The Sky is the Limit on Princess - Thanksgiving Cruise Review

[ChutChut]

My daughter (age 13) and I departed on the Sky (November 19, 2022) from FLL for a seven-day Caribbean journey over Thanksgiving. We are Platinum and had Princess Plus. We booked a deluxe ocean view on the Sun deck (best and quietest deck onboard) and drove to the port from our home in Destin, FL. 

 

BOARDING - Sky was docked at Pier 21 as Enchanted was at Pier 2. Boarding was chaotic and could be deemed a cluster****. Princess did not have my customized Medallion wristbands at boarding (more on this later).

 

CABIN - S102 - this is, probably, the best cabin I've ever had on Princess. Floor to ceiling windows and so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Would book this cabin again in a New York minute.

 

CABIN BED - bed was split into two "sort of" twins beds. I dreaded this as I'm tall and like my queen bed at home. My dread was unfounded. Bed was akin to a dream cocoon and I slept like a baby every night (and took naps every day). Best sleep I've had in a long time. Mattress was heavenly and seemed it was steeped in Ambien I slept so well. Another poster recently said the mattresses were horrible. My experience was the opposite.

 

PRINCESS PLUS - this is very subjective. I got a good deal on this through a travel agent so it was worth it to me but if I had to pay retail, I probably would pass next time as I'm just not a heavy drinker.

 

FOOD - surprisingly good. Ate in the main dining room almost every night (loved Cielo dining room - Estrella - not so much). Ate at Alfredo's (yum) and International Cafe frequently (great). Buffet (meh). Overall, pleased with food and quality.

 

CRUISE DIRECTOR - Matt from England was terrific. Very memorable and personable. 

 

ACTIVITIES - lots of good things to do on sea days. Princess has even brought back galley tours, etc. 

 

CUSTOMER SERVICE - Something happened onboard that could have injured my daughter (a malfunction). Princess guest services manager handled it like a pro and I was delighted to find several wonderful treats and gifts in my cabin. A big A+ to Jody. He's such an asset to Princess. Overall, room steward was terrific, same with bar staff, waitstaff, etc. Princess even called us on the second day and said they found our customized wristbands. They delivered them to our cabin and we did received them gratis. Now we have two great wristbands each.

 

DISEMBARKATION - Sky docked at Pier 2 (it embarked from Pier 21) and Princess had many shuttles to take those of us who had parked at the Palm Garage back there. Very efficient and no problem at all. Disembarkation took five minutes. Very efficient.

 

I was sort of anxious going on a cruise given Covid, etc. but I had the time of my life on this cruise (so did daughter). Feel great afterward (didn't catch anything) and crew were always cleaning, etc. I booked another cruise onboard and would be delighted to sail on the Sky again.

 

[stoneharborlady]

What was there about the Estrella dining room that you did not like?

[ChutChut]

2 hours ago, stoneharborlady said:

What was there about the Estrella dining room that you did not like?

I think it's adjacent to the Piazza or under the Princess Theater (or some other music venue) and there was loud bass noise, etc. all throughout the dinner. It was very jarring. Cielo was a better, more intimate dining room with no noise.

[stoneharborlady]

1 minute ago, ChutChut said:

I think it's adjacent to the Piazza or under the Princess Theater (or some other music venue) and there was loud bass noise, etc. all throughout the dinner. It was very jarring. Cielo was a better, more intimate dining room with no noise.

In that case, I would prefer Cielo too.

[KarmaCruisers]

We were on the ship with you; and I wrote a live TR 😄

Question..I’ve always wondered..I know this was a calm sea cruise..but do you have other experience being in the absolute top+nose of the boat (deck 17 cabin 102 is the highest/most forward cabin)..does it get super “rocky”??

we were on deck 11 rm530 (mid-aft)

[seeyouinthesun]

4 hours ago, ChutChut said:

My daughter (age 13) and I departed on the Sky (November 19, 2022) from FLL for a seven-day Caribbean journey over Thanksgiving. We are Platinum and had Princess Plus. We booked a deluxe ocean view on the Sun deck (best and quietest deck onboard) and drove to the port from our home in Destin, FL. 

 

BOARDING - Sky was docked at Pier 21 as Enchanted was at Pier 2. Boarding was chaotic and could be deemed a cluster****. Princess did not have my customized Medallion wristbands at boarding (more on this later).

