarily aimed at the aged passengers and generally boring as hell. Most activities were conducted as time fillers or a mere distraction. Otherwise as you walk through the various areas of the ship all you see is old people sitting in one spot all day. The Front desk staff although friendly enough, lacked sufficient communication skills to fully grasp simple requests or explanations. I certainly was not happy with their customer service skills. The biggest issue or should I say issues, is the fact that other than the light entertainment provided, everything is about getting your money into their coffers. In regards to Ports, well from my perspective, if it is a Hawaii & Tahiti Cruise, then that is where you should spend the majority of your time, with overnight stays in these ports or at least the 2 biggest ports. The other issues is the excessive sea days, with Australia being so far from most locations, these travel days just added to the long days and increased their opportunity to get your money. The excursions are generally worthwhile to go on, other than the costs, which can be prohibitive. Princess Cruises add significant cost on top of these, due to their administration and co-ordination of each excursion. You can, if desirous organise your own on-shore trips, however, in some locations you leave yourself open to be either conned or just over-charged. Overall, you must make up your own mind, but I think, you really should consider whether or not this type of holiday is your thing. We will cruise again, but we enjoy getting on a ship, unpacking once and then just relaxing. Read Less

Princess was our favorite cruise line and we have taken 29 cruises and spent about 350 days on board their ships. Over the years we have noticed the little cuts but since we have not been on Princess for about 2 years we had an eye opening experience on this 26 day transpacific cruise. They have cut everything from the crew to toothpicks and mints after dinner to the size of the plates at the buffet. The Golden Princess is falling apart. There are water leaks coming from the ceilings of the public hallways and other places around the ship. There is also a significant odor of mold in some areas of the ship. The furnishings are in desperate need of replacing with seats in the theater that are too bent to sit in to tables and chairs in the rooms being broken. The mattresses in our mini suite were so bad that it was hard to get a good nights sleep. I know that they are transferring it to P&O but that is not for another year. On the first day of the cruise I reported that the water temperature control in our bathroom did not work. They sent someone who made an adjustment but it still did not work. I continuously reported it and when I got off the ship 26 days later it still did not work. Dining – the food presentation was good but there was no flavor in any of the food. Some of the dinners that were served in the dining room were uneatable. If you have cruised with Princess in the past you remember the “Always Available “side of the menu. Well they have cut the main courses to just one chicken dish and salmon. The salmon is not so good and the chicken was a dried out chicken breast that tasted like it was cooked the day before and some hot gravy put on it. The buffet has cut the size of the plates I guess to keep you from taking too much. Food choices at the buffet are very limited. Food was sometimes ok and sometimes not so good. The cuts do not stop there- While the production shows were well done they are the same ones that they have had for over a decade and the guest entertainment was so-so. Game shows were scheduled to conflict with the 2nd seating so that even if you rushed through dinner you could not get a seat in the lounge for a game show. This is something we never noticed before but since they changed the early dining tome to 5pm we took the 2nd seating at 7:15pm. We have cruised on most of the cruise lines and we used to always come back to Princess but they just have not kept up with their competition. Read Less

