All Crown Princess positive reviews Needed!

[Moxiefurball]

Hi, I've read a lot of negative reviews which concerns me for my June 2018 Med/ Greek island cruise out of a Rome on the Crown. Would love to hear from others . We have cruised the Coral, Golden Grand and Carribean princess and all have been great . So what's up with the Crown ?:confused:

[skynight]

Hi, I've read a lot of negative reviews which concerns me for my June 2018 Med/ Greek island cruise out of a Rome on the Crown. Would love to hear from others . We have cruised the Coral, Golden Grand and Caribbean princess and all have been great . So what's up with the Crown ?:confused:

I can say that we were on the Crown in Feb/Mar 2017 for 33 days. Had a good time. No real issues. Staff were very nice. Great cabin steward, one of the best we remember, which is saying a lot since we never experienced a bad one. Very friendly CD and CD staff, Entertainment Director and Hotel Manager. Any cruise can have glitches, but we didn't experience anything major. The one toilet issue we had was promptly repaired. Food was the standard Princess banquet quality. We never went hungry. No issues with DR or buffet waiters. The Crooner's Bar waiter really went out of her way to serve. We had the soda package and when we sat down in the afternoon to read in Crooner's the waitress brought over a soda without asking. These are just some of the nice experiences.

[jennybenny]

We've never had a bad cruise. :) Our last cruise on the Crown was 2016, and it was great. we met great people, had great service, drinks, tidy room, food was OK, and we had a fabulous time. We enjoyed the specialty restaurants, and the ship in general. I would not focus too much on the negative reviews. A vacation is what you make of it. You can only control your reaction to any situation, and if you focus on being positive, you will have a great time.

Enjoy!

[amypete]

We were on a Wine Coastal last fall and had a wonderful time! Loved Vines! People read too much into tiny things. I can't think of a single thing to complain about, did we spend too much time at Vines? LOL maybe but the waiters there were great. We met lots of new friends, had a good time with anytime dining, loved the music and comedians. Wish I was there now, but will have to settle for the Coral in a few weeks!

 

 

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[tcdcruiser]

I too was aboard the 33 day Santiago to ft lauderdale cruise. No problems. Great crew. Fine food. A very typical (positive) princess cruise experience.

[CRLess]

We were on the Crown in April before it left for Europe. We had a fantastic time on board for multiple reasons, mainly because of the group of friends we were with. The crew went out of their way to make sure we were taken care of like VIPs. The dining team, led by the MD Neville made certain all our dining arrangements were handled, including an outstanding rendition of the Chef's Table. Our favorite bar server in the universe, Carmen, took care of us every night in Vines (this was our 3rd voyage with her in Vines!). All in all, everything from a service standpoint was perfect.

 

With all of that said, we felt the ship was getting "tired". However, while we sailed, they were replacing the carpets on the upper decks, so maintenance is ongoing continually. The ship does not go into its next major dry dock until April 2018 before it heads to Europe. In that dry dock, it gets all the new enhancements that the Caribbean Princess received earlier this year (buffet change, addition of the BBQ joint, upgraded mattresses, etc).

 

I have been a fan of the newer ships (Royal and Regal), and after this last cruise on the Crown, my wife is in agreement with me about how much nicer (read: more updated) the new ships are. Our next two cruises are on the Royal and Regal, but I would not shy away from booking the Crown, or any of her sisters.

 

For what its worth, Neville goes on vacation at the end of this month, and Carmen leaves shortly thereafter.

[Astro Flyer]

Here's a link to a similar question (Opinions on Crown?) asked earlier today before your thread & you may find some useful input from passengers who've enjoyed the Crown.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2522765

Edited July 19, 2017 by Astro Flyer

[PurpleTraveller]

I was just on Crown Princess for a Baltic cruise on June 3 to 17. I had a wonderful cruise and had no problems at all. My cabin was clean and comfortable, entertainment was great, food was good, service was great, maintenance was continually being done and there were no issues with late departures or arrivals or immigration. Was it a perfect cruise? Of course not but it was close to it. I understand that others have had different experiences but I would not hesitate to sail on Crown Princess again.

