CB 10/21/06-10/28 Review: Just Got Back!

[KnuckleDragger]

DW, DS (10), DD (8) and I just returned today from our Caribbean Princess cruise to the western Caribbean. This was our first Princess cruise and second overall. The cruise was fabulous. We loved the ship, the service, the staterooms, the sea days, the port days--everything. I'll get the comparison to our last cruise, which was on RCCL, out of the way now. I could make the previous statement about it, as well. However, our CB experience was head and shoulders above our RCCL experience, which is saying alot. Here are some random highlights, in no particular order:

 

Riviera! Riviera! Riviera! We were in R626 (Boys) and R628 (Ladies). What an excellent set of balconies. This was our first splurge for a balcony--and an excellent choice. I couldn't make a stronger recommendation for a spot on the ship. Our room steward unlocked the door between the balconies, giving us extra room and freedom. Everything we had feared about the Riviera deck did not come about. There was no noise, inside or out, other than the wake. These rooms are just forward of the aft elevators/stairs. We also were very fortunate about 2nd hand smoke. Just how excellent of a location is R626? This pretty well sums it up: I was laying in bed watching game 2 of the World Series. In between innings, I could *liesurely* walk up one flight of stairs to the Foodteenth floor to grab a plate of nachos, salsa, and quacamole without missing a pitch. (The quac was soooo good that I did this twice!) Everything we frequented very often was a lazy stroll away. We did use room service for breakfast a few times, but it was pointless, in my opinion. I could zip up and grab what I wanted, when I wanted, so easily. It was like I was in my own home.

 

The Kids Zone thingy. The kids loved it. DS more so that DD. The staff was excellent and the activities very well thought out and organized. DD got to got to attend a cake decoration class in the galley with 9 other happy kids. The cake managed to find us later that night in the Palm. DS got to dissect a real squid. DS had to be coerced to go to the family Skywalker dance night, but wouldn't stop dancing once he got there. DD wanted to go the the dance night, but wouldn't step foot on the dance floor. And she is the one that can dance. Go figure.

 

Anytime Dining. What a deal for us. We knew before we we had gotten our desert menu on embarkation night that we wanted the same waiter/table every night. We had table 119 in the Palm with Ivaylo (sp? -- pronounced EEv-I-LO). We had a 6pm reservation for the table for 4 and arrived anywhere from 5:30 to 6:30. Our table was always waiting for us. The other 4-table and 10-table in our nook had the same groups almost everynight. It seemed every bit like Traditional dining to us. The dinner experience greatly exceeded my expectations. Ivaylo told both what he liked best and what we should avoid. I went with his #1 every time except on lobster night. And I really regretted that choice, not because of the lobster, but because DS got the #1 choice of beef wellington. It was spectacular, but I was too full to enjoy his leftovers. My very favorite meal was the rack of lamb crusted with Dijon and bread crumbs. Excellent. Overall, dinner was my favorite part of every day. On the second to last night we brought our own bottle of wine. It wasn't on the wine list and we didn't pay a corkage fee. (woohoo).

 

The Buffet. It was hit or miss. My favorite hit was the quacamole. This was the good stuff. Not that nasty mix you get in the store. The sushi wasn't really sushi. They had what looked like the lox/salmon from breakfast slung over wads of rice and some raw shrimp. However, they did have plenty of tasty california-like rolls. I discovered that what I like about sushi isn't the sushi, but the wasabe/ginger/soy mixture. Thank you to the cruisecritic forums about the info on the 3:30 ice cream. It was either a well kept secret or the rest of the world doesn't dig ice cream like I do. It was awesome.

 

The Pools/MUTS. I loved the pool areas, but my land-lubber kids didn't like the pools much because they are too deep to play (which is good for us old folks). MUTS was great. The only problem was that the combination of the soft fluffy flanel blanky and the cool sea breeze puts me right to sleep.

 

FLL. This is an excellent port city. The airport/cruise port are well situated. We flew down Friday and stayed in the Embassy Suites with about 500 cheeseheads who were in town for the Packers/Dolphins game. From our 11th floor room we could see the ship and every convenience we needed. We were across the street from Crown liquors and a Pigly-Dixie. Total Wine and Publix were walking distance as well. We had dinner at the 15th St. Fishery. The food was very good but not for the price. The bus ride from the hotel to the port was free, but I think it was because the bell-hops were being nice. We showed up at the port at 11:30 and were on board at 12:50. The return trip today was a bit tight. We got our call to leave at 9:30. Because of the unreal-even-for-post-911 lines, we just made our 12:45 flight.