This was my 15th cruise on Princess, and would put me over 150 days at sea. My wife has credit for 1 additional cruise, so we did qualify for Elite benefits based on her cruise history (so free laundry on the long cruise!). There were about 450 Elites on the cruise, so that laundry did take up to 3 days to be returned. We had a wonderfully relaxing crossing. Seas were a little rough leaving San Francisco, and we did skip the port of Napier and the scenic cruising of Marlborough Sound due to weather (they did add the port of Bay of Islands, and took us back up north to head to Sydney, rather than a more southerly (and bumpy) route.....although it was still pretty bumpy. The ports were all great. Took the Hoppa On, Hoppa Off bus in Hilo, shark cage dive in Honolulu (wow, but a really small ship heading out, and they cancelled the next tour, although the weather got much better on the way back, and they could have done that tour), snorkeling (2 places, one had rays and sharks) in Bora Bora, a private tour Segway tour in Papeete, a private tour of the national park in American Samoa, 12 mile bike ride in Auckland, the river rafting over the 21 foot waterfall from Tauranga, and parasailing in Bay of Islands). While some hiccups, enjoyed the tours, and would take them all again. Enjoyed the cruise director and the entire department. The food in the buffet didn't have enough vegetable choices. The food in the main dining room was OK, but not stellar. Lobster was undercooked one of the two days. We almost exclusively had seafood dishes, which were mostly OK (always could use a little more spice or flavor). Also like the pot pie. One of the wait staff could play the guitar, and we enjoyed talking him (and he quickly remembered to always see that we got a table for 2 by ourselves in anytime dining.....and we surprised him once when we barged in on him in a somewhat private hallway while he was practicing a song. My wife took the uke and hula class (Brian and Rowena as the Hawaiian ambassadors). Loved watching them in the Piazza, as well as enjoyed their lectures. The Maori ambassador was also informative and fun to listen to. We enjoyed the art projects (both the ones led by the regular staff as well as the kids club staff.....they did a few of the projects because they really didn't have any kids attending the kids club most days. The big issue was the ship itself. As someone else mentioned, there were leaks from the ceilings Not just the public areas, but just outside our stateroom in the rear of Aloha deck. Lots of strange smells in various places (both inside and outside) Rust and paint peeling. Some wallpaper peeling off the wall. It's like they are just trying to wait until they turn the ship over to P&O next year and not spend any more money on the ship in the meantime. Read Less

This cruise was a good price and left Vancouver which is is close to where we live in Edmonton. We always wanted to see Tahiti, New Zealand and Australia. This cruise was nice because a previous cruise did not allow us to see Victoria because of the rain and wind. Emarkation was effortless. If only service on land was this smooth. We had fabulous weather and calm seas throughout. San Francisco was warm enough and we saw Sausalito as well as Alcatraz. Alcatraz is not to be missed. On to Hilo and Honolulu. Didn't take excursions because we have been there before. Walked and took the shuttle to various venues. Sometimes you see more just by walking than just driving around. Bora Bora is small but beautiful and rural. Refreshing to see that. Walked around and saw how the locals live. Tahiti was very beautiful and Papeete much larger and more of a modern city. Moorea, a ferry boat away, is even more beautiful. American Samoa was very lovely and the people are incredibly friendly. We were like rock stars! The Samoans are not to be fooled with. They are huge and what they eat in a day is what I would eat in 3. Interestingly, they are US citizens but can't vote. Auckland was fabulous. What a clean, well run city. No thugs downtown that I saw. Well dressed, well behaved, extremely friendly, happy. Loved it. Nice, as Canadians to have another currency worth less than the Canadian dollar. The cruise ended in Auckland but we flew to Brisbane and enjoyed that city very much as well. Another very beautiful and well run city. Clean and scenic. Golden Princess. One of the "shopping cart" ships because of Skywalkers Lounge. Ship shows very well for her age. She was refurbished in April 2018 and was up to snuff. The ship is sold to P & O cruises in April 2020. Our cabin was an MB mini suite. Love the extra room, sofa, 2 tvs, and the bathtub. On a longer cruise was so nice to have the extra space for storage and lounging. The bathtub makes the bathroom larger and gives more space for everything. We each get a nice glass of champagne on departure. Because we are Elite, and because techincally it is 2 cruises, we got the 2 mini bar setups, the 650 free internet minutes, and free laundry. Great perks on a long 23 day cruise. We had the late sitting for dinner. Best waiter, assistant waiter, and head waiter of all my cruises. Chris the waiter, Nathaniel the assistant and Constantin the head waiter. Superb service and timing. They always remembered the little things, lemon in the water, the buns with the seeds, our names, and so attentive. Top notch in any restaurant in the world. Entertainment was the best we have ever had and the cruise director and his assistants were great. Funny, witty, smooth, professional, and excellent. Service was great. The odd time the romm service in the morning forgot the odd item but nothing to complain about. They were so pleasant. Met some great people on the ship. Always meet new friends and enjoy life's memories. Read Less