 

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[BoopTennis]

We will be on the Crown in February. Have been on 3 Princess cruises so far, all great, never been on Crown, am looking forward to it. What are some of your favorite things about the Crown?

[lstone19]

I would not worry too much about a cruise a year from now as there should be near 100% turnover of the staff by then. I really think leadership is what makes the difference. When the crew knows the officers are watching, they perform better. When the officers make it clear by their actions (sometimes just by indifference), the crew learns that there's no need to make the extra effort.

 

We were on two cruises on Regal last year (four months apart). Between the two, the Hotel GM and Maitre D' changed while the Captain was the same (probably left on vacation and then returned) and the Executive Chef was the same. Although the food was still excellent (same Executive Chef), service in the food venues had clearly slipped. The first MD was always visible, frequently keeping an eye on the MDRs when not occupied with things like the Chef's Table. I'm sure the crew knew he was watching and it was clear from watching crew interactions with him that he was respected (as our TD table was next to the Chef's Table, I was able to see him in action). The second MD was invisible except for his ceremonial duties (e.g. Champagne Waterfall, Culinary Demonstration). Without him keeping an eye on things, much of the crew started slacking off because, I suspect, they knew nobody in charge was watching.

 

So put the right officers in charge and the ship will be back in good shape very quickly.

[Cruiser 070237]

Booked on back-to-back Crown Princess cruises to Norway 8/12/17 & Scandinavia 8/26/17. After all the negative comments re: Crown, my enthusiasm and optimism has been dampened. Can anyone help to assure me that these sailings will be the well organized, positive experiences typical of PCL?

Edited July 22, 2017 by Cruiser 070237

[Astro Flyer]

Booked on back-to-back Crown Princess cruises to Norway 8/12/17 & Scandinavia 8/26/17. After all the negative comments re: Crown, my enthusiasm and optimism has been dampened. Can anyone help to assure me that these sailings will be the well organized, positive experiences typical of PCL?

 

If after reading the positive posts & to not believe everything you read & you're still worried then nothing else anyone could share would help allay your concerns. Hopefully you'll be able to begin your cruise with optimism & post cruise wondering why other passengers didn't enjoy their Crown cruise.

 

Things may go wrong & then we decide how to react...for some it's horrible & for many others like me just a disappointing experience in an otherwise great cruise. I've greatly enjoyed 2 months of Crown cruises & would gladly go again.

 

I just noticed this is your first CC post...Welcome to Cruise Critic! :)

[jkadventures]

We are just back from our Norway cruise on the Crown and we had a marvelous time. Everyone (crew) that we had contact with was very positive and friendly. We had no issues at all with getting to our ports and everything was well organized. The food was good and the wait staff was great. We met a lot of nice people and the scenery was stunning. No complaints from this poster. Enjoy your cruises!

 

 

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[easyboy]

We were on the Crown for 14 days in March/April this year. No regrets.

[Cruiser 070237]

Thank you all for your reassuring comments. You've helped to restore my confidence that our experience on Crown will equal or surpass what we experienced on our past 7 cruises with PCL. Yes, this is my first attempt at posting.

[cruisequeen4ever]

We had a great cruise on her, but I don't know how much weight it holds, since it was only 1 night. I did have the thought, "Ok, that was much better than what I had imagined in my head based on people's reports on CC". We did note the food wasn't quiiiiiiite as good as other cruises. Our shower and balcony door were malfunctioning, but they were fixed right away.

 

 

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[antsp]

We were on the Crown in April before it left for Europe. We had a fantastic time on board for multiple reasons, mainly because of the group of friends we were with. The crew went out of their way to make sure we were taken care of like VIPs. The dining team, led by the MD Neville made certain all our dining arrangements were handled, including an outstanding rendition of the Chef's Table. Our favorite bar server in the universe, Carmen, took care of us every night in Vines (this was our 3rd voyage with her in Vines!). All in all, everything from a service standpoint was perfect.

