Caribbean Princess review 4/6/13

[tweety33]

I'm so very disappointed to hear about the waits for dining on this (and other Princess) cruise(s).

 

We haven't been on Princess for several years but I remember one of the things we really liked was how well anytime dining worked.

 

What happened? Did it work too well and somebody had to mess with it?

 

:(

We had no problem with how anytime dining works. we feel if you want a set time for dinner do traditional dining. It is first come first serve as is only fair to all passengers, otherwise tables are being held up unused for x amount of time. There are only so many seats available (alot in my mind), but more tables for share then tables for two, and after 7 pm, there is 2 dining rooms to choose from.

We could always be seated with out a wait, if we share, and we did have table for two 3 evenings with out a wait.

I also want to add that the tables were better spaced then on our previous Carnival ships. You didn't feel like you were eating with the couple at the next table.

The matri-de was at the door every night assigning people to the tables, that was different.

Anyhow, I feel anytime dining works well, no mess, wouldn't change a thing.:) Good job Princess.

[caribill]

I'm so very disappointed to hear about the waits for dining on this (and other Princess) cruise(s).

 

We haven't been on Princess for several years but I remember one of the things we really liked was how well anytime dining worked.

 

What happened? Did it work too well and somebody had to mess with it?

 

 

What happens is that everyone in AT shows up at the time they would like to eat. That is the definition of AT.

 

Just as at a land restaurant, if more people show up at the same time than the capacity of dining rooms(s), then some will need to wait.

 

If the people show up at times evenly spread throughout the evening, then there will be little or no waiting.

 

With close to 2000 possible anytime dining passengers, the capacity of the dining rooms can quickly be reached if 1200 of them decide 7:15 is the perfect time to eat.

[Pam in CA]

I'm so very disappointed to hear about the waits for dining on this (and other Princess) cruise(s).

 

We haven't been on Princess for several years but I remember one of the things we really liked was how well anytime dining worked.

 

What happened? Did it work too well and somebody had to mess with it?

Nothing "happened." There've been long waits since AT was introduced in 2001. Sometimes there are short waits, sometimes long waits. That's been true from the beginning. It depends on the cruise and what time people want to eat. Each cruise is different.

[mafig]

Gee, a lot of defensive people. I've been on only three Princess cruises. All three times Anytime dining worked perfectly, with no waits. That was my experience. It was good. I always commented on other boards about how well Princess did Anytime. Guess I'm wrong .... it wasn't good, it was bad and has always been bad. Better?

 

BTW I just read Cruise2relax's review and they also stated that Anytime had very long waits and that "it didn't used to be that way."

[4cats4me]

Gee, a lot of defensive people. I've been on only three Princess cruises. All three times Anytime dining worked perfectly, with no waits. That was my experience. It was good. I always commented on other boards about how well Princess did Anytime. Guess I'm wrong .... it wasn't good, it was bad and has always been bad. Better?

 

BTW I just read Cruise2relax's review and they also stated that Anytime had very long waits and that "it didn't used to be that way."

 

 

We have had several different experiences with anytime dining. We have called the dine line to reserve in advance, only to be told we could have either 6:20 o 8:30. We have simply showed up and waited in

Either Long long lines or very short. We have showed up WITH reservations, yet there was not a designated line for those of us with reservations, forcing us to wait in very long lines behind those who didn't have reservations, while they argued with the dining person:rolleyes: We have reserved the same table for an entire cruise, which works well. We have also given up on the MDR altogether due to ridiculous waits on the Emerald, which had 500 more passengers than the other ships we had been on, creating even worse wait problems:rolleyes: We have also had no problems with anytime in the past too

 

For us, the secret is eating late. Next time I will do traditional. We just went on theCelebrityEquinox and had a great cruise. Now that I think about it, part of the reason it was so good is because we could just show up in the dining room and we were seated immediately during the height of the dinner hour. Reservations were not allowed in The restaurant, so everything went smoothly

[4cats4me]

Gee, a lot of defensive people. I've been on only three Princess cruises. All three times Anytime dining worked perfectly, with no waits. That was my experience. It was good. I always commented on other boards about how well Princess did Anytime. Guess I'm wrong .... it wasn't good, it was bad and has always been bad. Better?