If this is now Princess new standard for service and food then we will not be sailing with them again The dinning room (anytime dinning) staff were untrained and far to few in numbers to give good service if you asked for a fresh HOT pot of tea often you were told there is still tea in the pot its OK drink it ,The choice of meals was very poor and repeated ever few days. We have traveled on Princess many times before and never had this bad of service and meal choice The music was played so loud through out the venues that it was uncomfortable even with my hearing aids OUT The ship was in good condition and the staff in the cafe especially April were the best trained on the ship there you could get HOT coffee and tea as well as snacks . the disembarkation was very smooth I booked the Flight ,hotel and transfers through Princess this all went very smoothly so I can recommend this I have another cruise booked in October 2020 with Princess but if this is there new standard I will give serious consideration to cancelling this and book with another line Read Less

Staff were fantastic but this cruise was 95% retirees over the age of 70. The activities were designed to entertain the same age bracket. We are late 40s and found the activities boring and the demographics were way too old. Other than great pools, there was nothing to entertain our age bracket. The internet was terrible, too slow and lots of drop outs. The room service was great, although no towel animals. The beds were extremely comfortable and balcony was worth the amount. The food was ok. Loved the pizzas and ice cream. The Lotus Spa services were good but way overpriced. The fitness centre was well equipped. Was disappointed with the day in Papeete, when no shops were open. The overnight stay should have been in Honolulu where there was more to do. There were no theme nights and the night club was designed again for old people. No area suited young people. Read Less

After ten previous Princess cruises on several ships, I've about decided I need to take a break and try another line for a while. The allure of Princess has faded some, though it's hard to switch after becoming an "elite" customer. Food options are much reduced; menus are stale and repetitive; prices continue to escalate for "smaller" items; and the quality of the entertainment is not what it used to be. Embarkation in LA was horrific, with chaos abounding and no one seeming to know a thing. On the plus side, the crew continues to amaze me with their caring attitudes and how they go out of their way to make you feel welcome and important. Mattress and pillow quality are superb. Deck burger grill and International Cafe never cease to amaze and delight. The folks in their shops department went out of their way to help when my wife's wheelchair broke. A wheel snapped off and they fixed it overnight at no cost. Amazing service! Read Less

Chose this ship due to the South Pacific itinerary and based on a previous cruise with Princess (Regal Princess). In comparing the two ships, I was disappointed In the Ruby Princess. The entertainment was definitely not the same caliber as with the Regal in terms of variety or quality. The Horizon buffet court had much less selection and was poorly staffed. Often multiple serving sections were closed creating long lines to get your food. They also kept running out of certain types of food (granola would be one example). I would give the dining rooms in the Ruby an edge over the Regal though. Much less options for day time entertainment during sea days and the options they did offer was not that strong. Evening entertainment was often single entertainers and very little production shows. The Ruby Princess band however was TOP NOTCH - very impressive!!! Finally the senior staff were pretty invisible- very little interaction with the passengers. Read Less

We wanted to see Alaska and the rest of the Cruise was to be a relaxing experience as we had already done most of the remaining Ports. Our impressions of the staff on board (apart from the restaurant staff and room steward which were excellent), specifically at the Customer Desk and the Excursions Counter was that they were not interested in us or our issues, and it was almost as if when confronted with something they didn't like, a steel shutter came down and they hid behind it. We were even accused of not telling the truth when we complained about a shore excursion in which the bus broke down causing us to miss one of the tour sights.  I would also like to give you our impressions of the ship, as it was our fourth Princess Cruise, and our eleventh overall with three different cruise lines, so feel that we have some experience with cruising to be able to comment. Our feelings were that the overall standard of the ship for food and entertainment were not up to the level of our previous Princess cruises. We could count on the fingers of one hand the meals we considered to be excellent, with the remaining average and repetitive (Curtis Stone Share excepted, which was top class on two visits). The entertainment had one or two highlights, but on the whole was below par, with some artists causing an exodus from the theatre shortly after starting. The other major gripe was the lack and standard of daily activities compared with other cruises, with much of the items being Princess sales pitches, rather than truly interesting activities.  It appeared to us and other passengers after discussions on board that these issues of substandard performance were because the Ruby Princess was on a relocation voyage, rather than destination cruising, as it seemed that cost cutting was evident in a number of areas discussed above. Hopefully the problem was the Ruby Princess so may just try one of their other Ships but leave the Sea, Sun and Ruby off any future agendas. Read Less

