Help with Caribbean Princess decision

Hi CC family, just joined...not sure if I’m posting in the right place.

Last July my husband and I booked a Caribbean cruise with Princess, Caribbean Princess departing FFL May 1st 2018. During the cruise we will be celebrating our 50th Wedding Anniversary and my husbands 70th B-day. First Princess cancelled Barbados (our favourite) because of engine problem, then the itinerary was changed again due to hurricane port damage, next they said the Ocean Medallion wasn’t going to happen. Meanwhile, we are reading these terrible reviews on the condition of the ship, food and really small shower. Final payment is due in 3 weeks. Thinking of cancelling but have no back-up plan. Can anyone give me a recent review of Caribbean Princess or advice. Or, should we just keep the reservation and not expect too much. Help!

The showers are the same size on all the Grand Class ships so there's no way to avoid that other than upgrading to the bathtub in the mini-suites or the shower in the full suites. Yes, the showers are small but somehow, thousands of people cope with them every day. If you're larger than maybe 300 lbs., you might have a problem. You can always use the showers in the gym too. They're much more capacious.

The recent reviews that I've seen have been very complimentary of the newly renovated Caribbean Princess, especially regarding the new dining options. Take ALL reviews, good and bad, with a grain of salt. You can find negativity everywhere if you look for it.

Is the Ocean Medallion program that important to you? If it is, then cancel. Otherwise, I think you'll never notice you don't have it. It will be like a normal cruise with a cruise card. Frankly, I think it'd be a lot easier because you don't have to learn the new technology. Just cruise as usual. ;)

We are on the March 18 sailing. If one called and complained about the Medallion being cancelled on the cruise Princess gave everybody $50 per person OBC as a consolation. You may well be able to receive the OBC if you ask. You will almost certainly have to mention it though as it was automagic for some but not for others.

The first port on our 14 day Circle Caribbean was canceled due to the propulsion issue but Princess also gave $50 per person OBC to make up for that. Personally, my wife and I were happy to get another sea day but the $50 each OBC was automagically applied for that issue and I didn't try to give it back.

Thank you! Your advice is appreciated. Not too concerned about the Ocean Medallion. Was only worried about the shower because my husband is 6’ 2.

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Thank you! Your advice is appreciated. Not too concerned about the Ocean Medallion. Was only worried about the shower because my husband is 6’ 2.

 

 

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I used to be 6' 2" but now am only 6' 1". I'm not a "skinny" guy by any means and I fit in the shower just fine. Yes, I'd like a larger shower but I really don't have a problem using the small ones on Princess ships. I don't even have a problem with the shower curtain that seems to give so many people hassles. Either put some large binder clips on the bottom of the curtain to make it stay in place or else simply wet the bottom corners of the curtain and they will stick to the side of the shower opening pretty well.

I was on the Caribbean Princess last May for 2 weeks on a British Isles cruise. I enjoyed the cruise. The new eating venues are nice. Crew was great and ship appeared in good shape. I enjoyed it enough to book this May. I'm on the 11th sailing. The shortened port times is a little bit of a downer, but I'm planning on having a great cruise.

My husband and I are going to be on the May 1st Caribbean Princess and we are very excited about it. We came across these couple reviews that were recently posted here. The ship looks beautiful and the food looks amazing.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2579936

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2572524&highlight=CanadianBurger&page=2

Thank you! Your advice is appreciated. Not too concerned about the Ocean Medallion. Was only worried about the shower because my husband is 6’ 2.

 

 

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I am 6’4 and 275 lbs and have been on many Princess cruises and have had several normal sized showers. And while yes they are cramped it really didn’t bother me. Thrak and I are on same upcoming Caribbean Princess cruise. I really enjoy these size and class ship. I say go have a great time. I was never a fan of ocean medallion anyways so getting an extra $100 was just more and like Thrak said an extra sea day is alwayswelcomed.

You can always use the showers in the gym too. They're much more capacious.

. ;)

I was shocked on our last Princess cruise to find that children are permitted in the locker rooms. I found the one time filled with giggling 10 year olds. The policy says with parental supervision, but there were no parents to be seen. I stopped at the desk and questioned things--the response was that only the spa is adult only. The locker room and fitness center are open to kids (I think there is an age limit in the fitness center.)

Poor you! What a dilemma!

We were on the Caribbean Princess January 3-13. We were in Club Class and did not have any issues with the food or service. Certainly, the best food we have had in 16 Princess cruises.

I cannot comment on the showers as we were in a mini-suite. The binder-clip advice above is terrific advice.

