Just Back From The Royal

[Squire5000]

We're just back from the 2/9/14 sailing of the Royal Princess and have to tell everyone, we were quite impressed with this ship. I had some misgivings based on some previous reviews but I was glad we sailed her.

 

A few tidbits:

 

Never had a problem securing a lounge chair. We used the Retreat Pool 2 days without any problem. However, as there is little shade there, we eventually found a place on deck 17 with adequate shade. The only drawback was a fairly constant foul odor in that area. On sea days, deck 17 filled up rather quickly. Not so much on port days.

 

The Horizon Court is very well designed. Never had a problem getting a seat, even at breakfast.

 

We never ate in the main dining room. We heard some people speak of issues getting a table for 2 using Anytime Dining. We ate 2 meals in the Crown Grill, 2 at Alfredos, and the remainder in the Horizon Court.

 

The first formal night was the Champagne Waterfall. The Captain show up for about a minute, welcomed everyone and disappeared. On the second formal night, they had the Captain's Circle reception though we didn't attend as we were at dinner in the Crown Grill.

 

The Elite/Platinum evening cocktail event was in Club 6. It was OK though we missed being able to sit in Skywalkers. Club 6 was rather dark and foreboding.

 

We attended one show, Beatlemaniacs. A must see.

 

We had a mini suite with a pretty good size balcony but it appeared that the normal balcony was pretty small.

 

We stopped by the fountain show. Not Bellagio but we weren't expecting Bellagio. The fountain show lasts about 7 minutes.

 

Embarkation/disembarkation was painless. We were on the ship about 11:45 AM.

 

The staff throughout the ship was outstanding. Best ever.

 

Sorry this is a little bit disjointed; just a stream of consciousness as I recall the cruise.

 

Any questions, I'll try to answer.

[janetz]

We're just back from the 2/9/14 sailing of the Royal Princess and have to tell everyone, we were quite impressed with this ship. I had some misgivings based on some previous reviews but I was glad we sailed her.

 

A few tidbits:

 

Never had a problem securing a lounge chair. We used the Retreat Pool 2 days without any problem. However, as there is little shade there, we eventually found a place on deck 17 with adequate shade. The only drawback was a fairly constant foul odor in that area. On sea days, deck 17 filled up rather quickly. Not so much on port days.

 

The Horizon Court is very well designed. Never had a problem getting a seat, even at breakfast.

 

We never ate in the main dining room. We heard some people speak of issues getting a table for 2 using Anytime Dining. We ate 2 meals in the Crown Grill, 2 at Alfredos, and the remainder in the Horizon Court.

 

The first formal night was the Champagne Waterfall. The Captain show up for about a minute, welcomed everyone and disappeared. On the second formal night, they had the Captain's Circle reception though we didn't attend as we were at dinner in the Crown Grill.

 

The Elite/Platinum evening cocktail event was in Club 6. It was OK though we missed being able to sit in Skywalkers. Club 6 was rather dark and foreboding.

 

We attended one show, Beatlemaniacs. A must see.

 

We had a mini suite with a pretty good size balcony but it appeared that the normal balcony was pretty small.

 

We stopped by the fountain show. Not Bellagio but we weren't expecting Bellagio. The fountain show lasts about 7 minutes.

 

Embarkation/disembarkation was painless. We were on the ship about 11:45 AM.

 

The staff throughout the ship was outstanding. Best ever.

 

Sorry this is a little bit disjointed; just a stream of consciousness as I recall the cruise.

 

Any questions, I'll try to answer.

 

Thank you! A couple of questions. Did you use the Enclave at all? If so, what is the cost? Sanctuary, same question. :D

[azdmelani]

Thanks for the review!

[akeasley]

Thanks for the reivew! One of these days I need to catch the Beatlemaniacs :-)

[TorontoTL]

I totally agree the ship is awesome, I hope you write a review for CC. I am just back in Toronto now and will start to work on a review, thank goodness I wrote the Live From thread as it has all my thoughts in it to jog my memory.

[Dr Alan]

Hi. Did you use the plunge pool? Is it a deep pool or more of a splash pool for the toddlers/my wife? :-)

 

Thanks

 

Alan

[ronl]

what time did u arrive at the dock son ce u were on the ship at11:45?

