CB review good and bad...our experience

[portlandpete]

We were on the Repo cruise on the CB and I wanted to give a review as soon as I could. I use all the information I find on the boards so any questions please just ask. This is how we experienced the cruise and we really enjoyed it! With a few exceptions.

Cab from airport to ship 19 plus 1 per bag. Had the driver stop at a store for us so we could pick up soda/beer so gave him an extra 5 for that plus usual tip.

Embarkation: Very smooth, line went quickly. Carried on beer and soda and didn't hide it and didn't get questioned. It wasn't even in our carry on but in the bag from the store. We like to keep some in the room for relaxing on the balcony but buy most of our drinks in the bars.

Cabin: R727 balcony. Loved the cabin because it was close to the Outrigger so we can just run up to get more soda for me. I always get the soda card and is well worth it if you drink a lot of soda. The steward was great and filled our ice up everyday and kept the room spotless. Made up a towel animal the first night and we kept it all week. Always had a smile and was fun to talk to. Told him I liked the lotion and he gave me extra every day without me even asking!

Food: Sorry to say for breakfast AWFUL! We went to the buffet the first morning and the eggs are not real, the bacon/sausage pretty bad, hash browns cold. The coffee was so bad my husband couldn't drink it. He bought coffee everyday at the international cafe. For breakfast the rest of the week we had cereal and fruit on our balcony. We aren't big on breakfast so it didn't really matter to us though. Even though we don't normally care for buffet food we pretty much always ate there. We had salad on many of the days, the Mexican food was really good, Bavarian night was tasty, we loved the German potato salad, there was always either turkey or ham so it was not hard at all hard to find good food to eat. Didn't miss the dining room at all. I know for some people food is a big thing on their cruise but our attitude is for a whole week we don't have to cook it or clean up so we happy! We are not picky about food though.

Anytime dining: We went once and were told it would be a 25 minute wait...after 40 minutes we went back and we knew he forgot about us. When we first arrived I saw a table for 4 and asked if we could sit there (we sat there the last time we were on the ship and it was just the 2 of us) and he said he couldn't sit 2 people there because it was for 4??? It was confusing because there were quite a few empty tables so not sure why that rule is in place. So we waited 40 minutes and then ate and the tables still stayed empty. We had pork and it was dry and the meal was tasteless. Also the waiter was not friendly, he wasn't rude but you got the feeling that he didn't want to be there. So for us it made sense not to get worked up about it because we really didn't care. We just chose to eat at different places and were happy with our decision. We don't like to be on any schedule when on vacation anyway.

Trident Grill and Pizzeria: We loved the pizza and hamburgers! You can have different types of pizza, french fries, hamburgers or sausage. Also the icecream is in between the 2 pools and we saw lots of people with cones.

Sabatini's: Excellent! Loved trying all the different food. Everything tasted great! We had reservations for 6:30 and left at 8:30. Everything was timed perfectly. Waiter very friendly and just enjoyed the evening.

Pub Lunch: Had it in the Crown Grill and we loved it! Husband had fish and chips and I had cottage pie. We would have gone back on another sea day but there are so many different options we never made it back.

International Cafe: Coffee was good and lots of desserts that are free. Quiche was excellent.

Room service: Had it almost everyday and also for late night snacking. The chefs salad is the best! We had the same room service waiter almost every time and he was great! It was nice getting to know him and we talked about our day and he told us about his family. On the last morning there was a knock on our door and it was him! Even though you don't get room serve on the last day he brought it to us without even asking. That is what I call service!

Piazza: We LOVED this area! We listened to the piano, steel drums, guitarist, saw the hola hoop girl (the captain actually tried it too!) and the acrobats. We also enjoy watching the demonstrations. This area was so relaxing it ended up being one of our favorite places to be.

Entertainment: Comedy, hypnotist, Bert, productions shows, ship bands....all were really good. You would never be bored on this ship! Was is all top notch? Well I wouldn't say that but we still enjoyed it all. We go knowing it will be entertaining but not on Las Vegas level. We watched a movie on Mutts and it was fun. Won 1200.00 in the casino! We are not smokers and wish there were more nights of no smoking. Plus it was smaller than it had been so we wished that hadn't changed. Husband wanted to play poker but there was not poker. But we are not complaining because of what we won on video poker! Saw the newlywed game and just went from once place to another on all the nights. Loved the Island Party and Skywalkers lounge because we did a lot of dancing.

Crew: Honestly except for the Coral dining room every member of the crew was exceptional! Everyone smiling, in the buffet we always got asked if we wanted a drink, they took our dirty plates right away, the waitresses and bartenders were friendly, everywhere we went that was our experience. The captain was everywhere and always talking to everyone so maybe that is why the crew is so great.

Pool: Very frustrating to see chair after chair with no one sitting in them. We saw the towel and sometimes a book and just kept walking. There are so many places to be around the pool we just kept going and always found a place on the upper level. We decided that we could let that get to us or just enjoy a sunny day at the pool and so that is how we handled the chair hogs! The pool games were fun to watch but we mostly read and just enjoy being outside after a long winter!

