Crown Princess

We absolutely loved our first cruise on Princess. We did a 10 day Southern Caribbean on the Royal Princess. It was so delightful in so many ways. We loved the piazza, International Cafe, Alfredo's, Movies Under the Stars, Pool deck layout, Buffet area, crew friendless, ship layout and so much more.

We are considering a 8 day on Crown Princess for this Thanksgiving.

I am wondering if we will be disappointed with the ship/experience after being on the Royal Princess.

Anyone that has done both ships or/and Regal have any comment/comparison?

We absolutely loved our first cruise on Princess. We did a 10 day Southern Caribbean on the Royal Princess. It was so delightful in so many ways. We loved the piazza, International Cafe, Alfredo's, Movies Under the Stars, Pool deck layout, Buffet area, crew friendless, ship layout and so much more.

We are considering a 8 day on Crown Princess for this Thanksgiving.

I am wondering if we will be disappointed with the ship/experience after being on the Royal Princess.

Anyone that has done both ships or/and Regal have any comment/comparison?

I have been on both each more than once. They are different ships with different deck plans. We were on the Crown for 33 days this past Feb/Mar and found everything was just fine. You know what the Royal looks like here is some information regarding the Crown

Has 500 less passengers

Has a 360 degree promenade

Does not have Alfredo's

Has the International Cafe and MUTS

Does not have interactive in cabin TV

Has as smaller Piazza, but it isn't required for large activities like it is on the Royal. The Crown has other lounges mentioned below.

The Wheelhouse Bar is large, includes the Gastropub, has a dance floor and most evenings live music

Explorer's lounge with a stage area, dance floor, tables and chairs. The ship uses this lounge for multiple daytime and evening activities and shows,

Club Fusion with large dance floor, used though out the day and evening

Skywalker's Nightclub with wonderful vistas during the day. No Club 6.

5 pools 2 of which are adults only, the Terrace Pool and the Lotus Spa pool

A nice Crooner's Lounge

Vines

The Crown's buffet is not as extensive as the one on the Royal.

I think you will enjoy the Crown, I prefer it to the Royal.

You will get mixed responses on Crown Princess.

Some, mostly less experienced, cruisers think its fine. Some experienced cruisers think its OK.

Others such as myself who have been on almost every Princess ship afloat for the last 24 years have decided not to ever sail on her again.

One incontrovertible fact is that Crown has a horrible and official history of passengers with gastro-intestinal problems.

Now we have never suffered from that on a ship but on our one and only cruise on Crown this year something went wrong or was not good most days and no one in the crew would take ownership of the problem and fix it.

Nobody cared.

This is unusual on Princess and for that reason we will not sail on Crown again.

I think if nothing goes wrong then you would be OK. particularly if the Executive Chef has changed and most of the crew have been rotated off.

Since our less than totally enjoyable cruise on Crown in April 2017 we have had a wonderful 14 days on Majestic and 16 great days on Pacific.

if anything went wrong on those ships it got fixed immediately and cheerfully.

In fact on Pacific Captain Bryant specifically asked all passengers to let officers know as they were walking around the ship if there was anything that they could do to improve the cruise experience or fix any problems.

We are sailing on the Crown in January. Although we have been on the Ruby, Emerald and Caribbean, we have never sailed the Crown. I would also be interested in remarks from anyone who has sailed on the Crown recently.

You will get good reviews and bad reviews for nearly every ship....often even on the same cruise.

Here are some more:

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/getreviews.cfm?action=ship&ShipID=347

Love Royal, would never waste my money & precious vacation time on the Crown again.

Just some additional comments. I have sailed on 15 different Princess ships going back to the mid 90's. I have seen illness many times on different ships. You would be ill advised to think that noro virus is always on board a specific ship. It is on board, when brought on board by passengers and crew. Once on board, it may take some time to run it's course. From and experienced Princess cruiser I stand by my thoughts of the Crown Princess. It is a nice ship, and you should have a wonderful time on board. I personally prefer the Grand Class ship deck plans to those of the larger Royal class ships. By the way the balconies on the Crown are larger than those on the Royal, with deck 10 balconies being more than twice as large.

Sknight already explained the differences & despite preferring the Royal-Class ships, I've enjoyed months sailing on the Crown & was never disappointed.