 

With all of that said, we felt the ship was getting "tired". However, while we sailed, they were replacing the carpets on the upper decks, so maintenance is ongoing continually. The ship does not go into its next major dry dock until April 2018 before it heads to Europe. In that dry dock, it gets all the new enhancements that the Caribbean Princess received earlier this year (buffet change, addition of the BBQ joint, upgraded mattresses, etc).

 

I have been a fan of the newer ships (Royal and Regal), and after this last cruise on the Crown, my wife is in agreement with me about how much nicer (read: more updated) the new ships are. Our next two cruises are on the Royal and Regal, but I would not shy away from booking the Crown, or any of her sisters.

 

For what its worth, Neville goes on vacation at the end of this month, and Carmen leaves shortly thereafter.

 

 

Do you have anymore info on next years drydock, I can't find any information

[riclop]

Not many , too much noro virus.

[Griller]

We will be on the Crown in February. Have been on 3 Princess cruises so far, all great, never been on Crown, am looking forward to it. What are some of your favorite things about the Crown?

 

Debarking

[Esprit]

Disembarked Crown Princess last Saturday. The ship was fine and in no worse a state than Royal Princess was when we cruised on it a year ago just before its dry dock.

 

Varnishing was carried out constantly, including our balcony rails and new paint was evident along the Prom deck and upper sun deck areas.

 

Apart from the ship's name it could have been any of the Grand class ships we've been on before.

[crows nest club]

1. Seems to have been a change of senior management over the last couple of weeks. We were on Crown in May and found no problems. Also embarking on Saturday, and an nor worried at all.
   

Will report on return.:D:D

[cclarke12]

Currently on the Crown and have nothing significant to complain about. Food and service is as good as - if not better - than Emerald ex Southampton last year.

 

Bar service is excellent and plenty of staff going round the pool deck taking orders.

 

 

Only niggle is freedom dining with long queues the first couple of nights. It transpires that even though it is called freedom dining, you can make reservations - so you end up with reserved tables being sat first and having to queue for a buzzer.

 

 

The kids are having a lovely time and despite mixed weather have made plenty of friends around the pool.

[Griller]

Currently on the Crown and have nothing significant to complain about. Food and service is as good as - if not better - than Emerald ex Southampton last year.

 

Bar service is excellent and plenty of staff going round the pool deck taking orders.

 

 

Only niggle is freedom dining with long queues the first couple of nights. It transpires that even though it is called freedom dining, you can make reservations - so you end up with reserved tables being sat first and having to queue for a buzzer.

 

 

The kids are having a lovely time and despite mixed weather have made plenty of friends around the pool.

 

 

Actually its called Anytime Dining unless its changed recently and no-one told me.

 

Bar service is not something I have ever complained about, its how they make the most profit on most cruises. They will rarely neglect that as its more more more money coming in all the time.

[cclarke12]

Actually its called Anytime Dining unless its changed recently and no-one told me.

 

Bar service is not something I have ever complained about, its how they make the most profit on most cruises. They will rarely neglect that as its more more more money coming in all the time.

 

"Freedom" (as it is referred to on another line) or "Anytime" dining, I'm sure no one would be in any doubt about what I'm referring to. I stand corrected if it's important to you that I refer to the dining arrangement by it's correct name and you wish to make a point of being pedantic.

 

 

We've only got the soda package so there's no additional incentive for good service once pre-purchased - yet service has remained constantly efficient and friendly.

[lstone19]

"Freedom" (as it is referred to on another line) or "Anytime" dining, I'm sure no one would be in any doubt about what I'm referring to. I stand corrected if it's important to you that I refer to the dining arrangement by it's correct name and you wish to make a point of being pedantic.

 

While those of us very familiar with Princess were able to understand what you meant, I'm sure there were some readers fairly new with Princess who were confused and were wondering what "Freedom Dining" was and how it compared to "Anytime Dining". Saying everyone should have figured out what you meant is no different than people who make a mistake and then laugh it off with a line like "I was just checking to see if you were paying attention". Wouldn't it just be easier to say "oops, I used the wrong name" rather than throwing it back at the person who corrected your mistake?