Coral Princess 11/5/10-11/15/10 Panama Canal Cruise Review

[grandbanksguy]

After months of anticipation we, and our friends Bev and Sid, were finally our US Air flight from Philly to FLL for our November 5th, 10-day Panama Canal cruise on the Coral Princess. We always arrive the day before a cruise, not wanting to let the airlines or the weather mess up our cruise plans. We arrived at 1:00PM and took the free shuttle for the 10 minute ride to the Hyatt Place Ft. Lauderdale Airport North Hotel. The Hyatt Place is an all-suite hotel that is conveniently located adjacent to the Harbor Shops Shopping Center and less than a mile from Port Everglades. At $116/nt, including breakfast and free shuttles from the airport and to the ship, we thought is was a good value for a 3-star hotel.

 

After checking in we walked over to the Harbor Shops for some lunch. There are at least 10 places from which to choose. We settled on the Lauderdale Grill, which is sort of a sports bar offering very good salads, sandwiches and southwestern/Mexican fare. The shopping center also has a Publix market for any of your last minute needs and a Total Wines store. We bought a mixed case of wine, which we had boxed to take on the ship. Later in the day our friends Barb and Joel from Delray Beach joined us for dinner at Gilbert’s, also in the Harbor Shops. Gilbert’s is not fancy, but offers excellent food at reasonable prices. I had one of the best burgers and sweet potato fries ever.

 

Next morning we were up early, had our free hotel breakfast, and walked across to the Publix in the Harbor Shops to do some last minute shopping for the cruise. It was very exciting to see the top of the Coral Princess from the Harbor Shop’s parking lot. We checked out of the hotel and took the free shuttle for the 5 minute trip to the ship. We arrived at 11:45, checked our luggage and gave the porter an extra $5 for safe handling of our case of wine. We were on board and in our cabin by 12:15.

 

We met our cabin attendant, Ronaldo, who provided us with first-class service throughout the entire cruise. He got us the robes and the top sheets that we had requested and opened the barrier on the balcony so that we could share the space with our friends Bev and Sid who were in the adjacent cabin. Then it was up to the Horizon Court buffet for our first meal of the journey. Our Meet & Greet was at 3:00 in the Explorer’s Lounge where we finally had the chance to meet the nice people that we had been communicating with over the past year or so. I had prepared the name tags for the M&G, which I had also done on so some of our prior cruises. Muster was at 4:15 and then it was up to 14th deck for the sail-a-way party and the excitement of sailing through the ship channel and out to sea while listening to the band playing island music.

 

As was the case on our prior Princess cruises, the food was excellent. We ate all of our breakfasts and lunches in the Horizon Court. We loved the vast selection of fresh fruit and salad choices on the buffets. The watermelon and pineapple were fabulous. For breakfast there were excellent hot baked apples and baked pears as well as made to order omelets, plus the usual assortment of pastries, breads, bagels and hot dishes. The banana pancakes were exceptionally good. There was either smoked fish or smoked salmon to go with your bagels. On the mornings when there was no lox on the buffet, you only had to ask one of the wait staff and he or she would disappear into the galley and return with a plate full of very good smoked salmon. The lunch buffet had different daily themes including a German Bierfest, Italian Trattoria & Pastry Extravaganza, Mexican and Asian & Sushi. There was always a meat carving station, fish dishes, fresh made sandwiches, soups and a wonderful selection of desserts. The warm bread pudding and rice pudding were both great as were the sugar-free desserts. My only real complaint was that they did not keep soy milk on the buffet. You needed to ask one of the wait staff for it and it usually took about 10 minutes for them to return from the galley with a cold glass full.

 

The Pizzeria, which is located outside by the Lido Pool, was also very good. The pizza was hand tossed with a very thin crust that did not droop when you picked it up. They had the traditional tomato and cheese pies, sausage and a daily special such as chili or anchovy. We also tried the grill, which is on the Sun deck overlooking the Lido Pool. They served-up very good hot dogs, sausages, grilled chicken, burgers and veggie-burgers along with very crisp French fries. It’s a good location to watch the NFL on MUTS on Sunday. And then there’s the Ice Cream Bar, located by the Lotus adults only pool, for soft serve cones, cups and thick shakes. It does wonders on top of a dish of hot apple cobbler from the Horizon Court buffet. Then every day at about 3:30 the cookie wagon makes its rounds on the Lido Deck serving up fresh and delicious, soft and chewy, chocolate chip, chocolate-chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies and ice cold milk. And lest I forget, there was a pop corn wagon from time to time by the Lido Bar for something to nipple on while watching the NFL games and movies.

