Caribbean Princess review 10/8 - 15..OR…What does an ALPHA CODE mean?

My husband and I were very excited about our sailing on the CB, Oct 8. After a long delay leaving Columbia, SC on Friday due to storms, missing our connection in Atlanta and arriving in FLL at 10pm instead of 7pm, we were ready for the ship. We never realized that the problem with our flights would be the least of our worries.

This was our 9th cruise, 6 on Carnival, 1 on Costa, 1 on RCCL, but first on Princess. Because of that, we knew when to arrive at the port and with minimal stress were in our cabin by 1230pm. The cabin was smaller than our many Carnival trips, but with the balcony, was perfect for the 2 of us. The air conditioning was not quite up to our temperature, but my husband found that the grate could be removed from the ceiling allowing a better flow and cooling the room much quicker. Once our steward understood the reason for it being on the floor, he left it alone. His name was Paul and with a $20 slipped into his palm, became our best friend the rest of the week. We received extra towels and pillows, our robes, and an egg crate for the bed before we set sail from port. We also removed the fridge door from the cabinet door so it would cool better. With that done, we headed to the Café Caribe` for some lunch. Wow, what a great place to eat! We had every meal there except 2, Sterling’s one night and the DR once. (Will go into details about those 2 experiences later.) The food in the Horizon Court ranged from the ordinary to the extreme. There was never a meal that we were unable to find what we wanted. Even the sugar-free desserts were very tasteful. The French toast at breakfast was the best and my DH loved the different selections of eggs each morning, from Eggs Benedict to Eggs Florentine. But after lunch we headed to the Outrigger Bar to meet up with our CC Roll call group. Really enjoyed meeting all of them and even ended up on a return flight to Atlanta with one couple. We spent the rest of the afternoon unpacking, exploring and getting ready for the “Seafood Extravaganza” for dinner. Little did we know that would be the beginning of an interesting evening.

We got to the Café Caribe around 7pm and it was beautiful. The servers were all decked out in their tuxes, and with the tablecloths it looked just like a gorgeous restaurant, instead of the simple dining room from earlier in the day. We were both tired so we went back to our room to get ready for the first day at sea, on Sunday.

Around 8pm, DH started to complain of some tingling in his throat and some discomfort and swelling. By 845pm, he was wheezing so badly, I thought he was having an asthma attack. Since hot coffee did not help this time, I headed downstairs for Benadryl. On my arrival back in the room, I noticed he had a blue tinge to his lips and his face was becoming very swollen. Plus, he was barely able to breathe. I decided to contact the Front Desk. Unfortunately I got no answer when I called. I decided to hit the button for 911. After one misdial, I reached a nurse in the infirmary that asked if my husband could come downstairs. When I answered no, she immediately headed to the room. After assessing him, she called someone and an ALPHA CODE was issued. I later learned that meant it was “life or death”. An announcement was made across the loud speaker and our room was immediately filled with a large crowd. There were 2 doctors, 4 nurses, and assorted support personnel filling the halls. My husband was transported to the infirmary where he was administered emergency care/meds and kept for 3 hours. I as extremely impressed with the abilities of the medical staff, especially Dr. Peter Hibbard and Faye, the nurse. Even though she was off duty, Faye stayed with me the whole time in the room and made sure that I, and the couple traveling with us, was settled in the waiting area. She would not leave until she made sure I was alright. My husband had to go back to see the doctor twice during the rest of the cruise for follow-up. He was monitored closely and we were given all the medical information of his treatment, including a detailed letter, for our family physician. Even though I never thought I would need to use the medical facilities, it is nice to know the staff is highly skilled and very competent. We also found out later that the Cruise Director and the Captain came to our cabin to see if there was anything they could do to assist. Thankfully the medical staff had everything under control.

Our next day was spent relaxing in the room and taking short walks around the deck to build up DH’s strength. Since so many passengers heard the code, he soon became the “Alpha Man”, which delighted him to no end.

