LIVE From The Caribbean Princess 7/2-7/11

[Whitnee1]

Update:

Had dinner at the Crown Grill last night and all I can say is WOW. It was absolutely over the top and well worth the cover charge. Most of our party paired twin lobster tails with either a filet mignon or other cut of steak. All of the food and service were excellent. I had done Sterling Steakhouse on one of the other ships in the past but this was the first time any of us did the Crown Grill and this was much better than Sterling. No show tonight as it was a repeat from the night before.

Wednesday, we pulled into St. Thomas with once again glorious weather. We had booked a private taxi for a day trip to Coki Beach. We picked Coki after numerous research on this board as we were looking for a good beach with good snorkeling. I have to say that it was exactly as was described on these boards: a little scary driving down the road leading to it, and a little scary walking through the area leading to it, but once on the beach it was a very enjoyable day. We were immediately greeted by one of the vendors, Dennis, who set us up with chairs and umbrellas. We spent the entire day on the beach snorkeling and swimming. The snorkeling was pretty good. We did see many fish, including some barracuda, and also brought along the dog biscuits we read about on this board to feed the fish. The only real hawking on the beach were all of the waiters that kept asking you if you wanted drinks or food, which, while very excessive, really wasn’t that annoying. The only negative was that the water was inhabited with some small clear jellyfish, and we did see approximately a dozen people come out of the water suffering from stings. One of the locals would quickly come over with a piece of aloe plant, and once rubbed on, after about 15 minutes the stinging seemed to go away. Fortunately, none of our party was stung. The beach did a bit crowded around 12:00PM-1:00PM, which I assume was the various tours that opted for a combination of shopping, sightseeing, and beach time, but it was not unbearable as Horseshoe Bay was.

We returned to the ship, and had opted for no reservations that evening in one of the dining rooms. Our party of 8 arrived at about 7:35PM and we were immediately seated for dinner, which was again very good. It was Italian night, and some of the highlights were the eggplant parm, the veal scallopini, and the spaghetti and meatballs.

Woke up Thursday morning to again beautiful weather, and we arrived as scheduled in Grand Turk. We got off the ship around 1:30PM, and by that time Margaritaville was pretty much jam packed. We had originally planned to grab a taxi to Governor’s Beach, which we did, and found the beach much less crowded. The water was beautiful, snorkeling was pretty good even though we really only had a few hours as we were only in port until 6:30PM.

We have been quite successful with the anytime dining with not making a reservation and going down for dinner around 7:30PM. In the last 3 nights we were seated immediately, yet when we call first thing in the morning for reservations, we are told the only thing available is 5:30PM and 8:15PM.

Went to the show last night which was Tim Triplett who is a hypnotist. All I can say is he is absolutely amazing. He brought about 20 people up on stage, hypnotized them and had them perform funny things. One member of our party was one of the ones brought up on stage and still does not remember what went on for the hour and a half show.

Just a few overall unrelated points that may be of interest to anyone who has a future sailing on the CB:

-Art Auction: I attended the Art Auction a few days, although I will admit that I am not an art collector. I did see a few pieces that I might have had some interest in, but then I come to find that there is a 15% “buyer’s premium”, and additional shipping of $50-$100 plus 7% British VAT. Again, it is my understanding that the “buyer’s premium” is normal for the industry, but just thought that all should be aware.

-Kids: The Captain made an announcement right as we departed New York, acknowledging that there were a lot of kids on this sailing and reminded all parents and guardians that they are responsible for the behavior of their children. He repeated this today, before we left Grand Turk for the trip home. Perhaps that had something to do with the deck chair that was floating alongside the ship while docked in San Juan, and the ball that came flying down the stairwell today beaming a passenger in the head. I’m not going to say that kids behavior is a huge problem, that I witnessed at least, but there obviously were a lot of kids and it is clear that they spend a lot of time away from their parents, unsupervised.

-Water: As recommended on this board, we did pack 4 cases of bottled water, one for each cabin, with out checked luggage. I took a roll of packing tape and reinforced each case and then taped the luggage tags to them. While I was a little concerned when it did not arrive with the last of our luggage, it did finally show up about an hour later. This was definitely a plus, given the heat and humidity, and the ability to take bottles ashore in soft coolers.

