ROYAL PRINCESS - A Different Perspective

[rkacruiser]

Great detailed review! Thank you very much!

 

Question about the balcony: You stated there was room for two chairs and a small table. Could the chairs, with a person in them, comfortably face the ocean or did they need to be situated sideways?

[eroller]

 

We always book midships since I sorta recovered from a serious ankle fracture in 2011, holds down the walking, and the elevator situation is a deal breaker for us. I had to use a scooter on the Silhouette in Dec 2011 and that was doable, with a much better designed ship as far as passenger flow goes. I don't see how the RP would be pleasant or survivable with the elevators the way they are now using a scooter.

 

 

As much as I enjoyed ROYAL PRINCESS I could not recommend this ship for you or anyone with a mobility impairment. If you have to use a scooter, I think you would become very frustrated. This was the case even for passengers not using scooters. Elevator after elevator would stop and they would be full, maybe squeeze on one additional person but not a scooter. The elevators are not very big to begin with.

 

There is a lot of walking on ROYAL PRINCESS, more than I remember from most ships. Partly this is because I avoided the elevators when I could, and partly because of some design features such as placing the fitness center polar opposite of the spa. I usually do one in conduction with another so I prefer having them next to each other.

 

Ernie

[eroller]

Did it get delayed - the article said June 2013.

 

My friends who are Travel Agents say RCCL has far faster internet compared to Princess.

 

 

I think it did get delayed, but even if it didn't my cruises on ALLURE and OASIS were prior to June 2013, so it was the old system which was STILL way faster than ROYAL PRINCESS.

 

Ernie

[eroller]

Great detailed review! Thank you very much!

 

Question about the balcony: You stated there was room for two chairs and a small table. Could the chairs, with a person in them, comfortably face the ocean or did they need to be situated sideways?

 

 

You could face the ocean but it was tight. We turned the chairs sideways and put the small table next to one of the chairs. This created plenty of floor space to walk out and stand by the rail, which I did more than actually sitting.

 

Ernie

[Coral]

I think it did get delayed, but even if it didn't my cruises on ALLURE and OASIS were prior to June 2013, so it was the old system which was STILL way faster than ROYAL PRINCESS.

 

Ernie

 

I agree. Princess is either behind in technology or choosing not to pay for more bandwidth. I know other lines have experimented (and maybe permanently implemented) unlimited internet packages for the cruise at reasonable prices and reasonable speeds.

[silverbird]

Hi Ernie --

 

I was on the same cruise as you and thoroughly enjoyed re-living it through your pictures. I do, however, have a question -- and I am not flaming you or anyone else who did as pictorial review of the Royal Princess. How come no one ever takes pictures of the Medical Center? I went down there and was warmly received. I did not have a complaint but asked if I could see the facilities. The doctor introduced himself and showed me around. Fortunately, they had only one patient and he/she was resting so I did not interfere with their care.

 

Loved your review and concur in so many areas. All in all, in the future I will return to the smaller ships.

 

Been there, done that. Silverbird

[eroller]

How come no one ever takes pictures of the Medical Center? I went down there and was warmly received. I did not have a complaint but asked if I could see the facilities. The doctor introduced himself and showed me around. Fortunately, they had only one patient and he/she was resting so I did not interfere with their care.

 

Loved your review and concur in so many areas. All in all, in the future I will return to the smaller ships.

 

Been there, done that. Silverbird

 

 

Hi Silverbird,

Interesting request and something I need to consider for my future photo documentaries. It would be interesting to compare medical facilities but honestly I never gave it much thought. Usually they are also a bit out of the way, so I guess out of sight and out of mind! LOL I know Princess is considering one the best when it comes to onboard medical care.

 

I'm glad you also enjoyed your cruise, even though the smaller ships are more to your taste. It's nice there is something out there for everyone.

 

Ernie

[The Big Booper]

I don't need the scooter now, only used it for that one cruise. But I sometimes gimp if the foot and knees act up. Walking down the long pier at Labadee, the porters always rush to me to offer assistance in getting to the tram service that covers the large bay area. So it obviously shows to others. No way would I put myself in a situation where there are long waits anytime I have to go up or down and an elevator is the only choice.

 

And since, as a rule, Princess has an older passenger base then RCI or even =X=, this has severe connotations. Either they finish the central stairway so as to allow the younger and healthier pax to zip up and down and free the elevators for folks who really need it or they lose older pax who write these two ships off.

