Crown Princess British Isles 5/22/11 review Part B- ship

[Nanatravel]

Crown Princess Embarkation

 

We arrived about 11:30AM after looking for the correct pier. Due to staggered embarkation; we are Platinum and on Aloha deck, we were allowed to board immediately. Our friends also dropped off their luggage but Dolphin deck mini-suites weren’t scheduled to board until 3PM. They took a taxi into Southampton to buy some wine. In my opinion, they could have boarded with us as there were no lines.

 

Cabin A304, HA was mid-ship near the forward bank of elevators. It was a good location but a long walk to dining options aft in the Horizon Court or Botticelli Dining room. Only aft elevators will take you there directly. We had paid to upgrade to this large room when it came available at the last minute, which also had a longer balcony. Even though the temps were chilly and damp many days, it was a great place to take morning arrival photos.

 

Marcos was our cabin Steward. Our requested Egg crate was on the bed but he never delivered our robes. He did keep the ice bucket full and even put a large one in our mini-fridge. The cabin still did not have a love seat and it had plenty of room for it. The closet is in the room, there are two double nightstands with 4 draws each, and the bathroom only has 2 small shelves at the sink and 2 in the shower area. It was nice to have a large bathroom which was totally wheelchair accessible.

 

Sail Away: Caribe Café –Cruise Critics met inside. It was great to finally meet so many on the first day, who had been on the Roll Call.

 

Meet & Mingle: Skywalker’s 7:30PM Monday Formal Night- More than 120 folks stopped by totally for one or both meetings. Our roll call was at 207 when we left the USA.

 

Dining:

 

Breakfast:

Due to 9 out of 10 early morning tours and the outbreak of the Norovirus, we opted for daily room service. We wrote in an earlier time i.e.; 6:30AM and the server was there like our alarm clock with our order. Since there is 24 hr. room service, you can request an earlier delivery; just write it next to the time. It gave us a chance to leisurely get ready for the day and enjoy a decent breakfast. Egg McMuffins are now available and arrived very hot. I just knew the lines would get long in the buffet as service was by waiter only to prevent cross contamination.

 

On 3 mornings we/I went to the DaVinci dining room serving breakfast from 7:30 to 9:30 AM, but service was pretty slow even before the virus outbreak. One morning, I waited about 5 to 10 minutes for butter or jam for my now cold toast. Again, they had to serve everything.

 

Lunch:

Due to the itinerary being so port intensive, we only ate lunch onboard 3 times; embarkation buffet, Wheelhouse Pub lunch of Fish & Chips (lines were even long at 1:30PM). They had a lot of servers but the kitchen was a little slow. We sat at the bar. We had pizza on Lido deck on the last sea day and sat in the crowded HC.

 

International Café:

Great – bought our coffee card on the 2nd afternoon @ $30+ for one card. There was no discount coupon. However, the Coupon booklet received in our cabin did have a coupon for a nice free travel mug. We enjoyed a specialty coffee, salads, pastries and 3 scoops of gelato @ $1.50 almost every afternoon. There was no issue using one card for 2 beverages. At first we would take turns going to the counter to order, but later, it was apparent they would just make the appropriate number of punches per beverages purchased.

 

Late Traditional 8:15PM@ the Bottichilli dining room

Our server for 11 of the 12 nights was Elena from Bulgaria and her assistant Aaron. Both were very good servers and put to the test during the Code Red for the Norovirus outbreak. Everything had to be individually served; butter & bread. We had pre-arranged to sit with Cruise Critics we had met 4 years ago on our Med cruise and their friends. Our table arrangement worked out very well. We shared daily updates, tours and events, wine and had a great time with both of these couples. Food was enjoyable. Only found the menu lacking on the last night of our 12 night options. I ordered off the daily standard alternative menu Beef Medallions but I didn’t like the taste at all.

 

Alternate Dining: Crown Grill

With new friends, we dined on the 3rd night. I ordered the Rib Eye and my husband had the filet. Our waiter brought a plate of lobster tails that were very small and shrimp to share. It was good to have a taste and I was glad that I hadn’t bothered to order the lobster. As a New Englander, there is a big difference in taste. It was a very nice evening shared with new friends. Service fee $25pp. I could not finish all of my steak.

 

Chef’s Table

Our dining tablemates went to the Chef’s Table the same night. They raved about it. Good thing they had been accepted for the first night. The subsequent schedule for the same dining experience was cancelled due to the Norovirus outbreak.

 

Vines

This was a Great late afternoon/early evening spot to enjoy a glass of wine and Tapas and/or Sushi (free). This was a great way to unwind.

 

*Note – there were NO drinks of the day nor Happy Hour beverage sales.

 

Skywalkers Elite, Platinum, Suites Happy Hour 5-7PM – OK - some days hors d’ouerves were better than others.

 

Entertainment

Again, due to this port intensive itinerary, this was not a cruise where we expected to be up late each night after dinner. For probably at least half of the cruise, the Casino was closed. UK rule is if the ship is within a 12 mile radius of land, the casino can not open. This was exceptionally difficult on the 1st sea day. Glad we don’t prefer to gamble.

 

We went to one Singers & Dancer’s show and to the Ray Cousin’s Frank Sinatra show in the Princess Theater. Both were just fine. Stopped by Crooner’s one night but Ray was on a break. He returned but sat with folks and didn’t return to the piano. It was too late to just sit there to wait to hear him perform. Wheelhouse Lounge had a good band and female soloist for dancing.

 

It was much too cold to sit and enjoy MUTS. We did try to catch the King’s Speech in the Princess Theater for a while, but had a conflict appointment at the spa which interrupted our plans.

 

Spa

My husband had a full body massage on our sea day at 8AM. When booked from home in April, this was the only time I could get. I noticed a brave soul soaking in the heated Jacuzzi in the spa/lap pool area. This area is not covered but opens to the elements. Steam was rising from the hot tub.

[grandmaa]

Thanks for your review. We have friends who are sailing on the Crown June 15..not members of CC so I have printed your comments(A&B) for them to read. Again thank you..

[Nanatravel]

Great. A knowledgable traveler will have an even better time. Many of our CC friends did not realize you could "write" in an earlier time for morning breakfast/room service. With the early morning tours and the Norovirus, it really helped us to be able to get breakfast conveniently. Just a few $$ tip to the server at the time of serviceis all that is needed.