9/3 Crown Review

[Jetfan1521]

Hi Everyone...

 

First, let me start by saying that I'm sorry I missed all the CC get togethers. Sue - I wish we would have met sooner! You are truly a wonderful woman!

Ok, this was my first time cruising with Princess and my boyfriends first ever cruise...our overall experience (not counting Hurricane Florence and not going to a different port) GREAT!!! However, I did have some complaints that I will explain later on.

I'll start with the embarkation in Brooklyn - the best experience in 10 cruises! The terminal is so clean and gigantic. We got to the terminal by 11 and were onboard the ship by 11:30. It was fantastic!

As soon as we got onboard, we went up to our cabin and met our steward, Piotr (Peter). We gave him some money upfront, and you could tell he was very grateful. We had a balcony cabin on Caribe Deck midship. Honestly, one of the best decks and rooms on the ship! The room isn't huge, but I did find it to be comfortable. The bathroom was small, and good luck ladies with trying to shave your legs in the shower, it's a challange! LOL We had a refrigerator which came in handy because we packed about 30 cans of Coors Light and some bottles of wine (in a copy paper box, taped all around with Fragile and your cabin # on it). There was more than enough space for all of our clothes and we put the luggage under the bed which fit perfectly. Put the little suitcases in the bigger ones and you'll have plenty of room! Our balcony was the best part. We had a little table, big table with two chairs, and then two more chairs that reclined back like a lounge chair! We mostly used the balcony for coffee and sometimes breakfast in the morning, and then before dinner, we would open up a bottle of wine and have a glass out there watching the sunset. It was amazing and I would never go on a cruise again without having a balcony!

On to the food...OUT OF THIS WORLD! For the first few days, we always ate breakfast and lunch in the buffets, either Cafe Caribe or Horizon Court. Then we wised up and decided to go into the dining room for the total cruise experience, and found the food to be superb inside for both. For breakfast every morning, you would sit down and a waiter would come over with a tray full of muffins, doughnuts, danishes, etc. Then, another with different flavor preserves and then you would order off the menu! Anything from cereal and yogurt, to eggs any which way, to buttermilk pancakes (sometimes blueberry). Lunch was always different appetizers, soups and two pastas. Then you would have five different entree choices. Much better than eating off the buffet! We had anytime dining, and ate mostly in the Da Vinci dining room. Dennis was our waiter and he was excellent. As far as making a reservation for dinner in the anytime dining rooms, I only did so for our last formal night. The other times, either we would be seated right away (table for 2 by ourselves always) or we would wait maybe 20 minutes which wasn't so bad. For the first formal night, we ate in Sabatini's which is one of the specialty restaurants. For only a $20 cover charge per person, you are truly eating a 5 star meal. The service was absolutely fanstasic, Sebastian, Emil and Alex are a great team! They serve you a small portion of about 8 different cold appetizers such as roasted red peppers, artichoke, mushrooms, etc. and then the same amount of hot appetizers. Try the minestrone soup, so fresh and so good. The only thing you have to order in Sabatini's is your entree. They will do the rest. Tell them to bring you 3 or 4 entrees (don't laugh, it's worth it and you will thank me) it's outstanding! Again, the service was excellent. Afterwards, you can go next door to the Adagio bar and Stefano will make you a mouth watering tiramisu martini, plus, they will bring your dessert there if you wish. Another night, and another fabulous meal, The Crown Grill. We had a nice big booth table by the window. For a $25 dollar pp cover charge, once again, another GREAT dinner well worth the extra money. I can't say enough about all of the waiters. They really go above and beyond to make your dining experience a great one. We tried 2 or 3 appetizers, soup, pasta and then my bf got the porterhouse and lobster tail and I got the filet and lobster tail. Mouth watering! The steaks in the Crown Grill are NOTHING like the sirloin or filet in the dining rooms. They are 10 times better! Oh, I almost forgot, we bought a bottle of wine into the Crown Grill and they didn't charge us the fee, so we gave our waiter a $20 tip! We didn't do the ultimate balcony dining like we had planned because we decided to eat in Sabatini's again on our last night. Thank God, because Hurricane Florence and the Atlantic Ocean were not nice to us Monday and I wouldn't have been able to sit on my balcony and enjoy dinner. I'll try that next time!

Sarge, the comedian...HILARIOUS! We were so glad that he was on our cruise. He will be on the Crown til Oct. 4th so don't worry! A little word of advice, get to the theater at least 25 to 30 minutes before his shows. It gets packed very quickly, especially the later ones. We enjoyed all of the shows, the entertainment was great. There are so many things going on, it's hard to decide what you want to do and see! James Lay, the cruise director, was great. I didn't read so many great things about him, and I don't know why. His staff was awesome, Daniel, Danny and Cameron are very entertaining and will have you laughing all the time!

