An Unscientific Look At The Concerns About The Condition of Caribbean Princess

[JimmyVWine]

It seems that at least once a week, a post is started or revived that resurfaces concerns about the condition of CB. Worries and questions are posted because posters have noted bad reviews and reports of a threadbare ship that is rusting and ready for scrap. And others chime in to say that they just got off the ship and it is fine, and that the reviews should be looked at with a skeptical eye. So I took a few minutes to do a deeper dive to see what exactly these reviews are saying, and how they compare to another ship of similar age and refurbishment schedule. And from the outset, I knew that this would be unscientific, but that didn't stop me. So here's what I did, and what I found.

 

• I looked at User Reviews posted only here on CC.
  
• I looked at the overall numerical reviews from Day One of the ships' service.
  
• I examined in greater detail the reviews that have been written from January 2016 until today, as those should be far more relevant than reviews written in, say, 2008.
  
• I compared Caribbean Princess, (service date of 2004 with a most recent refurbishment (not "dry dock scrape and paint") of 2011) with the Crown Princess (service date of 2006 with a most recent refurbishment date of 2011 as well.)
  
• For these two ships, every "one star" and "two star" review was read in its entirety to see if the condition of the ship was a factor in the low score. In the vast majority of instances, it was not. The low scores were caused by the overall Princess product, or poor customer service, and in some instances, some really silly misconceptions, such as: (and I'm not making this up), someone who was under the impression when they boarded that the CB would be going through the Panama Canal locks on their Caribbean cruise, only to find out that the ship was too big. As if the captain got right up to the locks, knocked on the door, only to have a canal worker shake his head and say: "su barco es demasiado grande." Which is why reviews have to be taken with a grain of salt (around the rim of a Margarita glass.)
  

 

There is nothing scientific about this. The ships sail on diverse itineraries and service different demographics. This definitely skews things a bit. But still, one has to start somewhere. So do the reviews of Caribbean Princess stand out in any way that should make it the subject of constant questioning? Let's see.

 

From the very beginning of service until now...

 

Caribbean Princess

1743 Reviews

881 ***** 50.5%

425 **** 24.4%

259 *** 14.8%

111 ** 6.3%

67* 3.8%

Under the CC standard, both five and four star reviews equate to "Love It!" status, so that comes out to 75% Love it! And it stands to reason that two and one star reviews would mean "Not So Much!" So on that front, the score is 10.1%

 

From 1/1/16 until today:

80 reviews

20 ***** 25%

21 **** 26.25%

22 *** 27.5%

8 ** 10%

9 * 11.25%

51.25% Love It!

21.25% Not So Much!

Of the two and one star reviews, only 5 focused on the tired condition of the ship as their main complaint.

 

Now let's compare that to the Crown Princess

 

From the beginning

1203 Reviews

564 ***** 46.9%

301 **** 25%

202 *** 16.8%

87 ** 7.2%

49* 4%

So that comes out to 72% Love it! and 11.2% Not So Much. Overall, these numbers from first date of service until today are largely identical. So let's look at more recent history.

 

From 1/1/16 until today:

92 reviews

18 ***** 19.5%

24 **** 26%

29 *** 31.5%

16** 17.4%

5 * 5.4%

51.25% Love It!

22.8% Not So Much

Only 4 of the two and one star reviews focused on the condition of the ship.

 

So doesn't this more or less (unscientifically) reveal that the constant refrain about the Caribbean Princess' condition is force of habit and not the result of the ship being an outlier in terms of its current state? I've always thought that the notion that the reviews of CB were concerning was a myth, and the data seems to support that. I really don't think that CB is getting any more negative treatment than any other ship that hasn't had a refurb since 2011. Could it use one? Sure. But is this ship the red-headed stepchild of the fleet? In my opinion...hardly.

[IECalCruiser]

Interesting analysis. It appears that the last six months of reviews show a decline in 4/5 star ratings on both ships for 2016 compared to lifetime ratings. The Star dropped from 76% to 51% and the Crown from 72% to 51%. I wonder if that is the same for other Princess ships?

 

We were on the Crown two years ago and there was a fair amount of rust on our E731 balcony. Oceans are hard on ships and they are constantly be painted. I would certainly not reduce the rating of the ship, whether a Princess ship or any other cruise line, for this normal wear and tear. We have not sailed on any other cruise line since 2002 so I can not make any comment on how Princess compares with other cruise lines regarding their maintenance schedules.

[JF - retired RRT]

A heartfelt "thank you!!" for all the work you did for this report.

