New To The Island Princess

[bobontheblue]

Having only sailed on the larger vessels in the Princess fleet. The next two sailings booked are on the Island Princess. Both these cruises were chosen based on itinerary and destination only. I am looking for some constructive feed back on the Island Princess from those members whom have already sailed on her. Some of the reviews are not to flattering recently but  as with all cruises, not everyone has the same experience.  2020 Top of the World Explorer. 2021 Mediterranean and Israel.

[1965]

We've taken 2 cruises on the Island. There is no International Cafe. The atrium is smaller & designed so that you cannot see the entertainers performing there. The theater is smaller. I personally prefer the larger ships. However, if the itinerary is a good one and the price is right, I would cruise on her again. 

[frugaltravel]

I was on the Island Princess for a full Transit of the Panama Canal. The cruise was sold out and everything seemed very crowded. Anytime dining had long lines every night. We needed to get to the theater 45-60 minutes before the program started in order to get a seat. Just not a pleasant experience. I have also been on the coral and it was so much better. But the coral has not gone through the renovation that the island has.

[TM]

We were on the Island last year for 2 weeks in Alaska.  Both weeks were sold out.  We never noticed a crowding problem.  But then if you look for a negative, be it crowds or furnishing that need to be replaced, etc. you will find them.  If you are going to enjoy the cruise and the ports you will have a great time.  I would never hesitate to sail on the Island again.  The crew and staff were absolutely amazing.

Edited November 13, 2019 by TM

[geoherb]

I was on the Island for back-to-back Alaskan cruises this summer. I had a great time. The wide outside Promenade Deck was great for viewing the glaciers. I had been on the ship back in 2011 as well--before they took away the Universe Lounge to add cabins (and block off the rear of the Promenade Deck for those cabins' balconies). I was leery of booking these cruises, but the price was irresistible. I had second seating traditional dining and went to the shows after dinner. I never had a problem getting a seat even when arriving right before the show began.

[Steelers36]

I have posted similar comments before.  We sailed Island for 60-nights round trip around S.A. from FLL and back, including Panama Canal transit.  We chose to go because of the itinerary and experience.  Everyone I know of on that trip had a great time.  The ship was in excellent condition as it had many updates and refurbishments as a result of the expanded number of cabins.  Although I might select a different ship from the fleet for a cruise, I would not hesitate to sail on Island again if it was a journey we wanted to take.  Island has been assigned to World Cruise duty out of N.A., replacing the Pacific, and it seems people are quite interested to go on the journey or segments.  

 

[Ofmyheart]

Yes she has some crowding & definitely a few issues since the update but for some reason she is my favorite ship in the fleet and of any line we have cruised.

 

Each to their own opinion.

[jennybenny]

We sailed the Island in April 2019, 10 Panama Canal cruise RT Ft Lauderdale. We enjoyed the island. We did not attend any shows, we had late dinner TD. We enjoyed the covered pool most days, Crooners before and after dinner then some time in the casino.

We would sail again.

Enjoy your cruises.

[golfb4cruzing]

We were on the Island 3 weeks ago and what a disaster ship. We picked the Island because of the great time we had on the Coral. They are opposite ships. I found the ship dirty and saw only one person doing any cleaning in the 10 days and I am late to bed and early to rise. The Atrium furniture is beat up and raggedity which surprised us totally. Except for a few crew members, the crew was uninspired and going through the motions. They seemed more interested in flirting and touching each other than dealing with the guests. No IC which is a huge mistake and not sure why they went that way unless it's cost cutting.

The Food in the buffet was close to high school cafeteria level with several mornings having scrambled eggs better eaten through a straw. If you are a vegetarian or curry based diet, you are in luck. Only the last two dinner times had any real protein offerings. We tried eating in the MDR but after two meals of overcooked and unappealing meals, we gave up there. We ate alot of pizza, still the best at sea, over the 10 days. I came home 3 lbs less than boarding.

Our bed was the worst we've had. The two mattresses kept separating and the attendant said impossible to correct. Marius was outstanding but that mattresses hampered some quality time for sure.