 

The 4 of us had selected AD which is served in the Bordeaux Dinning Room on deck 5. As had been the case on past cruises, dinner the first night in AD was hectic. We arrived at the Bordeaux at 8 and waited on line for about 15 minutes before getting a pager, which started to ring just as we left the dinning room to find a place to wait. The prime rib featured that night was excellent and came out medium-rare just as I like it. Sid likes his well done and was served a huge end cut. The next morning I called for dinner reservations at 8:30AM when they start. They do not give out reservations in AD for seating between 6 and 8, so we settled on 8. As this was formal night, eating at 8 gave us plenty of time to attend the champagne waterfall ceremony, have our formal pictures taken and enjoy plenty of free bubbly before dinner.

 

Night 3 we decided to eat dinner at Sabatini’s, which had always been one of the highlights on our prior Princess cruises. But Sabatini’s was not up to par for us that evening. There was some confusion with the soup course, but the main problem was with the entrées. Linda’s langoustines and Sid’s and my veal chops were all excellent, but Bev’s lobster tail was raw in the center. The server had cut into it to check because another table had sent their lobster tail back because it was also under cooked. It took about 20 minutes for Bev’s lobster to reappear. By this time Linda, Sid and I had finished most of our course and Bev’s lobster was now totally over cooked and not edible. We are not complainers and were not interested in creating an issue, so we just let the experience slide by.

 

Evening 4 we were back at the Bordeaux at 8 where we were greeted by Head Waiter Alex and taken to table 60 that was attended by Sergio. What a difference a day makes. Alex and Sergio were true professionals and made our dinning experience a joy. We told Alex how mush we enjoyed Sergio and he arranged for us to have table 60 at 8:00PM for the remainder of the cruise. On lobster night we told Alex that the lobster tails were excellent, but our experience with the lobster in Sabatini’s had been very disappointing. Within 5 minutes, Richard, the head of the ship’s specialty restaurants was at our table and apologized for the less than satisfactory meal we had at Sabatini’s and said that the $20/pp surcharges would be taken off our bills. That evening when we returned to our cabins we each found a bottle of champagne and a tray of chocolate covered strawberries complements of Sabatini’s. That’s just another example of Princess doing things right for their passengers. Very classy. Princess will also prepare special dishes for you if you give them enough time. One evening we asked Sergio if we could get fried calamari for an appetizer at sometime. Sergio called over Head Waiter Alex and 2 nights later we were presented with a large tray of very good crispy calamari with a spicy tomato dipping sauce for our appetizer course. After we had mentioned to Alex that Bev and Sid would be celebrating their 44th anniversary in a few days, our table was presented with a very nice cake on the day of the celebration and, of course, they were serenaded on the occasion.

 

We really loved the itinerary of the 10-day Panama Canal Cruise. In September 2009 we were on the Ruby Princess Grand Mediterranean 12-day cruise, which was very port intensive with only two sea days. So this time we were looking for more time to relax. The 10-day Canal cruise with its 4 days at sea provided us with the right mix of touring and relaxation. On previous cruises we have generally booked private tours with fellow Cruise Critic members. But on this cruise we opted to go with Princess’ tours in Cartagena, Panama and Costa Rica.

 

We had nothing preplanned for Aruba as we were only there for 5 hours. Just as we got off the gangway in Oranjestad there were 2-hour island tours being offered for $20/pp. We walked another 500 ft or so where there were a number of additional tour buses. We settled on a 2-hour bus tour for $15/pp. The tour was in an A/C bus with a very delightful and knowledgeable driver/guide. After the tour we were dropped off in Oranjestad, which is a very safe, picture postcard town with lots of good place for shopping. This gave us an hour for browsing before noon when we had to be back on board.

 

We were only in Cartagena for 5-1/2 hours and had selected Princess’ Cartagena Old City Walking Tour. We travel by bus from the ship, entering the Old City, which is free of vehicular traffic, through the old gates. The tour included a 2-hour guided walk and about an hour of free time. The Old City is really quite lovely with its colonial architecture, wrought iron balconies and beautiful parks and city squares. There were street vendors all around who were constantly trying to sell you souvenirs, but a polite no thank you and you were left alone. We never felt intimidated. We would have liked to have more time to explore on our own, but as we were there during the height of the day, we soon yearned for the cool of the air-conditioned bus.

