I can't imagine the circumstance where we will sail Princess again

[skacton]

I wish it worked for us!! Seriously! It just didn't. There were too many people who wanted the 7:30pm show. Every night people were turned away. We eventually gave up, and were happier. But, we really wanted to see some of the shows! Especially the Motor City one. I love Motown, having grown up in Detroit. But that was the show where we were headed when my husband was stepped on.

I love Princess Cruises, but agree that their “anytime” dining is anything but. We have never had a problem with anytime dining on other lines, however Princess needs some work on their system. We won’t give up on them, but will definitely chose traditional dining.

[Steelers36]

Also, for those of you who love Princess, we were repeatedly told that this particular cruise was NOT THE NORM for Princess. Princess elite cruisers repeatedly told us, "We ADORE Princess, but not this ship."

 

They added 100 cabins in Dry Dock and took away space. It is difficult to get directly from Stern to Bow nowadays. There are issues with the Island Princess that Princess devotees repeated throughout the cruise.

 

It is certainly possible that other Princess cruises are better than the non-Princess cruises that I've been on. I sailed on Princes in the 1980's and had a great time!

 

I can only speak for myself. I've sailed multiple lines, multiple times, in recent years - and this was not a good cruise.

 

The response to my complaints - two specialty dinners and a bottle of wine on a future cruise? It felt like an insult.

 

It is unfortunate if you are going to judge Princess and make a future cruise decision based on your ISLAND experience. Check my signature block - we are going on ISLAND soon for 60-nights.

 

But I am boarding it with eyes wide open. I was already well aware of the modifications made and the reduction in public space. In fact, the same thing was planned for CORAL, until results and feedback quashed that notion. I have stated before that if I could have selected any Princess ship for this voyage, it would have not been ISLAND. That said, we are going for the adventure presented and will make the best of the situation.

 

If you study deck plans of ship you are sailing on, it is quite evident that unlike many of the larger Princess ships, this one only has one level of entrances to the theater. No doubt there are emergency exits, but not for normal usage. If you need to be out in a hurry, then I would sit in upper level nearer the exits.

 

Also, if you had used your CC membership to research on here, you would find that Anytime Dining on ISLAND is a challenge if you want to eat early. I would not select that option on ISLAND as we like to eat early. If we cannot make our time some night, we will use the buffet or a specialty restaurant.

 

I was disappointed to read your report of the buffet at dinner time. It reads like it was only partially opened up and therefore not offering as many different food choices as possible. The Horizon Court was re-modeled on ISLAND and I have read a number of reports here on CC that it is well laid out and pretty decent. I have been hopeful to have a good experience there when we need it. Yours is the first truly negative review I have read for that option.

 

I do expect to encounter a lot of people from dinner time to mid-evening. The older the demographic, the more demand for early dining and early shows. It seems the loss of the Universe Lounge is almost the single worst thing of the whole re-model - at least to me. I have never been on the ship at all (I had hoped to do a BVE but that was dashed as part of your 1-day delay). If it was really jammed up, you can always nip outside onto Promenade on Deck 7 and move along and then re-enter further forward or aft.

 

As for that delay, seems like you took it in stride. It seems Princess took care of passengers pretty well in the situation, but it was unfortunate to find out so late. I was contacted about 8pm the night before and advised they were cancelling our BVE. The person calling had no other information, but I quickly surmised the ship was going to be delayed and was still in dry dock and not expected in to Port Everglades until the following morning - 24 hours late. As it turned out the ship got in before that - around 1am, but a day was lost.

 

I think it took so long to notify passengers because Princess needed to be sure the ship was going to be ready just one day later and they had to organize all the logistics for the delay, including hotel space, convention center space, transportation, etc. It would have been a disaster if they went early with a 1-day delay and then found out later it was going to be worse. As it was, they got the ship to PE ahead of the revised schedule.

