Looking to Try Princess....any friendly advice?

[OCruisers]

Hi Lulu:)...hope you had a good Thanksgiving.

 

The mini suites on the sailing I am looking at are within my pricepoint

so that is why I was going to book one.....I am going to continue

my research;)

 

As for formal nights? I don't mind dressing up but I don't own long

gowns or anything.....is a long skirt and nice top appropriate? Black

dress slacks?

 

Lois ... Happy Thanksgiving to you, my friend.

 

Black pants and a nice top is what I normally wear on Princess for Formal nights.

 

Crooner's is our favorite bar. Sit on a Stool At the Bar so you'll make friends with the bartender and other "bar fly" passengers.:)

 

LuLu

Edited November 25, 2016 by OCruisers

[Number6]

My wonderful wife and I have only sailed on Princess and we love it, so we can't give you any info on how it compares to Celebrity, but this thread right here is a very exhaustive comparison.

[cruiselvr1]

Hello.....after many years of sailing Celebrity, this year brought me

elsewhere. I took my first River Cruise out of Amsterdam (FABULOUS:D)

and I went to New England on Royal. Now 2017 is nearing and I have

NOTHING booked:eek:

I am looking at Ruby Princess in February to the Mexican Riviera. I have

done this itinerary before (quite a few years ago)....any tips on the ship,

food etc would be really helpful. I am a regular cruiser so I do know

the ins and outs of cruising but wondering more specifically about

Princess. I have over 40 cruises with Celebrity so this will be new to

me. Oh, I am thinking of either 1) regular balcony or 2) Mini Suite.

 

Thanks for the replies:)

My DW and I have only cruised Princess, but are ready to move on and try Celebrity. The Caribe deck balconies are the largest, and partially covered. The mini suites balconies which are mostly located on Dolphin deck are not. There are a few covered on Emerald deck. We love the suites for their size, and large covered balconies, and Sabintini's Speciality restaurant breakfast.

[lindy sails]

Hi Louis,

Welcome to the Princess Board. You certainly responded to all my questions about Celebrity. I agree the two lines are similar. The Ruby is a lovely ship and about the size of the S class ships. I do miss the covered pool to swim and relax. Princess has the Sanctuary but there is a charge. I feel very comfortable on both lines. I think the staff is a little more friendly than Celebrity.

 

 

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[Lois R]

Hi Lindy...its Lois;).....thanks for the reply.

 

And thank you to everyone. I appreciate everyone being kind about the

question and the replies too.

[lindy sails]

Hi Lindy...its Lois;).....thanks for the reply.

 

 

 

And thank you to everyone. I appreciate everyone being kind about the

 

question and the replies too.

 

 

[emoji106]Lois, I think you will like Princess. I'll be on the Regal (3rd time) on the 11 day Christmas cruise. It has become my favorite Princess ship! Let us know how you like the Ruby. Enjoy your mini suite! The Caribe deck is very nice if you haven't selected a cabin.

Linda

 

 

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[Lois R]

[emoji106]Lois, I think you will like Princess. I'll be on the Regal (3rd time) on the 11 day Christmas cruise. It has become my favorite Princess ship! Let us know how you like the Ruby. Enjoy your mini suite! The Caribe deck is very nice if you haven't selected a cabin.

Linda

 

 

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Good morning..I haven't even put a deposit down yet. Still researching and I have to put it in at work next week too.

[El Crucero]

As for formal nights? I don't mind dressing up but I don't own long

gowns or anything.....is a long skirt and nice top appropriate? Black

dress slacks?

 

On our last last Princess cruise, they let one guy into the MDR with bib overalls on formal night. I guess he was trying to be funny. Also expect to see a lot of NHRA t-shirts and baseball caps on "formal nights". This was a year ago on Star Princess in Mexico.

[Lois R]

On our last last Princess cruise, they let one guy into the MDR with bib overalls on formal night. I guess he was trying to be funny. Also expect to see a lot of NHRA t-shirts and baseball caps on "formal nights". This was a year ago on Star Princess in Mexico.