 

Since we were not transiting the Panama Canal, the ship only went through the first set of locks and anchored in Gatun Lake. If you were not on a Princess tour, you could not leave the ship. So we opted for the Panama Canal Experience by Boat. This tour took us by ship tender to the Gatun Yacht Club and then by bus to Gamboa where we boarded a 250 person passenger ferry and transited the Canal through the Pedro Miguel and Miraflores Locks into the Pacific. This was a fabulous trip as we got to see the working of the locks up close and actually got to touch the walls of the locks as we were being lowered. We also had the added benefit of traveling through Panama City, with its fabulous modern skyline, on the way back to Limon to rejoin the Coral. An adequate Panamanian buffet lunch and unlimited soft drinks and bottled water were provided onboard the ferry.

 

Visiting the Costa Rican rainforest was the primary reason that we had selected this cruise itinerary in the first place. To get the full experience we had signed up for Princess’ Costa Rica’s Favorites with lunch which took up the entire day ashore. After a 2-hour bus ride we arrived at the rainforest where we took an 80 min ride in an open-air gondola car. The cars accommodated 6 passengers plus a guide and traveled as high as 120 ft high in the canopy. The views through the canopy were fabulous and the guide was extremely knowledgeable. His ability to locate and point out wildlife and plant species was absolutely amazing. After the tram ride we were served a very good Costa Rican lunch buffet and then went on a short, guided nature walk. We felt very fortunate that we saw so much wildlife including howler monkeys, toucans and humming birds and the ubiquitous leafcutter ants. Then it was back on the bus for another hour to the Tortuguero Canals where we took a 2 hour cruise on a small covered boat. Again, we had a very experienced guide who located and pointed out all kinds of creatures including more howlers, two and three toed sloths, iguanas and water birds. As we had been backtracking since leaving the tram ride, it was only about a half hour ride to Limon and the ship.

 

We had not planned on going ashore in Ocho Rios, having been there many times before and did not want to run the gauntlet of very aggressive people trying to sell you tours and taxi rides. But since a new pier that leads directly to the shopping area has opened since our last visit, we decided to venture ashore. There were still the aggressive hawkers, but they were compressed into a shorter distance. We simple said no thank you, we have been here many times before. Once inside the Island Village and other shopping areas there was very little hassling. We dropped into Margaritaville to take advantage of their free wifi connection, bought a few gifts for the grandchildren at Paraná Joe and headed back to the ship after about an hour on shore.

 

As far as the entrainment goes, the Coral’s was very good. We try to eat dinner at 8 so that we can take in the 7 to 8 PM show in the Universe Lounge, the 10:15 shows in the Princess Theater and then head to one of the many lounges for music and dancing. The production shows were both very good, as was the Coral Princess International Crew Show. Comedian Gary Delena had us rolling in the aisles with his original material, but we could have done without comedian hypnotist Asad Mecci. We have seen much better hypnotists on other cruises. The classical concert by The Joszef Triio was excellent as was the vocal and instrument combo that played Caribbean music on the Lido deck on sea days. And then there was Maurizio who played to standing room audiences nightly in Crooners Lounge and also performed a show in the Universe Lounge. Maurizio is a piano virtuoso and singer who reminded me of an Italian Liberace. He always had the women swooning.

 

The ship sailed full but never felt crowded. We were always able to find lounge chairs in the shade on Lido, tables to dine at in the Horizon Court and seats in the theater. We found the public areas and rest rooms to always be clean and the crew very attentive and helpful. We didn’t partake of the many of the extracurricular activities, but there certainly were many to choose from if you so desired. When not enjoying a meal, attending a show or off touring somewhere, we appreciated the time that to catch up on our reading.

 

Disembarkation was a snap. We elected to use the new EZ system, which at $20/pp was a bargain. The last evening onboard we received our boarding passes and luggage tags. Our luggage was checked through to our destination, so we did not have to rummage through the luggage at the port to find our baggage and then drag them through immigration and onto the airport bus. And we also had our boarding passes in hand and did not have to get in line again at the airport to print them out.

 

Our last act on the Coral was to purchase Future Cruise Certificates so that we can start planning our next Princess cruise and take advantage of those FCC’s.

[Guest arowe6]

Great review. We did the same itinerary as you on the Island Princess 2 years ago and found it as amazing as you did.

 

-Andrew :)

[MichTraveler]

Excellent review. I love the Coral and haven't done many 10-day itineraries, but this one could be it. Sounds like you have a great time. Thanks for sharing

[lovevacadays]

Thank you for the review. It makes me want to look at doing a Panama Canal cruise in the future.

[rdsqrl]

Thanks for the enjoyable review; glad to hear the Coral is still as wonderful as she was last year.

Like you, I did the Cartagena Walking Tour and was also disappointed at not having some time to wander on my own through the Old City. Definitely a place I'd like to return to.

