Really honest opinions wanted

[Clutterlady]

I'm one of those who love the bigger ships. Have learned to adjust my times to avoid crowding. The Emerald is a beautiful ship and love the back to back itinerary. Enjoy no matter which one you choose:)

[Casey12]

Go with the Grand.

 

The new ships are pretty crowded.

[geoherb]

We did half of the Emerald's itinerary (10 days) and loved it. We met a couple who were doing six back-to-back cruises on board. They were in their fourth leg, so they were able to give us some great tips about what to order in the dining room.

 

We never found the Emerald to feel crowded. I'd rather sail for 20 days rather than 14 if it were possible.

[CanuckCurlers]

Not from personal experience but from board reviews I would stay away from the cruises before and after the Grand being in dry dock. Sorry I'm not sure when that is. Apparently some work is often done during these cruises that could affect your experience.

[Katie333]

We've cruised Emerald (and two of her sister ships) and found them all to be good. To be truly honest, Emerald was probably our least favourite, but by a very small margin. The reason we sail so many of these Grand+ ships is not necessarily because they are our preference but because they offer the 7 day Caribbean jaunts we take 1-2 times per year. If I had the vacation time allowance, I'd opt for the 10 day+ sailings, and I would love to try the Star or Grand to see if those 500 passengers make a difference from my own perspective.

 

Coral remains my favourite, however; I do miss it not having the International Cafe and Cafe Caribe, both of which I patronize regularly on the Grand+ ships.

 

The other thing is if you go in expecting to find crowds everywhere, they will suddenly be everywhere you look. Unless it affects you (i.e. can't find a seat to eat or in the theatre), the reality is that you are sailing with over 3000 other people and popular venues at popular times do get busy. It will help if you are flexible on dining times and get to the theatre early (enjoy a drink!).

[Times Prince]

Hi

We are 3 couples looking to book our next cruise in early spring 2012..we are looking at 2 possibilities for now....a 14 day Caribbean Collection (eastern Caribbean) on the Grand, or 20 day (b2b) southern/eastern on the Emerald.

We have only been Princess converts for a few months, having done a 19 day repo on the Coral. We all LOVED it, but are leary of trying a different ship. We liked the space on the Coral, (as well as everything else), and when deciding on that ship, it was a no brainer, as there was really no negative comments!

Now I have read a lot on both of the above mentioned ships, and we would really appreciate ALL input, good or bad so we can make a good decision. We would like to book soon, as we all want late traditional dining, we would hate to be waitlisted for that.

We are fans of Princess food, beds (yes, beds), cabins, staff, etc., what we really are concerned about is the crowded feeling a lot of folks mention....not fans of that!

Thanks in advance to all who post here, your comments are always insightful, and interesting.

Many events require going from bow to stern on a ship, and during peak times you will find crowds going across

Deck 7. When on the Island Princess (Coral's sister ship) we loved having both decks 6 and 7 with passageways from one end of the ship to the other. If you've experienced the same, you will miss the deck 6 corridors.

 

We have sailed Grand Princess many times (see signature below) and Emerald Princess twice, with a third time coming up. We have not found these ships to be overcrowded. In fact we were amazed on Emerald Princess at the lack of crowding. The key in avoiding crowds on any ship is to find the road less traveled - e.g. Promenade deck outside, instead of inside corridors, or finding off times (e.g. for Anytime dining avoiding the times when the shows let out).

 

Horizon Court is virtually identical on both ships, and free tables are hard to come by at lunch on sea days. We've met some really nice and interesting people by sharing tables.

 

I would suggest you pick the itinerary you would prefer.

[marigail]

:)We did the Caribbean collection off the Grand last March, and absolutely loved it, despite the fact that we were under an illness alert much of the trip. The ports are all different with many options whether you elect to do something Princess offers or you go off on your own. We enjoyed the ship. If you go to eat at peak times, yes there will be a line, but there wasn't a time that it was unmanageable. Whichever cruise you decide---enjoy. I liked the fact that there were 10 stops on our itinerary for those who like to get off the ship, with 4 glorious sea days. For me, visiting the same ports within a couple of week's time span would not be something I'd choose.

[srpilo]

The OP is planning to cruise in the Caribbean in the Spring; the weather will be warmer and chances are that passengers will be able to take advantage of the outdoor spaces. This relieves the "overcrowding" that some have reported as people are able to use their balconies, pool areas and open decks. These ships are designed for warm-weather cruising so when they are in cooler/cold climes, they are not the best ship choice as they can often feel overcrowded with everyong indoors. But that's not the case for the OP.

 

Personal preferences aside, I'd book the cruise with the "best" itinerary, the one you'd like most to do, at a price you're willing to pay.

 

Pam once again I agree..