[Grego]

Glad you liked the Royal. We will be on her in April.

[tobyt]

We were also on last week and while we liked many elements of the ship there were equally so many concerns it will make us consider another line for next winter's break!

[Av8tor]

We were also on last week and while we liked many elements of the ship there were equally so many concerns it will make us consider another line for next winter's break!

 

Don't leave us hanging...

 

What didn't you like so others can consider how they'd feel about the issues.

[OCruisers]

Thanks for your Royal Princess review. Glad you had such a wonderful cruise! :)

 

LuLu

~~~

[Clutterlady]

We were also on last week and while we liked many elements of the ship there were equally so many concerns it will make us consider another line for next winter's break!

 

May I ask what your concerns were????

[NeurosurgeryNP]

Was the all inclusive alcohol and beverage package being offered?

 

Do you know how long the Beatlemaniacs are remaining on board for? We loved them. Saw them in 2008 on the Caribbean Princess. We are sailing on the Royal in a week and a half and hope to catch them then too.

[kendon]

Just back from the Royal two days now and agree that the cruise experience was fantastic!

[Squire5000]

Here are some answers to some of your questions.

 

Didn't use the Enclave or The Sanctuary. We toured The Sanctuary. Very nice but it is on the bow of the ship and some complained about it being windy, particularly on sea days. To illustrate, on our return to Port Everglades from St. Maarten, hats were flying off people's heads. As you enter the retreat pool area, winds are very strong.

 

Pools. The only pool we used was the Retreat Pool. At the deep end, it's close to 7 feet deep. Regarding the kiddie pool, there were a lot of toddlers having a good time.

 

Beverage Package. Don't recall seeing anything about it. I ordered my scotch from room service.

 

Arrival time at the port for embarkation. We got there around 11:00 AM and checked in and were directed to the Elite Lounge. We started to depart the lounge around 11:40. The rest of the cruisers started to show up in the Horizon Court around noon.

 

Hope this covers everything so far.

[AndJackie]

Hi there - I was on the same cruise as you and left with the same good impression of this stunning ship.

 

We used Sanctuary on all three sea days, and enjoyed it very much. (you have to get up pretty early the day before to secure a sport for the next day, though! One or two started lining up at 4:00 a.m.)

 

The last sea day was the windiest that the staff have seen on Royal's Caribbean itinerary so far, I was told.

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[Clutterlady]

Just back from the Royal two days now and agree that the cruise experience was fantastic!

 

Would love to hear more of your thoughts on the Royal!!!!!

[Mom33]

Thanks for the review. It's nice that others are stopping by with their thoughts on the cruise and enjoyed it also.:D

[mistyann]

Thanks for the review, we will be on her in April :D This might be a silly question, but I haven't been on a Princess cruise in over 15 years! Do you have to have cash for the casino or can you charge it to your ship account (I don't want to get cash/funds on board that charges you a fee)? Thanks!!

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the comments.

[I object 2]

Thanks for the review, we will be on her in April :D This might be a silly question, but I haven't been on a Princess cruise in over 15 years! Do you have to have cash for the casino or can you charge it to your ship account (I don't want to get cash/funds onboard that charges you a fee)? Thanks!!

 

You may use cash or your onboard account. There's no fee for charging to your onboard account. Just insert your cruise card into the machine and download the amount you'd like to play and....presto! You have credits on the machine and a charge for that amount on your on board account. Easy-peasy.

 

Another method is to gift yourself casino credits. You can do so by calling Princess, tell the Princess rep how much you'd like to purchase and give him/her your credit card #. A casino credit voucher will be placed in your cabin that you take to the casino to redeem for cash.

[tobyt]

I am back at the dreaded W. Word work......wrote a lengthy review last evening get only to have the power and DHL go down due to the spotty weather...All was lost....sigh.....I will try to redo it this

[Sweet Dreams]

Thanks for sharing....great info!

I wish I could search as I am sure it has been written. I am interested in the type of band that was at the pool during the day on the Royal.

Thank You again for your review.

[Squire5000]

The band was pretty good though I forget their name. They also performed in the Piazza on embarkation day if memory serves me correctly. Senior moment!!