Just home from Royal Princess cruise Jan 26 to Feb 2

[boca7]

Princess has been docking in Crown Bay for a long tome now but our last cruise on the Royal 01/05/14*01/12/14 they docked in Haverhill, was informed they are doing every other week at each with RCCL Allure.

[gr82cu2]

How busy was Secret Harbour?

We've stopped going to the beach in St. Thomas because all of them are so crowded. :(

 

I have 2 words for you! Smith Bay! It is in between Sapphire and Coki. It belongs to the VI Parks group and costs 2 or 3 dollars per person to get in but it is breathtakingly beautiful. However, there are no food vendors or drink vendors there so you need to take your own food/drinks. No umbrella or chair rentals either but there is some shade and picnic tables. There is a porta potty. They are improving it all the time though so these things may be available in the future. We stayed on st. Thomas at Sapphire for 13 nights this past spring and drove down to Smith Bay every day but one or two. Even on days when ships were in port there was never more than maybe 30 people there.

 

Here's a picture of the view and water from the beach. Heaven!

 

[watchdog46]

We were on the same cruise and loved the ship overall with just 3 reservations about the entire trip from embarkation to disembarkation. First the weather was great the entire week. The retreat pool was used every day. As I only stay in the pool a deck chair was not needed and obviously on sea days none were available. Loved the "wave" pool effect on the first sea day.

 

We were scheduled for Any Time Dining but never ate in the dining room as so many other choices were available. Crown Grill, Alfredo's, Trident Grill (BBQ at night), Horizon, International Cafe, Prego Pizza, and the Wheelhouse bar all had great food. Alfredo's was the best fresh pizza I have had on any cruise ship. The Trident Grill at night at BBQ which was not bad, but make use of having BBQ sauce available as part of the condiments. Horizon Court and Bistro always had numerous choices for soup, salad, main courses, and desserts. The omelets were done perfectly in the morning. Horizon could use some kind of chart for people to understand the "lay" of the land as to where specific choices can be found.

 

Our cabin on the Lido deck was perfect for us. We did not find the balcony to be a problem for use and while the bathroom seemed cramped, the shower was awesome. Need to remember to put your card in place at eh door to turn on the lights and do not take it out if anyone is to remain in the room. Just remember to change the card when going out.

 

Staff on the ship were very friendly and always trying to be helpful.

 

Disembarkation off the ship was unbelievably perfect on Sunday. Our time for departure was 7:10 from the Casino on deck 6. We arrived in the casino at 7 am and no one was in the casino. As we went to the Piazza entrance we were told they called the color early and we could just leave when ready. We walked down the gangway at 7:10 and got our luggage and went through customs and were on the road from the garage at 7:30. Well organized and implemented. This was distinctly different than embarkation. Princess could use a better process for arrivals after going through inspection. We entered a big hall where there were just a line of desks to get your sea pass. Ropes could be established to ensure that the lines move quickly rather than trying to chose a line that you hoped moved quickly but ultimately didn't.

 

The biggest complaint we have is the Princess Theater. Two "center" aisles move people into the theater, but there are no aisles on the end of the rows to keep people from stepping over everyone as they move down the row. Of course, the seats on the end of the row are the last to be filled, so as the theater fills and the show times get closer, people see an open seat or two and move down the to the front of the theater to try to come in on the end only to find none. Frustrating. While the ship had many people aboard, the only time we felt crowded was in the Princess Theater. If you did not find a seat 45 minutes before the show, you were likely relegated to the end. Also while every seat has a view of the stage, it should be known that when the entire stage is used, seats on the ends of the rows could not see the back part of the stage.

 

These few glitches however, did not ruin what we felt was a great time on a great ship with a great crew.