new to princess (but not new into cruising)

[bastmr]

after more than 150 seadays, most of them on Holland America ships, we've booked our first Princess cruise: a holiday 2023/2024 cruise with the Diamond Princess.

 

Are there anythings to consider or to keep in mind? Like a dresscode? At HAL, there's the 'orange party', so we always pack something orange. Does princess have some kind of a themeparty? 

 

Any other tips or suggestions? What are the big differences between the two compagnies? 

 

 

[sunviking90]

Princess has just started the “white and gold” night with a party in the evening. The dress suggested is of course white and gold. We haven’t seen a lot of participation as far as dress, but I’m sure you’ll see more on a holiday cruise.

I would say the lines are more similar than different. We have sailed more than 10 cruises on each.

 

We haven’t sailed on Diamond Princess but we love her sister Sapphire Princess. She has a full wrap around promenade similar to the HAL ships. You’ll find dress code very similar. 

A few differences we notice:

You will find staterooms smaller without a couch or a tub unless you are in a mini-suite. We really prefer HALs staterooms in this regard. 
Breakfast menu in the MDR is much smaller on Princess. We love HALs options especially Greek yogourt and berries. Berries are scarce on Princess ships for some reason. 
Buffet hours are much more extensive on Princess. You can pretty much go up there anytime from 6 am to 11 pm and find a wide variety of options. We find HALs Lido hours ridiculous with mid afternoon closures or next to nothing available (our experience on our last HAL cruise). We are not big buffet people, but we do like to go up and get a snack after being ashore. 
Princess does not have set early and main dining. It is all “open”. We like set times and waitstaff, so we make reservations in the medallion app as soon as possible at the same time every evening. We let the restaurant host know that we would like the same table daily, and they usually can accommodate. 
Princess has the medallions that you wear instead of key cards which open your stateroom door, etc. They also have the medallion app which you’ll use precruise to check in, etc, and can be used during the cruise for various things like ordering food, drinks, etc. We don’t bother using it to order anything as it seems just as easy to get things ourselves.

While we used to really enjoy the speakers on HAL, we have found recently that Princess has been superior in the cultural enrichment area on our cruises. The speakers are usually very good, and there are many other cultural enrichment activities on the cruises to unique areas (Hawaii, Alaska, Japan, etc)

These are the main differences we notice. Keep in mind that the Diamond is unique among Princess ships in that she has been customized in many ways for her Japanese/ Asian itineraries making her even more special. @Ken the cruiseris doing a really good trip report currently that can give more insight.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 23, 2023 by sunviking90

[mtnesterz]

Differences between the two lines? It may or may not make any difference to you, but since you say you'll be cruising on the Holidays, while HAL would have a Catholic Priest aboard. Princess recently ended relations with AOS, the organization that arranged that.

Theme parties? Princess is said to have some white and gold parties, but photos and videos show that passengers wear whatever colors they want. 

Dress code? Recent returnees from cruises say Princess changed their Formal Nights to Dress to Impress and we have not cruised since this change.

Tips or suggestions? If continuing your cruise into Malaysia, when going ashore, females in your party should wear something below the knee and covered shoulders.

Edited July 23, 2023 by mtnesterz

[bastmr]

1 hour ago, mtnesterz said:

Differences between the two lines? It may or may not make any difference to you, but since you say you'll be cruising on the Holidays, while HAL would have a Catholic Priest aboard. Princess recently ended relations with AOS, the organization that arranged that.

Theme parties? Princess is said to have some white and gold parties, but photos and videos show that passengers wear whatever colors they want. 

Dress code? Recent returnees from cruises say Princess changed their Formal Nights to Dress to Impress and we have not cruised since this change.

Tips or suggestions? If continuing your cruise into Malaysia, when going ashore, females in your party should wear something below the knee and covered shoulders.

thanks for the info! we don't need a priest and we always respect local habits and regulations .

 

so if i pack my white shirt, golden bow tie and tuxedo (i like to do it the classic way - better overdressed than underdressed) i'll be fine.

[Rick&Jeannie]

I have NEVER seen anybody participating in the "White and Gold".  Maybe it's just that we are doing something else at the time...but we would not pack anything special like that for a "one time wear"!

[bastmr]

2 hours ago, sunviking90 said:

Princess has just started the “white and gold” night with a party in the evening. The dress suggested is of course white and gold. We haven’t seen a lot of participation as far as dress, but I’m sure you’ll see more on a holiday cruise.

I would say the lines are more similar than different. We have sailed more than 10 cruises on each.

 

We haven’t sailed on Diamond Princess but we love her sister Sapphire Princess. She has a full wrap around promenade similar to the HAL ships. You’ll find dress code very similar. 

A few differences we notice:

You will find staterooms smaller without a couch or a tub unless you are in a mini-suite. We really prefer HALs staterooms in this regard. 
Breakfast menu in the MDR is much smaller on Princess. We love HALs options especially Greek yogourt and berries. Berries are scarce on Princess ships for some reason. 
Buffet hours are much more extensive on Princess. You can pretty much go up there anytime from 6 am to 11 pm and find a wide variety of options. We find HALs Lido hours ridiculous with mid afternoon closures or next to nothing available (our experience on our last HAL cruise). We are not big buffet people, but we do like to go up and get a snack after being ashore. 
Princess does not have set early and main dining. It is all “open”. We like set times and waitstaff, so we make reservations in the medallion app as soon as possible at the same time every evening. We let the restaurant host know that we would like the same table daily, and they usually can accommodate. 
Princess has the medallions that you wear instead of key cards which open your stateroom door, etc. They also have the medallion app which you’ll use precruise to check in, etc, and can be used during the cruise for various things like ordering food, drinks, etc. We don’t bother using it to order anything as it seems just as easy to get things ourselves.

While we used to really enjoy the speakers on HAL, we have found recently that Princess has been superior in the cultural enrichment area on our cruises. The speakers are usually very good, and there are many other cultural enrichment activities on the cruises to unique areas (Hawaii, Alaska, Japan, etc)

These are the main differences we notice. Keep in mind that the Diamond is unique among Princess ships in that she has been customized in many ways for her Japanese/ Asian itineraries making her even more special. @Ken the cruiseris doing a really good trip report currently that can give more insight.

 

 

 

 

thanks for this information!!! 

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, bastmr said:

thanks for the info! we don't need a priest and we always respect local habits and regulations .

 

so if i pack my white shirt, golden bow tie and tuxedo (i like to do it the classic way - better overdressed than underdressed) i'll be fine.

Sure, go right ahead.  You might want to keep in tune with happenings as PCL may stop the W&G dress theme by the time you cruise.