Which Ship?

[cruzluver2]

We are looking at Southern Caribbean April 2022. We have sailed Princess and love it.  There are 3 ships with close to same ports.  Island Princess,  Celebrity Equinox, Holland American a  Niew Statendam.  I realize this is Princess board.  It will be two adults 57 a d 60.  We really e joy spending our time together, movies under the stars and the ports.  Which ship would you recommend?

[LACruiser88]

For what it's worth, the Island Princess is our least favorite remaining Princess ship.  We have not been on the other two ships...

[Coffeeluvr05]

Have you cruised on HAL before?  We recently tried our first HAL cruise on the NA and we enjoyed it but found it rather sedate and did not love the layout of the ship the way we like Princess ships.  For instance, we love the Piazza area on the Princess ships and the NA did not have that.  I think you have to consider pros/cons since we all have different preferences.  Not having been on the Island Princess, I cannot really comment on that ship, but I do recall reading negative posts about it.  I would strongly recommend reading up on that ship before you commit and getting others' input.

[BestGuessed]

When we cruised on Island Princess through the Panama Canal in 2013 we found the ship feeling old and tired.  The air conditioning struggled with the heat and barely worked in our balcony cabin. I am sure the ship has been refurbished at least once since then and would have been updated but in our opinion Equinox is a much nicer ship and having cruised on her twice and her sister ship Eclipse five times we would most definitely opt for Celebrity Equinox.  Hope this helps !!

[CineGraphic]

I believe the Nieuw Statendam is the newest of the 3. We were on her 5th sailing a few years ago. Although it's a lovely ship, we prefer how Princess does things over HAL, but I would still choose HAL over Princess if the Island is your only choice.

[Steelers36]

I don't think a comment on ISLAND from 8 years ago is very valid.  We were on her in Winter 2018 and didn't have issues.  Many areas had been updated.

 

That said, I would not choose ISLAND for Caribbean sailing.  I don't mind it on a longer voyage where we are touring ports a lot.  The Sanctuary is most popular in the Caribbean and the ISLAND version is not very good IMO.  Virtually zero shade.  Also, in Caribbean, lots of use of open decks, so a larger ship would be better IMO.  ISLAND has a covered pool and you don't need that in Caribbean sector. 

 

No comments on the other ships, but if they were my only choices, I would go Celebrity Equinox.

[LACruiser88]

26 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

I don't think a comment on ISLAND from 8 years ago is very valid.  We were on her in Winter 2018 and didn't have issues.  Many areas had been updated.

 

That said, I would not choose ISLAND for Caribbean sailing.  I don't mind it on a longer voyage where we are touring ports a lot.  The Sanctuary is most popular in the Caribbean and the ISLAND version is not very good IMO.  Virtually zero shade.  Also, in Caribbean, lots of use of open decks, so a larger ship would be better IMO.  ISLAND has a covered pool and you don't need that in Caribbean sector. 

 

No comments on the other ships, but if they were my only choices, I would go Celebrity Equinox.

We use the gym on a daily basis and the Island moved the gym to Deck 6.  It feels like a dungeon down there.  No more Island Princess for us!

[Bgwest]

1 hour ago, LACruiser88 said:

For what it's worth, the Island Princess is our least favorite remaining Princess ship.  We have not been on the other two ships...

 

5 minutes ago, LACruiser88 said:

We use the gym on a daily basis and the Island moved the gym to Deck 6.  It feels like a dungeon down there.  No more Island Princess for us!

I completely agree. It's our least favorite as well. The fitness center being below the water line with no outside view is completely wrong in our opinion. For us to sail on the Island, the itinerary would have to be a real killer. 

 

Now, her "used to be sister ship" the Coral is our favorite ship as it wasn't butchered like the Island was. 

[6boysnana]

The Island Princess is my least favorite ship. It had a different feeling about it and was not easy to navigate. We were in the new section and it was awkward. It is the only Princess ship I would not book again. I have been on 7 different lines and have  3 cruises booked on Princess in the next 18 months. I am thrilled to be back cruising but we do have choices.

[cruzluver2]

The reason I was considering HA is extra day and an extra port (Martinique) for same money.  We haven’t been to that port. 

