Ocean Princess (Current) Conditon before Sale?

[Harley0711]

Thanks Sobaycruiser / I am currently on the Diamond Princess headed towards Tasmania - looking forward to the Ocean Princess

[chaunceyb]

Thank you for the update on Ocean Princess, we have sailed on her before and will be doing the Iceland cruise this July !

[UpcountryTravelers]

I can't believe you and I were on the same cruise after reading your comments about the dining room meals. :-) We are loyal Princess cruisers so we've had many meals in the main dining room on Princess ships. The meals on the Christmas cruise were tasteless, unappetizing looking, and mediocre at best. Others said the same thing. PLUS, Princess was using the Christmas cruise to "train" most of the wait staff in the dining room. The service was very slow, and they kept changing the servers around so that one never got to know them and they didn't have the usual Princess professionalism. I'm glad you were happy, but it sure left a bad taste in our mouths. Food is subjective, I know, but I think you must have been the exception on that cruise as to liking the meals and service. It was not the usual Princess style. Other employees and our room steward were very good, but they should not have used this holiday cruise as a training cruise for so many servers. I think the chef needs some more training, too. I would not be proud to serve my guests the tasteless meals we had. Hope next cruise is better.

 

Just more proof that experiences can vary, even on the same cruise. We had only 2 servers, and that was because one went home for a family emergency. There must be several chefs as well. :o) Our meals were delicious.

 

The only time we have had really bad servers on Princess was on the Regal last summer. Service so bad we stopped going to the traditional dining room, unless we were late and they had room at a different table. It helped that Royal and Regal have the best buffet at sea, bar none!

[UpcountryTravelers]

All of the R ships in service are all very dated.

 

Some say "dated", others say "traditional". Same difference. We like traditional.

[paul929207]

Like my South Carolina neighbors, we love the R class ships. Over 300 nights on the girls, mostly the Tahitian/Ocean Princess

[Colo Cruiser]

Some say "dated", others say "traditional". Same difference. We like traditional.

 

I got ya the first time. :p

[Quacker]

Just don't go on the last cruise before sale. We were on the last cruise of the small Royal. Before we got to the last port - the shops were closed, very small choice if wine (only the very expensive available), boxes stacked in public areas, pictures off the wall, etc. Did have a good cruise as had excellent food and service. The last week felt like we were traveling in a warehouse. Just beware. Don

[Colo Cruiser]

Just don't go on the last cruise before sale. We were on the last cruise of the small Royal. Before we got to the last port - the shops were closed, very small choice if wine (only the very expensive available), boxes stacked in public areas, pictures off the wall, etc. Did have a good cruise as had excellent food and service. The last week felt like we were traveling in a warehouse. Just beware. Don

 

 

Good point.....

Same issues on a cruise before a major drydock too. :(

[Harley0711]

Just don't go on the last cruise before sale. We were on the last cruise of the small Royal. Before we got to the last port - the shops were closed, very small choice if wine (only the very expensive available), boxes stacked in public areas, pictures off the wall, etc. Did have a good cruise as had excellent food and service. The last week felt like we were traveling in a warehouse. Just beware. Don

 

I can not comment on your 'Royal' cruise -

 

However, the last cruise for the Ocean is a 64 day cruise and the cheapest (inside) cabin is Over $11,000 per person - I am going to go out on a limb here and say that Princess will Not do what your 'Royal' did - Anyone who is going to put out over $11,000 for an inside and over $14,000 for an Ocean View or Balcony - are Not your new cruiser but people who are expecting a lot out of Princess - of course only time will tell.

 

BTW - Your 'Royal' are you talking about Royal Caribbean cruise line or

 

one of these?

 

Several cruise ships have carried the name Royal Princess:

Artania was named Royal Princess from 1984 until 2005

Adonia was named Royal Princess from 2007 until 2011

Edited March 23, 2015 by Harley0711

[caribill]

 

BTW - Your 'Royal' are you talking about Royal Caribbean cruise line or

 

one of these?