 

My favorite story (not from a review) was when we were getting on a tender to return to the ship and the older lady in front of us said, "Look at all the salt water crust on the windows. Don't they ever wash these boats?" True story.

 

I pay very little attention to reviews of the condition of the ship.

[shredie]

The low scores were caused by the overall Princess product, or poor customer service, and in some instances, some really silly misconceptions, such as: (and I'm not making this up), someone who was under the impression when they boarded that the CB would be going through the Panama Canal locks on their Caribbean cruise, only to find out that the ship was too big. As if the captain got right up to the locks, knocked on the door, only to have a canal worker shake his head and say: "su barco es demasiado grande." Which is why reviews have to be taken with a grain of salt (around the rim of a Margarita glass.)

 

Hahahaha! Good work, Jimmy! It seems to me that every ship has a month or so of bashing here on CC before another ship takes its place. I guess it's been the Caribbean Princess' turn lately.

[Thrak]

I tend to ignore most of the bashing... Even my recent thread about Island Princess didn't really bash the ship even if I did say I didn't like the changes. The ship itself was fine.

[TracieABD]

Shredie- You are so right about the trend of "ship bashing". If you are a long time member- you can spot it. I have seen the CB, the Island (though this might be well-deserved- especially AFTER the retro-fit), the Crown (with noro), the Star, and Grand all take their turn. And let us not forget the Royal- both pre and post- float-out...

 

I have learned to take these reviews with a teeny tiny grain of salt.

 

JimmyV- Thank you for the quantification of the reviews- two words to describe how I feel about this thread--- LOVE IT!!!!

Edited July 22, 2016 by TracieABD

[TracieABD]

Like!

[Babr]

The only review that concerned me was the one of Window Suite 305 (posted around March, I think) because it was accompanied by pictures of troubling conditions - food/drink debris dried on the walls, rusty/moldy repairs to the shower, stains on the carpet, and seriously scuffed end tables.

 

I have since read that this cabin has been deep cleaned and restored to acceptable standards, but I would be justifiably upset to find my cabin in such a state.

 

Remarks about food, service, or performance of the Cruise Director don't bother me much as they are subjective, but pictures of filth and neglect are hard to ignore.

[NavyVeteran]

Thank you for your analysis. The Caribbean Princess is one of my favorite ships - I currently have four future cruises booked on that ship.

 

However I expect my January 2008 cruise on the Caribbean Princess to go through the Panama Canal (partial transit), and I will be very unhappy if it doesn't.:)

[Kinkacruiser]

Maybe some Caribbean and Crown reviewers have enjoyed the Royal or Regal of late and their impressions of the older ships were somewhat ' coloured'.

 

What an interesting analysis, Jimmy. Thanks for taking the time to post it.

[h3rjp]

Very interesting work.

 

Well, I think about my own cruising history. I loved the Star Princess. But since then I've been on lot newer ships. And if I went back to the star would I be as delighted? Probably not as I'm comparing it to a product where things are much more polished, newer looking and in some ways much better (and in other ways definitely not).

 

It's a hard task for Princess. With so many new build ships coming out all the time, including their own fleet, older ones look and feel tired. And the sort of major upgrades to make them comparable cost a * lot *.

 

I know this is a really silly one, but the newer ships pool areas have little trees around them. And modern furniture. Compare that to a photo of, say Crown, the pool area looks a bit sparse; slightly lower-grade.

 

I'm glad I'm not the Carnival Corporation trying to make the decision of what the upgrade and when. People like thing to be premium. Do I want a tired old Ford or a newer BMW? No brainer [emoji3] specially if the BMW is the same price...

[PescadoAmarillo]

Add me to those who appreciate and respect your unscientific look at Caribbean Princess reviews (not least because I never met analysis I didn't like).

[RocketMan275]

However I expect my January 2008 cruise on the Caribbean Princess to go through the Panama Canal (partial transit), and I will be very unhappy if it doesn't.:)

 

How did that January 2008 cruise turn out?

Edited July 22, 2016 by RocketMan275

[NavyVeteran]

How did that January 2008 cruise turn out?

 

Sorry, my finger slipped on the keyboard. I was referring to my January 2018 Panama Canal cruise on the Caribbean Princess.

[beg3yrs]

Way less time than it took Dr. rdsqrl to get her doctorate. It isn't real "research" after all. Scrolling down a few pages of reviews in reverse chronological order taking note of the number of stars given in each review isn't exactly splitting the atom. And when you are sitting in O'Hare on a 95 degree day with massive thunderstorms all around watching your departure time get extended by 30 minutes every 15 minutes, it isn't exactly like I have anything better to do. When a 6:15 flight becomes an 8:30 flight, there are lots of ways to kill time, none of them terribly productive.