My father died during the cruise and I needed to amend my travel arrangements. The front desk staff were terrible and it took over 3 days to sort new departure arrangements. I received conflicting information from onboard Front desk staff and onshore Princess staff. Princess gave no credit for existing return flight and I had to pay for a new full fare that was exchanged from Aust$ to US$ to NZ$. The air carrier advised my family that Princess as travel agent had full discretion in making no or little penalty charges to travel. No discretion was applied. I would not recommend Princess on this basis. There was relentless onboard promotion for buying jewellery (Effy) and artworks which was tedious. Food was good and plentiful, entertainment was a bit ho hum - one comedian was absolutely dreadful and the second relied on old hack and tired women-as stupid content. There were two production shows which were excellent. Musicians played similar and in a lot of cases the same songs (how many times can you listen to Hey Jude?!) Onboard activities were limited with the same things recycled through the cruise - movies (same movies returned too frequently); bingo; quizzes (I'm a quiz fan but the same format and type of questions were used across three quiz events, and the events were bumped in face of venue conflict); demonstrations such as cocktail making was view only. Cards as an activity was good (bridge; 500) as there were a fair number of people interested therefore plenty of opportunity to play. However this was organised by participants. I feel entertainment staff often opted out of organising activities, so it dependent on participants to get things going. Venues appeared to be mismanaged in that the act and or audience size wasn't appropriate to the particular venue used. Enrichment activities were limited to forensic topics (potentially good however presenter was poor and used promotional material as evidence) and others were directly linked to the sale of jewellery and artworks. Did two excursions - whole day Moorea swimming and snorkeling which was excellent and the LA Venice Beach and Santa Monica visits. Definitely wouldn't recommend Venice Beach as a destination (old; tired; dirty; broken; grotty) but Santa Monica was nice to walk around (shops; pier; beach) Read Less

We chose this particular cruise as we both enjoy Sea days and the cruise experience. This particular cruise from Auckland to Vancouver had plenty of these with only six ports. Time seemed to fly by, with all the activities going on. The crew and staff were friendly and welcoming. Activities were varied and plentiful should we wish to take part. And the food .well that was great! We chose often to go more casual dining in the horizon or indeed catch a movie and have pizza. But we also went formal to anytime dining, in the dining rooms available to us, whereby the waiters would be friendly and helpful. We had a back to back cruise so continued on to Alaska, we found that the leg from LA to Vancouver changed the dynamics of the passengers as many left in LA and others came on for a short cruise to Vancouver, then new people joint the ship for Alaska, which changed again, so this was a new experience for us. However, this did not deter from a great trip Read Less