Everything on the ship seems to run through EAFY, which has the Rudest people. They handed out charms for a bracelet daily but you had to suffer through 45 minute sales pitch in a packed small shop and it was the warmest spot on the ship when it was empty.One night a guest bought a necklace and then the EAFY folks called her out for being a bit loud, in a sea of noise. She immediately returned the necklace to the rude salesmen. Good for her. Of course one did not have to chase the charms but not really much else to do.

The entire ship and only 4 kids. But those 4 kids dominated the Lotus Pool daily. Loud, splashing, cannonballs and not a relaxing environment. I blame the parents who rarely controlled the cherubs. Maybe I should have brought a pool float and joined in. It was clear of the intrusion because they got out and the adults came in. Same with the hot tubs. I'm all for an adult only pool area.

The Casino seemed fair. After 5 days I was up a modest amount but of course greed struck and it was all donated back.

Day 2 we purchased drinks before a show and one was made incorrectly. As the show was starting I had to wait until it's completion to investigate. I went to the Wheelhouse to inform the bartender but was told he was on break. SO I went to Guest Services, they took the information and said they would get back to me. After 3 days I checked back with them and they had no clue. SO we repeated the process and after 3 more days, I saw the Cruise Director in the Atrium. Went through the scenario and he said he would take care of it. At this point it was the principle of the problem. We finally heard back from a Service Manager the night before we debarked and it was dealt with. It was just the whole attitude of the ship.

So that's the 2nd time doing that run and I think we can call it done with.

Someone else probably had a great time, we were anticipating one. Just didn't happen. But we are searching again for an April trip and hard to give up the Platinum perks.

[Yehootu]

We've sailed on the Island, both pre and post refurb. Loved both with the best crew. Last April 19 day Panama RT from LAX was so memorable, we've booked 25 day B2B this March. We sailed in a "new" mini suite and it had been posted as a "noisy" cabin. Cracked us up as there were so many pieces of Patters stuck all over the place. 28yrs as an airline pilot, noise and vibrations don't both me. Wonderful ship, and as long as you aren't looking for a bad time, I'm sure you'll enjoy your cruise.

[Leisure4Flo]

Sure hope that the actual conditions are somewhere between these assessments! On the Island Princess on Jan.9th. 2020.

[deepcman]

^^^ Please report back on your opinion of the ship as we get on her April 11th for 28 day South Pacific run.

[Colo Cruiser]

35 minutes ago, Leisure4Flo said:

Sure hope that the actual conditions are somewhere between these assessments! On the Island Princess on Jan.9th. 2020.

Welcome to Cruise Critic!!

[Yehootu]

1 hour ago, deepcman said:

^^^ Please report back on your opinion of the ship as we get on her April 11th for 28 day South Pacific run.

You get on when we get of in LA. I'll try to report back. Figure we'll have the Medallion Net as I'll need to complete a few courses while on the cruise so I'll make a point to follow up.

[brt49]

On 11/12/2019 at 6:56 PM, bobontheblue said:

Having only sailed on the larger vessels in the Princess fleet. The next two sailings booked are on the Island Princess. Both these cruises were chosen based on itinerary and destination only. I am looking for some constructive feed back on the Island Princess from those members whom have already sailed on her. Some of the reviews are not to flattering recently but  as with all cruises, not everyone has the same experience.  2020 Top of the World Explorer. 2021 Mediterranean and Israel.

Are you doing the 11/22/21 cruise to Israel? We are on that one.

[Leisure4Flo]

No other cruise booked. 

[cruisenfreak]

13 hours ago, Leisure4Flo said:

Sure hope that the actual conditions are somewhere between these assessments! On the Island Princess on Jan.9th. 2020.

Welcome to CruiseCritic.  Are you doing the full circumnavigation of S America or a portion?  Check out our roll call which has been extremely active and attend Meet & Greet if you’re interested.  I know we’re going to have a great cruise!  See you on board.  Mary Jane

[Leisure4Flo]

Yes, we will cruise the whole way!

[LDVinNC]

We were on the Island Princess for the partial Panama Canal cruise in late November - early December.  Liked it so much we booked the Hawaii/South Pacific April trip.  We found the food and service to be very good.  Production shows good, individual entertainers were okay.  Cabin in great shape except for balcony furniture, which was comfortable but sorely in need of refinishing or replacement.  As others have said, if you look for issues you will find them.  Nothing is perfect.