 

CABIN - S102 - this is, probably, the best cabin I've ever had on Princess. Floor to ceiling windows and so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Would book this cabin again in a New York minute.

 

CABIN BED - bed was split into two "sort of" twins beds. I dreaded this as I'm tall and like my queen bed at home. My dread was unfounded. Bed was akin to a dream cocoon and I slept like a baby every night (and took naps every day). Best sleep I've had in a long time. Mattress was heavenly and seemed it was steeped in Ambien I slept so well. Another poster recently said the mattresses were horrible. My experience was the opposite.

 

PRINCESS PLUS - this is very subjective. I got a good deal on this through a travel agent so it was worth it to me but if I had to pay retail, I probably would pass next time as I'm just not a heavy drinker.

 

FOOD - surprisingly good. Ate in the main dining room almost every night (loved Cielo dining room - Estrella - not so much). Ate at Alfredo's (yum) and International Cafe frequently (great). Buffet (meh). Overall, pleased with food and quality.

 

CRUISE DIRECTOR - Matt from England was terrific. Very memorable and personable. 

 

ACTIVITIES - lots of good things to do on sea days. Princess has even brought back galley tours, etc. 

 

CUSTOMER SERVICE - Something happened onboard that could have injured my daughter (a malfunction). Princess guest services manager handled it like a pro and I was delighted to find several wonderful treats and gifts in my cabin. A big A+ to Jody. He's such an asset to Princess. Overall, room steward was terrific, same with bar staff, waitstaff, etc. Princess even called us on the second day and said they found our customized wristbands. They delivered them to our cabin and we did received them gratis. Now we have two great wristbands each.

 

DISEMBARKATION - Sky docked at Pier 2 (it embarked from Pier 21) and Princess had many shuttles to take those of us who had parked at the Palm Garage back there. Very efficient and no problem at all. Disembarkation took five minutes. Very efficient.

 

I was sort of anxious going on a cruise given Covid, etc. but I had the time of my life on this cruise (so did daughter). Feel great afterward (didn't catch anything) and crew were always cleaning, etc. I booked another cruise onboard and would be delighted to sail on the Sky again.

 

I board Sky on Saturday. Very surprised to hear about embarkation. If had very good experiences my past sailings on Princess from Port Everglades. Hopefully thinks will be better on Saturday. 

[JenT412]

I was on the same cruise.  We were disappointed with cielo.  We preferred soleil. 

[MissP22]

14 hours ago, ChutChut said:

BOARDING - Sky was docked at Pier 21 as Enchanted was at Pier 2. Boarding was chaotic and could be deemed a cluster****. Princess did not have my customized Medallion wristbands at boarding (more on this later).

Wow. It usually goes pretty smooth. 

[Torfamm]

8 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

Wow. It usually goes pretty smooth. 

We were there and saw two big issues. First, medallions were delayed so everyone had to pick them up at the port. That made check in very slow. An agent told me that they had only arrived at the port that morning. Second, the escalator wasn’t working and many people had more bags than they could carry up the stairs. That left a huge crowd waiting for elevators 

[ChutChut]

12 hours ago, KarmaCruisers said:

We were on the ship with you; and I wrote a live TR 😄

Question..I’ve always wondered..I know this was a calm sea cruise..but do you have other experience being in the absolute top+nose of the boat (deck 17 cabin 102 is the highest/most forward cabin)..does it get super “rocky”??

we were on deck 11 rm530 (mid-aft)

Yes. I was in a mini-suite L108 or 107 (I believe) on a 26-day transatlantic cruise to the Baltics. Crossing the Atlantic on a top deck and in the absolute front was a nightmare as the winds literally shook the cabin. The floors and bed vibrated so much I thought I was in an x-rated motel. Moreover, the wind howled and disrupted my sleep. Once we made it to Europe, the winds subsided and everything was fine. It's hit or miss but given the relative slow speed in the Caribbean, I wouldn't hesitate to book in the front (unless there's a storm and then who knows?).

[ChutChut]

11 hours ago, seeyouinthesun said:

I board Sky on Saturday. Very surprised to hear about embarkation. If had very good experiences my past sailings on Princess from Port Everglades. Hopefully thinks will be better on Saturday. 

I think if the ship departs from Pier 2, all will be fine. It's just when Princess is forced to use Pier 21. We disembarked at Pier 2 and it was smooth and efficient.