P&O cruiser's first time on Princess.

[daiB]

Crown Princess to the Mediterranean May 13th 17.

 

 

 

This was our first cruise with Princess after many with P&O. so inevitably there will be many comparisons.

 

Before I start I would say that we enjoyed the overall experience as much as we have our P&O cruises. In fact there were many similarities, far more than the differences.

 

Boarding was much the same as we had Elite status. It was a little earlier but not by much. We were on the ship by 12.15. However there was a hitch at some point as sailing was delayed by about 45 mins. The excuse given was boarding difficulties. We took the advice of others and went to the MDR for lunch which was very nice, very peaceful with very few people using the room. We stayed quite a while and whilst we were there, there was a bit of hard sell on the wine package. After some consideration we succumbed and bought a 10 bottle package, $21 per bottle instead of $29. Only we did not drink it all so brought some home. $21 is a bit more than we would pay for wine to be drunk at home.

 

We dawdled over lunch and went up to our cabin about 13.45. Our steward came and introduced himself. He was Angelo. Very efficient. The luggage arrived a little later and all were unpacked before we had to go for the drill. Because of my scooter we tend to go early to get a seat and the scooter parked. We then were told everything had been put back 45 minutes. The drill itself was much like P&O’s although the details were not given by the Captain.

 

After the drill there was the same problem with lifts with many passengers in scooters and wheelchairs waiting to go somewhere.

 

After this I went up to the Skywalkers Bar for the Elite drinks and nibbles with no real idea what to expect. The nibbles were more substantial and the drinks strong, and all at $5 + 15%. This was a definite plus for Princess however as often as I went, like every night, I never saw more than 50 people there. There were potentially 1200+ people who could have used the facility but the vast majority never got there. The staff in the Elite lounge were excellent and lots of them. Best service on the ship.

 

Dinner was at 8.00 and we had a table for 8 but only 6 turned up a couple from Glasgow and a couple from Montana and us. We all hit it off very quickly. Our lead waiter was from Peru and her name was Jhojany (Jo) and assisted by Jayson from the Philippines. Jo was very bubbly and a good laugh. The first nights meal was the best of the cruise. Rib of beef which was wonderful. As it turned out this was the only dish I would say was much better than what we have had on P&O recently. I have had beef as good on P&O but not for a year or so, although I may not have had the beef for a while. Overall the food was good and quite American, not a lot of veg. In fact some dishes came with no veg at all.

 

After dinner I went to the casino as I usually do. Huge place, think Azura casino with this casino covering the whole of the space that the bar takes up as well. Only as the cruisers on this cruise were mainly Brits, the place was empty, well almost. At 22.00 there were only 2 tables with anyone using them that is out of 14/16 tables. I looked around and saw 11 members of staff standing by the tables doing nothing. No action so I left.

 

We found out that on the ship for this cruise were about 40 from New Zealand 80 from Australia and only 154 from the U.S. I did think that there would be a lot more from over the pond.

 

I am not going to discuss the ports as we had been to them many times before except for Genoa. Only we never got there. It was cancelled a day or two before we got there. Instead we went to Santa Margherita. Only this was a tender port and the sea was a bit choppy. They had to suspend operations for a while and we were told that scooters were not being allowed on the tenders, because of the movement.

 

However we were able to now get a seat in the International Café. I did like this venue as you could get a good cup of tea for free if you had a coffee card. You could also get a range of toasted sandwiches and salads and cakes all free. There was also ice cream which you paid for. Now on this cruise with the weather on sea days being not that hot the IC was mobbed all day getting a seat was always a struggle. Those who had a seat tended to stay for some time. The same area on Azura/Ventura has more seats. The other problem was that there was some entertainment in the atrium and so people were inclined to stay longer for that. Unfortunately if it was entertainment that was to be looked at rather than listened to very few people could actually see and for most it was just a noise. It was much better when the group played or the piano player or the trio of string players were doing their bit as that was very pleasant.

 

 

 

Part Two

 

The entertainment on the ship was much like P&O, indeed at least 3 of the acts my wife had seen on P&O ships. There were things on during the day like quizzes, art auctions, bingo and some musical entertainment. One day a jazz band, a piano player and the string trio. There was a very good singer in Crooners, Red Bar Blue bar on Azura/Ventura. He was on most nights. So the mix was much as it is on P&O but perhaps not as much as you get on say Azura but more than Arcadia. The Art Auctions were a pain in the ****** taking over the whole of the central entertainment venue, the Explorers Lounge. This of course took away places to sit inside when the weather was poor.

