Golden Princess, March 25, 2006 Review

[magnumcoog]

I am 52, DW 48, and DD 15.

 

We arrived day before in San Juan, flew down on Delta, arrived around 3 p.m. Luggage arrived quickly. Hangup getting out to cab stands was that there were TSA agents taking all of the luggage tags. Got to cab stand and there was a long line, I guess it took about 15 minutes to finally get a cab.

 

We stayed at El Canario by the Sea, it is next door to the Marriott. Room was okay, clean, it right next to the ocean, but no beach views from rooms. A Walgreens is right down the street and also about 15 minutes away there is a Pueblo Supermarket. This grocery store had everything, booze, beer, wine, etc. Loaded up on a few necessities Saturday morning before heading off to the ship.

 

Friday night there were 18 of us Cruisecritics and we met for the first time at Barrachina's in Old San Juan. Good time was had by all.

 

Saturday a.m. we left for the ship around 11 a.m. and arrived about 11:15 or so. It was very hectic already for people arriving to check in. If we would have arrived 20 minutes later there was nobody at the entrance to the dock, I guess just bad timing.

 

Went to check-in and that took about 15 minutes. Duty free shops were giving out tiny tiny rum shots. I believe it was about 12:30 and we started boarding the ship. I did not hear of anyone getting their carryon booze confiscated. I guess you dont flaunt it and all is okay.

 

We were allowed to go to our cabin, D734 aft cabin. Made our way to cabin and none of our cards worked. Went back to pursers desk, they magnetized them and ask us to go back to cabin to see if that fixed the problem, well it didnt, evidently battery in the lock had died. We then just decided to go eat.

 

At 4:30 we had our first meet & mingle, I would guess there were over 50 of us, had it at the Outrigger. Was so great to finally meet everyone. In fact even though our cruise is over, the thread is still going strong.

 

First night, dinner was open seating for all venues. I saw shorts and jeans-LOL.

Muster drill at 8 p.m. no issues.

 

Sunday morning was St. Thomas, arrived on time. We headed for St. Johns to spend the day. Cab to Red Hook was $10 per person one way, Ferry to St. John was $10 roundtrip, cab to Trunk Bay was $18 for 3 of us. I guess with gas prices things go up, but have really gone up from 2 years ago. Being a Sunday most shops in Charlotte Amalie are closed at 1 p.m.

 

Monday arrived in St. Kitts We used Royston and he gave us a personal tour, very fine young man. We went to the fort, which was very interesting. Did not see too many good beaches. We arrived back at the ship at 1 p.m. and the ship left at 3 p.m.

 

Tuesday, Grenada, booked Mandoo tours, AWESOME. He is very very knowledgeable, really enjoyed this excursion. Most of infrastructure from the hurricanes has been repaired. But sadly the rainforest are really wiped out. Grenada must have been a beautiful island prior to the hurricanes. Mandoo took us to a beach afterwards and it was nice and we had lunch.

 

I think first formal night was Grenada.

 

Wednesday arrived at Isla Margarita ontime at 7 a.m. Shopping area for trinkets and stuff is right at the pier. Vendors are very nice, in fact a lady slepped/fell and several vendors came out to see if she was okay and helper her to her feet. Beach also very near and looked very nice. Heard from others that took excursions that they were very impressed with this island. We left at 1 p.m. Had our second meet & mingle at Skywalkers at 3 p.m. about 15 were in attendance, we had a mixup on the day on our roll call or would have been more. Tropical night.

 

Thursday, arrived in Aruba. We took the Jolly Pirates snorkle tour, booked it on the internet. Was probably best excursion that I have ever taken. We went to 3 snokel sites, had lunch, open bar the whole trip (was not a booze cruise). They now have 2 sailing boats, we were on the newest one, $400K and only a year old. Lobster night.

 

Friday, day at sea. I finally ran out of gas.

 

Weather was great the entire cruise, no rain, no wind, just perfect. The last night there was a storm we went through and some said it was very rough, but I slept through it. Normally being all the way aft you feel the rocking but I felt nothing.

 

Overall the cruise was very good, I thought the food was just good. Service was good. Bar service excellent. "Cupcake" as we called her, the future cruise booking agent, left very much to be desired. Everyone I spoke to said she was terrible. Her attitude was like she would have rather been someplace else. Was not helpful at all.

 

Debarkation was a breeze, they were weighing suitcases, one of 56 lbs so opened it up and shifted to another one. I guess I am going to have to start packing a bathroom scale. Security line to Delta gates was almost out the front door, but moved fast.

 

Let me know if you have any questions.

 

Oh, I urge everyone to join a roll call, and plan a meet & mingle even if just informal.

[darcy24]

By open seating first night, do you mean in all dining rooms - traditional fixed and PC? Open times as well?

