Golden Princess 03 November 07 - Review

[bobbyd6363]

im going on the golden in 2 weeks and i am looking forward to it, no matter how much peopple complain, why do all this complaining, find another ship if you dont like it, lots of upscale cruise ship nowadays

 

leeuwarden - you should definitely be excited about sailing on the Golden! You have got to try the burgers poolside and dont miss the specialty restaurants! We are switching back to RCL for next year's Greek Islands cruise. If my 2008 cruise proves to be lackluster, I think I will look into the more upscale cruises or simply switch to more land based vacations. I do miss the "old days" of cruising!

[MamaTene]

Have finally caught up with reading the various responses to Bobby's review. One thing to keep in mind...reviews are subjective and reflect the experiences OF THE POSTER. A well written, informative review will give readers all aspects of the experience both good and bad which I believe is exactly what has been shared here.

So many good times were shared among the group. We didnt let the little things like lack of service at times, hit or miss food choices etc "make or break" the trip. Simply spending time with such a great, caring bunch of folks...those times and memories are what count!

[wizard-of-roz]

I would NEVER accept poor service from ANY dining experience.....whether it be "fine dining" or "Olive Garden!" You are correct!

I expect to be taken care of...ALWAYS...I'm not demanding...I'm not difficult to please and I am willing to help pick up a plate or two to move the service along....that being said...I did not run into "poor service" onboard the Golden....(except....what's up with the toilet paper rationing?:eek: ) Oh! It took more than a few asks to get the TP replaced.....persistence is a wonderful thing!!!!

I found our steward/our dining room staff and the crew, in general, to be very helpful and pleasant....I did run into a "sour" face now and then, as I was walking down a hallway or passing by or approacing the information desk and that was quickly changed by my greeting of "hello" or "good morning!" It's very hard to remain "sour" when a tall blonde is in your face with a "cheery greeting!" (I can be almost annoying!!!! With the smiles/waves and cherriness!!;) )

I will treat you with respect and kindness but I do expect to be treated very well, in return; especially when I've spent a lot of money with your company!!!!! And, my money puts food on YOUR table!!!!!

[MamaTene]

Regardless of the type of restaurant we are at, if the food isnt prepared to my liking or done as I have requested (as in a RARE steak) it goes back. If the food is served luke warm or cold, it goes back. I dont cut back on the tip for the service unless the service itself is lacking.

[newmexicoNita]

I would NEVER accept poor service from ANY dining experience.....whether it be "fine dining" or "Olive Garden!" You are correct!

I expect to be taken care of...ALWAYS...I'm not demanding...I'm not difficult to please and I am willing to help pick up a plate or two to move the service along....that being said...I did not run into "poor service" onboard the Golden....(except....what's up with the toilet paper rationing?:eek: ) Oh! It took more than a few asks to get the TP replaced.....persistence is a wonderful thing!!!!

I found our steward/our dining room staff and the crew, in general, to be very helpful and pleasant....I did run into a "sour" face now and then, as I was walking down a hallway or passing by or approacing the information desk and that was quickly changed by my greeting of "hello" or "good morning!" It's very hard to remain "sour" when a tall blonde is in your face with a "cheery greeting!" (I can be almost annoying!!!! With the smiles/waves and cherriness!!;) )

I will treat you with respect and kindness but I do expect to be treated very well, in return; especially when I've spent a lot of money with your company!!!!! And, my money puts food on YOUR table!!!!!

I think it is also wise to remember service can be in the eyes of the beholder. I don't consider a water glass not always filled without asking particularly bad service, I do consider not getting something I ordered bad service (just an example) as for demanding good service, again that depends. After 20 plus cruises I can honestly say, I have rarely had what I would call bad service, but there have been times on all cruises where things could have gone smoother.

 

We are looking forward to having a great cruise experience on the Golden. we expect to be treated well, but overlook small stuff. If we didn't every cruise would get negatives, as would almost all life's experiences.

 

Nita

[Dani24]

Overall on a scale of one to ten I would give this cruise a five. I am NOT impressed with the Golden Princess and her crew. There were shining moments but not enough to make this cruise memorable. I honestly feel that “automatic tipping” is creating poor service everywhere and that “anytime” dining just plain sucks.

Comments? Questions? Flames? Fire away!

 

We just got off the Golden on Saturday, and while we had a great time, there were some things I was disappointed in too. Often times you hear people complain and think "that's just how they are", but I can really see how you came to many of your conclusions.

 

We found the ship to be kind of run-down. It was still clean, and we weren't really bothered by it, but we noticed a lot of wear and tear. For instance, there were stained and torn carpets (including carpet edgings that were sticking up), and LOTS of flickering light bulbs (and I overheard many passengers complaining about this), among other things. I did however read that Princess plans to dry dock the Golden for 19 days next year to overhaul her, and update a bunch of stuff. And I frequently saw crew-members cleaning, repairing, repainting, etc.

 

We also found the dining experience to be mediocre (although the steaks at Desert Rose were fantastic). I often felt uninspired by the menus -- and I remember feeling just the opposite on the Sapphire two years ago. The food was generally good, but the creativity was gone. On the Sapphire, the plates were all decorated and plated nicely. On the Golden it felt like they didn't put any effort into presentation. We only got the cute flower butter pats for like the first night, and then after that you only got non-uniformly cut slices of butter -- not the end of the world, but just another example of how it felt like they stopped trying. We were only offered a refill on bread once (and only when the waiter saw me digging around the basket for the last bit of breadstick). Some waiters were better than others at offering us refills of our iced teas. I was also kind of annoyed at how the waiters really pushed you to tell them that everything was "excellent." On one of the first nights, the waiter asked how everything was and I said "very good." And he said I had to tell him it was excellent, or he was trained to take it back and get me something else.....