I would strongly recommend that you enquire as to whether your port times will remain as previously provided to you. Because of the propulsion issues with the Caribbean Princess some of our port times were shortened. If you are looking forward to a particular port, you don't want to be disappointed if you end up having little time there. Of course there are always weather considerations that the cruise line does not have any control over that may change while you are on the ship but I am talking about the actual current scheduled port times. These may have changed since you booked.

You are celebrating two important milestones and therefore it is especially important that you have a great time. I think if you go and as you state " not expect too much" you are not being fair to yourselves. You are investing considerable time and money so to be worried before you go is

a shame.

I think you have two options a) You could switch your booking to a ship without a propulsion issue that includes a stop in Barbados as it is your favourite. We were there before Christmas and everything was operational and there were not any visible hurricane issues.

b) Continue with your current booking, forget all the negative things that you have read and look at the positives as you plan to celebrate your 50th anniversary and your husband's birthday.

You need to be comfortable with how you proceed.

Congratulations and Best wishes in whatever you do!

A friend and I spent a total of 30 consecutive days on The Caribbean Princess about a year and a half ago, cruising across the Atlantic from FLL to Southampton and then staying on for the British Isles itinerary. We loved the ship and would happily book another cruise on her. We had to miss a couple of ports due to weather/sea conditions, but that did not affect our overall enjoyment of our cruise.

We had a great time on the Caribbean Princess in August on a British isles cruise. The only time the engine problem was a problem was when we left Guernsey late and arrived in Cobh late. The captain adjusted the time we had in port by delaying departure to give us the same number of hours we were scheduled to have. Our independently booked excursion operator knew of the change and adjusted accordingly so we got to see everything we had planned to see.

The itineraries for the Caribbean Princess have been reworked to account for the engine problem. You should be getting what's now advertised.

The Caribbean Princess is the only Princess ship sailing the Caribbean during your timeframe. Celebrity's Equinox is doing a nice 10-day itinerary that goes to Grand Cayman, Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, and Key West. It's May 4-14.

We are on the March 18 sailing. If one called and complained about the Medallion being cancelled on the cruise Princess gave everybody $50 per person OBC as a consolation. You may well be able to receive the OBC if you ask. You will almost certainly have to mention it though as it was automagic for some but not for others.

 

 

 

The first port on our 14 day Circle Caribbean was canceled due to the propulsion issue but Princess also gave $50 per person OBC to make up for that. Personally, my wife and I were happy to get another sea day but the $50 each OBC was automagically applied for that issue and I didn't try to give it back.

Thanks, we did get $50. OBC each for the Barbados change, might try calling them about Medallion. Could put it towards buying Internet time.

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I used to be 6' 2" but now am only 6' 1". I'm not a "skinny" guy by any means and I fit in the shower just fine. Yes, I'd like a larger shower but I really don't have a problem using the small ones on Princess ships. I don't even have a problem with the shower curtain that seems to give so many people hassles. Either put some large binder clips on the bottom of the curtain to make it stay in place or else simply wet the bottom corners of the curtain and they will stick to the side of the shower opening pretty well.

Thank you! [emoji4]

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I was on the Caribbean Princess last May for 2 weeks on a British Isles cruise. I enjoyed the cruise. The new eating venues are nice. Crew was great and ship appeared in good shape. I enjoyed it enough to book this May. I'm on the 11th sailing. The shortened port times is a little bit of a downer, but I'm planning on having a great cruise.

Thanks for your positive comments, enjoy your cruise![emoji924]

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My husband and I are going to be on the May 1st Caribbean Princess and we are very excited about it. We came across these couple reviews that were recently posted here. The ship looks beautiful and the food looks amazing.

 

 

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2579936

 

 

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2572524&highlight=CanadianBurger&page=2

Thanks for the links, these photos are great. It was mostly the Caribbean Princess reviews on Cruisecritic.com that was causing us worry. Bye, fellow passengers, hope you have a great time.[emoji907]

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Poor you! What a dilemma!

 

 

We were on the Caribbean Princess January 3-13. We were in Club Class and did not have any issues with the food or service. Certainly, the best food we have had in 16 Princess cruises.

 

I cannot comment on the showers as we were in a mini-suite. The binder-clip advice above is terrific advice.

 

I would strongly recommend that you enquire as to whether your port times will remain as previously provided to you. Because of the propulsion issues with the Caribbean Princess some of our port times were shortened. If you are looking forward to a particular port, you don't want to be disappointed if you end up having little time there. Of course there are always weather considerations that the cruise line does not have any control over that may change while you are on the ship but I am talking about the actual current scheduled port times. These may have changed since you booked.