I'm probably all over the place, as this is my first time writing this kind of review. The pools were pretty good, especially on Sunday while watching football on MUTS! Boy, were we spoiled! As far as finding a lounge chair, there were more than enough in the sun, the ones in the shade were obviously harder and you had to get up early to get one. Another little hint, aft by the adult pool one level up (Sun Deck - same level as Sabatini's), there is a spot that holds about 6 or 8 lounge chairs! You are literally looking out onto the ocean off the back of the boat. There is sun, and if you pull your lounge chair back, you have shade. You have the best of both worlds, but get out there early!

Ok...the ports. This is a big one for me because I probably have a different opinion on them then most people.

 

Grand Turk - We did the horseback riding in the ocean and it was truly one of the most amazing things we had ever done! The guides were extremely friendly, took amazing pictures of us, and most important, made sure we had a fun and safe experience. Book this early as it sold out the first day! We were dropped off at 10:15 allowing us to hop a cab over to Governor's Beach (absolutely gorgeous). They allow you to use the lounge chairs at no charge, and have a bathroom ( uuhh) and snacks and drinks. Its a $3 pp cab ride...go for it! Also, you can hit Margaritaville (beach is great and the pool is huge)! We had time for all three! TIP..they tell you not to purchase anything in Grand Turk, but I disagree. When you get off the ship and walk out into the first building, they had some pretty good prices on some perfumes that I found to be less expensive than in St. Thomas. I wish I would have bought it there, but I know for next time. Even some of the liquor was cheaper...so just be aware!

 

San Juan - My opinion - I'm not a fan at all. I've been there twice before on a cruise so I wasn't thrilled about going back, but my bf had never been there. We didn't book any excursions and decided to take our time getting off the boat. We walked through Old San Juan and did a little bit of shopping, then hit Senor Frogs and were back on the boat by 2:30pm. It's not one of my faves, but we did book another cruise going out of San Juan (but that's because I want to do the southern caribbean)!

 

St. Thomas - One of my favorites - We opted for the St. John Trunk Bay Beach and Snorkel. We were two of maybe 40 people on the whole beach! We lucked out because our ship was the only one in port that day, so only people from our ship who signed up for that excursion, were there. The water is so crystal clear and so beautiful. You get one towel pp in your room, but if you have your own, bring it, or ask for an extra one. Once you put your towel in the sand here, it sticks pretty heavy and it gets kinda gross when you get ready to leave and shower, and you can't get the sand off your towel! LOL Just another little tip. The shopping was good, but I remember it being better a few years ago. They don't seem to really bargain with you anymore that much. You can talk them down a little, but nothing like 3 years ago when I was there. Perfume was good here also, but again, some kinds in Grand Turk were a better deal. Liquor is real cheap and they will box it up for you. We were able to carry ours right to our cabins!

 

Bermuda - Woops - Didn't make it there :( How disappointing)

 

Ok..some complaints..and these are important! Make sure you check your room bills a few times during the cruise. FOUR TIMES - Yes - Four times, i found charges on my bill that were someone else's. The pursers desk pulled the receipts and told me they were sorry, they wrote the wrong # on them and we were charged. All in all, $205.00 had to be credited back to us because of these mistakes. If we didn't catch it, I would have paid for other people. Also, once they cancelled Bermuda, they should have automatically credited us for our excursions. It took two and a half days to get my $164.00 for the excursions back plus our $27 in taxes and my credits for the mistakes. I wouldn't have cared to much except for the fact that we left cash down for our room and since all these extra charges took place, I got a letter saying I had to put more money down and I was fighting with them because they had over $400 dollars in credits they owed me and they wanted more money from us! Princess will be getting a letter, and of course i have all of my printouts that show the mistakes! The pursers desk didn't have the friendliest of people working up there when I went. Another complaint, and it's not terrible, but the air in the room was just ok. If it was a little cooler, it would have been fine!

 

We wound up taking advantage of the $100 pp deposit for a future cruise and booked again for Jan 08 out of San Juan to the Southern Caribbean. I'm sorry that I was all over the place. If you have specific questions, you can email me at Jetfan1521@aol.com and I will try and answer them!

 

I would definitely cruise with Princess again, especially on the Crown!!!

[swom]

Oh what a refreshing review after just reading an ugly one from another cruiser that sounds like they were on the exact same cruise as you, but not, if you know what I mean.