 

Hopefully, when the memory of the issues fades, you might decide Princess is worth another try - just pick a ship like Regal, or a Grand Class. Not that it matters to me what you do, but it is unfortunate if a lasting impression is a bad experience on ISLAND.

Edited January 3, 2018 by steelers36

[vmom]

I was on the Coral ...same itinerary, same dates except the Coral left Dec 6th from LA went through the Canal (full transit) and arrived in Fort Lauderdale on Dec. 21st.

 

I had a fabulous cruise, but agree on several points. Frankly if you cruise as often as you say you do, you should have expected some of the issues you complained about.

 

Cruise was 15 days, with boarding on a Wed.(12/6) and 15 days later, ending on a Thursday (12/21) . Being that it was a 15 day cruise and with the dates it meant that almost everyone had to be retired to go on this cruise or be able to take off 3 weeks off from work. hence...older passengers.

 

 

Demographics were older than any cruise I have ever been on before. Many many wheelchairs and scooters. Very few people under 65 years with most over 70.

 

Frankly I am very surprised that you didn't anticipate this. You can not judge Princess demographics by this particular cruise.

 

That said, I had a fantastic time even tho I was one of the younger passengers on board. Most of the fellow passengers were well traveled and very interesting. Loved many of the stories and humor.

 

Ok...with an older passenger base, there is consequently a greater demand for early seating and early show. I agree that for the first show at 7:30, you had to be at the theater 30 minutes early. I also agree that there was a long line to get into the dining room early. Pagers were passed out by around 5:40 or so.

 

However...we adapted by going to the later show at 9:30. There were many seats available right up until show time. You could have walked in at 9:31 and found seats together.

 

We found that there were plenty of seats available in the dining room by around 7:00-7:15 so we adjusted and went to the dining room at 7:15. We were always out by 8:30 in time to make the trivia games and then went to the later show in the theater.

 

All that said, I think the Island's issues are exasperated by the lack of the Universe Lounge. The Coral still has the Universe Lounge and there were often shows in that lounge, thus spreading out the number of passengers in any one area looking for entertainment.

 

I would suggest any future cruises you decide to take, you try out one of the other ships that handles the movements of the crowds better. Maybe the Royal or Regal?

Edited January 4, 2018 by vmom

[USN59-79]

Wow! Why would you expect the cruise line to be responsible for your husbands injury?! Stuff happens and people do at times get injured. So, Princess should refund the cost of getting care due to an injury caused by another passenger or passengers?!

 

There isn't a cruise line around that would refund medical expenses for an injury due to hurting ones foot. But go ahead and see if that works for you on another cruise line.

Actually, there is. My DW injured her foot when she fell into a tender because the crew member standing there to help her didn't. She was not charged for her care by the ship's doctor. That was on Holland America. If the ship makes no attempt to control crowds and a passenger is trampled, should the medical center make a profit on that? I knew there were a lot of Princess apologists here, but passengers expect to "come back new", not limping and paying medical bills.

[Hlitner]

We thank the OP for posting their thoughts. We only have 21 cruises on Princess (which makes us newbies compared to many) but do think that much of what the OP says is true.......for those who dine early! Princess has designed their main show rooms with too few seats, for the size ship (this is true for all the Grand Class and the new Royal Class). Those that dine before 8 always have problems with theater seating (unless they go at least 20 min early).

 

Personally, we have few problems with Princess because we prefer to dine late and could care less about the evening game stuff :). So we attend the 7pm shows where its usually easy to get a seat. Once out of that show we go to dinner (around 8) or sometimes will stop for another pre dinner drink and then go to dinner around 8:30. Now I understand that to many...eating dinner after sunset is a rare thing. But consider that if you drive around Spain you will find places where restaurants do not even open until after 9pm :).

 

We have also been on quite a few Princess cruises (the most recent being the Regal in Nov) where the CD will get lots of complaints about early diners not being able to get seats in the theater. Once they get enough complaints, the CD will sometimes change the evening schedule so that there are 3 performances. A few years ago, Princess shortened their production shows so its possible to do 3 in a night. But we have never seen them go to a 3 show night...until AFTER there have been lots of complaints (which often happens after the first formal night when they usually have their first production show).