Once all this excitement was behind us, we were able to settle down and enjoy the rest of the cruise. We watched several movies on MUTS, enjoying ice cream and popcorn. What a fantastic idea for a ship! The special effects were so amazing for one of the movies that we felt the whole deck shake. We never needed tickets for any event and never knew if others made reservations. We just walked to the upper deck and found a couple of empty loungers. I highly recommended it for everyone. The movies during the day were also good and like others have stated, the noise did not carry from the deck area.

We dined in the Coral Dining Room one night, just walked up, had no reservations and were seated immediately. We arrived at 7pm. Unfortunately this was not one of our better experiences. The food was not as good as the buffet and the service was sorely lacking. Our waiter only had 2 tables, ours with 4 people and the one next to us with 10. But he seemed to take forever to get each course to us. It took us about 2 hours to complete our meal and had to ask for bread, drinks, or other items many times. Luckily we only had this problem once, as the service through the rest of the ship was great.

We used room service a lot, for snacks and breakfast. It was also quick and everything was exactly as we ordered. We also had the Balcony Breakfast and though it included Bagels and Lox, which is not a favorite of mine, there was enough food for 4 people, not just 2. It is well worth the $25 you spend.

Now, to the ports of call. We had been to St Thomas 10 years before and were real excited about the stop. We rented a car and ventured over to Red Hook Marina looking for a bar/restaurant that we had dined at previously. We found the exact spot, now called Molly Malone’s, and spent several hours there with some locals. It was a great time and the food was fantastic. It is now a typical Irish Pub. We then toured the island, stopping at Mountain Top for a famous Banana Daiquiri and a picture of Megan’s Bay, Drake’s Seat, Paradise Point to look at the ships, and traveling the tiny streets of Charlotte Amalie. Back to the ship for a nap and dinner.

The next day we went to St. Martin, NA. Both DH and I had been really forward to the stop since everyone talked about how beautiful the island is. There were definitely right. St Martin turned out to be our favorite port. We had also reserved a car, so headed off in the car, with a map and some great suggestions from the Budget girl, Kizzy. She gave such good information on what to see, you would have thought she was in the back seat with us. We visited Cupecoy Beach, Orient Beach, Maho Bay, Marigot and the Marketplace, did some shopping in Phillipsburg, and ate lunch in Grand Case. Grand Case is the smallest village on the island, but has the most restaurants, 52. She suggested we eat at a “lolo”. We found one called Germaine’s and settled in for a treat. All of the food is served in chafing dishes on tables located outside. The meat and some of the vegetables are cooked right there on a huge barrel grill. We had Barbecue Ribs, red beans and rice, corn on the cob, cole slaw, Johnny cakes, beer and water…enough food for 2 people…for $13.50. What a great deal! We also had the opportunity to stop in a local grocer’s shop on the French side. Everything was really cool. All the packaging was in French, with lots of breads, fruit, cheeses and desserts lining the shelves. I bought some recipe cards for my boss, she speaks French. Then we went to a local French bakery, bought Chocolate Croissants and headed back to the port. DH settled down for a beer and I checked out some shopping. We were both tired and, so time for getting back on the ship.

Our last port was Princess Cay and I couldn’t get over how crowded it was. It felt more overwhelmed with people than the ship. The temp and humidity were really high so after a short visit, I headed back to the ship, while DH settled down for some swimming with some friends. After several hours, it was everyone back onboard and we cast off for home.

After arriving back home, we discussed our trip. While we both agreed that the ship is amazing and the food was fantastic, we think the ship was just too big. There were a few things we didn’t care for, but overall would recommend the ship to others. Out of a 1 – 10, we gave it an 8+. But for ourselves, we think we might try a smaller Princess ship next time, just to have something to compare.

If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask. I have included a link to my pics if anyone would like to see as we took a lot of shots of St Thomas and St Martin.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/dbmiller1956/my_photos (name of album is CARIBBEAN PRINCESS 10/08/05)

Deena - I am so glad that your husband is OK. Did they figure out what the problem was? Glad to hear that the medical staff on the ship responded quickly and was able to take care of the situation. I am sure you were very scared.

