Caribbean Princess 2/22 -3/1 Review

[MrSchwump]

We sailed on the Caribbean Princess from San Juan on Feb. 22nd. This was our 2nd cruise on Princess. We were 2 couples, ranging in age from 40 to 51.

We arrived in San Juan on the 21st and stayed at the Doubletree San Juan, formerly the Best Western Hotel Pierre. It was very nice. Newly renovated and decorated in a very modern style. The hotel staff was helpful and it was in a very good location in the Condado/Isla Verde area. There was a SuperMax grocery store right across the street which was very convenient for precruise supplies. Cab fare from airport to hotel was $25.00 and about the same from the hotel to the Pan Am pier.

We got to the pier about 11:45am and a fair sized line had formed already. Around noon we were allowed inside the terminal and after a little while were moved to the check in area. We were on board and in our cabin by 1pm.

We had an inside cabin, R515. I thought it was roomier than a similar cabin we had on the Crown Princess. This cabin generally ran parallel to the hallway where most inside cabins are oriented perpendicular to the hall. There was far most storage space than we needed. The electronic safe was convenient and easy to use.

The bathroom was adequate, room for only 1 at a time. We brought an over the door shoe organizer from Target to put toiletries in. The vanity space was small and I think it helped keep the bathroom a lot neater. My only complaint about the bathroom was the shower curtain. I could swear the Crown Princess had a shower door. The shower curtain seemed like it was just a touch too short and if you weren’t careful about keeping it inside the lip around the shower floor, water would go everywhere. By the 3rd day we figured out how to corral the shower curtain but it was a minor pain the first couple of days.

The flat screen TV was an upgrade done while the ship was in drydock. It was about a 22” screen and in our cabin; the inputs on the rear of the set were easily accessible for plugging in other video sources. In other cabin configurations, it could be harder if not impossible to reach.

Not that you spend a lot of time watching TV on a cruise but the selection of programming was pretty good. There was CNN, BBC World News, an ESPN and a couple of channels for English soccer. There were movie channels showing fairly new movies (Mamma Mia, etc.). My favorite channel was the one that showed old episodes of “The Love Boat”. The parade of stars was impressive! Loni Anderson, Charo, Jim Nabors, Sandy Duncan, the list goes on and on!

Since a lot has already been written about the facilities on board the Caribbean Princess, I’ll skip a lot of detail about all the various public areas. The new Piazza was virtually identical to the Crown Princess. There were a couple of areas that seemed to be blocked off but they weren’t noticeable as construction zones. I never heard a power tool or saw a construction worker. The casino seemed a little bigger than the Crown Princess with a mix of table games, video slots and the traditional slot machines.

Most of our time on board was spent at the Neptune Pool. We did like the Lotus Pool for the water treadmill feature and its peacefulness. There was no music or movie soundtrack blaring at you. Most afternoons there was live music at the Neptune Pool with either the Epithany Band or the Sugar Cane band playing. Both did a great job with all the island favorites and some classic rock and oldies thrown in. We didn’t spend a lot of time at the Terrace Pool at the stern of the ship, but on 1 or 2 days it was a great place to watch the sunset.

With all the bars on board we were never thirsty. I drank mostly beer and my wife drank mostly Diet Coke. We got the Coke stickers which are a great deal. Drink prices weren’t bad. A Coors Light was $4.54 with tax and gratuity. A Dos Equis was a little higher. The only non-beer beverage I had at the pool was a Mojito and it was $7.76. I think some of the blender drinks were in the $10.00 range. I thought the service at the bars was very good, and never had much of a wait.

We selected the Anytime Dining option and ate all evening meals in either the Island or Coral dining room. We never had to wait for a table. We requested a table for 4 most nights although we did share a table with 4 other people one evening. We thought the food was very good overall. We tried various things for the first time. My wife liked some of the chilled soups. Since we had Anytime Dining, we had a different waiter each night. All but one gave us excellent service. The one guy, whose name I don’t recall, seemed indifferent.

We went to one of the big production shows by mistake, thinking we were seeing a ventriloquist. “Do You Wanna Dance” turned out to be pretty good entertainment. One of the few places on board that gets crowded is the Princess Theater and the Explorers Lounge when there’s an act playing. Otherwise, you’d never know there were over 3000 other people on board.

We caught the ventriloquist the next day. I don’t recall his name (Michael something…) but he was hilarious. Another comedian we saw earlier in the week, not so much. They also had a juggling/balancing act that was pretty good who performed in the Piazza a couple of days. Don’t sit close to them if you don’t want to be part of their act as one of our friends found out!

One thing that others have mentioned, I thought compared to the Crown Princess, this ship moved around a LOT. Anytime we were underway you could feel the ship moving. My wife and her friend are both prone to motion sickness and never had any problems but you do feel the motion of the ocean.

Getting on and off the ship at the various ports of call was easy. Even when the lines were long, they moved quickly. Our disembarkation in San Juan could not have been easier. There were virtually no lines and we were out and on our way in minutes.

Overall it was an excellent cruise. The staff was friendly and helpful. The ship and our accommodations were great. We would go again in a heartbeat! Feel free to ask any questions. You can e-mail me at jmckib@cinci.rr.com.

[Maraprince]

My only complaint about the bathroom was the shower curtain. I could swear the Crown Princess had a shower door. The shower curtain seemed like it was just a touch too short and if you weren’t careful about keeping it inside the lip around the shower floor, water would go everywhere. By the 3rd day we figured out how to corral the shower curtain but it was a minor pain the first couple of days.