 

 

You are celebrating two important milestones and therefore it is especially important that you have a great time. I think if you go and as you state " not expect too much" you are not being fair to yourselves. You are investing considerable time and money so to be worried before you go is

a shame.

 

I think you have two options a) You could switch your booking to a ship without a propulsion issue that includes a stop in Barbados as it is your favourite. We were there before Christmas and everything was operational and there were not any visible hurricane issues.

b) Continue with your current booking, forget all the negative things that you have read and look at the positives as you plan to celebrate your 50th anniversary and your husband's birthday.

 

 

You need to be comfortable with how you proceed.

 

 

Congratulations and Best wishes in whatever you do!

Thank you for your wishes and taking the time to type this longer comment. I did research other ships but date wise and time wise they didn’t work for us. But, so far the response to my post has been quite positive on the ship, so I think we are feeling about the cruise.

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Thanks for the links, these photos are great. It was mostly the Caribbean Princess reviews on Cruisecritic.com that was causing us worry. Bye, fellow passengers, hope you have a great time.[emoji907]

 

 

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We're on the Caribbean Princess now and have been for over a month. The food is good. We were in Barbados yesterday. Crew is great, service excellent and no complaints at all about the food. We also just booked more cruises on this ship for May.

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We're on the Caribbean Princess now and have been for over a month. The food is good. We were in Barbados yesterday. Crew is great, service excellent and no complaints at all about the food. We also just booked more cruises on this ship for May.

 

 

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Thank you so much!!

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We had a great time on the Caribbean Princess in August on a British isles cruise. The only time the engine problem was a problem was when we left Guernsey late and arrived in Cobh late. The captain adjusted the time we had in port by delaying departure to give us the same number of hours we were scheduled to have. Our independently booked excursion operator knew of the change and adjusted accordingly so we got to see everything we had planned to see.

 

 

 

The itineraries for the Caribbean Princess have been reworked to account for the engine problem. You should be getting what's now advertised.

 

 

 

The Caribbean Princess is the only Princess ship sailing the Caribbean during your timeframe. Celebrity's Equinox is doing a nice 10-day itinerary that goes to Grand Cayman, Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, and Key West. It's May 4-14.

Thanks for your comment, I will take a look at the Equinox. The feedback on the Caribbean Princess has been good so far, my heart is feeling lighter[emoji846]

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The showers are the same size on all the Grand Class ships so there's no way to avoid that other than upgrading to the bathtub in the mini-suites or the shower in the full suites. Yes, the showers are small but somehow, thousands of people cope with them every day. If you're larger than maybe 300 lbs., you might have a problem. You can always use the showers in the gym too. They're much more capacious.

 

The recent reviews that I've seen have been very complimentary of the newly renovated Caribbean Princess, especially regarding the new dining options. Take ALL reviews, good and bad, with a grain of salt. You can find negativity everywhere if you look for it.

 

Is the Ocean Medallion program that important to you? If it is, then cancel. Otherwise, I think you'll never notice you don't have it. It will be like a normal cruise with a cruise card. Frankly, I think it'd be a lot easier because you don't have to learn the new technology. Just cruise as usual. ;)

OP;

Sound advice to follow.....:):):)

Bob

We were on last month. No issues to report. New beds in our favorite cabin ~ life was good. IMHO, most of the showers are small but manageable. And yes, it was a bummer to lose a bit of time due to the engine problems, but we knew in advance. Take the cruise ~ can't imagine you'd be disappointed. BTW, I think you should count your blessings not to be saddled with the "Medallion". I've read about so many issues with that setup....

Thank you very much, great to hear things are good. After the positive things people have been posting today..I’m now looking forward to the cruise. Thanks again “Cool Cruiser”

The showers are the same size on all the Grand Class ships so there's no way to avoid that other than upgrading to the bathtub in the mini-suites or the shower in the full suites. Yes, the showers are small but somehow, thousands of people cope with them every day. If you're larger than maybe 300 lbs., you might have a problem. You can always use the showers in the gym too. They're much more capacious.

 

The recent reviews that I've seen have been very complimentary of the newly renovated Caribbean Princess, especially regarding the new dining options. Take ALL reviews, good and bad, with a grain of salt. You can find negativity everywhere if you look for it.

 

Is the Ocean Medallion program that important to you? If it is, then cancel. Otherwise, I think you'll never notice you don't have it. It will be like a normal cruise with a cruise card. Frankly, I think it'd be a lot easier because you don't have to learn the new technology. Just cruise as usual. ;)

Nice reply. We are on the Caribbean P on Nov 25th. Have sail on the Grand Class ships several time and have enjoyed each cruise. As you said their are good and bad reviews. IMHO the Grand Class are great ships.