 

100% agree Emerald and her 3 sisters are best enjoyed on warm weather cruises. Also I might add for us anyway having sailed on virually all the different classes of Princess ships that the Grand Princess is our least favorite, the fact that the Grand's mid-ship stairwell isn't accressble from the above decks absolutely drives me crazy (personal opinion) plus no IC yet. Also though I love the size and stlye of the Coral & Island, I think the IC on the bigger sister is something I definetly now miss on the smaller ships (sun, island, and ocean classes) .

 

In this case I vote for the Emerald for 20 days :)

 

Srpilo

[ggprincess2004]

We've sailed the Coral, the Grand and the Emerald. If you enjoyed your time on the Coral, you will be happy with either the Grand or the Emerald. As others have suggested let the itinerary and pricing make the decision for you. Personally, if I had a choice between 14 days and 20 days, I'd take the 20 days.....

 

Ginger

[regnig]

Any ship can feel crowded if you happen to be in the "wrong place" and the "wrong time". We've sailed both the Coral and the Emerald and although I don't know where they put the the other passengers we found the Emerald at times to feel less crowded than the Coral.

 

Regardless of which you choose you had best HURRY as it may already be too late to reserve late Traditional Dining. You may have to go with Personal Choice/Anytime Dining and then once onboard simply make a standing reservation for one of the Anytime Dining Rooms for the time of your choice.

[turtlescruztoo]

we would do the 14 day on on the Grand:)last year we did a b2b on the Caribbean and the food and entertainmeat was the same,the nice part of it is you keep the same room.(your card for each trip is different):rolleyes:this year we are doing a b2b--10 days on Emarld then 7 days on Carnival Glory:D

Jim

[Princess Patches]

I have sailed on the Emerald's sister ship, the Crown and found it more crowded than any other Princess ship I have sailed on. Of course, we were sailing at full capacity (approx. 3100). I definitely felt the extra 500 passengers. I plan to avoid the Crown and her sister ships in the future unless there is an itinerary I just can't miss.

 

The Grand was delightful and I did not find it crowded at all. It was very quiet. If all other things are equal to you (price and itinerary), I would definitely choose the Grand over the Crown.

[owt205]

Thanks again to all the great input, we will take it under advisement. Does anyone know when the Grand is scheduled for drydock??? Depending on that, we may have to re-think.

We are afraid that we we very spoiled by taking our first Princess cruise on the Coral, but we do like to try different ships, and we are very happy to be planning another cruise, no matter which ship.

As we are Canadian, we are not sure of the spring break times in the US...anyone know approx. when it is in Florida??? Ours here are almost always in Mar/Apr, so we are hoping to avoid that by going in Feb.

Thanks

[Bowie MeMe]

Spring Break in US can vary for colleges from the last week of Feb. up to Easter week for High School. You can pretty much assure few spring breakers by booking a trip of 10 days or more. Spring Breakers tend to do the shorter cheaper cruises and because so many variations for Spring Break timing probably won't be bothered by students. Easter week (and the weeks on either side) seem to be the most popular for family cruising and grades 1-12 students.

[cruiserus]

We have been on and loved both ships! Book the itinerary you prefer and enjoy!

[JNB]

owt,

 

You can determine the dry dock schedule for the Grand by looking for a gap in her sailing schedule on the main website.

 

We have been on the Golden (the Grand's sister ship) twice; most recently in July after drydock and retro with the Piazza. We sail on Crown in November then Ruby in February.

 

What I would miss by going with Grand instead of Emerald is: International Cafe-if not available; I loved the food and atmosphere there, Vines, Adaggio, Cigar lounge (instead of a sports/cigar bar --cigarette smokers also), Sabatini's on an upper deck, the little outdoor place next to Adaggio that I plan to check out on the Crown next month.

 

You can find out how many colleges will be on Spring Break by checking out the link or through a Google or other search engine search. http://www.tripsmarter.com/panamacity/springbreak/sbcalendar.htm

 

I've never found many Springbreakers on a Princess cruise.

[CanuckCurlers]

owt,

 

You can find out how many colleges will be on Spring Break by checking out the link or through a Google or other search engine search. http://www.tripsmarter.com/panamacity/springbreak/sbcalendar.htm

 

I've never found many Springbreakers on a Princess cruise.

 

We have. On our first Princess cruise out of LA to the Mexican Riviera. It was not a pretty sight and we almost wrote Princess right off cruise choices. We were surprised because in our part of Canada the university breaks are in February not March, so check it out if you can. Thanks for the link.