[magnumcoog]

yes, was all open

 

Golden does not leave San Juan until 11 p.m. Passengers are still boarding at 10:30 p.m. If they had a regular seating the first night would be very chaotic.

[bubbadog]

thank you for the review was nice to hear before we go on saturday yeeehawww:)))) cant wait lol,been a rough year,both me an wife need a little break and another one in oct/nov maybe:)))) after surgery.cruising is just sooo nice,you can taylor it to your liking,no packing and unpacking each day,just get more bang for your buck,the only way to go in my opinion:))):rolleyes: :p

[racepoint]

Can't read your post Bubbadog. Too light.

 

This Golden review caught my attention. I was on Golden beginning 3/18. You were boarding Golden just as I was disembarking. Everything you said was so true. Although the food is totally good and acceptable but "just so" the whole experience is just awesome. All I could think, as I was walking past the people lounging and swimmming in the pool at 10:30 a.m. on "disembarkation Saturday" was that they were major show-offs and , secondly, that "back-to-back cruises are the way to go.

 

I had a differnet itinierary (Barbados, St. Lucia, Antigua, St. Maarten and St. Thomas) This cruise wouldhave been a whole lot of fun.

[cnmiranda]

Thanks for your review. My parents are drparting on this itinerary tomorrow!

 

Magnumcoog or other passengers, did anyone disembark after boarding in San Juan on Saturday? My parents are thinking about seeing the sights in Old San Juan for a bit before the ship departs, I am reading conflicting reports as to if this is possible. Thanks for any insights.

[CruisFran]

Yes, lots of people did get off the ship after checking-in, and toured Old San Juan, etc.

 

Terry, nice review!!! I see you left out the parts you can't remember....LOL :p ;) :D

[cnmiranda]

Thanks so much Fran and Eddie, now I can let my parents know for sure. Happy sailings:)

[magnumcoog]

Fran, LMAO, hiccup :-)

 

I miss you too :eek:

[jetsfan]

Very nice review. We head out on the Golden 4/22. We have a great roll call going, and cannot wait to meet all of them. I also encourage everyone to join. Even if you don't end up hanging out together, it is just so nice to say hello as you pass each other during the week.

 

Did you enjoy the entertainment?

 

Glad you had an excellent week!

[CruisFran]

Terry...too cute!! I still chuckle when I remember your smile, while you were telling me "I had Pina Colada Soup tonight....and also for dessert tooooooo"!!!

 

We enjoyed the entertainment...."Live Wire" in particular!!!!

[magnumcoog]

As you can tell jetsfan, I think I was the entertainment.

 

Did not go to any of the shows. Make sure you go to Skywalkers and tell Sascha that Terry said hello. He is a great bartend.

[Psee]

Great review Terry, thanks!

 

Returned from the Golden a few weeks ago and yes, "Cupcake" was not the ideal marketing rep...:rolleyes: We waited for 30 minutes for her to grant us an audience, then she was pretty much clueless of what products Princess had to offer. When I asked about a future cruise credit detail she said I would have to contact "Princess about that". OK...:D

[Coolmama_1]

Thanks for the review! This itinerary was our first and I never tire of hearing about other's adventures. I know what you mean about running out of steam. Our butts were dragging by the time we got to Aruba!:D

Thanks again,

Judy

[RichNY]

We were on this cruise and were part of Terry's CC group. Thanks again Terry for all your hard work.

Maybe I can fill in some of the blanks...:D

 

We are in our 50's and first time Princess cruisers. We too came in a day early and stayed at the Hotel Milano in Old San Juan. If you try to book it on line you might be told there is a 2 night minimum. I called the hotel directly and was able to book one night. The hotel was very nice with a friendly staff and a rooftop restaurant and bar..Our room was very clean.

 

Barrachinas was a blast. It was good to meet many of the CC group before the cruise...GOOD FOOD TOO.

 

We got to the ship around noon,hit the duty free shops and boarded by 1:00. It was nice to be able to bring some alcohol on board..Unlike NCL the booze police were not out.

 

We had a mini suite on the Dolphin deck, we liked the cabin but hated the balcony. We didn't realize that we would be sticking out so far.Looking over our shoulders at the rest of the ship was not what we had in mind. It was like being in a tenement without the clothes lines...:D..We should have known better and we wont make that mistake again.

 

St Johns...we did the same thing as Terry and had a good time..If you book this tour with Princes you time at Trunk Bay is limited. Try to get there early..The gals did manage to find some shop open...no major damage done..

 

St Kitts..Booked the train tour but it was canceled the, train broke. We ended up taking taxi/van tour and got to see much more for less money.

 

Grenada...We also too the Mandoo tour.well worth the money..

 

Ilsa Margarita...we just walked around the port, bought some stuff and drank some beer..Nice vendors, nice merchandise, and not very pushy.