 

Wine Tastings. We did both the $10 and $25 versions. Ouch. I'd recommend doing either one but not both. The $10 was really pretty much on the spot. We enjoyed the wine very much. We also did the $25 wine tasting. We also enjoyed the wine very much, but not any more than the $10 tasting. If we hadn't been to the $10 tasting we wouldn't know how bad we had been screwed and would have walked away from the $25 tasting fat and happy.

 

The Itenerary. We did the same route, sans Princess Cays, from Galveston on RCCL last year. We definately had a been-there-done-that feeling, but that worked to our advantage. We really looked forward to just hitting the beaches and playing in the sand. Cays: Loved it. What a way to start! Definately head to the right at the dock. Ocho Rios: We swam in the swill at the beach next to the dock. Nice beach. We paid $10 to gain access but didn't get harassed like we expected. In fact, this is twice in a row that the Jamaican's have broken down the stereotype I have of them! Very nice & courteous people indeed. Grand Cayman: We went to Sea Grape on 7MB ($20 one way for 4). Beautiful. The surf was kinda rough that day. It made for great exhausting beach play. Boogie boards would have been great. Don't eat at the bar/grill there. We walked quite a distance back towards the ship before getting a taxi back. There wasn't an area of bad beach the entire way. We could have gotten off cheaper by taxi-ing closer and had the same beach. Cozumel: Did a snorkeling tour with EagleRayDivers. Search CC for Chellie. Very fun. Excellent hosts. Great fish, but ordinary reef. I would recommend ERD. No beach for us in Coz 'cause it was rainy-ish. We shopped instead. DW made a small purchase at Diamonds Int'l so she came home happy.

 

Entertainment: Did I mention the World Series was in town? We didn't manage to make it to any of the theatre shows. I'm a WS nut. I was very satisfied with the many venues showing the games :) I really couldn't figure out why they bothered to pick up the spanish ESPN feed but then dub in the english anouncers. Oh well. I got to learn then quickly forget some new spanish vocabulary. Oh--and I'm also the newest Bert S. fan. Don't get fooled into thinking you'll just stand there a few minutes on your way to the internet cafe. Better plan on finding a seat. His shows were a blast. They need to give him a bigger venue.

 

Internet Cafe: Speaking of the internet cafe...It greatly exceeded my expectations. There were lots of stations and the speeds were pretty decent. I could *read* a handful of select e-mails for about $2.50 a session. We mainly used it to check for emergencies and really-big-news from work/friends. One tidbit I overlooked from these boards is that the 1st minute is free so you can check the connection speed. I could almost get logged into into my comcast e-mail and get the first page of headers up before the meter started clicking away.

 

Packing: Do you realize you pack and unpack twice for cruise? The first half is definately more fun. At least I got the shoes right this time. DW packed 1/2 a Walgreens to cover every possibility except---sunburn. A bottle of green stuff costs $8 on board.

 

The bottom line: Total stateroom bill for the 4 of us was $500-ish. This included gratuity, the wine tastings, the cake decorating class, a flower arrangement, a bottle of wine, and a few drinks.

 

Please excuse the spelling/grammar. I've got my reverse motion sickness going in full gear.

[Cruise-a-holic444]

Thanks so much for your witty and detailed review- I'm going on the November 4th sailing and am really excited. Cake Decorating class???!! LOL. What a hoot! Glad you had fun!:p

[Tak8]

Do you remember what day/time the second wine tasting was? I've done the $10 tasting on the Golden and wanted to try the other on the Caribbean Princess next year.

[Christapie]

Wow great review. Thank you so much for doing that.

[KnuckleDragger]

Do you remember what day/time the second wine tasting was? I've done the $10 tasting on the Golden and wanted to try the other on the Caribbean Princess next year.

