Best thing and worst thing about Caribbean princess

[canadarocks]

4 minutes ago, Simple_Travels4578 said:

I am typing this from the Wheelhouse Bar on the Caribbean Princess. We just left Curaçao. We have nothing negative to say, we are loving the cruise and the ship.

Wonderful!. Can you please tell me if the first formal night was on your 1st or your 2nd sea day? And am I right in that your second formal night was last night? 

[floridalover5623]

9 hours ago, Simple_Travels4578 said:

I am typing this from the Wheelhouse Bar on the Caribbean Princess. We just left Curaçao. We have nothing negative to say, we are loving the cruise and the ship.

Keep cruising on Princess & you'll be surprised that some of the other ships have more to offer. 

[jeanandjim]

14 hours ago, Simple_Travels4578 said:

I am typing this from the Wheelhouse Bar on the Caribbean Princess. We just left Curaçao. We have nothing negative to say, we are loving the cruise and the ship.

The next time Caribbean goes to Curacao we will be enjoying a cocktail in the Wheelhouse Bar. If you could do us a favor, we would like to know if Michael Reitano, the CD is going to be doing anything special for the total lunar eclipse on the night of Jan. 20th as we leave Trinadad.

Thnx in advance, Jim

[richsea]

On 12/27/2018 at 1:32 AM, tiller said:

Was on Caribbean Princess in October and really enjoyed it, though I agree with an above poster who said the buffet could get repetitive.

 

Best: Steamers and Planks are fantastic deals for $12. The Salty Dog burger with the smoked gouda (I forget the name)). I regret not having the soft-serve till the end, because the chocolate was delicious. The variety of prizes given at trivia. 

 

Worst: Even toward the end of the 10 days, I kept getting lost. One of the weirder layouts I've been on, and I wasn't alone. 

Thanks for your insights! Can you elaborate on the weird layout? Aside from the pesky at restaurant on deck 6 that seems only to be reachable via the aft elevator, I don’t see any other quirks.

also, is formal night observed in Steamers and Planks during dinner, or is smart casual ok?

Edited December 30, 2018 by richsea

[Ep010835]

1 hour ago, richsea said:

is formal night observed in Steamers and Planks during dinner, or is smart casual ok?

Smart casual is fine anywhere on the ship anytime and in any venue. Formal night included. 

[floridalover5623]

1 hour ago, richsea said:

Thanks for your insights! Can you elaborate on the weird layout? Aside from the pesky at restaurant on deck 6 that seems only to be reachable via the aft elevator, I don’t see any other quirks.

also, is formal night observed in Steamers and Planks during dinner, or is smart casual ok?

Shorts are even OK for Planks.

Also at Planks you can pay for one meal only & split the meal.

Considering the amount of food, it's really sufficient for 2 people. 

[tiller]

23 hours ago, richsea said:

Thanks for your insights! Can you elaborate on the weird layout? Aside from the pesky at restaurant on deck 6 that seems only to be reachable via the aft elevator, I don’t see any other quirks.

also, is formal night observed in Steamers and Planks during dinner, or is smart casual ok?

 

I found it easy to get turned around on the Lido deck, more so than on other ships I've been on. 

 

Didn't eat at Steamers or Planks on formal nights but (smart) casual would certainly be fine. Don't want to get barbecue stains on nice clothes!

[OCruisers]

23 hours ago, richsea said:

 is formal night observed in Steamers and Planks during dinner, or is smart casual ok?

 

You can wear anything (including shorts) to Planks and Steamers for dinner even on formal nights that you would wear to the regular buffet.  

[nukesubsailor]

23 hours ago, richsea said:

Thanks for your insights! Can you elaborate on the weird layout? Aside from the pesky at restaurant on deck 6 that seems only to be reachable via the aft elevator, I don’t see any other quirks.

also, is formal night observed in Steamers and Planks during dinner, or is smart casual ok?

The dinning room on deck 6 aft is for traditional dining.  It is the one on deck six amidships that is used for both early traditional dining, Club Class anytime dining and late anytime dining.

[richsea]

Thanks for all the info! We’re kind of done with formal night, but would rather skip a venue if we would seem out of place. Steamers and Planks sound great. Looking forward to them.

[DrivesLikeMario]

On 12/25/2018 at 12:37 PM, satxdiver said:

 

Isn't that the truth.  The next worst thing is returning to the cabin on the next to last day and seeing the brown kiss of death on the bed signifying that it is time to start packing to leave.  The only cure known to mankind is to have a cruise already booked for the near future. 

 

On my recent cruise, they didn't have the packing mat on the bed at all - either at the beginning or the end of the cruise.  I'm not sure if this is a new procedure or if my cabin steward just didn't bother with it. 

Edited December 31, 2018 by DrivesLikeMario

[JoRoy218]

6 hours ago, DrivesLikeMario said:

 

On my recent cruise, they didn't have the packing mat on the bed at all - either at the beginning or the end of the cruise.  I'm not sure if this is a new procedure or if my cabin steward just didn't bother with it. 