 

BTW I just read Cruise2relax's review and they also stated that Anytime had very long waits and that "it didn't used to be that way."

 

It varies by ship and by dining time preferences. I have experienced good and bad with AT dining for the past at least 8 years

[mafig]

 

 

On our last couple of Celebrity cruises, we picked "select dining" which is their version of Anytime and it worked very well. And Celebrity is relatively new to this anytime dining but there were no problems.

Celebrity does limit the number of people who can opt for Select Dining....maybe that helps also.

From what I read, Princess has been doing Anytime Dining since 2001:eek:, and they still haven't figured it out.

We were on Carnival in December and never waited for a table with their version.

[tweety33]

Our ports of Call.

Princess Cays: When we were both ready we went to the designated lounge to get a boarding ticket, when that number was called we headed to the tender. It was easy and no huge wait time. It is about a 7 min tender ride to the island. It was a nice hot day, thank goodness for the wind. We layed in the lounge chair, no charge for a lounge chair and there is also plenty of free canopy things to shade you if you wish.

 

 

I waded in the water, DH went in, it was to cold for me. I was surprised at how cold the water was. I suggest wearing water shoes. We then walked around the beach on both sides of the dock. There are local crafts for sale along the way. We also stepped out side the gates where there was just more of the same stuff, and then you have to show your picture ID & cruise card to get back in.

 

Princess provides a free BQ lunch, water, ice tea, we didn't care for any of there food there, and there were flies we kept swatting off food.

 

Princess cays was a nice beach day, we spent about 4 hours there before heading back to the ship, no waiting, boarded the tender & it left before filling up. Nice.

[tweety33]

Curacao, we were scheduled to arrive at 2pm, we did arrive early sometime between & 1:00 & 1:30 I think, but not positive.

 

We had a 3 hr. tour scheduled with Irie tours, approx. 69 of our roll call had signed up for this before sailing. It was $20 per person, free water, soda & beer. It drove around the island showing us the sites with a stop at the Curacao distillery, where we had 3 samples & a bathroom stop. It also included a 1 hr stop at the beach before heading back. It was on a school bus painted bright colors & the windows removed. A good tour for the money. I recommend.

After being dropped off at Riff Fort, we walked over the floating bridge into town, where we admired the colorful buildings & just walked around. It was a very pretty town. We always felt safe. When ready to head back to the ship, the bridge was open, so we had to take the free ferry back, instead of walking the floating bridge.

 

It must have been around 7pm as we were walking back to the ship, catching a beautiful sun setting. Great shots between the palm trees. This was the one night we did the buffet for dinner. Then they had the "ultimate Deck party", all it consisted of was line dancing, throwing of some streamers, and not a fraction of the people you would see on a Carnival ship. There is always a deck party night on the ships we have sailed, and this was the nothing special, the mildest we have attended.

 

This was our first time to Curacao and glad we got to enjoy the island.

[tweety33]

Aruba; This was our second time there. The other time we rented a jeep and toured the island on our own, that was fabulous, and I recommend it. It was one of the few places I would say felt totally safe to do so.

 

This trip we did a beach day. We took the local bus to Eagle beach. It cost 2.30 each way per person. They will make change for you.

 

We had them let us off in front of Amsterdam Manor, where they rent chairs for $15 each. We walked to the next place to them renting chairs. We were only charged $2. They set us up with 2 nice lounge chairs under a palapa hut, I did see people come after us who where charged $8. The hotel renting these was something like Las Rambles, we used there rest room, & changed up there to. There was a small hut you can order drinks from. We had a bon bini & a chi chi, both delicious. The hotel staff comes around if you want food orders, we had a club sandwich with waffle fries, which they bring back in a delivery container.

 

I have always wanted to jet ski, and this was our time. It was $70 for 1/2 hr on a double. I thought I would love it, but hated it. I had the fear the whole time that it was gonna flip when I went to fast or to slow, then when we changed direction the water hitting us in the face was so intense, it was like driving blind. Then DH drove, he did better then me, but I still hated it. When we were done and I attempted to scoot off it backwards, the beach must have had a good laughing show, as we flipped it over, my worst fear came true.:eek:. We survived it unharmed, and that is now checked off my list, glad I did it, but don't need to again. Life is all about experiences.