-Clothespins: The clothespin suggestion for the shower curtain worked like a charm and alleviated the “attack of the shower curtain” and also flooding of the bathroom floor.

-Beer: I was able to bring a couple 6 packs of beer in my carry on for the room with no problem.

-Power Strip: A definite plus to power your hairdryer, cell phones, computers, IPods, etc etc.

-Coffee Card: The coffee card at $27 is a tremendous buy, giving you 15 specialty coffees, either at the International Café, or in the dining rooms. And, as long as the card is not completely punched, unlimited fresh brewed coffee at the International Café, which is 10 times better than what is served in the dining rooms or the buffet.

-Dress Code: Although we had all of our meals in the Island Dining room, it is clear that the dress code on this ship is not enforced. We personally witnessed people in the dining room at dinner wearing jeans, flip flops, cutoff jeans, gym shorts, t-shirts, even a cutoff basketball jersey and no one was turned away.

Running to dinner now, but more to come.

Today is a sea day, and first thing this morning we attended a seminar by the hypnotist, and at the end he hypnotized the entire audience. It too was amazing and this is a show that is a must see. Weather today is sunny and warm again, but we didn’t even bother venturing out onto the deck. Spent some time in the casino, shops, and bingo. If you plan on participating in one of the slot tournaments, go early for the qualification, as we arrived at 2:20PM and it was already closed for a 3:00PM tournament.

Did the bingo thing and spent some time in the casino. Again went without a dinner reservation and were immediately seated at 6:00 PM. We have doe better without reservations than with. Formal night and again the dress code is not enforced. Saw some with jeans and tee shirts.

Attended the Piano Man show in the theater and that this group I have seen on a prior Princess cruise but hey are very good productions. We then attended the Not so Newly wed game and stayed there for the International Crew Talent Show and they had some very good singers.

Some have asked about the AC. As you move about the ship you will find areas that are hotter or cooler than others. We are on Aloha deck and had a couple of times when the room seemed warm. A call to the desk and a visit by the ventilation team fixed it.

More to come.

[Woobstr112G]

Update:

 

Had dinner at the Crown Grill last night and all I can say is WOW. It was absolutely over the top and well worth the cover charge. Most of our party paired twin lobster tails with either a filet mignon or other cut of steak. All of the food and service were excellent. I had done Sterling Steakhouse on one of the other ships in the past but this was the first time any of us did the Crown Grill and this was much better than Sterling. No show tonight as it was a repeat from the night before.

 

Wednesday, we pulled into St. Thomas with once again glorious weather. We had booked a private taxi for a day trip to Coki Beach. We picked Coki after numerous research on this board as we were looking for a good beach with good snorkeling. I have to say that it was exactly as was described on these boards: a little scary driving down the road leading to it, and a little scary walking through the area leading to it, but once on the beach it was a very enjoyable day. We were immediately greeted by one of the vendors, Dennis, who set us up with chairs and umbrellas. We spent the entire day on the beach snorkeling and swimming. The snorkeling was pretty good. We did see many fish, including some barracuda, and also brought along the dog biscuits we read about on this board to feed the fish. The only real hawking on the beach were all of the waiters that kept asking you if you wanted drinks or food, which, while very excessive, really wasn’t that annoying. The only negative was that the water was inhabited with some small clear jellyfish, and we did see approximately a dozen people come out of the water suffering from stings. One of the locals would quickly come over with a piece of aloe plant, and once rubbed on, after about 15 minutes the stinging seemed to go away. Fortunately, none of our party was stung. The beach did a bit crowded around 12:00PM-1:00PM, which I assume was the various tours that opted for a combination of shopping, sightseeing, and beach time, but it was not unbearable as Horseshoe Bay was.

 

We returned to the ship, and had opted for no reservations that evening in one of the dining rooms. Our party of 8 arrived at about 7:35PM and we were immediately seated for dinner, which was again very good. It was Italian night, and some of the highlights were the eggplant parm, the veal scallopini, and the spaghetti and meatballs.