Public bathrooms: DISGUSTING! Most of the time one or more of the womens bathrooms in each area would be closed for maintenance. I didn't think they were very clean either. This really bothered me. My husband said none of the mens bathrooms were closed when he used them. Maybe it was just my timing but I hope they do something about it.

There were a few things I think could be improved but we had a wonderful time! We love this ship and the crew and will be booking again! In fact we paid for the future cruise credit!!

We took a car service from the boat to the airport because someone here on CC suggested it was better and he was right! Perfect way to end the cruise. It was 55 plus tip so it was less than the transfers.

[NJRonbo]

Great review. Agree with you on many counts from the disgusting

bathrooms to the horrible breakfast in the Horizon Court.

 

However, you have proved that despite pointing out the negative

things about the cruise, you can still have a great cruising experience.

 

Miss the ship already.

[jfv379]

That's a great attitude to have. I always say, "Don't waste time worrying about things you have absolutely no control over". Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

[RickEk]

Thanks for the review!

[Clutterlady]

Thank you for your review! Going on the CB for the 2nd time.....love that ship:)

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the review.

 

Thats one reason I eat breakfast in the dining room.

[portlandpete]

Thanks for the review.

 

Thats one reason I eat breakfast in the dining room.

 

 

You were the one that told us about the car service and you were so right! We loved knowing what we were going to pay and we very quickly got to the airport. In fact we had a 3 hour wait! No problem though because we got to just relax and finishing reading the books we had hadn't finished.

 

Thanks for your help!

[Coolmama_1]

Thanks for the review! Sounds like overall you had a great time!

[portlandpete]

Great review. Agree with you on many counts from the disgusting

bathrooms to the horrible breakfast in the Horizon Court.

 

However, you have proved that despite pointing out the negative

things about the cruise, you can still have a great cruising experience.

 

Miss the ship already.

 

 

We had such a wonderful time and really think you can find something to do any time on this ship. If we were home would we ever go to a show that showed a hoola hoop girl? or a piano player? or acrobats? No we probably wouldn't bother but it's fun to do things you wouldn't normally do so that makes it fun... at least for us.

[Colo Cruiser]

You were the one that told us about the car service and you were so right! We loved knowing what we were going to pay and we very quickly got to the airport. In fact we had a 3 hour wait! No problem though because we got to just relax and finishing reading the books we had hadn't finished.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

 

You are quite welcome, glad it was a great cruise!!

[rdsqrl]

Thanks for reviewing your cruise. Sounds like you had a great time and really took in lots around the ship.

I can't say I've ever breakfasted in the HC (usually just order in yogurt & grapefruit from room service), but the comments about the scrambled "eggs" on this board echo your experience, sadly. Next cruise, do try the dining room breakfast -- it's usually good (when I can get my act together to get down there in time!), and the scrambled eggs I've had there are actually tasty.

As far as the public bathrooms, wow, that's a bummer. My experience on other ships has always been the opposite -- usually they're sparkling clean. I'm very sorry this was a problem on your cruise. It can be a long walk back to one's own cabin when the need arises. Please don't think that's the Princess norm, because it really isn't.

Anyway, glad you enjoyed your first time and now you get to start obsessing about what cruise to use your FCC on!

[NeurosurgeryNP]

THanks for the review!

[quincytoo]

Great review :)

 

Chair hogs always bother me....I soo want to take over the chair but am afraid of being confronted....I do let other people know if the chairs around me have sat empty for hours.:rolleyes:

 

We also like the dining room breakfast over the HC breakfast. I loved the Mexican theme they had one day for lunch in Caribe Cafe YUM

 

Cool on winning at the casino :) I won $80 one night and thought it was a big deal....:D

 

Horrid about the bathrooms, they were really clean on our repo cruise down to San Juan last Nov....The ship had been on high alert for Norwalk the cruise before so many they were taking extra precautions?? The NCL bathrooms were disgusting....yuck.

[Caribbean Sunsets]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. I've not been on the CB yet but noticed you said the Pub Lunch was in the Crown Grill and not the Wheelhouse like on the Ruby.

[mii]

Food is always very subjective. In fact I just got off of the Golden and we always have breakfast in the horizon ct. and have always enjoyed that meal there. There is plenty of things to choose from. Isn't it nice that we have choices on a ship on to where we have meals.

 

Marilyn

[noobiecruiser]

Thanks for the great review. I'm looking forward to sailing on the CB at the end of August!

[rfische1]

Hi Pete. Greetings from....um Portland. Thanks for the nice review.

 

We will be on this ship in December. Did you embark from San Juan? If so, where did you stay and eat down there?

 

I was dissapointed and troubled by the conditions of the public bathrooms. We found the bathrooms on our past cruises to be very clean. Do you think this is due to staff reductions on the ship?

[Rockymountainsparky]

Great review. The buffet is the reason we breakfast in the dining room.

[flipflops84]

Thanks for the review! We are booked for August and love reading honest and fair reviews like yours! :)

 

And also a question- is the "pub lunch" something that is offered in the Crown Grille every day for lunch? Im assuming you pay extra? I've never read about this- it sounds yummy!