 

And while I personally love Anytime Dining, I found the girl on the phone taking reservations to be rather rude and short. She certainly didn't sound as if she were answering the phone with a smile like their C.R.U.I.S.E. program promises.

 

Our cabin steward, Jimmy, was also not very good. He ignored some of our requests (like having four towels in the room), and on one day we came back and there were no new towels at all! We thought maybe he was just laundering more, and figured we'd have new ones by the time we returned to go to bed. But, when we returned, there were still NO towels at all. The next morning we just used pool towels. Then, later that day, we came back and he had finally placed ONE bath towel in the bathroom. By the next day we were finally up to two again. This is kind of nitpicky, but I was also rather annoyed at how he never put the trash can in the bathroom completely back into its place. It was ALWAYS set sideways in the hole the can slides into. It seemed like he'd just empty it and toss it back on the shelf. Again, I know it's nitpicky, but it seemed kind of "lazy". Compared to the cabin steward on our last cruise, Jimmy was also not as friendly. He barely greeted us when he saw us, although we rarely saw him as it was.

 

We also were very annoyed to find that the Lotus Spa did some funky thing where they charged part of a retail sale under the retail code, and then took a random amount of it and added it to the salon treatment code. It caused us to be rather confused upon receiving our bill, because at first it looked like they overcharged us for the spa treatment. While I was up at the Purser's desk figuring out the problem, I overheard a lot of people coming up with the same exact problem. They tried to explain it away as that's just how the computer codes things... but it's really a BS answer. The have one code for "Salon Services" and one for "Salon Retail" (or something like that). One is for treatments, like massages or manicures or facials. The other for products you buy. So, how does it make sense for them to take $31 of the $214 product bill and tack it on to the $79 treatment bill? Why bother having two different codes at all if you can't code things properly... I think the fact that so many people were coming up to the Purser's desk confused and complaining would be enough for them to fix that problem.

[sultan_sfo]

It is "designed" to be that way so that it is easier to toss things from the shower / and sink! Like the complaints about layout of the Horizon Court, I am amazed that some posters are so set in their ways that they never learned to appreciate a better design than the inefficient ones to which they have become accustomed.

 

...

It was ALWAYS set sideways in the hole the can slides into. It seemed like he'd just empty it and toss it back on the shelf. Again, I know it's nitpicky, but it seemed kind of "lazy".

...

[JustCruizeIt59]

Everybody - open question to you all. Do you honestly spend lots of money in a resraurant and simply accept it, excuse it and still tip the servers etc? Cmon be honest.

 

HELL NO!

[DMorris]

Like the complaints about layout of the Horizon Court, I am amazed that some posters are so set in their ways that they never learned to appreciate a better design than the inefficient ones to which they have become accustomed.

 

We are not set in our ways, and that was uncalled for IMHO. I am all for trying new things. We didn't like the layout because everytime we went in there you got bump, pushed, shooved, etc. No body went in one direction, they just skipped and jumped to the sections they wanted without any regards to the others around them. If it flowed easily it would not have been an issue. So this was inefficient in my mind. Like everyone says, opinions are just opinions. No one is right or wrong. I can like or dislike what I choose and hope people take our opinions with a grain of salt. Everyone here keeps getting so defensive on the information we are posting and do not know why. We are saying that the information we are sharing is the final word and no one else's opinions matter. Geeze, people need to lighten up... :eek: :rolleyes: :confused:

[Purple Passion]

We just got off the Golden on Saturday, and while we had a great time, there were some things I was disappointed in too. Often times you hear people complain and think "that's just how they are", but I can really see how you came to many of your conclusions.

 

We found the ship to be kind of run-down. It was still clean, and we weren't really bothered by it, but we noticed a lot of wear and tear. For instance, there were stained and torn carpets (including carpet edgings that were sticking up), and LOTS of flickering light bulbs (and I overheard many passengers complaining about this), among other things. I did however read that Princess plans to dry dock the Golden for 19 days next year to overhaul her, and update a bunch of stuff. And I frequently saw crew-members cleaning, repairing, repainting, etc.

 

We also found the dining experience to be mediocre (although the steaks at Desert Rose were fantastic). I often felt uninspired by the menus -- and I remember feeling just the opposite on the Sapphire two years ago. The food was generally good, but the creativity was gone. On the Sapphire, the plates were all decorated and plated nicely. On the Golden it felt like they didn't put any effort into presentation. We only got the cute flower butter pats for like the first night, and then after that you only got non-uniformly cut slices of butter -- not the end of the world, but just another example of how it felt like they stopped trying. We were only offered a refill on bread once (and only when the waiter saw me digging around the basket for the last bit of breadstick). Some waiters were better than others at offering us refills of our iced teas. I was also kind of annoyed at how the waiters really pushed you to tell them that everything was "excellent." On one of the first nights, the waiter asked how everything was and I said "very good." And he said I had to tell him it was excellent, or he was trained to take it back and get me something else.....

 

And while I personally love Anytime Dining, I found the girl on the phone taking reservations to be rather rude and short. She certainly didn't sound as if she were answering the phone with a smile like their C.R.U.I.S.E. program promises.