 

 

 

Woke up Thursday morning to again beautiful weather, and we arrived as scheduled in Grand Turk. We got off the ship around 1:30PM, and by that time Margaritaville was pretty much jam packed. We had originally planned to grab a taxi to Governor’s Beach, which we did, and found the beach much less crowded. The water was beautiful, snorkeling was pretty good even though we really only had a few hours as we were only in port until 6:30PM.

 

We have been quite successful with the anytime dining with not making a reservation and going down for dinner around 7:30PM. In the last 3 nights we were seated immediately, yet when we call first thing in the morning for reservations, we are told the only thing available is 5:30PM and 8:15PM.

 

Went to the show last night which was Tim Triplett who is a hypnotist. All I can say is he is absolutely amazing. He brought about 20 people up on stage, hypnotized them and had them perform funny things. One member of our party was one of the ones brought up on stage and still does not remember what went on for the hour and a half show.

 

 

 

 

Just a few overall unrelated points that may be of interest to anyone who has a future sailing on the CB:

 

-Art Auction: I attended the Art Auction a few days, although I will admit that I am not an art collector. I did see a few pieces that I might have had some interest in, but then I come to find that there is a 15% “buyer’s premium”, and additional shipping of $50-$100 plus 7% British VAT. Again, it is my understanding that the “buyer’s premium” is normal for the industry, but just thought that all should be aware.

 

-Kids: The Captain made an announcement right as we departed New York, acknowledging that there were a lot of kids on this sailing and reminded all parents and guardians that they are responsible for the behavior of their children. He repeated this today, before we left Grand Turk for the trip home. Perhaps that had something to do with the deck chair that was floating alongside the ship while docked in San Juan, and the ball that came flying down the stairwell today beaming a passenger in the head. I’m not going to say that kids behavior is a huge problem, that I witnessed at least, but there obviously were a lot of kids and it is clear that they spend a lot of time away from their parents, unsupervised.

 

-Water: As recommended on this board, we did pack 4 cases of bottled water, one for each cabin, with out checked luggage. I took a roll of packing tape and reinforced each case and then taped the luggage tags to them. While I was a little concerned when it did not arrive with the last of our luggage, it did finally show up about an hour later. This was definitely a plus, given the heat and humidity, and the ability to take bottles ashore in soft coolers.

 

-Clothespins: The clothespin suggestion for the shower curtain worked like a charm and alleviated the “attack of the shower curtain” and also flooding of the bathroom floor.

 

-Beer: I was able to bring a couple 6 packs of beer in my carry on for the room with no problem.

 

-Power Strip: A definite plus to power your hairdryer, cell phones, computers, IPods, etc etc.

 

-Coffee Card: The coffee card at $27 is a tremendous buy, giving you 15 specialty coffees, either at the International Café, or in the dining rooms. And, as long as the card is not completely punched, unlimited fresh brewed coffee at the International Café, which is 10 times better than what is served in the dining rooms or the buffet.

 

-Dress Code: Although we had all of our meals in the Island Dining room, it is clear that the dress code on this ship is not enforced. We personally witnessed people in the dining room at dinner wearing jeans, flip flops, cutoff jeans, gym shorts, t-shirts, even a cutoff basketball jersey and no one was turned away.

 

 

Running to dinner now, but more to come.

 

 

 

 

Today is a sea day, and first thing this morning we attended a seminar by the hypnotist, and at the end he hypnotized the entire audience. It too was amazing and this is a show that is a must see. Weather today is sunny and warm again, but we didn’t even bother venturing out onto the deck. Spent some time in the casino, shops, and bingo. If you plan on participating in one of the slot tournaments, go early for the qualification, as we arrived at 2:20PM and it was already closed for a 3:00PM tournament.

 

Did the bingo thing and spent some time in the casino. Again went without a dinner reservation and were immediately seated at 6:00 PM. We have doe better without reservations than with. Formal night and again the dress code is not enforced. Saw some with jeans and tee shirts.

 

Attended the Piano Man show in the theater and that this group I have seen on a prior Princess cruise but hey are very good productions. We then attended the Not so Newly wed game and stayed there for the International Crew Talent Show and they had some very good singers.

 

Some have asked about the AC. As you move about the ship you will find areas that are hotter or cooler than others. We are on Aloha deck and had a couple of times when the room seemed warm. A call to the desk and a visit by the ventilation team fixed it.

 

More to come.

