Caribbean Princess - British Isles questions..

[MrsScooby]

We always take a travel bottle and refill it daily with ice in the Horizon Court. Works great and it's free and filtered water.

 

That's good to know. Similar to DCL as well.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I've done the Caribbean Princess and I've done the British Isles on Princess. You are in for a treat.

 

The ship is lovely. The pools are great. Movies Under The Stars is wonderful (gets cold out there at night- bring warm clothing). Sabitini's is delicious( the artichoke appetizer and braised ribs with penne are to die for) . They offer a pub lunch during the cruise in the Crown Grill (no fee) and the International Cafe has pastries at breakfast, sandwiches and salads at lunch, and desserts all the time. It's more convenient at breakfast than the buffet IMO. If you want bacon and eggs or a bagel with smoked salmon- go to the main dining room for breakfast. I preferred it to the buffet (less crowded). There is trivia and other games. It's a fun ship IMO. Little secret- on Deck 17 (aft) there are two enormous hot tubs that people don't find right away. Go there for sailaways- great view.

 

Ports

Guernsey- easy to do your own thing. Public bus takes you around the island (it's on 24 square miles) in under 2 hours. There is a big fort near where the tenders dock. Lovely place.

 

Cohb- we stayed in the town and just walked around. I enjoyed the sail in to Cohb (get up early and be at the bow).

 

Belfast- we did the Giant's Causeway excursion. Well worth it. We walked from the parking lot down to the Causeway (it's a 20 minute walk each way) and it was a wonderful experience. Really interesting rock formations. Had lunch (get their early if you can) at the pub in the Causeway Hotel. We had Steak and Guiness Pie with a side of Champs (mashed potatoes) Yum!

 

In Dublin I did the hop-on-hop-off bus on my own. It was a good overview. The Guiness factory is the highlight. Less interesting (over hyped) was the Book of Kells at Trinity College, but the college is lovely and the Library is impressive. Nice gift shop there.

 

Greenock- We just did laundry on the ship that day and walked around in the rain in Greenock. It's not wildly interesting there. I'd do an excursion if you are looking for something to do.

 

Invergorden- We did the Loch Ness Excursion, which was fine but nothing spectacular. You get to see some of the highlands with heather and that sort of thing. There is an old castle at Loch Ness that I enjoyed exploring. People in Scotland are so nice! Good gift shop at the Castle. Inverness is close to the ship and it's a lovely town with hanging baskets. I'd opt to spend my time there instead of Loch Ness.

 

In Queensferry- they offer a roundtrip shuttle for about 10 pounds per person. It drops off at the foot of Edinburgh Castle. From the drop off it's about 2/3 of mile uphill to the Castle. We spent the day exploring the castle. Had lunch at the Castle and then walked around the grounds. There was a parade in town that day (in August of 2008). We had fun. Memorable experience.

 

LeHavre- I made arrangements in advance with the cruise line to disembark on Day 11 in LeHavre. We were told we could disembark anytime while in port. ABSOLUTELY DO THIS. It is the most leisurely disembarkation process. So we had breakfast and lunch onboard and disembarked at 1:00PM. Took a two minute cab ride to the train station. Bought tickets for Paris and Voila! We were in Paris 2 hours later. Stayed there for two nights at the Hotel Garden Elysee (GREAT LOCATION) and never needed another taxi the rest of the trip. We walked to the Arc, the Tower, the parks, the Champs Elysee. STAY AWAY from the touristy restaurants. Read up on places to eat. Our best meal was at a little Indian restaurant. If you do want to splurge- make a reservation for lunch or dinner (now) at the Eiffel Tower (you get to skip the long lines for the elevators or stairs). We went at night (in August) to the Tower and stood for an hour just for the stairs. It's approximately 200 steps to the first platform (740 to the top of the Tower). We just went to the first platform and felt proud that we walked up and back down. Nice experience.

 

We flew home from CDG airport. It's really worth not going back to Southampton- because Heathrow and Gatwick are not close to the port. CDG is close to Paris and my airline ticket wasn't more expensive to do a split- ticket (London-Paris) rather than a roundtrip (London)

Edited April 19, 2016 by rebeccalouiseagain

[tammymacb]

Thanks for all the responses! So helpful!

[DrMark]

Thanks !

Only my son seems to crave carbonated beverages and even then he usually chooses low or no sugar options.

 

I was on the Caribbean Princess last summer, and I need to warn you that the only low-sugar options on the soda and more package are diet Coke and carbonated water. The other diet options were in cans, and not included.

 

--Mark

[moki'smommy]

We did 7 nights on the Caribbean Princess as a "try out" before booking a British Isles cruise. We have also cruised Celebrity and Disney (platinum) in the last few years. You might find this review helpful.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2288391

[rusty1014]

Regarding bottled water. I took the ship tour last year, and the ship makes its own water--distilled water, and passes it over a mineralization compound to improve taste. The water out of your tap onboard, is better than most bottled water!

[MrsScooby]

I was on the Caribbean Princess last summer, and I need to warn you that the only low-sugar options on the soda and more package are diet Coke and carbonated water. The other diet options were in cans, and not included.

 

--Mark

 

Thanks for the headsup :)

 

My son will be fine with diet coke and/or carbonated water. That's what I meant by "low-sugar". He did like those Italian sodas (San Pellegrino) for a while and then got tired of them. Occasionally he'll ask me to pick up "something carbonated" when I go shopping.

