CB Princess 1/2/12 Review

[kwoody]

Just got back from a honeymoon cruise out of PR on the Caribbean Princess. It was a 6 night itinerary and we stayed one extra day in SJ before the cruise and two afterwards.

 

San Juan Experience.

The first night we stayed at the Caribe Hilton. A taxi was suppose to be 31 or so dollars the taxi driver said it would be 40$ including gas surcharge tip etc. This is not how things work but taxis were a big pain in the butt the entire trip. If you go to SJ get a price before hand. When we got back we rented a car for two days. It was cheaper to rent and put gas in the thing then the first day of taking taxis. I suggest renting a car when going to SJ just be careful driving the drivers there are heavy on the horn and not fond of using turn signals.

 

Caribe Hilton was great. Since it was our honeymoon we got put on the top floor overlooking the ocean. The Hilton has a private beach which was nice. Caribe Hilton really is not within walking distance of much maybe a KFC down the road. We took a taxi to Condado ($14) with two other couples in the car so the guy got like 42 for a 5-10m taxi ride. In Condado we ate at Cafe Lola. We liked it a lot. It was a little on the expensive side but this seemed the norm in PR.

 

The next day we took a taxi to the ship around 1pm. There was a decently long line but it moved fast. You basically drop off your luggage then walk through to the security line. We were in a Suite (WS) and didn't even realize we had a prefered pass. We got in that line and was through security in 10 minutes. About 30 minutes for dropping off luggage and another 10 waiting for security not too bad. We checked in then went to the duty free shop. I had asked here before but no one seemed to give a straight answer. At the Pan America pier there is a liquor store inside. We bought a bottle of liquor put it in our luggage and walked right on to the boat. They do check carry on bags it seems so put it in something that zips up and they will not care.

 

We stayed in F303 in a window suite. When we got arrived there were nice flowers a good fruit bowl and our bar setup. Me and my new wife loved the location of the WS rooms. Right on level 6 short walk to pursers desk, international cafe, and the cigar bar for our cokes and mocktails to mix with our carry on :) We had really no issues with sound in the room apart from some noise from above which I guess was just traffic. Even when the shows would let out there was not much of a noise boost.

 

Our ports got changed around on the cruise also. Something about St. Thomas not having fresh water for us to get some or something. The people in St Thomas said they have been having issues with fresh water.

 

We went to Barbados, Antigua, Tortola, and St Thomas.

 

In barbados we did the snorkeling with turtles and a shipwreck. When we got to the turtle site there were like four or five turtles there and they would get real close since they were there feeding them. It was fun.

 

The rest of the ports we just walked around in and ate somewhere local. We were on our honeymoon so we just relaxed and did what we wanted to do.

 

Our favorite part of the suite perks were the expanded room service and being able to order off the dining room menu. We did not try out Sabatinis for breakfast. My Wife and I both felt indifferent about the dining room food. Some stuff appealed to us and some stuff did not. We ate at the Crown Grill one night and loved it. Wife got the lobster which was a lot of lobster for her. I got the porterhouse. The only thing I did not like was the 'gravy' stuff on it. I felt it took away from the meat and really did taste like gravy to me. The desserts really were not that great. But the appetizers etc. were good.

 

I think I have pictures on one of the cameras and if I can find them I will post them. If you have any questions shoot!

[lovevacadays]

Thanks for the review and congrats on your marriage.

[DevilinaBluDress]

My family and I were on the same cruise and had a wonderful time, too. My son and I were just down the hall in F311. Loved the suite perks! Our excursion driver in St. Thomas told me that the schedule change was because there were so many ships originally scheduled for Jan 3 that the CB was told they would have to drop anchor and tender in passengers and the Captain didn't want to do that.

 

Molly

[Adventures ahead]

Way to go! A suite for your honeymoon. Sounds like you had a good time.

 

I think you got ripped off on the SJ taxis - the rates are set and are per car, not per person. We were warned by some nice girls on segways that worked for tourism when we were waiting at a bus stop and decided to share a taxi with other people waiting for a taxi too. I've read that renting a car isn't expensive but the cost of parking at most hotels may cancel out the savings.

 

Thanks for posting, and congrats on your wedding.

[Woobstr112G]

Thanks for posting you review. Congrats on your wedding as well.....:):):)

 

Bob

[srpilo]

Hope you guys have a great marriage.. :)

 

 

 

Thanks for the CB review

Srpilo

[CanadaDeb]

Thanks for the review and congratulations :)

[StillPooh]

At the Pan America pier there is a liquor store inside. We bought a bottle of liquor put it in our luggage and walked right on to the boat. They do check carry on bags it seems so put it in something that zips up and they will not care.

Did you happen to notice if they had wine and soda there too? I don't really want to try to get a cabbie to stop between the airport and the pier to pick up our beverages.

[LollyMoz]

Did you happen to notice if they had wine and soda there too? I don't really want to try to get a cabbie to stop between the airport and the pier to pick up our beverages.

 

There is wine and soda and bottled water available at the duty free shop. However, they do NOT have beer - which was much to my hubby's chagrin. :)