THANK YOU!!!

Also thanks for the tips!! I sat and smiled through the whole review.

I'm so glad you enjoyed it.

[Clutterlady]

Thanks for a great review. Can't wait to book the Crown. How was the food in Cafe Caribe?

 

[Gigi1220]

nice review! Frank and I missed both CC meetings too..so dont feel bad...the first night we had an issue with a missing piece of luggage with my dress in it and the second morning...well...I guess you can say we had a little too much to drink the first night. hehe

 

We went to Senior Frogs...wasnt that impressed...I wonder if we ever bumped into eachother.

[makeup face]

Thanks for the review...you weren't all over the place...I could follow you:)

I will most certainly check my tab a couple of times and have my cousins do so as well.

[hill6]

Great review. I think it stinks that you missed Bermuda. I was on the 7/20 (oops 7/22) sailing. Bermuda was the highlight.

 

I agree that Sarge is great.

 

We loved the food too.

[Sailaway Girl]

Thanks Jetfan1521 for that great review. I was on the same sailing and had a great time too. After reading some of the other reviews I began to wonder if I had gone through the cruise in a drug fog.

I was on the St Johns Trunk Bay Beach and Snorkel with my husband and woulf highly reccommend it. I also enjoyed the specialty dining and ate quite a few meals in the regular dining room as opposed to the buffet. As far as deck space, there was plenty of shaded deck space on deck 16 aft that not many people knew about.

All in all we had a great time, enjoyed the shows, ignored the snooty staff , checked my bill a few times and booked a future cruise!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To anyone thinkng of taking this cruise - do it. Do not let others opinions make your decision. There were a lot of happy travelers on board = happy with the shows, the food, the service and the great weather. Yes me missed Bermuda but that was not Princesses fault. Bermuda closed her port and her airport.

[TourneyKit]

Fantastic Reveiw Jetfan.....I will definately heed your advice on checking my bill every few days. And I can't wait to enjoy all that food you described:)

[Jetfan1521]

Thanks for a great review. Can't wait to book the Crown. How was the food in Cafe Caribe?

 

 

We thought the food in Cafe Caribe was pretty good. We ate there a few times...only for breaksfast and lunch - never dinner so i don't know about that. The only weird thing was the glass over the food came out so much, you had trouble reaching back for things that were in the back.

[Jetfan1521]

nice review! Frank and I missed both CC meetings too..so dont feel bad...the first night we had an issue with a missing piece of luggage with my dress in it and the second morning...well...I guess you can say we had a little too much to drink the first night. hehe

 

We went to Senior Frogs...wasnt that impressed...I wonder if we ever bumped into eachother.

 

Hi Gina

I was actually telling Rob that I wanted to meet you and Frank, but we never went to those meetings and I didn't wear any beads! LOL I'm assuming you guys are around our age 28-34 right? Everytime I would see a young couple, I wondered if it was you! LOL

[Jetfan1521]

Thanks Jetfan1521 for that great review. I was on the same sailing and had a great time too. After reading some of the other reviews I began to wonder if I had gone through the cruise in a drug fog.

I was on the St Johns Trunk Bay Beach and Snorkel with my husband and woulf highly reccommend it. I also enjoyed the specialty dining and ate quite a few meals in the regular dining room as opposed to the buffet. As far as deck space, there was plenty of shaded deck space on deck 16 aft that not many people knew about.

 

All in all we had a great time, enjoyed the shows, ignored the snooty staff , checked my bill a few times and booked a future cruise!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

To anyone thinkng of taking this cruise - do it. Do not let others opinions make your decision. There were a lot of happy travelers on board = happy with the shows, the food, the service and the great weather. Yes me missed Bermuda but that was not Princesses fault. Bermuda closed her port and her airport.

 

Don't worry, you didn't go through the cruise in a drug fog! LOL I'm glad to hear that other people enjoyed it as well! I can't wait for Jan '08 to go on her again!

[PhoneGoddess]

Thank you for the great review. We're sailing on the Crown in late October and these reviews are helping to build the excitement for me. I can't wait to go!

[Jeanne S]

. We had a balcony cabin on Caribe Deck midship. Honestly, one of the best decks and rooms on the ship! The room isn't huge, but I did find it to be comfortable.

 

Our balcony was the best part. We had a little table, big table with two chairs, and then two more chairs that reclined back like a lounge chair! We mostly used the balcony for coffee and sometimes breakfast in the morning, and then before dinner, we would open up a bottle of wine and have a glass out there watching the sunset. It was amazing and I would never go on a cruise again without having a balcony!