 

Our cabin steward, Jimmy, was also not very good. He ignored some of our requests (like having four towels in the room), and on one day we came back and there were no new towels at all! We thought maybe he was just laundering more, and figured we'd have new ones by the time we returned to go to bed. But, when we returned, there were still NO towels at all. The next morning we just used pool towels. Then, later that day, we came back and he had finally placed ONE bath towel in the bathroom. By the next day we were finally up to two again. This is kind of nitpicky, but I was also rather annoyed at how he never put the trash can in the bathroom completely back into its place. It was ALWAYS set sideways in the hole the can slides into. It seemed like he'd just empty it and toss it back on the shelf. Again, I know it's nitpicky, but it seemed kind of "lazy". Compared to the cabin steward on our last cruise, Jimmy was also not as friendly. He barely greeted us when he saw us, although we rarely saw him as it was.

 

We also were very annoyed to find that the Lotus Spa did some funky thing where they charged part of a retail sale under the retail code, and then took a random amount of it and added it to the salon treatment code. It caused us to be rather confused upon receiving our bill, because at first it looked like they overcharged us for the spa treatment. While I was up at the Purser's desk figuring out the problem, I overheard a lot of people coming up with the same exact problem. They tried to explain it away as that's just how the computer codes things... but it's really a BS answer. The have one code for "Salon Services" and one for "Salon Retail" (or something like that). One is for treatments, like massages or manicures or facials. The other for products you buy. So, how does it make sense for them to take $31 of the $214 product bill and tack it on to the $79 treatment bill? Why bother having two different codes at all if you can't code things properly... I think the fact that so many people were coming up to the Purser's desk confused and complaining would be enough for them to fix that problem.

 

You are NOT nitpicking. GP HAS cut back on the SERVICE & the little things that WE pay for.

I also went to the Lotus Spa. I enjoy my massage BUT the room did NOT have any relazing music just the sound of a running fan/air-conditioner! What a disappointment that was!:(

[newmexicoNita]

We just got off the Golden on Saturday, and while we had a great time, there were some things I was disappointed in too. Often times you hear people complain and think "that's just how they are", but I can really see how you came to many of your conclusions.

 

We found the ship to be kind of run-down. It was still clean, and we weren't really bothered by it, but we noticed a lot of wear and tear. For instance, there were stained and torn carpets (including carpet edgings that were sticking up), and LOTS of flickering light bulbs (and I overheard many passengers complaining about this), among other things. I did however read that Princess plans to dry dock the Golden for 19 days next year to overhaul her, and update a bunch of stuff. And I frequently saw crew-members cleaning, repairing, repainting, etc.

 

We also found the dining experience to be mediocre (although the steaks at Desert Rose were fantastic). I often felt uninspired by the menus -- and I remember feeling just the opposite on the Sapphire two years ago. The food was generally good, but the creativity was gone. On the Sapphire, the plates were all decorated and plated nicely. On the Golden it felt like they didn't put any effort into presentation. We only got the cute flower butter pats for like the first night, and then after that you only got non-uniformly cut slices of butter -- not the end of the world, but just another example of how it felt like they stopped trying. We were only offered a refill on bread once (and only when the waiter saw me digging around the basket for the last bit of breadstick). Some waiters were better than others at offering us refills of our iced teas. I was also kind of annoyed at how the waiters really pushed you to tell them that everything was "excellent." On one of the first nights, the waiter asked how everything was and I said "very good." And he said I had to tell him it was excellent, or he was trained to take it back and get me something else.....

 

And while I personally love Anytime Dining, I found the girl on the phone taking reservations to be rather rude and short. She certainly didn't sound as if she were answering the phone with a smile like their C.R.U.I.S.E. program promises.

 

Our cabin steward, Jimmy, was also not very good. He ignored some of our requests (like having four towels in the room), and on one day we came back and there were no new towels at all! We thought maybe he was just laundering more, and figured we'd have new ones by the time we returned to go to bed. But, when we returned, there were still NO towels at all. The next morning we just used pool towels. Then, later that day, we came back and he had finally placed ONE bath towel in the bathroom. By the next day we were finally up to two again. This is kind of nitpicky, but I was also rather annoyed at how he never put the trash can in the bathroom completely back into its place. It was ALWAYS set sideways in the hole the can slides into. It seemed like he'd just empty it and toss it back on the shelf. Again, I know it's nitpicky, but it seemed kind of "lazy". Compared to the cabin steward on our last cruise, Jimmy was also not as friendly. He barely greeted us when he saw us, although we rarely saw him as it was.

 

We also were very annoyed to find that the Lotus Spa did some funky thing where they charged part of a retail sale under the retail code, and then took a random amount of it and added it to the salon treatment code. It caused us to be rather confused upon receiving our bill, because at first it looked like they overcharged us for the spa treatment. While I was up at the Purser's desk figuring out the problem, I overheard a lot of people coming up with the same exact problem. They tried to explain it away as that's just how the computer codes things... but it's really a BS answer. The have one code for "Salon Services" and one for "Salon Retail" (or something like that). One is for treatments, like massages or manicures or facials. The other for products you buy. So, how does it make sense for them to take $31 of the $214 product bill and tack it on to the $79 treatment bill? Why bother having two different codes at all if you can't code things properly... I think the fact that so many people were coming up to the Purser's desk confused and complaining would be enough for them to fix that problem.

I would have to say, some of your complaints are nit picking. Cute flower cut pats of butter? sorry, that certainly would not even enter my mind. The towel issue, yes, even though I am not sure why anyone would need 4 towels. none or one is unacceptable.