 

Several cruise ships have carried the name Royal Princess:

Artania was named Royal Princess from 1984 until 2005

Adonia was named Royal Princess from 2007 until 2011

 

The one in red was the voyage it happened on.

 

Just because you are on a long, expensive cruise does not mean they will keep the botique stocked and wines stocked for the entire cruise.

 

The last Royal cruise was a 26 day cruise from Tahiti to Fort Lauderdale and was also priced higher than normal.

Edited March 23, 2015 by caribill

[beg3yrs]

I wrote to Princess a couple of weeks ago about this very cruise as I am booked on it. One of my concerns was based on what was posted in this thread (bold-red). This is the reply I received.

 

Note: Names have been changed (italics) to protect the guilty.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Dear Mr beg3yrs,

 

Thank you for your correspondence regarding your upcoming cruise onboard Ocean Princess. We appreciate the time you have taken to share your concerns, and we welcome the opportunity to respond at this time.

 

Each Platinum and Elite Member receives a credit towards the purchase of a package in our Internet Cafes or for use on their personal laptops. For this voyage each member who is Platinum or above in a cabin will receive 500 internet minutes.

 

Your concern about the services that will be provided on this last voyage of the Ocean Princess have been noted. We strive to provide the same outstanding service on all of our sailing's regardless of if it is a ships first or last sailing with the Princess family. We hope that you will find that this holds true on the Ocean Princess as well.

 

Your opinion and suggestions are very important to us. Please be informed your comments about the itinerary, on-board auction, and internet minutes will be passed on to the responsible Department Heads. Passenger satisfaction is our primary goal. We take all concerns and comments seriously and take action when needed.

 

Mr beg3yrs, thank you once again for taking the time to share your concerns. We look forward to having you onboard Ocean Princess in January for what we hope will be a completely enjoyable cruise vacation. Until then, we send our kind regards.

 

Sincerely,

 

Princess Cruises

Customer Relations Specialist

customerrelations@princesscruises.com

 

---------------------------------------------------------------

 

I'm sure we all take what Princess says with a grain of salt, but at least they have been put on notice that this is a concern.

 

[Colo Cruiser]

I wrote to Princess a couple of weeks ago about this very cruise as I am booked on it. One of my concerns was based on what was posted in this thread (bold-red). This is the reply I received.

 

Note: Names have been changed (italics) to protect the guilty.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Dear Mr beg3yrs,

 

Your concern about the services that will be provided on this last voyage of the Ocean Princess have been noted. We strive to provide the same outstanding service on all of our sailing's regardless of if it is a ships first or last sailing with the Princess family. We hope that you will find that this holds true on the Ocean Princess as well.

 

Sincerely,

 

Princess Cruises

Customer Relations Specialist

customerrelations@princesscruises.com

 

 

Of course they are going to say that........

Did you really expect anything different?

[chamima]

I wrote to Princess a couple of weeks ago about this very cruise as I am booked on it. One of my concerns was based on what was posted in this thread (bold-red). This is the reply I received.

 

Note: Names have been changed (italics) to protect the guilty.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Dear Mr beg3yrs,

 

Thank you for your correspondence regarding your upcoming cruise onboard Ocean Princess. We appreciate the time you have taken to share your concerns, and we welcome the opportunity to respond at this time.

 

Each Platinum and Elite Member receives a credit towards the purchase of a package in our Internet Cafes or for use on their personal laptops. For this voyage each member who is Platinum or above in a cabin will receive 500 internet minutes.

 

Your concern about the services that will be provided on this last voyage of the Ocean Princess have been noted. We strive to provide the same outstanding service on all of our sailing's regardless of if it is a ships first or last sailing with the Princess family. We hope that you will find that this holds true on the Ocean Princess as well.