The aft facing Sabatini's is a great location & the adjacent Adagio Bar a quiet gem of a bar. After sailing the Royal/Regal & once again on the Crown we both commented how the Piazza was much smaller without things such Alfredo's, Gelato & Ocean Terrace.

But that's the same on other Princess ships & it's nothing that would ever prevent us from sailing on the other ships including the Crown.

Some promote the Crown as a norovirus contaminated ship which is ridiculous because it's passengers who are the source of the disease & not the ship. Just because some on CC continue to promote the myth of a sick ship doesn't make it true. In several months of sailing the Crown we've never had a norovirus outbreak. That doesn't mean outbreaks have not happened but just because some passengers have experienced it on their cruises certainly doesn't make it factual that the Crown is cursed with norovirus. Repeatedly posting myths on social media leads to the perception that such myths are true.

We absolutely loved our first cruise on Princess. We did a 10 day Southern Caribbean on the Royal Princess. It was so delightful in so many ways. We loved the piazza, International Cafe, Alfredo's, Movies Under the Stars, Pool deck layout, Buffet area, crew friendless, ship layout and so much more.

 

We are considering a 8 day on Crown Princess for this Thanksgiving.

 

I am wondering if we will be disappointed with the ship/experience after being on the Royal Princess.

 

Anyone that has done both ships or/and Regal have any comment/comparison?

I have only done the Crown. We did 8 days eastern Caribbean this last March. We loved the Crown and am confident you will too. Have fun.

We did 21 days on the Crown this past July. A 14 day Baltic & 7 day Norway. We loved it! We had no problems. Food, entertainment, staff all good in our opinion. No it is not a new ship. We saw some wear in a few areas but nothing that kept us from enjoying our cruise. It is supposed to have a dry dock sometime after the first of the year. We are elite with Princess have cruised on many of their ships. We have been on the Regal twice the newest ship and the Grand 3 times. We have enjoyed both ships each time. I have never felt that the condition of the ship was bad on any of our cruises. While I enjoy many of the new features on the Regal I miss some of the old features that the Grand class ships have. I think you will enjoy your cruise on the Crown.

Sknight already explained the differences & despite preferring the Royal-Class ships, I've enjoyed months sailing on the Crown & was never disappointed.

 

The aft facing Sabatini's is a great location & the adjacent Adagio Bar a quiet gem of a bar. After sailing the Royal/Regal & once again on the Crown we both commented how the Piazza was much smaller without things such Alfredo's, Gelato & Ocean Terrace.

 

But that's the same on other Princess ships & it's nothing that would ever prevent us from sailing on the other ships including the Crown.

 

Some promote the Crown as a norovirus contaminated ship which is ridiculous because it's passengers who are the source of the disease & not the ship. Just because some on CC continue to promote the myth of a sick ship doesn't make it true. In several months of sailing the Crown we've never had a norovirus outbreak. That doesn't mean outbreaks have not happened but just because some passengers have experienced it on their cruises certainly doesn't make it factual that the Crown is cursed with norovirus. Repeatedly posting myths on social media leads to the perception that such myths are true.

Have you not checked out the government statistics about GI on Crown P?

Or should people believe your anecdotal "evidence" about how you were on there a few times and never been aware of an outbreak has better validity than CDC?

You will get mixed responses on Crown Princess.

Some, mostly less experienced, cruisers think its fine. Some experienced cruisers think its OK.

Others such as myself who have been on almost every Princess ship afloat for the last 24 years have decided not to ever sail on her again.

One incontrovertible fact is that Crown has a horrible and official history of passengers with gastro-intestinal problems.

Now we have never suffered from that on a ship but on our one and only cruise on Crown this year something went wrong or was not good most days and no one in the crew would take ownership of the problem and fix it.

Nobody cared.

 

This is unusual on Princess and for that reason we will not sail on Crown again.

 

I think if nothing goes wrong then you would be OK. particularly if the Executive Chef has changed and most of the crew have been rotated off.

 

Since our less than totally enjoyable cruise on Crown in April 2017 we have had a wonderful 14 days on Majestic and 16 great days on Pacific.

if anything went wrong on those ships it got fixed immediately and cheerfully.

 

In fact on Pacific Captain Bryant specifically asked all passengers to let officers know as they were walking around the ship if there was anything that they could do to improve the cruise experience or fix any problems.