 

The Captains welcome night was held in the atrium with the same problems as usual lack of seats they had the champagne fountain but not sure what happened to the stuff that was poured as it was still intact at the end. The champagne, well fizz came from the bar next door and was waylaid by people standing around and so never got to most of the people around the atrium we were on deck 7. Which brings me to the greedy old pair I spotted. They were sat next to us in crooners they did not buy a drink in half an hour. After about 20 minutes he got up and rushed to change seats to get one close to where the free booze would be coming from. As it started to appear he dashed up from his seat and got two glasses, which is OK. He then repeated this six times as more trays were brought out. All in about 10 minutes. Consequently those at our end of the lounge got none. His table was filled with glasses. What a total *****. The only consolation was that what they were serving was pretty foul. We were more than happy with our G&T’s.

 

Which brings me to my fellow cruisers, which were exactly the same as on P&O. The age range and the types of people. Most pleasant, some rude and some just plain ignorant. The lift problems were exactly the same.

 

Drinks, when we booked we had the drinks package which was worth a huge $1100 between the two of us. Not quite sure we would have drunk that much but it was not to be. I spotted a price drop, considerable, more than the price of the drinks package and so a quick phone call brought us a change in booking. It turned out to be a very wise move on our part. We had taken wine on with us, our 2 bottles and had the mini bar set up as we were Elite. We would normally have a drink before dinner as we were getting ready but with the timing of the elite lounge at 5 to 7 we tended not to do that and I would go up to the lounge at about 5. So we did not drink as much in the cabin. Of course the drinks in the lounge were cheap at less than $6 and strong so not many needed. We had the wine package at dinner so we did not need much more booze. As well as this the ship ran 3 happy hours in various bars. 3 till 4, 5 till 6 and 11 till 12. Which were all buy 1 get one for a dollar.

 

So in conclusion I would say for us the full booze package would have been a waste. Not needed at all. The best deal was the coffee card.

 

We now do very few trips but from what I have seen there is little difference between all the cruise lines as the coaches and guides are the same for all lines. Royal Caribbean, MSC, Princess, etc. The only difference is the price. We did use shuttle buses but were not happy to have to pay for them, free is far better. In the ports we were lucky with the weather and we just did our own thing, the odd beer and coffee.

 

Over the cruise we tried both the Crown Grill and Sabatini’s. Both venues very quiet. The grill was excellent if a little cold, Air Con working too well. The food was very good, Ribeye perfect. In Sabatini’s there were even less people. The starters were excellent. My wife had a chicken dish which was very good. Unfortunately my steak was not. It had been over cooked being beyond medium and I asked for medium rare. I managed about a half and mentioned it to the waiter. I did not want another one, which he was only too willing to get. Not only was it not cooked correctly it had little taste. Such a contrast to the grill.

 

We did not try the Salty Dog as most of the tables were high with stools round them not conducive to enjoy a meal.

 

We did have an excellent speaker onboard, that being Harry Redknapp. He was interviewed by the cruise director and was very entertaining and had a full house in the theatre. However he was the only speaker, which a number of people remarked upon, another reason for the lack of seats in the IC. I was going to say regarding the IC, the staff were excellent and very hard working. Most of the day they had little down time.

 

Overall we enjoyed the cruise and would certainly go back again on Princess, from Southampton. In many ways I feel it is like having another P&O ship to cruise on, which has some differences as Britannia is different to Adonia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[bee-ess]

Good fair review Dai, glad you enjoyed it.

[cruiser1955]

Thanks Dai

 

Good to see what a regular P&O cruiser thinks of them.

 

I've been put off going on more American based cruises as I haven't enjoyed the beef they serve. Something about the USDA prime I had with Celebrity and Holland America that just doesn't seem right to me.

 

I've been having a look at Princess, but as I need a balcony, have found their 100% single sup a bit off putting. Still, they don't charge it on the port fees on the cruises I've been interested in. Have found an good one (fly cruise unfortunately), but it clashes with another cruise I've booked. Will keep an eye out for their 2019 releases.

[janny444]

Hi...I have been looking forward to your review as I know that up till now you have only cruised with P&O so it was good to read your unbiased thoughts. As you say it has opened up another possibility of cruising from Southampton which is always good to know.

If you ever decide to take "the plunge" with MSC then they status match you even though you may never have cruised with the company before.

[easyboy]

Nice to know you enjoyed your Princess cruise.

 

 

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[Mysticalmother]

Thanks for your unbiased review DaiB....interesting for those of us who have never cruised with Princess.