 

Hank

[Coral]

The OP seems still to be on this thread and hasn't been intimidated by some of the posts so I will reply.......

 

I think the OP has some valid points.

 

Theatre - IMO, Princess should build larger theaters or have multiple large theaters. Princess started building larger ships (or in this case add additional staterooms) with out increasing the size of the Theatre. I remember speaking with the CD about the problems with the theatre on the larger class ships (Crown Princess in this situation) and he agreed entirely. He said it frustrated him as he has to constantly defend Princess's decision. You can't just add 500 passenger (or less in this case but it doesn't matter) and not have problems in the Theatre with seating. For Princess regulars, it probably isn't as big of a deal as they have often seen shows multiple times but if you are trying to take things being new to the line, good luck!

 

Anytime Dining - same situation. Princess adds additional passengers but never increased the size of their dining rooms. They hope that people will go to the buffets but except on the newest ships, Princess's buffets are not all that great. So if you want to see a show, you need to show up really early to dining, eat a buffet (not my idea of a cruise dinner) or pay for a speciality dinner.

 

As far as being delayed - I think Princess could have handled this differently, even if it was offering to bus them 45 miles away to a hotel that was available. They may have turned it down but it would be a gesture (assuming the nearest hotels were booked which is very plausible).

 

Before the Island Princess was modified, there really were very few complaints about waiting for dining or the theatre being too full.

 

As far as the age demographic on this cruise. It seems Panama Canal and Alaska sailings do attract an older demographic. This will happen on most lines.

 

I think the OP has a good perspective, especially since she has recently been on multiple lines each year. Some Princess regulars defend every decision Princess makes. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize more people on a ship with out larger venues won't cause problems.

 

I also want to thank the OP for her review.

[Coral]

We have also been on quite a few Princess cruises (the most recent being the Regal in Nov) where the CD will get lots of complaints about early diners not being able to get seats in the theater. Once they get enough complaints, the CD will sometimes change the evening schedule so that there are 3 performances. A few years ago, Princess shortened their production shows so its possible to do 3 in a night. But we have never seen them go to a 3 show night...until AFTER there have been lots of complaints (which often happens after the first formal night when they usually have their first production show).

 

This was frustrating when they shortened the shows. I appreciated them attempting to solve the problem but they should never have created the problem in the first place (not building larger theaters). After seeing the shows before they shortened them and after, I preferred the longer shows. Maybe I am in the minority.

[crawford]

I was on the Coral ...same itinerary, same dates except the Coral left Dec 6th from LA went through the Canal (full transit) and arrived in Fort Lauderdale on Dec. 21st.

 

I had a fabulous cruise, but agree on several points. Frankly if you cruise as often as you say you do, you should have expected some of the issues you complained about.

 

Cruise was 15 days, with boarding on a Wed.(12/6) and 15 days later, ending on a Thursday (12/21) . Being that it was a 15 day cruise and with the dates it meant that almost everyone had to be retired to go on this cruise or be able to take off 3 weeks off from work. hence...older passengers.

 

 

Demographics were older than any cruise I have ever been on before. Many many wheelchairs and scooters. Very few people under 65 years with most over 70.

 

Frankly I am very surprised that you didn't anticipate this. You can not judge Princess demographics by this particular cruise.

 

That said, I had a fantastic time even tho I was one of the younger passengers on board. Most of the fellow passengers were well traveled and very interesting. Loved many of the stories and humor.

 

Ok...with an older passenger base, there is consequently a greater demand for early seating and early show. I agree that for the first show at 7:30, you had to be at the theater 30 minutes early. I also agree that there was a long line to get into the dining room early. Pagers were passed out by around 5:40 or so.

 

However...we adapted by going to the later show at 9:30. There were many seats available right up until show time. You could have walked in at 9:31 and found seats together.