 

Aruba..We did the DePalm Island Passport to Paradise excursion. Very nice with good food and all you can drink..It was windy so snorkeling was tough. It was a very enjoyable excursion.

 

We managed to see some shows and enjoyed them. Most of the band were very good.

 

Debarkation was painless..we stayed on the ship as long as we could then shared a taxi, right Adele, and went right to the airport..I would suggest not taking the Princess transfers...it looked like a real zoo at the airport with everyone trying to find their luggage.

 

The itinerary was nice but very hectic...another sea day would have been nice......Other than our balcony and ,we really enjoyed Princess.

 

We understand that Cupcake got promoted,to what, we dont know...:D She told us that if we looked at the deck plan we would have realised what our balcony was really like..THANKS CUPCAKE..

 

Any questions...feel free to ask.

[cnmiranda]

Thanks Rick and Loretta! My parents are probably boarding nowas we speak! Great reviews, it's a trip my parents have been looking forward to for months:)

[cruising mom 2]

thanks for the great review next week this time I will be drinking my morning coffe on the Golden instead of at my computer. MAy even skip the coffee and go some Rum punch hey it's vaction.

[snorklinbarb]

Yes, lots of people did get off the ship after checking-in, and toured Old San Juan, etc.

 

Terry, nice review!!! I see you left out the parts you can't remember....LOL :p ;) :D

 

Hi there Fran,

 

Don't want to highjack the thread. Just wondering how you liked the Grand Princess compared to the NCL Dawn....any major similarities or differences?

 

Did you do personal choice?

 

Looks like we'll be going on our 1st Princess cruise.

p.s. Yikes, just read further on this thread & found Rich & Loretta! Hi guys! Pls let me know your thoughts.....

[CruisFran]

Hi Snorklin'Barb!! We enjoyed our Golden Princess cruise very much! We did do personal choice dining. Food was very good, in the 2 dining rooms, and in the 2 alternative restaurants, and in Horizon Court buffet, which is open 24 hours. Ed says the pizza was much better than the Dawn (he makes it his business to check that out :D ). Drinks were cheaper than the Dawn, and came in 3 sizes...LOL Added bonus, cruising out of San Juan, you can buy liquor and wine in the duty-free store, and bring onboard, as long as it's tucked away in your carry-on!

 

The ship is "much" larger than the NCL Dawn, on her all week and never saw the whole ship! Mini-suite was very nice, but did not like the completely uncovered balcony (Dolphin deck), exposed to all decks above...and the weather! Thankfully we had great weather every day. Entertainment was great, casino was tight (for me anyway:() Found service good in all areas!

 

Would definitely do another Princess cruise!! Although the ship is large, they do have nice smaller, intimate spaces, so it never seemed crowded! Lots of deck space and pools (4 or 5 I think).

 

Hope this answers some of your questions!

[RichNY]

Hi Barb..Yikes to you too....:D

 

I guess the only thing we didn't enjoy was our mini suite balcony. We had the same complaint as Fran.

 

The Personal Choice dining worked out just fine. The food was good, the menus were had a nice selection and the service was good. Most mights we were seated without ant wait. You can get reservations but they only reserve half or the restaurant. The rest is left open for walk ins.

 

Unlike NCL, they still have drink specials and the buckets of beer plus their prices are about $2 less. Princess allows you to bring on wine and champagne. Their embarkation policy for alcohol was a lot loose than NCL. We carried on 3 bottles of rum with no problems.

 

We really enjoyed Princess and would book again.

 

What cruise are you taking ???

[snorklinbarb]

Again, apologies not to get this thread OT.

 

Fran & Rich, thanks for your comments. There is a big group of us (65 so far) on the Crown Princess 10/9 for the 9 nighter out of NYC. Many of us have been on NCL Dawn, looking for another NY departure. I'm trying to learn all I can and you certainly helped.

 

Last time in San Juan in Feb. we carried on 2 bottles of white wine (NCL Jewel) with no "problem," but later read on this board that in PR one can take on alcohol in a carry on. You seem to confirm that. So I guess we'll be home free when we stop in SJ again on the Crown.

 

We won't have a balcony (we're in an "E" gty - Emerald or Lido Deck) so won't share your frustrations, but it sure sounds like you had a nice cruise.

 

We've also got NCL Spirit 5/20 and NCL Dawn 7/1 so lots on our plate. Last I checked the hubby was barely speaking to me!;):eek:

[Ando]

 

 

We were allowed to go to our cabin, D734 aft cabin.

 

Let me know if you have any questions.

 

 

Don't know if you'll ever see this post as it's so long since your cruise. I have booked D734 on Golden and have not been able to find anyone else who has stayed in that cabin. Can you please advise if there is a beam obstructing the balcony at all and if this gets in your way. Would it be a better decision to consider another cabin? Would you take this cabin again? Do you have any photos of the balcony?

Thanks

Ando