Hi John! Welcome back - where did you go on the Princess Cruise?
HOW WAS PRINCESS, WE HAVE DONE CELEBRITY A FEW TIMES. THIS WINTER WE DO 14 DAY PRINCESS CRUISE OUT OF SAN JUAN. 11 DIFFERENT ISLANDS
THAT MEANS 11 DIFFERENT RUMS
Thank you Terri,
We did the same Emerald Princess cruise as last year, but in the opposite direction and (mostly) different ports. Their private island, St. Thomas, St. Kitts, Barbados, Dominica, and Antigua. There were only 149 kids on this cruise. The couple we met last year went again, this time with their parents, so we did a lot of things together. I will try to do a little write-up when I get caught up.
Hi Ian,
I'm sure you know, but the sand at these southern ports is like powder. As far as Princess goes, we have only sailed twice, both on the Emerald. We feel the food is slightly better than on
DCL. I highly recommend opting for the anytime dining. We love it. Even with our friends onboard we were generally able to all meet at whatever time for a table of 6. Once they even sat us at the same table, where the waitress remembered our drinks from a couple days before. If it's just you and Laura then you can choose to sit at a table for two (when pressed for time) or join a larger table.
They had a new Cruise Director, and we felt some of their events might have downgraded a little. But I got the impression this was only his first or second cruise with them, so that should improve. You will find yourself just a busy as on DCL, often being forced to choose between two shows/events (which is why anytime dining helps). They have had a cruise-long contest on both our cruises. The first was a scavenger hunt and this time it was to build a beer bardge ... well, really a boat/float which could hold 6 cans of Coke out of "scrap" stuff on the ship. Last year we got a bottle of Champaign, Princess hats, Princess bags, and medals. This year it looked like it was just medals and pens. Oh, and the Karoake contest had good contestants, at least by the time they got to the finals. During Movies Under the Stars (outdoor screen), they have popcorn and blankets available, and one girl brings around cookies followed by another with milk ... kinda cute. For the first half of the cruise we had a comedian who traded off with a hyptonist for the second half to keep things fresh.
Their productions are a notch below DCL, but can still be entertaining. Also their Audio/Visual is below par. One movie had an annoying reflection off of something throughout the movie. And during a Beetle Maniacs production show they were playing a slide show behind the performers of the Beetles. About a dozen times during the show, the screen would show the "No AV input detected" screen. This would never be allowed on DCL. If you bring grandchildren, thier kids area is probably nowhere close to DCL, and of course no character greetings. And no Wave Phones, so we had to leave messages the old fashioned way ... cabin voice mail. Oh, and if you ever wanted to purchase fine art, they sure make it sound like that is the place to do it. Stop by the first art show for free champaign, but get there early if you want a seat. In fact that was true for anything held in that bar (Evolutions).
They have champaign with the Captian on the first formal night, including a champaign fountain. There were two formal nights on our 10 day cruise (jacket, but tie optional). I don't know if Celebrity does the midnight chocolate dessert spread (whatever it's called), but Princess does not. They have two upgrade options for dinner. One for Itialian ($20 pp) and one for steak ($25). Last year we did the Itialian and were full by the time we got to the main course, although I heard they trimmed it down some since then. This year we did the steak place. Lara says she really enjoyed her filet. What I remember most, was the quiet relaxing dinner with our friends. We were able to get in without reservations when we walked up. By the way, their main dining rooms are identical, unlike DCL. I thought their buffet was better this year, but maybe I just did a better job hunting. They have 4 buffets (old style, not speciality islands) where one side is a mirror of the other. But the forward buffet will have different offerings than the aft. Oh, and after being at
Castaway Cay, you will be somewhat disappointed with Princess Cay. You must tender back and forth (not terribly bad after the initial crowd), but the underwater part of the beach is quite rocky. I should have brought water shoes, because some are rather sharp.
Last year they had Happy Hour every day from something like 7 to 9PM with selected drinks for $2.99. This year it was more like from 4 to 7PM for $3.99. We rarely got one, being busy with shows or whatever. Like DCL (and Celebrity, I belive) you are allowed to bring on your own wine, and I have never heard of any liquor being confiscated. By the way, no free Coke ... only coffee, tea, and lemonade. Also, you might be interested in buying a coffee card. 12 or 15 Starbucks-like coffees for some price (around $30?) and complimentary regular coffee with a gourmet one.
While I was quite critical of the cruise, we are still very pleased, especially for the price. Enough so that we put down money on another cruise to be determined within the next 4 years. Since you have mentioned Celebrity, I have been thinking about trying them sometime. How would you compare Celebrity to DCL?
HI EVERYBODY! 