 

Friday. (last sea day) 3pm, Island Dining Room. You'll have plenty of chances to sign up. I wouldn't worry about it selling out, or if it can even be sold out. Typical dress for men was Tropical shirt, dress shorts, nice sandals.

[sunvalley cruisers]

 

Thank you to the cruisecritic forums about the info on the 3:30 ice cream. It was either a well kept secret or the rest of the world doesn't dig ice cream like I do. It was awesome.

 

 

OK, I've missed a bit of info. I don't know a thing about the 3:30 ice cream. What's the scoop?

[streaks23]

WOW Thanks for such a great review! We're on the Caribbean Princess 11/19 and can't wait!

Just curious - which RCCL ship were you on previously?

We've been on the Golden Princess and Voyager of the Seas and definitely prefer Princess :)

[KnuckleDragger]

OK' date=' I've missed a bit of info. I don't know a thing about the 3:30 ice cream. What's the scoop?[/quote']

 

On the CB, during the day one side of the Horizon Food Court will be closed. From 3:30 to 4:30 on that side, they will be serving homemade ice cream. There will be two lines with two flavors each. Vanilla and Chocolate are staples, but the 3rd and 4th flavors varied each day. They also have strawberry syrup topping (good stuff with real crushed berries), chocolate syrup, and other fun sundae toppings.

 

They have that Scoop ice cream place. They have very affordable treats, but why bother when they give it away for free?

 

My wife did the galley tour. They said how much ice cream they make each day for the ship. I can't can't remember how much, but 95 gallons seems to stick in my head.

[KnuckleDragger]

WOW Thanks for such a great review! We're on the Caribbean Princess 11/19 and can't wait!

Just curious - which RCCL ship were you on previously?

We've been on the Golden Princess and Voyager of the Seas and definitely prefer Princess :)

 

We were on RCCL Rhapsody of the Seas. Definately a smaller/older ship. Even still, we had a great time on our first cruise. We plan on a taking an RCCL cruise again next summer because we have earned gonzo points on their MNBA Visa credit card program.

 

You are gonna have a great time on the Caribbean Princess. Excellent ship.

[cruzzers]

Thanks for your great review! WE will be heading out in Dec and look forward to our getaway. We got some great tips from your post!

[tarps14]

Your review was the kind I would like to read all the time! Short, sweet and to the point. Very witty but with a great deal of info. We will have to look into the Embassy Suites in FLL. Sounds like just the place. Do you know how much they charge for parking as we will be driving down?

We plan on parking at the port for the week but just curious for overnight.

 

You must have been in sports heaven with the games being telecast. We were on a cruise the year that Atlanta went to the Super Bowl and the ESPN feed was the American version which was being broadcast from Atlanta. We were able to keep up with not only the team but our local weather and news as well. Winter weather hit that year and we had some iffy moments about whether we would get back home on time. All ended fine (well, maybe not for the Falcons-they lost) but my DH was thrilled that he didn't miss a thing.

 

So looking forward to January and our cruise on CB and you just made it all the more real for us! Thanks-

[PSCruiser]

Thanks for the great review! We were also on that cruise and I found most of your comments right on.

A few I'll add of my own:

We've done 3 RC previously, and I thought as a whole the two lines are VERY close. The CB is a beautiful ship, but the public areas, especially Atrium, Dining and Theater have nowhere near the WOW factor of a RC ship. On the other hand, food, entertainment, and pools were a bit better than on RC.

MUTs - OK, but just not the thrill I expected. Resolution was not quite as good as I had pictured.

Pools- If you get tired of the crowd at the big pools, there are others tucked around the ship. My favorite was the Lotus pool, which is accessed most easily from the deck above the spa, not through it.

Food - In general very good, larger portions than RC. King crab legs (though small) and cracked lobster claws were available in Club Caribe on 3 different nights - heaven for seafood freaks!

Pizza- Available on pool deck all day. This stuff was great, 3 kinds available at all times, if landbased it might just be my favorite place to get pizza. Much, much better than the stuff on RC.

Entertainment - first rate. The onboard singers and dancers were better than anything I've seen on RC. Went to the theater and also saw a lounge act almost every night, and was never dissapointed. The acts lean heavily to comedy.

CD staff - the CD (David?) was not very visible during the week, I was not impressed. The junior CD staff (esp. Andre, Jemma, Claire) were all great - very high energy.