 

Sounds like many of the same things on most of the mainstream lines

(including Celebrity).

[xyankee]

Another vote for a mini suite. We have sailed on several Princess ships but not the Ruby. We usually book a mini on the Emerald Deck as they have a covered balcony. On the ships we have been on, all mini suites on Dolphin Deck are uncovered. Our next cruise is on the Caribbean Princess and we have a mini suite on Dolphin. Any mini to us is better than a balcony cabin. Enjoy your cruise.:)

[4x4bob]

Lois

 

Since you will be flying in from Fla. I would like to suggest that you investigate the Crowne Plazza Hotel which is just a few blocks from the port and they provide a Shuttle for guests for $5.00.

 

We have stayed there several times and find it acceptable.

 

Right across the street is a restaurant called the Green Onion that serves Mexican Food.

 

Two blocks behind the Hotel on 7th ave is a store called the 7 Day Market at which you can buy wine to take on the ship if you want to.

 

Bob

[Lois R]

Lois

 

Since you will be flying in from Fla. I would like to suggest that you investigate the Crowne Plazza Hotel which is just a few blocks from the port and they provide a Shuttle for guests for $5.00.

 

We have stayed there several times and find it acceptable.

 

Right across the street is a restaurant called the Green Onion that serves Mexican Food.

 

Two blocks behind the Hotel on 7th ave is a store called the 7 Day Market at which you can buy wine to take on the ship if you want to.

 

Bob

 

 

Hi Bob....I looked at that hotel on line....it is quite reasonable in price

so thank you for the suggestion:)

[vedettes1]

Another vote for a mini suite. We have sailed on several Princess ships but not the Ruby. We usually book a mini on the Emerald Deck as they have a covered balcony. On the ships we have been on, all mini suites on Dolphin Deck are uncovered. Our next cruise is on the Caribbean Princess and we have a mini suite on Dolphin. Any mini to us is better than a balcony cabin. Enjoy your cruise.:)

 

The minis on Emerald Deck are right over Club Fusion. Any noise problems?

[4cats4me]

Hi Lois, I know you from the X board. Hope you are doing well [emoji3]surprised to see you over here! We've been on 17 Princess cruises and 3 X, and we just got back from the Mexican cruise out of SAn Francisco, -0 day round trip. We had a wonderful time on the Grand, although she is the oldest in the fleet. Our food was excellent. We've also done several 7-day cruises out of San Pedro to MEXICO. We have been on the Emerald, sister ship to the Ruby. Although the ship is beautiful, it is not comparable to the S class on X. We didn't care for the extra deck of passengers which severely impacted the showroom situation, lounges, ET cet. We felt that it was THE most crowded ship in the Princess fleet. We really didn't care for the Caribe cafe buffet on the back of the ship and they closed part of the Horizon Court each night and there was no flow to the buffet compared to that of X. That was my biggest pet peeve

However, the positives were a beautiful atrium with plenty of room, unlike on the Grand, where the atrium is tiny. If you're accustomed to X the. I think the Ruby would probably be more to your liking from an aesthetic standpoint, but if you want exceptional service, I would recommend the 10-day Grand Princess out of San Francisco if that would work for you. The dining room food was excellent and the service was really great!

Not saying that the Ruby won't have good service, but I just felt that that ship had too many passengers, and the pool area was very, very crowded.

I am just trying to be as descriptive as possible, and of course, this is only my personal opinion.

 

What I do like more about Princess vs. X is the drinks are better, cheaper, more fun drinks to choose from, and excellent bar service. You can get BOGO deals at various bars a could times a day.

 

The entertainment is quite good and plentiful on Princess, unlike X, where I was looking for things to do at night.

 

Good luck with whatever you decide. Bottom line, Princess delivers a good product, but some ships are more preferable than others.