 

as for food quality, this is something most of us who cruise a great deal have gotten used to, it just isn't as good as it used to be, even a couple of years ago. Cruise prices are low, food prices are up: guess what? Something has to give, I wish is was different, but I like the prices we are paying and realize I can't have my cake and eat it too.

[randy0823]

I am really surprised by the comments made by many as I am wondering whether I was on the same cruise. My friend and I had a tremendous time and did not have the same experiences as others who have posted. Let me comment.

 

Value- I am not certain what others paid for the cruise however, consistent with my experience, Princess has the lowest fares. Princess is not a Premium line and thus do not think it is fair that folks compare to Premium lines. My outside cabin on deck 8 was a VALUE at less than 500PP including taxes.

 

Service- I too agree that the lines that have moved to anytime dining or individual restaurants do not have the same service but DO NOT feel that this should be taken out on the young men and women from developing countries for the low wages they are receiving. I find it ignorant to stop a miniscule $10.50 per day for room and dining tips from being paid to the staff. At a minimum, due to the auto tipping allocation, you are penalizing the entire staff. I imagine that majority of folks who travel on a 7 day cruise spend more than 10 p/d on garbage- the 10 p/d means so much for the staff. I would suggest you complete the survey and include detail regarding your issues.

 

Food- My experience is that each line has different strengths. Princess, from my perspective has average to above average dining but is comparable to RCCL and Carnival- lines in the same category. I would concur that the buffet is average or below but there are numerous alternatives such as the grill, pizza which are good in my opinion. In addition, since I have been in Princess previously I was aware that the staff will make fresh omelets, eggs, crispy bacon,etc. if these are impotant. The only issue I had was the location of the toaster. In addition, I did not experience lines but maybe that was timing. You can also get other juices simply by asking.

 

Itinerary- The experience that I had in Mexico was positive but I spent the time away from the shops- that is where vendors including timeshares are most aggressive. Mexico is a developing country so Americans need to understand that the Mexicans are trying to make a dime. If you want an American experience, go to Miami.

 

Suggestion- in PV take a boat to Yelapa for $22 pp for round trip boat with locals. Beers are less than$2 and the beach is calm and clean and away from the tourist traps. In Mazatlan go to the beach bars after walking Old Mazatlan. In Cabo, head for the beach right around the bend- somewhat difficult to find though a local person guided me through the streets. The water is exceptional compared to any Pacific beaches along the coast.

 

Entertainment- Overall entertainment was good including the production shows, comedians (too focused on marriage for me) and illusionist. Princess Pop Star was wild at times. I think the entertainment aboard provided many options and is above average for variety.

 

Suggestion- Go to dinner around 8:30 and the dining rooms are less crowded (fewer seniors- not negative just with better service. Then you can catch the later shows.

 

Ship Layout- Ship has standard layout with entertainment mid-ship and activity on top deck. Over the course of one week cannot understand how someone cannot find their way around. Each floor had number printed in carpet by elevators and stairs and port and starboard clearly labelled.

 

Staff- I found that the staff was engaged when you interacted with them. I met some fantastic folks who worked very hard to make a difference and recongnized them through the survey and make a difference cards available at thr pursers.

 

Cabin- The cabin was standard Princess. Would appreciate if Princess made the credit account available through the TVs as others but room appeared to be clean- consistent with other lines I have been on as well as Star Princess, Sapphire Princess.

 

Overall this was a great cruise with a fantastic younger crowd aboard which made the evenings fun.

 

Hope this helps those who are looking forward to a great cruise. Make it great.

[randy0823]

I am really surprised by the comments made by many as I am wondering whether I was on the same cruise. My friend and I had a tremendous time and did not have the same experiences as others who have posted. Let me comment.

 

Value- I am not certain what others paid for the cruise however, consistent with my experience, Princess has the lowest fares. Princess is not a Premium line and thus do not think it is fair that folks compare to Premium lines. My outside cabin on deck 8 was a VALUE at less than 500PP including taxes.

 

Service- I too agree that the lines that have moved to anytime dining or individual restaurants do not have the same service but DO NOT feel that this should be taken out on the young men and women from developing countries for the low wages they are receiving. I find it ignorant to stop a miniscule $10.50 per day for room and dining tips from being paid to the staff. At a minimum, due to the auto tipping allocation, you are penalizing the entire staff. I imagine that majority of folks who travel on a 7 day cruise spend more than 10 p/d on garbage- the 10 p/d means so much for the staff. I would suggest you complete the survey and include detail regarding your issues.

 

Food- My experience is that each line has different strengths. Princess, from my perspective has average to above average dining but is comparable to RCCL and Carnival- lines in the same category. I would concur that the buffet is average or below but there are numerous alternatives such as the grill, pizza which are good in my opinion. In addition, since I have been in Princess previously I was aware that the staff will make fresh omelets, eggs, crispy bacon,etc. if these are impotant. The only issue I had was the location of the toaster. In addition, I did not experience lines but maybe that was timing. You can also get other juices simply by asking.

 

Itinerary- The experience that I had in Mexico was positive but I spent the time away from the shops- that is where vendors including timeshares are most aggressive. Mexico is a developing country so Americans need to understand that the Mexicans are trying to make a dime. If you want an American experience, go to Miami.

 

Suggestion- in PV take a boat to Yelapa for $22 pp for round trip boat with locals. Beers are less than$2 and the beach is calm and clean and away from the tourist traps. In Mazatlan go to the beach bars after walking Old Mazatlan. In Cabo, head for the beach right around the bend- somewhat difficult to find though a local person guided me through the streets. The water is exceptional compared to any Pacific beaches along the coast.