 

When I asked both my kids what they would want they both insisted that they were fine with just water....I'm just wondering if it would be worth it to surprise them with a soda package...last minute doubts as we sail a month from today.

[tammymacb]

All the snarky comments could easily be avoided. The question was answered by the first poster.

 

Neither my husband nor myself would show up in the dining room in "cut offs and thongs". If I had to guess my husband would wear dark pants, a white button down and a tie. I'm encouraging leaving the suit coat home. I'd wear a dress. Nothing beady or viva Las Vegas. Easy to pack and simple with black sandals. That's as formal as I have any intention of getting.

 

If this isn't formal enough, I'll eat somewhere else. Easy peasy.

 

I'm always shocked by "if you booked the cruise you'd know you were supposed to bring those clothes". I know and if I choose not to, I'll go somewhere else.

 

On casual dinners I wear a skirt or capris and a simple top. DH khakis and polos or button shirts. We always look presentable.

 

If you all want to fly extra suitcases for beaded gowns and tuxs have at it. Not my thing.

 

But try to be as pleasant as you feel you look when you're dressed.

Edited April 20, 2016 by tammymacb

[tammymacb]

uuugg. ^^ sorry folks. That last response was not meant for that thread. And of course I can't edit/delete it.

[MrsScooby]

We did 7 nights on the Caribbean Princess as a "try out" before booking a British Isles cruise. We have also cruised Celebrity and Disney (platinum) in the last few years. You might find this review helpful.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2288391

 

Love this !!!

What a great comparison analysis !

 

Really eased my mind as we are sailing next month with the Caribbean Princess in the British Isles as well :)

[MrsScooby]

I've done the Caribbean Princess and I've done the British Isles on Princess. You are in for a treat.

 

The ship is lovely. The pools are great. Movies Under The Stars is wonderful (gets cold out there at night- bring warm clothing). Sabitini's is delicious( the artichoke appetizer and braised ribs with penne are to die for) . They offer a pub lunch during the cruise in the Crown Grill (no fee) and the International Cafe has pastries at breakfast, sandwiches and salads at lunch, and desserts all the time. It's more convenient at breakfast than the buffet IMO. If you want bacon and eggs or a bagel with smoked salmon- go to the main dining room for breakfast. I preferred it to the buffet (less crowded). There is trivia and other games. It's a fun ship IMO. Little secret- on Deck 17 (aft) there are two enormous hot tubs that people don't find right away. Go there for sailaways- great view.

 

 

This is really helpful ! Thanks!

[MrsScooby]

uuugg. ^^ sorry folks. That last response was not meant for that thread. And of course I can't edit/delete it.

 

No worries, we get the same conversations on Disney forums.:)

Edited April 20, 2016 by MrsScooby

[tammymacb]

That side by side comparison is making me feel so much better!

 

I'm sailing with a friend who owns an agency (that specializes in Disney) and her disney loving husband.

 

A friend who's only done 5 DCL cruises in his life. (No other line).

 

And two friends who joined us on their first cruise to do 9 nights on the Magic in Norway.

 

This was a scary proposition. But, so far everyone is going in with a positive attitude and we're hoping to have a second excellent option. Because, I am NOT paying those silly prices DCL is currently throwing out there.

[Meandmymum]

Thanks for the headsup :)

 

My son will be fine with diet coke and/or carbonated water. That's what I meant by "low-sugar". He did like those Italian sodas (San Pellegrino) for a while and then got tired of them. Occasionally he'll ask me to pick up "something carbonated" when I go shopping.

 

When I asked both my kids what they would want they both insisted that they were fine with just water....I'm just wondering if it would be worth it to surprise them with a soda package...last minute doubts as we sail a month from today.

Hi there Laurie, fancy seeing you on this thread!! I paid for a soda drinks package when I cruised for the first time which was a similarly port intensive itinerary & definitely don't think I would have spent that amount if I had paid for the drinks as I went along.

 

Second time around, I chose not to pay for the package & ended up drinking water (which is more than OK) during the day & simply having a soda with dinner.

 

The only thing I would say is the kids are more likely to head off to the disco etc & then the cocktails may be a benefit. Also, if you head off into the pool or something like that & you have left a drink lying around, you don't have to worry too much because you can simply order another! From memory, the drinks were around the $2.50 price & were a typical 250ml glass.

 

Hope that helps & see you on board on the 20th

[MrsScooby]

Hi there Laurie, fancy seeing you on this thread!! I paid for a soda drinks package when I cruised for the first time which was a similarly port intensive itinerary & definitely don't think I would have spent that amount if I had paid for the drinks as I went along.

 

Second time around, I chose not to pay for the package & ended up drinking water (which is more than OK) during the day & simply having a soda with dinner.

 

The only thing I would say is the kids are more likely to head off to the disco etc & then the cocktails may be a benefit. Also, if you head off into the pool or something like that & you have left a drink lying around, you don't have to worry too much because you can simply order another! From memory, the drinks were around the $2.50 price & were a typical 250ml glass.

 

Hope that helps & see you on board on the 20th

 

Thanks Paula !!

Can't wait !

[SpartanMom76]

Following! Great info here! Doing this cruise May 25, 2017 :)