 

Sounds like you're continuing to have a great cruise. Thanks for your reports.....:):):)

 

Bob

[Whitnee1]

A/C: As you mobve about the ship you will find some areas warmer or coler than others. A couple of times our cabin on Aloha deck got warmer and a call to the desk and a visit by the ventilation team would immediately fix it.

 

A post on this board acused me of bragging for mentioning that I am a Platinum member. Quite the contrary the point was that I remain loyal to Princess regardless of what I am finding here. In fact I believe their Platinum level of 5 cruises is very generous and applaud them for that. That being said, I will not look through the same rose colored glasses as others and will call it as I see it. If you don't like it then quite simply don't read it. A cruise is what you make it but that does not change the things that we and others are seeing. The fact is that this ship is the same size as the Coral but ahs 1100 more passengers which is why it suffers from the things that are listed in the post. For example the buffet ran out of forks yesterday and was handing out spoons.:eek:

[KroozeKid]

You've done a nice job with the descriptions of issues that are relevant. Appreciate your taking the time during your vacation to update us. I sail tomorrow on CB and am sorry for your vacation's end.

 

Time for my fun;)

[Colo Cruiser]

A/C: As you mobve about the ship you will find some areas warmer or coler than others. A couple of times our cabin on Aloha deck got warmer and a call to the desk and a visit by the ventilation team would immediately fix it.

 

A post on this board acused me of bragging for mentioning that I am a Platinum member. Quite the contrary the point was that I remain loyal to Princess regardless of what I am finding here. In fact I believe their Platinum level of 5 cruises is very generous and applaud them for that. That being said, I will not look through the same rose colored glasses as others and will call it as I see it. If you don't like it then quite simply don't read it. A cruise is what you make it but that does not change the things that we and others are seeing. The fact is that this ship is the same size as the Coral but ahs 1100 more passengers which is why it suffers from the things that are listed in the post. For example the buffet ran out of forks yesterday and was handing out spoons.:eek:

 

Sounds like a fantastic day in St Thomas and Coki!!

 

I agree there is no comparison between the Sterling Steak House and the Crown Grill. :D

 

Don't pay attention to the naysayers!!

This is supposed to be your live thread and has tons of unrelated posts coming up. :mad:

[Woobstr112G]

A/C: As you mobve about the ship you will find some areas warmer or coler than others. A couple of times our cabin on Aloha deck got warmer and a call to the desk and a visit by the ventilation team would immediately fix it.

 

A post on this board acused me of bragging for mentioning that I am a Platinum member. Quite the contrary the point was that I remain loyal to Princess regardless of what I am finding here. In fact I believe their Platinum level of 5 cruises is very generous and applaud them for that. That being said, I will not look through the same rose colored glasses as others and will call it as I see it. If you don't like it then quite simply don't read it. A cruise is what you make it but that does not change the things that we and others are seeing. The fact is that this ship is the same size as the Coral but ahs 1100 more passengers which is why it suffers from the things that are listed in the post. For example the buffet ran out of forks yesterday and was handing out spoons.:eek:

 

Who cares if you brag about being platinum. Not going to bother me in the least. I was trying to get my DW to go on a quickie 7 day Mex Rivera

this December so we'd have platinum status when we do our T/A next October. We'd qualify because of the number of sea days...

 

I was not really wowed by the Crown Grill, Actually enjoyed Sterlings on the Diamond better than the CG on the Ruby. CG wasn't thant bad (cept for the lamb), it just didn't wow me as the specialty dining venues on Celebrity (M Class ships).

 

Anyway, Thanks again for your live from. I enjoyed reading all of your posts.....:):):)

 

Bob

[mtaylor04]

Thanks for continuing the live thread

[Tatka]

Why do I read so many opinions that Princess is not child-friendly?

 

Princess is very friendly. They created wonderful kids areas, pools, "playgrounds". My son loved teen club.

 

However Princess cares about adults too. They also need rest and private space. And Princess has accomodated this wish. :)

[Whitnee1]

I don't think the problem is that Princess does not cater to kids the problem in my mind is the parents. We would regularly see groups of teen agers roaming together and I doubt that they all arrived in one party. I think the parents just feel that they are in a safe environment and let them do what they want. I heard one in the elevator telling his mother that "they called security on me" and she told him to "stay away from them". Clearly there was some kind of issue. We did experience nights where groups would run down the hall yelling at 2 or 3 in the morning. Again I blame the parents.