As one who doesnt do flying, it certainly gives me food for future thought.

[Scriv]

Thanks Dai..... great to hear your balanced review of Princess. What were the cabins like? And did you get any insight as to what a Princess cruise would be like for a non suite and a non-Elite guest?

[Florry]

Great to read your thoughts!

 

 

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[daiB]

Thanks Dai..... great to hear your balanced review of Princess. What were the cabins like? And did you get any insight as to what a Princess cruise would be like for a non suite and a non-Elite guest?

We were not in a suite as we did not have to book one. If you wanted a cheaper drink they did have the happy hours. The elite perks were nice but you could survive without them :)

 

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[P&O SUE]

Thanks for your review Dai, very interesting. I do think I will try Princess one day!

 

 

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[Esprit]

A great review. Thank you.

 

All too often P&O diehards dismiss Princess without trying. Their loss.

[Eglesbrech]

Glad you had a good holiday Dai. Interesting to get your perspective on another line. We liked Princess as well.

 

If you haven,t already done so it might be worth posting this on the Princess page as well for Information.

[daiB]

Glad you had a good holiday Dai. Interesting to get your perspective on another line. We liked Princess as well.

 

 

 

If you haven,t already done so it might be worth posting this on the Princess page as well for Information.

 

 

I could do that although it was written mainly for P&O cruisers to give a comparison. We certainly had a good time as we do not let small problems affect our enjoyment.

 

 

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[CCFC]

Excellent review Dai, thank you.

[daiB]

Glad you had a good holiday Dai. Interesting to get your perspective on another line. We liked Princess as well.

 

 

 

If you haven,t already done so it might be worth posting this on the Princess page as well for Information.

 

 

Done.

 

:)

 

 

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[Eglesbrech]

Done.

 

:)

 

 

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Good. Had a quick look over in Princess and as I suspected there is lots of interest. It's always helpful to see a balanced comparrison.

[CCFC]

Did you use all the Elite offerings, we particularly like the free afternoon tea on the balcony.

[daiB]

Did you use all the Elite offerings, we particularly like the free afternoon tea on the balcony.

 

 

No did not use that as it was a bit chilly on sea days. If I had that I would never eat dinner.

 

We did one small bag of laundry and used the free internet but not all of it. Having free mobile data now makes a massive difference.

 

 

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[Elviex]

Thanks Dai, it made me look at their website and see what was on offer. We have done 9 P&O cruises which put us in Platinum category. The main disadvantage I could see was there is no discount such as you get on P&O, which I would think makes a huge difference even given the happy hours !? If mere was a good price and a good itinerary we MIGHT be persuaded to try Princess. But hubby doesn't like prices in dollars and their "gratuity" charge is much higher. On balance, as he often says, we are P&O people!! [emoji4][emoji4][emoji924][emoji924]

 

 

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[Floflegs]

A few observations which I hope helps.

Elite get 10% discount in the shops and it is applied whether or not you are using OBC unlike the P and O discount.

The mini bar can be changed.you can get all gin for example instead of mixed miniatures or a bottle of wine or 2 coffee cards, all soft drinks or all water.

Laundry is slow as so many folk are Elite.

Internet minutes are good for folk who are PAYG on their phone. Signals good in cabin and elsewhere.

Ships like the Ruby are almost the same layout as Azura though you can go right round the promenade deck on Princess although there are a flight of stairs at one end.

[kevinyork]

Dai, glad you ventured out and tried another cruise line and had an enjoyable cruise. Any views on the interior design differences between the princess and P&O versions of the ship designs which effectively physically match Ventura and Azura? Any view on the buffet, if you visited?

 

 

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[daiB]

Dai, glad you ventured out and tried another cruise line and had an enjoyable cruise. Any views on the interior design differences between the princess and P&O versions of the ship designs which effectively physically match Ventura and Azura? Any view on the buffet, if you visited?

 

 

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There was a buffet, who knew???

 

 

Only for breakfast Kevin, we found it much like P&O only you got two kinds of bacon and the sausage was tasteless.

 

To be honest outside the Atrium which was a bit flashier the rest of the ship was much the same in terms of decor. Vines was a bit dark and only used most of the time as an overflow for the IC which was one of the plus points.

 

 

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[Thejuggler]

From my Princess experience Princess is P&O with dollars and the potential for a slightly more varied passenger mix.

[daiB]

From my Princess experience Princess is P&O with dollars and the potential for a slightly more varied passenger mix.

Agree.

 

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