 

We found that there were plenty of seats available in the dining room by around 7:00-7:15 so we adjusted and went to the dining room at 7:15. We were always out by 8:30 in time to make the trivia games and then went to the later show in the theater.

 

All that said, I think the Island's issues are exasperated by the lack of the Universe Lounge. The Coral still has the Universe Lounge and there were often shows in that lounge, thus spreading out the number of passengers in any one area looking for entertainment.

 

I would suggest any future cruises you decide to take, you try out one of the other ships that handles the movements of the crowds better. Maybe the Royal or Regal?

 

Thanks for your post! After reading it, we will be adjusting our anytime dining times and going to the later shows.

Had read too many negative reviews about the Island. Given the choice, this reconfirms that we made a good decision regarding the Coral.

[crawford]

This was frustrating when they shortened the shows. I appreciated them attempting to solve the problem but they should never have created the problem in the first place (not building larger theaters). After seeing the shows before they shortened them and after, I preferred the longer shows. Maybe I am in the minority.

 

I agree and miss the longer shows, as well.

[vmom]

This was frustrating when they shortened the shows. I appreciated them attempting to solve the problem but they should never have created the problem in the first place (not building larger theaters). After seeing the shows before they shortened them and after, I preferred the longer shows. Maybe I am in the minority.

 

I agree. I hate the shorter shows. Its seems we would just get comfortable in our seats and the show was over. Seems like the shortened shows were maybe 35 minutes long? Maybe 30?

 

When they started shortening the shows, it seemed like there were times we waited in our seats for the show to begin for a longer time than the length of the show.

 

I don't think you are in the minority.

[toescat]

I have done anytime dinning twice and not by choice and hated it. I always book traditional and never have any issues with long dinners ever. I think one of the problems with anytime dinning makes for crowded area's like the theater. Back when only early seating and late seating was available the shows were on during the dining hours. Late seating watch the shows while the early dinners ate and the early dinners saw the shows while the late dinners ate. It was a truly 50/50 split and there were plenty of seats for everyone. Anytime dinning has caused other issues as well. I am all for choice as it is our vacation but think about it, 1800-3000 people on a ship with a few restaurants and one theater something has to give.

[vmom]

Thanks for your post! After reading it, we will be adjusting our anytime dining times and going to the later shows.

Had read too many negative reviews about the Island. Given the choice, this reconfirms that we made a good decision regarding the Coral.

 

Enjoy!!!!

[Coral]

I have done anytime dinning twice and not by choice and hated it. I always book traditional and never have any issues with long dinners ever. I think one of the problems with anytime dinning makes for crowded area's like the theater. Back when only early seating and late seating was available the shows were on during the dining hours. Late seating watch the shows while the early dinners ate and the early dinners saw the shows while the late dinners ate. It was a truly 50/50 split and there were plenty of seats for everyone. Anytime dinning has caused other issues as well. I am all for choice as it is our vacation but think about it, 1800-3000 people on a ship with a few restaurants and one theater something has to give.

 

I agree. The concept of Anytime dining is great but (most) Princess ships really are not equipped for it like other lines. I also hated it and do Traditional dining when I can. One shouldn't have to choose. Plus, Traditional dining times seem to change also. You sign up for 6 pm and get on the ship and it is 5:30 or whatever. I know the Matride's are trying to keep their area flowing as best they can and adjust accordingly to make their lives easier.

[Kingofcool1947]

I am a seasoned cruiser - having been on more cruises than I can count - on multiple

lines including: Carnival, Holland America, Princess, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Cunard, Lindblad/National Geographic, and Silversea. My husband and I are elite members at Royal/Celebrity. I have never written a negative review…

 

...until this past cruise on the Island Princess departing December 6/7 2017. We didn't mind (much) that embarkation was delayed for a day - which we didn't find out until the night before when checking email at our hotel. We were able to work around the fact that our hotel initially could not offer us another night because we were told Princess was holding rooms, but Princess Customer Service could not help. We didn't need to stay overnight in the ballroom that Princess reserved for guests without reservations. The broken window in our cabin for the first week was eventually fixed. The non-working AC when we first boarded was eventually fixed. These things were annoyances, and not enough to upset us.