Thanks again for sharing the details of your trip!

[Pachutabelle]

Wonderful, wonderful review. Thank you for posting. Your discription of shore tours was very helpful and concise.

[LollyMoz]

I'd love to take a Panama Canal cruise...your review was very helpful and enjoyable. Thanks for sharing!

[dshefter]

Great review. We sail on the Coral in two days. We also have the Panama by Boat tour arranged through Princess and I was glad to hear that you get to see the remaining two locks. After reading Path Between the Seas, I am anxious to see these two locks as well as experience the Culebra Cut.

 

We are doing Traditional Dining, but happy to hear about the great food.

 

One question: What kind of sushi did they offer in the Horizon Court? Was it rolls only? Or did they also have regular sushi such as salmon, tuna, shrimp, yellowtail, etc...

 

Can't wait to board the Coral. This will be our first Princess Cruise.

[grandbanksguy]

I was fascinated by the operation of the electric mules. I thought that their role was to pull the ships through the locks, but they are primarily there to keep the ships center as they transverse the locks. You may also be able to see some wildlife from the ferry. We saw a koala mundi. Regarding the sushi, there was a large assortment of rolls. Don’t recall any sashimi.

[dresch25]

Thank-you for your review. It brought me back to our first cruise. This was our first on the same ship. Now we are hooked and can't get enough cruises. If only I didn't have to work :(

[metz]

Thanks for an excellent review, Chris & I are bound for the Panama toward the end of January 2011 on the Coral, can't wait.

[gertz]

Thank you for bringing up memories. We have done this cruise twice once on the Crown and once on the Regal. Have some fond memories of Cartagena and the Costa Rica jungle tour are some of the best we have ever taken. The Coral is also one of our most favorite ships.

Thanks

[Woobstr112G]

Thanks fo rtaking the time to post your review.....:):):)

 

Bob

[dshefter]

Thanks for the info on the sushi. Figured there would be rolls. I can handle that. I'm a big sushi guy. My wife not so much.

 

Can't wait to see the Canal.

 

Anyone doing this cruise for the first time should read A Path Between the Seas. It provides outstanding insight into the Canal and the complete back story. Wonderfully written book.

[avalong]

Beautifully written, thoroughly entertaining review! Felt like I was there. Definitely want to take that shore excursion in Costa Rica some day.

[helenb]

What kind of entertainment is happening on the Coral right now? What are the best (not to be missed) shows?

[njdevil08]

Great review! Thanks! We're looking into this itinerary so it's great to read about it.

[grandbanksguy]

What kind of entertainment is happening on the Coral right now? What are the best (not to be missed) shows?

 

Don't miss Maurizio's Cabaret Showtime, Motown and Tribute. The Adrian Zmed In Concert was spectacular as was Dance. The Crew Show was very entertaining and comedian Gary Delena was a hoot.

[boating girl]

Thank you for the great review. We will be on her soon; boarding on 12/5.

Everything I read about the Coral is pretty positive. Looking forward to it.

[dresch25]

Don't miss Maurizio's Cabaret Showtime, Motown and Tribute. The Adrian Zmed In Concert was spectacular as was Dance. The Crew Show was very entertaining and comedian Gary Delena was a hoot.

 

Was he (Adrian Zmed) the guy from TJ Hooker? THe tv show from the 80's?

[grandbanksguy]

Was he (Adrian Zmed) the guy from TJ Hooker? THe tv show from the 80's?

 

That's him. He was fabulous.

[rn4travel]

WHAT A WONDERFUL REVIEW! We are leaving Dec 20th on the Island for the same itenary and are getting quite excited. Can you tell me if you think it is possible for me to take my husband on the walking tour in Cartegena using a wheelchair? He can walk but not very far. Are the streets cobblestoned? He really wants to go on this tour.

I was also pleased to read your report on the Costa Rica tour. We are signed up for that one as well, and will be taking our two nieces with us, age 12 and 15. It is a long day but worth it it sounds like.

We will be in the canal on Christmas Day, and have decided not to do a tour because the kids want to partake of all the Christmas activities.

Thank you again for all of your positive information.

[dresch25]

That's him. He was fabulous.

 

What type of entertainment did he provide?

[grandbanksguy]

What type of entertainment did he provide?

 

Singing and dancing with the Coral Princess Singers and Dancers. He's very good. Reminded me of Tom Jones.

[grandbanksguy]

Great review. We sail on the Coral in two days. We also have the Panama by Boat tour arranged through Princess and I was glad to hear that you get to see the remaining two locks. After reading Path Between the Seas, I am anxious to see these two locks as well as experience the Culebra Cut.