 

I'm probably all over the place, as this is my first time writing this kind of review. The pools were pretty good, especially on Sunday while watching football on MUTS!

 

 

 

Grand Turk - Also, you can hit Margaritaville (beach is great and the pool is huge)! We had time for all three! TIP..they tell you not to purchase anything in Grand Turk, but I disagree. When you get off the ship and walk out into the first building, they had some pretty good prices on some perfumes that I found to be less expensive than in St. Thomas. I wish I would have bought it there, but I know for next time. Even some of the liquor was cheaper...so just be aware!

 

San Juan -We walked through Old San Juan and did a little bit of shopping, then hit Senor Frogs

 

St. Thomas - One of my favorites - We opted for the St. John Trunk Bay Beach and Snorkel. We were two of maybe 40 people on the whole beach! We lucked out because our ship was the only one in port that day, so only people from our ship who signed up for that excursion, were there. The water is so crystal clear and so beautiful. You get one towel pp in your room, but if you have your own, bring it, or ask for an extra one. Once you put your towel in the sand here, it sticks pretty heavy and it gets kinda gross when you get ready to leave and shower, and you can't get the sand off your towel! LOL Just another little tip.

 

Bermuda - Woops - Didn't make it there :( How disappointing)

 

 

 

We wound up taking advantage of the $100 pp deposit for a future cruise and booked again for Jan 08 out of San Juan to the Southern Caribbean. I'm sorry that I was all over the place. If you have specific questions, you can email me at Jetfan1521@aol.com and I will try and answer them!

 

I would definitely cruise with Princess again, especially on the Crown!!!

 

Thanks for your review. Am sailing 9/30/06 and will also be Caribe Deck Amidships - Stateroom C504. Do you happen to know the square footage of the balcony? Was part of the balcony exposed and part private?

 

What is MUTS? Am in a football pool (CBS Sports online) and will need to watch the games on Sunday. Am also a Jets fan (but a diehard Steelers fan from 1970).

 

How far is Senor Frogs from the Ship in PR.

 

Am thinking of going on the excursion to St John's if they allow you to go shopping as I want to get St John's tee shirts for people in my family with this name.

 

Thanks

[jbrambach]

jetfan,

thank you for the great review! The tips also were very helpful. I was wondering, you said you got to watch football by the MUTS pool, did they play the JETS game, or is it just a specific game like Monday Night Football etc? (I am assuming you are a jet fan) My DH would like know if he will be able to see his beloved JETS on the cruise. Thanks!

[Jeanne S]

jetfan,

thank you for the great review! The tips also were very helpful. I was wondering, you said you got to watch football by the MUTS pool, did they play the JETS game, or is it just a specific game like Monday Night Football etc? (I am assuming you are a jet fan) My DH would like know if he will be able to see his beloved JETS on the cruise. Thanks!

'

 

There is no more Monday Night Football. Madden et al do Sunday Night Football on NBC.

[jbrambach]

I think Monday Night Football is in ESPN now. Their were two games this Monday night. But you are right about Monday Night Football not being on ABC anymore.

[azdmelani]

they had both sunday games and monday night football on MUTS and in club fusion

[jbrambach]

they had both sunday games and monday night football on MUTS and in club fusion

Thank you, my DH will be happy as long as he can still watch football.

[figmentdj]

Great review. Breakfast in the dining room starts and ends when? How long did it take generally for the food to be ordered and brought to your table? Thanks.

[Gigi1220]

Hi Gina

I was actually telling Rob that I wanted to meet you and Frank, but we never went to those meetings and I didn't wear any beads! LOL I'm assuming you guys are around our age 28-34 right? Everytime I would see a young couple, I wondered if it was you! LOL

 

Yea me too! I am going on 25 and frank is 27...so we are near there...If you did see me I had really blonde hair...kinda stuck out...I even wondered if i went on the boards on the ship would you have checked we could have got a drink together...I didnt wear the beads either...I only saw 1 person wearning them...I think it was sandy...We should exchange pics once we get them loaded....funny story was that normally frank and I sat at a table for two and then one night it was all booked (we had anytime) so we sat with others...while finishing dessert one of the older couples at the table started talking about the meeting she was at and this website...after we left...my bf said ...did you know them? and i was like no why...he said they were talking about how they were CC members...I Guess I am deaf...I still dont know who it was.

[Jetfan1521]

. We had a balcony cabin on Caribe Deck midship. Honestly, one of the best decks and rooms on the ship! The room isn't huge, but I did find it to be comfortable.