 

And while the S ships elevators have quirky programming I never encountered a truly bad situation on the Silly with the scooter except for when interacting with any of the 600 denizens of Brighton Beach, Brooklyn on my December sailing; they are the cause of the "rude New Yorker" so talked about on any sailing from NYC. And Brighton Beach is real close to Red Hook in Brooklyn.:eek:

[eroller]

I agree. Princess is either behind in technology or choosing not to pay for more bandwidth. I know other lines have experimented (and maybe permanently implemented) unlimited internet packages for the cruise at reasonable prices and reasonable speeds.

 

 

:):):)

[cruisetrail]

Excellent photos as usual!

Thank you for the photo of the passage behind the lifeboats - I expected it to look like this but I could not get a close-up view from the pier...

 

Whether the Royal Princess is perfect or not is not a question.

It's an unprecedented, unbelievable conglomerate of design issues and lost opportunities.

 

Another "never a question" is Princess Food. Glad to know Princess keeps their high standards in Dining. Never doubted it, so never paid attention to it in RP discussions.

Same about some other things that were obvious before the the first steel plate was cut (beautiful atrium, nice decor, etc.)

 

Elevators.

It's not that simple.

One need to take into consideration number of decks to compare Elevator Load Factor.

 

Good to know that there was live music on the main stage.

 

Were there only three ports?

 

I am looking forward to a cruise on the Regal (Eastern Caribbean, 4 ports, prices from $400)

Edited November 23, 2013 by cruisetrail

[eroller]

I don't need the scooter now, only used it for that one cruise. But I sometimes gimp if the foot and knees act up. Walking down the long pier at Labadee, the porters always rush to me to offer assistance in getting to the tram service that covers the large bay area. So it obviously shows to others. No way would I put myself in a situation where there are long waits anytime I have to go up or down and an elevator is the only choice.

 

And since, as a rule, Princess has an older passenger base then RCI or even =X=, this has severe connotations. Either they finish the central stairway so as to allow the younger and healthier pax to zip up and down and free the elevators for folks who really need it or they lose older pax who write these two ships off.

 

And while the S ships elevators have quirky programming I never encountered a truly bad situation on the Silly with the scooter except for when interacting with any of the 600 denizens of Brighton Beach, Brooklyn on my December sailing; they are the cause of the "rude New Yorker" so talked about on any sailing from NYC. And Brighton Beach is real close to Red Hook in Brooklyn.:eek:

 

 

I'll be very curious to see if Princess does anything to improve the situation on REGAL. Either add more elevators, enlarge them, or program them better. All the above would be ideal, including opening up the midship stairs above Deck 7 as you mention. The stairs currently exist on ROYAL PRINCESS, but they are designated for crew use only.

 

What is so mind boggling is that Princess had the exact same issue with GRAND PRINCESS over a decade ago. They realized their mistake and on all subsequent Grand Class ships they reconfigured the midship stairs for passenger use. I just don't understand why they would make the same mistake twice especially on an even larger ship?

 

Ernie

[eroller]

 

Elevators.

It's not that simple.

One need to take into consideration number of decks to compare Elevator Load Factor.

 

 

 

I agree it's not that simple, and my simple analysis was certainly not meant to be scientific by any means. It does compare the largest ships sailing today which are similar in size to RP, or even larger. Most have a similar amount of decks or even more. Another aspect of the elevators is how large they are and what the capacity is. I believe 18 was the capacity on most RP elevators. On RP they are not huge by any means, at least when I compare them to the size of the elevators on other ships.

 

Regardless of the analysis, clearly something is not working with the current configuration of the elevators.

 

Ernie

[The Big Booper]

If Princess fixes the central stairway issue on the Regal, we might consider it for a booking next December, especially if pricing remains low for the Royal class.

 

There are some perks to getting old and moving to SE Florida in addition to the weather. Like instant cruise booking w/o worrying about air travel.:)

[cruisetrail]

 

Regardless of the analysis, clearly something is not working with the current configuration of the elevators.

 

 

Absolutely.

[SeaTeach]

Great review and exceptional photos. Thank you!!

[kendon]

I really enjoyed your comments and photos. I had my doubts about the ship...but it's beautiful, "flaws" and all. I just may be booking something for the spring. Thanks for your fair review!

[rkacruiser]

Ernie,

 

I found your comments about Terminal 2's situation to be very interesting. Terminal 2 is one of the terminals that Carnival Corporation provided funding to help refurbish and I believe from what I have seen on the web cam add a second jetway. From your comments, I assume nothing was done to handle the additional traffic in front of the terminal that a larger ship could be expected to generate.