 

My two sons came and we did everything as a family. I can see where things like the Sanctuary will become more popular. This is one way to escape that issue and also the deck chair issue but it is some what of a shame that it takes that and really looks like just another money making opportunity. I will tell you though that the $40 bucks a day didn't sound bad after we battled the crowds on the deck on the sea days.

 

All in all it was still a great cruise and we learned a lot that would make a future one even better. Better places to go and ways to avoid some of the issues. The weather was almost perfect and we all had a good time.

[patross]

Whitnee1 thanks for the live reports. I totally agree with you about the kids on board. The parents are to blame. If they want a kid free vacation leave the children home. Some kids leave the kids programs where their parents believe they are, and roam the ships unsupervised. There are many more well behaved kids but unfortunately, the unsupervised kids make it bad for the others. This is a problem for all cruise lines.

[highflyingrealtor]

Thanks Whitnee1 for the commentary. It only fueled my daydreaming for what will be our 4th CB in Feb. Hey, can you imagine the chairhogs on the Oasis? Always an issue unless you can ignore although this next trip we have a Caribe corner aft and we know those lounge chairs will always be available! :D Never tried the Crown Grill yet but you might have convinced me. Good luck re-entering the real world - we all know how hard it is to come home...

[Whitnee1]

Well we are home. We did see the comedian last night and he was excellent. Can't remember his name. Another good dinner and we only waited for 10 minutes with no reservation at 6:30 PM. Disembarkation was a breeze. We waited in the Members Circle lounge and from the time we were called to the time we were through customs with luggage was probably no ore than 15 minutes. I had a rather long conversation with a few people prior to the show which resulted in the following:

 

1. Princess really has nothing for the 17-20 year olds. They are too old for the arcade and too young for the casino, bingo, and the bars. I was told that every other cruise line allows parents to sign a waiver for 18 year olds that allows them to drink beer and wine and gamble.

2. The other big complaint was not enough to do outside during sea days. For example the CB had no poolside bands, no horse races, and really not much activities pool side. That is probably a byproduct of the MUTS which plays all day.

 

We look to the sea days to relax and don't need a whole lot of organized things to do but perhaps others do.

[janetz]

Thanks Whitnee1 for the commentary. It only fueled my daydreaming for what will be our 4th CB in Feb. Hey, can you imagine the chairhogs on the Oasis? Always an issue unless you can ignore although this next trip we have a Caribe corner aft and we know those lounge chairs will always be available! :D Never tried the Crown Grill yet but you might have convinced me. Good luck re-entering the real world - we all know how hard it is to come home...

 

 

There are no chair hogs on the Oasis. It is controlled by the staff very well. :D Nobody dares to put their towels out as they are handed out and if not returned, 20.00 charge.

 

 

Enjoy the CB. Awesome ship!

[casperpud]

I too- was on the July 2nd sailing and perhaps had higher expectations for this cruise/ship/intinerary/line than was realistic. This was my fourth cruise and first on Princess.

 

I have to say- that what I've read from Whtinee1- I have to agree with (though it "scares" me to post after reading some of the backlash!!):)

 

The ship was overbooked (according to several crew members remarks to me)- and had over 600 children on board (two of which were mine... and they loved the kids club- SHOCKWAVES...ages 10-12 on this sailing).

 

I knew (or assumed) going into this that given the holiday (July 4th), the NY port of origin (convenience for many of us who drove in), and the summer vacation (lots of children)- that things would be crowded.

 

I have to say I virtually gave up on getting a deck chair anywhere NEAR a pool after my first try on day one at sea. I was never able to get a chair for a MUTS viewing- am or pm. So I wrote that off too. I would agree with OP that there is a limited amount of outside activity/entertainment on sea days- ESPECIALLY if you can't get near a pool. I liked this itinerary because it gave you a break between ports... But the appeal starting wanning for me by mid-week regarding sea days.

 

I will say that probably my biggest disappointment was the behavior of fellow passengers. One man literally laid in wait in the hot tub- in order to vebally attack the deck attendant who tried to remove the man's items from a deck chair that obviously hadn't been used all day.