We really enjoy Princess, in particular the level of service experienced onboard is 1st class. Food was excellent, the Staff, as usual were excellent. The Cruise Director, Jody was innovative and met with Guests every sea day for a Coffee/Chat. This is the first time I had experienced something along that line. Her Team also were energetic and involved with the Guests. Our Captain, Tony Ruggero regularly walk around the ship meeting with and talking to any passengers who liked a chat. And he did so with a high degree of interest in what they had to say. The weather on sea days during this voyage was ordinary to say the least, however, the up side was that on each Port day the sun came out and weather was close to,perfect. I can do without Suva as a Port, there are many more inviting islands of Fiji that would be better for a day stopover. Pago Pago is an interesting Port with many worthwhile drives at very reasonable prices. Hawaii and Her Islands speak for themselves as does Tahiti. Swimming with the Sharks and Sting Rays is a must and there are plenty of options available on shore. Land Tours around the Tahitian Islands are interesting and the scenery is to die for. Some of the most beautiful scenes you could ever wish for. Then onto NZ, Auckland is a Capital City and as expected. The Hop on Hop Off Bus is worth the money with many very interesting places visited. Then onto Bay of Islands. Beautiful from the sea/land, even more so from a Helicopter flight. The locals put on a Market with many wonderful and interesting items for sale. (Much better than the normal Markets) found in other places. Now the Ship, Sea Princess is showing her age, however she is still in very clean and presentable shape. Food onboard was very good with a number of changes to previous menus. The Pub Lunch has an expanded menu with a larger variety other than Fish and Chips, which is still very tasty. I would recommend you attend the Cooking Demonstrations which not only highlight a number of dishes, it is also a light hearted comical and entertaining experience. We did Anytime Dining which worked very well with no problems in finding a table. The Buffett was always available with a good selection of various style meals with regular presentation of menus of specific style and taste from various countries. For outside eating, the Pool Grill presented hamburgers, hot dogs, sausage on a roll, salads, chips etc. we never went hungry. We had an Interior Cabin A204 at the front of the ship. A small cabin but it did have the essentials, cupboard/hanging space, plenty of drawers and a workable (if not large) bathroom. In rough weather you could feel the larger waves, not that it caused us any discomfort, we were just rocked to sleep at night. When you run into 7mtr. waves, one must expect a bit of movement, however that just added to our experiences. The onboard entertainment was not up to the usual Princess standard. Some good shows, some not so good. The Production shows were very good, just not as many as we have experienced in the past. All in all, our group of 7 adults enjoyed the cruise and I would do the same itinerary again. We have done this cruise twice in past years. Read Less

Always wanted to visit Hawaii and Tahiti. The ship should be commended on their staff. They are the greatest asset. The food was very good, with heaps of choice. Entertainment was poor and somewhat disorganised. The tours in Suva, Pago Pago and Moorea, were great value and very well organised and presented. One of our Hawaiian tours to the crater and ocean centre was very good and well worth the money, however the other 4 tours in Hawaii were very over priced and disappointing. Our tour at Bora Bora, helmet five was cancelled once we were on board. We enjoyed Bora Bora as we managed to do a tour with a local taxi driver, Dora. She was very knowledgeable and helpful. Moorea is beautiful as well and our tour to the tiki village was fantastic. The Dining experience was good and the service outstanding. The steak house not worth the money - as though good - the normal free dining was as good. Entertainment - such as voice of the sea was very poorly organised. Craft lessons were very poor. No presentations other than ones that tried to sell you something. In saying that - I would do this cruise again, but I’d do many things differently. I cruised with 5 other people who made my trip amazing. Read Less

This was the 2nd time we enjoyed this cruise, last was 2015. Great opportunity to see different things ashore. Pity that it was a bit rough this time but no one can control the weather! Have sailed on Sea Princess many times & wish they would upgrade the televisions to movies on demand. Also be fabulous if she had the 24 hour International Cafe. Legends for the Elite evenings just didn’t work for us , too crowded but lots enjoyed them. Lots of choices entertainment wise & plenty of activities to keep fit & healthy (without gaining weight!) Cruise director & staff ALL exceptional, kept me as busy as I wanted for 5 weeks Read Less

35 nights round trip from Sydney (no flights) on Sea Princess. Met great people, shared a table of eight in second sitting, now lifelong friends. Dining experience is second to none. Good menus, well cooked food and fantastic ambience. Great production shows, especially "Encore" - brilliant. Unfortunately blow in entertainers were second rate and only one female singer in 5 weeks. Movies were plentiful, some, even current. Wines on board very expensive as were the shore tours. Hawaii Islands were exciting, absolute highlights of the cruise. The Big Island (Hawaii) has two ports, Kona & Hilo. Kona is the dry side of the island so book your sightseeing there. Helicopter flights in particular. Ours was cancelled in Hilo due to poor visibility and heavy rain. The three ports in Tahiti are glorious, lush and green with turquoise waters and the people are beautiful. The Princess experience is great - the staff and crew are very well trained to cater for the fussiest passengers and they do it generously with a smile. Would we do it all over again ? ......................Oh yeah ! Read Less