 

Our balcony was the best part. We had a little table, big table with two chairs, and then two more chairs that reclined back like a lounge chair! We mostly used the balcony for coffee and sometimes breakfast in the morning, and then before dinner, we would open up a bottle of wine and have a glass out there watching the sunset. It was amazing and I would never go on a cruise again without having a balcony!

 

I'm probably all over the place, as this is my first time writing this kind of review. The pools were pretty good, especially on Sunday while watching football on MUTS!

 

 

 

Grand Turk - Also, you can hit Margaritaville (beach is great and the pool is huge)! We had time for all three! TIP..they tell you not to purchase anything in Grand Turk, but I disagree. When you get off the ship and walk out into the first building, they had some pretty good prices on some perfumes that I found to be less expensive than in St. Thomas. I wish I would have bought it there, but I know for next time. Even some of the liquor was cheaper...so just be aware!

 

San Juan -We walked through Old San Juan and did a little bit of shopping, then hit Senor Frogs

 

St. Thomas - One of my favorites - We opted for the St. John Trunk Bay Beach and Snorkel. We were two of maybe 40 people on the whole beach! We lucked out because our ship was the only one in port that day, so only people from our ship who signed up for that excursion, were there. The water is so crystal clear and so beautiful. You get one towel pp in your room, but if you have your own, bring it, or ask for an extra one. Once you put your towel in the sand here, it sticks pretty heavy and it gets kinda gross when you get ready to leave and shower, and you can't get the sand off your towel! LOL Just another little tip.

 

Bermuda - Woops - Didn't make it there :( How disappointing)

 

 

 

We wound up taking advantage of the $100 pp deposit for a future cruise and booked again for Jan 08 out of San Juan to the Southern Caribbean. I'm sorry that I was all over the place. If you have specific questions, you can email me at Jetfan1521@aol.com and I will try and answer them!

 

I would definitely cruise with Princess again, especially on the Crown!!!

 

Thanks for your review. Am sailing 9/30/06 and will also be Caribe Deck Amidships - Stateroom C504. Do you happen to know the square footage of the balcony? Was part of the balcony exposed and part private?

 

What is MUTS? Am in a football pool (CBS Sports online) and will need to watch the games on Sunday. Am also a Jets fan (but a diehard Steelers fan from 1970).

 

How far is Senor Frogs from the Ship in PR.

 

Am thinking of going on the excursion to St John's if they allow you to go shopping as I want to get St John's tee shirts for people in my family with this name.

 

Thanks

 

I don't know the square footage for the caribe balconies, but I will tell you that yes, they are partly covered. I promise you won't be disappointed! MUTS is Movies Under the Stars and I can almost bet that they will play football on them, but I can't say for sure whether or not they will have the Jets on. They did NOT play the Jet game last sunday at 1pm, I had to keep checking the score. However, they did play the Giant game at 8:30 at night! Senor Frogs is a short walk from the ship - you don't need a taxi! It's across the street from the Sheraton..when you first get outside, go to your left then cross the street by the big yellow hotel (Sheraton) Senor Frogs should be right there! As for St. John, we only went to Trunk Bay Beach! They do have a gift shop there with t-shirts!

[Jetfan1521]

jetfan,

thank you for the great review! The tips also were very helpful. I was wondering, you said you got to watch football by the MUTS pool, did they play the JETS game, or is it just a specific game like Monday Night Football etc? (I am assuming you are a jet fan) My DH would like know if he will be able to see his beloved JETS on the cruise. Thanks!

 

We watched football on Sunday and unfortunately they did not play the Jet game! However, the Giant game was on Sunday night! You might get lucky, you never know!

[Jetfan1521]

Yea me too! I am going on 25 and frank is 27...so we are near there...If you did see me I had really blonde hair...kinda stuck out...I even wondered if i went on the boards on the ship would you have checked we could have got a drink together...I didnt wear the beads either...I only saw 1 person wearning them...I think it was sandy...We should exchange pics once we get them loaded....funny story was that normally frank and I sat at a table for two and then one night it was all booked (we had anytime) so we sat with others...while finishing dessert one of the older couples at the table started talking about the meeting she was at and this website...after we left...my bf said ...did you know them? and i was like no why...he said they were talking about how they were CC members...I Guess I am deaf...I still dont know who it was.

 

I can almost bet that once we send our pics, we'll both laugh and say we saw each other on the cruise! Rob and I went straight to Costco on Tues afternoon (i'm such a loser) I wanted those pics right away! It was great, we just put the memory card right in and got to select the ones we wanted! I'll send you one over the weekend! Do you have an email address? If you don't want to write it, send me an email to Jetfan1521@aol.com.