Sorry, I agree with everything above, and I feel management on the Crown is clearly not supportive of the staff. I have been on the ship 4 times, never again in the foreseeable future. Love love love Princess, love every other ship, but sad they will not address the many issues on this ship. I am glad others have enjoyed her [emoji4]

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I'll be on the Crown in just under a week. I've sailed on it previously, and have been on Royal and Regal as well. I happen to love the Crown. I'm in an inside cabin on Caribe Deck. I'm steps away from the Aft pool, and mid way between the dining room and buffet floors. Perfect!

I prefer the mid-ship stairs and missed them on the Royal. I also enjoy the additional lounges, fewer people and find the Crown never feels crowded. I've yet to experience any illness on any Princess cruise ship, but am very careful to wash my hands frequently, don't touch the stair railings with anything but an elbow, and keep an eye on other passengers in the buffet line. Knock wood, it's worked for me so far.

As far as service goes, I think you get what you ask for. I've never had an issue, though have been with others who have. Sometimes it's all in how you approach a situation. I never forget I'm on vacation and feel incredibly fortunate to be able to travel.

Enjoy your cruise!

Just some additional comments. I have sailed on 15 different Princess ships going back to the mid 90's. I have seen illness many times on different ships. You would be ill advised to think that noro virus is always on board a specific ship. It is on board, when brought on board by passengers and crew. Once on board, it may take some time to run it's course. From and experienced Princess cruiser I stand by my thoughts of the Crown Princess. It is a nice ship, and you should have a wonderful time on board. I personally prefer the Grand Class ship deck plans to those of the larger Royal class ships. By the way the balconies on the Crown are larger than those on the Royal, with deck 10 balconies being more than twice as large.

Thanks for your posts comparing Crown to Royal. We sailed Crown back un 2006 & loved her. I have been seeing some less than stellar reviews of Crown recently, and am thinking of sailing her in 2019 when she takes over Royal's 10 nighters. I recall her as a great ship, but that was over 10 years ago.

I had to laugh when I read the post about Crown attracting passengers with noro like it is a fact set in stone. When I see statements like that, the rest of their points fall on deaf ears.

BTW, we loved Royal, with her huge piazza and awesome buffet, even with the smaller balconies. However, I feel a bit better about considering Crown in the future.

I had to laugh when I read the post about Crown attracting passengers with noro like it is a fact set in stone. When I see statements like that, the rest of their points fall on deaf ears.

.

Actually I cannot see where anyone said the Crown P attracts passengers with Noro.

What was said is that CDC records show many outbreaks of gastrointestinal problems.

Both passengers and crew have suffered from this, but mostly passengers.

But although passengers change frequently and deep sanitizing takes place unfortunately it takes only one affected crew member working in the galley to keep it going.

Its not necessarily Noro, it may be E.coli for example or one of a myriad of other GI problems.

From my own experience on Crown recently I witnessed many hygiene breaches by both passengers and crew in the buffet, and no one cared. Its normal for some passengers to not care but usually the crew are very keen to stop an epidemic starting since its a heap of extra work for them if it does start.

Personally I don't want to sail on Crown and take any unnecessary risks of a spoilt cruise when there are so many better ships to cruise on. This fall we are cruising on Celebrity Summit on much the same itinerary as we could have done on Crown, even though Celebrity is costing way more.

I've been on the Crown twice and sailed the RP's twin, the Regal, last December. While the latter is a beautiful ship, no question, and the horn that plays the theme from The Love Boat is awesome fun, it has some definite drawbacks in comparison to the older ships. The biggest one: there is very limited pool space, completely insufficient for the number of passengers, and while I don't belong to the Children Hater Club here on CC, I have to say that on the Regal on a warm-weather cruise, the minimal pool real estate is savagely impacted by the presence of children. Yes, there is an adult pool, but only one (versus two on the Crown) and you simply can't get near it on sea days for the crowds up there.

I'm not a buffet person, so the size/decor/layout of the new ship's buffet is a matter of complete indifference to me; the one on the Crown had Princess's usual fantastic salad bar and that's all I care about. What I do care about: the proper promenade deck and I really love Adagio, the best bar at sea. I would have no hesitation in sailing her again!