For perspective this was our 4th cruise and 3rd consecutive cruise with Princess. Thought we'd try a short 8 night cruise to NZ on the Golden Princess which is re positioning with the view of booking the full opposite direction re position should all be ok. We are not biased towards Princess but have found their product to be excellent each time we've cruised so why change unless things are as bad as some are making out? Embarkation at Sydney was Princess efficient and first impressions of the ship was that she appeared in pretty good order with evidence of fresh paint and rail varnishing up to speed etc. Nothing particularly worn or shoddy. Carpet mismatches in passageways and staterooms bore evidence of recent replacement etc. Whether it was due to wear which is a good thing or water damage, which is a bad thing, we are unable to say. The ship is lovely and has a quirky non flowing design but once used to the lay out it never seemed crowded apart from the usual suspects of the cafe on Piazza deck due to rather inconsiderate guests who continue to eat up what little space there is by setting up camp with a book for the day. One of our pet hates but not isolated to this ship. Wonder if they get away with that at a cafe where they live?. The Princess theater as always was crowded quite early for the first show but generally better later show. Quality of the entertainment was good and the Cruise Director seemed to be pretty active and engaged in his work. There are plenty of quiet places to be should you wish. The food on this cruise was excellent. Good variety in all the venues we ate at including Sabitinis and service was always very good. The crew seemed in good morale in all areas from bars, restaurants to cabins. Our cabin steward was the usual efficient and very pleasant. The mid ship balcony cabin on Baja deck was clean and all fittings were in very good condition for the age of the ship. One peculiarity we did note however, as did friends in other cabins travelling with us, was the excessive creaking and groaning of panels in even moderate seas. Something we certainly didn't encounter on other ships even such as Sun Princess (which is older) and did detract from sleep quality on a couple of nights. Otherwise the ship looked pretty good. Only one small leak was seen, best described as an intermittent small drip probably, around an AC outlet in Bernini dining room but certainly nothing major requiring a bucket in any area that we saw and we made a point of wandering around extensively to familiarize ourselves. We could see where a couple of carpet patches were done in public areas but this ship is definitely not leaking like a sieve as some would have us believe and there were no sewerage odors in any public areas. The lifts were all working on this cruise. Port stops were very good as NZ is a beautiful country wherever one goes. Tendering, ports and disembarkation were equally efficient in NZ. Overall a good cruise with mostly pleasant weather. Certainly no complaints about Golden Princess from us and we liked the ship enough to proceed with our original booking plans. Good job Golden Princess. Read Less

Wanted to see the South Pacific by ship, and got a very nice deal (free sip and sail package). Ports of call were fine, learned a lot of local history. On board the staff from the dance girls to the orchestra to the wait staff and stewards...all were outstanding. Ship itself is old and not well maintained with leaks and inconsistent water to the cabins. Duct tape not really nice to see instead of worn out or shabby areas. Food was fine in restaurants and courts. Desserts everywhere were beautiful to the eye and delicious to the palate. I think everyone gained at least 5 pounds feasting. Entertainment was top notch, really amazing that the ship orchestra could adept to so many talents so quickly, and the ship singers and dancers were New York quality. Would certainly do Princess again, but on a newer ship. Check the date it first sailed, stay with something in last 5 years. Read Less

The ability to commence with only a short flight from Coolangatta to SYDNEY to commence and the ports of call. The ship albeit recently having a makeover is really showing her age and there was a Major smell of sewerage midship for most of the cruise. The entertainment was not up to the normal standard of princess. This ship is being passed over to P & O in oct 2020 and it just seems they had no interest in paying any more to keep her maintained. I would have to say that for the money charged this was overpriced cruise for what was offered . We bought duty free cigarettes that were supposed to be delivered to our room before departure... they never arrived and as the shops were closed in port we never got to see them. I would recommend you considering ships such as the Royal, Enchanter, Sky class if wishing to travel with princess. Read Less