 

Entertainment- Overall entertainment was good including the production shows, comedians (too focused on marriage for me) and illusionist. Princess Pop Star was wild at times. I think the entertainment aboard provided many options and is above average for variety.

 

Suggestion- Go to dinner around 8:30 and the dining rooms are less crowded (fewer seniors- not negative just with better service. Then you can catch the later shows.

 

Ship Layout- Ship has standard layout with entertainment mid-ship and activity on top deck. Over the course of one week cannot understand how someone cannot find their way around. Each floor had number printed in carpet by elevators and stairs and port and starboard clearly labelled.

 

Staff- I found that the staff was engaged when you interacted with them. I met some fantastic folks who worked very hard to make a difference and recongnized them through the survey and make a difference cards available at thr pursers.

 

Cabin- The cabin was standard Princess. Would appreciate if Princess made the credit account available through the TVs as others but room appeared to be clean- consistent with other lines I have been on as well as Star Princess, Sapphire Princess.

 

Overall this was a great cruise with a fantastic younger crowd aboard which made the evenings fun.

 

Hope this helps those who are looking forward to a great cruise. Make it great.

[Dani24]

It is "designed" to be that way so that it is easier to toss things from the shower / and sink! Like the complaints about layout of the Horizon Court, I am amazed that some posters are so set in their ways that they never learned to appreciate a better design than the inefficient ones to which they have become accustomed.

 

No. It's not designed to be that way. There is a hole cut out of the shelf under the sink, and the trash can fits perfectly inside that hole, standing upright. From this position, the lip of the trash can is low enough, and the opening easily accessible from all angles in the bathroom. However, our cabin steward didn't put the trash can back into that hole, standing upright like it should have been. Instead it teetered sideways, where it rocked around when the ship was moving a lot (doubt they'd purposely design it to do that -- especially since the trash can easily could have come off the shelf the way he placed it, spilling trash all over the bathroom floor). And the opening of the trash can faced whatever direction he happened to toss it.

[MamaTene]

Looked like it had been hacked apart with a dull knife! We too missed the extra touches that added to the ambiance and seem to have gone by the wayside.

As to Horizon Court...no flow whatsoever. Everyone contantly bumping into each other. We simply made the best of it.

[Purple Passion]

I would have to say, some of your complaints are nit picking. Cute flower cut pats of butter? sorry, that certainly would not even enter my mind. The towel issue, yes, even though I am not sure why anyone would need 4 towels. none or one is unacceptable.

 

as for food quality, this is something most of us who cruise a great deal have gotten used to, it just isn't as good as it used to be, even a couple of years ago. Cruise prices are low, food prices are up: guess what? Something has to give, I wish is was different, but I like the prices we are paying and realize I can't have my cake and eat it too.

Well if you settle for what u get then u deserve what you get! If you do NOT let the cruise lines know what can be fixed then it won't GET fixed. It is NONE of your business how many towels people need or WANT! We make our own drinks in the cabin & need extras for unexpected accidents.

[Dani24]

I would have to say, some of your complaints are nit picking. Cute flower cut pats of butter? sorry, that certainly would not even enter my mind. The towel issue, yes, even though I am not sure why anyone would need 4 towels. none or one is unacceptable.

 

as for food quality, this is something most of us who cruise a great deal have gotten used to, it just isn't as good as it used to be, even a couple of years ago. Cruise prices are low, food prices are up: guess what? Something has to give, I wish is was different, but I like the prices we are paying and realize I can't have my cake and eat it too.

 

The flower pat butter thing wasn't really a big deal, or even something that actually made me upset. Just something I noticed. It's like noticing the difference between a car with vinyl seats and leather seats. Both cars function the same, and will get you where you need to be going. But there's a reason people pay more for leather -- because it's an upgrade that feels "special" to them. Flower pats of butter felt "special." Regular pats felt ordinary. No skin off my back either way. But I remember how fantastic my first cruise was because of all of the little extra special touches. This cruise was missing many of those special little touches, and as a result, felt a little less special. That's not to say we didn't have a great time, or that I wouldn't do it again. But if given the choice between ordinary and special, I'll choose special every time.

 

And as for the towels, we asked for four towels because we wanted to be sure that we had extra towels in case we wanted to take a shower during the day, or before dinner (i.e. after swimming). Considering our cabin steward had a hard time keeping us stocked with two towels so that we could EACH take ONE shower per day, I don't think it's too much to ask for at all. If it had just been that he didn't bring us two extra towels, I wouldn't have been too bothered. But I was very annoyed about the day we had no towels, and the day we had one towel, because that is service BELOW the bare minimum they should be delivering.

 

With food, I was merely comparing it to what I remember from two years ago. It was still good. I'm not saying I hated it, or that I couldn't even eat it. The only other thing I mentioned was that I wasn't very impressed with the menus. Just a personal observation, and I know that other people might feel very different (and that's perfectly fine) because it's such a subjective thing.

 

I think people need to remember that these reviews are OPINIONS, and no two people will have the same opinion. Unless someone has an opinion that is blatantly false, we should respect each other's right to have and express our opinions, as well as the fact that other people will likely feel differently, without feeling the need to attack people who think other than we do. It's absolutely possible for two people with opposite opinions to both be right -- because it's subjective.