 

I wasn't enthusiastic about the mix of passengers - I prefer a broader age range and geographic disbursement. This crowd was primarily American, and older than ourselves - and we are retired. In contrast, I've thoroughly enjoyed meeting Europeans and Australians and Canadians –and Americans- aboardRoyal/Celebrity/Silversea/Cunard, and we have friends across the world because of it! I so enjoy different points of view.

 

Here's what made us UPSET: We could not do what we wanted, when we wanted. Isn't that why we take cruises?

 

ENTERTAINMENT: SHOW UP EARLY OR YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE ENTERTAINMENT ONBOARD

* Evening entertainment consisted of a Theatrical Production and occasional Game Show

* The Theater does not have enough seats to accommodate passengers, and with few other options, seats were filled half an hour before show time

* If you do not arrive at the Theater a half hour early, you will not be able to sit with your significant other or maybe not get a seat at all (we were unable to get into three shows, and then stopped trying)

* Do not expect to get somewhere else quickly when leaving the theater. I saw no doors on the Lower Level, and nobody moves until the guests in the upper rows depart (and many don't move very well; re: age and disability). We (twice) waited fifteen minutes to start moving up the stairs towards the exit.

* We read about the Escape Room on Cruise Critic and wanted to sign up. I was first in line, having showed up 20 minutes early (learning from the Theater) and the staff member showed up 20 minutes late and took sign-ups in another location. Since there were only 60 slots, I was LUCKY to get two of them, despite showing up early.

* If you do not show up for Art Projects early enough, there are not enough materials.

* As usual, we enjoyed Trivia and other onboard games, and have many wine stoppers and some water bottles to show for it

 

 

DINING: YOU MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN WAITING IN LINE TO EAT AND SEEING A SHOW, OR NOT WAITING AND POTENTIALLY SEEING THAT NIGHT'S ENTERTAINMENT

* We chose "Anytime Dining" which we renamed,"NOT Anytime Dining"

* To finish dinner early enough for the 7:30pm show, you must be finished dining at 6:45pm - but if you show up between 5:15 - 5:45pm (too early anyways) there will be a long line

* If you show up between 6pm and 7pm, there will not be enough empty tables - and you will be given a pager

* If you eat with other passengers, hoping to meet new people, service takes two hours. You must eat alone if you hope to get out ofthe dining room quickly.

* If you go to the early show (offered some nights) and have dinner after, you miss the Game Shows at 8:00pm, and you are guaranteed a long line because the other Theater goers ALL rush the dining room at that moment

* If you decide - darn it, I'm just going to the buffet and eat quickly - you will have very little diversity of choice. Only half the area is active at one time, and choices are bland and REPETITIVE.

* If you decide - darn it, I'll spend the $29 per person and go to a Specialty Restaurant that IS better. The food is better. You are served quickly. We did that twice. I liked Sabatini's. The Crab Shack was disappointing, but I lived in Maryland for four years - so I know GOOD crab.

 

I CAN'T IMAGINE NEEDING TO GET SOMEWHERE IMPORTANT QUICKLY

* Lack of diversity (in entertainment and constitution of guests) could result in too many people in one spot at a particular time, and could lead to possible injury (my husband being stepped on)

* My husband was trampled during a rush to see a Production Show in the theater, and hurt his foot badly enough that it required an X-Ray. The doctor aboard suspected a bone fracture, and he wore a walking cast/boot for two days - until a radiologist on land was able to clear him - two days of hobbling around later.