 

Your opinion and suggestions are very important to us. Please be informed your comments about the itinerary, on-board auction, and internet minutes will be passed on to the responsible Department Heads. Passenger satisfaction is our primary goal. We take all concerns and comments seriously and take action when needed.

 

Mr beg3yrs, thank you once again for taking the time to share your concerns. We look forward to having you onboard Ocean Princess in January for what we hope will be a completely enjoyable cruise vacation. Until then, we send our kind regards.

 

Sincerely,

 

Princess Cruises

Customer Relations Specialist

customerrelations@princesscruises.com

 

---------------------------------------------------------------

 

I'm sure we all take what Princess says with a grain of salt, but at least they have been put on notice that this is a concern.

 

 

 

 

We were on B2Bs in February and March right before this last cruise of the Royal.

Princess offered us an upgrade and a free cruise on the 26 day if we would give up our cabin on our cruise. We would have loved to but a grandchild was due during the 26 day so we couldn't but because of that I kept up with that cruise.

The problem wasn't service - it was goods. (stores closed, unavailability of certain wine, liquors,etc.)

They have assured you that service will remain the same. It will as it's the same wonderful crew. It's other things that may suffer.

Forewarned is forearmed.

[beg3yrs]

 

I'm sure we all take what Princess says with a grain of salt, but at least they have been put on notice that this is a concern.

 

 

Of course they are going to say that........

Did you really expect anything different?

 

As indicated by the last part of my post, no, I didn't expect anything different.

[Wehwalt]

I've always taken the position that Princess will take pride in keeping up standards on the Ocean until it is turned over.

[beg3yrs]

I've always taken the position that Princess will take pride in keeping up standards on the Ocean until it is turned over.

 

You and I both are staking a considerable amount of money with Princess that this will be true.

[Wehwalt]

You and I both are staking a considerable amount of money with Princess that this will be true.

 

That is true. It is an epic journey, but it is a pricey one. I should hate to, say, have part of the exterior decks blocked off because they want to get started early. But I think Princess must know the passengers are going to be very sensitive to that sort of thing.

[beg3yrs]

That is true. It is an epic journey, but it is a pricey one. I should hate to, say, have part of the exterior decks blocked off because they want to get started early. But I think Princess must know the passengers are going to be very sensitive to that sort of thing.

 

Yes I agree. I don't see an incentive for Princess to start things early since that doesn't benefit Princess but would benefit Oceania.

 

It is more likely, as others have posted, that there won't be a lot of stock left in the shops. My past experiences has led me to believe that Princess does not like to transfer stock between ships and as such, they don't want much left on the OP at the end of the last voyage. That does lead one to believe there will be a huge sale near the end of the voyage for anything left on board.

 

With regard to a shortage of wine onboard, our last voyage a year ago on the OP had the same issue, and the OP wasn't even sold at that time. The way that was solved was simply to let passengers bring on anything and everything they wanted in the form of adult beverages. I suspect this will be the case for the last voyage as well. Malbec anyone?

Edited March 24, 2015 by beg3yrs

[caribill]

Yes I agree. I don't see an incentive for Princess to start things early since that doesn't benefit Princess but would benefit Oceania.

 

 

No, it benefits Princess not Oceania.

 

Princess has a contract to turn over the ship to Oceania on a certain date. Before that date, they have a considerable amount of work to do. Doing much of it during the last cruise means they can accomplish the work in an orderly fashion by the contracted turnover date.

 

This includes drawing down the stocks of all consumables and items for sale in the boutique.

 

It is just like when you move from one house to another. You have a contract to be out of the house by a certain date and by that time everything you are taking with you must be gone from the house.

 

Now I admit I do not know what that turnover date is, but I bet it is closer to the end date of that last voyage than being at a later date.

[Harley0711]

Just got home from our 16 day Norway cruise aboard the Ocean - all went very well and no issues to report - she still looks good IF you take into consideration she is old - she does show signs of wear but for us - it really was a non issue - minor cosmetics.

