A Foodie on Crown Princess - Transatlantic

[dinosaurdem]

The Ship - Attractive common areas. Well laid out. Stable in rough water. Too large for the north Atlantic ports.

The Verandah Cabin - Deck C has great verandahs. The shower is small but has very good water pressure, showerhead, and no cling curtain. Storage is terrific.There is no comfortable seating, except on the verandah. The mattresses already sag. Mine was better after it was rotated, and I rolled to the middle. The decor is plain vanilla.

Entertainment - Didn't participate. Announcements were mildly irritating.

Staff - With the exception of a supervisor at the purser's desk, pleasant, positive, friendly, and helpful.

Dining - Breakfast room service was well done. Buffet would appeal to those who go to all-you-can-eat buffets at home; however, breakfast works okay. No lines at any meals. Too few tables. The dining room was good, but unimaginative, and somewhat bland. The low point was the salads, one uninspired choice at each meal. The high point was the ability to order specials with 24 hours notice i.e. escargot, bearnaise, tiramisu, etc. Ethnic food was all forgettable, except for an Indian buffet, which was okay. Service in the designated dining room was good, but not great. For alternative dining, the specialty restaurants were better than the Chef's Table, but the Chef's Table experience was worth the money. The sushi at the wine bar was good. The tapas were poor. The International Cafe was great. The specialty coffees were very good. The pastries, sandwiches and soups were good, but not great; however it is a wonderful alternative for a continental breakfast or light lunch. The area is pleasant, sunny, inviting, and too small for all who wish to use it.

Overall, it was a good cruise, in spite of missing four stops. I think that Princess hits its target market with pretty ships, pleasant staffs, very good itineraries and prices, and food that will not challenge the palate.

[SF]

Thanks for posting and sharing your experience on the Crown. As we leave soon any and all information is so welcomed. Glad to hear you enjoyed your cruise.

[ssbeagle]

I was talking to one of the cruise staff one evening near the end of the cruise and considering the way passengers were attacking the crew verbally because of missing those 4 ports they did an admirable job and kept their cheerfulness up throughout the trip. The food in the dining room was okay but the Crown Grille had fantastic food. They weren't cooking for 3000 people there every night like in the dining room. We tried to avoid the buffet in Horizon Court and ate a few meals at the International Cafe which I thought was so-so but DH loved it. I agree with you that they need to use a smaller ship if they want to do that itinerary. Still had a great time and am looking forward to our next cruise in March 2010.

[mycruz]

We are scheduled for the Crown's British Isles, Iceland Greenland next September. I would agree with you on the ship for this itinerary, I'm mostly interested in the British Isles since we visited Iceland and Greenland last year on the smaller Sea Princess. Even though we had a smaller ship we still missed St. Johns. The good news is you did get to Iceland which I felt was a great experience!

You are probably correct about your reviews on the food, it pretty much sums up my experience to date on the other Princess ships. I will hopefully experience the Chef's Table again on future cruises, it's a nice change and also agree it's worth the extra charge.

Thanks for sharing, happy cruises to you!