[MamaTene]

Folks:

These boards are for sharing our experiences aboard the different lines and EVERYONE needs to be able to express themselves here openly and not fear being attacked or bashed because of their OPINIONS.

Expectations among people differ as much as personalities do and none of us should be faulting anyone who has different needs/wants/desires than we do.

[bobbyd6363]

We just got off the Golden on Saturday, and while we had a great time, there were some things I was disappointed in too. Often times you hear people complain and think "that's just how they are", but I can really see how you came to many of your conclusions.

We found the ship to be kind of run-down. It was still clean, and we weren't really bothered by it, but we noticed a lot of wear and tear. For instance, there were stained and torn carpets (including carpet edgings that were sticking up), and LOTS of flickering light bulbs (and I overheard many passengers complaining about this), among other things. I did however read that Princess plans to dry dock the Golden for 19 days next year to overhaul her, and update a bunch of stuff. And I frequently saw crew-members cleaning, repairing, repainting, etc.

We also found the dining experience to be mediocre (although the steaks at Desert Rose were fantastic). I often felt uninspired by the menus -- and I remember feeling just the opposite on the Sapphire two years ago. The food was generally good, but the creativity was gone. On the Sapphire, the plates were all decorated and plated nicely. On the Golden it felt like they didn't put any effort into presentation. We only got the cute flower butter pats for like the first night, and then after that you only got non-uniformly cut slices of butter -- not the end of the world, but just another example of how it felt like they stopped trying. We were only offered a refill on bread once (and only when the waiter saw me digging around the basket for the last bit of breadstick). Some waiters were better than others at offering us refills of our iced teas. I was also kind of annoyed at how the waiters really pushed you to tell them that everything was "excellent." On one of the first nights, the waiter asked how everything was and I said "very good." And he said I had to tell him it was excellent, or he was trained to take it back and get me something else.....

And while I personally love Anytime Dining, I found the girl on the phone taking reservations to be rather rude and short. She certainly didn't sound as if she were answering the phone with a smile like their C.R.U.I.S.E. program promises.

Our cabin steward, Jimmy, was also not very good. He ignored some of our requests (like having four towels in the room), and on one day we came back and there were no new towels at all! We thought maybe he was just laundering more, and figured we'd have new ones by the time we returned to go to bed. But, when we returned, there were still NO towels at all. The next morning we just used pool towels. Then, later that day, we came back and he had finally placed ONE bath towel in the bathroom. By the next day we were finally up to two again. This is kind of nitpicky, but I was also rather annoyed at how he never put the trash can in the bathroom completely back into its place. It was ALWAYS set sideways in the hole the can slides into. It seemed like he'd just empty it and toss it back on the shelf. Again, I know it's nitpicky, but it seemed kind of "lazy". Compared to the cabin steward on our last cruise, Jimmy was also not as friendly. He barely greeted us when he saw us, although we rarely saw him as it was.

We also were very annoyed to find that the Lotus Spa did some funky thing where they charged part of a retail sale under the retail code, and then took a random amount of it and added it to the salon treatment code. It caused us to be rather confused upon receiving our bill, because at first it looked like they overcharged us for the spa treatment. While I was up at the Purser's desk figuring out the problem, I overheard a lot of people coming up with the same exact problem. They tried to explain it away as that's just how the computer codes things... but it's really a BS answer. The have one code for "Salon Services" and one for "Salon Retail" (or something like that). One is for treatments, like massages or manicures or facials. The other for products you buy. So, how does it make sense for them to take $31 of the $214 product bill and tack it on to the $79 treatment bill? Why bother having two different codes at all if you can't code things properly... I think the fact that so many people were coming up to the Purser's desk confused and complaining would be enough for them to fix that problem.

Dani24 - thanks for posting your Golden Princess comments! Did you get a chance to read my review BEFORE you sailed?

We found the ship to be kind of run-down. It was still clean, and we weren't really bothered by it, but we noticed a lot of wear and tear. For instance, there were stained and torn carpets (including carpet edgings that were sticking up), and LOTS of flickering light bulbs (and I overheard many passengers complaining about this), among other things. I did however read that Princess plans to dry dock the Golden for 19 days next year to overhaul her, and update a bunch of stuff. And I frequently saw crew-members cleaning, repairing, repainting, etc.

I too thought the ship looked a little worn on the edges but that was constantly being worked while we were aboard too. Always saw fresh paint signs as well as fresh varnish could be smelled everywhere! Interestingly, I had a chat with one of the cruise staff and learned that the Golden Princess actually skipped some dry dock time this year and has adopted a Carnival tactic of working on the ship while it is underway WITH PASSENGERS ONBOARD. There were 15 contractor groups onboard during our sailing doing everything from cabin revamps to replacing entire hallways of carpet.

We also found the dining experience to be mediocre (although the steaks at Desert Rose were fantastic). I often felt uninspired by the menus -- and I remember feeling just the opposite on the Sapphire two years ago. The food was generally good, but the creativity was gone. On the Sapphire, the plates were all decorated and plated nicely. On the Golden it felt like they didn't put any effort into presentation. We only got the cute flower butter pats for like the first night, and then after that you only got non-uniformly cut slices of butter -- not the end of the world, but just another example of how it felt like they stopped trying. We were only offered a refill on bread once (and only when the waiter saw me digging around the basket for the last bit of breadstick). Some waiters were better than others at offering us refills of our iced teas. I was also kind of annoyed at how the waiters really pushed you to tell them that everything was "excellent." On one of the first nights, the waiter asked how everything was and I said "very good." And he said I had to tell him it was excellent, or he was trained to take it back and get me something else.....