 

Swimming, the water was cool getting in, but then it was nice. I enjoyed swimming here. The beach was gorgeous, it had the finest softest sand.

We kept our self covered in sun screen, and while on the beach stayed in the shade for the most part, but we both got a doozie of a burn this day. Mostly on legs, ankles, knees, wrist, the back must have got burnt while in the water, be careful, don't forget your hat if your bald, DH is still peeling.

The temp was 83 but there was alot of wind which we welcomed so it didn't feel so hot. You will burn even when you don't know it. Be careful, because that really limited our sun exposure for the rest of the cruise, and we had 2 sea days left to go.

 

We took the bus back to town, walked around a bit, before heading back to the ship. Took some beers back on board no problem, in Curacao & Aruba.

 

It was a nice day. Enjoy Aruba.

[margeg]

There was a lot of talk of that before I went. I read people have opposite opinions. Had I not purposely looked I would have said no wear. But.......... it is showing wear in alot of areas for example.

 

Out side bar tops are chipped, peeling & look old, white rails are chipped with paint, the carpet in our room was rolled or bunched up on the edges.

We were sitting at the pizza place, looking down the isle of the ship and the support post beams, decorative poles or what you call them, are not all standing even, some are tilted, so I hope they are not truly support:eek:

If your looking for wear you will see it around, but if your not looking, the ship looks great.

 

thanks for your reply.

We really like Princess, and this is the only one of their ships leaving from the new york area which is the most convenient for us.

[tweety33]

Bed: The bed was hard as a rock, but I slept better then I do at home, and finally got up mornings with no back pain. The pillows were lumpy, I asked for 2 extras for the week and had no problem.

 

Beach towels:When you go ashore with a beach towel, you take it from your room, and when you reenter the ship you drop it in a bin. It does not have to be back in your room for accountability. Same as when you take your towel up on deck, they will replenish it in your room, plus there is a towel hut near the center pool, though it wasn’t open the times we wanted it.

 

Smoking:

Port side of the ship on deck 7 promenade

Port side very back of ship looking down into the adult pool, I think deck 15

Port side, next to the tradewinds bar, under a small covered area with a few tables & chairs, wanna say its deck 16 forward

Casino, on certain nights

Sports bar I assume, DH didn’t smoke in there though; we opened the door & was overpowered by cigar smell.

 

Refrigerators kept stuff really cold. Nice ice bucket that kept ice all day, it was refilled morning & night.

 

Bathrooms: had eucalyptus shampoo, conditioner & lotion bottles, shelves to hold your items. The shower was not as small & scary as portrayed to me, it was fine.

Hairdryer is in the main room above the desk, hanging next to mirror.

 

Between bathroom, & bed area, was shelves to hold your clothes and many hangers on a long rod.

 

We always do self disembark. We were sent to wait in crown grill, and left with group A at 7:10am. Easy, Smooth & swift, moved right along, thru the hallways, down the elevators, thru customs, to the curb, in a cab and to the airport. No major lines at the airport. We waited until about 9am then went thru security, no long lines, it moved very smoothly. Good flight home, love jetblue.

 

Another Great trip.

 

Now to think about next years cruise, hmmmmmm.. Can’t wait.

[dsawyer]

Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts with us. :)

[tweety33]

Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts with us. :)

Thank you Dorothy. It was a pleasure to sail with you:).

[ChiefBoats]

We always have anytime dining we make a reservation every morning to assure what waiter staff we get. The first two nights we try different tables and then we decide who we like as waiters. Seems to work. We like getting to know the waiter and junior waiter.

 

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Previous Cruises

Alaska 2008 – Island Princess

Alaska 2009 – Island Princess

Alaska 2010 – Royal Princess

Alaska 2011 – Golden Princess

Alaska 2012 – Star Princess

Panama Canal 2012 – Coral Princess

Western Caribbean – Crown Princess

 

 

Future Cruises

Alaska 2013 – Island Princess

Western Caribbean 2013 – Caribbean Princess

Southern Caribbean 2014 – Royal Princess