 

Since you arrived at 2:00 P. M., what was the parking situation in the garage associated with Terminal 2? Plenty of room or not?

[carnivalcruiseman]

Ernie, Thank you for your review. Very enjoyable reading. We're sailing on her in December and really looking forward to it. I liked your comment that there is no perfect ship...but it's sure fun trying to find one don't you think?

 

If I may ask, How much was the Spa pass for the week?

 

Thanks,

Brian

[cruisin1357]

Ernie,

Thanks for taking the time to post your review and pics! Enjoyed reading. We are traveling next month and looking forward to checking out this new build.

 

Question: You mentioned M129 was your cabin. How was the movement up that high and forward? I'm curious as we will be on the opposite side M128. I'm also curious (as the above poster) about the Enclave weekly pass pricing so I can plan for our extras.

 

Thanks,

Lisa

[eroller]

Ernie,

Thanks for taking the time to post your review and pics! Enjoyed reading. We are traveling next month and looking forward to checking out this new build.

 

Question: You mentioned M129 was your cabin. How was the movement up that high and forward? I'm curious as we will be on the opposite side M128. I'm also curious (as the above poster) about the Enclave weekly pass pricing so I can plan for our extras.

 

Thanks,

Lisa

 

 

Hi Lisa,

I didn't feel any additional movement being so high up and the ship rocked very minimally this entire cruise. I must say that little forward section where M129 is located (and your cabin on the opposite side) is very nice. It's close enough to the forward lobby but far enough that it's very quiet and there is very little foot traffic. The only negative with being so high up is the elevator situation especially when returning back from port onto Deck 3 or 4. It's a long way up if you don't wait for elevator and I did it a few times out of pure frustration. What a work out!

 

The spa pass was $159, so an average of about $22.70 per day which I thought was well worth it. I made sure I used the facility everyday including the first! They put a sticker on the cruise card, then when you use the facility they exchange your cruise card for a numbered bracelet that not only opens your locker (electronically), but the door to The Enclave as well.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Ernie

[eroller]

Ernie, Thank you for your review. Very enjoyable reading. We're sailing on her in December and really looking forward to it. I liked your comment that there is no perfect ship...but it's sure fun trying to find one don't you think?

 

If I may ask, How much was the Spa pass for the week?

 

Thanks,

Brian

 

 

Hi Brian,

I'm glad you enjoyed the review. The spa pass was a total of $159 for the week. I thought it was well worth it. Only a limited number are sold, so if really interested get it on the first day. Also if you have any kind of treatment, you will have access to The Enclave either before or after your treatment.

 

Take care,

Ernie

[eroller]

Ernie,

 

I found your comments about Terminal 2's situation to be very interesting. Terminal 2 is one of the terminals that Carnival Corporation provided funding to help refurbish and I believe from what I have seen on the web cam add a second jetway. From your comments, I assume nothing was done to handle the additional traffic in front of the terminal that a larger ship could be expected to generate.

 

Since you arrived at 2:00 P. M., what was the parking situation in the garage associated with Terminal 2? Plenty of room or not?

 

 

The traffic situation at Terminal 2 around 11am was ridiculous. The line of cars, busses, and taxis went all the way around and out of the Terminal 2 entrance area and starting lining up down Eisenhower Blvd, which is the main access road of Port Everglades that runs in front of Terminal 2. There was no traffic at all at 2pm.

 

I didn't park in the garage so unfortunately I can't comment on how full it was. It's a very large garage as it's the same facility that the Convention Center uses so I think it's doubtful they would run out of spaces.

 

Hope this helps,

Ernie

[SassySpokane]

Can you confirm that formal nights are Tuesday and Friday evenings? I am trying to plan all our dinners including our anniversary dinner and hoping they dont coincide with formal nights. Thank you in advance.

 

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Forums mobile app

[eroller]

Can you confirm that formal nights are Tuesday and Friday evenings? I am trying to plan all our dinners including our anniversary dinner and hoping they dont coincide with formal nights. Thank you in advance.

 

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Forums mobile app

 

 

Yes you are correct. Formal nights were Tuesday and Friday.

 

Congrats on your anniversary!

 

Ernie

[jdavid]

Great review and pictures. We are on the Royal on Dec 15. Thanks for tip on arrival time. Maybe we will head out later than earlier. BTW - BTW how did you get so many pictures without people in them?

It certainly was the best collection of pictures I have seen of any ship.

JIM