 

A party of 4 older people (I.e... I'm hoping would have KNOWN better)... showed up to the Palm Dining room 6 pm seating at 7:30 pm and couldn't understand why they wouldn't be able to complete a full-service meal in their own time frame. Carlos and Ferdinand- handled this LOUD confrontation with grace and kindness- far exceeding what these four deserved at that point.

 

Although I loved my room steward and dining room staff (they were exceptional at their jobs and level of service)... Every staff member I enagaged in conversation expressed down to the number of DAYS when their contract was over. One also mentioned the problem with the devaluation of the Euro. Perhaps Princess should consider offering them shorter contracts (less then the 7-9 months I heard of)...So that they can go home to see their families. Each of these crew members had young children in their home country.

 

The OP description of Horseshoe Bay on July 4th- was spot-on. It actually made me a little sad to see hundreds of us squeezing into this little piece of paradise like brides-to-be storming the midnight madness sale at David's Bridal. It was a little pathetic, albeit a GORGEOUS landscape.

 

Along those same lines... is the mad dash at Grand Turk to claim a beach chair (and I believe there were actully PLENTY of them). My suggestion- which I learned about on this forum... is to head left as you face the entrance to Grand Turk- and hang out at Jack's Shack for the day. The crew hang there as well. The drinks are strong, the water is gorgeous and we are not all crammed into the predefined space that the cruise line has roped off for our enjoyment.

 

Well- I've probably said enough. It was a lovely week and a lovely ship- Just a little less than what I had hoped for.

[spunky01]

Thank you casperpud we are doing our first princess cruise on this ship in 9 days. I am an avid rccl and wanted to try something new. As long as you do not have high expectations than all will be great. Thanks again to both of you for keep us posted.

[Cindylu2001]

Whitnee1 - Thank you so much for your live posts - we are sailing the CB in September up the New England coastline and appreciate your observations. We have never had a bad experience on Princess and hope this continues - as several people said...it is what you make it and we plan to make it wonderful!

[DonnaK]

1. Princess really has nothing for the 17-20 year olds. They are too old for the arcade and too young for the casino, bingo, and the bars. I was told that every other cruise line allows parents to sign a waiver for 18 year olds that allows them to drink beer and wine and gamble.

.

 

I don't know where this information came from, but we usually cruise on Royal Caribbean, and they ONLY have this waiver on European cruises. Otherwise 18-20 year olds cannot drink or gamble at all. None of the mainstream cruiselines offer anything special for this age group, so it's up to them to make their own fun. My kids always manage to have a good time despite the lack of organized activity for 18-20

[Whitnee1]

Like I said in the post I do not know this to be true (in fact I was skeptical of it) but the two who told me were very adamant about it. I questioned how they could be different and there must be some kind of rules if only from their insurance carrier.

[lehb]

I don't know where this information came from, but we usually cruise on Royal Caribbean, and they ONLY have this waiver on European cruises. Otherwise 18-20 year olds cannot drink or gamble at all. None of the mainstream cruiselines offer anything special for this age group, so it's up to them to make their own fun. My kids always manage to have a good time despite the lack of organized activity for 18-20

 

Our son, who will be 20 when we take him on a cruise in January, looked this up on the web, when I mentioned it to him. He found out that the only time a mainstream line offers a waiver to the drinking/gambling age is if they are sailing completely outside of North America. Otherwise no waivers. And, I believe this was only on RCI. Carnival Corp., as a whole, seems to have a policy against it for it's mainstream American lines. Sometimes people really don't know what they are talking about; best to remain skeptical and check the facts later.

 

My son, also, has no problem finding things to do, despite no special programs. In fact, he had no interest in the teen program, the last time we took him a couple years ago, and he kept busy AND behaved himself. If he didn't, we wouldn't ever take him along (and he knows that)!

[Zeta3]

 

1. Princess really has nothing for the 17-20 year olds. They are too old for the arcade and too young for the casino, bingo, and the bars. I was told that every other cruise line allows parents to sign a waiver for 18 year olds that allows them to drink beer and wine and gamble.

