A few of my thoughts on Princess/Thomson

Well I'm back and Mrs Kalos and I now have a larger ship and a more new-ish

ship to compare my times on the Thomson ships I have been on .

I can see why people like WeeCountyman and Cruising Linda book Princess

Cruises now and again and will I book again yes ..given the chance and a cruise

that suits our needs comes along .

Stood at the side of the Crown she looks massive and I thought we would never

find our way around it . The times I have took wrong turns trying to get from A to B

on the Thomson ships, how would we cope navigating our way around this ship ?

No need to worry it was easy really, everything is well sign posted and really most

of the things you needed like bars and shops, theatre were on deck 7 and from the

atrium on that deck you could look down on decks five six and see other shops

eateries below. Pop up to deck 15 and to me it felt like a very large Thomson Majesty

with loads more space . On this deck the Horizon/Caribe self serve gave us food that

was very good and beat Thomson food easily and a better choice . We only used the

Anytime dining once as the food and service was that good plenty of space and even

when busy it never felt crowded. One of the main differences we noted was when the

waiters were not busy clearing plates or cleaning tables , they would offer to get you

another tea/coffee/ iced water (Free) or bring you a drink you had to pay for from the

bar. I would like to see the Thomson staff offer to top up our drinks like tea or water in

their ships self serves as well, not just offer to get you the pay for drinks .

Another thing they did was in the public loos they had signs that requested you wash your

hands for 20seconds and also use a paper towel to open the door once you leave with a waste

paper bin to dispose of it on your exit,another idea I thought Thomson could do easily to avoid

those nasty onboard viruses :cool:.

The Inside cabin we had was a suprise as we thought we were doing well on the Thomson Spirit

but the room we had was impressive no struggling with cases with the walk in wardrobe , was told

most of their ships have this layout and that the P&O Ventura was the same as well.

So anyone reading this from Thomson ... "Can we have one please" ..if your going for a new-ish ship.

The ships theatre is big but to me very cramped but gave good views of the stage .

Showtime ! Oh dear ..Sorry Princess but to me ,this is where Thomson (any ship) blows you out of the

water . The first night out, come the Princess show team dancing and singing to a live backing band .

Mrs Kalos and I were getting a little impresssed and two songs later they were off and then it was the

guest artist a magician dancing inside a balloon ...followed by "Thanks a lot see you all tomorrow !!

End of show . Would they send their show team out doing spots in other bars like the Thomson teams do ?

Nah ...They must be tired as they had done two songs .The next night they did a lot better but the costumes

they chose to finish were a tad overboard ( i'm used to Thomson with boa's feathers ..can-can gear)

They are doing a show called Destination Anywhere...the London part of that show was awsome .

but they then (maybe its an American thing ) go really over the top for the finale, out they come all singin

and a dancing and then ...out come three girls in dresses that were built around a giaint baby walker frames

to support the costume .If ever anyone does Gypsy Wedding the musical ,it would look like this:rolleyes:. As for the

head-gear, one had a fully lit fairground on her head , the other with London buses running through Big ben

and the last with animated scenes of Africa... Did I say I prefer Thomson Show teams ?

Hey... all you Thomson Majesty fans guess who was dancing in the atrium last night ? Julian&Clarissa !

Most nights there it was a jazz band and sat having a drink there did not suit us as it was like drinking in

a shopping centre. When I think of all the groups/trios/duos that Thomson put on each night I really wish they

had a ship like this ...Last night in the Explores lounge a bar with a good stage area .Picture the scene it's

19:15 and to start the night a Guitar singer who was ok and then 20:00 prime time and its time for ...

A Quiz ! yep Beatles Trivia :(...Things that Thomson would do in the afternoon .

So if you were wondering will I give up Thomson ? Not yet ..I enjoy their product and will I use Princess again ?

I hope so but if Thomson had a ship like the Crown and upped their game with the food .Then maybe not .

Thank you for your comparison! :)

We often cruise on Princess (including Crown) but have never been on a Thomson ship so I was very interested in your thoughts.

LuLu

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That was very interesting Kalos, thank you. So that's where Julian and Clarissa went. I asked one of the Majesty entertainers but she did not know.

After 4 times on Majesty and one on Dream this February, I would like to try a different cruise company. I know DH would not be bothered about the inferior entertainment.....he fell asleep in the second row from the front in the Jubilee lounge one night! :rolleyes: So embarrassing!

Hi kalos, Glad you had a good time :) I was hoping you would like the Crown after I had recommended it ;)

We thought the entertainment was rather good when we were on. I did hear someone moaning about the length of the shows one night ,but she then proceeded to talk or sing all the way through it, so I don't know why she bothered to go! They did do 3 shows some nights, so I would say they did work quite hard. On the Eclipse last year, the show team only did 2 shows in the two weeks that we were on :eek:

Did you have a comedian? We had Mike Doyle, who we had seen before, but he was very good and did two different shows and also had a fabulous voice. I think his brother, Phil, has been on Thomson.

We thought the food was excellent, better than the Dream, but about the same as the Majesty. We used the dining room 4 times and the buffet 4 times in the evenings. We never had to wait for a table as we like to share and met some nice people. We sat with a great German couple one night in the buffet and I practised my little knowledge of German - Montag, Dienstag, Mittwoch etc and DH did How much is that doggie in the window? Now that would be really useful to know!