Figured I might as well cross the Pacific, as I hadn't done that. Relaxing in that there were so many sea days with only 8 ports. I'd been to most of the ports but looked forward to seeing different things at each place. Had a deluxe balcony which was overkill on this sailing - New Zealand, especially south island, was cool-cold, rough seas & rain, then crossing the Equator it was too hot. Last week I could use the balcony, but could have saved the money! Pay attention to cruises over Easter - in the Caribbean it means LOTS of kids, but not on this one, A positive. However, we spent Easter Sunday and Monday on French Polynesia, Tahiti & Moorea, which observes both days as national holidays so 99% of the places are CLOSED! Only grocery stores, tour buses and snorkeling boats are open. Stores closed, restaurants closed, museums closed. You get it. Wish the cruise line could have managed to redo the itinerary so we could DO something there! The GOLDEN PRINCESS will be converted to P&O later this year and it shows. However, everyone knew that was the case so the edges of shabbiness was not unexpected. Still, the ship was maintained and clean. 95% crew was remarkable. Captain was visible throughout the cruise. PJ, the Cruise Director, and his assistants made the whole cruise a fun time. Entertainment quite good especially the Production shows. Other entertainers provided variety. Comedians, except for 1, were very funny. Enrichment lecturers wonderful. Idiotic games played were a great way to spend a cold or rainy day inside - dumb but loads of fun for everyone! BON APPETIT excursion in Hilo was a highlight - having a progressive brunch at 3 different people's houses was a great way to get a feel for the reality of living in Hawaii. Also enjoyed the Wine trail in Auckland (I'd been there before so wanted to get out of the City for a bit). When I said it was a relaxing cruise, I meant the cruise itself, because on one end or another, someone is going to have a LOOOOONG flight and that's not so relaxing. But you know that when you book a trans-Pacific! Am glad I did it. Read Less

This is a vessel that should have been retired a few years ago. Twenty year old vessels have lots of things patched together and some strange smells (urine and mold/musty) and sounds (creaking walls and elevators). Had some exceptional staff members but others not so much. Had a definite feel that they were out to get all the money out of you with nickel and dime stuff. Way over the top on pushing Effy jewelry and art sales and way to little on cultural & educational. This was a 30 day cruise and you can stand just so many trivia and bingo outings. Entertainment was again inconsistent with some good and some bad. One constant was the ships band which was outstanding. Food was also inconsistent. Deserts were good throughout but simple things like scrambled eggs at breakfast and steak choices and dinner were well below what I had expected. Booked shore excursions through ship. Had some good ones but the absolute worst one (in Auckland) I have had in 15 cruises. When we complained, they offered a 35% rebate (?). Again, it seemed like it was all about money for them. Was really put off with the ship's Maitre 'd who ask 3 times for ratings of 9 or 10 for his department. "Don't mark us down for something else that may have good not so good" What a team player. In 30 days we never saw the captain. Had two scheduled events where he was suppose to show (repeat customers and crossing the equator) and never made it. Certainly he could have done some random walk-abouts through common areas to say Hello from time to time - had 30 days to do this. You also might want to make the interior smoke free. Letting parts of the Casino smoke serves no purpose for those with breathing issues since we had to walk through it and "enjoy" it in the cabin via the ventilation system. More revenue at the expense of our health. Read Less

The embarkation experience in Sydney was probably our worst experience of embarkation on any cruise. There seemed to be no organisation, and the only guidance was by other passengers, as there seemed to be a great lack of staff around. When we chose this cruise we knew that there were a lot of sea days ahead of us, so we were prepared to entertain ourselves for long stretches of time. While they had many activities, there could have been more variety. We enjoyed the ports as we had not been to most of them. The shore excursions were way too expensive for us, so we were able to find local providers at almost all ports. Some ports were a little overrated, such as Los Angeles, where the ship docked at San Pedro and with a 3.00pm all aboard deadline, there was not sufficient time to get into LA and see anything and return in time. The dining was very good, accommodating my dietary requirements. There did seem to be less general variety in the buffet compared to other cruises we have been on. The wait staff were to be highly commended, as were all the staff onboard - friendly and helpful and dedicated to ensuring everyone had a great experience. The entertainment was mostly quite good, but not as spectacular as we had experienced on other cruises. The other passengers were respectful and well behaved, with no loud noise to interrupt a peaceful night's sleep. The bed was super comfy - it felt like a cosy nest. It was great to be part of the Cruise Critic Roll Call, so we were able to arrange some activities together to get to know others. All in all it was a great cruise where we met a lot of likeminded people. Read Less