 

AFTER REVIEW OF OUR CONCERNS, PRINCESS OFFERED US TWO $29 SPECIALTY DINNERS AND A BOTTLE OF SHIP WINE ON A FUTURE CRUISE. They did not reverse medical charges of $261, which we asked to be refunded. They did not provide compensation for my husband trying to walk in a boot for two days. It was never about the money for my husband and me - we wanted them to care about the issues we faced. We wanted a CARE FREE vacation.

 

Note: all guests on this sailing were offered 15% off a future cruise due to the late embarkation. We do not plan to take them up on this offer.

 

 

Princess? I plan to avoid it. I cruise 3-4 times a year, and it won’t be on Princess.

 

Yes, you should avoid Princess. Sounds like the cruise experience on Princess is not for you.

So, why not sail on a smaller luxury cruise line? Oceania, Regent, Viking? Less PAXS, most likely better cuisine, and with entertainment venues you can actually get in to. And not get stepped or trampled on while on board..

Can’t comment on the diversity of PAXS on luxury small boat cruise. I reckon, most likely older 70’s+ who can afford those kind of cruises. YMMV.

Good luck, on your future cruises (and cruise line). :)

[mellon1]

Maybe you wrote your post in haste and had to vent at the time... possibly now regretting it. We have cruised other line a lot and now do Princess a lot. We prefer it. But it is all what you like. We like the age group and the people, both passengers and staaff. There is always that one person and you can find them anywhere, not just on a cruise. We learned a long time ago from an older couple who said, "Honey, I have been watching you and your husband. You need to start to request a table for 2 and if you want to meet someone for drinks or a special dinner do it, but you are not stuck with people you don't want to be with." We were on a trip that everyone was ordering 2 dinners and we had to wait, wait wait. They would order a bottle of wine and when half way through didn't like it, etc. etc. Table for 2 you are on your own timeframe.

 

I had a passenger break my watch when I went to my room and could not get in (they were having problems with the cards on board) and did not come back to my chair for 1/2 hour. She moved my stuff and threw it on the floor. She was rude. I was not going to give her the satisfaction of saying anything to her. I was mad and vented to my DH. He told me from now on book the Sanctuary to avoid this. Which I do now. Change your way of doing things so they work for you. We book a table for 2 so we don't have to wait for everyone else. The days we want to see the show, we skip appetizers and desserts and tell our waiter. I would suggest you do that, get to the show early and have a drink or two and decompress.

 

Princess cannot control all those people. Accidents do happen and we always get the insurance, just in case.

[Kingofcool1947]

Maybe you wrote your post in haste and had to vent at the time... possibly now regretting it. We have cruised other line a lot and now do Princess a lot. We prefer it. But it is all what you like. We like the age group and the people, both passengers and staaff. There is always that one person and you can find them anywhere, not just on a cruise. We learned a long time ago from an older couple who said, "Honey, I have been watching you and your husband. You need to start to request a table for 2 and if you want to meet someone for drinks or a special dinner do it, but you are not stuck with people you don't want to be with." We were on a trip that everyone was ordering 2 dinners and we had to wait, wait wait. They would order a bottle of wine and when half way through didn't like it, etc. etc. Table for 2 you are on your own timeframe.

 

I had a passenger break my watch when I went to my room and could not get in (they were having problems with the cards on board) and did not come back to my chair for 1/2 hour. She moved my stuff and threw it on the floor. She was rude. I was not going to give her the satisfaction of saying anything to her. I was mad and vented to my DH. He told me from now on book the Sanctuary to avoid this. Which I do now. Change your way of doing things so they work for you. We book a table for 2 so we don't have to wait for everyone else. The days we want to see the show, we skip appetizers and desserts and tell our waiter. I would suggest you do that, get to the show early and have a drink or two and decompress.

 

Princess cannot control all those people. Accidents do happen and we always get the insurance, just in case.

 

“I had a passenger break my watch when I went to my room and could not get in (they were having problems with the cards on board) and did not come back to my chair for 1/2 hour. She moved my stuff and threw it on the floor. She was rude. I was not going to give her the satisfaction of saying anything to her. I was mad and vented to my DH. He told me from now on book the Sanctuary to avoid this. Which I do now.”