I totally agree with your statement above in regards to food presentation. If you go back to where my thesis was edited you will note I got flamed for bashing the food on the GP. I stated that refills were non-existent and we NEVER saw another basket of bread even after asking for them! The food was NOT good IMHO and just like you said – two years ago on another Princess ship the food was great. I wonder what has happened to Princess over the past two years since we sailed with them?

And while I personally love Anytime Dining, I found the girl on the phone taking reservations to be rather rude and short. She certainly didn't sound as if she were answering the phone with a smile like their C.R.U.I.S.E. program promises.

You must go back and read the comments Mamatene and ISC have had about that “girl” on the phone taking dining room reservations! I found her to be severely cold and impersonal. Ice princess is probably her title. She was very rude to some of my friends to the point of badgering them into thinking they didn’t even make dinner reservations! Chris/Lorraine you guys should weigh in here and re-relate your dining room story dealing with the ICE PRINCESS OF RESERVATIONS!

Our cabin steward, Jimmy, was also not very good. He ignored some of our requests (like having four towels in the room), and on one day we came back and there were no new towels at all! We thought maybe he was just laundering more, and figured we'd have new ones by the time we returned to go to bed. But, when we returned, there were still NO towels at all. The next morning we just used pool towels. Then, later that day, we came back and he had finally placed ONE bath towel in the bathroom. By the next day we were finally up to two again. This is kind of nitpicky, but I was also rather annoyed at how he never put the trash can in the bathroom completely back into its place. It was ALWAYS set sideways in the hole the can slides into. It seemed like he'd just empty it and toss it back on the shelf. Again, I know its nitpicky, but it seemed kind of "lazy". Compared to the cabin steward on our last cruise, Jimmy was also not as friendly. He barely greeted us when he saw us, although we rarely saw him as it was.

Sorry to hear your cabin attendant was lackluster in performing his duties. Again I am going to point the finger at automatic tipping. There is NO EXCUSE for crappy workmanship! It is NOT nit-picky to want things a certain way when they are EXPECTED! Towels are expected to be replaced daily unless they are found on the floor (reads the little card they leave in your bathroom). As for the trashcan it is called ATTENTION TO DETAIL! Yes, it is the little things that mean a lot to a paying customer. I challenge anyone to stay at a 5 star hotel and find anything out of place when your maid has been in to clean your room! Again, I will look back two years ago to the Island Princess when our cabin attendant (Carlo – whom I called Carlos for two weeks) came and went with a constant smile and even greeted us by name. What happened to service with a smile?

[Purple Passion]

Nicely said Chris!

[bobbyd6363]

I would have to say, some of your complaints are nit picking. Cute flower cut pats of butter? sorry, that certainly would not even enter my mind. The towel issue, yes, even though I am not sure why anyone would need 4 towels. none or one is unacceptable.

 

as for food quality, this is something most of us who cruise a great deal have gotten used to, it just isn't as good as it used to be, even a couple of years ago. Cruise prices are low, food prices are up: guess what? Something has to give, I wish is was different, but I like the prices we are paying and realize I can't have my cake and eat it too.

 

Nita - please how can you call Dani's comments about towels "nit picky"?! Why woudl anyone need 4 towels?! ARENT YOU A WOMAN? Have you EVER travelled with a woman? How many towels do women need? I can tell you how many towels a woman needs! One to put on the floor because that damned bath mat is too small, one to dry their body with, one to dry their hair and finally one dry one to wrap themselves in if they dont have a robe. 1+1+1+1 = 4

[bobbyd6363]

I am really surprised by the comments made by many as I am wondering whether I was on the same cruise. My friend and I had a tremendous time and did not have the same experiences as others who have posted. Let me comment.

 

Value- I am not certain what others paid for the cruise however, consistent with my experience, Princess has the lowest fares. Princess is not a Premium line and thus do not think it is fair that folks compare to Premium lines. My outside cabin on deck 8 was a VALUE at less than 500PP including taxes.

 

Service- I too agree that the lines that have moved to anytime dining or individual restaurants do not have the same service but DO NOT feel that this should be taken out on the young men and women from developing countries for the low wages they are receiving. I find it ignorant to stop a miniscule $10.50 per day for room and dining tips from being paid to the staff. At a minimum, due to the auto tipping allocation, you are penalizing the entire staff. I imagine that majority of folks who travel on a 7 day cruise spend more than 10 p/d on garbage- the 10 p/d means so much for the staff. I would suggest you complete the survey and include detail regarding your issues.

 

Food- My experience is that each line has different strengths. Princess, from my perspective has average to above average dining but is comparable to RCCL and Carnival- lines in the same category. I would concur that the buffet is average or below but there are numerous alternatives such as the grill, pizza which are good in my opinion. In addition, since I have been in Princess previously I was aware that the staff will make fresh omelets, eggs, crispy bacon,etc. if these are impotant. The only issue I had was the location of the toaster. In addition, I did not experience lines but maybe that was timing. You can also get other juices simply by asking.

 

Staff- I found that the staff was engaged when you interacted with them. I met some fantastic folks who worked very hard to make a difference and recongnized them through the survey and make a difference cards available at thr pursers.

 

Cabin- The cabin was standard Princess. Would appreciate if Princess made the credit account available through the TVs as others but room appeared to be clean- consistent with other lines I have been on as well as Star Princess, Sapphire Princess.

 

Overall this was a great cruise with a fantastic younger crowd aboard which made the evenings fun.