 

The only cruise line in the US that I am aware of that allows this is NCL

[Whitnee1]

I too- was on the July 2nd sailing and perhaps had higher expectations for this cruise/ship/intinerary/line than was realistic. This was my fourth cruise and first on Princess.

 

I have to say- that what I've read from Whtinee1- I have to agree with (though it "scares" me to post after reading some of the backlash!!):)

 

The ship was overbooked (according to several crew members remarks to me)- and had over 600 children on board (two of which were mine... and they loved the kids club- SHOCKWAVES...ages 10-12 on this sailing).

 

I knew (or assumed) going into this that given the holiday (July 4th), the NY port of origin (convenience for many of us who drove in), and the summer vacation (lots of children)- that things would be crowded.

 

I have to say I virtually gave up on getting a deck chair anywhere NEAR a pool after my first try on day one at sea. I was never able to get a chair for a MUTS viewing- am or pm. So I wrote that off too. I would agree with OP that there is a limited amount of outside activity/entertainment on sea days- ESPECIALLY if you can't get near a pool. I liked this itinerary because it gave you a break between ports... But the appeal starting wanning for me by mid-week regarding sea days.

 

I will say that probably my biggest disappointment was the behavior of fellow passengers. One man literally laid in wait in the hot tub- in order to vebally attack the deck attendant who tried to remove the man's items from a deck chair that obviously hadn't been used all day.

 

A party of 4 older people (I.e... I'm hoping would have KNOWN better)... showed up to the Palm Dining room 6 pm seating at 7:30 pm and couldn't understand why they wouldn't be able to complete a full-service meal in their own time frame. Carlos and Ferdinand- handled this LOUD confrontation with grace and kindness- far exceeding what these four deserved at that point.

 

Although I loved my room steward and dining room staff (they were exceptional at their jobs and level of service)... Every staff member I enagaged in conversation expressed down to the number of DAYS when their contract was over. One also mentioned the problem with the devaluation of the Euro. Perhaps Princess should consider offering them shorter contracts (less then the 7-9 months I heard of)...So that they can go home to see their families. Each of these crew members had young children in their home country.

 

The OP description of Horseshoe Bay on July 4th- was spot-on. It actually made me a little sad to see hundreds of us squeezing into this little piece of paradise like brides-to-be storming the midnight madness sale at David's Bridal. It was a little pathetic, albeit a GORGEOUS landscape.

 

Along those same lines... is the mad dash at Grand Turk to claim a beach chair (and I believe there were actully PLENTY of them). My suggestion- which I learned about on this forum... is to head left as you face the entrance to Grand Turk- and hang out at Jack's Shack for the day. The crew hang there as well. The drinks are strong, the water is gorgeous and we are not all crammed into the predefined space that the cruise line has roped off for our enjoyment.

 

Well- I've probably said enough. It was a lovely week and a lovely ship- Just a little less than what I had hoped for.

 

Not sure what you mean by "over booked'? They can only hold so many people and will not place extra people in cabins on roll aways etc. The only cabins that can take additional passenegers are the ones designated for 3 or 4. Even with that once they reach capacity even if a room designated for 3 or 4 only has 2 they will not add any more.

[Whitnee1]

This would change our future plans.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1235056

 

We were on Coki on our own on 7/7. Very scary.

[Colo Cruiser]

Not sure what you mean by "over booked'? They can only hold so many people and will not place extra people in cabins on roll aways etc. The only cabins that can take additional passenegers are the ones designated for 3 or 4. Even with that once they reach capacity even if a room designated for 3 or 4 only has 2 they will not add any more.

 

 

I agree.......

 

Most Princess cruises are overbooked 2 weeks out anyway, but with moveover offers/cancelations etc the ship sails full not overbooked.

 

Princess has this down to a science. ;)

[Labmom3]

Last year on CB my 18 year old son had a great time they are allowed to go to the clubs just can't buy drinks but he had friends give him some beers. He loved Skywalkers and met a lot of people there that he hung out with during the day. He can't wait to get back on board in about a week! I think these kids would be too old and wouldn't use a teen type club by this age they want to be on there own and do what they wish.

[casperpud]

Should have clarified- this was the term the crew members used when I asked about the number of people on our cruise. Both my waiter and the Lotus Spa gal said the cruise was "overbooked"...