 

 

What the heck are you talking about?

[Ladyinflight]

I have only been on Princess once for a PCC on the Coral a few years back and found I didn't particularly care for Princess. Will be on the 60 day SA cruise leaving on the 24th of this month only because my partner has a strong devotion to Princess, it was the only line he and his late wife ever sailed. Glad I read this post so, now I know I will have to adapt new thinking and attitude for this trip. I am going to just let things flow nice, easy and have a great time:):cool::hearteyes::evilsmile::D

[mellon1]

“I had a passenger break my watch when I went to my room and could not get in (they were having problems with the cards on board) and did not come back to my chair for 1/2 hour. She moved my stuff and threw it on the floor. She was rude. I was not going to give her the satisfaction of saying anything to her. I was mad and vented to my DH. He told me from now on book the Sanctuary to avoid this. Which I do now.”

 

 

What the heck are you talking about?

 

Just that it was not Princess' fault that a passenger moved my stuff and broke my watch when I left the pool area. Meaning they cannot control their passengers. Yes, I was mad, but not at Princess. We try to avoid the things which bother us, like the pushing and shoving at the buffet. I think that is key to enjoying your cruise.

[firecrewcapt]

We just spent 19 days on the Island Princess for the R/T Panama Canal cruise out of LA. We had a blast and did what we wanted when we wanted with no problems. We had table for two although it was actually a table for 10 we were they only ones there the entire cruise- more than a table for 2 will always result in longer dinner times because you have to wait for the others to join the table before ordering, we don't care what the ages are of the other cruisers- people watching is always a blast, when we cruise we ARE on vacation with NO deadlines/schedules, the Mowtown show was on the corny side for me and don't need to see that again, IMHO, we will ask for people to scoot closer so we can sit together in the theater, one last thing is that I'm amazed at people older than me still cruising, I'm in my sixties, I want to be just like them when I grow up.

[Kingofcool1947]

Just that it was not Princess' fault that a passenger moved my stuff and broke my watch when I left the pool area. Meaning they cannot control their passengers. Yes, I was mad, but not at Princess. We try to avoid the things which bother us, like the pushing and shoving at the buffet. I think that is key to enjoying your cruise.

 

Ok. I get it now. When you were at the pool. :)

Thanks for clarifying.

[Arwen]

Also, for those of you who love Princess, we were repeatedly told that this particular cruise was NOT THE NORM for Princess. Princess elite cruisers repeatedly told us, "We ADORE Princess, but not this ship."

 

They added 100 cabins in Dry Dock and took away space. It is difficult to get directly from Stern to Bow nowadays. There are issues with the Island Princess that Princess devotees repeated throughout the cruise.

 

It is certainly possible that other Princess cruises are better than the non-Princess cruises that I've been on. I sailed on Princes in the 1980's and had a great time!

 

I can only speak for myself. I've sailed multiple lines, multiple times, in recent years - and this was cruise.

 

The response to my complaints - two specialty dinners and a bottle of wine on a future cruise? It felt like an insult.

 

Sorry to hear that your cruise was less than enjoyable. I have had a few of those, too! We have taken over 20+ cruises..HAL, Princess, Celebrity, and NCL.

 

This is what I have discovered: from now on, I will only sail on the newer ships if the destination is for "sun and fun".

 

I will now only choose an older ship if the itinerary is irresistable.

 

I am too old now to deal with toilets that do not flush every time...A/C that is inadequate, or a mattress that should have been tossed many years ago.

 

We just finished a cruise on the Royal Princess and my hubby and I were totally delighted! The Royal was built in 2013 and everything is up to date.

 

We loved our mini-suite and the bed (mattress) was divine!!! Seating for dinner, Anytime Dining (Symphony) was never a problem because if you showed up and there was no room in "that" dining room, the staff will take you to the "reserved" area upstairs (Concerto). We never had to wait.