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We have enjoyed both ships each time. I have never felt that the condition of the ship was bad on any of our cruises. While I enjoy many of the new features on the Regal I miss some of the old features that the Grand class ships have. I think you will enjoy your cruise on the Crown.

Agree with above!

Crown Princess is one of our very favorite ships! (y)

I have sailed the Crown twice. I love the Crown. She's a beautiful ship. I loved sailing the Regal as well. There are things I like better about each of them. I say try the Crown and see what you think. I can't imagine you having a bad cruise on her. I prefer the atrium on the Regal, sister to the Royal but like the area aft of buffet better and the pool area better on the Crown.

I've read stats which are not nearly as dire as some people want us to believe. Stats are based on how cruise lines report things which can affect the results. Apparently norovirus cannot be confirmed on the ship so it's easy to report them as something else.

Cruise ships don't get sick but people infect other passengers. Even though I'm not as experienced as some cruisers, I am experienced enough to know that I'd gladly sail on the Crown.

We saled on the Crown several years ago from Quebec to FLL - Nothing wrong with the ship - however lots of problems with the staff - Maitre de and NDR Captain were not very accommodating when trying to solve a dining problem needed because of my wifes illness - we had a b2b following with a Western Carib and although we had a no upgrade they upgraded us to a downgraded cabin and said we should be happy - My TA ha to fix this. This was several years ago and I am sure there have been staff changes made.

Here is the link to my review from our May sailing on Crown:

http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2503410

Hi,

I have cruised aboard 13 different ships in the current Princess fleet: Regal, Royal, Ruby, Emerald, Crown, Caribbean, Diamond, Sapphire, Star, Golden, Grand, Coral and Sun. I enjoyed my cruise on the Crown in 2015 and honestly didn't notice much difference between the Crown and the similar Ruby and Emerald. I'm looking forward to my cruise on the Crown that I have booked for February 2018.

Chuck

Keep in mind the Crown is scheduled for a dry dock this coming March. Many ships close to dry dock do show some wear and tear.

That being said we were on her this past February for 14 days and did not notice any problems.

I spent 4 weeks on the Royal last year and just returned 8/26 from spending 2 weeks on the Crown. Although the ships are different, I would not consider Crown to be inferior to Royal. Others have pointed out the differences between the ships, so I won't go through that. I also got a little anxious about the Crown based on reviews and other information that I read before the trip. During the 2 weeks onboard, however, I never heard a peep about any illnesses and never saw staff doing anything unsanitary. Just like on Royal, I always saw crew cleaning around the ship. Just like on Royal, we had great food and waitstaff. It's still Princess and it still offers everything that you like about cruising Princess. As others have mentioned, Crown is due for a dry dock next year. She could use a bit of a facelift. (So could I.) Crown isn't as new and 'fresh' as Royal, but everything was clean and in good condition. This past weekend I submitted my survey on the Crown to Princess and the feedback that I gave them was consistent with feedback on the Royal -- I still don't like art auctions and am really tired of all of the Effy/wrinkle/fat/feet symposiums. Those things don't change, either!

I choose cruises based on itineraries and wouldn't hesitate to go back on Crown again if it's the itinerary that I want.

Hope this helps.

I will be on the Crown for the first time a week from this coming Sunday. I am so excited.

I am not as experienced as some travelers, but I've been enough places to know that stuff can happen anywhere. Really, to me, it's kind of miraculous when things go well all the time. And while bad service is no fun, it would have to be pretty spectacular to impact my cruise. Mostly, I'm in such a "happy place" I barely notice.

The only experience I ever had with a Noro type thing was on land, no ship in sight. On my only sailing on the Royal, to date, Noro was on the rampage. Wouldn't have noticed it at all except for the Captain reminding us at least twice a day to wash our hands.

And as far as the ship being compared to the Royal, I don't get it. The Royal had good points and bad points. Loved the interactive TV, hated the lack of Promenade. Don't know about the Crown yet, but to me the real beauty of any ship is that it takes me where I want to go in comfort and a certain style.

I know that no matter what we'll have fun and make some great memories. If things are less than perfect they'll just be added to a long list of travel stories that we can entertain ourselves with in our old age. LOL.

If the price and itinerary are right then I wouldn't worry so much about which ship. It's all so subjective anyway.