 

Well said Jimmy. I'm even more impressed you did it sitting at ORD. What a great way to get some mental exercise.

[Level six]

Fun!! Thanks for the thread.

[smslms]

Jimmy, thanks for the time and trouble to put this info together.

 

Like you I'm not a great believer in much of what gets put into reviews. We've sailed on most of the Princess fleet, but never the CB, however that will change in a few months. We're booked on her in October and as it happens will be in F305 so it will be interesting to form our own opinion.

 

We've sailed in window suites quite often, usually in 305 or 307. Could have had either for this sailing and chose 305. Somehow I'm thinking that things can't be all that bad.:)

[JimmyVWine]

We're booked on her in October and as it happens will be in F305 so it will be interesting to form our own opinion.

We are booked for November in a Mini Suite. There are still a couple of Window suites available for, as Clint Eastwood would say, "for a few dollars more." But I can't get myself to pull the trigger and give up my balcony. There is a part of me hoping for the one in a thousand upgrade to the Window Suite so the decision will be made for me. I'd love to hear your impressions. Of the Window Suite, that is. Not of Clint Eastwood.

[NavyVeteran]

We are booked for November in a Mini Suite. There are still a couple of Window suites available for, as Clint Eastwood would say, "for a few dollars more." But I can't get myself to pull the trigger and give up my balcony. There is a part of me hoping for the one in a thousand upgrade to the Window Suite so the decision will be made for me. I'd love to hear your impressions. Of the Window Suite, that is. Not of Clint Eastwood.

 

I do not believe you will get an upgrade or upsell offer to a window suite. I believe they upsell from outside to window suite or from mini-suite to suite with balcony. A window suite only costs a couple of hundred dollars more than a mini-suite, so I suspect they think if you booked a mini-suite that you would rather have the balcony. If you receive an upsell offer, it will probably be to a suite with balcony.

 

There have been many threads describing the window suite - I suggest you search for them and read the comments. I will be in one on a trans-Atlantic this September, on a United Kingdom cruise August 2017, and on a Panama Canal cruise January 2018, so you can tell I don't like them.:rolleyes:

 

But it also depends on the itinerary and on how much you would use your balcony.

[caribsun]

Thanks for the analysis, I will be on the CB in December. When I cruise I put on my rose colour sunglasses and everthing looks great ! :)

[smslms]

We are booked for November in a Mini Suite. There are still a couple of Window suites available for, as Clint Eastwood would say, "for a few dollars more." But I can't get myself to pull the trigger and give up my balcony. There is a part of me hoping for the one in a thousand upgrade to the Window Suite so the decision will be made for me. I'd love to hear your impressions. Of the Window Suite, that is. Not of Clint Eastwood.

 

For us, the itinerary, and of course which ship we're on has a lot to do with whether we give up the balcony. On a colder weather cruise I'd give up the balcony in a heartbeat for the extra space in the WS.

 

Strangely enough we were on a Hawaiian cruise this Spring in a mini. The weather was so lousy that we were on the balcony I think twice, both times in port. You never know what you're going to get. The other really good thing about a WS is that you're really close to Vines.:D

[IECalCruiser]

We've done a WS twice, once on a B2B in Alaska on the Golden and once on 10 day Mexico cruise from San Francisco on the Grand. We almost always book balcony or mini-suite cabins but didn't miss the balcony on those cruises. The Alaska B2B was in 2012 when the launch pricing for WS on the last three cruises in September was less than the launch pricing for an oceanview. There may have been later discounting of the oceanview cabins but we paid approximately $2,200/person for the 14 days. It was a cold and rainy day in Tracy Arm and we watched the beautiful scenery pass by out of our two large windows while relaxing on the sofa and in a comfortable chair. The weather sailing from San Francisco to Cabo can be quite cool and balcony use is often minimal. We would do either cruise in a WS again. BTW, the Alaska B2B moved us each from 10 to 14 cruise credits and the subsequent 3 day cruise from Vancouver to Los Angles in an oceanview (booked an inside guarantee) got us home and to Elite status.

 

You are close to Vines, the IC, the Crown Grill, the two DR's used for anytime dining and the Princess Theater. Unfortunately also close to the shops for DW's shopping opportunities [emoji33]

Edited July 23, 2016 by IECalCruiser