 

Hope this helps those who are looking forward to a great cruise. Make it great.

 

randy - well I really appreciate being called ignorant! Jeez and to think of all the money I spent on that darn MBA! I shouldn't have wasted my time! I am going to ask this question again. Do you feel it appropriate to tip for lackluster service? I cant seem to get anyone to answer that question. Since I am so "ignorant" I guess I wouldnt know good service if it hit me over the head. I am really surprised people will robotically tip these "poor third world people working for low wages" for crappy service. It galls me to no end to hear people say that but I bet money that if they got poor service at the IHOP they wouldnt leave a tip! JEEZ talk about a double standard. You will be surprised to hear that we ALL put individual comments in our surveys about the service we found lacking. Also you will probably be floored to hear that we even gave kudos to many members of the crew in our comment cards. Go back and read my review and you will see I call several crew members out by name for exceptional service etc.

 

Since when is Princess not considered a "Premium" cruise line? You say that then turn around and say "Princess has average to above average dining but is comparable to RCL and Carnival". Who do you think owns Princess? Let me answer that - the WALMART of cruise lines = Carnival.

[randy0823]

Bobby:

 

Please do not find my comments directed at you. Over the course of my 20+ years of travel around the world, I understand that the value of $10 to us split amongst 3-4 ($2.50-3:33 pp) individuals per day is much different that the value to others who are less fortunate.

 

I do agree that good service should be rewarded and am not an advocate of rewarding poor service but do want individuals to consider the value of 7 days at $10.50 p/d for up to three meals in the dining room including waiter and staff and butler/maid service 2-3 times a day. The entire dining and maid service experience should be taken into consideration and not representative of one experience. I would suggest talking with the maitre'd/ housekeeper and address concerns when the issue arises.

 

I am curious as to how you rewarded the waiters/bus staff who over the course of the week met/exceeded your service expectations as I would be interested into going back to tipping the old fashion way. That said, since I was with a party of two, I would be hard pressed to recall which individuals provided average/above average service by the end of the cruise as we sat in 6 different locations due to anytime dining. Do you tip as you go through the week.

[randy0823]

Cruise lines are categorized differently by each rating agency but there typically is a category labelled as premium. Under most of the agencies, Princess is categorized as Contemporary/Resort along with Carnival and Premium is standardly Celebrity, Holland America (another Carnival Corp line), Cunard and Oceania. While this varies, Princess at best is between categories.

[bobbyd6363]

Bobby:

 

Please do not find my comments directed at you. Over the course of my 20+ years of travel around the world, I understand that the value of $10 to us split amongst 3-4 ($2.50-3:33 pp) individuals per day is much different that the value to others who are less fortunate.

 

I do agree that good service should be rewarded and am not an advocate of rewarding poor service but do want individuals to consider the value of 7 days at $10.50 p/d for up to three meals in the dining room including waiter and staff and butler/maid service 2-3 times a day. The entire dining and maid service experience should be taken into consideration and not representative of one experience. I would suggest talking with the maitre'd/ housekeeper and address concerns when the issue arises.

 

I am curious as to how you rewarded the waiters/bus staff who over the course of the week met/exceeded your service expectations as I would be interested into going back to tipping the old fashion way. That said, since I was with a party of two, I would be hard pressed to recall which individuals provided average/above average service by the end of the cruise as we sat in 6 different locations due to anytime dining. Do you tip as you go through the week.

 

Randy - I do apologize for being a bit brusk in my comments. Over the past three or four cruises I have exposure to automatic tipping so this wasnt my first time dealing with it. In the past what I have done is left my automatic tips on my account and then slipped the waiter, cabin steward etc an envelope on the last night that included some extra cash and even a $20 phonecard so they could call home when they got a chance. I am not insensitive to the plight of these under paid individuals. However, that being said I gave the individual over achiever cash when I met them in the hall or dining room. In the case of the dining room waiters Jorge and Leo - I gave them cash which I pray they kept to themselves and dont have to share it or turn it in because they did shine above some pretty bad servers. I also wrote a "You made the difference" card for each of them and dropped it in the box by the Purser's desk. Additionally, I gave my cabin attendant a $20 phone card when I net here on the dirst day.

 

I too have been travelling around the world for many years (over 15) and honestly I find tipping in some countries to be non-existent. Actually in Japan I had a waiter run me down in the street to give me my tip BACK! It was considered an insult to him to be tipped because he truly "enjoyed" serving as our waiter and a simple Thank You was more than enough for him.

 

You will NOT find a bigger snob (word used loosely) than me when it comes to expectations of service in restaurants and hotels. When it comes to cruises, after 26 of them I have come to expect a certain level of service. Over the years I too have seen a serious degradation of service industry wide. Note: I didn't determine my tipping of the servers in the dining rooms based on the quality of the food. The servers have no control over the food quality. I based tips solely on service/performance.

 

I do know that the cost of cruises has pretty much stayed the same for many years but I cant excuse the drop in service when you note that Carnival had a year end PROFIT over $3.4 BILLION dollars last year! Why is it then that the food per diem per passenger spent by Carnival is a mere $4.10? I understand the whole "purchasing power by volume" thing and that food has increased in price but honestly the US Navy spends more on its people!

 

Take a look at that $4.10 per diem amount for a second. Wouldn't that mean the basic cost of your meal is just a little over a dollar per meal? If you were to base your tip at the nominal 15%, then the amount of the tip would be somewhere around twenty cents per meal. Hmmm ... that is food for thought.