Very nice ports and food in main rests were very good. The ship is in very poor condition though and they are not doing anything to fix it up There was water leaking all over the ship and a very bad smell of mould. The food in the buffet was always the same and not very good. The ports were very nice and the crew is very good. The cruise director was one of the best we have had on a cruise. All his staff were very good and easy to talk to. They should try to have more to do though on sea days as it was quite boring though some people love sea days I do not. We really loved New Zealand and Tahiti and that made the long sea days worth the wait. We really love Princess cruises and was disappointed on the very poor condition of the Golden princess. Read Less

Ports, food, entertainment,staff, beds, services, equipment, all were 5 stars. Consistency of delivery is the standout and above its peers. After 10+ cruises on many different lines spread over 40 years in all seas and types of ships, I believe Princess Cruises is by far and away the best value for money experience. They take the best of the rest and combine it with 30+ years of their own experience to deliver the most consistently high class delivery of service food and travel experiences. The ability to deliver, process and anticipate travellers' needs is exceptional and remarkable. Doesn't matter which ship or which sea journey you take it seems to me that the expectation is always met, without disappointment, often before you identify fully what you really need. Princess acknowledge and seek out repeat customers and will do all possible to achieve that repeat sale (sail?). Perhaps they could improve by thinking about a new loyalty customer level between Platinum and Elite levels - but apart from that - don't change anything. Read Less

we chose this cruise because of where we were going to go. The embarkation went very smoothly We were not familiar with the Golden Princess We had been on another Princess ship before, It was the Caribbean Princess and we had been very satisfied. The cabin was correct. However, we had to brush our teeth with warm water during the whole trip as the ship seemed unable to provide us with cold water even after we complained to our cabin steward. The food was so so in the Horizon Court. It seemed like the same items were on the menu quite often. Although the executive chef was of Indian descent, the Indian food was not very appetizing. I have been to India and the food I ate while in the country was fabulous compared to what was served on the ship. However, the food in the Donatello dinning venue was quite satisfying. We were looked after by two young Filipino men and we have nothing praise to say bout their efficiency, politeness and service it was a pleasure to be served by them night after night.. There was an area near the Vista lounge located aft on deck 7 that smelled quite badly. There was always an odor of excrement whenever we happened to walk by the area. On our last day, I had to use the toilet on deck 7 aft of the Sabatini dinning room and when I lifted the toilet seat it was overflowing with water, papers and excrement. There are no excuses for that state of affair. The shore excursion person for the Papeete visit was extremely rude to me and some of the other customers. The bus was late and we were standing in the sun. When I asked her when we could expect the bus to arrive, she replied that if we did not like to wait all we had to do was give her our tour tickets and leave. I can't comment on the entertainment part of the cruise as i did not attend any of the shows I was traveling with my wife. My wife and I have decided the we will never cruise again on this vessel. Read Less

We went on this cruise because of the ports visited. We were on the ship for 28 days. My husband and I have been on 50 cruises and have never been so disgusted with a cruise line. It is now on the bottom of my rating list. Ship leaked badly, very rude and arrogant crew. No customer service. Food bad. Dining room staff impossible. Cabin location(mini-suite) where 6 decks and bridge above could look on your balcony. Entertainment venue was always full 1 hour before entertainment began. If you were not there early you stood or sat on the floor in the aisle. Not perks for Captain's Circle members. Tv in cabin had no programming for account, movies, remote very limited. On the docks the crew members would rush off to get the ground transportation before paying passengers. No representative on the docks for Princess to answer questions. Please think carefully before going on the ship. Read Less