Same here, we got off the CB on 12/19 and there was not the usual “luggage mat” on the foot of the bed. They just had a brown cotton type “runner”. In fact, I looked under the bed before putting my suitcase up to unpack. They just had the usual assortment of clean linen under there. Same thing on night before debarkation. 

[Simple_Travels4578]

On 12/30/2018 at 7:29 AM, floridalover5623 said:

Keep cruising on Princess & you'll be surprised that some of the other ships have more to offer. 

This is cruise number 14 for us on Princess. We’ve done the old (mini-sized Royal) the old Tahitian, the new Royal, the Ruby, the Star, the Emerald, Crown, the Caribbean, and maybe one other. No complaints here with the Caribbean. Enjoying it a great deal.

[Simple_Travels4578]

On 12/29/2018 at 10:05 PM, canadarocks said:

Wonderful!. Can you please tell me if the first formal night was on your 1st or your 2nd sea day? And am I right in that your second formal night was last night? 

Formal nights were the second night, a sea day. Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve, if my recollection is right. (May not be)

[Simple_Travels4578]

On 12/30/2018 at 12:56 PM, jeanandjim said:

The next time Caribbean goes to Curacao we will be enjoying a cocktail in the Wheelhouse Bar. If you could do us a favor, we would like to know if Michael Reitano, the CD is going to be doing anything special for the total lunar eclipse on the night of Jan. 20th as we leave Trinadad.

Thnx in advance, Jim

I’ll attempt to ask if I see him.

[TracieABD]

I have not been on the CB since 2010. At that time, it sort of had not the greatest reputation. 

Recently, it has undergone a major overhaul... I am actually looking for a reason/ cruise to book her again! I will be interested to hear your impressions.

[floridalover5623]

20 hours ago, TracieABD said:

I have not been on the CB since 2010. At that time, it sort of had not the greatest reputation. 

Recently, it has undergone a major overhaul... I am actually looking for a reason/ cruise to book her again! I will be interested to hear your impressions.

They seemed to have improved upon some of the original problems but have introduced some new ones.

[TracieABD]

1 hour ago, floridalover5623 said:

They seemed to have improved upon some of the original problems but have introduced some new ones.

Like????...

[skynight]

22 hours ago, TracieABD said:

I have not been on the CB since 2010. At that time, it sort of had not the greatest reputation. 

Recently, it has undergone a major overhaul... I am actually looking for a reason/ cruise to book her again! I will be interested to hear your impressions.

We were on the Caribbean in February 2018. We found the ship to be well run and organized. The only issue we found was the theater where you had to arrive 45 minutes to an hour early for the mid evening shows. Mid evening shows were simulcast in Explorer's Lounge.

[TracieABD]

1 minute ago, skynight said:

We were on the Caribbean in February 2018. We found the ship to be well run and organized. The only issue we found was the theater where you had to arrive 45 minutes to an hour early for the mid evening shows. Mid evening shows were simulcast in Explorer's Lounge.

I have never heard of a simulcast on a cruise ship, but I think it is a brilliant idea! I have gotten to where I always try to show up early and I read a book... Princess theaters are just too small to accommodate the number of passengers.

[skynight]

2 hours ago, TracieABD said:

I have never heard of a simulcast on a cruise ship, but I think it is a brilliant idea! I have gotten to where I always try to show up early and I read a book... Princess theaters are just too small to accommodate the number of passengers.

Explorers also fills up early. Don't leave your reading material in your cabin.

[floridalover5623]

3 hours ago, skynight said:

We were on the Caribbean in February 2018. We found the ship to be well run and organized. The only issue we found was the theater where you had to arrive 45 minutes to an hour early for the mid evening shows. Mid evening shows were simulcast in Explorer's Lounge.

Maybe it won't be long that they broadcast it to your cabin also. 😉😉

[floridalover5623]

3 hours ago, TracieABD said:

Like????...

1.The air conditioning in certain groups of cabins is terrible and NOTHING can be done to correct it. 

2. The layout at the buffet has improved but the way they prepare the food as well as the way it's presented (in cardboard containers) is not at all appealing. 

[Ep010835]

7 minutes ago, floridalover5623 said:

2. The layout at the buffet has improved but the way they prepare the food as well as the way it's presented (in cardboard containers) is not at all appealing. 

 

In my post-cruise survey, I gave the food in the WFM a 2. The lowest rating of anything in the survey.

[floridalover5623]

2 hours ago, Ep010835 said:

 

In my post-cruise survey, I gave the food in the WFM a 2. The lowest rating of anything in the survey.

I found their food to be very different than any other Princess ship. Many people (from cruise critic) seemed to love it, but it's just not to my liking. They seemed to want to create exotic dishes where I prefer more basic items. 

I did read your review prior to my sailing but couldn't appreciate it until I experienced it for myself. 

Hopefully these new menu items won't spread beyond the CB and they'll return to the old proven standby's.