[RickEk]

Thanks for the review! We are booked for August and love reading honest and fair reviews like yours! :)

 

And also a question- is the "pub lunch" something that is offered in the Crown Grille every day for lunch? Im assuming you pay extra? I've never read about this- it sounds yummy!

 

The Pub Lunch is only offered on sea days. And, interestingly enough... it's FREE!

[trevor182]

We've just got home from the same cruise. I was a bit nervous since our previous experience with Princess wasn't great and we have sailed RC and Celebrity since. I have to say I was very impressed. Princess wins hands-down over RC in most departments and when you add everything up are more or less equal to Celebrity, except in a few areas.

 

I thought we would hate anytime dining, but it worked out great. I think we had a wait one night. We didn't make it a requirement to have a table for two and that made it much easier. I loved the relaxed service and didn't miss the snooty looks we sometimes get on Celebrity since we don't always precisely follow the dress code. In fact, it was nice to pack what we wanted, not what the fashion police dictated. Princess still has standards. We saw people being turned away, but their standards are much easier to live with.

 

The two places Princess falls behind the others are room service and alternate restaurants. We tried Sabattini and weren't too impressed with the service. Room service is almost a joke unless you are happy with coffee, tea, and muffins for breakfast. Princess scores a lot of points with the ultimate balcony dinner. That is just fantastic and can't be matched by any competitor.

 

The balcony cabins are small by comparison and the bathrooms are tiny. Next time we'll try a minisuite. Those look to be a lot nicer.

 

I did not notice this ship moving any more than any other big ship. It was a little rockier than the M-class ships but about the same as ships of comparable size that we have been on.

 

The staff was great. It was obvious that many were leaving the ship in New York and there were a few crewmembers who were just burned out. Given some of the abuse we saw, it is understandable. I think some cruise passengers need to remember that these people are human beings, not machines. A little respect goes a long way.

 

We had a great time and I was amazed by the number of great itineraries Princess offers. I am glad that I gave Princess a second chance.

[portlandpete]

Hi Pete. Greetings from....um Portland. Thanks for the nice review.

 

We will be on this ship in December. Did you embark from San Juan? If so, where did you stay and eat down there?

 

I was dissapointed and troubled by the conditions of the public bathrooms. We found the bathrooms on our past cruises to be very clean. Do you think this is due to staff reductions on the ship?

 

Portland Maine!!! We embarked from San Juan and docked in New York. Since we were sailing at 11 pm we flew down the same day because our flight was getting in at 12:10. We figured plenty of time to get to the dock and we had been to San Juan before. NEVER again! The one luggage that had all my stuff didn't make it with us! All my husbands things were in our carry on's and I only had my bathing suit and cover up. We got the luggage late on the 2nd day after having to take a taxi into St Thomas to find me clothes and then another taxi over to the K-Mart for other stuff. Princess was great and gave us a toiletry bag and did my laundry free. My laundry was just the clothes on my back! If my clothes didn't make it by Monday nite which was formal nite they would have let me have formal wear from the ship. However, the luggage made it before dinner on Monday night so I was all set. It was a lesson learned on our part and we will never arrive on the same day again! No matter how much time we think we have.

 

Not sure why the bathrooms were so bad. But I would assume they didn't have enough staff to clean them. When I went into bathrooms and they were in bad condition I found a crew member and told them. I also left a comment on the condition of the bathrooms on the survey they ask you to fill out on the last day and hopefully other people did too so it can be addressed.

[rfische1]

Yep, the real Portland near the exit formerly known as 8.

 

We've always gone down the day before. Weather can always be fickle, especially during the winter. Your luggage story reminds me of our first cruise. Because of TSA stuff, our some of our luggage did not arrive to the hotel until after dinner. If that was our cruise day, we would have been out of luck. I also will book non-stop whenever possible. Have non-stop tickets from Logan to SJU in December.

 

I've been hearing that all cruise lines have been cutting staff to save money. I wonder if the bathroom conditions are symptomatic of this across all lines.

[Linda74]

I was on the same cruise and must say the few times we used the public bathrooms, found them clean. So it must be hit or miss. We found the ship to be very clean and enjoyed the cruise. The food was ok, notihing to rave about but you will not go hungry......and for the price paid we certainly could not complain. Steaks in the dining room were tough and some seafood a little "fishy" tasting. When they did serve the lobster and shrimp dinner, they removed the meat from the shells which was a nice touch and the lobster tail was not as tiny as I had expected. I agree about all of the nickel and diming. Maybe it was just me, but I did not see a lot of people purchasing drinks etc. On the last day I walked to the spa and was offered 5 treatments for $69 (usually three for $80). I did not have the time for all of that but it is something to remember if you are a spa lover.

The best thing about the CB is definitely the crew. Our room steward, Melanie, worked so hard to have everythng perfect for us all the time. Everyone smiled and acknowledged us.

Also enjoyed the antics of Sam and Dan the cruise director and deputy director and the little shows they produced every morning.....which involved them flirting with each other....Shows were fabulous.....

[cruzgal11]

Portlandpete- I am on the same cruise in June and in the same cabin R727. Did you experience any noise??

 

Thanks!