Food and service was very good

Stores were very well stocked

 

We cruise 800 miles North of the Arctic Circle and therefore it was very cool out side most of the time - we saw snow 'falling' three different days.

 

I have been on 17 different Princess cruises and several other cruise lines - This Ocean Princess has been the ONLY ship that I have seen that allows SMOKING in a large public area ( Deck 10 Tahitian Lounge. I really enjoyed this lounge in the afternoon and early evening - great place to sit, have a beer,coffee and watch the scenery go by --- I complained to the ship about the smoking - was told "up to this cruise - Smoking was allowed in that lounge 24/7 = now only after 3pm...

 

What they do is allow smokers to gather in one row of tables just as you walk in on the starboard side = Like the smoke will Stay right there ???

Remember the days when smokers sat in the rear seats of an Aircraft - the smoke did not stay there.

 

I respect smokers rights to smoke - I feel their right should Not Trump my right to breath clean air.

 

The smokers have the Casino (Most nights) and outside on certain deck areas - Princess should keep them out of the INDOOR public areas.

 

Other than that - Great Cruise and very nice ship

 

for anyone under about 30 - stepping on board they might feel they have arrived at Grandma's house (Old school décor) Nice but very old school.

 

You know you on a ship with older people when you walk by the casino bar and the piano player is playing "Daisy, Daisy - Bicycle built for two" LOL

 

one great point - not one baby or toddler on board = that was nice, not to sit for a show and hear a baby cry or a toddler running up the isle.

Edited June 26, 2015 by Harley0711

[chaunceyb]

Thanks for the update on the Ocean Princess. Recently went to a Oceania Cruises sales presentation and they are excited about adding the ship to their fleet (after extensive renovations).

We sail July 4 around Iceland, looking forward to it !

We did the North Cape cruise on the Ocean a few years ago and also the Tahiti cruise. Smaller ships better suited for warm weather sailing.

The Ocean is the only Princess ship we have sailed on in recent years because of small size and unique itineraries. We just can't get into the new mega-ships, but to each their own !

[MSMcDuffy]

I was on the Ocean's last cruise, disembarking 8/25, so I'm throwing in my 2 cents. I thought she looked great. I didn't notice anything worn except a little rust on an outside part. She looked much better than the Celebrity Millennium, which we were on last year, and Ocean is 1 yr older.

[Colo Cruiser]

I was on the Ocean's last cruise, disembarking 8/25, so I'm throwing in my 2 cents. I thought she looked great. I didn't notice anything worn except a little rust on an outside part. She looked much better than the Celebrity Millennium, which we were on last year, and Ocean is 1 yr older.

 

Well thats good to hear. :)

[beg3yrs]

Over on the Roll Call for the Farewell Season of the Ocean Princess, yet another CC member has sent a letter to Princess about the last voyage(s) and has received a response.

 

You can view it here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=47560042&postcount=210

 

I did find this Princess comment amusing, "Please consider that Cruise Critic is a third party website and we cannot guarantee that the information on the site is accurate or trusted."

 

Talk about stating the obvious, even though that's often true about Princess as well!!! :D

[caribill]

Over on the Roll Call for the Farewell Season of the Ocean Princess, yet another CC member has sent a letter to Princess about the last voyage(s) and has received a response.

 

You can view it here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=47560042&postcount=210

 

I did find this Princess comment amusing, "Please consider that Cruise Critic is a third party website and we cannot guarantee that the information on the site is accurate or trusted."

 

Talk about stating the obvious, even though that's often true about Princess as well!!! :D

 

It is also obvious that Princess ignored the part of the letter that related the direct experience of a friend that was on the last cruise of the former Royal Princess.

 

The CC member should keep that response from Princess and make appropriate use of it if the final voyage of the Ocean Princess does not meet the promise made : "We do plan to conduct and operate these last voyages as our regular voyages. We plan to be fully stocked and functional, just like any other voyage on the Ocean Princess."