 

Some Princess food was really bad a few years ago and that is whT we fled to X. Princess improved their cuisine and we've been really happy with them again [emoji2][emoji2][emoji2]

 

 

DANA

 

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Edited November 25, 2016 by 4cats4me

[Lois R]

Hi Dana:)...good to see you too. I surprised myself a bit as well;)

I keep going back an forth on what I want to do.....you would think I

was trying to get world peace accomplished:eek:.....deciding what

cruise to take:o

Edited November 25, 2016 by Lois R

[Lois R]

Hey Dana, I see you are sailing in March on the Regal....from what I have read she is a pretty new ship. Thoughts on her?

[4cats4me]

Hey Dana, I see you are sailing in March on the Regal....from what I have read she is a pretty new ship. Thoughts on her?

 

 

 

Lois, the REGAL is our very favorite ship. This will be our third cruise on her. That ship is the closest thing to Solstice class. Lots of good entertainment. Excellent buffet. In fact, so good that we refuse to go to the dining room. [emoji81]. Alfredo's Restaurant very good. No upcharge either. Nice showroom No enclosed pool, however, but it doesn't matter in warm climates

Very elegant and classy ship

 

 

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[Lois R]

Lois, the REGAL is our very favorite ship. This will be our third cruise on her. That ship is the closest thing to Solstice class. Lots of good entertainment. Excellent buffet. In fact, so good that we refuse to go to the dining room. [emoji81]. Alfredo's Restaurant very good. No upcharge either. Nice showroom No enclosed pool, however, but it doesn't matter in warm climates

Very elegant and classy ship

 

 

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Ohhhh......now that gives me some food for thought:D;):eek:......she

sails right from Port Everglades too.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Not sure about what one poster said about a cost for ice cream cones is right...you can get many different flavors of (non-soft) ice cream in the MDRs at dinner for dessert. The International Cafe (which is not an enclosed eatery, but a set of display cases with yummy food that's in the Piazza on the Plaza deck) might sell gelato (as far as I know, the other food doesn't have a charge). the Sundae's ice cream bar on the pool deck is where you would get the free soft-serve and can buy shakes, etc. (included with one of the special cards you can buy), and perhaps they offer cones, but you can get ice cream at dinner without charge.

 

Haven't been on Celebrity (even though I did have a lunch as part of a TA tour), but Princess has a good product. Our first cruise on Princess was the Mexican Riviera and I enjoyed that cruise much better than my very first cruise, on a Carnival ship to the MR. Much more low key, with fewer PA announcements and no inane party games. I like that there's a minifridge in every cabin, no matter the category, and we like having the self-service laundries as our last few cruises were two-week ones.

[Steelers0854]

IMO, on Princess unless you are traveling with more than 2 people in your cabin a minisuite is a waste of money. We typically get a balcony and the differences between a balcony and mini are not enough to justify the cost in our opinion. We also spend a fair amount of time in our cabin on the cruise. But, as always YMMV.

[cynbar]

Lois, we have mostly sailed Celebrity over the past few years and our next cruise is with them, But we sailed Princess last May because of their itinerary (British Isles 12 day) and had a great time. There were some things that we preferred on Princess:

 

1) As mentioned above, we loved Crooner's, Celebrity doesn't have anything like that. It's always on one of the decks around the atrium, and is really a festive, fun place with a piano entertainer and lots of sing alongs.

 

2) International Cafe is the coffee and snack place but is much more elaborate than Cafe al Bacio. We love the expanded offerings of sweets and also small sandwiches, salads, soups. Perfect for a light bite, and open 24 hr a day.

 

3) Laundramats were a big help for our 2 week trip. But even if you don't plan to do laundry, the irons available there are a nice touch,

 

4) Princess has the best pizza at sea, end of that story.

 

5) We like the MDR food better on Princess. Celebrity used to have the advantage, but not any longer. Plus, Princess specializes in pasta, and it is common to have a small portion as one of your appetizers. The fettuccine alfredo is legendary and available everyday, with other choices each night. Delicious.

 

6) Princess has a themed dinner buffet and puts more emphasis on that than Celebrity does.

 

7) The full wraparound Promenade deck is wonderful.

 

8) The Wheelhouse Bar is much warmer than anything on Celebrity, with leather chairs and couches, mahogany paneling, and paintings and models of old Princess and P&O ships.