 

 

 

You are CORRECT! The Crown Princess has what I like to call a "clam shell" shower. You close each side door inward. Never cared to get too friendly with a shower curtain! Is this the case in balcony cabins as well or just inside cabins?

 

Good review. Having sailed on Crown Princess twice I am hoping to have a good experience in June when I board the Caribbean Princess.

 

 

MARAPRINCE

[smilz]

Glad to hear you had a great cruise. Surprised about the comments I have heard about the movement. I don't remember feeling anything on it 18 months ago. We've been on the Crown several times since and things were calm then too. We are leaving on CB on March 22. Do you think the stabalizers are not being used to save fuel? Were the seas choppy for your cruise? I am also relieved that the problems at the Pan American Pier seem to have ironed out. A few questions: What were the MUTS? How wasthe tender service in Grenada? :)

 

 

18 cruises and counting!

[travellover39]

Thank you for sharing your cruise with us. I like to read the reviews. It helps a great deal in knowing what to expect.

 

This will be our first cruise with Princess. We did a cruise over 20 years ago and are just finding our way back to cruising. Back then, the ships were smaller and you felt the motion of the water. Hoping the cruising will be smooth.

 

Did you do any excusions? If so, which ones/ports did you enjoy?

 

Thanks

[NeurosurgeryNP]

Do you think the stabalizers are not being used to save fuel? quote]

I don't think this is the case. It wasn't for us anyway in late October on the repo cruise. They had them out intermittently from what we were told on our bridge tour. One was out during our tour. Other in Skywalkers at night when dancing (the highest point of the ship in the back), we rarely felt the ship moving.

[ScotusBoy]

Hi Joe,

 

Thanks for taking the time to write the great review. We board the CB on Sunday:D. Only three sleeps to go!

 

A couple of questions. What nights were the formals on? Also, what night did they have Island Night?

 

Thanks so much,

 

ScotusBoy

[TorontoTL]

That's strange, I've never encountered a shower door in a Princess ship outside of a Suite. All the cabins we've seen have had shower curtains including the cabin we had on the Crown Princess.

[Yoopergirl]

Hi Joe,

 

Thanks for taking the time to write the great review. We board the CB on Sunday:D. Only three sleeps to go!

 

A couple of questions. What nights were the formals on? Also, what night did they have Island Night?

 

Thanks so much,

 

ScotusBoy

 

Don't know when Island Night is but the formal nights are Monday (at sea) and Friday. Have fun! We sail this cruise on March 22.

[Sailor Gal]

Thanks for the good review. We've sailed the Crown and will sail CB on 4/5. Looks like the terrace pool is partially covered by SkyWalkers. Is this true? It wasn't on the Crown but the photos show it may be on the CB. This is our favorite spot on the ship. Glad to hear you had a good experience at SJ port. Other posters had difficulties that had me worried. Drinks sound a little pricier than I remembered from our last Princess cruise. Hope she's not too rocky. I'm prone to motion sickness.

[Sailor Gal]

One last question. Was the Crown Grill up and running?

[noobiecruiser]

I know it's too early for me to be getting excited about our August 22nd cruise on the CB, but .. I'm getting excited!!

[maritimer2]

One last question. Was the Crown Grill up and running?

 

 

Here is an update.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=938461&highlight=crown+grill

[C&F]

Thanks for the good review. We've sailed the Crown and will sail CB on 4/5. Looks like the terrace pool is partially covered by SkyWalkers. Is this true? It wasn't on the Crown but the photos show it may be on the CB. This is our favorite spot on the ship. Glad to hear you had a good experience at SJ port. Other posters had difficulties that had me worried. Drinks sound a little pricier than I remembered from our last Princess cruise. Hope she's not too rocky. I'm prone to motion sickness.

 

This is an area that I like better on the CB than on the Crown. Skywalkers does cover the Terrace Pool, but you have shade and sun in different spots, at different times. Also, there is much more deck space on the CB because there is no Sabatini's and Adagio on those spots on the CB. Also, the spot where Skywalkers is on the Crown is utelized as deck space and there is even another bar up there (Morgan's) and a few smaller pools. I really like this area on the CB. Of course, I loved the Crown too!!

[MrSchwump]

I've been around boats since I was a kid and the CB was definately moving around. It was noticable to all 4 of us as well as other passengers. You weren't banging off the walls in the hallway, but you'd take a sidestep or two sometimes! Most of the time when I looked at the TV channel that gave you the ship's info, it said seas were slight with 1.5'-4' seas.

 

We docked in Grenada. I have no idea why is says you tender.

 

Formal nights were Mon. and Fri. I think Island night was Thursday, but it's all kind of a blur. I was surprised that there was no Mardi Gras celebration as that occured the week we were on board.

 

The Terrace Pool is definately covered by Skywalkers.

 

The Crown Grill was not open. I think they were doing the Sterling Steakhouse thing in one of the buffets but we didn't do any of the specialty restaurants.

 

I'll be posting comments on each port we visited in the Port of Call section in the next couple of days.

[Croptop]

I know it's too early for me to be getting excited about our August 22nd cruise on the CB, but .. I'm getting excited!!

 

It's never too easy to get excited. We're not sailing until 24 Jan 2010 and *I'm* getting excited.

[Sailor Gal]

Thanks to all who answered my questions!

[smilz]

Thanks for the info Joe! I'll watch for your port reviews. It's been fustrating trying to get people to respond about excursions.:)

 

 

18 cruises and counting!

[Sandytoes]

That's strange, I've never encountered a shower door in a Princess ship outside of a Suite. All the cabins we've seen have had shower curtains including the cabin we had on the Crown Princess.

 

 

Princess uses curtain.

 

Crown Princess

 

 

 

 

RC has shower doors.