 

And there were plenty of other eateries besides Horizon Court, like the International Cafe. The selections there were really wonderful!

 

If I could convince my hubby, I would love to try a Cunard, Silverseas, or Crystal cruise! He isn't ready for that..yet.

 

It is all about price and the mass cruise lines try to have something for everyone and it doesn't always work. Often, older ships are kept in service far beyond what they should be. It is one of the reasons we left HAL.

 

As you now know, selecting the "right" ship (no matter which cruise line) is really important for a better chance of a comfortable cruise.

[elliair]

Wow! Why would you expect the cruise line to be responsible for your husbands injury?! Stuff happens and people do at times get injured. So, Princess should refund the cost of getting care due to an injury caused by another passenger or passengers?!

 

There isn't a cruise line around that would refund medical expenses for an injury due to hurting ones foot. But go ahead and see if that works for you on another cruise line.

 

I agree with what you said above. The OP did not mention trip insurance. She could turn the bill over to her trip insurance and they would pay the bill - after their primary insurance paid up. Cruise lines know this.

 

Not sure if the OP knows that you can make reservations if you have ATD. That would have solved her problem of getting to a show.

 

As far as meeting people other than AMERICANS, no cruiseline has control over placing a wide variety of people from foreign countries on board their ships. I'd rather meet people from my own country, if I wanted to meet foreigners, I'd go to their countries and get the full flavor of their culture.

 

 

Sounds like Princess is not the cruise line for the OP.

[elliair]

Originally posted by Seas the Day Also, for those of you who love Princess, we were repeatedly told that this particular cruise was NOT THE NORM for Princess. Princess elite cruisers repeatedly told us, "We ADORE Princess, but not this ship."

 

They added 100 cabins in Dry Dock and took away space. It is difficult to get directly from Stern to Bow nowadays. There are issues with the Island Princess that Princess devotees repeated throughout the cruise.

 

It is certainly possible that other Princess cruises are better than the non-Princess cruises that I've been on. I sailed on Princes in the 1980's and had a great time!

 

I can only speak for myself. I've sailed multiple lines, multiple times, in recent years - and this was cruise.

The response to my complaints - two specialty dinners and a bottle of wine on a future cruise? It felt like an insult.

 

The Island Princess is not my first choice to cruise on. Been on the ship 2 times (maybe more, I lost count). Princess butchered that ship and for that reason I refuse to book a cruise on the Island Princess. A$$ backwards ship.

 

As for receiving the specialty dinners and a bottle of wine, I'd say you got lucky OP. What more did you want besides your medical bill paid? Were you hoping for your cruise to be refunded? Princess sees passengers like yourself on every cruise, Be happy with the meals and wine and be done with it. I've read countless reviews like this one here at CC. You'll always have the rah, rah for Princess, and others sympathetic to your cause. It doesn't do much to change anyone's opinion of Princess though.

[Birdieman1]

I totally agree with the original poster, we are elite and sailed over 26 cruises and are going on the Ruby Jan. 31 for three back to backs, I will totally agree to all of the posters comments been there and done that, and am getting tired of everyone who seems to be happy with sailing on Princess, and yes we have the same concerns about the original poster. My opinion is that so many people posting on here are full of it

[Kingofcool1947]

I totally agree with the original poster, we are elite and sailed over 26 cruises and are going on the Ruby Jan. 31 for three back to backs, I will totally agree to all of the posters comments been there and done that, and am getting tired of everyone who seems to be happy with sailing on Princess, and yes we have the same concerns about the original poster. My opinion is that so many people posting on here are full of it

 

So you yourself must be happy sailing with Princes if sailing B2B2B2B? :) What people posting on here are full of what? Do you mean Princess fanboys and girls? A bit of odd thinking, IMO.

Enjoy your future B2B2B2B cruise on Princess.

Edited January 4, 2018 by Kingofcool1947