Staff - unlike the OP, we did not reserve the same table every night. I was concerned that service might be spotty, but we had excellent service each night. Also, never waited for a table, either alone or shared.

The housekeeping was also excellent and unobtrusive.

[PSCruiser]

OH, forgot one thing - FLL airport on disembark. What a joke - they really need to get their act together. What a zoo, and their security procedures are like other airports did things 3 or 4 years ago - after the ticket counter you have to take your bags back, and go through a different bag security (an hour wait), and this is all before regular concourse security!

It was so bad that it will affect my cruise choices in the future.

Another note - check out Princess' deals for booking new cruises (or cruise credits) onboard. Much better deal than what RC gives you.

[lgt]

Thanks for the review. Glad you had a great time. We will be on her in Feb. doing the Eastern route and I have a question about Princess Cay. Our shore excursions just came out and it lists a "Beach Bungalow" for $199. Did you see any bungalows? or any bungalows being built? This is the first I've heard of them at Princess Cay. Wonder if they are anything like the ones at HAL's HMC.

[PSCruiser]

I might be completely wrong about these, but my wife pointed out a row of small "cottages", well back from the beach, about 10 x 12 feet, and wondered if they were something that could be rented.

[stoneharborlady]

Could I please ask what you meant about swimming in the swill at the beach in Ocho Rios? We had planned to go to this beach, isnt it clean?

Thanks, Karen

[KnuckleDragger]

Could I please ask what you meant about swimming in the swill at the beach in Ocho Rios? We had planned to go to this beach, isnt it clean?

Thanks, Karen

 

Sorry, I thought that comment would go unnoticed. The beach was extremely clean, they had folks combing it for plant debris that falls from the trees and/or washes ashore. The water was fine, too. I made the "swill" comment because that is the mental image I have of the water near a pier. They have a floating bouy rope about 40 feet out in the water. The water was over my head before I got to the rope. In some areas, there is a natural sea grass that is thick with moss and is not great for swimming in. We did find a very large, clear area that was perfect for swimming/splashing around with the kids.

[KnuckleDragger]

OH, forgot one thing - FLL airport on disembark. What a joke - they really need to get their act together. What a zoo, and their security procedures are like other airports did things 3 or 4 years ago - after the ticket counter you have to take your bags back, and go through a different bag security (an hour wait), and this is all before regular concourse security!

 

That morning at FLL was a joke! When we woke up Saturday, we thought we would have to find ways to kill time at the airport. They figured out a way for us!!

[stoneharborlady]

Sorry, I thought that comment would go unnoticed. The beach was extremely clean, they had folks combing it for plant debris that falls from the trees and/or washes ashore. The water was fine, too. I made the "swill" comment because that is the mental image I have of the water near a pier. They have a floating bouy rope about 40 feet out in the water. The water was over my head before I got to the rope. In some areas, there is a natural sea grass that is thick with moss and is not great for swimming in. We did find a very large, clear area that was perfect for swimming/splashing around with the kids.

 

Thank you, is this the area known as the Bamboo Beach Club?

Karen

[ToplessPony]

Thanks for the fun review KD. :) Can you give any more info on the two wine tastings? We did the $5 2 years ago (I assume the same as the $10 one) and we enjoyed what it could have been but the crowd there was very very loud and were kinda just moving their party from the pool to the wine tasting. We were hoping the $25 one would be a little more intimate. Also, do you remember any of the wines offered during the $25 tasting?

 

Thanks;

 

Scott

[KnuckleDragger]

Can you give any more info on the two wine tastings? We did the $5 2 years ago (I assume the same as the $10 one) and we enjoyed what it could have been but the crowd there was very very loud and were kinda just moving their party from the pool to the wine tasting. We were hoping the $25 one would be a little more intimate. Also, do you remember any of the wines offered during the $25 tasting?

 

Thanks;

 

Scott

 

I wish I could remember some of the labels from each. I suppose that was the point of attending. :rolleyes: The only one I remember was a Silverado at the 2nd tasting.

 

There were far less people at the $25 tasting, but I wouldn't call it intimate. Neither was a party atmosphere. Most everyone there were like us--two people who didn't know what to do at a wine tasting.