Thanks for the review! Glad you had a nice cruise.

The symptoms described sounds like anaphylactic shock, commonly an indicator of a food allergy - such as nuts or shellfish or often a side effect if allergic to bee/wasp type stings.

When you get to see your doctor at home, he/she will be able to do tollerance testing to see what sparked it off and then its likely your husband will be issued with an 'EpiPen' which he can use to reverse the symptoms should it happens again. The EpiPen is a self injection adrenaline device that you just stick into your skin and it delivers a set amount to get the body back to normal. He will also be issued with a pendant or similar to wear alerting others that he is allergic to whatever it was so that if he has an attack when out on his own, people will know what to do etc.

Hope all goes well and pleased the episode didn't spoil your holiday too much.

Great Review Deena!

This has GOT to be one of the best examples of how a good attitude and desire to have a fabulous cruise can go a long way. If your initial medical experience had ruined your cruise I know I sure would have understood.

Good for you!

Deena,.

So happy to hear your Husband is fine! Whew, what an experience.:eek:

Thank you for your wonderful review!:)

We were on the Caribbean Princess 3 weeks ago, and I had to make a trip to the infirmary. I, too, had Faye and she was absolutely wonderful. My experience was nothing compared to what you husband went through (which, btw, sounds like anaphylactic reaction, I'm guessing to some sort of shellfish since you were at the seafood extravaganza?). I hope your husband follows up with his family doctor now that he is home, and he is given an Epi-Pen syringe to carry with him in the event this were to happen again.

Deena,

Thanks for the great review and pictures. We were on the CB twice this year and the pictures really took me back. Looking at the pictures of St. Martin I felt like I was with Joyce Prince all over again. So glad your husband is OK.

Great review!! Did have to use the medical facilities on the Grand princess once, my son twisted his neck on the playground on princess cays. Princess still has one of the best medical facilities afloat.Going on Caribbean princess in six weeks ,was wondering if there was much motion on the ship?

Thanks for the kind words about my husband. Yes, they believe it was the Seafood Extravaganza and he has been to the doctor. They gave him an Epi-pen and are sending him to an allergist for tests. At this time we are not sure if it was the seafood or just the shellfish.

Glad everyone liked the reviews. We definitely did not let this ruin our cruise and have always found a way to have fun wherever we go. Glad you enjoy the pics too!

To answer your question, steve777. We were surprised with the motion on the ship. At times you have the normal sway back and forth, but there were a few occasions where you had a quick shake, like a jittering. Our cabin was on Baja but we felt the motion from the top to the bottom. Out of all our cruises, this one had the most motion of all our ships. But, again, not enough that it was going to cause me any problems!!

If anyone has any other questions, please ask.

Deena,

We were on the same sailing, and we are happy to hear that the Code Alpha was resolved happily. We've been on over 30 cruises and had never heard one called before, but we knew what it meant. :)

Deena,

Terrific review. I enjoyed reading about your port tours especially.

Jeff

Great review and glad to hear your husband is okay. Years ago on my parents first cruise, my mom got sick and spent 4 days in the infirmary. To this day, they still say it was their best cruise. Hats off to a fine medical staff!

Great review. Glad you had a terrific cruise in spite of the Alpha Code. Do try a smaller Princess ship... you'll find many of the same things you liked about the CB but without the crowds.

Great review. Glad you had a terrific cruise in spite of the Alpha Code. Do try a smaller Princess ship... you'll find many of the same things you liked about the CB but without the crowds.

What other Princess ship did you like? We are real interested in other's feelings about the ships.

Deena,

Makes me feel like I was there with you....

Oh yeah, I WAS:)

Most interesting to me is the varied opinions everyone has of this (or any) cruise...we simply LOVE the BIGGER ships, as a matter of fact "the bigger the better" is our motto. Can't wait to do the RCCL Freedom as an example! We love the increased activities and entertainment options.

Glad to hear Alpha is still dpoing well!

Ted

I generally like the larger ships, Ted. Not sure what it was about this particular ship. Though, Russ did really enjoy MUTS!