[BosoxI]

The Grand is going into drydock next April and I was told the atrium will be redone to mimic that of the Emerald. Other changes might also occur. I hope so. The specialty restaurants on the Grand are small and dark, almost depressing, and they are not popular ,judging from what I saw the last 16 days. But the food on Grand is very good and it's served hot,which is not always the case on ither ships. The Grand also has plumbing problems, sinks gurgling, toilets not not working or even backing up. Maybe the drydock will change all this, but my choice, as is, is the Emerald every time.

[Coral]

The Grand is going into drydock next April and I was told the atrium will be redone to mimic that of the Emerald. Other changes might also occur. I hope so. The specialty restaurants on the Grand are small and dark, almost depressing, and they are not popular ,judging from what I saw the last 16 days. But the food on Grand is very good and it's served hot,which is not always the case on ither ships. The Grand also has plumbing problems, sinks gurgling, toilets not not working or even backing up. Maybe the drydock will change all this, but my choice, as is, is the Emerald every time.

 

Ironically - when we were on the Crown for 15 days, the speciality restaurants were not well attended at all. We walked by them many times and they were empty! We ate there once and asked about why it was so empty and they mentioned on longer cruises, they do not fill up as much. I am not sure if I understand the logic but they were indeed empty.

 

I always thought the Grand was dark. Though, I did not run into the crowding issues that we encountered on the Crown, thus my recommendation of the Grand. I will take a less crowded ship over a brand new ship any day, dark or not. There have been plenty of plumbing problems mentioned on the newer ships as well....

[BosoxI]

DW and I just disembarked from the Grand yesterday after a very nice 16 day cruise in the North Atlantic. I'm not up to writing a full review, but maybe a few words will help the OP and others. I've never felt crowded on any Princess ship, though at times certain venues might be filled to overflowing. Crowds should not be a concern. The Grand was not full, I believe there were more than 2300 of us. A lot of people but never a problem that I could see. 1900+ Platinum and Elite; 382 Elite passengers. Not a surprise for a cruise of this type and length. It was nice having so many "exerienced" people on board, better dressed, better mannered than what we've typically found on shorter cruises.

 

The Grand is not our favorite ship, mainly because of a terrible plumbing problem which occurred in our cabin last year, and a layout which is simply not as nice as the newer ships. No wine bar, no International Cafe, no gelato. (Sigh). The atrium is not as grand, either, but that should all change in drydock. On the second day out on this cruise our toilet quit, as did others on Caribe deck. Fortunately, it came back on line and we, at least, had no further problems. Nevertheless, it was a major concern based on last year's fiasco. Grand needs a paint job, big time. Rust at the water line and on balconies far in excess of the norm. On the pool deck there were pieces of paint 5 or 6 inches long which had lifted from the metal. On the other hand much of the carpeting seemed to be new and very attractive, we thought. The specialty restaurants are gloomy. We ate in Sabatini's one night and the food was excellent, though the ravioli which were so light and delicious on the Emerald in September were heavy and doughy on the Grand. A minor disappointment which was rectified by a surprise serving of 3 small pizzas with varying toppings. Never had that in any other Sabatini's. The place was virtually empty and DW mentioned this to the waiter who said 15 more customers would be coming later that evening. And they did, each of them wearing his Princess name plate. I doubt there were 8 paying customers while we were there. The Sabatini's on the Emerald is much brighter and much better situated. The Grand's steakhouse is even more depressing, hardly better than a diner, dark and dreary. I am all for dark paneled rooms, the English drawing room effect. This is not what the Painted Desert is on the Grand. On a 16 day trip we normally would have eaten in The Grill at least once. Not on the Grand. especially as the food in the regular restaurants is very good. The staff was very friendly and service in the restaurants and cabins was excellent, save for the last night's dinner. I had a particular problem in that I was being bitten by something in out cabin, bites on my face (my right eye was swollen 1/3 closed yesterday), my upper arms, chest, thighs, and especially around my ankles. Noticible bites which itched tremendously. As we were cruising in northern and cold areas, and finished the cruise with 3 days at sea, I must attribute them to something on board. Reading about the problems occurring in some very fine hotels right now, I have to say there may be a problem on this ship, too. I must also compliment Grand for the quality of land tours. We took the easy way out and used Princess in the Shetland and Faroe Islands and twice in Iceland and every one of them was excellent. The brief tour we took in Sydney was tremendously overpriced. I know this means nothing to people traveling to other places, but Princess did a good job tourwise on this cruise. Oh, one other food item: the pizza wasn't bad but it was not up the the usual standards for my taste, at least. It takes wild horses to drag me to shows but DW got me to listen to a Canadian pop singer named Claude Eric and he was excellent. A classical singer was very average, singing a whole song a quarter tone flat. Not easy to do! But a guitarist/comedian who I think we had seen on a previous cruise was very entertaining. All in all, an excellent trip, but I'd still choose the Emerald. If the OP can wait to book until after the drydock, all this might change and it might be for the better.