Anyway, I digress, I think Thomson, Fred and Princess are very similar in service, food and entertainment (Don't mind quizzes in the evening :o)

BTW, did you manage to get ashore in Guernsey? Had a peek at the Crown webcam yesterday and the sea looked calm :)

Welcome back :)

Thanks for that really interesting and informative comparison kalos which mirrors our experience of P&O and NCL too. Although a newer ship certainly offers improved facilities such features like an atrium whilst making quite an impact doesn't do it for me either - impersonal and just somewhere to walk through. As you say much like a shopping mall and lacking in intimacy imo. The biggest difference we felt was the entertainment - just no comparison in the provision at all plus the absence of warmth, ambience and friendliness (and fun) typical of Thomson.

You are so right, Thomson could really have a fab product with a newer ship and a little more finesse with the food.

We are quite happy to go back to P&O but for the right itinerary but on balance will be more likely to stick with Thomson provided they don't lose sight of their positive features and what gives them an edge. But they seriously need to start replacing their ships as the gap is widening.

So pleased you and Mrs kalos enjoyed your cruise and the Princess experience though. :)

Thank you Kalos, it's always nice to read a comparison from someone you 'know';), if you know what I mean.

I'm always tempted by these newer ships but at the moment I like the ease of going with Thomson from local airport and port, and we've always had great holidays so I'll be staying for a while yet.

I'm so happy you both enjoyed it, welcome back.

Thank you Kalos - a very good unbiased review.

We have been on Princess before but the main problem for us was the tipping issue. Every meal time people were asking 'have you taken off your tips?'

We got fed up of the whole issue which does not arise on Thomson with the tips included. Of course, we then tip the staff we want to but know everyone has been included. Princess definitely have nicer ships but we also like the friendliness of the Thomson ships.

We have noticed P&O are doing fly cruise holidays from the Med next year but there are a lot of sea days for us - will keep to Thomson for the time being as we like the different ports each day.:)

Hi

Sorry to hijack this thread but I need to ask Dronnygirl- are you from Dronfield? (like me!;))

Flopsy

why, yes of course!:p

Thanks peeps glad you found my thoughts of some interest The comedian onboard was Micky Zany who was ok and got

the crowds going with the "old comedy spot fillers" which most of them tend to use " where are you from ?

Anyone in from Dronfield !! :D

The weather and sea state was really good whilst we were away and the Captain pulled along side a nice pub ( Holland & America Hotel)

with its outside garden and a real sunny day in Rotterdam .

We had a quick tour by bus of the City some amazing building and bridges and a few houses built at crazy angles that people actually live in .

Guernsey...I tend to get up early and as we arrived walking around the decks it was obvious

I had just missed a light shower and it was just turning to daylight .For the best part of the day

it remained a little misty on the sea but once tendered onto land it was a pleasant warm day with

the sun breaking through as the day went on . It was a Sunday and being the end of season not

all the islands attractions would be open and we was going to set sail at 4pm, so a short day most

people opted for a wander around town, which we did as well.

Our plan of attack was to tender ashore around 9.30-ish allowing the Town to come alive .

Once ashore plan -part 2 was to catch the number 91 bus that goes all around the coast of the island,

the first bus being 10am,then every hour through the afternoon with a flat fare of £2 per person providing

you did not get off ,if you did then it would be another £2 to get back on ..if the bus was not full

(remembering the ships last tender was 3.30pm)

To catch the bus turn left out of the harbour and a few hundred yards you come to a little bus station where

you would catch the 91 bus.

Sorry to say when we got to the bus stop .. the queue was about 150 people waiting for the first bus and

they were only small single deck buses so we opted to walk around Town , our plan B :(

The Town was ok in parts but it looks like the recession had took its toll on the islands shops as we saw a fair number disused

and looking in a sorry state. We enjoyed our time off and onboard the ship and would gladly do it all again :).

Thanks for the Info on the P&O Kruzze , I will have to keep my options open regarding their ships as well;).

Thanks for the Info on the P&O Kruzze , I will have to keep my options open regarding their ships as well;).

If you are interested kalos and didn't see it at the time here is a link to my comparisons between P&O and Thomson - obviously one person's point of view on one ship and and on one particular sailing but it does resonate with some points you made in your report about Princess.

http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1865411&highlight=p%26o+thomson

great review kalos:cool::cool: many thanks for this...so pleased you had a great time... i think (not sure??) that crown princess is the same as ventura (which we are booked on for christmas) very reassuring to hear that everything is centrally located around the atrium I am assuming ventura will have the same layout

Thanks for the Info on the P&O Kruzze , I will have to keep my options open regarding their ships as well;).

If you are interested kalos and didn't see it at the time here is a link to my comparisons between P&O and Thomson - obviously one person's point of view on one ship and and on one particular sailing but it does resonate with some points you made in your report about Princess.

http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1865411&highlight=p%26o+thomson

Thanks for that Kruzze ,I enjoyed reading it last time but I can relate to it more now that I have been on the same kind of ship as you

and enjoyed reading it even more this time round ..thanks m'dear :D

great review kalos:cool::cool: many thanks for this...so pleased you had a great time... i think (not sure??) that crown princess is the same as ventura (which we are booked on for christmas) very reassuring to hear that everything is centrally located around the atrium I am assuming ventura will have the same layout

I think your right, they are the same (Was told onboard that the Crown /Emerald and Ruby are all the same also the P&O ventura.

I have just been looking on You Tube at the Ventura Cabins and they do look the same layout to me . Me thinks your in for a very good Christmas onboard that ship :cool: I look forward to reading what you make of it :)

Hi I just knocked a few bits of film together from last week

and I thought a few of you may want to have a peek at it :)

So click here ... Crown Princess Film

Thanks ;)