[BettyCruiser]

When we sailed Island the ship was nice. Since then they have replaced the large aft lounge with more staterooms, reducing public space and adding passenger load. I have no desire to cruise the Island now.

 

My favorite class of ship is Celebrity S class, so I recommend the Equinox.

 

I have no experience with HA.

[geoherb]

I did back-to-back cruises to Alaska on the Island a couple of years ago. I had a great time. I had sailed on it previously on a Panama Canal cruise--before the butchering. I did miss the Universe Lounge. A lot of activities were in places that could not comfortably accommodate crowds. 

 

Our last HAL cruise was a few years ago when we were able to save $400 per person for similar itinerary. We had a good time on it. I do miss a lot of the activities, and the entertainment isn't as good. (HAL does book some good guest acts.) My favorite part of that cruise was the culinary hostess and the activities she led.

 

So for the same amount of money and an extra day, I'd probably go with HAL.

[csmith4math]

• I cruised on the Island Princess twice, 2013 and 2017. Really enjoyed the ship in 2013 but not so much in 2017. Between the two dates the ship underwent refurbishment which added 10% to capacity. To accomplish this Princess removed the Deck 6 aft lounge (Vista Lounge, I think) and blocked off the aft section of the promenade to add cabins. If you are familiar with the Coral Princess, don't expect the Island to have the same layout. If you like a classic Promenade deck, where you can walk around the entire ship, this will be a disappointment.
• I haven't been on the other ships, but just wanted to mention these changes for you to consider.

[MsSoCalCruiser]

I’m watching a YouTube video of the Celebrity Equinox and the ship looks really nice.  I have a friend who cruises a lot and he loves Celebrity.  I think I would choose the Equinox.  I’m usually a Princess fan but I haven’t heard very many good things about the Island Princess.  I was a bit bored on my one and only HAL cruise but I still miss the Dive-In burgers on the Lido deck, lol.  Also, HAL had one of the best shows I’ve ever seen on a ship, Planet Earth. 

[KruzPrincess]

I’ve been on the Island Princess before and after the changes. I didn’t mind the changes. I didn’t mind the gym, but I don’t spend a lot of time there. It’s an older and smaller ship. That can be a plus or minus depending on you preferences. You definitely won’t have the amenities that you find on the New big ships.  

 

I’ve been on the Equinox, but it’s been a few years. It’s a lovely ship. When I got off I thought that Princess and Celebrity were more alike than different. As I said it’s been awhile. 

 

I haven’t been on NA, but I’ve been on a few HAL cruises. None on their brand new ships. I enjoyed my cruises on HAL, but I go with the expectation that they’ll be more sedate and low key. Food and service were always good. Princess and HAL are run very similarly within the Carnival Corp. 

 

If I had to pick one l might go with HAL for the extra day for the same money. Be aware that Celebrity’s mask requirements may be different than Princess/HAL. You may want to check into it if it’s a concern to you. 

[cnkgirl]

I would do Celebrity Equinox, my husband and I are in your age group and have been on the Equinox several times and love her! And they have movies outside also 😊

[Tyskie]

Haven't been on the new HAL ship.  I have been on the Island and the Equinox.

 

My opinion, hands down Celebrity Equinox.   

[kokopelli-az]

On 11/3/2021 at 10:21 AM, cruzluver2 said:

We are looking at Southern Caribbean April 2022. We have sailed Princess and love it.  There are 3 ships with close to same ports.  Island Princess,  Celebrity Equinox, Holland American a  Niew Statendam. 

We have been on all three of these lines.   We always go back to Celebrity.  We were on the Equinox in August and will be on the Celebrity Reflection next week.  The Equinox is our all-time favorite ship and Celebrity is our favorite cruise line.  

 

We also like Princess and Holland America.   For us, if all things were equal, we would choose the Equinox.  

[nini]

We are Princess fans. HAL ships do not impress us and you are so correct about the demographics. It was quite sedate and not much to do. Celebrity lost us as customers due to their very poor service, snobby attitudes, and poor food.

[crimlarks]

Connie & I did a 14 Caribbean cruise on HAL in November, followed by a 10 day cruise on Princess.  The one area where I felt that HAL beat Princess hands down was food - excellent.  Princess was kind of a letdown in that regard after the HAL cruise.