 

We really did enjoy our cruise. Service was friendly and excellent, ship was attractive and seemed more nautical than Celebrity. We'd sail either line, anytime .

[4cats4me]

Lois, I. Case you sail on the Regal, there is no wraparound Promenade deck, and balconies are on the smallish side. We have to turn our chairs facing front or aft. Not enough room to sit comfortably looking straight out [emoji6]

Also, they have a very nice on demand system for movies, music, ET cet, and there is no charge

And yes, as others have mentioned, excellent wood fired pizzas at Alfredo's, as well as an expanded menu on Regal and Royal, and good pizza up by the pool. Celebrity's pizza doesn't even compare.

 

Grill by the pool are about even, IMHO, and I was completely underwhelmed with the hamburgers poolside on X.

 

X does have nicer settees by the outdoor pool, and there is nothing like the Solarium on Regal, unless you wish to pay a daily fee for the Sanctuary.

 

Activities are quite plentiful thoughout the day with lots of trivia, dance classes, bingo, napkin folding, arts, crafts

 

Bands typically play songs from the 60s-90s.

 

Princess orchestra performs live in the atrium on some nights. Excellent orchestra.

 

 

 

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[Lois R]

I would like to thank all of you for the replies....everyone has been kind:)

 

As for the mini-suite.....it was not a definite to book one....it was an option and so price factors into it......I sail solo so I pay double.....if a regular

balcony is better in that area for me, I would book just a normal one.

 

So, the Sanctuary has a charge to it......what is the price?

Edited November 26, 2016 by Lois R

[4cats4me]

$20 half day $40 full day. Not sure if you can get a weekly special rate, and it is my understanding that if you aren't a pre-boarder, ie, Platinum Elite or Suites, that it can be quite challenging to secure a reservation, but since I've never bothered to reserve there, I can't speak to the particulars. Just going off of the usual chatter on the board here

 

 

 

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[Go-Bucks!]

Hi Lois,

 

A few years ago I booked my first Celebrity cruise and had similar questions. I've done 3 Celebrity cruises now and would book another one. I too agree that the two lines are more similar than different . . . but here are a few of the things that I like on Princess:

 

1- My first Princess cruise was in a balcony room, but I didn't enjoy sitting on the bed all the time. I find the minisuites to be roomier than the Celebrity veranda cabins, with a sofa, 2 TV's, tub with shower combo, and MUCH more storage.

 

2- Although you don't want to do laundry, Princess' self-serve laundromats are a god send for those taking long cruises, especially overseas. I take far less clothing and just wash them. It costs a fortune to send clothing to Celebrity's laundry.

 

3- Even tho Princess still has "formal" nights, I just wear a black skirt and a nice top (similar to going out to a nice restaurant). I've never worn anything truly formal, though. Occasionally, I've eaten in a specialty restaurant or the buffet on those nights if I want to just dress casually.

 

4- Someone suggested sailing on the Grand Princess instead of the Ruby but I disagree with that. I sailed on the Grand last year and it is really showing it's age. Sort of worn looking (and half of the engines caught fire!). The Ruby is much newer and undoubtedly in better shape.

 

5- The pools have fresh water on Princess, but Celebrity has salt water. Easier on the eyes and skin.

 

6- I loved eating at the Crab Shack, a seafood restaurant. Only charged $20 and even though it wasn't called "all-you-could-eat", they brought each patron as much seafood as they wanted. It was delicious.

 

7- On sea days Princess serves Pub Lunch (no charge). They offer 2 entrees and a dessert each time. It's really good - things like Bangers & Mash, Fish & Chips, Prawns & Chips, Steak & Kidney Pie, Ploughman's lunch, Scotch Egg, Trifle, and Bread & Butter Pudding.

 

8- There are, in general, more daytime activities on Princess than on Celebrity.

 

Overall, though, I enjoyed both lines and will book them in the future. Best wishes for your future sailings!

 

P.S. I'm sailing solo next year and got a great deal on a minisuite for cheaper than a balcony cabin!! :D

Edited November 26, 2016 by Go-Bucks!