[mammajamma2013]

We did a 15 day full Panama Canal not too long after the aft staterooms were added. We had not sailed on either the Island or Coral prior to this.

 

I liked the size of the ship. It was easy to get around and felt "cozy". Island has been the smallest ship we've sailed on so far. Not as many venues, of course, but still enough to keep us happy. I should add that we're fairly easy to please.

 

True there was no International Cafe but they did have a few snacks out every day at the coffee bar. There is also an Alfredo's pizzaria, definitaly a plus.

 

It didn't feel crowded at all, we had Anytime dining and no proble being seated. Easy to find seating in the theater; we always lined up about half an hour before start time, so that may have some bearing on it.

 

The only negative was the truncated Promenade. It would have been nice to have been able to make a complete circuit, but we dealt with it.

 

I would sail Island again if an itinerary came up that we're interested in.

[NMTraveller]

Our last two cruises were Island Princess last Christmas (Panama Canal) and Celebrity Edge (Eastern Med) in September.  I tend to have a large preference for the Island Princess of the two ships.  Sure Island Princess is not as shiney and new as the Edge,  but I was able to find a nice quite place to have a glass of wine in the evenings.  The experience is much better.

Edited January 3, 2020 by NMTraveller

[Missysole]

We were also on the Island for the late November/early December partial transit.  Having done nearly the same cruise some 10 years ago on the Coral, was excited as we prefer this size ship.  Had an amazing, time (because as others have said - the ship should not dictate your experience!) - but we won't sail her again.   

 

If you're active - the Promenade cutout is inconvenient and ugly (IMHO), the gym was moved to a cave on 6 and the 'active' activities were pretty much eliminated save for paid exercise classes in the aforementioned cave.  There is only one outdoor pool which we knew going in, but I had higher hopes for the splash pool which is about 10" deep.  So - when the pool was busy, it was busy.

 

We sorely missed the Vista Lounge. Bingo in Explorer's Lounge just wasn't the same and with one less public venue, they were always in transition from one activity (such as an art auction) to another very quickly.  We had to wait until one was over before we could be seated and order drinks, etc..  We're a group that likes a casino and while the bar service couldn't be beat - the casino itself was a bit bastardized during the renovation.  For us it was too small and oddly shaped. There is no circulation in one section (because they didn't properly drop the ventilation during the renovation).  

 

Had no issues with the ship itself in terms of leaking, creaking, sooting, long lines, broken anything, etc.  The overall layout was easy to navigate, as others have said - our sailing was not overcrowded.  It's a 'simple' ship in many interpretations. That's why we chose her in the first place - but for the reasons I've mentioned, we have selected to go back on the Star for our next sailing (more pools, full walking deck, larger casino, a gym with windows, the Vista lounge, etc.).    

 

Ultimately you have to prioritize what's most important to you when picking an itinerary, a ship - as well as your cruisemates!  

[pilgrimduke]

We were on a Panama Canal cruise Sept/Oct, 2019.  I know that personnel change but overall we had a very positive experience.  On the plus side, we had no problem getting a table for two for Anytime Dining.  The longest we had to wait was when no table was available and the buzzer notifying us that something was available went off as I was sitting down in the atrium.  I'm not a foodie, so take that into account, but I thought that the MDR and Windjammer food was good.  I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the entertainment.  I didn't find the ship crowded.  We had an inside cabin, which was fine for our needs.  I thought that bedding was good.  

 

On the negative side, Internet could be slow and spotty.  We had an air conditioning problem in teh room that took a couple of days to resolve, but things moved quickly once we found the right person.  (Room steward not helpful, but guest services was.)  The auditorium for the nightly show does fill up quickly.  That was a bit of a pain, but it also probably speaks to the quality of the entertainment.  In the cabin there were no outlets by the bed which made things slightly awkward for plugging in my CPAP machine.  No big problem, but I had to be careful when I got up in the middle of the night so that I didn't trip over it.  It would have been nice if the Promenade deck wasn't truncated, but that wasn't a big deal to me.  

 

Overall a positive experience and I wouldn't hesitate to cruise on the ship again.  (I don't discount the negative experiences of others, but in our case the good outweighed the bad.).